Celebrities Share Surprisingly Useful Parenting Advice

Celebrity Advice

Celebrities are often revered by the public and often asked for advice. Well, we’ve found some of the best parenting advice directly from celebrities’ mouths.

From Hollywood heavyweights like Dwayne Johnson to veteran actors like Brad Pitt, we’re sure there’s something for everyone on this parenting do’s and don’ts list. Strap in and prepare to learn a thing or two.

Dwayne Johnson

Dwayne Johnson’s approach to parenting is a little different from the norm. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t an inspiring method, especially when it comes to his daughter, Jasmine.

“By 5, you’ll be looking people in the eye when you firmly shake their hand. By 8, you’ll know how to fish, drive daddy’s pick-up truck, and do cardio. And by 10, you’ll be able to directly say to people, ‘Great job, I like it a lot, but let’s see how we can make it better.”

Jack Nicholson

Nicholson gives his children what he called “unconventional love.”

In an interview, he went on to say, “What do I do well as a father? I’m there all the time. I give unconditional love. And I have a lot of skills in terms of getting them to express themselves. I’m good with handy hints — if they can tell me what their problem is — ‘cos I’ve had a lot of problems in life myself.”

“I make an effort to expose them to things. I want them to have a deep, inner feeling that it’s alright to be happy, that you don’t have to be constantly manufacturing problems that you don’t really have.”

Ice Cube

Ice Cube particularly cares about his involvement in his children’s lives, not just as a parent but as a fatherly figure.

“Don’t leave it up to the mother to raise your kids. You need to be just as involved. Just being there is not being there. You have to be there and be involved. Don’t sit on the sideline and leave it for your wife to do.”

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt knows a thing or two about being a dad. The father has more children than most with Angelina Jolie. Pitt had the following to say in an interview.

“I mean, there’s an age of understanding, so you’ve got to present it in a way that is age-appropriate, but we know our children very well. We want everything to be on the table and any questions they have for them to ask.”

Blake Lively

Blake Lively had an unorthodox way of dealing with problems around the house. We bet not many other people have a suggestion box for their children.

“I think it would be the greatest thing in the world to have a comment box in your home. I want to do it with my kids, and I’m begging my sister to do it with hers.

The kids could leave comments on what they could do better or what the other kids could do better. Like when you leave a comment with management in a restaurant.”

Drew Barrymore

Barrymore has the forethought to have a system in place to make sure her child knows where she is when she’s working. She said in an interview, “I wanted to give her a tool, so she could understand and gauge life when I am working.”

“That way, she can see that I am gone at first, still away in the middle, and then coming back towards the end. She now has a good sense of my geographic place from the globe. She knows when I am leaving and coming home.”

Melissa McCarthy

Melissa McCarthy shows that there are ways to work hard, even with a kid around. She makes sure that her kids share the same exact routine that she does, even if it’s a difficult one.

She told an interviewer, “We like to hit it hard around 4 p.m., early bird special, and then at 8 o’clock, we put the kids down.”

Ewan McGregor

“Pay attention: I recognize it can be boring to play with young children – to tell a story over and over again, let’s say – but the secret is being there.

If you’ve made a decision to play with your children, then play with them. Don’t be looking through papers on your desk or sneaking off to the computer.”

He continued, “Turn off your BlackBerry. Lose yourself in their world. Even if you do it for a short time, it will mean a lot to you and to them,” McGregor said.

Tobey Maguire

What does Spider-Man have to say about parenting? Well, Toby Maguire has a thing or two about being a good father. He believes in RIE parenting; in this way of parenting, there is no singing to or rocking their babies.

Parents are also discouraged from buying playpens, mirrors, and dangling mobiles. The principle teaching is that children need natural stimulation and relaxation.

Mark Hamill

Mark Hamill believes in honesty more than anything else. He revealed in an interview, “All the basics. It is not reinventing the wheel. Honesty, the golden rule, treating people the way you would want to be treated.”

“All those sorts of things like kindness and selflessness, trying to do the right thing. It sounds corny when you put them into words, but I have been very lucky. It is not an easy journey.

They go through the arc of life, and there could be troubling times, but you stick with it, and they come through.”

Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood has no delusions that he’s the only teacher around. He knows that his children can teach him a thing or two about

“Children teach you that you can still be humbled by life, that you learn something new all the time. That’s the secret to life, really — never stop learning.”

Christina Aguilera

She told interviewers at Us Weekly, “I think it’s important that he sees mommy not be ashamed of her sexuality.”

“I mean, he’s 2. We’re art collectors. There are a lot of female nudes around the house. Max will be growing up in a house where it’s just the norm. It’s only weird when you shame it.”

Elizabeth Banks

Elizabeth Banks doesn’t beat around the bush. She knows exactly how a modern mother should be, and the word perfect doesn’t describe it.

“Be open to any help. Many moms today feel they have to be super moms, while historically, we’ve always had a village to pitch in. I think it’s really important to know when to ask for help.”

Hilary Duff

Duff has learned from her past experiences and is happy to pass on her advice to any mom that needs it. This tip will make sure that you’re always prepared on a plane.

“He had an extra outfit, but I didn’t. That was an interesting last hour and a half of the plane ride. He was clean, he was good, I wasn’t. So I’ve shoved an extra T-shirt into my bag ever since.”

Debra Messing

Debra Missings has found a way to make sure that her children’s tantrums don’t blow out of proportion. She has an odd trick that doesn’t seem like it would work, but it really does.

“Singing Broadway musicals are a really great distraction from temper tantrums,” Debra Messing said.

Chance the Rapper

Chance The Rapper has some parenting hacks that will make sure no little girl gets hurt by a comb ever again. It requires a bit of prep but is well worth the payoff.

Said on Twitter, “Doin’ yo lil baby’s hair without that comb hurting her head cheat code: 1. Water 2. Argan Oil 3. Shea Butter 4. WIDE tooth comb.”

Kristen Bell

Kirsten Bell has a fun way of making sure her children are safe during road trips, which she revealed on Instagram. It’s something that more parents should do.

“The phrase we say as we jump out of the car, ‘Hands on the circle’ (the circle is the gas cap), was invented by my brilliant sister-in-law and has thus far kept all kiddos safe from any oncoming traffic while I unload the trunk.”

Tina Frey

Tina Fey has advice that isn’t intuitive to most parents. She thinks it’s okay not to get to everything on your to-do list as long as you’re getting a good night’s rest.

“You just have to go to sleep. There’s a strong desire to get stuff done and be an adult but just go to bed. Blow off sending your family birthday cards or setting the table for Thanksgiving – just go to sleep whenever you can. I just go to bed all the time.”

Jada Pinkett Smith

Jada Pinkett Smith is a big believer in giving her children privacy and independence. She doesn’t like helicopter parenting and thinks it actually makes children less responsible.

“Staying out of kids’ space can teach them to be responsible for their own decisions and mistakes. Is it their room, or are they borrowing the space while they’re living in your house?

If it’s theirs, then they should be able to do whatever they want with it. If it’s their clothes, they have the right to do whatever they want with those clothes.”

Busy Philipps

Philipps believes that a great way to encourage her children to behave is to use their siblings as competitors. That way, they will always be trying to see who is best behaved.

“I use sibling rivalry. I’m like, ‘I feel like Cricket’s going to finish her broccoli first,’ and then Birdie’s like, ‘I can finish it first.'”

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Here’s something unconventional for most parents. When her child wastes their food, they have dire consequences. Gellar makes her children actually pay for food waste.

“My daughter was doing this thing lately where she was asking me for a cup of milk and not drinking it. So I told her that every time she’d ask me for a cup of milk and not drink it, I would take a quarter out of her piggy bank. Someone has to pay for that milk,” Gellar said.

Gisele Bündchen

Gisele Bündchen managed to “potty train” her son at a record pace, all due to something she calls “elimination communication.” Something unheard of normally.

She said that her son would need the bathroom right after his meals every day. As part of her strange method, she would carry him around and take him to the bathroom after a few minutes, “Give it about five minutes, and bang,” she said.

Jennifer Garner

Jennifer Garner seems like the quintessential supermom from Hollywood. Her newest piece of advice is to let children feel their feelings.

“Our kids need to be allowed to have a bad day. And you need to show them that it’s okay to have a whole range of emotions. You should have it all — rage and anger and sadness, so there is a lot of room for joy and happiness as well.”

Angelina Jolie

Angelina Jolie is another mom that believes in mistakes. No mother can be perfect despite trying their best. It’s about giving it your all as a mother.

“It is a lovely thing to discover that your children don’t want you perfect. They just want you to be honest. And do your best.” She said in an interview.

John Krasinski

Who knew the likable Jim from The Office would turn out to be an excellent father? Well, Krasinski has some dad advice that really hits home.

“I’m a big fan of being open about the truth and how you really feel and not putting on a pretty face for everybody. No one really tells you that it’s hard and there are sleepless nights.

Kids get sick, kids fall down and get hurt, and all these things are really intense and really emotionally difficult.”

Jay-Z

Jay-Z, in an interview, shared some fundamental goals on what parents should be trying to achieve with their kids. His words are an inspiration to any parent.

“We just need to make sure we provide a loving environment and be very attentive to who they want to be. It’s easy for us as human beings to want our children to do certain things, but we have no idea. We’re just guides.”

Michelle Obama

The former first lady of the White House is sure to have some great tips for looking after children. Michelle Obama talks about giving children an early advantage.

“If you are looking for a child to be self-reliant when they’re 21 or 22, you have to make them practice that as early as 5 or 6 or 7 years old.

If you don’t teach a kid how to wake up on their own when they’re young, yeah, you could be waking them up for the rest of their lives because you don’t make them practice it.”

Mindy Kaling

Mindy Kaling doesn’t think that it’s a problem being a single mother. She believes that it’s okay to ask for a little help from the community.

“As a single mom, it really does take a village. Yes, I am the parent of my two children — but there are all these other caregivers in the form of family, friends, and nannies,” she told Today.

“I couldn’t do it without the village. Absolving myself of guilt for depending on others has been the biggest piece of advice that has helped me.”

Viola Davis

Viola Davis is another Hollywood mom that seems to know what she’s doing. Her advice extends beyond that of just a general lifestyle. Her parenting advice is also solid.

“I will not be a mystery to my daughter. She will know me, and I will share my stories with her — the stories of failure, shame, and accomplishment.”

Robin Arzon

Robin Arzon is the third mother on this list to talk about mother guilt. It seems like an important concern that a lot of mothers need to hear the truth about.

“Mom’s guilt is real, so I am really proud that I was able to prioritize my training. I wanted to show myself, my family, and Athena that I’m still going to claim my finish lines because that’s going to make me stronger for the family.”

In order to protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events, places, or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.