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The conversation all week has been about the Will Smith meltdown at the Academy Awards. Everyone has an opinion on whose fault it was. Some believe Chris Rock was at fault and admire Smith’s valor in defending his wife. Others like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar say that Smith not only debased himself, he validated some of the worst stereotypes that some people have of Black Americans. I personally think the ordeal had more to do with Smith’s relationship with his wife than anything that occurred during the show. I’m not blaming Jada Pinkett Smith for her husband’s actions but I think the bizarre nature of their relationship, which they voluntarily share with the world on Red Table Talk, was at the root of Smith’s insane reaction to Chris Rock’s joke.
Our closest relationships shape the people that we are. When we were young, we didn’t like it when our best friends got girlfriends or boyfriends because of how it changed them. Young people frequently become obsessed and possessive of their first loves. As we get older, hopefully, we learn to manage things a little better, but our relationships can and often do, change us. When my kids started to date, I tried not to make judgments about the people they dated. We all have ideas about the type of guy or girl our kids should be with, but I did my best to ask myself whether I thought this new relationship made my kid a better or worse version of themselves. This doesn’t only apply to romantic relationships, it also applies to their closest friends and acquaintances. In the simplest terms, the people around us either add energy to us or suck energy from us. If you take a moment to think about everyone you spend time with, you can pretty quickly determine which bucket they fall in. If you expand this thesis further you can break the impact of your closest relationships down into four categories: focus, stress, fitness, and joy. Specifically, does this relationship make you more or less focused on your goals? Is your stress level higher or lower? Are you taking better care of your body? And finally, do you find yourself laughing more or less?
It’s fair to say that it is not as simple as I make it seem. Very few people are able to view their closest relationships as objectively as I have laid it out. Relationships are primarily driven by emotion and passions that make them more difficult to control. All I can say is that if a relationship is toxic in the beginning, it’s not likely to change. The longer and deeper your relationships become, the more difficult they are to break – so be careful who you share your most intimate thoughts with. My whole life has been a process of getting to a point where I am surrounded by people, both at work and in my personal life, that I love being around. It didn’t happen overnight. It took time. I don’t know what the answers are to any of these questions when it comes to Will Smith, but I’m inclined to believe there is something broken and all the money and success in the world won’t make it right until he surrounds himself with the right people for him.
There is no shortage of data showing the impact Latinos are having on the U.S. economy, from GDP and entrepreneurship to workforce participation and homeownership. So why hasn’t that growth translated into the kind of economic and political power our numbers suggest it should? In this episode, I focus on two things we can actually control: building wealth and owning our narrative. Cultural influence matters, but ownership is what turns influence into lasting power. And if we want the next generation to inherit more than momentum, we need a strategy for converting our work ethic, growth, and economic contributions into the institutions and assets that shape this country.
The World Cup reminded the world just how magnetic Hispanic and Latino culture can be. In this episode, I talk about why that popularity is more than a cultural victory—it is an economic opportunity hiding in plain sight. From music, food, sports, and fashion to the global appeal of our biggest stars, our culture already has the power to shape markets and influence how people see us. The question now is whether our business and political leaders are ready to turn that momentum into capital, representation, and lasting power. This is a moment we cannot afford to waste.
The World Cup gave Hispanics and Latinos an extraordinary global stage, but the opportunity goes far beyond sports. In this episode, I look at how cultural influence can shape perception, attract investment, and ultimately create economic power. South Korea understood this decades ago and built a global strategy around making its culture impossible to ignore. Now, the world has seen the energy, pride, and creativity of our community on its biggest stage. The question is whether we recognize the value of that moment and build something lasting from it.