On the latest episode of the “New Heights” podcast, hosted by football players and brothers Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce, actor Matt Damon made an appearance to chat and promote his new movie, The Rip.
As the trio spoke, they got onto the topic of family and parenting.
Travis pointed out that Matt and Jason are both “girl dads” of four daughters.
Because Matt’s daughters are all in their teens and 20s now, Travis asked if he had any advice for Jason, whose daughters are all age six and under.
“Man, I got nothing. I got nothing for you. You’re in it. You’re in it,” Matt initially replied in the interview.
Jason then said that he often gets asked for parenting advice since he has multiple kids, but that in his opinion, no advice you can give will ever be universal.
“My first thing I tell people with advice with kids is ‘don’t listen to any advice anybody else gives,’” Jason said with a laugh.
Jason went on to explain that even from one of his kids to the next, he couldn’t parent the exact same way because every child learns and receives things differently.
“They’re all so different,” he said to Matt. “I don’t know how you feel about yours, but the moment one comes out, they’re, like, more sensitive. This one’s a little bit more, like rambunctious. Like, every single one of them is, like, their own person.”
Matt agreed, saying he used to go back and forth on whether kids’ personalities were due to “nature” or “nurture,” but he now strongly believes they are born with a lot of their attributes.
“Your kids show up, like that spirit, that soul is there, and it’s going to do what it’s going to do and the nurture part is very important, you’re going to be no doubt helping with that, but they really are who they are, like right away,” Matt said.
He then added that as they grow up, it’s crazy how he can still see his kids as their younger selves in your mind.
“An old friend of mine said, when my 19-year-old was probably 18 months, said ‘Don’t blink. Don’t blink,’ And that sh** is real,” he said.
Matt then shared a sweet story about the fact that his 17-year-old daughter recently broke her collar bone and needed his help brushing her hair and getting ready for school.
As he helped her, he had the crushing realization that he used to brush her hair every day when she was little, and never thought about the fact that one day he brushed it for the last time and didn’t even know it.
He then urged Jason to really appreciate the small moments like that in the younger phases he’s in with his girls, to which Jason responded, “I like that [advice] a lot.”