Arnold Schwarzenegger is a man of many vocations–Bodybuilding, Mr. Olympia, Movies, and the Governorship of California. He found success in each of those fields, but nothing would’ve been possible if not for the strict discipline he maintained throughout his life. The traditional lifestyle he grew up with in Austria was brought over to his California home when he started a family with author-journalist Maria Shriver. However, he had to make it slightly less harsh on his kids, else he feared being a subject of mockery.

Arnold Schwarzenegger talked about the time he had to tone his “European discipline” down when raising his kids with his ex-wife Maria Shriver. His way of living in Austria was far stricter.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ‘old school’ way of living wouldn’t gel well with his kids

In his autobiography ‘Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story’, Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote, “I was still the one who brought European discipline to the house—with tolerance added, of course, because I knew I couldn’t go crazy”. His then-wife, Maria Shriver at that time, had become a “neat freak” like him.

“I wasn’t going to carry on that Old World Tradition,” wrote Schwarzenegger. Arnold Schwarzenegger was born in 1947 in Austria and was thus brought up in an extremely strict disciplinarian household. He did bring over the same learnings to the US and tried to impart the same to his own children. However, he had to make a change to better suit the American standards.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote, “You have to tone it down, unlike some of my friends in Austria. The way they discipline their kids may work for them there, but it doesn’t work here. Otherwise… they will think that their father is a weirdo”.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is a proud father

Therefore, Schwarzenegger divided the responsibilities with Shriver, which involved some pampering mixed with rules. While there were the occasional punishments for not behaving properly, Schwarzenegger believed that he would put a stop to the physical punishments that parents used upon their children. Later on, when Schwarzenegger had his 5th child with Mildred Baena, named Joseph Baena, he utilized the same parenting technique. He taught his children to take care of themselves and do the basic chores in the absence of any help.

Today, as a proud father of 5 children who are all grown up, Schwarzenegger can rest easy in having done a good job as a father. He brought the perfect balance between strict discipline and pampered upbringing.

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