“Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It is something to own." — Michelle Obama — Hello, it’s Michael here and I hope all is well with you and yours. In early 2023, I spent all of ten minutes on X/Twitter/Whatever before the noise became deafening. But my time there wasn’t all bad. In fact, through the platform currently known as Musk, there was one massive ray of light — a fella named Will Myles who was sharing storytelling advice that I absolutely adored. Once we got on a...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
“Vision is meaning. Meaning is historical." — Matthew McConaughey (True Detective) — Hello and my very best to you and yours. Here are three things that I've been thinking about that I'm excited to share with you. *** On the beauty of agingI’m kicking around an article entitled, ‘On the year I got old.’ At the horribly old age of 46, I feel it in my bones. I hurt my neck tying my shoes. Rather than blast music when driving, I often opt for silence. I get what feels like a 36-hour hangover...
2 months ago • 4 min read
“Silence is a very important word." — Volodymyr Zelenskyy — Hello and my very best to you and yours. Here are three things that I've been thinking about that I'm excited to share with you. *** on creating your own green lightsI have a crush on Jennifer Lawrence. And not a small one. On top of her acting chops, her honesty, humanity, and hilarity in interviews are priceless (I mean check out this reel). Actors may be experts in being someone else. But I’ll be dammed if in interviews Jennifer...
3 months ago • 5 min read
“Things that make you weird as a kid will make you great tomorrow." — James Victore — Hello and my very best to you and yours. Here are three things that I've been thinking about that I'm excited to share with you. *** on making a great first impressionGrowing up as a military brat, I was constantly told to display bullet-proof confidence when meeting new people. “Shoulders back!” “Project your voice!” “When you go to shake someone’s hand, aim to break it!” There was only one problem—as a shy...
3 months ago • 4 min read
“The brain appears to possess a special area which we might call poetic memory and which records everything that charms or touches us, that makes our lives beautiful.”— Milan Kundera — Hello, and I hope 2025 has kicked off well for you and yours. When it comes to reaching career goals, 2024 was a big year for me. Not only did I publish my first book which became a best-seller in multiple categories in Amazon while being featured in places like Publishers Weekly and Big Think, but two of my...
4 months ago • 8 min read
“I don't think about art when I'm working. I think about life." — Jean-Michel Basquiat — Hello and my very best to you and yours. For obvious reasons, today's message will be pretty lightweight. But I wanted to wish you a happy holiday and share a few things I've been thinking about as we wrap up this year and enter a new one (3-minute read). *** on chasing your curiosityThe year was 2001. The place was Las Vegas, Nevada. Brandon Flowers, the lead singer of a newly formed band called The...
4 months ago • 4 min read
“We all see the world differently. And thank God for that. Otherwise, what a boring world this would be" — Philip Johnson — Hello and my very best to you and yours. Thank you for all the love last week for my new project — Writing to (L)Earn — alongside my friends Darius Foroux and John Pucay. If you're interested in improving your storytelling skills, I'm hosting our first workshop tomorrow (Friday) at 10 AM EST on how to craft engaging hooks for your personal stories. It's free to join and...
4 months ago • 5 min read
“The most important thing in the world is family and love." — John Wooden — Hello and my best to you and yours. As an American living in Spain, Thanksgiving is the holiday I miss the most. Turkey legs. Mashed potatoes. Pumpkin pie. My family. Football. Maybe not in that order. If you’re stateside, I hope you have a great day. If you’re outside the US, I hope you have a great day too. And a massive THANK YOU for all the love this past year on this newsletter and my book. I got news yesterday...
5 months ago • 4 min read
“All there is to thinking is seeing something noticeable, which makes you see something you weren't noticing, which makes you see something that isn't even visible." — Leo Strauss — Hello and my best to you and yours. Here are three things I've been thinking about lately that I'm excited to share with you. (4-minute read) *** on embracing boredomYou may have seen some video clips or posts about 'raw-dogging' — where guys get on a flight and do nothing but just be. No movies. No food. No...
5 months ago • 3 min read
"If you’re trying to please everyone, then you’re not going to make anything that is honestly yours, I don’t think, in the long run." — Viggo Mortensen — Hello and my best to you and yours. I hope you all had a great Halloween. Here are three things I've been thinking about lately that I'm excited to share with you. (4-minute read) *** on not changingMy oldest son’s buddies banded together to get him a ukulele for his birthday earlier this week. The instrument made me immediately think of...
6 months ago • 4 min read