Good parents still make their children feel unsafe sometimes

Nadim Saad is the founder of The Happy Confident Company, a children’s wellbeing advocate, parenting coach, speaker, and bestselling author whose work began with a moment no parent forgets.

After years of writing parenting books, coaching families, and building tools for parents and schools, Nadim found himself facing something deeply personal. His eight-year-old daughter, usually loving and positive, had become angry, withdrawn, and unlike herself at home, while still appearing happy at school. When she eventually opened up and said, “I hate myself,” Nadim realised that even in a home led by two parenting coaches, a child could still quietly turn shame into identity.

That moment changed the direction of his work. Through deeper conversation, emotional coaching, and vulnerability, Nadim helped his daughter understand that she was not “bad”; she was human. Within days, she was walking around the house repeating, “I’m a fallible human being,” and beginning to return to herself.

Since then, Nadim has dedicated his work to helping children, parents, and educators build the emotional language and self-awareness that many adults only discover much later in life. Through The Happy Confident Company, he creates practical wellbeing programmes for families and schools, including short daily tools designed to help children understand their feelings, regulate themselves, feel safe, and support others.