
“Stop Making Kids Your Trophy” | Ashish Kundra (Dad of 1, CEO of Conceptual)
Startup Dad
Outro
Adam closes the episode, thanks Ashish, and directs listeners to subscribe and visit the show website.
Ashish Kundra is the CEO of Conceptual, a growth agency that helps companies like Cursor, Perplexity, Superhuman, Fenty Beauty, GPTZero, and dozens more. Prior to that, he led growth at DuckDuckGo and founded two other companies.
He’s also a husband and the father of a four-year-old son. In this episode, Ashish shares why starting a company when his son was one made sense for his family, how being married to a pediatrician shapes their parenting, and why he believes small falls prevent big falls. We discussed:
- Being married to a pediatrician and how that shapes parenting: Why Ashish sees it as a major advantage in handling health, nutrition, and everyday parenting decisions.
- Starting a company when his son was one: Why Ashish felt that early parenthood was still the right time to build something of his own.
- Avoiding over-parenting: How he gives his son more agency and lets natural consequences do some of the teaching.
- Why small falls prevent big falls: How Ashish thinks about struggle, discomfort, and building resilience early.
- Tracking happiness and contentment: Why he journals regularly and what he’s learned about sleep, exercise, and stress.
- Why your child is not your trophy: How he thinks about ambition, identity, and raising a son without ego.
Where to find Ashish Kundra
Where to find Adam Fishman
- FishmanAF Newsletter: www.FishmanAFNewsletter.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamjfishman/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startupdadpod/
- X: https://x.com/fishmanaf
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Welcome Ashish Kundra, CEO of Conceptual
(02:57) What it is really like being married to a pediatrician
(05:15) Nutrition, hydration, and diet hacks that actually help
(08:31) Why he started a company when his son was a baby
(12:38) Avoiding over-parenting and giving kids more agency
(16:41) Why small falls can prevent bigger ones later
(20:01) Tracking happiness, sleep, and stress in real time
(24:13) The weekly one-on-one that keeps their marriage aligned
(25:47) How he and his wife divide life at home
(27:44) Grandparents, family planning, and designing life on purpose
(29:34) Embracing imperfection as a parent and partner
(31:15) Raising a kid without turning him into a trophy
(34:33) The mistake he wishes he could redo as a dad
(35:53) Navigating startup pressure and family time
(37:59) Lightning round: strollers, quesadillas, Cocomelon, and minivans
Resources From This Episode:
Conceptual: https://conceptualhq.com/
Baby stroller: https://a.co/d/0aRvEiDH
The Sound of Music (Film): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059742/
The Lion King (Film): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110357/
Mrs. Doubtfire (Film): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107614/
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