Bill Simmons is a busy man. He’s a writer, a podcaster, a CEO, a documentary film producer, a husband, and a father of two. His eldest, Zoe, played on a big-time travel soccer team. So every weekend for months during soccer season, Simmons drove for hours around Southern California to various tournaments. If you know anything about Los Angeles, you know that traffic is a frustrating, nerve-racking hell on earth.
And yet Simmons wouldn’t trade it for anything. As he would say, the drive to and from tournaments meant he had his daughter trapped in a confined space for a couple hours where he could check in with her. How’s school? Friends? Boyfriends? How are you feeling about things going on in the world? As parents, the one thing that is always in short supply is time. And Bill Simmons’s time is as thinly stretched as anyone’s. Which is why he learned how to double up on it. As we should too.
The jogging stroller lets you exercise . . . while spending time with your kid. The drive to school . . . is a chance to have that conversation you needed to have with your daughter. All the chores that need to be done around the house . . . are a way to teach your kids about responsibility. As a parent, you always have to be looking for the double opportunity. Time is at a premium. Resources are scarce. Don’t waste any of them.