You Are Not Hamlet
Jason Alexander, the actor who played George Costanza on Seinfeld, wanted to play Hamlet when he was studying theater at Boston University.
Sophomore year, he got some career advice that changed his trajectory.
One of his professors at Boston University, James Sproul, pulled him aside.
“I know that your heart and soul is Hamlet, and you would be a profound Hamlet,” Sproul told Alexander. “You will never play Hamlet, so you’d better get good at Falstaff.”
For those rusty on their Shakespeare, Hamlet is the hero, Falstaff the comic foil.
Alexander said the conversation made him take a hard look in the mirror. He was 5 feet 6 inches tall, prematurely balding and 20 to 25 pounds overweight.
He said he realized he would be more commercially successful as a comedian.
That can be a brutal realization.
Social media encourages us to pursue our dreams.
Growing up I wanted to be a successful writer like F. Scott Fitzgerald. But I never ended up writing the Great American novel and I’m sure I never will.
I did however build a career writing, first as a financial journalist working for Bloomberg and now as a ghostwriter for executives.
Young people graduating from college these days are entering a dismal job market. The unemployment rate is close to 5%. The gap between the rate for new graduates and the national average is at a record.
Many have dreams that seem unattainable in that environment. I don’t think they should give up. But they should keep in mind that it takes an entire cast to put on a play.
Jason Alexander went on to become a wildly successful actor. In the last season of Seinfeld, he was making $1 million an episode.
But he only got there after embracing the part he was born to play.
And that wasn’t Hamlet.
Former Zillow exec targets $1.3T market
The wealthiest companies tend to target the biggest markets. For example, NVIDIA skyrocketed nearly 200% higher in the last year with the $214B AI market’s tailwind.
That’s why investors are so excited about Pacaso.
Created by a former Zillow exec, Pacaso brings co-ownership to a $1.3 trillion real estate market. And by handing keys to 2,000+ happy homeowners, they’ve made $110M+ in gross profit to date. They even reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.
No wonder the same VCs behind Uber, Venmo, and eBay also invested in Pacaso. And for just $2.90/share, you can join them as an early-stage Pacaso investor today.
Paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals.
BRIEF OBSERVATIONS
TAKING THE MONTH OFF: I love this post by Henri Pierre-Jacques, a VC at Harlem Capital which reminds me more of a European attitude than a New York one.
HOW LOW WILL ROB LOWE GO: Thanks to my friend Julia Carreon for pointing this out.
BLOOMBERG MUGS: I recently wrote about this iconic piece of swag from Bloomberg only to discover it is available – like everything else – on eBay.
BARBER: There is a converted ice cream truck parked in Harlem near Mount Morris park that serves as a barber shop during the week. Love the innovation.
LIFE FINDS A WAY: Every year at about this time I seem to come across a random sun flower that has defied the odds and grown to a significant height.
Please reach out if you have any thoughts about today’s newsletter. I enjoy hearing from readers. Send me a message if you want to talk or meet up if you are in NYC.
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