Entrepreneurial Parenting; When To Build And When To Chill
When someone wiser than you reaches out and asks if they can provide perspective, you let them.
I wrote a post a few days ago about parenting.
Half the time feeling like the dad from Bluey, half the time feeling like I fall WAY short.
It’s the curse of the entrepreneur grind and struggle to turn “it” off.
A good friend of mine reached out to share his perspective.
He’s been through this stage of life and had some pretty awesome things to say that were worth sharing. I’ll capture his message in bullet points:
(These are direct quotes from him)
For me it was building me first, before my financial portfolio. Though I actually thought it was the other way around. And as I was not growing financially, it became very lonely.
In my 30’s I got no sleep to speak of and I saw our kids on a few nights and weekends (though not all of them).
It was not until my 40’s when I started to realize the changes that I made in myself and how the money started to come easier.
Children are very resilient at these young single digits years. All they want and need is routine, discipline (on the big things, you’ll realize the little things don’t really matter) and Love. Now yes kids spell Love; TIME. Though they don’t need a lot right now.
They need to know you are there for them and RELEVANT, so when they hit the teens; they will seek your perspective. Cause they will need you more as they get older. And those are the real questions.
This my opinion, taken from listening to other successful & wealthy fathers and lots of books as well as podcasts; then aligned with my Faith Walk.
My notes: What I love about this is how real he is. I’m getting caught up in trying to do everything and be everywhere.
I have a bunch of “dad guilt” for being as busy as I am. Yet, I know this is what I’m meant to do because I see the big picture. I've also been told more than once by very trusted and wise mentors that I need to build NOW and have freedom during their pre-teen and teen years.
Caveat --> This can’t be used as an excuse to not be present. I just have to swallow the pill that I’m sacrificing some time right now for having more time 5-10 years from now and AMPLE time 20 years from now.
Entrepreneurs by nature can be a little black and white. Tunnel vision and Hyper focused. It’s what leads to success in many ways, but it also leads to destruction of relationships. It’s a switch. I’m working to turn that switch into a dimmer instead.
Books like “The Family Board Meeting” and podcasts like “Front Row Dads” with @jonvroman keep this message in the forefront of my mind and my wife keeps me grounded, but it’s still a battle.
I wish I had the answers for you, but I don’t… at least not yet.
All I can say is if you resonate with this and you’re in that "young kid, empire building grind" right now, shoot me a message. I’m in your corner. 🥊
ALSO, last note and probably my best advice here is if someone who’s "been there and done that" shares their insight, it can’t hurt to listen.