Hi Friends,

I was at a tech conference this week. Everyone wanted to chat about the “SaaS Apocalypse”. Everyone wants my take on what the software market uncertainty means for their business.

Today I want to take it another direction.

A few weeks ago, my friend Nish, an avid Moat reader, asked me when I'd write about the 3Gs.

I told him this was a business strategy newsletter. Nobody's going to care about that.

He said, "It's the the most important idea you ever wrote about."

So here we go…

It was late 2020. My daughters Aleena and Leena were both under six. Covid had quietly turned everyday life into a source of anxiety, for kids especially.

The research confirmed what I was watching in my own home: JAMA Pediatrics found anxiety symptoms in children doubled during the pandemic. One in five kids globally was showing clinically elevated symptoms.

My girls were too young to understand why their world had shrunk. But they could feel it.

As a dad who had read close to a dozen self-help books, I kept noticing, whether it was Tony Robbins or Viktor Frankl, could be distilled down to three core ideas.

So I asked myself a simple question: What three things, if my kids did them every day, would make them feel like they had a good day and feel like they were in control?

Three words came back: Give. Grow. Gratitude.

Every night at dinner, we go around the table and answer three questions. Simple enough for a six year old. Powerful enough to change how you move through the day.

1. Give: How did you help someone today?

It pulls you out of your own head. It reframes a hard day around contribution instead of complaints.

2. Grow: What did you learn or get better at?

Progress doesn't have to be dramatic. Some nights it's a new concept. Some nights it's "I kept my temper when I really didn't want to." Either way, you're moving forward.

3. Gratitude: What are you thankful for today?

Not forced positivity. Just noticing what was already there.

5+ years in, it's no longer just a dinner ritual. It's become our family compass.

Here's what a real night sounds like at our table.

Leena: "I read a whole chapter of my book today."

Aleena: "I made my friend Ari laugh, and it felt really good."

Leena: "I got a hundred on my spelling test."

Aleena: "I helped a girl find her classroom because she looked lost."

Small things. But hearing them say it out loud, with pride, every single night, it adds up.

The part that surprised me most wasn't what they share at dinner now. It is what happens the next morning. They now plan their Gs for breakfast.

Looking for their Give at school. Noticing an opportunity for Grow. Collecting their Gratitude before they even sit down for dinner.

The 3Gs stopped being a reflection of the day. They became a lens for living it. They weren't waiting for good things to happen. They were out there making them happen.

That's control. And kids who feel in control don't spiral into anxiety the same way.

Ask your family the three questions tonight.

Give. Grow. Gratitude.

You'll be surprised what comes out when people answer from the heart. And in a week like this one, when so much feels out of our hands, having a daily practice that reminds you what you can control is worth more than any market forecast.

That's the real promise of the 3Gs. Not happiness. Control.

'Til next time, Ali

P.S. If this resonated, please share it with someone you know who could use it. And if you already have a ritual like this at home, hit reply. I genuinely want to hear about it.

'Til next time,

Ali

About Me: I'm Ali, a dad of two girls who teach me more than any business book ever has. When I'm not writing The Moat, I help B2B software companies grow at Pricing I/O.