Shaka Senghor

They were teaching me how to defend my position.

They were teaching me how to arrive at an argument that I believed in and that I cared enough about to vocalize.

And they did it in a way that was approachable.

They did it in a way that was accessible.

If they would have just came in like, hey, you need to do these things to change your life.

instant war would have been up, you know?

And so when I think about going back, you know, it's like, okay, you go back with the wisdom of now,

is that you gotta set the table.

You have to set the table right for someone to come in and enjoy that spiritually rich food.

And if you set the table right, the likelihood of them being able to lower those walls is higher than if you just come in hot and heavy.

If you don't do this, you're gonna tear up and destroy your life.

So the way that I think about it is...

It's more about the idea of the young man or woman that inhabits the body of adult men and women.

Because what you think about this audience, inside all of us is that kid that hasn't been intended to, right?

And what I would say is that one of my quotables is like, never settle for mediocrity when greatness is available.

You know, that's a conversation I always have with the young people that I mentor, but also with my peers when we're in deep conversation about acknowledging what exists inside of us, which is that young person who's still looking for validation, still looking to be affirmed, still looking for somebody to bolster their confidence, is recognizing we don't have to stop loving on that little person inside of us.

We don't have to stop being curious.

One of the chapters in the book is on joy.

And one of the breakdowns is about being a joy hunter.

How do you go out and find that joy that feeds that?