All the $#!T

The second half of Tom’s conversation with his friend, Elvir, focuses on Elvir’s integration into American life after arriving from a refugee camp in Croatia. Elvir shares his initial reactions to elements of American culture that we take for granted. He talks about the experience of being an immigrant in this country and adds context to the stereotypes that many Americans have toward that community. Finally, Elvir talks about the steps he has taken to ensure others feel welcome and comfortable joining this community, including establishing a small scholarship at his alma mater, Virginia Western Community College, to help other immigrants who are following in his path.

If you would like to contribute, you can visit this link: https://www.virginiawestern.edu/giving/give-now/ and contribute any amount you want. When you scroll to the bottom of the form, you have the option to write in the specific scholarship you wish to support. Elvir’s scholarship is the “Refugee and Immigrant Scholarship.”

Tom shares a conversation with his friend, Elvir, whose family fled his native Bosnia when war broke out in the early 1990s. Elvir recalls the experience through 10-year old eyes, and reflects on what it must have been like for his parents at that time.

The conversation highlights the good and bad sides of tribalism, which is currently testing the limits of American democracy as we know it. It offers sobering perspective on how quickly things can go wrong when people stop talking to one another and resort to violence.

Tom and Will are back! The guys talk about New Year’s resolutions and how to implement change in general. They answer a question from a young man who is concerned that he’s “wasted” his age 14-17 years and it’s too late for him to take up a new sport.

Tom and Will reminisce about past relationships, young love, and the importance of the DTR (defining the relationship). They address a question from a young woman struggling to recover from being ghosted by her boyfriend (weak move, bro).

Tom and Will address a situation in which a young man gets so anxious before basketball games that he is physically nauseous. As a result of his anxiety, he decided not to try out for the high school team this year. However, his identity is so intertwined in the game that he feels he’s lost his sense of self and that the only thing he was good at is now gone.

The guys share their own experiences with anxiety and coming to grips with “losing” a part of themselves as the seasons of life change. They offer suggestions in how this young man may overcome this fear and regain his passion for the sport.

After a disgruntling week, including a "dust up" at work between them, Tom and Will consider dropping everything and living as expats in the Philippines or Costa Rica.

With the internal conflict resolved, the guys answer a question from a young man who has been challenged to a fight but doesn't want to participate. The guys encourage the young man to do everything he can to avoid coming to blows, offering options that may help cooler heads prevail. Will suggests an alternative proposition that could flip the scenario on its head and make the aggressor put his money where his mouth is.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tom sits down with one of his best friends, Justin, to talk about life. The guys dissect the nature of relationships, whether it's friendship or marriage, and how to improve and strengthen both.

Justin shares a revelation from a substance-free pseudo-psychedelic experience and how it transformed his life and has led to a stronger and healthier relationship with his family.

The guys also address a suite of questions from three young men, which all circle the main theme of not knowing the next step to take in their lives. Truth-bombs abound in this insightful conversation.

After a lively conversation about road trips and pee breaks, Tom and Will offer advice to a 15-year old young man who is in over his head trying to manipulate his weight.

Will puts his expertise on display as he talks the young man through some of the technical aspects of calorie counting and cautions him against any kind of significant restriction. He also drops a fat deuce on the notion of the BMI index as an indicator of health.

Tom echoes Will’s concerns about the potential for negative health outcomes and emphasizes that young men need to be OK with being a bit “fluffy” as they grow into their bodies.

Tom and Will discuss a question posed by a 15-year old young woman whose 18-year old friend is making a classic proposal. The guys share some perspective with this young woman while thinking back on their own intentions and behavior at this transitional point in life.

Will makes the argument that we ALL use one another in some way, shape, or form, while Tom invokes Taylor Swift to help differentiate between different types of love.

Tom and Will dive into one of Will’s favorite subjects: personal finance! A question about a young person’s relationship with money takes Will back to when his mom used to drive him to buyer’s clubs and he spent a lot of his time plotting his financial assent. The guys talk about their personal relationships with money and offer some counsel to this up-and-comer.

Will's recommended reading list:

Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki

The Total Money Makeover - Dave Ramsey

A Random Walk Down Wall Street - Burton Malkiel

I Will Teach You to be Rich - Ramit Sethi

The Psychology of Money - Morgan Housel

The Richest Man in Babylon - George Clason

Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill