My life is an interesting conundrum, one where for as long as I can remember, people approach me and give some kind of kind hearted engagement. A compliment, an observation, and often times a bit of unsolicited wisdom that leaves me curious why they chose me to share these random thoughts with. Like me, you might be a person who is a magnet for these sorts of interactions. They always feel good in real time, but there is an interesting conundrum that occurs with a deeper look of well intended words.
“Any company would be jumping at the opportunity to hire a former athlete”, “You have such great potential”, “You’ll be fine I’m sure you’ll figure things out.” Excuse my grammatical imperfections (this is a safe space, no?) and take a beat to interrogate why these phrases can become empty in transit from lips to ears. “Sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me”, is profound for blocking out the negative. The intention is for us to navigate the notion of not giving up our power, right? With that said, if the words are meant for good can they actually help you? I believe they can, and do, but there are two sides of a coin for how we absorb and apply information.
To expand on the context above, I have always been perceived as capable, successful, and someone who has the ability and potential to make things happen. What is not seen is the hardship and obstacles that are not being received by those same sentiments. In other words, what is perceived about me is not necessarily received for me. This is an unspoken conversation when it comes to my experience with high performance or being a level-headed person with leadership qualities. People think it will just figure itself out, but that’s not how life works. We need advocates and sponsors, mentors and guides who collaborate with us to explore ways of tangible ascension. Not all people in need of support and opportunity look that way, and living in LA is a huge case study of how optics don’t paint the full picture when survival is on the other side of optimism.
As a point guard of creative my job is to understand how solutions meet goals through strategic methods of execution. Connecting the dots from idea to reality takes research and time. Knowing all of the puzzle pieces, their shapes, the pictures we are looking to complete creates the highest chance of success. Imagine if we looked at each other as the pieces to a bigger picture that we can come to form with? The things we notice are the things that matter, is a takeaway I had from a conversation about the philosophy of interior design hosted by my brother Maceo of Citizens of Culture. What this means is if our perspective is limited, the information we receive (notice) is limited. If we do not take the time to receive one another, then we will not matter to each other. The art of noticing is when reception comes to the forefront, and perception takes a backseat. From what do I think to how can I observe and learn is a big transformation.
From what do I think to how can I observe and learn is a big transformation.
The logical response is to suggest one communicating their needs, networking, seeking opportunity, and being proactive for what we desire. For this context, it is implied that those steps have been taken. My bigger point is how much community matters, how I’ve noticed most people don’t think of themselves as responsible or feel a duty to advocate for others in their orbit. The little step of connecting dots between several mutuals to see how they can collaborate goes such a long way. The awareness to go from thinking highly of someone to being intentional about where those thoughts develop is a lost art. It doesn’t have to be a job opportunity or a big event to be impactful, it can be opening a window of dialogue to become a service to others.
People are becoming increasingly good at identifying those who are in the periphery of the direction they want to explore or pursue. By the time someone taps your shoulder, or tells you about an idea it should signal something in your brain to ask why. The thing I want to shine through is the value of knowing more about the community you keep. Their interests, passions, potential, and desires for becoming and evolving. Knowing about others, requires space of quiet and listening through reception. I cannot receive what is being given to me if I do not give or provide the space for information to land. That is why we talk about holding space for others, it only happens when we give ample time for the conditions of connection to be realized.
The follow through is a component of my Find Your Arc concept, where the metaphor of shooting a basketball comes to life. We, especially contemporary culture, are missing the value of showing up for one another. How many people can you count who have inquired to know what you are working towards and how they can contribute? How can we divest from these extractive and exploitive systems if we do not have a connective idea of how all of our skills interplay? Imagine playing on a sports team not knowing anything about your teammates, it wouldn’t make sense. Life is a sport where humans are on the same team, but haven’t baked in a sure fire way to understand each other.
Life is a sport where humans are on the same team, but haven’t baked in a sure fire way to understand each other.
My practice is rooted in noticing the often forgotten, shedding light on topics that aren’t necessarily big news or headline worthy. The way I source material, piece together collage elements, express through multidisciplinary mediums of communication are rooted in opening my heart and mind to receiving what is around me. After I have taken time to listen to what (or who) is literally or figuratively speaking to me, I can then make space for my perspective that is open to being changed and collaborated with. Every component of what I do is rooted in problems that I have seen or felt and hoped to contribute to lessening. If you’d like to learn about what I do and how you can work with me, check out Intellectual Athlete. Your support means so much, I plan to share much more soon outside of this newsletter and social media.
