Nick Howe sat in a room staring at his newborn son. And knew he couldn't do it anymore. Not the marriage. Not the version of himself he'd been performing for everyone else. Not the cycle he'd watched his parents and grandparents repeat for decades. So at six months old, his son Cam became the reason Nick asked for a divorce — and the reason he started rebuilding everything from the ground up. In this episode Nick — single dad, founder of Hugs, and one of the most emotionally raw guests we've had on the show — gets honest about breaking a generational cycle, the weekly ritual he started with Cam at age four that his son's teacher is now raving about, and how that same ritual became a company built to help couples do what Nick and his son figured out between them. This one is different. And it might stay with you.

Three things you'll learn:
The weekly six-question ritual Nick started with his son at age four called Cups and Spoons — what it is, why he built it, and what it's doing for a ten-year-old that most adults still can't do at thirty
Why Nick says the microsecond between when your emotions heat up and when you explode is the most important moment in fatherhood — and how he trained himself to find it
How Nick turned a bedtime ritual into a platform for couples and therapists — and why the best company he ever built started as a conversation with a four-year-old

About Nick Howe
Nick Howe is the founder of Hugs, a relationship-building platform that helps couples and therapists deepen emotional connection and communication between sessions. He is a single dad to Cam, ten years old, and the creator of Cups and Spoons — a weekly ritual that started between a dad and his four-year-old son and grew into a company. He is based in the US and is one of the most emotionally transparent founders we've had on this show.

About Working Dads
Working Dads is the podcast for fathers figuring out work, family, and everything in between. Every week host Johnathan Grzybowski sits down with working dads — founders, executives, investors, and everyday fathers — for honest conversations about the guilt, the grind, the marriage, the money, and what it actually takes to build a career and a family without dropping the ball on either.

🎙 New episode every week
📩 Subscribe to Built During Bedtime — our weekly newsletter for working dads
💬 Join the community — Slack and Facebook group

Subscribe & Connect
🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6aicwtpAEKrXfeViWeCESn?si=sP-QFbZETneBRIGUuoXC1w
🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/free-ideas/id1082216467
📺 YouTube/Tiktok/Instagram: @workingdadsco
👥 Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/workingdadsco/
🌐 Website: workingdads.co

For dads figuring out work, family, and everything in between.

Nobody prepares you for this.

Not the guilt of leaving for work when your kid is still asleep. Not the pressure of providing for a family while trying to build something that actually matters. Not the identity crisis that hits when you realize you're not just the guy who grinds anymore — you're somebody's dad. And that changes everything.

I started Working Dads because I lived that. I'm co-founder of Penji, husband to Emily, and dad to a two-year-old who already has more energy than I do. I've been bootstrapping a company for over a decade and I still don't have it all figured out. But I've learned that the most dangerous thing a working dad can do is try to figure it out alone.

So every week I sit down with founders, executives, investors, and everyday dads who are in the thick of it. We talk about the real stuff. The marriage conversations you keep avoiding. The financial pressure nobody admits to. The moment your kid looks up at you and you realize you've been somewhere else even though you've been standing right there.

We've also got Built During Bedtime — my weekly newsletter for working dads. The one thing I write after my daughter goes to sleep. Straight to your inbox. No fluff.

And we've got a community. Slack channel and Facebook group full of dads who get it. The kind of guys you can be honest with. The kind of friendships that actually go somewhere.

Come find your people.

Working Dads. For dads figuring out work, family, and everything in between.

Steve’s episode of the Working Dads Podcast premieres on YouTube October 4. Stay tuned!

Steve and his wife were both from LA. Then he took a job in New York. Packed up his one-year-old son. Moved across the country away from every friend and family member they had. And just figured it out. New Jersey. San Francisco for fifteen years. Back to New York. Back to the Bay. San Diego. And eventually back to California where it all started. In this episode Steve — C-suite tech marketing executive, husband, and dad to a son who is now out of college — gets honest about what years of travel and relocation actually does to a marriage, why he and his wife made a conscious decision to never pressure their son in areas he didn't have a passion for, and the one thing his son said to him recently that told him everything he needed to know about how it all turned out.

Three things you'll learn:
How Steve and his wife managed unexpected travel, relocation, and career pressure without losing each other — and why communication wasn't just important, it was everything
The parenting philosophy Steve and his wife applied from day one — knowing what your kid is actually good at, setting realistic expectations, and never projecting your own ambitions onto them
What Steve's adult son recently said back to him that he never remembered saying out loud — and why it's the clearest sign that the values actually stuck

About Steve
Steve is a C-suite marketing executive with a career rooted in tech and advertising. He and his wife grew up in LA, raised their son across multiple cities including New Jersey, the San Francisco Bay Area, and San Diego, and have recently settled back in California. His son is out of college and — by every measure that matters — turned out exactly right.

About Working Dads
Working Dads is the podcast for fathers figuring out work, family, and everything in between. Every week host Johnathan Grzybowski sits down with working dads — founders, executives, investors, and everyday fathers — for honest conversations about the guilt, the grind, the marriage, the money, and what it actually takes to build a career and a family without dropping the ball on either.

🎙 New episode every week
📩 Subscribe to Built During Bedtime — our weekly newsletter for working dads
💬 Join the community — Slack and Facebook group

Subscribe & Connect
🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6aicwtpAEKrXfeViWeCESn?si=sP-QFbZETneBRIGUuoXC1w
🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/free-ideas/id1082216467
📺 YouTube/Tiktok/Instagram: @workingdadsco
👥 Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/workingdadsco/
🌐 Website: workingdads.co

For dads figuring out work, family, and everything in between.

Nobody prepares you for this.

Not the guilt of leaving for work when your kid is still asleep. Not the pressure of providing for a family while trying to build something that actually matters. Not the identity crisis that hits when you realize you're not just the guy who grinds anymore — you're somebody's dad. And that changes everything.

I started Working Dads because I lived that. I'm co-founder of Penji, husband to Emily, and dad to a two-year-old who already has more energy than I do. I've been bootstrapping a company for over a decade and I still don't have it all figured out. But I've learned that the most dangerous thing a working dad can do is try to figure it out alone.

So every week I sit down with founders, executives, investors, and everyday dads who are in the thick of it. We talk about the real stuff. The marriage conversations you keep avoiding. The financial pressure nobody admits to. The moment your kid looks up at you and you realize you've been somewhere else even though you've been standing right there.

We've also got Built During Bedtime — my weekly newsletter for working dads. The one thing I write after my daughter goes to sleep. Straight to your inbox. No fluff.

And we've got a community. Slack channel and Facebook group full of dads who get it. The kind of guys you can be honest with. The kind of friendships that actually go somewhere.

Come find your people.

Working Dads. For dads figuring out work, family, and everything in between.