Why Scaling a Company Is Easier Than Bedtime
You can be disciplined at work and soft at home. That contrast doesn’t make you inconsistent, it makes you whole.
Why Scaling a Company Is Easier Than Bedtime
Lesson: Parenting Breaks Every System I Know
I can build a $4M company easier than I can get my kids to brush their teeth and go to bed. At work I’m structured, strategic, and disciplined. At home? I’m a softie, spontaneous, emotional, and a total pushover when it comes to my girls. I expected my operator mindset to carry over into parenting, but it doesn’t. Bedtime routines aren’t scalable. Cuddles don’t follow KPIs. And there’s no dashboard for meltdowns.
Insight: You Don’t Need to Be the Same Leader Everywhere
Here’s what I’ve learned in the gap between CEO and Dad:
- Different Roles Require Different Versions of You: The operator in you doesn’t have to run the home; sometimes love thrives without structure.
- Metrics Don’t Measure What Matters: Emotional connection, presence, and patience don’t fit neatly into goals or OKRs.
- Duality Is a Strength: You can be disciplined at work and soft at home. That contrast doesn’t make you inconsistent, it makes you whole.
You don’t fail as a leader because you parent differently. You fail when you try to force the same operating system everywhere.
Action Item: Run a Home vs. Work Self-Check
- List Your Two Modes - How are you at work? How are you at home?
- Identify One Strength From Each - What quality from “work you” could help at home, and what quality from “home you” could help at work?
- Blend Them Intentionally - Bring one small behavior across the line this week—nothing big, just a 1% shift.
If you like this content, you can watch the video version of this.
Also, Young was featured as a guest on the podcast Don't be a jerk, in the episode “The Relationship OS: Young Han’s System for Human Connection.” Don’t miss it!
