Floyd Mayweather Sr.'s Father's Day Tip

Father’s Day is a day that we reflect on our dads – or daddies, in some cases -- and show them love. One proud father is Floyd Mayweather Sr., the father of the top pound-for-pound boxer in the world, Floyd “Money” Mayweather. Like many fathers and sons, their relationship has gone through some serious ups and downs, but through it all, as it is with most families, love has been the bond to bring them back together. With plenty of experience to share while raising a champion, here are some Father’s Day tips from Floyd Mayweather Sr. Q1: AskMen.com : There have been times when you have been an integral part of your son’s training and then there have been some times when he has asked to grow on his own. What advice do you have to give to fathers out there when their sons similarly ask for their space? Floyd Mayweather Sr. : I think you should be a father and let them work out, and find out what’s really out there for them. Let them know that at the end of the day, find what the product can provide for you. I think it’s a great thing that some kids like to get out on their own and branch out and feel what they want to do, and what they can do. I think that’s a plus to them. Q2: AM : What advice do you have for fathers that might find it hard to step back and let go? FMS : You work, and you give and you grow your kids up, and you’re close to them; it’s kind of difficult to let go. But you’ve got to let go. Sooner or later, they’re not going to be a kid forever. So you got to let loose. And whatever they are doing, you should motivate them to get better or bigger at whatever they’re doing. Q3: AM : What do you consider to be the secret to being a good father? FMS : The only thing I can speak on is giving your kids, and your grandkids, much, much love. You’d be surprised how far that love will go. Q4: AM : What’s your proudest moment as a father? FMS : My proudest moment as a father is that I developed the best fighter in the world. He is my son and he is my blood, the blood runs through me, and I appreciate what I created. Just his life, I think. Q5: AM : Looking back, what mistakes did you make in raising your son? FMS : I’m a be honest with you: I think one of the mistakes that I did was I went to prison. And that was my mistake. I was there for my son, I supported my son, I bought for my son -- I even did what I did in the drug field to provide for my son, and to get him where he is today. And to be honest with you, that’s why I ended up in prison. I tried to support my son in any way and any manner -- and I did the same thing with my daughter. I feel like me being separated from my son for three and a half years, I feel like there was a big space in between there and I feel like it took away the bond that we had there. Still today I don’t think the bond is where it should be. At the end of the day, everything that I did, can’t nobody do anything over. I came out in 1997 and I’ve been a stand-up citizen ever since. What I done is already done, so it is what it is. Q6: AM : What advice to you have for a father who is looking to reconcile with his son after being estranged from one another? FMS : You got to look at it both ways, you know. I’m not saying that I’m perfect and I’m not saying that my son is perfect. There’s no human being on this planet that’s perfect; we all do wrong. But I’m still a father and I’m going to be a father and I let him continue to do what he’s doing. At the end of the day, love has to bring you back to your roots. Q7: AM : When it’s all said and done, is love the bond that can bring everyone back together? FMS : Nothing grows over night, you know. Things are still going to take time and things still have to mend and grow. Sometimes it takes a bigger person to say, “Hey, let’s not do this and let’s get together, man.” Whatever happens, you have to know that you have one life to live and live it to the fullest and be the best you can be, and keep your kids a part of whatever you’re doing. Family bond -- that’s what it is about. Q8: AM : What advice would you give your own son as he raises his boys? FMS : We haven’t even had a chance to get around to none of that. All I do when I see my grandkids is I kiss them, I hug them and I love them. And to me, that’s the biggest thing in this world. It’s not so much about money -- even though I do give them quite a bit -- it’s about them and I love them. I love them all day every day -- not just Father’s Day. It's 365 days a year here. That’s what it is. Q9: AM : As a parent, what do you wish you had done more of or less of? FMS : You know, I never think less; I always think more. I always think you can do more. There’s a lot of things that you can do, and sometimes you look back and notice that you passed some over – there are things that you could have , that you regret. At the end of the day, you have to trust that you took the right road. I took the right road, and that road put me where I am today. I can’t speak for all fathers, but do what you can, if you can. Not all grandfathers or fathers can do everything for their kids and grandkids, but my advice is do what you can because if you do that, then you give love. If you give them nothing else, you give them love -- that’s what they should have because they’re your blood. Q10: AM : How do you keep a cocky son in check? FMS : Sometimes parents get balled out about what their kids do -- “Oh he’s so cocky, oh he’s so this and that.” Other parents look over and think they their kids don’t get them respect. When I got a point to make, I’m a get it across one way or the other. You know what -- I was a cocky guy myself. I talked a bunch of bull stuff... but I wasn’t so vulgar. At the end of the day, it’s not the parent, it’s the kid. Once you get grown, you on your own. That’s what it is. Kids, you know, they go to school and sometimes they hang out with little thugs and they talk all kind of different ways, and a lot of that stuff rubs off on your kids. And as a parent, you might not be aware what’s going on if you’re at work or if you’re at home and your kids are in the street doing all kinds of things -- you don’t know what they’re doing. At the end of the day, we raise our kids but they get grown and then they do what they want to do. Simple. You ain’t going to change it.