The Skill Every Entrepreneur Teaches Their Kids
Three weeks in. We’ve explored how the brain develops, what voices are running the show, and how to give kids language for what’s happening inside them.
This week, we go one step further.
Because Choice Power isn’t just about what happens inside a child. It’s about what happens between people.
Every day, your child is negotiating — what to wear, when to stop, what matters to them, what they’re willing to do. Those moments aren’t problems to shut down. They’re skills trying to develop.
The question isn’t whether they’ll negotiate. It’s whether they’ll do it from their Hero Voice or their Victim/Villain Voice.
As entrepreneurs, the skill that Adam and Matthew valued early on wasn’t finance or marketing. It was how to have hard but important conversations and still walk away with the relationship intact.
And the person who teaches that better than almost anyone? Kwame Christian — CEO of the American Negotiation Institute, host of the world’s most downloaded negotiation podcast, and a dad of two boys.
His core belief: negotiation isn’t conflict. It’s connection.
And speaking of connection, last Friday was International Storytelling Day! Storytelling is one of the ways children make sense of their world and of themselves. The stories they hear, and the ones they tell, shape how they understand challenges, relationships, and who they’re becoming.
We’ve got something special for that just below — our newest Easter adventure.
STORY
The Best Negotiators Don’t Try to Win
Lani Lazzari was 11 years old when she started mixing sugar scrubs in her kitchen.
She had eczema, a skin condition that had plagued her since infancy, and she couldn’t find a single product that didn’t hurt her skin. So she made one herself.
By the time she was 18, Simple Sugars was doing $100,000 in annual sales. Then she walked onto Shark Tank.
The Sharks were tough. Kevin O’Leary looked her in the eye and said: “I’m not interested.” Others passed too. But Mark Cuban made her an offer.
He wanted 33% of her company. Lani countered. He said no. She asked if he’d come down even 1%. He said no again.
She took a breath. And she accepted the deal.
She understood something that most adults take years to learn: a negotiation isn’t just about the number. It’s about what you’re trying to build, and who you want to build it with.
That clarity, knowing what mattered to her, was exactly what kept the Victim or Villain Voice from running the show.
Kwame Christian teaches this every day. He calls it the difference between a win-lose conversation and a win-win one. The Fear Voice wants to win the argument. The Hero Voice wants to solve the problem.
Lani didn’t need to beat Mark Cuban. She needed a partner who believed in what she was building.
Simple Sugars now does over $5 million a year.
The quiet turn: The best negotiators don’t go in trying to win. They go in knowing what they want.
SKILL
Catch It Before It Comes Out
Next time you feel that surge—the tight chest, the faster voice, the urge to jump in—don’t respond right away. That’s your moment. Take one breath and give yourself just a second of space before anything comes out.
Then shift what you do with that pressure. Instead of speaking immediately, try releasing it physically. Something small no one else even notices. Scrunch your toes. Press your fingers together. Slow your breathing. It sounds almost too simple, but it works because it gives your body somewhere to put that energy instead of letting it come out in your words.
From there, keep your first response simple and grounded. Ask, “Help me understand what’s going on,” or reflect it back: “So you don’t want to stop right now.” You can even just name what you see, “Sounds like you’re frustrated.” The goal isn’t to fix anything yet. It’s to slow the moment down.
If you tend to react quickly, think of it as a small challenge: can you hold off just a few seconds longer than usual? Can you get one question out before a reaction? That tiny shift is often enough to completely change how the conversation unfolds.
Once things settle, then you can share your side—“Here’s what matters to me”—and move into problem-solving together.
And this isn’t just a parenting skill. It works in any high-pressure conversation at work, with a partner, with anyone.
The ability to catch that moment and not rush to speak is what keeps you in control of how things go.
TOOL
A Mood Monster Approved Adventure
Easter is the season of hidden surprises. This year, we hid something good.
The Hare on the Chair Easter Adventure is a 5-day digital family activity kit. No prep, instant access, ready the moment you order. Designed to help kids build self-talk and emotional regulation skills through play and storytelling, it’s the meaningful Easter experience busy families actually need.
Each day your family unlocks a adventure:
A Chapter — a story that brings the characters to life
A Challenge — a fun activity the whole family can do together
A Compass Card — a conversation guide for parents and kids
Also included in your digital kit:
Harmony Hare and Her Three Voices flipbook
Printable puppets, coloring sheets, and activity pages
Bonus: Milo the Mood Monster and His Three Voices book — free with your order
Order by March 29 and receive the Official Hare on the Chair Hero Quest — free. (Retail value $33 — yours at no extra charge.)
Digital delivery. Instant access. Bonus offer ends March 29, 2026.
Before you go…
Last week, Michael B. Jordan won his first Oscar for Sinners. And it turns out, Kwame Christian used a scene from that very film to teach one of the most powerful negotiation lessons there is.
This video is packed with golden nuggets on negotiation. The kind most of us were never taught.
Our favourite moment? He uses that scene to speak directly to women and girls about knowing their worth, asking for what they deserve, and not shrinking to make others comfortable.
During International Women’s Month, this one hits differently.
Source: Kwame Christian, CEO of the American Negotiation Institute — host of Negotiate Anything, the world’s most downloaded negotiation podcast
Easter is two weeks away and your family’s adventure is waiting. Don’t forget to grab The Hare on the Chair Easter Adventure before March 29 to unlock your free bonus. 🐣
Your friends at REK,
Adam & Matthew Toren, Sylvia Tam, and Tammy Vallieres
Our new member hub is live — free activities, conversation starters, and resources for your family. Access it here.
“You don’t get what you deserve in life. You get what you negotiate.”