The Coffee Chat (#12)
My conversation with Jacob Merkley - Founder & CEO Story Tyke, lover of gummy candy and father to 3 kids under the age of 6!
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☕ Now, on to today’s coffee chat…
Meet Jacob Merkley.
Jacob is the founder of Story Tyke a company helping parents have more meaningful moments with their kids via bedtime stories. Jacob’s goal is to help millions of parents increase bonding time with their children through easier storytelling. Essentially - Bedtime Stories as a Service (BSaaS) :)
Jacob is also dad to 3 kids - a 5 year old daughter, a 2 year old daughter and a son who is just a few weeks old.
Below is my conversation with Jacob…
Please tell us a little bit about yourself and your family
My name is Jacob Merkley. I was born and raised in Phoenix, AZ. I am a big lover of the outdoors: camping, backpacking, boating, snowboarding, etc. You name it, I love it!
Growing up, I played lots of sports, but my mom also wanted me to stay well-rounded, so I learned how to play the piano. Even though I don’t have a ton of time these days to play the piano, I love jamming out when I can. One other unique thing about me is that I am a die-hard gummy candy fan. I love all candy in general, but specifically gummies!
I have been married to my amazing wife, Joselyn, for 7-years on March 21st this year. We met in the elevator at school back in 2013. It was very much a movie-like moment. I was in the elevator and this beautiful girl walked in. I had to say hello, which I did! She responded back and then we just started talking from there. She impressed me so much that within three minutes, I asked her out. We got married one year later to the day and the rest is history!
We also have two little girls and one boy: Kori is five, Maryn is two, and Calvin is just a few weeks old.
What you did not cover in your introduction is that you are an entrepreneur. Would love for you to share a bit more about your other baby - Story Tyke.
Story Tyke happened out of the blue one-night last summer. After book time was done, Kori asked for a story as I was tucking her into bed. She had been asking for a bedtime story for the last few weeks. Up until this night, I was able to get away with telling her the same four or five stories on a rotating basis. But that night she asked me for a new story.
It threw me for a loop!
I had been through a tough day at the office. I was emotionally, physically, and mentally drained. Coming up with a new story on the spot was daunting. So, I did what any other modern parent would do. I turned to Google to find a story to read out loud. I found poorly designed websites with ads, confusing apps, and too many stories to choose from. I searched for 20 minutes to find the right story.
When I found the story I wanted to tell her, I looked over and she was sound asleep! I realized that I had blown the opportunity to give my daughter what she yearned for: daddy-daughter bonding and imagination time.
After that night, I started searching online for a service that would send me an original bedtime story right to my inbox. A service that would save me time from needing to search online or in an app and remove the need to create a story from scratch. Unfortunately, I never found a service to do that. So, I decided to build one myself!
Today, Story Tyke is helping parents around the world, just like it helped me. We remove the need to search online or create a story from scratch by delivering an original bedtime story right to the inbox of busy parents. These stories are written by professional children’s authors and are delivered Sunday - Thursday at 6 PM. We simplify the creative process so that parents can focus on initiating imaginative and bonding moments with their kids.
Starting your own business has a lot of uncertainty. As a parent to young children, you do lose some flexibility because you have to provide for these little beings. Did you factor in being a dad when you made this decision to scale Story Tyke? What was the thought process? How did you arrive at this decision? Did you at any point second guess your decision?
I second guess my decision daily, mainly because we are pre-profit at this point. My wife and I decided a long time ago that she would stay at home with the kids. She always wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. That means the brunt of the providing lands on my shoulders. I do not take that responsibility lightly. Since I am not making money currently, I am stressed daily about the financial future for my family.
In that regard, I am a true entrepreneur at heart, putting building a company that I believe in first. I have been working 60+ hour weeks to scale Story Tyke. It’s a lot of work to try and get a business going and I’ve had to sacrifice time with Josie and the kids to build this service. But I recognize that good things in life rarely come without sacrifice.
I hope as we start making money on this project, then I can slowly scale back my hours to be more conducive to family life.
The balance for me though is that I put Josie and the kids above myself. When I do have time away from building Story Tyke, I am spending time with them. The beauty to running a company is the flexibility of not reporting to anyone else. That gives me the freedom to eat breakfast and dinner with the family, to help put the kids to bed, and so on. Then I can work before and after all of those moments with the family.
Taking the conversation back now to the human babies! :)
For you what was the hardest part of becoming a new parent? How is this different with your second child?
What a question! I think the hardest part is not having consistent sleep anymore! I’m a grouch in the middle of the night when I get woken up. Controlling my emotions when I’m half asleep is something I’m currently working on!
Unfortunately, sleep deprivation comes at a greater expense when you have more than one child. It can just get worse sometimes!
After becoming a parent did you adopt any new beliefs, behaviors, or habits that have most improved your life?
I have definitely adopted new beliefs about parenting. You can study parenting books all day long before you have a child. But until you are actually raising a kid, you really have no clue. Most day’s you are winging it anyways. But I would say that Josie and I, over the last five years, have added new beliefs towards teaching, punishing and discipline, and so on.
As far as habits, I will say that I stopped going to the gym for the first few years with everything that was going on in my life. But I’ve realized that not going just isn’t an option. Working out in the mornings is a big stress-reliever for me and vital to my mental and physical well-being.
What is one of the best or most worthwhile investment you have made after becoming a parent?
Investing in businesses. I have started 12 businesses since my kids were born. 11 of them have failed. Story Tyke is #12. The reason I believe investing in businesses has been the most worthwhile is because sooner or later I will have a business that will succeed. When that happens, I believe it will give me the life flexibility that I truly want and yearn for a young dad.
The biggest challenge that working parents with young kids have is a lack of predictability in their schedule and limited time for themselves. How have you managed this?
This statement is absolutely true, in my humble opinion. I am a big scheduler and kids definitely make things unpredictable. Also, having limited time for myself is a big deal too. I’m not sure I’ve managed this well. Adding to the fact that I have young kids, I’ve also started businesses. I can’t remember when I’ve worked less than 60 hours a week. That takes a toll on your psyche. It also means that I don’t have any hobbies anymore.
Having some “me” time is something I need to get back. Not in a selfish way, but in a self-preservation way. Everyone needs some “me” time each week. It’s good for the soul and for recharging the batteries.
My advice for others that are busy with parenting and work like me is to try and find a few minutes to recharge each day. For me, the only real-time I have is right before bed. I read a fantasy book for 15 minutes each night. It gets me out of my world, imagining a different one, and allows me to unwind from the day. It helps me fall asleep too, which is an added benefit.
Regardless, if you like to read or not, try to find 15 minutes each day to do something for yourself. I believe it’s a false premise to believe that you don’t have at least 15-minutes. You can find the time somewhere throughout the day.
What advice would you give others who are on the cusp of becoming parents? What advice should they ignore?
When Josie and I were pregnant with Kori, we received some especially important advice from a new parent, who said, “Don’t fit yourself into their life. Fit them into your life.”
That piece of advice has greatly impacted how we have raised our children. I know many friends who back out of activities because of their kids. Many leave a group hangout at 7 or 8 to put their kids to bed. The list can go on.
Josie and I decided we would live our lives and fit the kids into what we wanted to do. If we wanted to travel, we traveled. If we want to go backpacking, we went backpacking (which is difficult with kids, but not impossible). If we want to stay and hang out after bedtime, then we let them stay up or we put them to bed on someone’s couch.
This has not only helped Josie and I maintain our interests and lives with kids, but it has also helped our kids become really flexible. They no longer require their bed or blankets to fall asleep. They don’t whine when we are doing something new that they aren’t comfortable with. Etc.
The bottomline is that keeping your life intact and doing what you would like to do is possible. You just have to commit to it and let your kids take part in it.
Quick-fire Questions:
What’s the best thing you have watched recently?
Josie and I just got finished with our annual Harry Potter-thon! Oh ya, I forgot to mention that about me at the beginning. I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. Once a year Josie and I watch the movies again and love them every time!
What’s the best thing you have read recently?
Like I mentioned before, I’m a big fantasy reader. I love Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive series. I’m reading them again so I can read his 4th book that just came out.
What’s the best thing you have listened to recently?
While I’m building Story Tyke, I’ve been listening to Masters of Scale, by Reid Hoffman.
Reid is a smart guy and I love implementing new ideas and strategies into Story Tyke.
I would love to hear from you, feedback is always welcome!
And if you happen to know an inspiring working parent who should be featured in a future edition (or if you yourself are one) - please do get in touch.
Disclaimer: All views expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer
Thanks Rashi for the opportunity to be a part of Decks and Diapers. Hopefully my thoughts or take on life will help other parents out there.