Brandon Carr

Enterprise Software Sales | @VU_Business @USFSOM Alum | Former D1 athlete ⚾️ that went pro in something other than sports | Tweets = My own

[Matthew McConaughey @McConaughey]

bets still on the table America, yet.

[Brandon Carr @BrandonTCarr]

@saelee0 simply doesn’t make sense.. at least BA is showing him some respect up to 83 as of today

[WVSports.com @WVSportsDotCom]

#WVU is up 14-1. There's a guy holding a raccoon in the crowd. I don't know what else to tell you.

[Aaron Levie @levie]

Forward deployed engineers, or equivalent, are about to become one of the most in-demand jobs in tech. And one of the most important functions for AI rollouts.

Deploying agents is far more technical of a task than most people realize, often far more involved than deploying software. Software generally works the same way every time, and generally for the past few decades has been updated versions of an existing technology or concept (which basically means easier for the enterprise to update their workflows on a newer system).

With agents, you’re actually deploying the equivalent of work output within the enterprise. The customer is effectively using you as a professional services provider for a task, which they expect to get solved nearly end-to-end now. This means you need to actually deeply understand the business process as a vendor, and get the customer from the current to the end state seamlessly.

Companies need help figuring out which models will work best for their workflows, they need extensive evals setup often, they need change management support for workflows, they need to get their data setup for the agents, and constant tuning of the agentic system for their process.

Massive role in tech now. And another example of the kind of highly technical work that AI is creating.

[Matt Carpenter @MattCarp13]

The biggest thing baseball taught me:

It’s life in a uniform.

Good days, bad days, and everything in between. Let go of what you can’t control. And commit to what you can. Your effort, attitude and response to failures will continue to shape who you are. So keep stacking days.

[Finbarr Taylor @finbarr]

https://t.co/KRlTbtnA8A

[Delano Squires @DelanoSquires]

This is top-tier parenting. Teaching *anything* to a toddler can be a challenge, but getting them to master this type of hand-eye coordination is on another level. @jfletch_07, the fraternity of fathers salutes you 🫡.

[Jared L Kubin @JaredKubin]

Everyone's sharing that "Long Degeneracy" article and nominating it for article of the year with 20m views. I just got around to reading it…overall, I get it. It's well written, emotionally resonant, and captures something real about generational anxiety. I like the author, I subscribe to their stuff… talented Quant.

But nobody's pushing back, so let me while I watch my kids at the pool.

My main pushback is this: the article is a suicide note dressed up as investment advice. I REFUSE to hand my agency to "the house." The moment you accept "the game is rigged so I might as well gamble," you've surrendered. You've quit on the process that actually works because someone convinced you it doesn't. There are no easy buttons. No shortcuts. No magic money options. There is only learning, sacrifice, and continual grit.

It tells a generation they're prisoners. Then it sells them a lottery ticket and calls it freedom. Then it tells YOU to invest in the prison.

That's not analysis. That's despair with a ticker symbol.

The author spends 2000 words empathizing with young people as "prisoners" trapped by a broken economy… then tells you to invest in the platforms extracting fees from their desperation. "Long Coinbase, long DraftKings, long the casinos."

Read that again. The thesis is: a generation is so economically desperate they're turning to gambling, most will lose, and YOU should profit by owning the house.

You can't weep for the prisoners and then sell shares in the prison. Pick one.

4 points I want to make....

Pushback 1: "Closed" is doing a lot of work
The claim that traditional wealth building is "closed, not difficult" is asserted, not proven. The boomer vs millennial wealth stat is misleading… it compares 65 year olds to 35 year olds. Of course boomers hold more wealth. They've been alive longer.

Housing is brutal in coastal cities. But median home prices in most US metros are still accessible to dual income households. "Wages up 8% while housing doubled" has no timeframe and cherry picks the comparison. Real wages post 2020 have actually grown.

Is it harder than it was? Yes. Is the game "fundamentally broken"? That's a much bigger claim requiring a much longer discussion.

Pushback 2: Negative EV doesn't become rational just because you feel stuck

The core logical move is: "if you're trapped anyway, a 5% chance of escape beats 100% certainty of stagnation."
But gambling doesn't leave you "still stuck." It makes most participants actively worse off. That 5% moonshot comes paired with a 95% chance of losing your savings, your rent money, your runway.

The author admits "most people lose" then hand waves it because gamblers "understand the odds." But understanding bad odds while taking them isn't rationality. It's emotional capitulation wearing economic language as a costume.
This isn't a generation finding a path out. It's a wealth transfer mechanism moving money FROM desperate young people TO platform operators.

Pushback 3: The article accidentally reveals the real problem

The author admits social media has "repositioned the zeroth line" so people earning $150k feel poor. Admits the algorithm ensures "you never feel like you've arrived." Admits basic needs are met and there's "cognitive bandwidth" for existential questions.

But wait. If the problem is FEELING trapped due to infinite upward comparison rather than BEING trapped… gambling doesn't fix that. You could 10x your net worth and the algorithm will still show you someone richer.

The "Maslow trap" section accidentally confesses: this generation isn't imprisoned. They're dissatisfied. These are different problems.

Pushback 4: I don’t have enough FAITH to live in a world without God

This is the part nobody wants to hear.

The entire thesis rests on a materialist assumption: your life's meaning is determined by your net worth, your house, your access to experiences. If you can't get those things, you're "imprisoned." If you can, you're "free."

That's spiritual poverty masquerading as economic analysis.
Jesus said it plain: "What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?" The author's answer is apparently "at least you beat the algorithm."

My BIGGEST problem with the article isn't economic. It's theological. It assumes the highest human need is "self actualization" through financial success. That Maslow's hierarchy is the truth about human nature. That if you can't afford the vacation and the house, you're missing what makes life worth living.

That's not wisdom. That's the prosperity gospel without the gospel. No thanks.

The reason this generation feels trapped isn't because housing costs went up. It's because they've been handed a worldview where meaning comes from consumption, identity comes from status, and hope is a betting slip. When you build your life on that foundation, of course you feel imprisoned. The cell is interior.

Real freedom isn't financial. It never was. The peace that passes understanding doesn't require a Polymarket account. Eternity is a LONG time.

So what's the alternative?

First: Exit the comparison machine. The author correctly identifies social media as manufacturing infinite dissatisfaction. The answer isn't to gamble your way to a moving target. It's to stop letting an algorithm define your "zeroth line." Your reference class should be your actual life, not curated highlights from 8 billion people. Delete the apps. Touch grass. Go to church. Give yourself to something BIGGER than your net worth.

Second: Skill acquisition still compounds. The article mocks "getting better at your job" as boomer advice. But the same young people pouring hours into memecoin research could pour those hours into skills that compound. The difference is skills don't have a house edge. Coding, sales, writing, trades… these translate into income whether the market is up or down. AI is changing which skills matter but it's not eliminating the returns to expertise. It's concentrating them.

Third: Asymmetric bets exist outside casinos. If you want convexity, build something. Start a business. Create content. Ship a product. The difference between entrepreneurship and gambling is you're building equity in something that can compound, not burning capital on negative EV.

Fourth: Anchor your identity somewhere the market can't touch. If your sense of self rises and falls with your portfolio, you're a slave. If your hope depends on a moonshot, you have no hope. The man who knows who he is in Christ doesn't need a 100x to feel like his life matters. He's already free. That's not copium. That's the only foundation that doesn't move.

The real trap

The article's framing is seductive because it offers absolution. You're not making bad decisions. You're rationally responding to a broken system. The house always wins but at least you're playing.

The framing IS the trap.

The economy is harder than it was. Housing costs are real. AI anxiety is real. But "harder" isn't "impossible," and the author's solution… becoming a customer of fee extracting platforms or an investor in them… doesn't help the people he claims to sympathize with.

It helps the house.

Here's what actually works.
-Wake up early. Get after it. Be Relentless.
-Spend less than you earn. No excuses.
-Acquire skills that compound. Every single day. Stack them.
-Build things you own. Equity, not lottery tickets.
-Get your body right. Discipline starts physical.
-Get your soul right with the Lord. My closeness with the Lord has grown MORE in trials and tribulations than any fancy car.
-Exit the comparison machine. The algorithm is not your friend. It's your enemy.
-Find your people. Real ones. In person. Build a family. Build a group you trust.
-Serve something bigger than yourself.
-Pray. Not as a last resort. As a first principle. Daily.
-The path is painful. The path is boring. The path requires years of work that nobody will clap for.

But it's the path that works.

The casinos will keep taking their vig. The gurus will keep selling hope. The algorithms will keep showing you what you don't have.

Let them.
You are not a prisoner. You are not a degenerate. You are not a customer.

You are a free human being with a soul that matters and a life to build.

So build it through active faith, aggressive patience, and a mindset geared towards eternity and not your bank account.

[Zach Brandon @MVP_Mindset]

Tom Brady explains his mental edge and why practice (not gameday) creates separation.

"There was a part of me that was a psychopath out there. I was extremely hypercompetitive every day. I didn't feel like let's get to Sunday and now it's the time...Every day is the time to give your best, even in practice."

Every day your standards are either reinforced or lowered by how you treat practice.

You don’t flip a switch into excellence. You rehearse it daily.

📹: Impaulsive Podcast

[Michael Witbrock @witbrock]

@Atlassian Your new MCP server combined with a good model in VSCode Copilot is amazing. Well done. Just bought your stock.

[Rachel Karten @milkkarten]

A few pieces of advice from Keith on building goodwill.

[Atlassian @Atlassian]

📣Flight attendants, please prepare the tech for takeoff. 📣

@United Airlines is gearing up for massive growth, with plans to add 700 airplanes and 50,000 new employees by 2032.

Learn how Atlassian is helping them reach these new heights: https://t.co/KcZt83JISE

[Allistair McCaw @AllistairMcCaw]

The real leaders in your team aren’t always the ones with the title of ‘captain.’ The real leaders are those who have a positive influence on the rest and lead by example. A title doesn’t make you a leader, influence and example does. #leadership

[Brandon Carr @BrandonTCarr]

@shawngorham Adding primary suite onto our centrally located 1940s 3/1 bungalow now. Future plans to rehab the old detached garage into a casita. No plan to ever sell. Inspired by you and @moseskagan as buying the 1 bathroom got us into a neighborhood we otherwise couldn’t have

[Brandon Carr @BrandonTCarr]

@douglewinenergy @ENGIENorthAm playing a huge part in the 🔋 storage growth and helping diversify and strengthen the grid for the future

[Brandon Carr @BrandonTCarr]

Reflecting on the past few years and when my consistency & sales performance went to the next level was when the Pareto Principle really clicked

[Brandon Carr @BrandonTCarr]

The New Rules of Executive Presence - https://t.co/9Ey0hVH8HG

[Freshworks Inc @FreshworksInc]

Introducing 'Use Case to App' functionality in #FreddyCopilotForDevelopers.

[Freshworks Inc @FreshworksInc]

Microsoft Teams 🤝 Freshservice = Our favorite duo.

Now, companies of all sizes can:
🤖 Automated conversational support
📈 Increase agent productivity
💪 Improve collaboration

Read more: https://t.co/CGyORokhly

@msPartner @MicrosoftTeams

[Freshworks Inc @FreshworksInc]

The Freshworks-Flycast partnership is rewriting the playbook for collaboration. 2022 marked a year of growth and success, with unwavering commitment.

Hear Richard George, VP of Sales at @Flycast_ share about the partnership: https://t.co/hcZM1X2pzE

#FreshworksPartnerSpotlight