Three Thought Thursday

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Dear Reader,

“Did you study communications in college? You should be an orator.”

“Quite the opposite actually…I studied accounting.”

Since I was little, I have loved public speaking.

Whenever my church held the one service a year where the students led worship, I would always raise my hand to give a sermon.

I’ve had the unbelievable privilege of delivering a best man speech at a wedding.

Even recently, I gave a eulogy for my late grandfather.

At the reception, many people approached me asking if I had studied communications, where I learned to give speeches without notes, suggesting I should become a public speaker, and affirming that Papa would have been proud.

It was comforting to hear that the eulogy went well. It caused me to reflect on my recent career switch from accounting to social media. It was a pretty dramatic industry switch. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, podcaster, and speaker. I’m grateful that I seem to be on the right path. The affirmations of others helped.

But I had to start somewhere, in accounting. As unconventional a journey as it may be.

Unconventional journeys—that’s the theme for this Three Thought Thursday.

The Accidental Chef

What happens when you take a 6’2, Pasadena girl and put her in the advertising industry? You get the most famous celebrity chef of the 20th century.

Julia Child began her career in advertising and copywriting. She eventually landed a notable position at a California newspaper.

When the Second World War erupted, Julia joined a government job that allowed her to travel the world. This was her first real taste of international culture, having spent her entire life in the United States. When the war ended, she returned to writing, but her travels ignited something within her.

By her late 30s, she made a dramatic career change, enrolling in a culinary institute in France (talk about a mid-life crisis). She fell in love with the intricate yet beautiful art of French cooking and desired to show it to the world. She returned to the States and wrote a cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." It became an instant success. News features and a TV show soon followed, establishing her as the pioneer of making French cooking accessible and entertaining for Americans.

The fascinating, often overlooked part of her journey is how her first career in advertising and copywriting was pivotal in her success as a chef. How? Julia honed her communication skills. When she wrote her cookbook, it was almost second nature for her to transform complex French culinary techniques into simple, engaging recipes for the average American cook.

She took the skillset she learned in her first career and used it to differentiate herself from other chefs, skyrocketing her success.

Contradictory but adjacent skills lead to extraordinary outcomes.

The Rock That Built an Empire

Do you smell that? Do you smell what The Rock is building?

Unless you've been living under a rock—pun intended—you've probably seen Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in some form or another in your lifetime. Whether it's on the silver screen in an action movie, in the ring as a WWE superstar, or more recently in advertisements for tequila companies or energy drinks, The Rock has become an absolute A-list superstar. But it didn't start that way.

Like Taylor Swift, the Rock has had his fair share of eras. He started by playing college football at the University of Miami. This was his Gridiron Grind Era. Like many Division 1 athletes, his sights were set on the pros. It would have been helpful if someone had told him beforehand that he wasn't good enough. After some up-and-down seasons at Miami, Dwayne found himself in the Canadian Football League, seemingly at a dead end. But that's when he took his chance on an established but risky brand: the WWE.

This was the start of his next era: The People's Champ Era. The Rock iterated on his previous era of athleticism and strength with a new skill: public speaking. Instead of a helmet, he had a microphone. His rants, call-outs, and promos shot him up the roster. His combination of athleticism (from his previous era) and mic skills (the iteration in his new era) made him a superstar in the wrestling world. It was here where he rose to fame, using his combination of athleticism and communication skills to become arguably the greatest WWE wrestler of all time.

Many would get to the top of an industry and stay there forever, but not Dwayne. He started his next era, the Crossover Era. Here, he boldly transitioned from the ring to the silver screen, starring in action movies and family-friendly films. He went from being famous within the squared circle to becoming a global celebrity. He iterated on his live-performance skills in the WWE to movie acting.

He continued iterating, building a successful production company from his newfound acting knowledge. He turned his movie star experience into a full-fledged production company.

He keeps iterating in his newest era, the Empire Era. The Rock leverages his star power, charisma, and experience from building a production business to create massive companies. Teremana Tequila (valued at over a billion dollars) and ZOA have exploded from customers that The Rock drives with his star power. No matter the industry, his recognition, charisma, and continued iterations allow the Rock to grow businesses like no other.

Iterate from the previous era to maximize the next era.

From School Teacher to Media Mogul

Taking massive risks that eventually work is often romanticized in the news, TV shows, and movies. We can draw a different lesson from this success story.

Jonah Peretti went to college in California before enrolling in a master’s program at MIT. There, he spent significant time in the Media Lab (a cross between tech and media). It was at MIT that Jonah experienced his first taste of fame, albeit unintentionally.

He made a joke. Jonah and his friends were discussing Nike’s problems and how the company used cheap labor from other countries to manufacture their popular shoes. Taking advantage of Nike's liberal approach to customization, Jonah created a shoe design that replaced the swoosh with the word "sweatshop." When his order was canceled, Jonah emailed Nike. He posted the email and it went mega-viral. Local newspapers picked up the story, and before he knew it, he was featured in magazines like Time, The Guardian, The Independent, and even appeared on NBC's Today Show. The experience showed Jonah the potential of viral content.

Despite this experience, Jonah didn't take immediate action. After graduating from MIT, he worked at Isidore Newman Prep School, teaching computer science.

A few years later, a couple of his friends pitched an idea for a media company. Jonah was hesitant because he had a stable job. However, he also had a couple of extraordinary experiences in his life: working in an MIT Media Lab and having a viral moment. He took those previous opportunities as assurance that he could take a risk. So, he and his friends co-founded the Huffington Post. While helping to build Huffington Post, Jonah continually honed his skills on the side, working on an independent project.

Huffington Post grew rapidly and was quickly acquired by AOL. When the acquisition occurred, Jonah went full-time into the independent project he had been working on. That project? BuzzFeed. Now, almost 15 years later, BuzzFeed is a media giant. Jonah went from an average teacher to a world-renowned media mogul. He took a risk, and it paid off.

Here's the thing: Jonah's risk was very calculated. He drew on a few extraordinary experiences to gain the confidence to take a risk. It was still a risk, but much less dramatic than “burning the boats.” Jonah gained skills in content repurposing (from MIT), virality (from the Nike email), and building a media company (from the Huffington Post) to build the company that made his risk worth it.

Leverage previous opportunities to make a calculated change.

Do any of these stories resonate with you?

If they did, can you do me a favor and forward this letter to a friend who may not know about them.

Grateful for you,

Tommy