There are few things as helpful as tutorial videos on YouTube. The number of times we’ve learned how to do math, fix something, or pick up a new skill are all thanks, in no small part, to the helpful side of YouTube.
Though one man has gone and made a rather sweet and touching how-to channel of his own.
Robert Kenney, father of two, is grabbing quite a lot of attention from the internet. Kenney’s how-to-style channel puts a lovely spin on things by being a library of “Dad skills” videos. Everything that a dad would teach you, from unclogging a toiler, to changing a doorknob or jumpstarting the car, has its own instructional video made by Kenney.
This all got started when his children, Kristine and Kyle (both adults) asked him quite a few times about repairing, painting or cleaning things around the house.
You know, things a dad would do.
Sometimes, even a young adult has to remember how to fix a clogged sink too. His channel is aptly, and adorably, named “Dad, how do I?”. In what was originally a little helpful set of videos for his kids and potential grandkids, his channel has now grown up nearly as much as his kids.
As of right now, “Dad, how do I?” has about 3.29 million subscribers. Though what was the key to Rob’s massive channel growth, and the secret behind why people love his videos so much?
Well, it’s not a secret at all. The secret ingredient is kindness!
Rob’s one simple strategy has gone a long way. He just speaks to the camera and audience as if he were speaking to his own kids. The answer to why Kenney is so committed to his father figure status is rather bittersweet.
“When I was 11 or 12 is when my father emotionally checked out, and then he made it official when I was 14 at my little sister’s birthday party, he announced to everybody that he didn’t want to have kids anymore,” – Kenney says in an interview with GMA.
Kenney’s own life influences his videos greatly – to where he even ends some of them with “I’m proud of you, God bless you, son”.
This itself proved a bit bittersweet to a lot of his viewers, who say that they’ve never experienced their parents speaking those words to them.
Needless to say, finding this out was very moving and emotional to Kenney. He began all of this because he just wanted to help, and now he’s basically got 3 million other “kids” all watching his videos and looking at him like their own father.
Even his channel’s name, “Dad, how do I?”, is pretty effective at communicating the kind, hands-on nature that Rob has now become so well-known for. The channel’s name is spoken in a first-person perspective – the way you’d actually phrase a question to your own father.
This is perfect because Rob does a pretty dang good job of acting like he is.
Although a major driver for Kenney’s journey was the fact that his father left him as a teenager, he’s since reconciled with his own father. Besides, he’s already got all the experience he needs from being a father of 2 already!
This is in addition to looking after his own family now – not counting the 3 million other children subscribed to him.
Rob has also ventured into doing interviews and writing books too, so more folks get to see his kind-natured, lovable father-figure outside of his YouTube channel.
Thank you, Rob Kenney, for being the loving, kind, and trusting father figure that so many people needed. In a world where some parents can’t be there all the time for their children, you’re doing the Lord’s work.
Rob’s channel, and the way he’s touched the hearts of many other young people with it, is one story that’d easily make anyone smile. Please give this article a share so that can happen!
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