Just spoke to a group of young aspiring entrepreneurs this morning and was asked, "If you could take a time machine back to when you started and change one thing, what would it be?"

Wanted to share, as maybe it might click with someone. My answer was a two-part response.

1. Don't push away family & loved ones. No amount of potential success is worth sacrificing that time.

When I first started out, I put my head down and was in "work and build" mode 24/7.

My dad was a business owner, my best friend, my first boss, and why I decided to take the entrepreneurial journey. He was also the one person who would always tell me I could do anything, no matter how crazy the idea was.

He would call me just to check in, and I vividly remember not answering his calls, or picking up and saying, "Hey, I'll call you back," only to forget. He just wanted to say hi, check on me, and give me encouraging words. For some crazy reason I thought I was too busy for that.

Lost him 14 years ago to cancer. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of him and regret massively not taking the time to take those calls, or make time to call him back. Or go back home to visit more. I remember on several occassions not traveling back home for Thanksgiving or Christmas because I didn't want to "waste" a day in the airport traveling each way.

I'd give it all up right this second to have one more conversation with him.

I call my mom daily — often twice — to check in on her and say hey. I never miss a day. And I visit often.

Success is cool, but not at the expense of sacrificing what truly is important in life. When you start out, the success and the money is pure dopamine, and you will chase it. Not saying that is wrong. But make time for the important things. Nothing in life is worth missing out on the time you cannot get back, even if you do find success and wealth.

2. Use every obstacle, challenge, and setback as motivation and inspiration to do epic sh*t and be better.

Fast forward to today, and I only have one brand. A brand that was inspired by — and still is –my dad. Losing him and realizing that life is short and can be taken at any time caused me to exit everything I was involved in, and go all-in on the brand I told him I'd build one day when I was a little kid.

I was a selfish a$$hole in my younger days when I was first starting out. Not on purpose. But looking back, I can accept and admit that my priorities were not right.

You can't change things, but you can change how you operate and how you think moving forward.

If you take ONE thing away from this, please call your parent(s) if they are still around. Do it. Today or tonight. It's a simple luxury we don't realize we have until it's gone.

Life is short and the ride ends much sooner than we realize. Chase your dreams, enjoy the ride with your loved ones, and do epic sh*t.