TMIT 40: Why Your Family Needs a Landline (It's Not Just Nostalgia) with Chet Kittleson of Tin Can

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Sounds like you guys have been
busy in a good way.

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Busy in a good way.
That's the that's the sentence

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of my life right now.
How's your how's your family

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feeling about it?
Yeah.

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I mean it's been, it's been a
mix.

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Everyone in the family is very
committed to and excited about

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Tin Gan and they're all
involved.

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My wife we hired to be our
interior designer for our

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office, which I'm in right now.
My kids have been everything

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from like packaging fulfillment
specialists to beta testers and

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it's been hard.
It's like a something working

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well is meaningfully harder than
something not working well.

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It's much more fun, it's much
more addictive, it's much more

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successful feeling.
It's happier, but it but in

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terms of like the physical tax
and the mental load, it's it's

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hard.
And it's sort of a funny reality

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for me because tin can is all
about slowing down and living a

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more intentional life and being
a little more analog.

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And while I'm in order for me
to, like, deliver that good to

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the world, I have to work harder
than I've ever worked and be on

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my computer and my phone more
than ever.

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Welcome to The Most Important
Thing, where we explore family,

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leadership and culture at home.
Today we have an important and

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exciting guest for you, Chuck
Kittleson, the Co founder of

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Tincam, a screen free phone for
kids that is bringing back

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landlines in a totally rad way.
Welcome checked.

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Thank you, Danielle.
Thank you, Greg.

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I'm so excited to be here.
Yeah, thanks for joining us.

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It's, it's been a journey.
We met you through our venture

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capital seat and now we have
this podcast platform where

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we're exploring a lot of the
stuff that you seem to have

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landed on as well.
So.

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Kindred spirits here.
Yeah, for sure.

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I'm excited to.
I'm excited to chat.

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Yeah, awesome.
So could you just start off by

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telling us a little bit about
yourself and your family and

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what you're building with Tin
Can?

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Yeah.
So yeah, my name is Chet.

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I'm here in currently Gray and
rainy Seattle, WA which I which

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I love.
I've got a wife, Lindsay and

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then I have 3 kids.
I have a 10 year old Emma, an 8

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year old Thatcher and then a
five year old Sam, a girl and

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then two boys.
And I have committed my life to

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building Tin Can TINCAN just
like the old, the the old little

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stringing can phones that we had
when we were kids.

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And so the way it works is we
have two products.

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We have what we call the
Flashback, which is like an old

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school retro phone that comes
with a little black box we call

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the Brain that you connect to
your Wi-Fi router or extender

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and set it up that way.
Or we have the new Tin Can,

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which is sort of fully custom
hardware that connects to your

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Internet wirelessly.
It's still a plug in the wall

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phone, but it's just one
standard outlet.

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And then it connects like any
Internet of Things device via

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our parent companion app.
You give it your Wi-Fi, you're

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online, and then Tin Can comes
with this parent companion app

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that allows you to do a bunch of
things like set callable hours.

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And then maybe the most
important differentiator is you,

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your tin can can only call and
receive calls from other numbers

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that you approve.
It is not on the public network.

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And so Greg, if you tried to
call my daughter, you would hear

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my voice a recording saying
you're trying to reach a member

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of the tin can network.
You don't have permission to

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call.
And so every tin can is sort of

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fully locked down to to the
numbers that the parents want

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their kids to be able to call.
And yeah, the goal is to try and

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give kids an easy way to connect
with other kids or their family

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without the need for the
Internet in their pocket.

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And we had this inside a couple
years ago that when we were

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kids, our first social network
was the landline.

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And the landline was a social
network that had 100%

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penetration.
Everybody had one.

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And so as a kid, you knew that
if you had a crush on a girl or

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wanted to do a, you know, have a
play date with a boy or

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whatever, that you could call
him up on the landline and talk

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to him.
And as my kids started to get

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older and I started to feel a
little more pressure, especially

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for my daughter, who at the
time, when I first had the idea,

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was probably 7, to just have
more agency, autonomy,

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independence, etcetera.
I felt really torn and

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sandwiched by the problem with
AI don't want you to have a cell

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phone.
I don't think that's right for

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you yet.
And BI do want you to have

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agency.
I do want you to be independent.

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And so we decided to to build
some prototypes for this crazy

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little thing called Tin Can.
And a year later, we've sold a

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gazillion of them in every state
in the country and all across

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Canada.
And it's been a crazy, crazy

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whirlwind of a ride.
It's amazing and it it seems to

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tie back to some stuff.
During your formative years, you

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we've listened to some of the
interviews you've you've done

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and there's a story that you
tell about a landline and your

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father.
Could you share with us that

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story?
Yeah, yeah.

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So when my when I was 4, my
parents separated.

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My dad has passed away, but
wasn't he was he was a lot older

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than my mom, 22 years old and my
mom and not, not a great dad,

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just not very around.
And the landline was really the

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only way I was able to connect
with him.

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You know, he would occasionally
call.

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I would usually call him, but if
I miss my dad, I could pick up

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the phone and I could call him
and he usually answer and we

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chat for a few minutes.
And I don't know what my, I

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don't know if I would have had a
relationship otherwise.

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My mom and him weren't super
close.

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And so it's one of those weird
dynamics where he may have been

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less inclined to call.
I could, I could handle that,

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you know, independently on my
own when I wanted to access him.

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And that that's one of the more
like dramatic, you know, sort of

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emotional use cases for me as a
kid.

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And it was a really important
one.

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But also, gosh, I was, I'm an
extrovert.

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I was such a social kid.
I was definitely the kid that

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would call a friend six times in
a row if they didn't answer.

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And then they finally answered
like, shit, you were having

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dinner.
You can't keep calling.

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We'll call you back.
Ryan will call you back.

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But it you know what, I just had
agency.

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I was able, if I was bored, my
mom would say see who's free and

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I can pick up the phone And I'd,
you know, do my little phone

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tree until I got someone.
And yeah, it's just such an

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important part of my my
upbringing.

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Yep, I mean the the dad story I
cannot relate to and that's that

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is very touching and actually
thought provoking about how kids

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in that position today would
would be able to communicate

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given, you know, that they don't
have or until recently didn't

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really have a landline, most
likely.

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But then the other thing that
that brings up is, you know, the

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phone was like, it was like a
walkie-talkie effectively, like

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where I would make one, you
know, a call to my friend down

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the street, my best friend and
say meet you outside in 10 or

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whatever, you know, to play
baseball.

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And at one point we actually set
up baby monitors between our

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houses so that we could just do
that on on our own because we

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couldn't string a tin can
between our house and the house

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in between us.
So like, you know, this, this is

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like very nostalgic.
Most definitely.

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And I see why you're having a
lot of success with it, but

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it's, it's not obvious looking
at your background that this is

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where you would have ended up,
right?

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I mean, from what I understand,
you started in real estate and

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prop tech.
So like, can you help us draw

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the line from where you were to
to where you are now?

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I think to my mom's credit, I,
I, I was raised with this idea

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that you can do whatever it is
that you feel passionate enough

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to do.
And so I don't have a lot of

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walls up when I, when I see a
problem that I want to solve,

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there's a lot of similarities
between every problem.

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They all have some uniqueness.
We have to deal with hardware

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and fulfillment operations, prop
tech.

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You're dealing with long, you
know, long sales cycles and a

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really expensive purchase.
Whatever it is that you're

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working in, there will be unique
nuances, but ultimately it's the

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same skill set of see a problem,
solve a problem, build a team,

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build the right companies is
around you to fill in for

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whatever it is that you're
weaker in, etcetera.

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And so this feels very similar
to my last company.

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It's just that the problem we're
solving has, you know, nuance,

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nuances around the edges that
are a little bit different.

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And I I will say the one through
line for me is kids.

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One of my Co founders and I met
at summer camp.

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We were counselors together for
years.

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He was the best man of my
wedding, one of my best friends.

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And we've always said our, our
time at camp absolutely has

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played a role.
Camp was the one time we were

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staff members.
So at that point, you know, I

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started on staff when I was 18.
I got a cell phone when I was

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16.
It was the old Nokia brick.

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But when we went to camp, you
had to put your phone like you

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didn't have a phone.
You, I think you left it.

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We had this house called the
holiday House and phones were

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all left in there and you like
didn't have access to it for the

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summer.
And we remember back then even

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it being this sort of life
changing thing where all of a

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sudden you weren't on and you
were able to focus and be much

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more present with those around
you.

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And so anyway, there's a through
line for me of kids and, and,

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and like really enjoying a deep
level of connection, human to

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human.
And, and honestly, this is the

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first thing I've worked on that
I'm like fully on fire about.

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I'm a passionate person.
So everything I've worked on, I

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have found a ways to get excited
about, to believe in.

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And that was authentic.
I wasn't making it up to anyone

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or myself.
That's not the same as fire.

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This one is like, I can't sleep.
I can't stop working on it.

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And so, yeah, but but anyway,
yeah, the through line is kids

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and and and sort of being a
problem solver that's willing to

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solve any problem regardless of
what nuances it comes with.

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It's interesting, one of our
friends who we had on the

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podcast also Cliff Weitzman, the
CEO of Speechify, he says that

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behind every successful founder
entrepreneur, you will find a

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mom who just has this unwavering
belief that their child can do

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anything that they want to do.
And I think that time and time

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again, we're starting to see
that as well.

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You are, you're building a high
growth startup, which requires

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speed.
But also, in our previous

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conversations, we know how
important being a dad is to you.

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Olivia, one of your team
members, recently told us that

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you took your eldest daughter
with you when you had to go out

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to California for work.
Would love to hear more about

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how you are handling, you know,
being a dad with having a seat

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on a rocket ship right now.
Yeah, it's hard.

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Probably underestimated how hard
it would be.

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I've told people to succeed to
to this degree and we're super

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early, so I'm not counting any
eggs before they've hatched.

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But like, I've never experienced
a, a ride like this in our first

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year going from, you know,
nothing to being everywhere.

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It is way harder than either to
fail or to sort of hobble along.

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Those ones are harder mentally
because you just, you know, if

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you're an entrepreneur, you want
to find success, but they're

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actually quite easy from a
lifestyle perspective.

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You don't have anything to do
other than try to figure out

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what to do.
In this case, we were being

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pulled in 1000 different
directions.

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And I I quite literally could
never do enough.

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Like, like there is no job done
yet.

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That's something that, you know,
I have to work on as I grow both

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for myself, but also for the
team.

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But but yeah, all of that
amounts to it's much more

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challenging for me to be the dad
that I want to be at the same

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time that I'm being the husband
that I want to be at the same

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time that I'm being the son that
I want to be at the same time

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00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:07,760
that I'm being the son that I
want to be at the same time that

224
00:12:07,760 --> 00:12:09,720
I'm being the.
I do feel like most of my career

225
00:12:09,720 --> 00:12:13,760
I've, I've been, I'm pretty
efficient and I feel like I've

226
00:12:13,760 --> 00:12:16,360
been able to do all of the
things at the same time.

227
00:12:16,360 --> 00:12:18,640
And this is probably the first
time where I've really felt a

228
00:12:18,640 --> 00:12:22,480
crack where if I'm like being a
great dad, I feel myself falling

229
00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:26,200
down at being a son.
If I'm being a great son, I feel

230
00:12:26,200 --> 00:12:27,800
myself falling down at being a
husband.

231
00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:29,600
Those aren't all completely
interchangeable.

232
00:12:29,600 --> 00:12:34,160
You get the idea.
And so, yeah, my wife and I have

233
00:12:34,160 --> 00:12:36,200
been talking about it like very
actively.

234
00:12:36,200 --> 00:12:39,560
She's super supportive.
My family is all in on tin can.

235
00:12:40,200 --> 00:12:42,760
They've all play a role.
We hired my wife to do all the

236
00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:44,160
interior design at our new
office.

237
00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:45,960
We're committed to being an
office company.

238
00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:49,400
My kids have done everything
from packaging to being beta

239
00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:51,520
testers to helping me with
deliveries.

240
00:12:51,920 --> 00:12:53,600
We're not doing that anymore.
We've got a warehouse.

241
00:12:53,600 --> 00:12:56,360
But in the early days, my
daughter, like you said, came

242
00:12:56,360 --> 00:12:58,960
with me to LA for a big event in
an elementary school.

243
00:12:58,960 --> 00:13:01,880
And she was like, basically
selling tin cans.

244
00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:03,640
People would ask her, what do
you like about it?

245
00:13:03,640 --> 00:13:05,480
And she would tell them I can
plan play dates.

246
00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:09,200
And so that's really helpful to
be working on something that

247
00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:11,360
matters to them and that they
see matters to me.

248
00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:15,520
And I would be lying if I said
there weren't times.

249
00:13:15,520 --> 00:13:17,680
And Emma, she's the most aware,
probably.

250
00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:20,280
You know, we'll say things like,
you seem really busy, Are you

251
00:13:20,280 --> 00:13:22,840
OK?
Or my wife will, you know, be

252
00:13:22,840 --> 00:13:26,040
like, hey, it's Thanksgiving.
You keep looking at your phone,

253
00:13:26,320 --> 00:13:28,360
which is not the way I've
operated historically.

254
00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:29,960
And I'm sort of like, I don't
know.

255
00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:32,040
I don't know how to not look at
my phone right now.

256
00:13:32,040 --> 00:13:33,760
There's so many fires and things
going on.

257
00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:36,120
And we're trying to make sure we
can deliver an amazing

258
00:13:36,120 --> 00:13:39,760
experience to, you know, a lot
of families over the next few

259
00:13:39,760 --> 00:13:41,880
weeks as as we start delivering
for the holidays.

260
00:13:42,120 --> 00:13:45,680
So yeah, it's hard.
I, I, I think that's just one of

261
00:13:45,680 --> 00:13:49,880
the through lines that we see
across, you know, family culture

262
00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:53,920
is that the communication about
what's important as a provider

263
00:13:54,280 --> 00:13:57,320
needs to be there, but same with
what's important as a father, as

264
00:13:57,320 --> 00:14:01,320
a husband, as a lover.
And when these things don't, you

265
00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:05,400
know, don't mesh, that's where I
think people get out of sync and

266
00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:08,280
resentment starts to build.
And it's very true in the

267
00:14:08,280 --> 00:14:11,040
entrepreneurial journey.
You know, I've seen it be

268
00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:11,360
honest.
I'm.

269
00:14:11,440 --> 00:14:13,640
I am.
I don't think I'm.

270
00:14:15,040 --> 00:14:19,400
I wouldn't get an A right now.
I would say I get like maybe AC

271
00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:22,920
and there's a lot of grace
because I think my family knows

272
00:14:23,360 --> 00:14:25,240
that this is a unique
experience.

273
00:14:25,480 --> 00:14:29,080
And I think it helps that they
also love what tin can is

274
00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:30,800
producing.
And so there's a little bit like

275
00:14:30,800 --> 00:14:35,480
mission alignment, but we've
definitely had our share of hard

276
00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:38,200
conversations where she's like,
you know, dude, it's been a year

277
00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:40,320
now.
Is it really going to get easier

278
00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:42,480
after the holidays?
And usually my answers like I'd

279
00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:44,240
probably be lying, like, you
know, we're going to want to

280
00:14:44,240 --> 00:14:48,000
ship a lot of units next year.
We're and so it's definitely

281
00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:50,480
like an active work in progress.
We have a good relationship.

282
00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:52,560
There's a lot of trust there.
We've been together for a

283
00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:55,040
trillion years.
When we started dating, we were

284
00:14:55,040 --> 00:14:56,720
20 and 21.
So we've been together for like

285
00:14:56,720 --> 00:15:00,080
16-17 years now.
And so that, that all helps.

286
00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:03,640
But it's definitely like it has
not been easy both personally or

287
00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:05,600
relationally.
There's definitely, you know,

288
00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:06,960
we've had our challenges because
of it.

289
00:15:07,160 --> 00:15:10,360
Yeah, it's really hard.
It's, it's something we talk

290
00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:14,520
about actively about this
entrepreneurial journey.

291
00:15:14,520 --> 00:15:18,840
And you know, you mentioned like
the, the, the journey of finding

292
00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:22,520
product market fit is your
entire family, your team falling

293
00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:25,400
in love with the problem.
And you know, metaphorically

294
00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:28,960
pushing a boulder uphill that's
really hard to push, but you get

295
00:15:28,960 --> 00:15:32,400
it up to the top of the hill now
and it's going to roll and you

296
00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:34,080
got to figure out how to control
it down.

297
00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:37,240
And that is a totally different
problem than just falling in

298
00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:40,120
love with this problem and
getting people to identify with

299
00:15:40,120 --> 00:15:42,280
it.
So you're on that part of the

300
00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:44,960
journey and you can't come home
and say, oh, it's going to be

301
00:15:44,960 --> 00:15:47,400
easier after the after the
holidays because like problems,

302
00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:49,840
you have to just keep falling in
love with new problems, right?

303
00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:53,680
It's not just the problem of how
do we promote tin tan.

304
00:15:53,680 --> 00:15:55,440
It's now the problem of how do
we ship it, of how do we

305
00:15:55,440 --> 00:15:57,040
distribute it, how we build the
software?

306
00:15:57,040 --> 00:15:59,680
How do we, you know, there's a
million things and they're just

307
00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:01,040
going to keep coming?
Totally.

308
00:16:01,120 --> 00:16:07,200
Well, and in this case, because
I feel so close to the mission,

309
00:16:08,280 --> 00:16:11,800
I do feel, you know, it's like
with great power comes great

310
00:16:11,800 --> 00:16:13,880
responsibility.
The old Spider Man quote, I do

311
00:16:13,880 --> 00:16:19,720
feel a lot of responsibility and
pressure to solve this problem

312
00:16:19,720 --> 00:16:22,800
for as many kids and families as
fast as I can.

313
00:16:23,840 --> 00:16:25,840
It's actually much less about
the fact that we've raised

314
00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:29,680
venture capital or the fact that
I'm a hellaciously competitive

315
00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:33,400
person, which is true.
And much more in this case about

316
00:16:33,400 --> 00:16:37,080
I've seen it impact kids who
have it, I've seen it impact

317
00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:40,640
families who have it.
And I want to create that impact

318
00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:42,680
for everyone, everywhere
tomorrow.

319
00:16:43,200 --> 00:16:46,920
And so everything from thinking
about international expansion to

320
00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:52,280
setting goals for next year that
like would blow our mind.

321
00:16:52,400 --> 00:16:54,680
You know, it's like, I can't
even, it's staggering to think

322
00:16:54,680 --> 00:16:56,760
about accomplishing what we want
to accomplish.

323
00:16:56,760 --> 00:17:00,480
But I feel if, like, if we
don't, we are leaving a kid

324
00:17:00,480 --> 00:17:03,400
behind, we're, we're not
creating a better childhood for,

325
00:17:04,160 --> 00:17:08,200
for a kid somewhere.
And that's, you know, that's,

326
00:17:08,440 --> 00:17:11,160
that's an addictive thing.
That's a, you know, like, yeah.

327
00:17:11,400 --> 00:17:13,560
And the combination, I say this
all the time, the combination of

328
00:17:13,560 --> 00:17:15,640
like fun, like look at my
background.

329
00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:18,760
It's like lightning bolts and
smiley faces and starbursts and

330
00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:21,720
hearts.
It's delightful.

331
00:17:21,720 --> 00:17:23,280
It's a delightful space to play
in.

332
00:17:23,640 --> 00:17:27,119
Important.
The the text I get every day,

333
00:17:27,119 --> 00:17:29,640
literally every single day from
people with pictures of their

334
00:17:29,640 --> 00:17:31,360
kids, people I don't know
because I used to get my cell

335
00:17:31,360 --> 00:17:36,200
phone number out in our emails.
So fun, impactful.

336
00:17:36,200 --> 00:17:39,560
And then working like product
market fit is a drug for a

337
00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:42,520
founder and I've never really
experienced it before.

338
00:17:42,520 --> 00:17:44,720
I've had moments of it.
I've worked for companies that

339
00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:48,200
had it, but I've never actually
taken something from zero to

340
00:17:48,480 --> 00:17:53,240
everybody wants the thing.
And that is the trifecta of

341
00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:55,640
those 3, three things like I, I
could spend, you know, if I were

342
00:17:55,640 --> 00:17:58,600
a single person with no kids and
no spouse, I would probably work

343
00:17:59,520 --> 00:18:02,080
14 hours a day because I don't,
you know, it's almost like you

344
00:18:02,080 --> 00:18:03,920
don't want to do anything else.
It's like the thing that you,

345
00:18:04,080 --> 00:18:07,400
your mind is festering on, but
that'll break you at some point.

346
00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:09,760
So that's where you have to
figure out how do you create

347
00:18:09,760 --> 00:18:12,320
balance and sustainability for
yourself.

348
00:18:12,880 --> 00:18:15,080
And it sounds like that's a work
in progress right now, right?

349
00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:17,560
And maybe we'll never fully be
figured out.

350
00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:21,760
Yeah, I I do, Yeah, yes, yes is
the answer to all those things.

351
00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,600
I do hope that I make progress
on it.

352
00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:27,520
Is the is the goal to be 100%
perfect?

353
00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:33,000
I guess no, probably never for
anything but, but I think I

354
00:18:33,320 --> 00:18:36,000
there's progress I need to make
for sure for, for even like

355
00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:37,600
myself as much As for anybody
else.

356
00:18:38,240 --> 00:18:38,960
Makes sense.
Is there?

357
00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:41,600
Is there one thing, like one
activity or one ritual, that

358
00:18:41,600 --> 00:18:44,240
you've been able to maintain
right now with your family?

359
00:18:44,640 --> 00:18:47,000
I mean, I still very
consistently put my cell phone

360
00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:50,960
away between the hours of five,
like when I get home 530 and

361
00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:54,920
bedtime.
I'm still my I'm like, I coach

362
00:18:54,920 --> 00:18:56,960
baseball for my son and we're in
the offseason.

363
00:18:56,960 --> 00:18:59,760
We decided not to do select
baseball this year because it's

364
00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:02,280
a lot.
And I do like a winter camp

365
00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:04,640
every Monday night with him and
some of his buddies in like an

366
00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:08,120
indoor facility in Kent.
And so I still do feel like when

367
00:19:08,120 --> 00:19:10,720
I take a step back, I'm like,
you're still a great dad.

368
00:19:12,160 --> 00:19:15,640
It's just that I think my bar,
it's more that like my, my

369
00:19:15,640 --> 00:19:17,840
headspace jeering, all of those
things.

370
00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:20,800
Like I think two years ago I
would go to winter camp and I

371
00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:23,800
would have spent like the whole
day before thinking about what

372
00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:28,080
activities I'm going to run.
And you know, like I, I just go

373
00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:31,800
hard at everything I do.
And now it's like I show up at

374
00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:36,600
5:00 to get him and we rushed to
the thing and my head is still

375
00:19:36,600 --> 00:19:39,920
in work mode and I'm not quite
as there as I want to be.

376
00:19:39,920 --> 00:19:41,640
That's the, I think that's the
big challenge.

377
00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:44,480
So I'm still ritualistically
available.

378
00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:48,960
I'm there, I'm doing all the
same things, I'm just not as

379
00:19:48,960 --> 00:19:53,400
proud of how like
compartmentalized I'm able to

380
00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:55,560
make things or when I'm home, I
can be like I'm in home mode

381
00:19:55,560 --> 00:19:58,240
when I'm at work.
The last thing I'll say there is

382
00:19:58,240 --> 00:20:01,280
my bike ride.
Having a commute.

383
00:20:01,640 --> 00:20:04,360
I bike, it's 22 miles a day, 11
miles each way.

384
00:20:04,360 --> 00:20:06,080
I have an E bike, so don't give
me too much credit.

385
00:20:06,080 --> 00:20:08,880
I don't view it as an exercise,
I view it as a commute.

386
00:20:09,880 --> 00:20:16,440
But that has been very helpful
in helping me to transition.

387
00:20:16,880 --> 00:20:20,160
And I try to be intentional.
I don't do it every time, but on

388
00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:23,480
the ride home in particular, I
try to be intentional.

389
00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:29,200
Like, OK, you have 45 minutes to
become a dad again and to try to

390
00:20:29,200 --> 00:20:32,360
shed whatever you're stressed
out about or excited about or

391
00:20:32,360 --> 00:20:35,400
thinking about.
And so that has been very

392
00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:38,360
helpful, especially when I do,
there are times where on my

393
00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:41,200
ride, I literally like kind of
snap in my head and like, OK,

394
00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:44,680
leave work in those days.
Usually I get home and I'm like

395
00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:47,840
ready for the kids to tackle me.
You know, that's why we created

396
00:20:47,840 --> 00:20:50,080
the most important thing.
It's for that to meet, ride home

397
00:20:50,080 --> 00:20:53,040
so that you can switch into
family mode and come through the

398
00:20:53,040 --> 00:20:57,320
door and be like, guess what I
just learned and and show up and

399
00:20:57,320 --> 00:20:59,800
promote family as a team.
Put away the work a little bit.

400
00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:01,280
I love it.
I love it.

401
00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:05,640
I'd love to hear more about what
you're learning around

402
00:21:05,640 --> 00:21:07,960
connection.
So obviously, like if I just buy

403
00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:11,760
my child a tin can in isolation,
she's not really going to have

404
00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:14,440
anybody to call.
So I'd love to hear what you

405
00:21:14,440 --> 00:21:18,240
what's been your experience and
how people are buying tin can

406
00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:21,680
and if the kids these days are
using them for anything

407
00:21:21,680 --> 00:21:23,360
different than the way that we
used to.

408
00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:29,760
Yes.
So on the first point, the, the,

409
00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:34,000
the true answer is these things
are being ordered in groups.

410
00:21:34,440 --> 00:21:38,280
And so I think it's much less
likely and we tried to price it

411
00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:41,640
so that that is the case.
Everything from like the, the,

412
00:21:41,760 --> 00:21:44,600
the default price, we tried to
make very affordable.

413
00:21:44,920 --> 00:21:47,280
I know that's relative, but you
know, we've, we've tried very

414
00:21:47,280 --> 00:21:52,200
hard to have as low a margin as
we can to the fact that we offer

415
00:21:52,200 --> 00:21:54,400
bundling pricing where if you
buy 2, you get a discount.

416
00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:56,280
If you buy three or more, you
get a bigger discount.

417
00:21:56,520 --> 00:21:58,920
And then we have lots of schools
and larger groups or we'll do

418
00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:01,680
like a sort of a custom, you
know, DO 4.

419
00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:07,520
And so on average, kids have at
least our 10 grand friend, like

420
00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:09,640
at least them and their best
friend have it.

421
00:22:09,960 --> 00:22:14,240
And if you remember being a kid,
having all your friends on it is

422
00:22:14,240 --> 00:22:16,440
great.
Having your best friend on it is

423
00:22:16,440 --> 00:22:20,720
the most important thing.
Every kid who's like 781012,

424
00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:25,200
usually they have one or two or
maybe 3 people that are their go

425
00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:27,280
TOS.
And so like my daughter, as an

426
00:22:27,280 --> 00:22:31,360
example, she has like dozens of
her classmates and friends from

427
00:22:31,360 --> 00:22:34,240
around West Seattle, our
neighborhood, that are on there.

428
00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:36,800
Every once in a while, she'll
have a call with someone like,

429
00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:38,720
oh, you haven't talked to a
summer in months.

430
00:22:39,280 --> 00:22:41,680
But a vast majority of the time,
it's her best friends and

431
00:22:41,680 --> 00:22:43,720
they're planning a playdate or a
slumber party or just catching

432
00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:48,480
up about school or whatever.
And so that's my first answer.

433
00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:52,880
The kids who don't have any
friends, usually the parents

434
00:22:52,880 --> 00:22:54,600
bought it for a different
reason.

435
00:22:55,320 --> 00:22:57,560
I was texting with a parent the
other day who said they actually

436
00:22:57,560 --> 00:23:00,640
bought it because they have a
babysitter who doesn't have a

437
00:23:00,640 --> 00:23:03,320
cell phone and they wanted the
babysitter to be able to, when

438
00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:05,520
they're at their house, be able
to access them and for them to

439
00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:07,400
be able to access home via the
tin can.

440
00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:12,680
We have others who really want
the ability for the kids to be

441
00:23:12,680 --> 00:23:15,760
able to call 911 and they use it
more as like an emergency

442
00:23:15,760 --> 00:23:20,240
service line where the parents
can communicate with the kids

443
00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:23,440
who might be home alone.
Maybe they're 12 or 13 or, you

444
00:23:23,440 --> 00:23:27,520
know, even 11 and, or if
something happens while dad is

445
00:23:27,520 --> 00:23:30,400
home with the kids, the kids now
have an easy, you know, you go

446
00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:32,360
grab it, you down on the one
just like when we were kids.

447
00:23:33,120 --> 00:23:36,440
And in those cases, I'll call
those sort of like latchkey kid

448
00:23:36,440 --> 00:23:42,360
or emergency phone.
And then the the other use case

449
00:23:42,360 --> 00:23:45,160
that we talked about, the
parents all ask them, Hey, I

450
00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:46,760
noticed your kid isn't super
active.

451
00:23:46,760 --> 00:23:48,280
I always reach out to people who
aren't active.

452
00:23:48,600 --> 00:23:49,800
Is there anything we could do
better?

453
00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:52,200
And they're like, Oh no, this is
exactly what we didn't want them

454
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:56,000
to have a super social device.
We're still interested in them

455
00:23:56,000 --> 00:23:57,760
being like at home when they're
home.

456
00:23:58,400 --> 00:23:59,960
And it's solving the problem for
us.

457
00:24:00,120 --> 00:24:04,600
But I'd say like a vast majority
the, the kids have, you know, a

458
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:07,440
couple, 2-3 of their closest
friends and, and they're

459
00:24:07,440 --> 00:24:09,480
actively talking.
And then I guess the last use

460
00:24:09,480 --> 00:24:11,560
case I should have mentioned is
grandparents.

461
00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:17,880
That is, I think, absolutely a
core feature of the tin can is

462
00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:20,840
parents wanting their kids to be
able to connect with their

463
00:24:20,840 --> 00:24:23,880
parents, with the grandparents,
without them being the go

464
00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:27,280
between.
Part of that is the organization

465
00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:29,360
of it all.
It is hard.

466
00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:31,440
I used to do it.
I don't anymore because my kids

467
00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:34,120
have tin can.
But you know, mom texts, says,

468
00:24:34,120 --> 00:24:35,920
hey, I want to chat with the
kids tonight and I'm like

469
00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:39,520
exhausted and FaceTime is a
disaster.

470
00:24:39,520 --> 00:24:41,360
The kids want to play with the
emojis and they're running

471
00:24:41,360 --> 00:24:42,880
around the house trying to show
everything off.

472
00:24:43,680 --> 00:24:46,760
And I like I remember feeling
very anxious with FaceTime

473
00:24:46,760 --> 00:24:51,640
calls.
And now my mom is bored and she

474
00:24:51,640 --> 00:24:54,280
just picks up the phone and
calls Emma and Emma will talk to

475
00:24:54,280 --> 00:24:57,800
her for or, or Thatcher or Sam.
She called Thatcher yesterday.

476
00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:00,480
That's I think that's another
huge solve.

477
00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:01,960
And you don't need a tin can for
that.

478
00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:04,160
And so that one, you could get a
tin can and have nobody else in

479
00:25:04,160 --> 00:25:06,960
the world, you know, that has
one and on day one have 10

480
00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:08,960
people your kids can call
between grandparents or aunts

481
00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:10,560
and uncles or, you know,
whatever it is.

482
00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:13,520
And you know, one of the early
episodes that we did for the

483
00:25:13,520 --> 00:25:15,240
most important thing was on
family space.

484
00:25:15,480 --> 00:25:18,960
And I'm curious how you think
about like, where tin scan

485
00:25:18,960 --> 00:25:21,640
operates in your home.
Like do each of your kids have

486
00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:23,880
their own tin can?
And what have you seen other

487
00:25:23,880 --> 00:25:29,320
people use it for or how?
Yeah, so I've seen everything

488
00:25:29,440 --> 00:25:33,160
and there is a debate among
families as to if it should go

489
00:25:33,160 --> 00:25:36,560
in the kids bedroom or if it
should go in a common area.

490
00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:41,800
I don't know if it's 5050, if I
had to guess it's probably like

491
00:25:42,320 --> 00:25:46,360
6040 or 7030.
People put it in the common area

492
00:25:46,360 --> 00:25:51,920
versus the kids bedroom.
My kids, we have two.

493
00:25:52,360 --> 00:25:55,880
The only reason for that
honestly is because my house is

494
00:25:55,880 --> 00:25:58,680
sort of a beta house.
And for me it's helpful to have

495
00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:01,120
multiple devices where I'm, it's
like I can eliminate, OK,

496
00:26:01,120 --> 00:26:03,840
there's not some hardware issue.
If we rolled a new firmware to

497
00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:05,640
my house, I can test it on both
phones.

498
00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:07,880
I can have them call each other,
etcetera.

499
00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:11,800
If I were a tin can customer,
this is not serving the business

500
00:26:11,800 --> 00:26:14,160
because obviously I want to sell
as many tin cans as I can.

501
00:26:14,440 --> 00:26:18,120
I would highly recommend to
start with A1 Tin Can.

502
00:26:18,320 --> 00:26:22,080
And if you really feel the pain
point of your kids are

503
00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:24,960
constantly fighting over the
phone, you know, buy a second

504
00:26:25,000 --> 00:26:25,920
one.
Great.

505
00:26:27,120 --> 00:26:31,800
But I like the idea that it is a
family phone that everybody uses

506
00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:33,480
it.
You put it in a common area.

507
00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:37,640
If it rings, anybody can answer.
If Sam's there and he's five, he

508
00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:39,160
answers.
But if my wife is there, she

509
00:26:39,160 --> 00:26:42,320
should answer.
You want the kid who's calling

510
00:26:42,720 --> 00:26:46,360
to have an experience of when I
call, usually somebody answers.

511
00:26:46,560 --> 00:26:50,400
If you're relying on only the
one kid, the odds go down a lot.

512
00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:52,320
They have sports, they have
school, they have all these

513
00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:55,000
different things going on, and I
think that sends a negative

514
00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,080
signal.
It feels like a failed outcome

515
00:26:57,080 --> 00:26:58,600
for the kid who's making the
call.

516
00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:03,840
And I also want kids to learn
how to greet a parent and to

517
00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:07,160
say, hey, Danielle, it's Chet.
Is Greg home?

518
00:27:07,160 --> 00:27:08,560
I was hoping I could chat with
him.

519
00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:12,840
That is a skill set.
I am on this podcast, and I can

520
00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:14,960
speak well.
And I absolutely think that my

521
00:27:14,960 --> 00:27:17,960
landline days as a kid played a
role.

522
00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:19,840
I'm not saying that's the only
reason I'm an extroverted,

523
00:27:19,840 --> 00:27:23,600
gregarious person, naturally,
but I really think it did.

524
00:27:23,600 --> 00:27:25,920
I was always on the phone, and I
had to talk to parents and

525
00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,520
grandparents and etcetera.
So yeah, I would say put it in a

526
00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:31,240
common area where everyone can
hear it.

527
00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:35,320
Start with one and see how it
goes.

528
00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:36,920
Great.
I like that.

529
00:27:37,240 --> 00:27:39,360
Yeah.
I think a lot about how you're

530
00:27:39,360 --> 00:27:42,160
bringing back what I'll call
cognitive patients.

531
00:27:42,360 --> 00:27:45,080
Like not just the skill building
that you're mentioning around,

532
00:27:45,080 --> 00:27:48,640
you know, calling the house and
talking to whomever happens to

533
00:27:48,640 --> 00:27:51,760
answer the phone, but also when
you're on the phone with your

534
00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:54,800
grandparent or your best friend,
there's just so much less

535
00:27:54,800 --> 00:28:00,240
stimulation than there than
there is with FaceTime or even

536
00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:02,080
with a cell phone.
Because, you know, lots of

537
00:28:02,080 --> 00:28:06,400
people will be on a cell phone
talking, but also walking or

538
00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:10,040
doing playing a game on their
phone or scrolling social media.

539
00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:12,800
And so I think when I think
about Tin Can, it's not just

540
00:28:12,800 --> 00:28:17,480
bringing back childhood
nostalgia, but it's also really

541
00:28:17,480 --> 00:28:20,520
supporting something that we're
talking about a lot in our house

542
00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:25,000
today, which is that kind of low
stimulation, extending the

543
00:28:25,000 --> 00:28:28,080
duration, you know, teaching our
children and ourselves

544
00:28:28,080 --> 00:28:30,720
reteaching this idea of
cognitive patients.

545
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:35,120
I totally totally agree and and
that is important for adults

546
00:28:35,120 --> 00:28:37,520
too.
By the way, I was talking to my

547
00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:41,880
mom last night at around 10:00
PM for I should look at the

548
00:28:41,880 --> 00:28:44,560
call.
I was probably 45 minutes on tin

549
00:28:44,560 --> 00:28:47,240
can.
I was on Thatcher's and she was

550
00:28:47,240 --> 00:28:49,040
on hers.
I gave her one as sort of like a

551
00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:52,320
well for for fun and because
she's kind of a beta tester too.

552
00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:56,040
So we were on a tin can to tin
can call last night and I was

553
00:28:56,040 --> 00:28:58,520
like, how are you liking this?
What's the experience?

554
00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:01,480
And she was like, I love it.
It is hard.

555
00:29:01,800 --> 00:29:03,840
I'm so used.
She was like, I'm stuck because

556
00:29:03,840 --> 00:29:05,240
we made it a plug in the wall
phone.

557
00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:08,320
We talked a lot about having a
lithium, lithium ion battery so

558
00:29:08,320 --> 00:29:10,040
that you could like move around
while you talked.

559
00:29:10,040 --> 00:29:13,160
And we all decided it was very
important for it to be

560
00:29:13,160 --> 00:29:16,080
stationary so that a kid was
stuck to their desk or to the

561
00:29:16,080 --> 00:29:17,880
wall or wherever that the
parents set it up.

562
00:29:19,720 --> 00:29:23,520
And she mentioned the value she
was already seeing and the

563
00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:27,600
challenge because she's been
wired now for two decades, that

564
00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:30,360
she can't move around while
she's on the call.

565
00:29:30,360 --> 00:29:33,280
She's usually like vacuuming or
doing dishes.

566
00:29:33,280 --> 00:29:36,360
And I'm on speakerphone.
It actually drives me crazy.

567
00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:39,520
With her in particular, she's
very like, you know, she's a

568
00:29:39,520 --> 00:29:42,520
busy body.
And so she's always doing

569
00:29:42,520 --> 00:29:43,800
something.
She's like walking her dogs or

570
00:29:43,800 --> 00:29:45,680
feeding them.
And I'm like, mom, I can't hear

571
00:29:45,680 --> 00:29:46,680
you.
There's all this background

572
00:29:46,680 --> 00:29:49,560
noise.
And so she's like stuck to her

573
00:29:49,560 --> 00:29:52,080
chair and she can't get up
unless she puts the phone down

574
00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:55,640
and walks away.
And she self identified.

575
00:29:55,640 --> 00:29:57,600
It's funny you mention this.
This is last night at like 10:00

576
00:29:57,600 --> 00:30:01,000
PM, self identified that it was
sort of reteaching her to just

577
00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:03,280
be singularly focused on the
phone call.

578
00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:07,600
And then beyond moving around,
there's also the reality of your

579
00:30:07,600 --> 00:30:12,320
face is buzzing with your phone.
And so you're like talking on

580
00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:16,320
the phone and the whole time
Ding, like all these Slack

581
00:30:16,320 --> 00:30:18,360
notifications, e-mail
notifications, whatever you have

582
00:30:18,360 --> 00:30:21,840
turned on text messages.
And I think anyone would be

583
00:30:21,840 --> 00:30:25,200
lying if they said they didn't
look at those things while

584
00:30:25,200 --> 00:30:26,240
they're on.
You're like talking on the

585
00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:28,240
phone, you're looking and stuff,
you're swiping, you're updating

586
00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:32,480
your e-mail.
So it's another actually reason

587
00:30:32,480 --> 00:30:34,520
to go back to why I think it's
important to put it in the

588
00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:38,560
comments space.
Things are best when everybody

589
00:30:38,560 --> 00:30:44,800
use them.
There is kids do not.

590
00:30:44,840 --> 00:30:49,240
There's a there's an influencer
on Instagram.

591
00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:53,520
I think she's called the gamer
educator and she she posted a

592
00:30:53,520 --> 00:30:56,160
bunch about tin can.
Some of it was, you know, I

593
00:30:56,160 --> 00:30:58,160
think she has some skepticisms,
which is totally fine.

594
00:30:58,160 --> 00:31:01,800
I loved, I love seeing it.
But she talked a lot about how

595
00:31:01,800 --> 00:31:06,120
kids want to be living in an
adult world and the more that an

596
00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:09,640
adult uses a thing, the more the
kid will use it cuz they feel

597
00:31:09,640 --> 00:31:11,480
like, well, this is just a thing
that people use.

598
00:31:11,480 --> 00:31:13,680
You're not giving me like a
dumbed down version.

599
00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:17,440
And so I really want people.
I want kids to see their parents

600
00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:19,640
using a tin can.
When you're home and you want to

601
00:31:19,640 --> 00:31:22,800
catch up with your mom or your
sister, call them on the tin

602
00:31:22,800 --> 00:31:24,160
can.
It's a more focused

603
00:31:24,160 --> 00:31:26,400
conversation.
It's fun, it feels charming and

604
00:31:26,400 --> 00:31:28,720
nostalgic.
And your kids will see this

605
00:31:28,720 --> 00:31:30,480
device is good enough for all of
us.

606
00:31:31,120 --> 00:31:33,880
So anyway I could go on.
I'd love to hear more.

607
00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:36,720
You mentioned that that that
influencer had some skepticism,

608
00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:38,080
like what?
It sounds like you have very

609
00:31:38,080 --> 00:31:40,800
little pushback that everyone's
really charmed by the bringing

610
00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:44,200
back of the 90s childhood.
But what have you heard as far

611
00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:46,920
as skepticism that does have
some validity And like, what

612
00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:48,240
would you, what do you say to
it?

613
00:31:49,120 --> 00:31:53,280
The the hardest part of any
network is you have to grow the

614
00:31:53,280 --> 00:31:55,040
network.
It's like the chicken and the

615
00:31:55,040 --> 00:31:57,680
egg problem.
We've been lucky and that we've

616
00:31:57,680 --> 00:32:00,520
effectively been viral for six
months now.

617
00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:04,640
And that virality is durable
because what happens is one

618
00:32:04,640 --> 00:32:06,600
person gets it and they
immediately share it with their

619
00:32:06,600 --> 00:32:08,160
five friends and their family
members.

620
00:32:08,160 --> 00:32:10,800
And then each of those people
have a different nucleus and on

621
00:32:10,800 --> 00:32:15,240
and on it goes.
This person, their kids don't

622
00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:18,720
have anyone on it yet.
She learned her and I had a

623
00:32:18,720 --> 00:32:21,520
conversation about, you know,
tin can because she mentioned it

624
00:32:21,520 --> 00:32:23,240
on a post unrelated to her
buying it.

625
00:32:23,440 --> 00:32:25,720
And so one of the skepticism was
my kid doesn't have anybody to

626
00:32:25,720 --> 00:32:27,720
call yet.
And that's totally true.

627
00:32:27,720 --> 00:32:31,360
If you, if you're the 1st in
your network to get it, you

628
00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:34,080
know, at least as of right now,
you'll have to do a little bit

629
00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:36,640
of work to educate others.
We've seen that be very, very

630
00:32:36,640 --> 00:32:39,520
easy for people, which is why we
was scaled so quickly.

631
00:32:39,840 --> 00:32:43,720
But I think there are certain
personality types that will be

632
00:32:43,720 --> 00:32:46,440
like the first in their
community who will buy it and

633
00:32:46,440 --> 00:32:48,480
they'll spread it like wildfire
fire.

634
00:32:48,640 --> 00:32:52,240
We have these gifts that we
created.

635
00:32:52,840 --> 00:32:55,240
I think it's, I think I call it
a GIF, but basically you have

636
00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:58,680
like week zero in a Goa
metropolitan area and then you

637
00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:01,800
have week four and then you have
week 10 and you have week 20 and

638
00:33:01,800 --> 00:33:05,280
tin can, it's like starts with
nothing and then it goes and it

639
00:33:05,280 --> 00:33:08,800
usually starts with a family who
gets it and it's usually a mom.

640
00:33:08,800 --> 00:33:11,360
It's not always, I'd say 90% of
the time it's a mom who's

641
00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:15,400
influential, gregarious,
extroverted and just goes around

642
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:19,320
and like we have one mom.
We talked to a woman who she

643
00:33:19,320 --> 00:33:22,320
just keeps buying flashbacks and
driving any people's houses to

644
00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:25,560
set them up because she's trying
to build this world and it takes

645
00:33:25,680 --> 00:33:26,840
him down from all of us to
build.

646
00:33:26,840 --> 00:33:28,920
It that would be Greg's mom,
like for sure would.

647
00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:31,520
Have done that, yeah.
You know you have a window of

648
00:33:31,520 --> 00:33:35,240
time right now where your kids
are obviously your beta testers,

649
00:33:35,600 --> 00:33:37,840
but they're also watching you
build this.

650
00:33:37,840 --> 00:33:40,080
And you mentioned that it has
been a bit messy.

651
00:33:40,440 --> 00:33:43,440
But what do you hope that they
are learning right now from the

652
00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:45,920
struggle of it all and watching
you grow tin can?

653
00:33:46,080 --> 00:33:49,880
Oh man, I mean, I talked to them
pretty explicitly about this all

654
00:33:49,880 --> 00:33:52,280
the time.
The number one thing is that you

655
00:33:52,280 --> 00:33:55,440
can do anything.
It doesn't matter what your

656
00:33:55,440 --> 00:33:57,080
experience is.
It doesn't matter if you're the

657
00:33:57,080 --> 00:34:00,080
most qualified person.
It doesn't matter if you think

658
00:34:00,080 --> 00:34:01,680
it should.
It's so obvious it should be

659
00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:06,080
done already.
If you see a need and have the

660
00:34:06,080 --> 00:34:09,239
guts, you can solve the problem
in a really profound way.

661
00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:13,639
And it can be very exciting that
that's like by far the number

662
00:34:13,639 --> 00:34:16,520
one thing that I want to teach
anybody like my friends who are

663
00:34:16,520 --> 00:34:20,440
adults, my kids.
And and then I got that gift

664
00:34:20,440 --> 00:34:23,000
from my mom.
She was always just like so open

665
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:26,480
to the idea that I could do
anything, that everything felt

666
00:34:26,480 --> 00:34:29,239
possible.
I told her that before, but

667
00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:31,520
probably not enough.
She'll listen to this.

668
00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:33,360
She always listen to my stuff.
So there you go, mom.

669
00:34:35,000 --> 00:34:43,560
And the second thing is, I guess
it's sort of it's sort of

670
00:34:43,560 --> 00:34:45,360
similar, but like following your
heart.

671
00:34:45,880 --> 00:34:50,000
Like they saw me go from like
proptech to tin can.

672
00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:52,120
And like you guys said, that's
not a clear through line.

673
00:34:52,120 --> 00:34:54,440
It doesn't make a whole lot of
sense to like a LinkedIn

674
00:34:54,440 --> 00:34:58,800
profile, but they saw that I had
this passion and they watched

675
00:34:58,800 --> 00:35:00,440
me.
And then I think that third

676
00:35:00,440 --> 00:35:03,680
thing is like, maybe maybe it's
the same.

677
00:35:03,680 --> 00:35:07,800
Maybe it's 2B like the the like
2A and 2B.

678
00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:12,240
It is just like passion.
You're putting care into things.

679
00:35:12,240 --> 00:35:15,680
Like they watched me like design
the box in the packaging with

680
00:35:15,680 --> 00:35:18,080
our brand designer.
They've watched me test the

681
00:35:18,080 --> 00:35:20,800
twirly cords and like figure out
what the right amount of

682
00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:23,120
resistance is.
All the different types of

683
00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:25,840
plastics you can choose for the
cradle, the weights, they've

684
00:35:25,840 --> 00:35:29,000
watched all of that.
And so I, there's a lot, there's

685
00:35:29,000 --> 00:35:30,840
a lot in there.
And I am grateful.

686
00:35:30,840 --> 00:35:33,400
When I think about the guilt
that I have sometimes over how

687
00:35:33,400 --> 00:35:36,200
busy I am right now, it does
make me feel grateful that they

688
00:35:36,200 --> 00:35:39,520
are getting a lot out of the
experience of watching me follow

689
00:35:39,520 --> 00:35:42,880
my heart, build something great.
You know, they got to be on the

690
00:35:42,880 --> 00:35:44,840
Today show.
That wasn't necessarily

691
00:35:44,840 --> 00:35:47,520
something they cared about or
even really knew what it was,

692
00:35:47,520 --> 00:35:49,680
but they they are like
witnessing this is becoming a

693
00:35:49,680 --> 00:35:51,160
thing that the world knows
about.

694
00:35:52,280 --> 00:35:54,480
And so I think there's a lot for
them to take away.

695
00:35:54,800 --> 00:35:57,960
Yeah, that's awesome.
It's but as you said, it's

696
00:35:57,960 --> 00:36:00,400
really lucky that the problem
that you're solving have, you

697
00:36:00,400 --> 00:36:04,880
know, such beautiful knock on
effects for their childhood to

698
00:36:04,880 --> 00:36:06,800
be able to watch.
Totally, totally.

699
00:36:07,520 --> 00:36:11,240
So last question, do you have a
favorite family holiday

700
00:36:11,240 --> 00:36:14,400
tradition or ritual that you
could share with us?

701
00:36:15,640 --> 00:36:18,120
Yes, it's got to be with my
wife's family.

702
00:36:18,120 --> 00:36:20,600
My family has lots too, but this
is my favorite one.

703
00:36:20,600 --> 00:36:22,840
I was there when the tradition
started.

704
00:36:23,200 --> 00:36:27,800
I don't remember exactly why,
but every year on Thanksgiving,

705
00:36:27,800 --> 00:36:32,400
we freeze the night before.
We put a like a huge either

706
00:36:32,400 --> 00:36:35,320
several bags or whatever they're
called of Brussels sprouts in

707
00:36:35,320 --> 00:36:38,360
the freezer.
And then on Thanksgiving Day,

708
00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:41,800
we, we, we pitch them to each
other and hit them with baseball

709
00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:45,200
bats or we golf them off a tee
into the woods where, where my

710
00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:47,960
in laws live.
And it has become like, like on

711
00:36:47,960 --> 00:36:49,480
Thanksgiving, my sons, my kids,
the whole day.

712
00:36:49,480 --> 00:36:50,760
When are we going to hit
Brussels sprouts?

713
00:36:50,760 --> 00:36:51,960
When are we going to hit
Brussels sprouts?

714
00:36:51,960 --> 00:36:54,920
I hate Brussels sprouts.
And so partly it feels like

715
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:58,280
revenge for all the soggy boiled
Brussels sprouts I had to eat.

716
00:36:59,080 --> 00:37:01,960
And partly it just become like a
weird you, you know, you have

717
00:37:01,960 --> 00:37:04,000
those certain things where
you're like, this is weird and

718
00:37:04,000 --> 00:37:06,560
unique to us.
And that's one where like people

719
00:37:06,560 --> 00:37:08,040
don't get it.
And that's perfect.

720
00:37:08,720 --> 00:37:10,720
I love that.
Thank you so much.

721
00:37:10,760 --> 00:37:12,280
That's great.
That's a great one.

722
00:37:12,320 --> 00:37:14,240
Rituals.
You got to create them, and the

723
00:37:14,240 --> 00:37:15,760
weirder the better.
Yeah.

724
00:37:16,040 --> 00:37:19,200
Yeah, very cool.
So I know it's a little late for

725
00:37:19,560 --> 00:37:23,240
a Christmas delivery, but how
can our audience get a hold of a

726
00:37:23,240 --> 00:37:25,240
tin can in their house?
In their homes.

727
00:37:25,880 --> 00:37:31,720
Yeah, tincan.com, TINCA, n.com
right now.

728
00:37:31,720 --> 00:37:36,120
Then the current orders will
ship in February for the new tin

729
00:37:36,120 --> 00:37:38,840
can and then in January for the
flashback.

730
00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:41,760
I do recommend the new tin can.
I love the flashback too, but

731
00:37:41,760 --> 00:37:44,960
the new tin can has a much more
elegant, simple setup process.

732
00:37:44,960 --> 00:37:46,760
And I think it's AI think it's a
better product.

733
00:37:48,200 --> 00:37:52,840
And yeah, we're working on
hopefully in Q1, we'll be at a

734
00:37:52,840 --> 00:37:55,440
point where we have inventory on
shelves and can migrate to a

735
00:37:55,440 --> 00:37:57,480
world where, you know, people
can get tin cans in a couple

736
00:37:57,480 --> 00:38:00,400
days or a week.
Something more standard, which

737
00:38:00,440 --> 00:38:02,760
goes back to what you said about
when, you know, when you want

738
00:38:02,760 --> 00:38:04,240
your friend to get one.
I want them to get one right

739
00:38:04,240 --> 00:38:05,800
away.
Yeah, absolutely.

740
00:38:05,800 --> 00:38:06,760
That's great.
That's great.

741
00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,600
Well, we are endorsing this as a
great way to build family

742
00:38:10,600 --> 00:38:12,760
culture and it's just getting
started.

743
00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:15,880
So, you know, maybe 5-10 years
from now when Tin Can is mildly

744
00:38:15,880 --> 00:38:19,600
successful, family culture will
look a lot different in America.

745
00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:21,320
I hope so.
It's not that often that we get

746
00:38:21,320 --> 00:38:26,440
to hear about someone who's got
such an incredible path ahead of

747
00:38:26,440 --> 00:38:29,360
them from a founder's
perspective along that's also a

748
00:38:29,360 --> 00:38:31,040
dad, right?
So it's really.

749
00:38:31,760 --> 00:38:32,480
Cool.
Yeah, good.

750
00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:34,320
For you, Chet, we're we're
really happy for you.

751
00:38:34,440 --> 00:38:36,840
Even just since, you know, July,
it's been awesome to see your

752
00:38:36,840 --> 00:38:37,680
growth.
It really has.

753
00:38:37,840 --> 00:38:40,080
OK, anything else you want to
share before you let we let you

754
00:38:40,080 --> 00:38:40,960
go?
No, no.

755
00:38:40,960 --> 00:38:42,320
Thank you guys.
Super fun to do it.

756
00:38:42,320 --> 00:38:46,680
I appreciate the time.
Hey guys, if you're still here,

757
00:38:46,680 --> 00:38:48,360
you're definitely our kind of
person.

758
00:38:48,840 --> 00:38:51,360
Thanks for spending this time
with us on The Most Important

759
00:38:51,360 --> 00:38:53,880
Thing.
If this episode resonated with

760
00:38:53,880 --> 00:38:56,360
you, we'd love for you to follow
us wherever you get your

761
00:38:56,360 --> 00:38:58,520
podcasts and share it with
someone else.

762
00:38:58,520 --> 00:39:00,280
Building family culture on
purpose.