In this solo episode of the No Days Off podcast, host Brian Gubernick reflects on the most valuable parenting practices he employed when his children were young and translates each into actionable lessons for entrepreneurs, business owners, and driven professionals. He frames the discussion around intentionality and presence, arguing that the highest return on investment in life comes from moments that are difficult to measure. Brian outlines eight specific parenting lessons—establishing rituals, involving family in his work world, nightly storytelling, physical closeness, asking abundant questions, always saying yes to play, counterbalancing work intensity with family intensity, and choosing proximity over efficiency (e.g., riding in the back seat of an Uber). For each, he draws a parallel to business leadership, culture, and legacy, emphasizing that consistent, intentional actions compound into trust, inclusion, and lasting impact. The episode concludes with a call to prioritize presence over hustle, reminding listeners that every day offers a chance to get better and to make sure the people closest to us feel cared for before the “last time” moments pass.
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Thank you for joining me today. It's Brian Gubernick, and welcome to the No Days Off podcast, where we believe that every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. Sometimes the moments that matter most are oftentimes the ones that we, we tend to rush, rush past. I want to talk about how to maybe stop missing those things, those, those things in parenting, in business, in life. And I'm talking to everybody here today, not just the parents, but the entrepreneurs, the business owners, the driven professionals that make up the No Days Off Nation. Entrepreneurs, we are trained to think about ROI. I mean, I talk about ROI, return on investment, nonstop. The biggest ROI in life though may come from the things that you can't measure. Where am I going with this whole thing? Recently, a member of the No Days Off Nation sent me a note, sent me a question actually. He said, "What are you most grateful you did when your kids were little, when they were 2 years old?" And that question got me thinking because as much as I've built businesses and I've traveled and I've had the opportunity to speak and perform and do a lot of cool things, The list I gave had nothing to do with business, no surprise. It had everything to do with who I think I am and what I think I most value, what matters most. So, whether you're a parent or not, today's episode is about intentionality and how we show up for the people who matter while we're also building these big businesses, these businesses that are of our dreams, right? This isn't just about kids, it's about relationships, and leadership and legacy. So, I put together 8 lessons, 8 lessons that, you know, are my takeaways when I think about what I did right, at least what I think I did right when my kids were little. And I'm going to relate it, believe it or not, to business and have some entrepreneurial takeaways. The first thing that I think I did well when the kids were little, I formed rituals with them. And this is This is something that, that my coach Mike had, had taught me many, many years ago when my older kid was, was really one. So call it 13 years ago. He told me, hey, Brian, Avery's old enough now. You need to start forming a ritual. And so what he had described was that I needed to spend weekly time just one-on-one with Avery, my older kid. And we would do something that fit obviously for her age, but just got us together and we had some alone time. So, at that time, you know, she was 1 or 2, I started taking her to Whole Foods every Saturday. And I put her in the cart and we'd walk around. And eventually, started getting her a green juice and we'd share like this green juice and we'd walk around. And sure, that morphed into the splash pad and then it morphed into the park and fast forward through today, it's It's lunch dates. I go on one lunch date per week with that kid. Same thing with my, my younger kid. Same process. We form rituals, created date night, things like that. It wasn't about the juice or the splash pad or date nights, you know, dinners tonight or dinners, dinners these days. It was about the consistency more than anything. I think as entrepreneurs, there's a takeaway that rituals are systems for relationships. Just like in business, what gets scheduled gets done, right? So you want connection with your kids. If you want connection with your team or your spouse, don't wait for when there's time. In other words, build a recurring moment, and that recurring moment compounds into something meaningful. Today, I'd like to think that my kids talk to me in a certain way or are open to discuss things with me because we've established these rituals. Second thing, I brought my kids everywhere. I brought them to my mastermind events. I brought them to Cardinal football games. I brought them to cross-country trips. I never said they're too young. I just figured out how to make it work, and my wife certainly did the same. I think it really mattered because it shaped, shaped how they see the world, how they saw the world then, how they see the world today, and how I also saw them. So, from a business perspective, don't isolate your family from your mission. Involve them. Let them see what you're building and why. The people who love you actually want to support your dream. They just need to have a seat at the table. So, bring them to your events, bring them to the table, bring them to the dinners, you know, bring them to whatever you have going on. Make them a part of your business or of your world versus compartmentalizing things. Number 3, I told the kids when they were little— I didn't have a ton of time, I was building business, but when I had time, I was all in. And in one of those areas, I was telling the kids, you know, stories every single night. Even when I was exhausted, I'd make up a story or I'd read a book because I knew there would be a last time. And this is kind of a theme for me if you know me at all. I knew that there would be a last time. There was going to be a last time they wanted to hear a story or have me read a book, and I didn't want to miss that. Now, this mattered because this was a way to build trust and connection and memory. Telling stories like, I want the kids one day to say, my dad used to always, you know, tuck me in and tell me a story. I was pretty purposeful around that stuff. When we think legacy, we think what we leave behind. But I think legacy is actually built in these little moments, these moments that maybe we're even tempted to skip because we're tired or whatever it may be. Be the narrator in someone's life, whether it's your kids like I'm giving in this example, or your team, or your partner. Be the narrator. Next, I picked the kids up, picked them up, physically picked them up until it was probably weird. And I say weird because maybe they were a little too big to be picking up. But again, kind of with that theme that You're going to have a last time before you know it. Well, there's a day when you pick up your kid for the last time and you don't even know it's going to be the last time. And that mattered to me. I think that physical closeness builds emotional safety with the kids. And so I was, you know, I was picking them up. I wasn't babying them, don't get me wrong, but I was picking them up. And, and I think there's an entrepreneurial takeaway here. What's the equivalent of picking someone up in your world? I obviously know you're not going to physically pick someone up, but what's the equivalent of that? Is it a hug? Is it a thank you note? Is it a 10-minute phone call? You're never gonna regret going too far to show someone that you care. So, what's the equivalent of picking someone up in your world today? Number 5, when the kids were little and even still today, I asked them a ton of questions. I was probably pretty annoying with my questions. I think the kids are just never too young. Now, at 2, you know, learning to talk, but 2, 3, 4, 5, like as they start to, you know, you start to see them become little people and they have their own personalities. I think they're never too young to be part of the conversation. We've never had a kids' table. We included them all the time. It gave them confidence. I think it helped them with their language. It helped them with the feeling of belonging. And how does this relate to business? I think inclusion isn't about actually lowering the bar. I think it's about raising people up. So ask your people their opinions. Ask your kids what they think about your business. Asking people questions shows respect, and respect, I think, fuels growth. They're never too young. Kids are just never too young to be part of the conversation. I'm just a no kids table type of guy. Number 6, I think a lot of my peers would, would say the same here. I said yes whenever the kids asked to play. If they wanted to go play catch or go outside or kick a soccer ball or do whatever, I said yes. If they wanted to go in the ocean, I was in the ocean with them. If they wanted to go in the snow, I was in the snow with them. I never ever ever would say no, even if I was tired, even if I was mid-phone call or email. I wanted the kids to know that, uh, they mattered more than whatever it is I was doing. I think the takeaway, especially from a business perspective, is you're never as busy as you think you are. Urgent, as we all know, doesn't always mean important. And every once in a while, you got to drop what you're doing and say yes to having fun, saying yes to joy. That's what we're building all this for, I think. Right? So, drop what you're doing. You're never as busy as you actually think you are. Number 7, I think with the kids, especially when they were little, I was counterbalancing quite a bit. What do I mean when I say that? Well, when my girls were, call it, 4 and 2, I was probably at the most chaotic state of my business world. You know, this was, I was still very much in build mode. I'm still obviously very much in build mode, but, you know, I was at a really critical juncture in my world. And I'd have to be gone for work. But when I get back, when I get back in town or whatever, I was pretty intentional in counterbalancing. So if I went hard or I disappeared for work, when I came back, I went hard or I disappeared with the kids. I gave them the same degree of intensity that I gave my business. And, and it showed the kids, I think, that they're worth the same energy. They're not just like, you know, leftovers or playing second fiddle. I think work-life balance in business is a total myth. I think counterbalance is real. I think you go hard and then you go hard on the other side of things, and that's how you keep trust intact. And I think it's how you get some— you keep some resentment out. The last silly thing I did that I think I did well, and it served me well with the kids when they were little, if I was taking them somewhere, a lot of times a lot of times, I'd actually call an Uber instead of driving. And yeah, I'd put the car seat in Uber. I deal with that just so I could hang out in the back seat and play or hang around with them, try to maximize my time. I think that driving with your kids in the car is great, right? But it's hard to say that you're actually hanging out or spending time. But when you're physically sitting with them, Uh, I think it's a big thing. I mean, when the kids got a little older, even more so, I would take, take Ubers, right? Because the car seat's a little bit of a nuisance. But as they got a little bit older, I would ride in the back with them. I still do it a lot today, except now I live in Phoenix, right? So we're taking Waymo all the time, which is a fun experience. But I'd Uber instead of driving, and I'd get to hang out in the back seat shoulder to shoulder. And I think that that physical proximity created this, this different degree of presence, this emotional presence. I think sometimes in, uh, in leadership, it's about doing the inconvenient thing to stay close. And that's with your kids and with your spouse and with your team, with your company. Closeness is part of the goal. I think like culture is driven by some of this proximity. So don't always default to efficiency. Figure out how to create some proximity. This episode, I know it's heavy parenting, but it's not really about that. I think it's about presence. It's about living a life where people closest to you can feel it, can truly feel it. And I think that what I was doing with the kids, I think my objective, when I look back, I think, God, I just wanted to make sure they knew that their dad cared. I wanted them to know I was close to them. I didn't want the hustle to drown out the relationship, the heartbeat. I don't think success has to mean loneliness. One day there's going to be a last time you pick the kids up, or a last game, or a last story, or a last question. And you really don't know when it's going to be the last, but, but you can know it matters. So you take action today. That's all I have for you today, the No Days Off Podcast. Thank you so much for listening. And remember, every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. So let's get after it.
