Tips for Parenting a Toddler with Head of Growth from Adobe | Dad of 1 · Startup Dad summary

Key takeaways

Patience is essential in both parenting and professional environments; learning to 'trust the process' is a valuable skill.
Redirection techniques, such as 'Change the Channel', can effectively help manage toddler meltdowns.
Establishing a routine based on sequences rather than fixed times can create security for children.
Building a supportive parenting community can provide useful, actionable advice and emotional support.
Innovative solutions like AI-enabled apps can simplify everyday parenting challenges, such as dealing with picky eaters.

Summary

Understanding Patience

Michael shares insights on patience, both as a parent and in a professional setting. He contrasts the urgency typically found in startup culture with the slower, more patient approach required in parenting, especially with a toddler. This theme of learning to 'trust the process' forms a key part of his parenting philosophy.

Frameworks for Parenting

Michael discusses two key frameworks he uses in parenting: 'Change the Channel' and the importance of routine. 'Change the Channel' is a method of redirecting a toddler's focus during meltdowns, while establishing a routine based on sequences (instead of strict timing) contributes to a sense of security for his daughter.

Innovative Parenting Solutions

With a background in tech, Michael has created an AI-based app called 'Picky Eater' to help manage his daughter's changing food preferences. This approach combines his expertise in tech with real-life parenting challenges, illustrating a unique intersection of innovation and family life.

Building a Parenting Community

Michael and his wife have established a supportive parenting network through a group text with friends, allowing them to share experiences and advice in real-time. This approach contrasts with finding parenting advice online, which can often feel overwhelming and anxiety-inducing.

Balancing Family Dynamics

The podcast explores Michael’s experience navigating the complexities of raising a young child while caring for aging parents. He reflects on the lessons learned and how this dual responsibility impacts not just family roles, but also personal growth and emotional maturity.

Show notes

Michael Leibovich is the Head of Growth at Adobe, but at home, he’s dad to a curious two-and-a-half-year-old and husband to a full-time working partner. With a previous career as a touring musician and a current career in creative tech leadership at companies like Vimeo and Abstract, Michael brings an emotionally grounded, inventive lens to fatherhood.

In this episode, Michael shares how parenting has reshaped his worldview from his leadership style at work to his daily routines at home.

Patience in parenting and work: Michael reflects on the contrast between startup urgency and toddler-paced mornings. Learning to slow down and “trust the process” has become a guiding principle both at home and professionally.
Changing the channel: One of Michael’s favorite frameworks for toddler meltdowns is simple: change the channel. Whether it’s bath-time resistance or cereal drama, he shares how quick pivots can shift the energy and restore peace.
Tech meets parenting: Michael talks about building a custom AI-powered meal-planning app called Picky Eater to handle his daughter’s shifting food preferences, and how it's just one example of tech meeting real-life parenting.
Parenting without Google: Instead of doomscrolling for answers, Michael and his wife formed a text thread with parents they admire. It’s a real-time advisory board filled with insight, lived experience, and calm advice.
Music, creativity, and messy art: A former touring musician, Michael is intentional about nurturing creativity at home. From drum time to digitizing toddler scribbles, he shares how he’s creating space for curiosity.

Where to find Mike Leibovich