In this episode, Shawn Rider discusses significant changes in the Rider family's dynamic, focusing on his wife's decision to resign from her corporate job and join their family businesses. He reflects on how annual planning for couples—an exercise they've been doing seriously for three years—played a vital role in this decision. Sean shares the initial challenges of adjusting to this new lifestyle, the process of evaluating this life-changing move, and the importance of open communication and planning in achieving family goals. He also highlights the value of the Tactical Empire's inner circle and encourages listeners to engage in structured annual planning for long-term benefits.
In this episode, Shawn Rider shares an important milestone for the Rider family - his wife has officially resigned from corporate America to help build their businesses. Sean reflects on the significant reduction in his wife's stress and anxiety just two days into her new role, and discusses the family's approach to work-life balance, setting realistic schedules, and the importance of couples annual planning. He emphasizes how these planning sessions have been crucial in their decision-making process, particularly regarding his wife's career change. Sean also extends an invitation for listeners to join the Tactical Empire Inner Circle, highlighting resources and support available for beginning their own annual planning journey.
00:00 Introduction and Major Life Update
00:36 Adjusting to the New Lifestyle
02:39 The Importance of Annual Planning
05:31 The Decision-Making Process
08:29 Taking the Leap of Faith
09:33 Encouragement and Resources
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Shawn Rider: [00:00:00] What's up tactical empire nation. This is Sean Ryder coming at you today on this episode. I have talked recently on other episodes about the changes to the Ryder family and what we're doing in 2025 both personally for myself. My wife and I and our family and our businesses, but it is official. My wife has resigned from corporate America.
And this is now not just a potential thing that could occur that we talked about that I mentioned on an episode or two ago. This is actually happened. We are now two days into by the recording of this podcast, uh, by the time you're listening to it, we'll be a week or two in, but we are two days into her new life as a non W2 employee.
And solely focusing on helping us build our businesses, uh, which is not a nine to five job. Um, and contrary to what a lot of people think that is, this is not a 365 day, 24. [00:01:00] a week job, either. Uh, we are in our mid thirties. I've been building businesses for 12 years. So fortunately we're at a point, even though we are starting new businesses, I take very seriously the, uh, the effect of overworking.
Uh, I. Already have a schedule in place that allows me to focus on work for two to three, four hours a day. Uh, my wife in the first two days has done a really good job at putting guardrails up and controlling when she's doing work and when she's taking some free time. Uh, I always told my wife that if she wanted to leave work, she could, but she loved her job.
She was perfectly fine with working in corporate America, but two days in, she has already vocalized the, uh, decrease, of stress, the decrease of anxiety. She doesn't feel rushed from going, dropping the kids off at school to getting out to the field, to seeing X amount of doctors, to getting home, to hitting traffic, to being late, being home, rushing the kids to [00:02:00] gymnastics or other sports, or just being at home with the family.
The first 48 hours has been fantastic. And I'm extremely excited to see what 30, 60, 90 days looks like when she even settles down when she actually has had the time to rest and relax. I always told my wife. Whether she left work and went into the businesses or got fired from work, I, my preferred opinion would be that she doesn't do, go right into another job for at least six months because she's been working since the age of 15, 16.
She has never had time off a 40, 50 hour work week since she was a teenager. And especially in her adult career working life. So the question in the episode today, uh, already three minutes in, let me and not bury the lead anymore is like, what was a big, not determining factor for my wife to decide to leave?
Because I plan on having Jeff bring her on the podcast and interviewing her. So you can hear words directly from her mouth, but as a couple, how did we come [00:03:00] to this conclusion? Ultimately, again, my wife made the decision. It was always her decision to make, but all of this comes back to the same shit we've been telling you guys on this podcast for over two years, especially at the end of the year.
We just did this a month ago is annual planning, couples, annual planning this year when Jeff and I recorded a podcast and told you guys to do couples, annual planning, that we had a PDF for you guys to download for free and that we were taking the men inside of the inner circle. It's really cool.
Through literally handholding them through how to execute a couple's annual planning session and then holding the men accountable to actually doing it with their spouses. While we were telling you guys to do that, of course, me and my wife did that same thing. And we did it, uh, this is about three or four years now.
I don't really count the first year because it was really just me doing it, uh, without much of, uh, her input or support. Uh, she was against it. She didn't understand the purpose of it. Kudos to my wife over time. She, uh, became aware [00:04:00] of the importance of it. And so we've been doing it more seriously for two, three years.
And, uh, every year I asked her when it comes to the finances and freedom portions is, do you want to continue to work outside of the household and outside of our businesses? And I don't ask that question to insinuate that my wife is going to be a homemaker, that the kids are staying home from school and she's going to homeschool them, like our kids still go to school.
Okay. They do go to, go to private school. Um, but, uh, my wife. Is not going to be just at home, uh, doing nothing. She is involved in the businesses now, but every time I asked her that question, the answer was yes. I want to work outside of the home. I love my job and you know, as an entrepreneur and the man of the family, that was frustrating to me because I had this.
Freedom that I knew she's never felt. She's never tasted the freedom that I have and kudos to corporate America. Kudos to my wife, kudos to the company that had hired her. Uh, maybe without them, I wouldn't have had the [00:05:00] freedom that I had to take, quote, the risk, uh, to build businesses and take the time to build out.
The businesses in my schedule to support a little bit more freedom for me. Uh, but there was always this part of me that I wanted my wife to feel that, but here's the lesson to you men out there is you can't force these things upon your wife, uh, whether it's just annual planning in general, usually one partner is kind of against it while one is gung ho about it or making decisions within the annual plan.
And that's the situation I found myself in is like. Not only did I, I really wanted my wife to maybe consider leaving her job, but I at least wanted to have the conversation on a deeper, more granular level about it. But her answer was always a quick and resounding, yes, I want to work outside of the home.
I love my job. And that was literally the end of the discussion. So we never got to go deep. That was until the end of 2024. My wife saves some working days, vacation days and her company does a good job at letting people off, you know, a [00:06:00] week early. So my wife always had like two, two and a half weeks off at the end of every year over the Christmas break.
And this year, when we went to an extended lunch, I asked her that question, the same question I've asked for three years. Do you want to continue to work outside of the home and outside of our businesses? Do you want to continue to be on the road at eight o'clock in the morning and sometimes not get back till five 30?
Do you want to leave at six 30 in the morning when you have breakfasts with doctors? Do you want to stay late dinners with doctors? Now, I didn't literally ask her the extension of that question, but those are the thoughts that she has to think through. Does she still want to do that? And this year was different.
She hesitated. She paused. It was not a quick and resounding yes. It was a, you know what? [00:07:00] I don't know if I can do this anymore. I don't know if I want to do this anymore. This year, I worked harder than I ever did to get the results that we were striving for. 11 years in with this company. And I'm more stressed than ever.
I feel a stronger pull. These are all her words. She felt a stronger pull away from our 7 and 4 year old. She was sick and tired of getting caught in traffic. And after a few days of going back and forth, of course it was a hard decision for her. She finally looked at me and she said, I think it's time. No, I do not need to work outside of the home.
And that was the first opportunity that I was able to go granular and go a little bit deeper with that conversation with her and you would think that I would be super, super excited and while I was excited, I didn't want her to make that decision just on a whim of an emotion. [00:08:00] So I asked some probing questions and it did make her think twice.
And she had to think twice because we had to get granular on the finances. We had to talk about what life looks like now without that strong solid W 2 income, without those benefits, without a company car. What changes must we make? And then after a few days, she was tired of the questions. She just looked at me.
She goes, I'm resigning. Did we have the entire gap filled on how we're gonna do it? No. I've said this on other podcast episodes. I think you have to get that gap as tight and as closed as you can, but you will never close that gap prior. to making a decision. You will never close the gap prior to taking action.
You have to jump. You have to take the loop of faith. While I am an [00:09:00] optimistic realist, I'm optimistic about what we're going to be able to do all in, in 2025 and beyond. I'm a realist. Things will have to change in the short term. We'll have to be more cognizant and aware of when we walk into stores. What are we buying?
What are the prices? How often we're going to go out in the short term. That's not the long term strategy, goal, desire for our lifestyle,
but we had to jump. It was time. And so I say all that to reinforce that if you did not do couples annual planning, if you've not taken it seriously, if you are not as clear as you can get on family, fitness, finances, and freedom, It's not too late. It is still extremely early in the year and you do not have to follow January 1st to December 31st.
You, you can do annual planning at the end of Q1, at the end of Q2, at the end of Q3. It does not matter, but you must do [00:10:00] it. You must open the lines of communication. Men. You may not get what you think you want or what your family needs this year, but the compounding effect over the next two, three, four years is going to be greater and more positive than if you skip out on it this year, if you need the resources.
Look in the episode notes or reach out to Jeff and I directly or the Tattoo Empire on Instagram. If you are ready to be in the Tattoo Empire's inner circle, we are limiting and capping our membership at 100 members, which means we have roughly 35 to 38 spots left. We will not take on more than 100 men ever in the mastermind.
We have our first meetup coming in April in Jacksonville, Florida. We'd love to get you in the group to lay the foundation of our course curriculum before we meet you in person. Thank you guys for listening to the podcast today. If you have any questions, [00:11:00] reach out.