No #11 | February 27, 2022

by Matthew Boyd

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Good morning, welcome to the weekly Lead It Cool newsletter.

This was a difficult week. It's heartbreaking seeing the footage of families in Ukraine going through trauma and separation. It's a stark reminder of how fortunate I am to live where I live, and that I can't take this for granted.

In this week's Lead It Cool newsletter:

• 🎤Kanye West Grit
• American Idol is back! (American Idol is still around?!?!)
• 🏠How to sell condos - Ross from Friends
• 💡Seth Godin Wisdom
• 😎Cool Links

🎤Kanye West Grit

If you're looking for a distraction this week, I suggest watching the three-part Netflix docuseries "Jeen-Yuhs" which chronicles Kanye West's journey from unknown producer to international superstar.

The docuseries goes beneath the headlines we see today on TMZ and tells the story of how Kanye struggled (and still struggles) with insecurities, vulnerabilities and his own wild ambitions.

the quest to release his first album (College Dropout), we get to watch Kanye as he pendulums between imposter syndrome and the Dunning-Kruger effect. Kanye isn't exactly the most relatable figure, but imagine if you had a camera crew following you around during the first couple years of your career, you would probably see similar struggles of self-doubt and over-confidence.

In the end, what separated Kanye from everybody else was his relentless grit. He never stopped working his ass off and capitalized on every opportunity for self-promotion (even when it was uncomfortable).

An especially memorable moment happens in the second episode. Kanye had recently signed with Roc-A-Fella records, but he was struggling to break out of being pigeonholed as “just a producer". He wanted to be recognized as a rapper. So one day in the studio he bumped into Jay-Z and asked him if he could do a verse with him on a song for his upcoming album (The Blueprint 2).

Jay-Z agreed, Kanye dropped the verse, and the song (The Bounce) made the album and propelled his career forward.

After Kanye recorded his verse, Jay-Z thanked Kanye for speaking up and said this:

If Kanye hadn't spoken up for himself he may not have gotten this chance rap a verse on that song.

If there's something you want or something you want to be, speak up. Closed mouths don't get fed.

American Idol is Still Around!

American Idol is back tonight!

(American Idol is still around?!?!)

I haven't watched this show in years, but I saw an ad for it the other night and it made me think of a few things:

• The best part of the show is the group auditions. This is where all of the contestants are forced to join teams, choreograph a performance in 12 hours and then perform together in front of a hyper-critical audience. It's the ultimate group project nightmare: Forming, Storming, Deforming and if they're lucky... Performing.
• The first season of American Idol had two hosts: Ryan Seacrest and Brian Dunkleman. Dunkleman left the show after one season because he wanted to be an actor/comedian (not a host). This is one of the greatest "grass is always greener" cautionary tales of all time.
• ​Frosted tips were big in the early 2000s​

🏠How to sell condos - Ross from Friends

One of the most effective ways to influence decision-making is to create an emotional connection.

And what's the best way to create an emotional connection? Reference 90‘s TV sitcoms!

The development firm Aryze recently leveraged the power of 90‘s TV sitcom nostalgia by incorporating the character "Ross" from Friends into a condominium project’s engagement strategy. The name of the condo development: Ross Terrace.

The project was a huge success, and demonstrates the power of pop culture nostalgia.

I encourage you to check out the full thread here. I hope they do Newman Estates next.

Luke at Aryze @TalktoARYZE 1/ Hope you had a great Family Day long weekend! Long weekends are the perfect occasion for writing long Twitter threads, I think 🧐 Grab a coffee and dive into the story behind Ross Terrace, a project we are super proud to have built! 🧵 February 23rd 2022 5 Retweets 21 Likes

💡Seth Godin Wisdom

😎Cool Links

🥸Morning Brew just released an excellent podcast that chronicles successful peoples' battles with Imposter Syndrome.

⏳How Covid Stole Our Time and How We Can Get It Back. Tim Urban (from Wait Buy Why) on how we can get our time back as we come out of the pandemic. See helpful graph below.

Have a good week, be safe.