Learning about Ideas & how to Execute them. Engineering | Storytelling | Business

"You are the world you have created."

That line from Cormac McCarthy hit me at month 7 of unemployment. 68.8% rejection rate. 1 month of finances left.

I wasn't getting rejected because I lacked skills. I was getting rejected because 10 years earlier, I'd made a choice I didn't know I was making. I picked legitimacy over authority. Proof over interpretation.

Engineering credentials over storytelling instinct.

Every project after that: one more vote for a future I didn't consciously want.
By the time I noticed, the shape was drawn. I was at the crossroads thinking there was a choice, but the choosing was done a long time ago.

I stopped applying to jobs.

For 4 weeks, I wrote. Not to explain what happened. To see what I'd been building without realizing.
The answer showed up in 15 minutes.

Short story writing wasn't a hobby. It was the access mechanism.

Stories surface assumptions before they harden. They let you test futures without betting your life on them first. They show you the world you're building while you still have time to choose differently.

I built a workshop around it. Ran 6 sessions in 2 weeks bfeore I even had a job offer.

A 30-year scenario planning veteran at Morgan Stanley told me: "I've been trying to do this for three decades. You just solved it."

Here's the method:
- Write for 15 minutes. First-person future. One day. 
- Don't think. Let details emerge.
- Signals guide the writing. Your unconscious does the rest.

What surfaces:
- Assumptions you didn't know you were making
- Prereqs you hadn't considered
- The gap between what you think you want and what you're actually building

A computer programmer: "Blank canvas that made me rethink what was possible."
A marketer: "More engaging than mood boards or strategy docs."
A startup chief of staff: "Discovered new angles to a problem I'd been stuck on."

I spent 7 months learning what McCarthy meant.
Now I help people see the shape before acceptance becomes the only option.
DM me if you're building something and want to surface what's driving it.

Mohammad Khan

She followed startup advice perfectly & created a disaster. 

Elizabeth Holmes followed advice you’d find “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel
• Built a monopoly (proprietary blood testing technology)
• Eliminated competition (aggressive NDAs, patents) 
• Created switching costs (Walgreens and Safeway locked in multi-year contracts) 
• Owned her category (redefined blood testing)

Succeeding at everything Peter Thiel teaches. Except the technology didn't work. She was a fraud.

By the time anyone discovered this:
• $700M trapped in investments
• Partners locked in multi-year contracts
• Patients receiving false medical results
• Employees silenced by NDAs

“Zero to One” can't distinguish between a successful startup and frauds like Theranos.

Both can claim they have products 10x better than competitors, capture markets, and make money.

Thiel's framework has no test for "does the technology actually work?"

Because the framework assumes you'll exit in 5-7 years. Well before the technology has to prove itself long-term.

You can't "move fast and break things" in cancer therapeutics. You can't "exit" before your technology proves it works.
But that's what startup advice assumes you'll do.

So what can deep tech founders do? 

Instead of focusing on growth & exiting, focus on proof points & partnerships. 

• Instead of Gatekeeping > Educating the market 
• Instead of eliminating competition > Transparent tech demos 
• Instead of optimizing for growth rate > Optimize for customer success rate. 

Same goal of building a successful company but on different timescales. Different worlds built, a sustainable one instead of extractive.

Elizabeth Holmes followed the playbook & built an extractive monopoly.

But the playbook doesn't care if the technology works. It only cares if you can build power before anyone finds out.

Deep tech founders can't afford that gamble. 
You're building for 20 years, not 5.

Teaching professionals to navigate uncertainty through short stories | Engineer building future-prototyping workshops in public

I read "Zero to One" in 2019. It changed how I thought about building a business. 
I read it again in 2024. It's an indoctrination manifesto.

Then I read Octavia Butler. She predicted what Thiel was building, 21 years before he published his playbook.
---

In 2019, I was devouring business books.

"Zero to One" was high on people's lists. And it made sense. A concise book on growing your business and what to aim for.

Took some notes & moved on.

2022: ChatGPT launches

A question stuck in my head 
"What problem does this actually solve?"

I couldn't answer it.

2024: I reread "Zero to One" 

ChatGPT broke every rule Thiel teaches.

Thiel's thesis: build monopolies by making something so uniquely and often 10x better that they escape competition

OpenAI didn't build 10x better technology. They published first with better marketing & lower costs.

And Thiel funded them anyway.

That's when I realized Zero to One isn't methodology. It's business ideology.

An indoctrination manifesto from survivorship bias that built the world we live in today. 

2025: I read “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler 

She wrote it in 1993 & set the story in 2024. And she showed me what happens when Thiel's ideology runs for 20 years.

Most startup advice assume you'll exit. But what if you can’t exit? 

What if these companies built themselves a monopoly they now have to manage and can’t exit? Something so entangled in the market where leaving risks collapse? 

What happens when you plan on exiting but can’t? 

In Butler's story:
• Corporations own entire towns
• Employees become debt slaves
• Technology serves monopolists only
• Workers can't leave (leaving means death)
• Corporations call this "providing value"

If “Zero to One” gives the extractive monopoly ideology, then “Parable of the Sower” shows you what happens when that ideology runs unchecked.

If you’re building technology that will take 20 years to mature, you should understand the world your advice is quietly trying to create.

A fiction book made me ask: What world am I building?
Then I rewrote my entire business model.

In 2025, I read “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler

She predicted what "build a monopoly" creates after 20 years:
• Company towns for employees
• Employees indebted to the company
• Technology serving monopolists only
• Workers can't leave (leaving means death)

Then I looked at my own positioning company.

I was helping science and engineering companies:
• Lock in customers (switching costs)
• Dominate categories (eliminate alternatives)
• Become the "only" choice (build monopolies)

Butler forced me to ask: What world is MY company creating?

If everyone wins by becoming a gatekeeper, everyone loses.
Customers lose freedom. Innovation slows. Switching becomes punishment.

I didn't want to make money building a world I wouldn't want to live in.

So, I pivoted.

Just published a newsletter on What world are you building?

Deep tech founders don't exit in 5 years. You live with what you build for 20 years.

Make sure it's a world you want to live in. 

Read more here: https://lnkd.in/ggN9us6v

In 2025, I trusted my future plan because it was clear. Turns out clarity can be the problem.

I had just gotten back from a long trip. It was Christmas. While others were decorating, I was sitting with my laptop open, staring at a plan that still made sense.

8 months & no job and the plan was coherent and useless.

The plan said, 'network to find work', but it didn't say what happens when your contact gets laid off the week before your coffee meeting.

Every milestone assumed nothing would go wrong. Not one backup. Not one 'what if this fails.'

So instead of refining the plan again, I changed the test.

I wrote two stories from first-person perspective.

Two story lines:

I wrote Tuesday morning, best case. New job, coffee with the team, solving problems.
 
Then I wrote Tuesday morning, month 9 unemployed. Checking the bank account. 

My original plan never asked, "what if no one picks you?"

Plans optimize for clarity.
Stories expose consequences.

It's not about making a better plan for the future, but what you do when your plan gets punched in the face

Tier One Coaching, LLC

Founder

Leadership Ready Room

Co-Founder

Tier One Life Insurance, LLC

The Outlier Project

Outlier

U.S. Naval War College

Professor

US Navy

Officer

Commanding Officer

Executive Officer

Prospective Executive Officer

Staff

HSM- 46 Maintenance Officer

HSM-46 DET 6 Officer in Charge

Romeo Transition Student

Topcat/Air Department Training Officer

Catapult Launch and Recovery Officer

Lead eight commissioned and non-commissioned officers, and over 150 enlisted Sailors responsible for flight deck, and crash and salvage operations on board USS NIMITZ aircraft carrier.

V1 Division Officer, Air Department

SH-60B Fleet Replacement Instructor Pilot

Quality Assurance Officer/Maintenance Safety Officer

Maintenance Division Officer

Weekly Operational Schedules Officer

HSL 48

Flight School/FRS

DODReads.com

DODReads Advisory Board Member

20+ Years of Leading & Developing Teams in the Navy | Coach | ICF Member | Founder | Empowering People to Unleash Their Best Selves & Escape The Golden Path Fallacy

You’ve accomplished a lot.

And this next chapter is different.

You’re stepping into:

• More responsibility.
• More visibility.
• More impact.

Deep down, you know your old playbook won’t cut it.

This time, it's not about having the right answers.

It’s about leading from alignment—with clarity,
confidence, and purpose.

That’s where I come in.

I partner with growth-minded leaders to help them:

• Clarify their purpose, passions, values, and strengths
• Lead authentically and confidently
• Empower their teams to thrive

I’m not here to give you more tips, tools, or techniques.

I’m here to help you uncover what’s already within—so
you can lead in a way that’s deeply aligned and
impactful.

My coaching is grounded in:

✅ 22+ years leading and developing teams in the Navy
✅ ICF-accredited coaching (ACC)
✅ The Blueprint Process: a powerful way to reveal
your values, passions, purpose, and cause.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼.

You need a trusted partner who sees your potential,
challenges your thinking, and helps you unlock your next
level of leadership.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:

• Reveal your Blueprint—what truly drives you
• Make decisions aligned with who you are
• Lead with conviction, clarity, and impact
• Create the conditions for your team to grow

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝘆:

"𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦. 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦
𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵—𝘋𝘔 𝘩𝘪𝘮." – Cody H.  

"𝘐 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵—𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘐
𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥." – Chris C.  

"𝘈𝘴 𝘐 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘕𝘢𝘷𝘺, 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦
𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵." – Matt L.  

"𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨—𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯." – Paul H.

Are you ready to lead with clarity, empower your team,
and align your leadership with what matters most?

📩 𝗗𝗠 𝗺𝗲. 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱.

Brandon Jenkins

Fifteen years.

Last night, Julie and I celebrated our anniversary.

Today marks 15 years, and I’m feeling deeply grateful.

What stands out most to me isn’t any single milestone.

It’s the consistency.
Showing up for each other.
Coming back to each other when things were hard.

Learning, over time, how to love each other in the ways
the other person actually needed.

We’ve been through a lot together.

Two kids.
Three full deployments.
More work-ups than I can count.
Five big moves (plus a few in-town for good measure).

And all the challenges that never make it into photos.

I’m proud that when things got difficult, we chose
growth instead of letting the challenges pull us apart.

Not perfectly. Not even close.

Just honestly. Together.

I’m grateful to have found a true teammate in life.

Someone willing to walk through it with me, side by side.

Happy anniversary, Julie.

-Jenks

Brandon "Jenks" Jenkins, ACC

Leadership Coach | Empowering Leaders To Move From Expert → Leader of Experts With Clarity, Alignment & Confidence | 22-Year Naval Aviator | ICF ACC

Wow, it is incredibly fulfilling to be able to partner with someone in this way. 

I’m grateful for you, Hendo, and all of the leaders I’m teamed up with.

Thank you. 

-Jenks

Paul Henderson

graphical user interface, text, application, email

One of the easiest leadership traps to fall into is this:

• You see the situation.
• You’ve done something similar before.
• You know how you would handle it now.

So you tell your teammate what to do.

It feels efficient.
Helpful, even.

But there’s a cost most leaders don’t notice until later.

When you consistently tell your team what to do, you
quietly take away their chance to learn how to think
through it themselves.

You take away:

• their opportunity to collaborate
• their chance to assess and adjust
• their ability to try, learn, and self-correct

Over time, something predictable happens.

Small decisions come back to you.
Then slightly bigger ones.

Eventually, it feels like everything needs your input.

Not because your team is incapable.

But because they were never given space to develop
their own judgment.

This is one of the hardest shifts for leaders moving from
expert to leading experts.

It’s uncomfortable to step back when you believe you
already see the way forward.

And it’s exactly the shift that creates innovative,
self-sufficient teams.

If this tension feels familiar and you want space to talk it
through, I offer a free 30-minute leader thinking session.

It's a conversation with a thinking partner, not another
set of instructions.

Link to book time is in my Featured section.

-Jenks

Snuck out the other day for a walk by the water.

I’d been inside too long.

Staring out the window at a gorgeous day.

Feeling a little stuffy and cooped up.

Nothing dramatic. I just needed to get outside and move.

On walks like that, I try not to think about projects
or solve anything.

I just pay attention.

The air.
The movement.
What I’m noticing.

My mood usually shifts first.

I feel lighter. 
More energized.
Calmer.

And without trying, that’s when things tend to surface.

An idea.
A connection.
A thought that inspires me.

I call it “receive mode.”

Not forcing anything.

Just present long enough to notice what shows up.

Mostly, though, it’s just nice to be outside, 
moving my body, enjoying the day.

Maybe you’ve noticed something similar
when you step away for a bit?

-Jenks

There’s a moment that doesn’t usually get talked about.

You’re holding a decision.

It matters.

And you can feel the weight of it sitting squarely
on your shoulders.

You don’t have all the information.
You probably never will.

And the thought creeps in quietly:

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨?
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭?

That’s often where leaders start hesitating.

It's not because they are incapable.

It's because they’re deciding alone.

What’s missing in that moment usually isn’t more data.

It’s different perspectives:

• to ask questions you wouldn’t think to ask yourself.
• to help surface the assumptions you’re carrying.
• to help you see other angles before you move.

Not so the decision becomes obvious.

But so you have enough confidence to move forward
and a way to learn once you do.

That’s what the clip below is really about.

Not waiting for certainty.

Instead, creating the rhythm, feedback, and
collaboration that let you adjust as you go.

It isn’t about getting it right the first time.

It’s about knowing you won’t be alone if you
need to adapt.

If this feels familiar, and you’re looking for a place to
think things through with others, I’m a DM away.

-Jenks

taplio

The Battle

Mohammad Khan

Brandon Jenkins

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taplio

The Battle

Mohammad Khan

Brandon Jenkins

Followers

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Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Mohammad Khan's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreMohammad Khan's LinkedIn Performance