Category: Uncategorized

Your tactics don’t define you.

Well maybe they do for you, but I’m arguing that they don’t have to. The way you do what you do, of course, can illuminate your character, but there is not always a direct correlation there.

There’s certainly power in seeing yourself as the kind of person who [insert commendable thing], I’m not denying that. That’s an important part of changing your psychology when you’re trying to foster a new pattern of behavior.

But it’s dangerous to define yourself (an ongoing self-narrative) by the things that you’re doing (potentially short-term tactic) to reach your goal(s). Tactics may change as you get closer to a goal, and you also run the risk of forgetting why you were trying to reach a goal in the first place.

Be clear (with yourself) and check in (again, party of one) often.

I don’t understand how my brain works.

I know how certain parts of it are expected to operate, but the vast majority of what takes place behind my eyes is an utter mystery. Sometimes I’m pleased with its output, sometimes I’m horrified by it.

Despite this, it’s an uncontested fact that focusing its attention pays enormous dividends. Not just the intellectual equivalent of staring at an object in space, but rather the thoughtful and sustained consideration in a particular direction. This—the careful contemplation of a topic—often yields surprising insights.

I can’t shoot like Steph Curry or write like Ta-Nehisi Coates, but I know that being effective at virtually any task worth repeating requires more than simply hoping in the direction of an unspecific outcome.

What would having an additional one million dollars change for you right now? Since my site isn’t frequented by bankers and the wealthy elite, I’m going to assume your answer is, “a lot.”

What about $100,000? $10,000? Every dollar counts when you’re building a company like I am. But what matters most, it seems, is how we conduct ourselves in the absence of the thing we think we need.

When someone wires me the cash for my first million-dollar deal, I’m not going to pack up for the day and buy a Ferrari—I’m going to double down and ensure that I don’t have to wait as long for the next million and then the next.

No sense in holding back the million-dollar work ethic on this side of the cash. The work is still (and will always be) the work.

I’d like to see more black and brown folks in the January altMBA session.

The first two sessions have, to be candid, exceeded the team’s expectations. Seth and Winnie worked on this every day for more than six months before I even signed on to help build it, and it was months still before the project was launched.

People are being transformed and unlocked by the experience, and we recently launched a few things in preparation for the January session:

1. Find out more about altMBA: this is an email drip campaign to let you know what to expect. Sign up.
2. welcome.altmba.com: an information site to show you some of the results our alumni have seen.
3. info.altmba.com: full program details on a single page.

If you have any questions for me, drop me a note. If you have any questions about the program itself, email hello@altmba.com.

I hope you’ll apply. Tick-tock.

Creating things to share with the world—especially things that matter, and things that might not work—isn’t easy. At times, it’s tempting to throw in the towel or wish for better circumstances.

But in the same way that language is insufficient in captivating the emotions like music can, so too is a lot of business advice in underscoring the importance of not quitting.

Sometimes it’s not a tailwind that changes things, it’s your own momentum that sustains you. Keep pushing.

…two pods in a cast?

It’s fine, I never wanted to be a comedian, anyway. The point is, I recently appeared on two podcasts (talking about Abernathy, naturally).

The first was Charlie Gilkey’s The Creative Giant Show, where the discussion elicited some raw passion that I wasn’t planning on sharing. Charlie is one of the most thorough and thoughtful people I know, and I’m grateful both for his continued friendship and the candid discussion he made space for.

The second and most recent was with Mr. Mike Street on his #SmartBrownVoices podcast. Mike totally gets what we’re trying to do with Abernathy, and we had a great discussion about why it matters. To boot, Mike is a titan in the social media marketing world and works behind the scenes with some of the most well-known brands in America.

Two of the most dangerous things I’ve ever done in NYC:

1. Drove a Uhaul the first time I moved here
2. Drove a Uhaul the second time I moved here

Seriously, I can’t believe you don’t need a special license for that.

Yesterday, one of my board members called to check in, to hear the latest Abernathy updates, and to discuss a marketing opportunity for the brand. The call was productive.

As we were wrapping up, he stressed the importance of the project to him, and offered to float us financially if things ever got to that point…tapping into his personal savings, taking on credit card debt, whatever it takes.

He isn’t independently wealthy or even in the best position to offer this—he’s running his own early-stage startup and might even have debt from grad school. And that’s what makes the offer even more significant.

It’s hard to overstate how important it is to know—to truly know—that good people have your back when you’re trying to do something important and risky that might not work.

Word to Marshawn Lynch, I’m thankful.

Take a moment to say these names out loud.

1. Clementa Pinckney
2. Cynthia Hurd
3. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton
4. Tywanza Sanders
5. Ethel Lance
6. Susie Jackson
7. DePayne Middleton-Doctor
8. Myra Thompson
9. Daniel Simmons Sr.

These are the names of the nine people murdered on Wednesday during a church prayer meeting by a racist coward in Charleston, South Carolina.

As the media pretends to analyze the motive and digs up uninteresting facts about the terrorist, I’d like to turn the attention back towards those who are no longer with us, and the families who will forever mourn their absence.

While we’re at it, this would also be a great time to take down the confederate flag that still flies above South Carolina today.

Being on social media can be exhausting. Viewed through the lens of someone who cares about human rights and social justice alone makes you a strong candidate for antidepressant medications, but being connected to the pulse of global outrage makes it worse.

I think we’re still very much in the wild west days of social media. Tribes are slowly codifying and coalescing—both great words, let’s be honest—and I hope to see groups taking bold stands to consider and set agendas for the tribe members.

I mentioned before that social media is wresting control from mainstream media outlets, but the social media collective is still reactive rather than prescriptive. I hope to spotlight and amplify those noticing and leading and provoking in important places, and I’d love to know about people you’re listening to right now.