What Data, Revenue Management, and Raising Kids Have in Common

Ever tried reasoning with a toddler? It’s like managing revenue data—completely unpredictable, full of surprises, and often makes you question your life choices.

You analyze, you plan, and then—BAM!—they throw a tantrum in the cereal aisle, or your forecast gets wrecked by a sudden group cancellation. Same energy.

Here’s the thing: whether it’s pricing strategies or parenting strategies, both rely on three key elements:

1. Garbage In, Garbage Out

If you’re feeding your revenue system bad data, don’t expect great insights. Same goes for raising kids—if you only give them sugar and YouTube, don’t be shocked when they transform into mini tornadoes of chaos.

Clean data, balanced nutrition. Same principles, different applications.

2. Patterns and Outliers

Revenue managers spot trends—weekend demand spikes, corporate dips, that one ridiculous outlier where someone booked a suite for a pet rabbit. Parents? They track sleep cycles, sudden mood swings, and why their kid suddenly hates their favorite food.

The trick is knowing what’s a trend (low season, growth spurts) and what’s just a one-off freak occurrence (your kid declaring they only eat food shaped like dinosaurs).

3. Forecasting is a Lie, But You Still Have to Do It

You build your best revenue forecast, factor in demand drivers, and then—boom!—a storm wipes out travel for a week. Parenting? You prep for a peaceful bedtime, and suddenly they decide to debate bedtime law like a tiny courtroom drama.

Revenue management and parenting both require adaptability.

You have a plan, but reality has other ideas. Nobody is perfect!

4. Optimization is Key

In hotels, you maximize revenue across different segments—corporate, leisure, groups. In parenting, you optimize sleep schedules, snack strategies, and screen time negotiations.

Both are a delicate balancing act, and both involve a lot of trial and error.

PS: Don't forget your weekly revenue meeting with your kids :-)

5. The One Constant? Uncertainty.

No matter how much data you have, there will always be curveballs. A new competitor undercutting rates, a sudden market shift, a kid deciding they now have an irrational fear of socks.

But that’s the game. You learn, adapt, and do your best with the information you’ve got.

Because whether you’re managing rates or raising kids, one thing is certain—just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, everything changes.

And that’s the fun of it. (Or so they say.)

Love,

Fabi