Bay to Barca
I’ve spent 20 years telling clients to “do hard things.”
Here’s proof I take my own advice:
You know that voice that says, “Well, what if we just…left?” I listened to it.
We moved to Barcelona.
Look, I'm 47 with three kids. Sara and I had everything figured out in the Bay Area.
But here's what kept bothering me:
I found myself having the same conversations over and over.
Football, real estate, stock picks. I'd go to these dinners and think, “How many times can we talk about the same stuff?”
We get really good at executing the playbook, but sometimes you need to throw out the playbook entirely.
Sometimes you need to do hard things. You have to be comfortable being uncomfortable.
So, we packed up our family of five and moved to Barcelona. Now Sara and I are writing about it.
And I'm still running Object Edge full throttle. Turns out you can do hard things from anywhere.
But being here, watching my kids navigate new playgrounds in a new language, sharing killer views with Sara on Sunday afternoons…it's irreplaceable.
If you're curious about what happens when a tech CEO trades Silicon Valley for the Mediterranean Sea, when a family chooses adventure over optimization, come along for the ride
Bay to Barca
Episode 4: First Days, New Schools, and Saying Yes
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We recorded this episode a little differently—on the beach, cava in hand, with the sound of the Mediterranean as our backdrop. The kids are finally (mostly) back in school after a long summer that started way back in May, and we’re finding our rhythm again.
This week, we share:
- Two schools, two worlds: Amalia started at BFIS, the American school, while Milan and Savana are at a Montessori that feels very European. Both have been eye-opening—Amalia has 20 new classmates (most American), while Montessori is a melting pot of kids from all over Europe.
- The independence factor: Amalia wants to ride the bus solo like a true pre-teen… except it’s the same bus Sara takes with the little ones. Cue teenage eye rolls.
- Community through soccer: Amalia’s team played their first matches, and suddenly we’re part of the Catalan soccer world—weekend tournaments, proud parents, and even our first conversations with local dads in Catalan and Spanish.
- The “say yes” philosophy: Whether it’s dinner invites, coffee meet-ups, or trying paddle for the first time, saying yes has already opened doors to friendships and a sense of belonging.
- The realities: Grocery shopping without a car, balancing late-night work with a nine-hour time difference, and navigating first-day-of-school nerves remind us that this isn’t just vacation—it’s real life in a new country.
Two months in, we’re still in awe of the differences—sometimes challenging, often beautiful—and grateful for this chance to experience Barcelona as more than tourists.
👉 Give it a listen, and if you’re thinking of making a similar move, we hope our stories help you picture what it’s really like.