Most days, when Miguel McKelvey arrives home from work, the first thing he does is put his phone out of reach. After all, he has a V.I.P. who’s been dying to see him all day: his 6-year-old son.
“I put the phone on the counter and I try not to look at it for as long as possible,” the architect and WeWork co-founder and chief creative officer tells Entrepreneur. “By doing that, I feel more engaged with my family, I feel more engaged with my son when I’m playing with him … and that becomes a real meditation, almost because it’s a real departure from the day to day.”
That day-to-day grind involves visiting, running and constantly improving many of WeWork’s 93 co-working spaces in 29 cities across the U.S., Canada, Europe and Israel.
Related: Co-Working NYC: An Inside Look at WeWork Labs
Sometimes, the native Coloradan brings his son to the office, in the hopes of inspiring him to become an entrepreneur, too. “My feeling about being a dad and entrepreneur is that it’s an extraordinary example," he says, "because I feel excited to share what I do with my son.”
But McKelvey also cherishes time with his son when it’s just about them, about simply being together and nothing else. “I don’t want to be distracted," he says. "I want to be fully present in the moment when I’m with him. That is the key. If you’re not fully doing something, then you’re probably not doing it well.” Parenting included.
We have a feeling there’s a heavy lesson here that many of today’s busy, plugged-in parent entrepreneurs can learn from. To hear more about how McKelvey balances being an entrepreneur and a dad, watch the short video above.
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