Mike Yan is the co-founder and CEO of Manychat, a chat automation tool for social platforms with over 250 employees, 1 million customers and growing 2x year over year. With his team, Mike has built the fastest growing platform on Whatsapp and the largest on Instagram. He’s also a husband and a new dad. We discussed:
* How he thought he was going to become a magician rather than a founder
* Starting a family as the founder of a fast-growing, 250+ person company
* How he prepared himself, his team and his board for paternity leave
* Advice he’d give to founders who are considering starting a family
* How becoming a Dad has changed him as a CEO
* Navigating the disruption of changes in childcare
* Sleep training
* The paradox of the Unhappy Achiever
* Supporting your partner
Where to find Mike Yan
* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikedyan/
* Telegram: @MikeYan
Where to find Adam Fishman
* FishmanAF Newsletter: www.FishmanAFNewsletter.com
* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamjfishman/
* Instagram: https://ww.instagram.com/startupdadpod/
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In this episode, we cover:
[01:46] Introduction
[02:15] ManyChat Background and Growth
[05:05] Mike's Early Life and Path to Entrepreneurship
[12:32] Decision to Start a Family
[14:49] Sleep Challenges and Sleep Training
[19:47] Taking Paternity Leave as CEO
[22:56] What He'd Tell His Pre-Dad Self
[25:26] The "Unhappy Achiever" Philosophy
[32:57] Navigating Childcare Transitions
[39:38] Thoughts on Kids and Technology
[46:07] Connecting with Mike Yan
[47:12] Lightning Round
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Show references:
Mike Yan LI:https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikedyan/
Email Address: mike@mikeyan.com
Telegram: @mikeyan
ManyChat: https://manychat.com/
Rubik’s cube: https://www.rubiks.com/
Counter Strike: https://www.counter-strike.net/
World of Warcraft :https://worldofwarcraft.blizzard.com/en-us/
Lilo and Stitch: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0275847/
The Matrix: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133093/
The Truman Show: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120382/
Existence: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2402107/
The Game: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119174/
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Production support for Startup Dad is provided by Tommy Harron at http://www.armaziproductions.com/
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit startupdadpod.substack.com
