The Palmer Squares

I interviewed and wrote about a rap group I've been a big fan of recently: The Palmer Squares. The profile is below the fold.

In other news, I've recently been relishing Rushdie's books: Midnight's Children, Shame, now the Satanic Verses, and after I'll read his recent memoir.

Just Freestyle

The below piece was written a month ago and published in DVP's Streetfighter magazine. It followed us rapping on stage at the Quicken Family Reunion here and here. 

***

Rapt.fm itself was born from a freestyle. I didn’t know, nine months ago, at Startup weekend Ann Arbor, that I would even pitch the concept, let alone pursue it full time in Detroit.

I had had the idea for over a year, and thought it was good, but wasn’t sure others would agree. Well, Why Not, I thought, and grabbed the mic. 

Today, after the competition accomplishments, after the national press, after all the excitement and learning and even though we have not yet launched — not even begun — the experience has convinced me that—

Sometimes, you just have to freestyle. Even when people are listening.

***

It’s the morning of the Quicken Family Reunion, where CEOs from around the country have flown in to connect, contemplate, and collaborate. 

Stevie, a team member, and I are in the bathroom, in adjacent stalls. He busts out the beatbox. I reply with some rhymes. 

After about three minutes, we suddenly hear a voice from the other stall. 

“Hey—Go do that on stage” A man says as though he owns the place. “I’m serious. That’s amazing.”

In the next stall over, hearing us freestyle and beatbox, is none other than Dan Gilbert, Chairman of Quicken Loans, who does, in fact, own the place.

“Holy Shit it’s Dan Gilbert” I gasp, playing it cool.

Stevie takes over, assuring Gilbert that we can “make it”, and, by way of a rap, pitch rapt.fm.

The crowd loves the unplanned performance. Our previously empty pockets flood with business cards, potential partnership ideas, and advice for rapt.fm. This only further convinces me— 

Sometimes, you just have to freestyle. You never know who’s listening.

Book Review: So Good They Can't Ignore You

Let me start by saying that I’m deeply grateful to Cal Newport for his insights over the past few years. They’ve encouraged me to implement Deliberate Practice, batch e-mails, engage in a shut-down ritual, delete my facebook, and eschew the Passion Mindset in favor of a craftsman approach.

Social Conservatism

In this insightful piece, Brooks asserts that conservatism has split into two camps: Economic conservatism, which champions unfettered markets and abhors government intervention, and traditional conservatism, which aimed to preserve the ethics and traditions that "would encourage people to work hard, finish school and postpone childbearing until marriage."

Today’s conservatives, as Brooks laments, are purely economic. They only appeal to "people as potential business owners, but not as parents, neighbors and citizens."

What’s interesting to me is his definition of social conservatism, and, surprisingly, how much I agree with it.  

Social conservatives, in Brooks words, aren’t religious zealots or anti-abortion or gay marriage. They just want people to continue the ethics and traditions that have flourished for generations.

Social conservatism isn't odds with Progressivism at all; in fact it's, perhaps paradoxically, just a milder version of it. Since “the individual is foolish but the species is wise", reform should happen “steadily but consistently”.

Most profoundly, for me, It holds that “life is best organized as a series of daring ventures from a secure base."

Social conservatism -- where families are intact, self-discipline is the rule, children are secure and government provides a subtle hand – is the secure base.

***

After reading Freedom by Jonathan Franzen, where the characters drown in their depravity, succumbing to their every desire and whim; where they don't stand by any principles or ideologies; reading this piece is refreshing.

The social conservatism Brooks outlines (a milder, prudent, version of progressivism), which roots itself strongly in the power of traditions, communities, as well as the self-discipline of the individual -- is looking evermore attractive.

Halfway Point

A token of my appreciation and gratitude for everything that's happened in the last six months, in images, videos, and freestyles:

***

Also, I gotta add how grateful I am for this hilariously brilliant piece about my band, Chaser. 

Start Up Weekend

Below is a piece I wrote in late January, which I decided to not publish then. Seeing as this idea – my company, Rapt – is what I’ll be working on for the foreseeable future, I find this the appropriate time to share my thoughts from right after Rapt was born. 

***

What do you do when you win? You thank everyone, acknowledge the forces of luck, and, above all, you don’t think for a second that you uniquely deserved any of this.

It could have been anyone.

***

Start Up Weekend, founded by the Kauffman foundation, is a 54-hour event dedicated to “sharing ideas, forming teams and launching start ups”. Inviting passionate developers, designers, and entrepreneurs to cities all across the world, the event thus far succeeded in its mission: “Roughly 80% of participants plan on continuing working with their team or startup after the weekend. Over 36% of Startup Weekend startups are still going strong after 3 months.”

I spot Lumley and Shiva, my partners from the first start up weekend I attended four months ago in Chicago. There, we built a company called Motiv8ion, which encouraged people to achieve their goals by publicizing them in front of selected friends and sending users customized reminders (“Hey, you! Get off your ass and run!”)

In doing customer discovery ex post facto, we found that our users 1) don't want to publicize their goals, 2) don't want to have their friends see them and, thus, 3) would never use our site.

Our confidence in Motiv8ion was unfazed. After all, we would (probably) use it, so why wouldn’t the rest of the world (pay to) use it?

 (This raises a philosophical question: Do you need to be both a user and a believer of your product for it to be – or for you to feel -- successful?)

It was with this question we were grappling: we all wanted to use our product, but in different — and often, conflicting — ways. As a result, we spent most of the 54 hours in Chicago deliberating over our vision. We ended up compromising and choosing a bit of everything, which led to an unclear, unimpressive, and unready product.

This time would be different.

***

Lumley had just quit his job as a consultant to pursue start-ups, he told me. This wasn’t surprising. “Epiphanies” for new careers and dreams tend to occur at Start Up Weekends. Shiva approaches me and reminds me that we’re on the market for an education-related product. We begin to search around.

One person wants to discreetly record our conversations so that we can easily look back to recall first names or review business meetings. (How Big Brother-esque). Another person wants to build a better platform for matching people who want to informally teach and learn concrete skills. (Pretty neat). Another wants to implement game mechanics at parties and clubs – 1 point for a drink, 10 points for hooking up. (No, thanks).

Before I know it, 50 pitches have gone by, and now the organizer is beseeching us for more ideas. I muster up the courage and get up out of my seat, conjuring a pitch in my mind. Though I don’t have any solutions, I do identify a problem: GPA, the standard measurement for students, isn’t aligned with actual learning. I’ve felt for a while that the education system was set up to encourage grade-grubbing at the expense of developing the entrepreneurial mindset, intellectual curiosity, or even just moral character.

“But I have another pitch, too” I jumped, as an old idea flashed through my mind. “real-time video rap battles on the internet”.

Shortly afterwards, a herd of participants flocked to me. “I loved your idea! That’s brilliant – let’s work on it!” Ecstatically, I exclaimed, “Oh great! Have you thought of more solutions to the GPA conundrum?”

“GPA?” They asked, looking at each other, and then back at me “I wanna rap battle!”

My Rap idea would get the most votes out of all the 72 pitches.

***

We’re 30 hours into the competition.  One day at Start Up Weekend feels like eight normal days.

Shiva and I are evaluating customer segments, revenue models, and rollout strategies. I’m speaking about affiliate marketing, corporate sponsorships, and “synergies” like I have a Wharton MBA. Two days ago, I knew much more about the philosophy underlying Thoreau’s Walden Pond than I did about anything taught at Wharton.

Today, strangely, I feel as if I know a bit more about both.

Throughout, we find time to chat about personal matters. A teammate tells me more about his start up on the side, his ad agency, his life. Another teammate interrupts to give the good news: “100 people filled out our customer survey…and one lives in Africa!” I inquire about Lumley’s new start up ventures. I ask a participant on another team if she’s ever been in love. I speak to a mentor who’s a venture capitalist in South West Michigan but spent time in London. Meanwhile, we’re showing each other recent prototypes, brainstorming, laughing, high-fiving.

There’s just something about spending an extended period of uninterrupted time with the same people that’s inexplicably unifying. There’s a level of trust, comfort, and openness that cannot be reached during the standard 45-minute coffee date. I also find that, somehow, I’m having fonder thoughts of people I haven’t spoken to for the past couple days. 

Later, we gather the education thinkers together and talk about hosting an event similar in format to start up weekend — conjoined with panelists and brainstorm sessions — but specified to education. 

What excites me most about Start Up Weekend is the potential for applying the benefits of the event to different types venues. Why is it only limited to technology start-ups? Why not expand to fields like the environment, health, or social entrepreneurship — or why not assemble screenwriters, dancers, and other creative types, in the same building and host an “art-up weekend?”

The potential to generate ideas, develop relationships, and share insights at Start Up Weekend is unparalleled. As of now, it’s the crash course to see if you’re cut out for entrepreneurship — Be an entrepreneur for two days and see how it feels. Using a similar type of format, students could also simulate being a teacher for a day, or a doctor, or a banker, and evaluate if that path is right for them.  

Just an idea.

***

We’re 53 hours in.

After a myriad of technical scares, we’re ready to present. I’ll spare you our pitch, which featured a live rap battle, and just say that the judges enjoyed it; so much so, in fact, that we won the competition.

What happened next was a blur. It was announced that we won free tickets to San Francisco to pitch our idea to investors. Friends rushed to congratulate us, showering us with laughs and smiles. The Judges approached us to assure us that this could really take off, handing us their business cards.

“Great Job” a participant says as he pats my back, revealing a rueful smile. This participant was last year’s start up weekend winner, and one year ago, his company was promised some investment money. But, as he related, eyes downcast, he never saw any of it. He’s now without a job, without money, without the showering of laughs and smiles, unsure of his next move.

His story brings me back down to earth, but only slightly.

Shiva and I call our team together to gauge interest: who wants to continue working on this? All hands shoot up, except one: Ken. He can’t; he’s got a full-time job. But, he says, he’s happy to give advice whenever we need it.

“1% Equity – that’s all I want!” he adds, for good measure.

***

As I’m about to leave, I’m affronted by a wide-eyed and smiling student. “Hey! I thought you had a really good idea!”

“Oh cool. Are you ready to rap?

“No—I mean the GPA problem; let me know if you do something about it!”

Here Comes The Sun

A very close friend of mine, in many ways someone who I grew up with in college, took her life last week.

Jordan Harris was loved by virtually everyone she came into contact with. She will be remembered as the “Sun”, always extending warmth to those around her. She was someone who danced and sang and cooked and listened and studied and hugged and laughed and loved.

Jordan brought medical devices to Ghana one summer, worked for a women empowerment organization the next summer, and studied in Argentina last summer.

Jordan organized yoga retreats, musical jam sessions, dinner parties, to just name a few things.

Jordan created communities.

Her death is nothing short of a tragedy. Everyone’s reaction is, Not Her! And then immediate tears.

Our friends commented on how she brought all of us together. She was the glue.

What do you do when such a friend – such a loved one -- inexplicably and irrevocably leaves our world?

You acknowledge the complexities inherent in people and that you’ll never fully understand them. You celebrate that person’s life and their impact on you. You relish in the memories: her various facial expressions, her voice intonations—her laugh. 

On Sunday, dozens of students came to the arboretum to celebrate Jordan’s life by living exactly as she did: surrounded by quality food, music making, and special people. (And, in Jordan's presence, everyone was a special person.)

In the last week, Strangers have become friends. Foes have let their guards down. There’s been a tremendous showing of solidarity. We’ve all cried, hugged, and said our good-byes together. 

Even in the wake of her death, she’s building communities. 

We can learn much from her death: Depression is a very serious mental illness. It can plague the happiest of people and have the most deleterious of effects. (I didn't know this.)

But we can learn much more from her life. From her example.

Jordan was particularly adept at living in the moment. At loving unconditionally. At linking her happiness with that of the community.

Forgive the pun, but I think this is important: We’re taught to want to be like Michael. We should want to be more like Jordan.

We’re taught, even if subconsciously, to be the star, to win at all costs. Often, we simply give lip service to serving our communities, to loving one's family, to enjoying the simple things in life. 

There will, in all likelihood, be no full-feature biography of Jordan Harris. She will not be as publicly revered as, say, Lebron James would, if he happened to die today. 

And yet, I think, Her story has much more to offer us. 

Jordan had the wisdom of a mother. In fact, I called her exactly that -- okay, mom -- when she'd be caring or kind. 

(She knit me an effing scarf, for god's sake, which took her weeks on end, just to show her affection. I'll have that token of love for the rest of my life.)

Jordan, as our stories celebrated, knew how to have fun. Despite her accomplishments and her potential, she rarely took herself too seriously. One of her favorite quotes was, "You can't dance and stay uptight."

The other day, I perused my inbox for our gchat and e-mail exchanges, and found a few gems. In this letter, which was a response to me coyly suggesting she straighten her hair more often, her humor rang:

“cute hair dig - i've straightened my hair maybe five times this summer, and have grown to love the curls. ha.

also you have a big nose.”

On her trip to Ghana, she reflected:

“it was nuts..but they were all so friendly, EVERYONE was. the best international travel experience ever (not that i've had that many). and i got lots of marriage proposals! fun, huh? not because the men wanted green cards, but because they wanted me to come and cook for them and their families. but rose, who was one of the children out of the house, wanted us to find her a white american man to come and marry her and taker her away...interested? gahhhh, so much more to tell. it was fantastic. “

hit me back yo...and don't feel pressured to send a 1500 word-essay either! 

can't wait to see youuuuuuu!!

jo”

She was slightly unsure about her talents, which were numerous, impressive, and applicable,  and I would immediately let her know that. But I could have been more specific: I wish I told her that she knew how to laugh, love, and, thus, how to live well. What more could you want? 

To study her life is an education in and of itself. You cannot teach what she had. 

Amazingly, she simultaneously was a happy-go-lucky lover and a deep, remarkable thinker. Responding to a book we both enjoyed, The Elegance of the Hedgehog, which is all about a girl contemplating suicide, Jordan reflected: 

“and we really are nothing but dust in the wind, right? here for a blink, then gone forever. so i think once you accept that, what else is there to be but suicidal or hedonistic? maybe not hedonistic, in the negative sense of the word, but hedonistic like utilitarian? like doing the things that make people the most happy, including (really starting with) yourself. otherwise, the blink is a waste, i think. that's as much as there is to it. (in my humble opinion) and i choose the latter, because suicide is just as much of a waste as spending your life doing something that doesn't bring you and others joy (or maybe it's the other way around, but you get the idea)."


(and in that same e-mail she wrote: "loving work downtown..fun to meet people, MOST fun to speak in spanish con mis compadres en la cocina...i'm gonna get back into rollerblading, i decided...if you're ever in NJ again we should meet somewhere in the middle and bike around for a while. bring your dad...)

i heard this again the other day: "life is not a dress rehearsal" it doesn't get much more cliche than that, but where else do clichés come from but the truth? i'll never be young again, in this place, with these people in this exact situation. so why shouldn't i make the most of it?” 

She did make the most of it. In many more ways than she or we will ever know. Sending lots of love to you, Jordan. 

The Chaser EP

After writing, editing, and recording four songs over the last year and a half, my band released our first EP last week. Take a listen and enjoy!

The Entrepreneurial Kid

In an Atlantic article ten years ago, David Brooks coined the term that defined that generation of Ivy League students: The Organization Kid. The Organization Kid worked hard and didn’t rebel: A typical day included class, sports, extra curricular activities, forty-five minute coffee dates, parties—and virtually zero down time. Everything was meticulously scheduled and outwardly “productive”. Intellectual curiosity, wandering, and character development were out. Stellar grades, high-paying jobs, and remarkable parties were in—this, after all, was what society expected from them.

Today, although its presence has sharply diminished, the Organizational Kid ethos is still prevalent. We see it praised in the TV show entourage, and attacked in the movie Fight Club. We see it, alive and well, in Ivy League schools, investment banks, and consulting firms.

However, for the most part, there’s a new kid in town. One who’s more sensual, free-spirited, and conscious-driven. She attends TED conferences and film festivals, updates her Tumblr and Twitter feed, directs videos, cooks meals, and loves all types of music—even country.

Meet the Entrepreneurial Kid.

Wisdom From the Youth on my Birthday

For my birthday last year, I asked adults for reflections -- in either paragraph or haiku form -- on whether they regretted anything they did or *didn't* do when they were 21. Here were some of their answers. 


This year, for my 22nd birthday, I'm asking my friends under 22 -- who are no less wiser than the people I asked last year -- to give me the gift of answering the following:

If you are under 22, what is one thing you hope you'll do or do better when you're 22? Or, put differently, what is one thing you will regret *not* having done by the time you turn 22? (Bonus points for Haiku!). Some answers are below:

On another note, Thank You to all who made my birthday incredible.

***

still close with old friends

doing hot shit in the bay

because I want to


Secrets leave us here

Kept inside they leave us chained
Honesty prevails

- pull off some crazy shit with friends that I will never forget I did in college

- graduate having a solidified philosophy for the moment (i.e. aware that it will likely change as I grow) that can really guide me in my decisions and purpose


I really hope to have taken a BIG risk by age 22. Life is too short to play it safe all the time and sometimes the biggest risks have the biggest payoffs. By 22, I want to have say I took a chance on something because I truly believe in it and whether it pays off or not, I have done it. If I haven't taken a risk by age 22, I think I will feel like I am selling myself short


Meet a great girl that means a lot to me

Spend as much of my college time having the time of my life (whatever that means)

Figure out what I want to do when I graduate

Meet as many amazing people as possible

Travel more of the world

Workout at least 3-4 days a week consistently

Maintain connections with the friends you have that mean most to me.

Lastly, spend this summer doing something very meaningful for my life, whether that be an internship or traveling or meeting someone great.

All in all just live it big. I know you do so I'm not too worried.


Before I am 22, I would like to make some mistakes and emerge stronger and more "in touch" with myself.  Maybe that means not thinking about what I want to do before I'm 22, or 30, 35 but living more completely in the present.

I don't think that coming of age is something that changes who I am or my priorities. I think a person can always become a better person. Everyday we learn and everyday we change. By the time I'm 22, I hope I have been able to execute an idea full throttle that truly benefits the world.

I've come to a point where I've learned that life just knows best. It just brings what you should be getting at that moment (not always the same as what you want to get). So I don't really set goals for myself anymore. Right now, I trust life enough and go wherever life takes me. And it has taken me to many places. So that's how I live now. No goals. Things will get done when they get done. If they don't, they're not meant to be. And if you'd push me for a goal, here's my one and only: to be happy.

When I am 22, I hope that I will focus more on the present. Attempting to predict the future or analyzing the past often detracts from living in the present.  Mindfulness mitigates external pressures to the contrary.  Although these practices yield some value, finding a healthy balance between focusing on today versus tomorrow or yesterday seems beneficial.