“For me, education was something my mother always told me, ‘Once you have it, they can never take it away from you and that could be your golden ticket,’” he explained.

Jackson found out the hard way how a lack of funds can impact a student’s ability to pursue their career of choice. While studying to be an astronaut, he was forced to make the hard decision of finding a different major, which is when the military presented him with an option to still become a pilot — just in the marine core. While the military wasn’t his greatest passion, he did accomplish his dream of learning to fly, and it also helped him discover his calling as a people’s person while on Capitol Hill.

After a successful career in the marine core rising ranks and even creating his own job overseeing all legislative affairs for bases west of the Mississippi, Jackson transitioned out of the military to focus on those people skills, specifically education. While in California, he worked with government and education leaders to help traditionally at-risk youth succeed, like improving early childhood education measures.

One such initiative he is most proud of is founding the Black Men for Education Equity group to prevent the disproportionate suspension and expulsion of African American boys between the ages of 0-5.

A few resources that Jackson believes everyone should read or listen to are:

• The leadership philosophy book, Call Sign Chaos, by former U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis
• The civil rights literature and Nautilus Award Winner book, Nobody, by Marc Lamont Hill
• Recordings of the nation’s greatest leaders via the Master Class platform

Jackson leaves viewers with a story of his biggest moment of failure, which ultimately helped formulate his favorite piece of advice: “In those moments where you’re preparing to make a decision, specifically when you’re anxious … take a step back and pause.”