With our 2nd child on the way…
Michelle and I are planning, staffing up, scheduling no-work days for me, and preparing her C-section recovery so that we don’t suffer struggles from being too tired.
Recently a friend asked me for some advice as he prepared to become a 1st time father.
I want to share some of the advice I gave him…
Along with a few important lessons that will help you in both parenthood and business:
1. Let one person get a good night sleep each night
Set up a system where one person gets to sleep while the other is "on duty".
This avoids “Double Parent Fatigue Syndrome” (thus avoiding fights, tension, tears, etc.)
The division of labor is a better approach than having two people do the job of one…
Or two people suffering the pain of exhaustion while one does the work.
Business Lesson:
Your business should have clearly defined roles & responsibilities.
You need A-Player agreements for every team member so they know what they must deliver daily, weekly, and monthly.
With this clear communication in place, there will be no guessing, no miscommunications, and no letdowns…
And your business will run as smooth as humanly possible.
2. Never have two people do a 1-person job
When you're tired, there is no point in having two people involved in 1-person jobs like feeding the baby, changing diapers etc.
There will be times when you'll both be in the room, tired, and one person will be doing the thing while the other person sits there feeling guilty, like they should be helping
Whoever is doing "the work" should have mercy on the other person and send them to bed.
Resting is part of the job.
There's no point in both parents getting even more tired when only one person is needed to do the thing.
Now at the start, you both might be involved in ALL the tasks simply because you're in amazement of having a baby...
Like wow, can you believe we made this thing, look at his giant poop, I'm so proud...
But eventually you gotta look at the trivial tasks as an opportunity for one person to recover.
Business Lesson:
Have your team meetings.
Assign tasks to the experts you have hired.
Agree on the answers to “Who Does What By When?”
Then everyone go get to work and stop micromanaging one another.
3. Be grateful – always
When it's your turn to "suck it up & get up no matter how tired you are..."
Be grateful for your opportunity to get special alone time with the baby, rather than being grumpy about getting up.
Business Lesson:
Grateful persistence.
Have an 11/10 attitude every day.
Be grateful you have the opportunity to persist through your problems.
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When you take the smart approach to parenting AND profiting…
By planning and using strategies like these…
You’ll save yourself a TON of time and stress…
And make a whole lot more dough.
Success Loves Speed,
Craig | 