Category: #MentalNote

#MentalNote · music

1:48 Part I

8 years ago Author By cumeadi

When I initially started writing my thoughts around the new Jay-Z album, I was pretty set on what I wanted to say. ” 4:44 is a set of journal entries of a man that’s done a lot, made a lot of mistakes, seen success, but ultimately wonders how his actions, experiences, and family will be remembered.” Seems logical and sound based on the lyrics and explanation of each song. But there’s so much more, especially when you put 4:44 in the context of when it was released and the Jay-z that released it. We can over analyze this till kingdom come but I’m just going to focus on two areas that hit me based on other things I saw/read last week. (This ended being way longer than I thought it was going to be so I split it into two parts..this is part 1 of 2)

Trauma/gossip sell for all the wrong reasons. 

My main man Vince Staples (I don’t know him like that but he’s definitely on my celebrity dinner invite list) did an interview with Ebro in the Morning last week. It’s a great interview ( I started it right in the middle but definitely watch the whole thing) but I want to focus on what he says early on. “For black people, we sell trauma. ” 

“I turned that 2 to a 4, 4 to an 8
I turned my life into a nice first week release date”

Jay-z The Story of OJ. 

Jay shared a lot of personal experiences that could definitely be described as traumatic for him or others in his life. He’s leveraged trauma and tea to go platinum in the first week on his own streaming music service and make a ton of money. He’s not the only artist that’s done it and won’t be the last, but there’s a certain air around the conversation especially with Beyonce’s miscarriages and his infidelity. I understand pain and tough times make for the best music, (Hello Mary J Blige) but there’s something about profiting from infidelity and the pain of others (even if they okay it) that doesn’t sit well with me. Somethings have to be out of bounds. But its for that exact reason 4:44 did so well. Yea, No I.D spazzed on the production and its nice to hear a rapper put some words together, but why do people find so much benefit from hearing about the worst parts of a celebrities life? Why do people like to see successful people fail or fall from grace?

 

 

#MentalNote

The Death of Oratory

8 years ago Author By cumeadi

 

Something to think about as we approach the 4th of July.

“Oratory is the parent of liberty. By the constitution of things it was ordained that eloquence should be the last stay and support of liberty, and that with her she is ever destined to live, to flourish, and to die. It is to the interest of tyrants to cripple and debilitate every species of eloquence. They have no other safety. It is then, the duty of free states to foster oratory.” -Henry Hardwicke

Henry wrote a book on oratory back in the day (1896) called The History of Oratory and Orators: A study of the influence of oratory upon politics and literature, with special reference to certain orators selected as representative of their several epochs, from the earliest Dawn of Grecian civilization down to the present day. (weeew…. talk about at title) I haven’t read all of it yet but slowly going through on my ipad.

I’ll do a full review once I’m finished, but the first sentence of the book sets the tone:  “Oratory is the parent of liberty.”

Taking a look at our current political discourse, we should be weary of people who overlook great orators for those who will overly simplify positions, policies, relationships, and negotiations.

#MentalNote · communication · Holiday Weekend

31 Day Writing Challenge

8 years ago Author By cumeadi

I’ve always enjoyed writing. It’s something I do casually via this blog and my personal journal. I’ve realized through conversation and interactions with colleagues that there’s ample benefit to writing consistently for professional reflection and synthesizing emergent trends.

Aside from professional/ personal goals, I really want to push myself this month to create and ship on a daily basis. A lot of my thoughts and ideas tend to stay in my brain. For this reason, I’m going on a creation spree in July. I’m challenging myself to publish one blog post a day for the whole of July. I’m most likely going to be talking about hip-hop, politics, vc, product management, education, emerging technology, and some random poems, Nigeria, Africa, International Development, current events, and anything else that comes up. 

Lets see how it goes.

#MentalNote · business

An Executive Story

9 years ago Author By cumeadi
A fellow had just been hired as the new CEO of a large high tech corporation. The CEO who was stepping down met with him privately and presented him with three numbered envelopes. “Open these if you run up against a problem you don’t think you can solve,” he said.
Well, things went along pretty smoothly, but six months later, sales took a downturn and he was really catching a lot of heat. About at his wit’s end, he remembered the envelopes. He went to his drawer and took out the first envelope. The message read, “Blame your predecessor.”
The new CEO called a press conference and tactfully laid the blame at the feet of the previous CEO. Satisfied with his comments, the press — and Wall Street – responded positively, sales began to pick up and the problem was soon behind him.
About a year later, the company was again experiencing a slight dip in sales, combined with serious product problems. Having learned from his previous experience, the CEO quickly opened the second envelope. The message read, “Reorganize.” This he did, and the company quickly rebounded.
After several consecutive profitable quarters, the company once again fell on difficult times. The CEO went to his office, closed the door and opened the third envelope.
The message said, “Prepare three envelopes.”
– In the process of looking for the author to give credit. I heard it as a story during a network event. 
#MentalNote · Self-Revelation

28 Things I've Learned In 28 Years

9 years ago Author By cumeadi

So I got a year older last week. Upon some reflection, I’d like to share some life lessons I’ve learned in 28 years of existence. Hope you’ll enjoy. 🙂

  1. Eat before you go out for a drink with a good friend. Its called being prepared for whatever the night might throw at you.
  2. Have a hard reset on how you feel about people everyday when you go sleep. Don’t bring negativity into the next day.
  3. Drink for taste.
  4. This might sound counter intuitive, but enjoy the dark moments in your life. It will make the bright ones feel even better.
  5. Sometimes you accidentally burn bridges. Just take the L but don’t lose the lesson.
  6. You are not immortal. The faster you come to terms with your mortality, the better off you’ll be.
  7. Eat for taste.
  8. The size of your audience doesn’t matter. Keep up the good work.
  9. Bad things happen to good people, and good things happen to bad people. This is life. Life really doesn’t owe you anything so don’t expect karma to work for or against you.
  10. It’s hard but think ahead of the game. Most people are thinking about how they are going to get through the day. Think about five, ten, twenty years from now and how you’re going to get there.
  11. Appreciate people when you can. They won’t be around forever
  12. Sounds pretty cliche but fill your cup before you try to fill the cup of others.
  13. Get really good at something outside of your profession. I should have never quit the saxophone.
  14. Stay in your lane. Run your own race.
  15. Most problems in life can be prevented from communicating expectations early on.
  16. Your parents are people.
  17. Your bosses are people.
  18. You are a person not a machine.
  19. Give back to those that came before you.
  20. Fall in love with the process not the outcome.***** (MAJOR KEY ALERT)
  21. Find a mentor.
  22. Mentor someone
  23. Don’t get mad at people that aren’t in your life anymore. People have their seasons.
  24. Age does not always equal adulthood. I would say adulthood = the amount of responsibilities you take on successfully.
  25. Try to get better everyday. You’ll be surprised what 365 days of getting better can do.
  26. Take a walk in another persons shoes every now and then. Just make sure to wear socks.
  27. Have something that helps you anchor the past. I have a ton of vinyls…it helps me remember the past but also how far we’ve come.
  28. Call instead of text. It always works out better.