Leadership / Change / Personal
Moving Back Home: Leadership Lessons from My Childhood Bedroom
Moving back home as an adult became an unexpected lesson in change, stress, comfort zones, and the kind of empathy leadership requires.
Call it summer camp for grown-ups.
After nearly 20 years of living on my own, I never imagined I’d be back at my parents’ house—with my wife and daughter in tow. I think of it like a grown-up version of summer camp—except instead of campfire songs, I’m navigating endless dinner options, random pieces of advice, and a “honey-do” list not so different from the one at our own place.
The dinner table dilemma
My parents’ love language is clearly food. Every night feels like a banquet, with an overwhelming number of choices. After years of sticking to eating out or easy-to-make meals, this buffet-style living feels like going from a camp cafeteria to a five-star resort.
But just like strong leaders, my parents want to do everything they can for us, which can sometimes feel overwhelming. It’s reminded me that as a leader—or a family member—you need to recognize when abundance becomes too much and when a simple “yes” or “no” is not an invitation to present more options. Teams (and families) need room to adapt, time to accept change, and space to try new ways of doing things, even when the intention behind it is love and care.
Comfort zones, reimagined
We’ve set up camp: my wife and I in my old bedroom, our daughter in my sister’s, and the basement turned into a makeshift office. It’s like moving back into a college dorm, with the nostalgia of familiar spaces, but living out of suitcases combined with the responsibilities of adulthood.
Comfort zones get a bad reputation for being “safe” or “risk-averse,” but I’ve found that they can actually foster creativity and productivity if you embrace them with the right mindset. Just like leaders who make the best out of existing resources, you make it work.
Managing personalities and stress
Living with multiple generations under one roof is a balancing act. My dad loves to talk politics or ask how our day is going, my mom is constantly on the move cooking, cleaning, or picking up clutter, and my toddler just wants to take over.
It’s stressful for my wife, who has never lived with my parents before, and for me as I try to manage everyone’s expectations.
In leadership, as at home, I’ve learned that stress can be a catalyst for growth if handled well. Strong leaders respect each team member’s needs, find common ground, and adapt—whether managing a project or figuring out how to coexist in close quarters.
Moving back home has reminded me that leadership isn’t just about managing teams at work—it’s about adaptability, empathy, and making the most of every transition, all while staying flexible to new ideas and ways of working. Sometimes the old feelings of how things used to be, or the memories of my own youth, remind me where I came from in the first place.
Leadership is not only what you do in a conference room. Sometimes it is how you manage change at the dinner table.
While I can’t recommend to someone that moving back with your parents and living out of boxes is a way to “reconnect” with your past self… it’s certainly an example of an opportunity to reflect on how far I have grown, and where I want to go next.
So, to whoever is reading this: if you are stressed out, not sure of your next move, or unsure how to guide your team out of a problem, take the opportunity to be less hard on yourself and appreciate the progress you have made so far. The rest will come naturally.