There are many good reasons to have kids. Beer-fetchers. Garden-mowers. Pension-providers. They are a legitimate excuse to watch cartoons.
For an entrepreneur, children provide the following extra benefits:
- Give you purpose
Viktor Frankl, a psycho-analyst, survived five years in WWII camps. He watched many people die, go crazy, and lose their principles. He observed men give up on life and pass away. He took notes.
His conclusion: The only survivors of the camps were those that had some greater purpose. Some unfinished business. In other words, only she who was living for something other than herself survived.
This is the key to meaning in life: Living for something other than yourself.
That’s why kids are important.
They give you purpose.
Purpose is the answer to happiness and long life, and to making money as an entrepreneur.
- Provide perspective
Kids are great for when you have a bad day at the office. You drive home, feeling like a loser, planning to put a wet towel on your head and kick the dog.
And then you open the front door and your little girl comes running to you, oblivious to the “loser” label you’ve given yourself, oblivious to the problems at the office, in fact oblivious to everything except the fact that you are a legend and must immediately be updated on what flavour ice cream she had at Georgia’s birthday party.
Kids know what’s really important. Ice-cream, swings, and sandcastles. In that order.
It makes it easier to handle setbacks knowing that no matter what happens, your kids love you.
- Toughen you up
It’s easy to be precious about your sleep, or your quiet working time.
With kids you’ll soon realise you don’t need much sleep, and that you can work whilst your toddler climbs your back.
Kids make you anti-fragile. No more whining about anything, you’ve seen worse.
- Make you less selfish
Until you have children you’ll never truly understand what it is to be selfless. To put aside all your own priorities and focus entirely on the needs of someone else.
Kids will force you to get over yourself, to think less of your own needs and more about what kind of world you are leaving for future generations.
If you’re less selfish you’re more likely to solve other people’s problems and make money.