In Defense of the Black Multi-Potentialite

Stay in Your Lane. - NRA to Emergency Room Doctors

Shut up and Dribble. - Laura Ingraham

Why does every black actor gotta rap some. I don't know. All I know is I'm the best one. - Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino.

Some of us are born knowing what we will do. I have worked for family-owned companies where the son grew up in the warehouse learning what he could so that one day he would run the show.

For many of us, the only family legacy is filled with gang involvement, drug dealing, and a life of violence.

For me, it was a legacy of the military, but that was still something that I was not sold on. My military career came from being tired of living in self-placed poverty and the desire not to return to college. Still, my father was in the Army, my grandfather was in the Army, so I did what any respectable young man with a history of Army veterans would do.

I joined the Marine Corps.

But Why

For what is a man, what has he got?

If not himself, then he has naught

To say the things he truly feels

And not the words of one who kneels

The record shows, I took the blows

And did it my way - My Way, Frank Sinatra

I have never wanted to do a thing because that is how it's been done. I've never wanted to walk the path that was paved for me.

In my opinion, being told, "I can't" is the biggest motivator.

When I was getting out of the military, I was told, I'd never find a job (I got one). When I married young I was told I'd regret it (No Regrets).

In my first job, I was told to devote all my energy to the job... NO.

I do a lot.

• I work a Day job.
• I manage a side business helping people in tech with Marketing and Digital Content Production.
• I write code.
• I host a range of podcasts from tech to gaming.
• I'm a member of an Esports organization and stream regularly.

My coding skills help me automate and optimize my day job.

My day job skills, challenge me to think differently and shake up stale thought.

My podcasting and streaming skills gave me the ability to identify ways that I could help my side-business clients in their content-creating journey.

They may not seem connected at first, but it is ALL the things I do that qualifies me to do what I do, how I do it.

I know it's a lot, but the people that inspired me, are the people that made careers doing the things they enjoyed and finding ways to connect the dots.

Donald Glover became one of the most influential black artists in America by combining his ability to act with an ability to direct and create amazing and thoughtful music.

Janelle Monae has done something similar by not just making music but making a statement in her sound, and videos. Her message made her a clear choice for portraying one of Black America's most notable mathematicians, Mary Jackson.

My child will grow up seeing me doing what I want and enjoying it, and maybe I will inspire her to do the same.