My colleague and friend Mike Marshall has pointed out that there is a big difference between parenting and babysitting. Which is a more effective lens through which to view your relationships with direct reports?
Meanwhile, along comes this Harvard Business Review article: “Tough Parenting Decision? Take a Page out of the CEO’s Playbook.” The author suggests several behaviors and structures a parent can put in place that she uses with her executive clients.
The article features quite a few links to other resources. I hope there is at least one idea here you can use.