Hustle and Homeschooling: A Life-Transforming Decision 👨‍👦

Hey there Reader,

I have a surprising confession to make: 4 days a week, I morph into a kindergarten teacher.

If you know me personally, then you know I would have gladly taken any bet offered, that claimed I would become a homeschool teacher for my children. I love my kids … but I’m just not the stay-at-home dad type. I tried it … I ran back to work.

But now, I'm delighted that my choices to optimize my freedom, have helped me be there for my son and be a dad in a way I never expected.

Backstory: When School Becomes a Spanish Soap Opera

We worked hard to get my son into a Spanish Immersion program, entering our county’s lottery system, fighting several waitlists, and agreeing to the school 2 towns over because of the program and their school’s rating. He's already bilingual, having spent two years of his life in Spain and speaking more Spanish than English for his first three years. This was his chance to be a bilingual adult.

As I've learned, the addition of a new sibling can bring about a lot of emotions in a 5-year-old. My son had a lot going on all at once: first year of school; learning a new language; a new human being in his home; and a random and poorly timed intense hearing loss that required surgery.

Suddenly, on a cold February day, it became apparent that our son wasn't thriving in this program with this teacher. While “toughing it out” was the easy straightforward path, I immediately began diving deep into options and what was best for my son, not just what was convenient.

A Random Option That Came Out of Left Field

We made the hard decision to pull him out of the program. But now what?

The timing couldn't have been worse. We had only a few months left in his kindergarten year, and given the challenges he was facing, tossing him into a new school didn't feel like a good option. At a minimum, his ear surgery in 3 weeks needed to happen before he went back to school.

My son was going through a lot. And as a first-generation Caribbean-American, I was used to the "shut up and stop complaining" way of doing things. Hence why it took me a while to accept that he was having real emotional problems and he couldn’t just “get over it”. But once I accepted this, it became easier to sympathize and make the best decision for him.

As we mulled over how to find a new school as quickly as possible, I had a wild idea.

Homeschool.

Homeschool is an insane proposal to me specifically. I had the rare chance to be a stay-at-home dad (well, we both were at home) while living abroad. I actually quit my job to be around my son, and then a second time with my daughter.

It’s not for me. I can be honest with myself and with you.

I’m a workaholic. It’s one thing I truly love doing (I have no hobbies). And while taking care of kids is “real work”, it’s not “work work”. And honestly, I just don’t like kid stuff and doing kid things. I am there for my kids and participate fully in their lives … but I can honestly say that 12 hours a day listening to Baby Shark and PJ Masks is too much.

So when my wife heard me say “I can stay home and teach him” … My wife was so shocked, she choked on pure air, as her body struggled to breathe, and her mind struggled to process my words.

My New and Chaotic Normal

4 days out of the week, I orchestrate a kindergarten class in my living room. We start by getting centered (yeah … we meditate), read a book together, and then run through a myriad of subjects with some breaks in between. Then right around lunch, our nanny comes in to take over and let me change into my shortened workday.

And remember that I have a newborn too. So all these changes are happening in a backdrop of sleepless nights, constant throw-up, and crying (although coupled with the cutest baby giggles known to man).

To add insult to injury, the week before this started, I finally had it all figured out. The new company had a name, website, charter, and several open positions. My non-home office outside the house was set up and I was loving working for real. Work in my life was making a comeback after months of hard newborn transition life.

Ultimate Lifestyle Design (with a side of math and reading)

Lifestyle design has been a key part of my life since I left my job at Facebook. I had focused on maximizing money and wealth. The idea of choosing something else to drive me seemed crazy. But after quitting my job and moving abroad for two years to spend more time with my son and travel, I've embraced a new perspective.

I want to make a conscious effort to define what's important in my life and make sure those things are at the forefront of my time and attention. This has led me to take jobs in new spaces, learn a new language, and start companies that reflect who I am.

Lifestyle design is easy to talk about but complex and hard to get right. But one constant I've committed to is flexibility. I need to have options to try new things, learn, and find what makes the most sense for what's most important to me at that time.

When I moved to Spain, the goal was adventure, fun, and family. When working at a non-profit, it was about impact and giving back. When I bought an affordable house, it was about not getting trapped by a mortgage. Every rental property I hold is about the flexibility I get from passive income.

Now, my son’s educational progression is my biggest priority, and I’m amazed that I can reconfigure my life to address his needs. Financial freedom is really, really freeing. Even if that means spending the first half of every day getting an overly energetic 6-year-old to care about reading. I’m secretly enjoying my new gig as a kindergarten teacher.

Damien “i before e, except after c” Peters