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/

_

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

—

Show references:

Mike Yan LI:https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikedyan/

Email Address: [email protected]

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/

_

For sponsorship inquiries email: [email protected].

For Startup Dad Merch: www.startupdadshop.com

Production support for Startup Dad is provided by Tommy Harron at http://www.armaziproductions.com/