# Ep 27: Put on Your Mask First — Nick DeMarinis on Being the Dad You Want to Be

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dad-manual-7554137/ep-27-put-on-your-mask-first-nick-demarinis-on-being-the-dad-you-want-to-be
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dad-manual-7554137/ep-27-put-on-your-mask-first-nick-demarinis-on-being-the-dad-you-want-to-be.md
Podcast: [The Dad Manual](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dad-manual-7554137)
Published: 2026-06-30T11:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/a900834b
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/a900834b/8304ea8c.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-dad-manual-7554137/episodes/ep-27-put-on-your-mask-first-nick-demarinis-on-being-the-dad-you-want-to-be
Duration seconds: 3163

## Resource

Most dads ease into fatherhood one kid at a time. Nick DeMarinis skipped that part. He found out he was having identical twin boys while living in Hong Kong, 8,000 miles from family. In this episode, Nick shares the blueprint he built for present, intentional fatherhood: setting expectations with employers so he never misses what matters, co-parenting as a true team, and taking care of himself first so he has something real to give. From WeWork's turnaround to a PopAShot national championship, Nick proves you don't have to sacrifice the dad you want to be. Key takeaways: How Nick's parents — a bread man and a teacher from New York — gave him a clear blueprint for fatherhood Why moving back from Hong Kong with twin infants taught him the power of structure and discipline How radical transparency with employers creates space for the dad commitments that matter The "survive and advance" mindset that got him and his wife through the first year with twins Why intentional one-on-one time with each twin is one of the most underrated things twin parents can do What his son Max's act of compassion toward a crying classmate told him about the dad he's becoming How the PopAShot national championship became a lesson in resilience and creativity for his boys The oxygen mask principle — why taking care of yourself first is the most selfless thing a dad can do If you enjoyed The Dad Manual, leave us a rating on your podcast app! If you loved it, share this episode with a Dad! Send your questions to dadmanualpodcast@gmail.com. Connect with Tony Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thetonycooper/ 00:00 Nick introduces himself as Max and Luca's dad 02:15 Why the podcast format resonated with Nick right away 05:00 Growing up one of six kids in an Irish Italian Catholic family 08:30 Mom's…

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-dad-manual-7554137/episodes/ep-27-put-on-your-mask-first-nick-demarinis-on-being-the-dad-you-want-to-be/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-dad-manual-7554137/ep-27-put-on-your-mask-first-nick-demarinis-on-being-the-dad-you-want-to-be.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.