It was the Fall of 2012, and Mark Zuckerberg was in trouble. Joining the stage at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference for a fireside chat in a gray t-shirt (and what I can only assume are new balance sneakers), he was getting ready for a festive grilling by TechCrunch EIC Michael…

Most of us probably overspend or have eaten “healthy” — what subconscious secrets drive our relationship with food? — Welcome to MIND MELD: Deep dives into the psychology and human behavior that drives products, brands, and marketing strategies. It all starts with an innocent trip to Trader Joe’s. You just need bread, milk, and dish soap. In the blink of an eye, you escape into a vortex of impulse…

For a long time, I thought of the spectrum of burnout as a speedometer. If you’re working long hours and going at 110%, you’ll feel the pain. You need to dial it back before it screws you. …

✍️ This piece was originally published as part of my new Substack newsletter, the Marketing Mind Meld. Subscribe there for weekly marketing reads! This past Monday, for the first time in almost two years, I felt true pain. The Maryland Terrapins, my beloved alma mater, had just suffered a soul…

What does the NFT craze mean for marketers and brands? — Welcome to MIND MELD: Deep dives into the psychology and human behavior that drives products, brands, and marketing strategies. A couple of weeks back, I was chatting with a friend and fellow NBA fan, who told me to check out this site called NBA Top Shot, a site that sells…

✍️ This piece was originally published as part of my new Substack newsletter, the Marketing Mind Meld. Subscribe there for weekly marketing reads! When I was fourteen years old, my uncle helped me start my first stock portfolio. Until I was ready to make my own decisions, it was mostly…

Budweiser, McDonald’s and Apple are just some of the many brands that have nailed iconic Super Bowl Ads — what’s unique about their strategy? — Welcome to MIND MELD: Deep dives into the psychology and human behavior that drives products, brands, and marketing strategies. Growing up in Massachusetts, I spent most of my Super Bowl evenings fairly stressed. In the roughly twenty Super Bowls I’ve watched since 1999, my Patriots have played in nine of…

✍️ This piece was originally published as part of my new Substack newsletter, the Marketing Mind Meld. Subscribe there for weekly marketing reads! I was eight years old at Universal Studios when I first learned about the existence of ET, Steven Spielberg’s mini extraterrestrial masterpiece. I was enamored by its…