Howdy friends!
I want to share something that’s been on my mind. And it’s not code. Well, it’s kind of about code. It’s about the thing that happens around the code.
I love my work right now. Like, genuinely love it. I wake up excited. I go to bed thinking about what I’m building. And if you knew me at Google, you’d know that wasn’t always the case.
Don’t get me wrong, Google was an incredible experience. Nearly 20 years in tech, and landing at Google was one of the proudest moments of my career. But there were days, sometimes weeks, where the motivation just… wasn’t there. You’re in a massive org, the thing you’re building is a tiny piece of a giant machine, and some mornings you sit down at your desk and go “okay, let’s do this I guess.”
Since my last day at Google, I have not had that feeling once. Not one single time. Every day I’m fired up. Building RiseOhana from scratch. A family bonding app where parents create quests for their kids, families earn rewards together, and quality time is the whole point. Making the decisions, seeing the thing take shape with my own hands, it fills me up in a way I genuinely didn’t know I was missing.
I’m so blessed. I really am. To feel this way about work? That’s rare and I don’t take it for granted.
But here’s the thing nobody tells you about loving your work this much.
It’s hard to stop.
Nights. Weekends. “Just one more feature.” “Let me fix this real quick before bed.” Diana is being so patient and supportive right now, but I know she deserves more of my attention. My kids want to play with me and I’m too focused and worried about getting the app stable for my alpha testers coming up, next week!
Here’s where it gets really silly. My company’s entire mission is helping families connect more with each other. That’s literally what RiseOhana is. A parenting app built around the idea that families grow stronger when they spend intentional quality time together. Parents create quests, kids complete them and share what they did, and the whole family levels up together through gamified family engagement.
The irony is not lost on me.
The Marathon vs. The Bear
I’ve been thinking about this in terms of running, because the metaphor fits too well.
Working at Google was like running a marathon. It was hard. Some miles were brutal. But here’s the thing about a marathon. If you stop, nothing bad happens. You didn’t finish this one? Cool. You trained, you learned, you’ll sign up again next year. Nobody’s chasing you. The accomplishment is real and you should be proud of it, but the stakes of stopping are… fine.
What I’m doing now? This is running from a bear.
I have no income. I’m burning savings. Every day the bear gets a little closer. There is no “I’ll try again next time” because if I stop, the bear catches me. Game over. Bills don’t pause. My family’s stability doesn’t pause.
Right now, the bear is halfway caught up. The temptation is to run harder. Work later. Skip the weekend hangout. Push through one more night.
But that’s the trap, right? Because if I sacrifice my family time to build a family engagement app designed to help parents and kids connect… what am I even doing?!
Finding the line
I don’t have this figured out. Some weeks I nail it. Solid work during the day, present with my family in the evenings, recharge on the weekends. Other weeks the bear feels too close and I slip back into “just one more hour” mode.
What I do know is this:
The motivation is real, the love for the work is real and the pressure is real too. All of those things can be true at the same time. The marathon version of me could afford bad days because the stakes were low. The bear version of me can’t really afford bad days, but also can’t afford to burn out or lose sight of why I’m building this in the first place.
So I’m learning to run smart. Not just fast. Taking the breaks even when the bear is close. Being present even when my brain is screaming about that API endpoint. Trusting that the work will be there tomorrow and that being a good dad tonight actually makes me a better founder tomorrow. Some of my best product ideas for RiseOhana have come from those moments, playing Roblox with my kids, realizing this is what the app is supposed to protect and encourage.
It’s a work in progress. I’m a work in progress. But I wouldn’t trade this feeling for anything. Not even for the comfort of that marathon pace.
If you’re in the same boat, left something stable to chase something you love, feeling the bear breathing down your neck while simultaneously feeling more alive than ever, just know you’re not alone. It’s okay to feel all of it at once.
Happy coding friends! And happy living too. Don’t forget that second part.
RiseOhana is my startup, a family engagement platform where parents create quests, kids share their adventures, and everyone levels up together through gamified parenting and quality time rewards. Built by a nerdy dad of three who spent 28 years helping machines communicate better and decided it was time to build something that helps families do the same. If that sounds like your jam, come find us at riseohana.com.
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