Speaking of stalled aspirational progress, as we are all now acutely aware of, the global economy hit a screeching halt by way of a COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.
Ramifications and the related coverable topics are endless.
A globalized reckoning, which was anticipated to happen at some point by the experts, caught us all on our heels and we couldn’t react quickly enough to put it to bed before massive loss of lives and economic progress resulted.
What are we learning in the process?
Leadership and the ability to listen, emphasize and unite matters more than ever – without it, everything can unfold.
Heroes come in all shapes and sizes. The true heroes pulling us out of this mess are the service workers on the front-lines putting lives on the line to save their brethren (nurses, doctors, EMTs, social services, teachers, grocery store and “essential business” workers). These folks deserve every accolade, perk and quality of live improvement possible.
Globalization Revisited – it doesn’t matter if your GDP is greatest in the world if you can’t stock or make the basics to save your people (ie. PPE’s like aprons, masks, gloves, etc.)
We need to focus on the industries, tactics, practices and strategies proven to sustainably benefit the masses. Sometimes it’s time to stick in that fork and move on vs. continuing the life support.
Personally and professionally, we are all at a crossroads. Adapt or die (figuratively and literally so, sadly).
It’s a group exercise, too. One outlier can derail the recovery progress for the masses. We are all ready for the economy to return to normal – your non-distanced protests only hurt our chances to get there.
How we prepare today will impact tomorrow. It is well worth the extra few weeks of staying at home to not set ourselves back months more.
If all you have to give is goodwill and positive thoughts, pay it forward, spread it (especially while staying at home!) and the returns will multiply and help get us all back on our feet.
This post was meant to be written so long ago but this whole blockchain movement shape-shifts at the speed of light. Blink and you are steps behind and can’t even catch up to write a blog post.
If you’re not yet familiar with blockchain technology (it can be very nebulous for many), the premise is quite simple. Synonymous with distributed ledger technology, it equates to automatically-recorded electronic data records (a series of 1’s and 0’s in the case of Bitcoin, the original and most famous use case). Enabling it eliminates the need for a middleman (like the government or a bank) to authorize the records.
It was December, 2018, the markets were exploding with Bitcoin frenzy and initial coin offerings (ICO’s) offered the promise for a gold rush that even the luckiest 49er couldn’t fathom. The 90’s internet boom was upon us, and everyone was tokenizing (converting to digital shares) and netting millions from the masses for their world-changing project.
I had been a managing partner in a fast-growing SaaS startup that I helped launch in Trak Software (for you sponsorship marketers out there, think of it as having your day back). The opportunity arose to take on a C.O.O. and Head of Fundraising role (but also taking the lead in finance, sales management and deal vetting, research, and go-to-market duties) at a crowdfunding group that had birthed an upstart project after pivoted itself to accommodate accepting cryptocurrency for the instant settlement and decentralized prospects that blockchain tech provides with huge, demonstrable upside. I had a lot of friends that went into finance successfully and had always had an eye on what’s next and after all, every industry was about to be disrupted and we could be at the epicenter.
In December, I volunteered my time unpaid to “train” long hours. The time was now. Over the holidays including Christmas Eve and Day, I devoted myself to formulating and editing version after version of the “white paper” – the business plan of the industry and key to a successful token sale. New, amazing white papers came out with the mindset of a new, disrupted future. Every industry, new models, protocols and structures. Grand ambitions with incentives to get in early and win big – (like everyone was doing, average ICO return was 1720% while dreams got funded). There are too many big wins to count like Polymath, EOS, Blockchain Capital, Stellar, Crypto Kitties (right?) or any 2017 ICO in general to the tune of $6 billion raised digitally.
There was a frenzy over who could be novel, first, most appealing and successful in cutting out today’s central power to change tomorrow’s standard. Globally, countries were trying to turn to decentralization to thwart the corruption that had ran them into the ground for years by the greedy, bribed politicians and empirical rulers.
But who would take down “the man” on behalf of the world?
If you’re unfamiliar of how the movement started, let’s rewind to the financial crash of ’07. I was coming out of college and like many, had no idea what was happening. Essentially, all the banks were selling collateralized debt, packages of garbage loans on houses, cars, etc. performed all over by shady or naive financiers to other financiers and packaged into investments. Housing prices skyrocketed, real estate will never fail!
Until it did. Hard.
What people didn’t realize was that the exorbitant interest rates they signed the 1st or 2nd mortgage for didn’t quit. When they lost their job, and all of a sudden they were under-water, their house was worth less than they owed on it and poof. It was gone.
The banks all owned these CDO’s (collateralized debt obligations), yet no one truly seemed to know what they owed or how unstable it could become. They were too busy leveraging what they (thought) they had on hand or in-pocket and were too busy leveraging that credit well beyond what they should have. They were too arrogant and uninformed to read the tea leaves and the result was, the largest financial crash in U.S. feeding the rest of the world’s history since the great depression.
In the midst of it emerged Bitcoin, founded by the enigma Satoshi Nakamoto, a system of binary code of 1’s and 0’s, mined by believers (stored on a local drive for returns). Bitcoin could be sent to digital wallets anywhere with no bank needed to reconcile.
Sadly, however, the mainstream media was too stuck up its own ass to realize what it meant and the first use case most everyone knew about was Silk Road, the marketplace made famous by the drug trade. That was the last association people had, not the fundamentals of creating an instantaneous, world where math was the answer and you didn’t need a middleman to register and record the transaction as the blockchain revealed all. The power could now be out of the hands of the corrupt and given back to the people.
Fast forward ten years. More and more people had caught on to the point of the Bitcoin market price going up hundreds if not thousands of dollars per unit. No one had seen anything like it. And Bitcoin fed every other spawned cryptocurrency and blockchain project behind it symbiotically, including Ethereum, the 2nd biggest currency and a protocol that every new ICO project was built on (ERC20 Standard) which itself shot up beyond $10,000 per ETH unit.
Our original founder missed the dot-com boom and was hell-bent to not miss another wave, working around the clock and expecting me to do the same. The software in place was compliantly-designed after the JOBS Act of 2012, where companies could go to the masses to fund their projects in exchange for equity or tangible benefits of sorts. Think Kickstarter, except instead of handing out hats or T-shirt for cool ideas, they’re handing out a piece of the company.
Compliance is the key word in all of this. We had it, they need it.
Our “token flow” model enabled us to take a piece of the companies we helped launch, and to launch ours, we would give up not only some of our equity, but a representative % of these token flows that we took in from issuers. Being guided by our resident crypto advisor, who had started mining Bitcoin in 2011 when it was a worth a few bucks per, we were targeting a hundred million dollar raise of which we would bring in some of the top established “whales” and players to the family to launch us and partner with their established game-changing tech platforms. I was in charge of coming up the proformas, and even in the most conservative of scenarios, this was a can’t miss investment scenario (vetted by my critical-eyed veteran VC and private equity advisors that I brought in to add strategic value).
In exchange for giving these hungry issuers the platform to launch their dreams that would check off the compliance x’s and o’s, we would take a setup fee, and small % of cash and tokens from each company. The rush was on to get it and we held the keys.
We were about to hit it big. All we had to do was go live with our go-to-market materials and plan and start soliciting investments.
I was brought on to speak at a conference and judge a business pitch competition with the biggest names in the decentralization space in Brock Pierce, his wife Crystal Rose and Patrick Byrne of Overstock and TZero. We were racing, maneuvering, positioning, getting ready to go-to-market and hit go, launching promising projects on their fundraises.
Then boom.
Unfortunately, the government’s lack of legislative clarity on digital securities quelled the momentum. Despite all the positioning, networking, developing, interviewing and screening of the next world-changing companies and projects, FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) put a wet blanket on the fire. My blockchain dreams to help usher in a new standard dried up 1.5 years after it started despite all kinds of promise, much like those of many other similar digital pioneers out there (especially domestically).
The premise and possibilities of the technology will, however, continue to develop by big or well-resourced players.
Underdog Sports started featuring sports businesses through our social media channels over the last couple of months. We wanted to highlight entrepreneurs who are making an impact in sports business and inspire other who have ideas, to take action. I came across TRAK Software (formerly Sponsorship Buddy), and was impressed by the work they were doing.
Trak is a collaboration tool used by organizations who buy, sell or consult on multi-asset corporate partnerships. Trak helps accelerate and simplify sponsorship execution of each partnership; so sponsorships are executed with the correct artwork, the right people, and every inventory item is maximized.
Giving everyone time back to strategically build, plan and THEN activate their partnerships instead of getting bogged down with complex partnerships (which is what everyone wants and needs) because their disjointed rows and columns (excel anyone?) and inefficient processes (more meetings phone calls and…
On the personal side, I took the plunge to get engaged we just closed and moved into our 1st home, a life-changing ordeal in itself. I also personally learned that a country doing everything it can to self-destruct that’s $20 trillion in debt sorely needs software to help the drastically under-equipped IRS manage operational claims to chip away at (separate post in itself).
Sponsorship Buddy is rebranding within the next few weeks to encapsulate the force it has become, now directly optimizing workflows for thousands in the brand, agency and rights holder/property space (recently including the San Francisco Giants, who I could’ve garnered multiple rings based on a different life choice made (another post of its own). With a valuation now in the 9 figure range, one could ask how I could entertain usage of my full-time hours going to something else?
The answer? The blockchain.
I also passed up an equitable opportunity with a software behemoth fast approaching IPO and an executive spot with the most elite membership and concierge program in the world involving curation of the most customized VIP global personalized experiences.
After a few weeks spent volunteering, negotiating and absorbing, I signed on to become the #2, C.O.O. & Head of Fundraising for what we believe could be the most compliant blockchain solution in the exploding ICO market. By the way, ICOs (initial coin offerings) have overtaken traditional venture capital funding means and skyrocketed to over $5 billion in funds raised for 2017.
Everyone’s now heard of Bitcoin (the Amazon of the cryptocurrency world), but most don’t understand it or the blockchain. This distributed ledger system promises to change the world by decentralizing everything, from global monetary policies to how transactions are recorded.
There are innumerable roadblocks in the way before that happens, however. Many early ICOs were launched by the likes of 19-year-old Ukrainians arming a cartel without as much as a business or legal backing. While due diligence, transparency and sound legal business principles are on the rise, there is an impending fear of the unknown, especially the SEC coming down to ban and punish those deemed outside of the legal limits. A day of reckoning is in order in today’s new age Wild West.
At OMINEX, sister-company CrowdEngine has the SEC & FINRA compliance nailed. OMINEX plans to offer a wallet to manage such security and other crypto tokens and provide the portal to launch the buttoned-up ICO, funding your dream, world-changing blockchain project.
But first, we need believers to take a chance with us and invest in the most compliant fundraising solution seen to date (while benefitting with us along the way). We could use great Advisors, referral partners and investors to help us build out the vision before we can draft the team.
It’s been quite the heroic comeback story, 2017 vs. 2016 that is.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Red Wings, Baltimore Orioles, Sporting Kansas City, Indiana Pacers, New Orleans Saints & Pelicans (among others pictured above): what do these represent? All, the latest and greatest clients of Sponsorship Buddy Inc. I, as the lead hunter, should be out celebrating in the streets to land these huge, globally embraced and recognized team brands as clients of our disruptive new platform, right? Not so fast, my friend.
Early entrepreneurial life is not glamorous (nor is the sports industry). Over the past 20 months, I’ve had to learn all kinds of new skills, competencies, and levels of resiliency and discipline. I set out with a goal of transforming the sponsorship industry in much-needed fashion for the better to help create more transparency, streamlined communications, a better client experience and improvements in quality of life. In doing so, I hoped to make my mark as an innovator, disruptor, and difference-maker and put it all on the line to do so (personal life, relationships, financial stability).
Full disclosure, it’s been the most challenging period I’ve had in life and there have been some big ones. While persistently searching out believers in my network, I’ve been aggressively pursuing careers and been so close on fantastic opportunities in sports or tech in Denver, San Francisco and here in Salt Lake City, only to be passed up on at the finish line. My closest contacts have seemingly written me off while it’s been impossible to fight off bouts of despair, depression and not feel like a failure.
One of my key strengths is my resiliency, persistence, and aversion to quitting. I thought the industry would snap up this relatively inexpensive tool but learned that it was going to take completing the marathon to change the game.
Back when we were looking for our 1st major league client after the Utah Jazz (beta customer of ours), I leaned on my former group in the Memphis Grizzlies, who have been notably innovative. In speaking with Mya Donald, activation lead for the team, I said something along the lines of, “I know this is new and daunting, but this can not only put the Grizzlies on the map as a leader in the space, but do great things for your careers.” The Grizzlies bought in, embraced the tool, and four weeks ago, Mya was on-stage as a finalist at NBA league meetings citing us as a key piece to the team’s peer-nominated Relationship Management Program of the Year. To add validation, the winners of the award, the Cleveland Cavaliers, known not only for being runner up in the 2016-2017 NBA Finals, but also for a notable Goodyear Jersey Patch Campaign and innovative 365-day activation approach have followed suit as our 5th client in the most innovative of all sports leagues (NBA).
Taking excerpts like these to market, we’ve now established ourselves as an industry-recognized brand with success stories throughout the major and minor leagues, not to mention being in the process of signing our 1st brand and agency clients. We accomplished our set growth and vesting goals a year ahead of time and have solidified our brand and platform as a force with huge upside from here while maxing out my equity shares in the company.
As we look to solve the sponsorship industry’s communication issues one client at a time, I’ve realized that I have a long ways to go to become a great communicator myself. I realized that my emails, like everyone’s texts or emails from time to time, can be misinterpreted and come off the wrong way. Instead of leaving tone, reasoning, and objectives up for interpretation, I insisted on a face-to-face meeting to speak my mind, and after a 2nd fishing trip meeting to close out the summer and further collaborate on ownership stake and employment terms. I’m now about to be in a much more secure place while being in control of day and destiny.
Lessons learned: don’t take rejection to heart. It only takes one (you). Even when everyone else loses faith in you, what you believe in and set out to do, you can accomplish anything with determination. Be mindful, self-reflective and don’t be afraid to ask for constructive feedback, advice or someone else’s time to hear you out.
After weeks of back-and-forth months after my consulting deal was up, we were at a crossroads of a) parting ways with only the entrepreneurial experience to show for it for b) forging a partnership, potentially lifelong. Both sides have nearly walked away at different times and everyone knew it was decision time, this was make or break and the call was going to be tense. That “Castaway” feeling of I’m alone, trying to scratch and claw my way to survival, hoping someone will venture into the vicinity and throw me a life raft can feel very real.
Doubts can be constant. Today’s social media age make peer comparisons dangerous. Why am I at point X when I’ve invested this much into myself whereas my former cohort John or Jane Doe is at point Y? Trust in others and myself with belief in the ability to turn up calculated returns is something I’ve banked on for years. But sometimes it feels like being stuck in the ocean trying to fight the current of a riptide, not going anywhere and expending energy reserves quickly.
Egocentrism is the inability to understand any perspective but one’s own. In this country, never has this come more into question than today’s political and social environment. Why should I think about someone over there when my own quality of life is in question? What happens when those relationships you’ve invested in and trusted would work out instead turn out quiet or egocentric? You’re left to your own story and ingenuity, losing hope with line after line being cast out only to be brought back with nets empty.
Despite better reason and needs to meet, we made the trip to Arizona for a wedding at a lavish venue, the JW Marriott of Tuscon pictured below. Sacrifices were made to get there – a bag of sandwiches made to avoid having to stop for food, not staying at the host resort and instead choosing a Marriott nearby. Bootstrapped startup life personalized.
Alli & I before the wedding @JW Marriott Tuscon
After catching up with the Joneses, and being there to celebrate the big commitment day for the newlyweds, we took a day trip to the famous wild west town of Tombstone. Despite all the Hollywood takes, never was story given due justice authentically. The Boothill Graveyard was filled with stories of men that met their fates through every means from defending their honor in gunfights at the OK Corral to getting poisoned and everything in between and their stones were stolen over time by gravestone robbers looking to get their hands on valuable relics. This made me think, how does one avoid the fate of George Johnson pictured below, who was hanged by mistake? “He was right, he was wrong, but we strung him up and now he’s gone.”
In a brutal town where the odds are stacked against you like Tombstone, George may have been on to something in life. Maybe he was looking like one of the few who’s investment was going to pay off in a big way. However, his story was lost and he became known instead for his curious cause of death. George hadn’t secured himself to avoid the traps laid down all around him and succumbed to a noteworthy fate.
On the scenic way back in Navajo country (another example of a people pushed aside), we stopped at the picturesque Horseshoe Bend in the Glen Canyon area of northern Arizona (featured above). I looked out and felt like I was stuck on that rock island pushed out further and further by the sands of time, with a storm coming nonetheless.
Months after the fact and despite undue strife, my partners came through for me on my concessions and I officially tied the ownership knot. Lessons learned include not making assumptions and instead communicating better and building and executing sound social and business contracts. Don’t be afraid to be real and speak to feelings and emotions as it leads to more authentic connections. I went from fighting the riptides to grabbing a line out and back to the island. Now, it’s a matter of navigating around the hangman’s noose and traps while continuing to better equip and target those lines cast with the hope of netting that meaningful storybook foundation off the island.
We live in a social media driven world where our best Friends, Connections, Contacts, Followers and Matches are a click or two away. Because we’re so accustomed to living the “American Dream,” keeping up with the Joneses, and subjecting ourselves to the rigors that accompany these conquests, we’re content keeping up through surface-level digital footprints and sporadic, quick in-person or phone interactions. How many times per day do the, “How are things?” – “Good. You?” surface-level, efficiency-driven interactions play out? We think we know what’s going on, but all we just know what people want portrayed out there because we don’t expend the time to go deeper.
Thousands of contacts connected within a few clicks but how do we know who will come through for us when it’s on the line? Who’s willing to take the time and put in the energy themselves to go the extra mile for you when you’re in a time of need – and then actually follow through?
We’re at an ugly crossroads in America. We see it amongst all the political dissension. We see it as mental health traumas rise. We fight over resources to the point of disassociation with those closest to us. We can’t go deep ourselves, so how could we go deep for others? Are we in it for status or the good of human kind?
Sandwiched in-between two personal quests for ownership after putting it all on the line, I took a trip. Despite better financial judgement, I joined college friends south of the border for the sake of a friend who’s always had the ability to go deeper (Kaveh is pictured right with our chauffeur Carlos).
After some tropical guy’s weekend introspection, I came to some harsh realizations. I’m great at the surface level stuff, but like many guys, I have trouble talking about feelings, needs, concerns, etc. I’m too trusting that if I put it all out there for you, that you will then come through for me. I learned that I try to formulate solutions for everything and in doing so, force things when the square pegs will never fit into the round holes.
With that said, though, I learned that sometimes you need to put people on the spot to realize how much you can count on them. Sometimes, you have to lean on yourself alone.
Paying it forward with no expectations is hard to do but pays big dividends. I recently watched The Kindness Diaries on Netflix, which details one man’s quest to cross the world on a motorcycle with no money relying on the goodheartedness of others. Despite lots of doubters and strifes along the way, Leon made it and repaid those with pressing needs who helped him out handsomely with something that would help get them across the hump. That begs the question, if strangers with very little can do it, why can’t we?
What can you do to interview and determine who’s trustworthy and will come through for you? What are some strategies you’ve used to dig deep and get results during times of need?
Are you fed up with the feeling that your vote won’t account for any positive change? Are you over the stodgy NFL or sick of fantasy football after losing because of weather during 1 freak game or an injury that made all those hours for naught? Are you in need of an exciting last minute Christmas gift idea?
If you’re like me and you’ve answered YES to any of those questions than consider this a call to action.
Whether you’re in Utah or not, this is your chance to actually play a role in managing and running a pro sports team. From the city (SLC over OKC) to the team name (after 101st Airborne in a nailbiter over Teamy McTeamface), to the plays ran on the field chosen through a state-of-the-art app, you Joe Fan are in the driver’s seat. It’s Madden meets a Hollywood reality show meets the pigskin meets the future of tech. The voices of fans who have signed up to participate in an industry that is incredibly hard to break in and stay in are being heard loud and clear. In 21 countries and all 50 states, they’ve secured their dream spot as Assistant GM or Analytics Department or as an inaugural Season Ticketholder.
Now it’s your turn to answer the call. If you’re believer in freedom of choice, democracy, technology and football, we need you tuned and ready to make history.
February 16th, 2017. The Maverik Center.
ESPN, GQ, Esquire and other very notable national entities will be there. Can we count on you?
Success in revolutionizing the game requires churning up good companies to sponsor that believe that the fan comes first, groups and true fans and individuals who believe in the “democracy” mission depends on your participation. Unite with me, you believers who nowadays can’t agree on 1 Godforsaken thing. Like which beer the Mav should serve. Together in this and be there with me as it could ultimately in crazy fashion help me fulfill a lifelong dream of running a pro team of which with success, will extend to a a rebranded, democratized league level in due time (2018).
Your Super Bowl hangover will long be over as will the holidays. What next?
Why not join me in staking your claim to be a part of history, giving the power of making decisions in unbeknownst fashion to you. Yes, your voice has now been heard – you make the calls.
I recently queued up D2: The Mighty Ducks. Regardless of whether you played or liked hockey, my generation beloved the Mighty Ducks movies as kids. In a tumultuous time like this one, consensus towards the greater good is seemingly impossible. We can learn a lot by looking back on the once lovable loser Minnesotan kids, who banded together with others of all shapes, colors and sizes from different corners of the U.S. to defeat the bullies of Iceland in the Junior Goodwill Games finals after Coach Bombay centered himself as a leader. It wouldn’t have happened without believing in the power of instilled confidence.
Personally, I grew up in an achievement-oriented household where I was encouraged to participate (and well) in all kinds of activities. Some I didn’t like ie. choir and piano. Others I loved ie. sports – I played four competitively into high school, usually among the top performers on my teams. Hockey would’ve been one had I moved back to Minnesota sooner (my friends were deep into travel hockey by 4th grade).
My folks went to top universities and academics always came 1st – getting into a great school was priority #1 and I had only a decent handful of B’s into high school. I had an outgoing personality and friend groups beyond just the “popular” group. Despite all the accolades and activity time, I often felt alone and a failure – especially in high school. If it weren’t for my parents always having my back though, where would I be?
Granted, some of this might be the result of a competitive, achievement-oriented culture. Sure, there were plenty of good teachers who pushed and encouraged. Coaches on the other hand, not so much. The dads were more often than not solid, albeit biased towards their kids (as mine was). Winning was common and the times were loose and fun. It was into high school that the paradigm shifted. If you didn’t dedicate yourself to the “system” of that specific sport and all the workouts and family politics year-round, then you were missing out regardless of talents demonstrated. Lesser “system” athletes focused on 1 sport and were anointed “golden boy” status over others successfully competed for their school in multiple competitive sports.
One would think that high school coaches (and teachers) are there because they care about giving back and developing life achievers. Egregiously, as far as many were concerned, it was all about their ego and attitude coming from doing it the same way for awhile, their image or winning at small fill-in-the-blank hamlet town. “I could care less about what you’ve done or who you are, it’s my way or the highway.” Small-minded small-ball!
I remember going into horrific shooting or hitting slumps. I would go home, shovel off the snowy driveway and night and shoot until I couldn’t see or get my dad to pitch until he couldn’t throw. It didn’t matter though as next to ZERO encouragement or support was offered from coaches. How are you going to succeed when you’ve got it stuck in your head that if you miss ONE shot, you’re back on the bench?
I went to Duke basketball camp two years in a row around national championships and learned from the best and a master motivator in Coach K. Despite Duke being the model for our “system,” I ended up losing out on the last varsity roster spot to the handicapped “system” guy. I walked off after not even logging a play in the game for my last playoff baseball game after starting every career game. Can you get any more of a slap in the face?
The teenage years are the most volatile and when you’re offered nothing but negativity from those that are supposed to lift you, how can you succeed?
Fast forward to college. I was DONE with high school and the work paid off as I got into every school I applied – except getting waitlisted at the one I thought I was meant for (of which my dad attended). Gone went the nurturing offered by the home-front and in came freedom and autonomy of quasi-adult life. College offered the ability for anyone to re-invent oneself.
The times were exciting but the bar was set for failure – proven achievers used to near 4.0’s like myself now found themselves in the “C” range, barely scraping by. I remember taking a physics class of which I had no business being in having not taken calc and getting something in the neighborhood of an 8 out of 60 on an exam despite serious studying! My GPA after the 1st semester was near suspension level. I found out about the verb “South Foresting,” from the parking garage famous for university suicide, the ultimate failure feeling put into action.
I pushed it to the limit, developing association with the “leaders and best” among the “Leaders & Best,” in the Mud Bowl and Greek scene and our acclaimed football program, and lots of time not only on the beer pong table, but in the and classroom and library. I started to find myself while I kicked it into gear and started competing toe-to-toe in everything on campus and internally started to realize was that I could hold my own (despite the top-notch acumen of the competition). Confidence brimmed internally and externally and peaked – I was on T.V. on the sidelines, and in the “alpha” social, competitive limelight otherwise. I had not only survived, but thrived in many senses and graduated with a double major.
Pro
The door into the sports industry is revenue generation and all of a sudden, re-invention had to happen again. A 99% rejection outcome became the norm and the hurdles were steep in Inside Sales – the “chop shop” of weeding people out. I buckled in, outworked and out-performed my peers after some trying, tough times in a faraway, disaster-ravaged market of which I knew 1 person. I quickly learned what having no culture and a boss departed for punching someone in front of his employees to understanding what a thriving, motivating, positive team-oriented culture felt like.
Fast forward ten years and two grad degrees of which I pushed myself to the limit further, It’s taken many sacrifices, disappointments and failures. Every B-school will pound in how and stress the importance of leadership and “culture” in the workplace. Interviews for those impossibly in-demand positions too often yield comes with a boxed, burnt out “work hard play hard” answer when asked about culture. Failure to read the warning signs equated a horrific toxic work environment of which I was thrown in and left for dead, getting picked at by the buzzards daily, where the standard of excellence was driven by egotism and narcissism over any sense of new ideas, morality or ethics. Put up, shut up and fall in line the sake of the deal.
I’ve now learned the hard way and realized what Michael Thompson learned over 38 years – confidence isn’t about self-promotion, it’s about listening, and feeling comfortable applying and promoting others’ winning strategies to build their trust.
In D2, Gordon Bombay went “Hollywood” and got too caught up in the glam and the image, forgetting who he was and what he had learned along the way. Before it was too late, he traded the suit for the Ducks jacket and got back to where it began. He encouraged his kids to do what they did best, believing in each in the highest pressure situations despite dirty play and tactic traps laid by the opponent. In the end, the team banded together and won it all for the good-ole U-S-of-A thanks to being confident in who they were and what they could do.
Life isn’t a Disney movie or a sport, but the message is one we can all learn from. Believe in those around you and express encouragement – we can all benefit in the end so much more than maintainging a fixation on our own self-serving agendas.
D2: THE MIGHTY DUCKS, Emilio Estevez, Colombe Jacobsen, Shaun Weiss, Matt Doherty, Marguerite Moreau, Joshua Jackson, Justin Wong, etc, 1994.
Still floating somewhere between European and Mountain time zones and current hostile affairs like political blunders and terrorism in Nice, I rediscovered a few American habits quickly. I went nuts at my local Smith’s grocery store and bought a bunch of unhealthy stuff I didn’t need. I pounded out some productive work time. And, gained a sense of perceived “manliness” I hadn’t experienced before by taking my car to the shop, pulling out and charging the battery after it’s juices had drained in the hot sun for two weeks. We also had a fantastic wedding getaway for Alli’s cousin Nate and his Brazilian bride in Park City staying at the fabulous Hotel Park City.
Also, I booked another trip abroad leaving 8 days from the last.
The Return:
Every summer, Alli’s volunteered to take students for a service trip to a different developing country. This time, it was the Dominican Republic. Two trips like that back to back is a lot for anyone, especially with planning and funding in mind. Thankfully, I had another set of credit card bonus offer points to pave the way. The last time, it was my Marriott Rewards Visa, this time my Skymiles Amex got me just about enough points for a flight to the D.R. (although not the full bonus because I had it and cancelled it before using it previously, despite hitting all the benchmarks).
As part of a study abroad experience and the equivalent of my graduate school thesis, I went with my George Washington University School of Business cohorts and each of us explored our own topic of choice tied to baseball, tourism and the D.R. It was such an eye-opening experience for me that really opened my eyes to opportunities beyond our topic of choice (mine was a case study on the Pittsburgh Pirates’ comparative international efforts). Although I wanted to hold out to go somewhere new, I caved for the prospects of Cuba, consulting angles and the chance to learn how one could help more in the D.R. not to mention the chance to live a little Caribbean life, “mon.”
Community + Compromises:
We agreed to do this one her way. She describes her style as “hopping on a bus without being sure where it’s going.” Antithesis of plans. I like to maximize the experience. I arrived in the capitol of Santo Domingo, where Christopher Columbus (o Cristobal Colon) landed and created the 1st city of the New World soon after 1492. I was picked up by my softball teammate’s brother Jose Ignacio, who first took me to a meeting I had set up from my 2011 contact list. I sat down with the President of TURENLACES, a tourism organization and spoke about some consulting ideas tied to my past project and visit. She voiced that there’s still huge opportunity for baseball tourism. More international players in MLB come from the tiny island that is the D.R. than any other place – kids drop out of school to focus on it early. She also voiced that a small % go back to community service – specifically schools or teaching women a trade. She said that they really have a tough time – stay home, often working on something and the men come home, take the money and leave them with little if anything, going to spend it on beer. Political corruption makes it tough for big change when it comes to sustainability, etc.
The Struggle
Jose Ignacio provided a unique perspective on the Dominican struggle. He’s got a Master’s in Engineering, had been working on a skilled logistical engineering project, yet was without full-time work at the time and was doing Uber while trying to land what’s next. He said college grads make $800-1000 per month in the D.R. on average and that he was at $1800 with that project, yet $400 or $700 at factory and other jobs despite the degrees. Subsistence living, with education often not playing as much of a factor making it hard to get ahead. Over a nice Dominican-cooked dinner on the water featuring Mofongo (plantains mashed with avocado and meat – fantastic sweet and sour mix, and Sancocho – a number of meats in a stew), I heard about their mother, who raised them in nearby San Cristobal while working three nurse jobs after their father was lost when they were young – electrocuted while working on a car.
Eudy, his brother, had a big tryout with the Angels, and it didn’t end up working out but he was still able to come to the U.S. and play at Utah State. He’s now successful in software, married (which was news to us) and needs to have a kid to help solidify citizenship. We then went to a comado or colmado for a Presidente, which is the equivalent of a neighborhood hangout spot that sells beers and the like.
Jose Ignacio and our dinner setting
Botches and the Europeans’ Continued Influence
Then the ugly head of lacking international wireless coverage kicked in. WiFi-less botched flight pick-up of the lady, who’s flight was delayed, but not by the 4 hours we eventually located her later. Up for 48 straight hours put her out for the next day. I got to know the internationals at the Island Life Backpacker’s Hostel in the heart of Zona Colonial in Santo Domingo. Yan, a Dutch student was solo-exploring the remote mountains near Haiti before working his way down to Domingo and taking off on a 60 day sailing trip to the Azores islands off of Portugal before being back to Holland. Francisco got tired of the Chilean routine and moved to the D.R. with his home-made Marlin spearfishing gun. Romanian, Dutch, British, German, French and 1 American weighed in on the hidden wonders of the D.R. beyond the tourist havens of Punta Cana and Puerto Plata. After exploring the ruins, Christopher Columbus house and the likes of Zona Colonial and missing out on last spots on an Isla Saona excursion, we took off for a chosen hidden gem.
Island Life Backpacker’s Hostel
Fresh Cooked Chicken & Plantains for under $2 from the neighbors
LOCO!!
When we got to Las Terranas of the Samana Peninsula, there was a swarm of guys looking to get us to point B without cars. You’re going to get us and our bags there on your motorcycle? You got it. These locals buzzed around on bikes and scooters all day, constantly looking for tourists they could give “moto” rides to for 50-100 pesos per person. Based on recommendation, we stayed at Fata Morgana – a set of hostel casitas owned by a Dutch expatriate and local guide named Edith, who lived with her 15 year old son on this sprawling private tropical plot along with 4 dogs, 2 cats, and 2 donkey lovers who found you anytime food was potentially around.
Las Terranas was said to be heavily French and Euro-influenced but walking up through the town it was very third-world local. Locals outside their tiny casas (houses), comaldos, tiendas (shops) or bancas. I tried to trade in cash at bancas in Domingo and got funny looks, later finding out that they’re lotteries (obviously government-backed) and they’re everywhere. Beer and lotteries for the poor to invest the few pesos they’ve made and they’re everywhere. We ended up deeply lost in a very poor neighborhood trying to find the beach while getting directed through backyards, etc. but never got a bad look or felt in danger. We finally stumbled onto the beach, where the Euro-influenced was discovered, explored a bit and ended up taking an adventurous motocoche home.
Paco & Flora – hungry lovers.
Casita grounds
Playa Bonita
The next day we discovered the beauty of Playa Bonita – a 20 minute walk from our place. Fine, caramel brown sands, turquoise water, no wonder it was named a top beach in a country with so many great beaches. After some fresh catch and Presidentes on the water, we walked back, noticing burning trash and the like in the street. There was lots of trash lying around and if you’ve been to developing countries, you know trash cleanup and disposal is not a priority – survival is. Another fire was off a ways a bit into the brush.
We got back and Edith said there will be no going out tonight – there is a strike that started the night before when we lost power. It had been a long-endured battle with the electric company, who held a monopoly and was apparently charging the town 3x what others were paying – a really big deal when you’re barely getting by. The locals had had it and were going to let it be known. No, not by picket signs either. She showed photos of riot police being sent in the night before, tear gas being shot, fires in the street, etc. We spent the night playing cards by lantern with the power out commenting when there weren’t gunshots over a 10-15 minute span. I handled it the only way you could and pretty much the normal nightcap: rum, fresh-rolled cigars, and a hammock listening to shots fired in every direction that wasn’t water. The locals weren’t going to loot or target their own, they wanted the government’s attention, and we actually fell asleep and actually ended up sleeping better than the previous night (believe it or not).
No power, riots + gunfire in 3 directions.
We woke up early as we had set up a trip to get off-campus and take a ferry for a tour around the national park across the bay for some caving adventures with Native American paintings and the like. 8 came and went and no pick-up. The locals were buzzing around like usual, while the street messes were cleaned up. They had set ablaze electric poles in prominent places, which were still smoldering. The message had gotten across and a meeting was set with President Danilo, who was the popular choice during our group on the last visit (they have “next door neighbor” photos of candidates looking approachable in suits all over, we probably just saw his the most). There were many riot police around in case the strike re-engaged, which was common but didn’t happen as the power was back and the meeting was set – initial win for the people.
Hidden Beauty
We were enticed to leave to another legendary beach on the drier east side of the peninsula in Playa Rincon, or a surf beach up the coast in Cabarete, yet were encouraged by others that those are nice but the grass was pretty green here. So, despite all the craziness, we stayed. We hitched a “guagua” ride on the back of a truck through the next town to El Salto de Limon, fought off claims that hiring a guide with a horse was mandatory and ditched them when they tried to follow us. A tough climb later, we reached two fantastic waterfalls. We let the tourist waves pass and enjoyed a cool swim under these, tucked in the tropical mountains.
Although I grew up often near and on the beach, I did a lot of bodysurfing with my pops in the small waves of the Gulf, but never learned to surf until Australia and I hadn’t picked up a board since then in 2006. I decided to give it another shot at Playa Bonita by renting a longboard for the day. The surf at Bonita was straight forward for a noob like myself and the beach and waves were pretty empty that day. I was up on my 3rd try although it wasn’t necessary all gravy from then. It was tough re-adjusting to catching waves at the right tempo from paddle to peak. It was tough balancing weight on the pop-up, and surfing just really takes it out of you. I got up a good amount, thanks to a helpful drop-off closer to shore and it felt pretty awesome to improve upon where I was at back when and spend a day sitting, spotting and riding waves in such an unbelievable setting. The shop pro who was watching me from the beach said I needed to keep my arms in and together to get up better. There’s always next time for further improvements – or maybe learning paddle boarding or better yet kitesurfing!
We then went to explore another hidden gem in Coson, said to be an hour and a half walk from Playa Bonita, with a cool river, desolate beach and mountain scenery, and a legendary restaurant in Luis’ serving the freshest catch you could imagine. We were joined by two westernized Israeli guys Lior and Avner, just fresh out of the mandatory Army service everyone in Israel serves after high school, who served in Intelligence and at least had some good stories to share. Lior was traveling for 6 months starting in Spain and Portugal through the Caribbean and ending up in Colombia, Avner previously trekked through much of South America similarly. The walk was about an hour up some remarkable beach line. It was Sunday, so the Dominicans were off and enjoying it and Coson was more crowded then advertised. We passed a gathering then doubled back to what we found out was Luis’ before enjoying some amazingly fresh catch and sides. We looked down the shore and could see how on any other day, this setting could offer a uniquely desolate and beautiful scenery and solace.
That way to Bonita
Cool river flowing
Desolate the other way
The freshest feast
Back Where It Literally Started
To get more of a look into the area, I thought we’d take the scenic route. 6 vehicle transitions later, we reached the town of Samaná, a colorful town home to many great winter whale-watches on the bay. We were advised not to take the scenic ferry as the buses back to Domingo didn’t run late enough, so no scenic ferry ride back. We enjoyed a very nice meal at the hotel across the street, met a local guy who played for the Pirates Dominican team a few years back. I checked out his gift shop, bought some Larimar gifts (blue colored stone found only off the south coast of the D.R.), traded numbers as he had a few 15 year olds he thought were good enough to get signed soon and talked about another visit in the winter.
After many vehicle transfers later, we made it to another hostel oasis in Zona Colonial. She left early, I spent a day wandering (read: mostly lost) in and outside of Zona Colonial, finding great food deals in Chinatown on empanadas and the freshest most wonderful fruit smoothie I’ve had (under $2 combined) plus some valuable directions. I checked out the Rum & Sugar Cane Museum then spent more than I could’ve on Coffee & Passion Fruit Rum made in the Museum, cigars rolled right as I watched at El Tabaquero (3rd visit there) and the legendary local/mythical Mamajuana drink – a mix of rum and red wine with the root of a special plant (said to be an elixir with special mood enhancement powers). All to enable me to channel a day in the Caribbean life/my inner pirate.
Most amazing tropical smoothie ($1)
Taking aim at a statue
Columbus House
Inside Columbus House
The Lay (Over)
Before long, I was off that flight full of excited Dominicans and back stateside spending a nasty overnight layover on the floor of the JFK airport to avoid missing my 7am connection. I was excited to soon not have to think, speak and navigate unfamiliar territory in Spanish, got a patty melt at a diner and thought about what the takings were from the trip. Here they are:
Takings
Take advantage of credit card bonus offers to score amazing trips, helping you do it on the cheap (we spent less than $1,500).
If you’re adventurous, shed the group/tourist mentality and get off the reservation and off the beaten path, finding out from locals where the best spots are. What you may lose in perceived security and comfort, you’ll make up much more in life experience and cultural understanding.
There is ample opportunity to help developing countries via volunteer work, stimulating new thought and economic impact, etc.
Developing countries may seem to offer much comparative opportunity but infrastructure is very hard to change, especially if built on long histories of corruption. Advancement programs in schools, job training especially for females is much needed beyond the programs that feed on the poor like the lotteries.
There is distinct need for decentralized energy and I’m interested in further exploring making Solar cheaper and more palatable for the poor – would need buy in from MLB and energy partner to help reduce costs and benefit the masses to sway the government from the deep pockets of monopolies clearly exploiting the masses.
Dominicans are very intrigued by Americans, will market services like everyone else but not relentlessly. You are not in trouble going “off the reservation” unless you’re really sticking out uncomfortably.
The Caribbean islands are all very unique with much pre/post colonized history. We’re kicking ourselves for not making Cuba happen – the clock is ticking on seeing this gem before we corrupt it. It’s about stepping into the past and the culture, not the beaches there. Bring plenty of American cash though, you’re in big trouble if you run out!.
As always, don’t hesitate to try me for more.
Salud y un amor,
-CR
Zona Colonial
1st hospital in new world ruins
La Hospital
2nd Hostel pool
Beach feast
Alli and her tube
Fresh catch
Gotta stick to the rules!
Colon house
1st cathedral in new world
1st university in new world
Cigar shop!
Great spot for beers, a taco and talk from LarryPlaya BonitaThe famous feast at Luis’ with the IsraelisEl Salto de Limon
TRUE NORTH TEAM CONSULTING 