Note: I separated Startup Dad from the FishmanAF Newsletter. It now has its own home on Substack. I’ve noticed that there isn’t a complete overlap between audiences. That’s fine but Substack’s “sections” solution wasn’t working well for separating them. If you don’t want to remain a subscriber of Startup Dad you can manage your subscription here
Tom Willerer is the Chief Operating Officer at Reforge. Prior to that he was the Chief Product Officer at Opendoor, Coursera and a VP of Product at Netflix. Tom is a husband, father of two teenagers and a fellow Michigander.
In this episode we discuss:
Tom's early years as a college baseball player
How Tom got into tech
The decision to start a family
A hilarious story about burritos in the delivery room
Having a limited support network
How parenting is a team sport and how that team changes over time
What it's like raising teenagers
How to let kids make their own decisions (safely)
Mistakes made leaning in too much to help
Parenting frameworks
How to put your partners needs above your own
Managing kids and career
Listen, watch and subscribe: Apple, Spotify, YouTube, Overcast and Google.
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Where to find Tom Willerer
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/twillerer/
Where to find Adam Fishman
- Newsletter: www.startupdadpod.substack.com
- Newsletter: www.FishmanAFNewsletter.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamjfishman/
- Twitter (aka X): https://twitter.com/fishmanaf
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startupdadpod/
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In this episode:
(1:51) Tom's introduction
(2:13) Learning more about Tom's background
(5:57) How Tom got into tech
(8:40) His decision to start a family with his wife
(9:50) Lacking a strong support network
(12:05) Tom's earliest memory of becoming a dad
(15:58) Why parenting is a team sport
(18:40) How the team changes as your kids get older
(22:22) What it's like raising teenagers
(27:26) How to let your kids make their own decisions
(31:30) Mistakes made leaning in too much
(35:23) Parenting frameworks
(38:19) When he and his wife don’t agree
(42:50) Putting your partner’s needs above own
(46:56) Managing kids & career
(48:47) Sacrifices made as a dad
(51:37) Rapid fire round
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Show references
Springfree Trampoline - https://www.springfreetrampoline.com/collections/trampolines
Inside Out the movie - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2096673/
Jeep Wrangler - https://www.jeep.com/wrangler.html
Sleep Coach - https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/what-is-sleep-coach
Reforge - www.reforge.com
Opendoor - www.opendoor.com
Coursera - https://www.coursera.org/
Netflix - https://www.netflix.com/
Indiana University - https://www.iu.edu/index.html
Mario Kart 8 - https://mariokart8.nintendo.com/
Sun Microsystems - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Microsystems
BlackBerry - https://www.blackberry.com/us/en
Dad Joke Cards - https://www.amazon.com/WORD-TEASERS-Worst-Jokes-Conversation/dp/B09BX39MBN/r
City Ballet of San Diego - https://cityballet.org/
X (Twitter) - https://twitter.com/
Colic - https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/colic
ChatGPT - https://chat.openai.com
Super73 - https://super73.com/
Luke Bryan - https://www.lukebryan.com/tour
Shoreline Amphitheatre - https://www.mountainviewamphitheater.com/
Bridesmaids - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1478338/
Elon Musk - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elon_Musk
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Production support for Startup Dad is provided by Tommy Harron at
http://www.armaziproductions.com/
Episode art designed by Matt Sutherland at https://www.mspnw.com/
Raising responsible teenagers, how to let kids make their own decisions, and who is on your parenting team | Tom Willerer (father of 2, COO at Reforge)