The Side-Hustle Dad

Ep18
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Speaker: Hi, and welcome back to another episode. I'm really glad you're joining me today. If you listen to this podcast, I can already tell you, you are likely a fantastic father because you are thinking about being a business owner, being a dad in a very practical, real way. You're wanting... I mean, it, it's in the intro to the episode.

I don't want you to sacrifice your family in the process of creating financial freedom. And odds are, many cases, that financial freedom is intended to benefit your own [00:01:00] legacy, your own kids, for them to go to college, for them to have opportunities that you never had. And so if you're listening to this, I would say you're very likely a highly engaged father.

You're wanting to do this the right way. And because of that, you know, we've, we've talked some about boundaries and making sure that what we're doing with our business is not really impacting what we're doing with our kids, right? That we're not missing out on those dad opportunities, which I think is incredibly important.

I'm still coaching soccer, and I'm wrapping up summer basketball over the next couple weeks, and those things are going to continue, and I'm going to continue to carve out time for those. But our families need to see what we're doing. Specifically, our children need to see what we're doing because if we don't let them see what we're building, what we're [00:02:00] doing, what we're achieving, we're missing out on one of the most powerful lessons that we could ever possibly teach them.

So, first thing is to just tell you that it's okay to let others in You know, we, we don't necessarily want to be hiding. We want to be integrating to some degree. Now, we want some boundaries, but there's zero reason that you can't tell your kids what you're working on or what you're trying to do or what your goals are and what you're wanting to accomplish.

Like, bring those to the table. Because I think if there's anything that I have learned from building a side hustle that's now my full-time business, is that our kids want to see us succeed, and they also see the courage it takes to go create something, how to overcome fear, [00:03:00] how to overcome anxiety, how to lean into something, how to show that we can grow, how to develop a growth mindset.

There are so many lessons that come from having a s- a business that you wanna pass those lessons on, right? You didn't start a business because you're an amazing business owner. But odds are you just have a skill, and you want to grow, and you want to, you know, leverage that for the benefit of your family. So bringing them in allows them to see that, allows them to start thinking about where does that, where does that fit in their own life. You know, you're letting them see you work They're-- You're letting them see you try something, fail, get back up.

You're showing them what life is going to be like, and that they don't have to be afraid. And that is an incredible [00:04:00] lesson that's not something you get theory from. And I think that that's something you should always be willing to share with, with your kids. I'll, I'll tell you a story. Like, as soon as I started working on my side hustle, it was amazing that my son and my daughter both started getting ideas, right?

They did the summer where they did a lemonade stand. They wanted to do that, and create a sign, and, you know, put it out there and sit at the end of the driveway and try and flag down people driving by, and it was fun for them. They were excited about it.

They started to see, oh man, th- having a business can be fun. It can be creative. My daughter started selling 3D printed toys. She'd, she'd put them together, she'd figure out the design, she'd print them, these little fidgets, and then sell them to classmates for a couple of bucks. And it was amazing to see the lesson she was taking from it.

We got to [00:05:00] have different types of conversations. We got to talk about, "Hey, if you're gonna be making all these things, you're gonna have to buy the material. You're gonna have to buy All the PLA, all the plastic that's used for the 3D printing. So sh- you're gonna have to think about how much it costs and factor that into the time it takes to print, stuff like...

We talked about things like cost of goods sold, like stuff you would never think you would have a conversation with a 10-year-old about. But we were legitimately having a conversation, and she was engaged. And I was like, "That is so crazy that she's interested in this." A- and, and, and setting boundaries. Like, I remember she came home from school, and she told the story, she made a, a toy lizard for one of her classmates, and they bought it for a couple bucks.

And the classmate, they were at lunch, and the classmate had it on her tray. And she said, "Hey, don't put that on your tray. You might accidentally throw it away." Like, [00:06:00] actually saw it, recognized that. Like, "Don't do, don't put it there. You'll throw it away." The classmate didn't listen, and of course, when it came time to rush out the, the lunchroom, you know, and empty their tray and move on to the next thing, of course, dumped her new little lizard into into the trash.

And it was funny 'cause the friend goes, "Oh, my gosh. I threw it away. Can you make me another one?" And my daughter she go- she goes, "Yeah, for another $5." Like, she, she recognized, like, you know, she's an incredibly generous person and very kind, but, like, in that moment, she's like, "Hey, this is a... I'm, I'm making a little business, a little child's business.

And so if you want another one, it'll cost you the same amount as it did before." And I just, I just chuckled because she's getting to live those things out in real time in a different way. She is trying to come up with her own ideas. And both of them sit there, and my son was, you know, 'cause I do music and I'll sometimes have him in the [00:07:00] studio, and he'll listen to what I'm working on.

And he'll, he sits there, and he, he tries to understand, so how does, how does a musician make money, you know, when they write a song? Like, h- you know, he's got these artists that he listens to on Spotify, and if they're downloaded a million times, like, what does that mean? Like, how much money does he get from that?

And, and so, like, he's thinking entrepreneurially. He's moving forward with these ideas and, and understanding that there's these opportunities out there for him that wouldn't necessarily have been there before. Now, that doesn't mean I think he should be an entrepreneur or that either of my children will be an entrepreneur.

But I think understanding and getting a mindset that there are possibilities out there, that change is possible, that growth is possible Is incredibly valuable. So the f- the first thing I want, I want to give you some encouragement here because I don't think you have to hide things, and I think you can create [00:08:00] specific touchpoints or ways to include your kids.

What does that look like? Do they get to, you know, hey, you're, you're mailing out things to clients. You know, do they get to s- put the stamp on the shipping? When you print out the logo, do you have them put it on the package when you send it out? My, my daughter now cleans my studio for me. Like, I hire her to come in and clean the glass and take out the trash, and so she gets a little piece of being involved, and it's not just Dad's thing.

And there's these little moments for any kid that you can allow them to play a small role. You know, you, you get to allow them to see what's happening and talk about it. You can share your victories at the dinner table, a big job that you completed. "Oh, that was, that was so great." You can let them see the struggle that, you know, you're stressed out.

You're just really tired [00:09:00] because of how hard you've had to work. And so that they see the whole piece of it. It's not just good things, and it's not just bad things. But you're starting to pull together what is possible, and let your kids see who you are. Let them see you in your effort, in your hustle and grind, in your work to build something new.

And so lean into that. Find those ways to create those touchpoints. And then at the dinner table, you know, you share those things. What is a milestone win? "Hey, we've done really well. This money, I'm, I'm putting it towards your college education or a vacation that we're gonna go." Maybe when you hit one of your goals, you treat the family to ice cream And you get to celebrate those moments together, and then your kids see that.

Now, you don't-- we're not trying to put [00:10:00] guilt like, "Hey, because of you guys, because of the needs of you kids, I'm having to work way extra." We don't want, we don't want to try and put burden into that. But we definitely want to make sure we're sharing wins and losses, and understand that the efforts we're going to are out of love for our family.

They're out of looking for creating that financial freedom so that money isn't a stress, opportunity is there joy is there, experiences are there. This is something that goes far beyond textbooks that you'll see in school you know, and is a way to demonstrate your level of engagement, your level of effort.

And then in some ways, they're gonna learn that they have the opportunity to change their lives as well. It may not be through a business, but they definitely [00:11:00] see what happens when you put your mind to something and you lean into it. And it doesn't have to be some amazing multimillion-dollar business.

Man, an extra five hundred dollars a month, an extra thousand dollars a month can be a powerful thing when you're engaging strategically in it. So do that. Don't hide. Find those little touch points to share with your kids. Bring those victories, those wins and losses to the dinner table, and find opportunities to celebrate together.

Doesn't mean they have to be in the business all the time, and it doesn't mean you're having to give up your time with them doing other things. But I think sharing that and recognizing that we're a whole person, we're not just Dad, we're not just who we are in our day job. We're a whole person. We've got all these other things going on.

We've got our own dreams and ambitions and hopes. [00:12:00] And recognizing you can pursue those and letting your kids see you strive towards those, it, it just goes far beyond any lecture you might ever think about giving. So I hope that's encouraging to you. Think about that. Consider that. I'm excited for what you've got coming up.

So as you go about this share it. Share it with your family. I think over time you'll be surprised what your kids take away from it, because even if you're not talking about it, they are watching. Oh, they are, they are paying attention,

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