Diatribes by Joah

Sneak Attack on Naysayers and Haters

I have nothing but love and appreciation for all of my family, friends, past and present-day colleagues and random people who have supported my decision to quit my day job and pursue my entrepreneurial ambitions through Sneak Attack. For the rest of you, this one is about you.

Why are you such a liar. I've had potential investors, suppliers, competitors and friends all lie to me about something related to Sneak Attack. It's ridiculous.

The only explanation I can come up with is that they want to give off the perception that they too support this endeavor of mine, but they really don't believe in me so instead of just saying that, they lie. And if they're not outright lying they're hiding, they're asking dumb questions or they're just being immature.

At the end of the day I know I'm better off for not doing business with, being associated with or getting in bed (figuratively speaking) with these people, but when the lie actually took place it was damn sure very hurtful. Some of them still are. That's the only reason I'm taking the time out of my day to address the issue.

Can't you all see that I'm starting a small business folks. I'm trying my damnedest to be a real role model myself and boost the economy and give back to my city, the city I live in and love. The last thing I need to worry about is waiting on you to show up or hoping for your money or time or resources or support when it's never going to come. Why don't you do both of us a favor and keep it moving.

I have my head up, not down, and I'm still hard at work even though I don't have a 9-to-5. That leaves no time for you.

Build then Destroy: A lesson learned by Tiger Woods

That's basically what we like to do in this country.

We build up Wall Street and the economy, then we destroy it.

We build up presidential candidates, then we destroy them in office.

We build up moguls like Donald Trump, then pray for their destruction.

We build up icons like Tiger Woods, then we watch them destroyed. Or at least we watch the attempt to bring them down.

Not that it's not Woods' fault of course. He did have those "transgressions" after all.

But think about it...here's a kid who plays golf as well as men, then a teen who plays golf as well as the great men, then a golf great who plays golf better than any sports figure plays their sport.

So, like Michael Jackson after Thriller, we cheer on our champion. We lionize our new king. Even when he may not be worthy of his queen.

Honestly, we just don't believe in God nearly enough. At least not the major media centers like L.A. and New York. But we believe in media and the Gods they try create. I'm speaking of those Websites, photographers and publications pretending to be media, of course.

So the second our Gods prove to be false, we pile on. First the transgressions. Then the search for more faults. Old records become new news. Phone calls, text messages, voice messages, e-mails, flight records...whatever they can get their hands on at US Weekly, TMZ or Star. It all becomes news. Bigger than the real news...the lack of family planning funding in the new healthcare reform bill, the lack of attention to our nation's public schools, and certainly the failure of the public transportation systems in too many cities in America, including Austin, Texas.

Instead of building light rail in Austin, where it is much needed for tomorrow, we build icons and celebrities for today.

That way, rather than missing something we'd one day take for granted, we can destroy something (someone) we always took advantage of.

Sneak Attack on AustiNights!

Sneak Attack Austin from AustiNights on Vimeo.

Is Austin Too Lazy?

While I am proud to live in Austin, that doesn't mean I like everything about it and when one of my new friends recently called Austin the laziest city he'd ever been to. I wasn't at all taken aback.

I left D.C. in part because of all the needlessly competitive ambition, soulless work ethic and self importance that oozes out of every government and psuedo-government building in the District. But I do miss the hard work that happens there.

Don't get me wrong, some people in Austin work extremely hard. Just not enough of them.

We're in one of the most amazing cities in the country, but less than 10% of us care to vote. We're in one of the few cities that has stood up fairly well in this tough economy, but it's not because of our hard work so much as it has been because of how much easier you have to work here than in L.A., New York, Chicago, D.C. or other metropolitans to live a decent life...so new money keeps coming in.

There are far too many college-educated people here who have no desire to use their college educations. Mostly because mom and dad never required them to have any earthly idea what college was for.

And there are tons of people who can criticize the hell out of a music festival, band, restaurant, bar or retail establishment yet never have the gusto to try it themselves.

The same person who said Austin is lazy said that Austin has some extremely critical people and I fully agree with that one too.

So I guess this critique is just me being an Austinite, but only in part because I'm not too lazy to write a blog about how I hate the lack of ambition, drive, willingness to do the work and whatnot in this city.

I know tons of young executives, upstart businessmen and women and entrepreneurs, but they only represent about 15 percent of the people I know here. Out of that 85 percent that's remaining, I'd say 60 percent of them are working really hard as teachers, consultants, managers, bartenders, etc. to live a good life by their standards...you know, good job, good place to call home, nice clothes, good relationships and friendships. I commend them.

But that still leaves like one-third of the people I know to do absolutely nothing but wait around for the world to fall in their laps. It's always something or another...they didn't get to go to college or they can't hold down a job or they need to save some money or get their car fixed or something else that has less to do with the lack of that thing than the lack of determination to do it.

The truth of the matter is that Austin isn't lazy, it's just privileged.

People are always acting so impressed about the various things I'm doing...writing books, opening a store, traveling, etc. etc., but I'm not that impressive. I'm just an average guy with a below-average beginning with an above-average work ethic to get me back to average. It's just that my average looks like over-achievement in a city this privileged. Hell, half my classmates in college probably didn't have a clue what it costs their parents to send them there.

The same guy who said Austin is lazy also said people from out of town are bringing a work ethic here that is double that of many Austinites. They don't have to work as hard as they did in New York or L.A., but maybe the happy medium of work load between their old life and their new life is still double that of a typical Austinite.

I know I'm pissing people off when I write things like this, but I sort of agree with my friend again here.

Maybe that's why we can't get out and vote or support light rail or get a governor that shares the values of this city. Many Austinites have lived here their whole lives and have gotten spoiled because this city is so breathtakingly phenomenal that they've never realized that we have it way easier than the people of other cities.

If we all took a trip out of this great city and this state to see life as a Chicagoan or some other place where the winters are longer, the beers are more expensive, the friends are fewer and the dollar doesn't stretch as far we'd probably stop being so lazy and make that final push to take this city over the top and make it indisputably the best city in America, just as we are indisputably the live music capital...

But that probably wouldn't be the Austin thing to do, would it?

Friday Jam: Camp Lo

One of the most underrated hip hop albums of all-time...Camp Lo's Uptown Saturday Night.

Sneak Attack GRAND OPENING this Friday!

An Email that Motivates Me Even Further

From: Friend on the Hill

Subject: Re: Sneak Attack!

To: Joah Spearman

Date: Monday, November 30, 2009, 10:22 PM

Congratulations, buddy!!! Way to do the fuck what you said you were going to do. I remember when I first met you, and you told me that you were writing a book in your spare time. I thought this guy has to be fucking kidding me.  Shit, I was wrong. You set big goals and then you achieve them. And, you do it all the time.  You did it with your book, and now with your business. You're a great example. I love reading your blog and learning about your successes. It is motivation for me. 

PS

Now that you are a small business owner please hire somebody. In case, you haven't notice the economy sucks. And, Dems are trying really hard to promote and grow small businesses like yours. So hire someone. I promise there is a tax break in it for you...somewhere.  

Seriously, fucking amazing.

Pics from the Sneak Attack soft opening!

This past Black Friday saw the soft opening of Sneak Attack on City Hall...that's right, my very first retail store is located in Austin's City Hall in Downtown Austin at the corner of 2nd St. & Guadalupe St. From 4 to 7pm, friends, family and sneaker lovers came through to check out the kicks, the art and our stylish apparel. Don't worry Austinites, you can catch it all this Friday, Dec. 4th, as we celebrate Jay-Z's 40th Birthday by playing all of his albums throughout the day from noon to 7pm. In the meantime, check out the Sneak Attack blog for even more awesome photos!