What happens when creative power, marketing wisdom, and startup energy collide? In this episode, Jay sits down with Julie Matzen to explore the journey from agency leadership to startup empowerment. With honesty, laughter, and depth, they unpack the emotional architecture of business: the fear of becoming irrelevant, the power of validation, and the truth that failure isn’t a wall—it’s a lens.
The conversation moves from the dangers of letting AI write your ad copy to the Gen X struggle of feeling unseen, all the way to the radical idea that access to wisdom should be affordable. Through shared metaphors, unapologetic insights, and unexpected childhood stories, Julie and Jay remind us that the real power in business—and in life—comes not from polish, but from presence.
"Don't let AI be your art. The paintbrush doesn't get the credit."
Bio: Julie Matzen is the co-founder of Boarderline and founder of the MayDay Agency. With over 25 years in branding and digital strategy for top-tier brands, Julie now focuses on democratizing access to expert advisors for startups and mid-sized businesses. Through Boarderline, she's building a platform that empowers emerging entrepreneurs to gain real insights from the minds that helped build the world's biggest brands.
📌 Key Takeaways
✨ [00:14:00] – "AI can automate, but it can't validate."
🧘 [00:20:00] – Insight without experience is dangerous—it’s just expensive noise.
🔥 [00:36:00] – Gen X has the tools. It's time to show younger generations how to use them.
🤖 [00:03:00] – AI is a mirror, not a muse.
💭 [00:48:00] – Validation isn’t weakness. It’s water for the seed.

📚 Chapter Timestamps
🚢 [00:00] – Shifts and Ships in Business
🧠 [05:00] – The Wisdom of Gen X and the Value of Lenses
🪞 [10:00] – AI as Mirror, Not Muse
🎭 [15:00] – The Fear of Aging Out
💬 [21:00] – Validation, Vulnerability, and Starting Over
📉 [30:00] – Marketing That Misses the Point
🎯 [38:00] – Emotional Triggers and Human Branding
📚 [48:00] – The Value of Experience
🌀 [55:00] – Final Metaphors and Messages

CTA for the Show
If this episode resonated, subscribe, review, and share it to help grow the Tree of Knowledge 🌳
We explore the human experience through tragedy and triumph—with laughter, candor, and depth.
🌟 Be cool and keep learning. 🌟
CTA for the Guest
Learn more about Julie Matzen at:
https://theboarderline.co
https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-matzen-1696aa52
Support her mission to make expert advice accessible to small businesses and emerging founders.
🚀 Welcome to The Tragedy Academy Podcast
Discover stories of resilience, redemption, and the human spirit.
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Over time, this show has become more than interviews—it’s become a mirror. In this episode, Jay offers a quiet reflection born from years of sitting with brave, vulnerable humans who were willing to speak their truth.
There is no guest today, but their presence is felt in every moment. Each clip and insight shared here was evoked through those conversations, shaped by the energy in the room, the story being told, and the resonance that followed. This is not a solo episode in the truest sense — it’s a continuation of the dialogue, spoken in stillness.
“I’ve been told there’s wisdom in these words. If that’s true, it came from you all of you. I’m just the one who said it out loud.”
Jay ends the episode with quiet gratitude and the promise of more solo episodes to come, not to lecture, but to reflect. Not to lead, but to honor what’s already been offered.
Key Takeaways
🕰️ 00:00:00 – The Mask & The Material Patch
(Wearing identities to cover wounds)
🔄 00:01:33 – The Wheel Breaks
(Breaking patterns of self-medication and denial)
💭 00:02:22 – Thoughts Are Always Floating
(The ever-available archive of pain and memory)
🫥 00:05:04 – Gynecomastia & Shared Pain
(Shame, embodiment, and early self-hatred)
🛡️ 00:07:00 – The Mind’s Shield
(How the brain protects us from truth — and connection)
💸 00:07:40 – Empathy vs Insurance
(The absurdity of treating souls like codes)
🪞 00:10:34 – Stained Glass & Knotted Rope
(Pain as fragmented art, healing through mindful untying)
⚖️ 00:13:06 – Perfectly Imperfect: The Now
(Accepting the dark to appreciate the light — and staying present)
🧩 00:15:42 – Reverse Tetris & American Avoidance
(Justifying suffering to maintain comfort zones)
🤖 00:17:27 – AI, Knowledge, and Human Systems
(Tech as mirror, not monster — and the threat of withheld care)
🌅 00:19:53 – Becoming the Lighthouse
(Living as a quiet guide for those still in the storm)
🧬 00:22:10 – Authenticity as Legacy
(Choosing real over perfect — and passing that on)
⏳ 00:26:05 – Time Is Illness: Choose Now
(Rejecting fictional timelines and reclaiming immediacy)
🔁 00:31:08 – Repetition as a Wake-Up Call
(When pain loops, it’s asking to be heard)
🥃 00:33:44 – Precipice, Vodka, Meditation, Self
(Burnout, stillness, and the early cracks of becoming)
🌬️ 00:37:59 – If Just One Echo Finds You
(Whispered purpose — helping one is enough)
🚀 Welcome to The Tragedy Academy Podcast
Discover stories of resilience, redemption, and the human spirit.
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Sometimes it's too good to hear once. In this emotionally charged flashback episode of The Tragedy Academy, Jay Hicks sits down with Bruce W. Brackett to explore one of the most vulnerable journeys ever shared on the show—from addiction and abuse to art, advocacy, and radical self-love.
Bruce opens up about the cycles of trauma, the power of the inner ember that never dies, and how one brutal night at rock bottom led to the symbolic burial of his addiction. Through Bruce’s raw storytelling and Jay’s deeply empathetic reflections, this episode becomes a living meditation on survival, transformation, and what it means to shine anyway.
Listeners will walk away reminded that we are not the sum of our damage, but the authors of what we do next.
And sometimes, the smallest ember becomes the bonfire.
🌀 Chapters:
[00:00] Opening & Bruce’s Setup
[04:00] Childhood Trauma & Foster Care
[10:00] Addiction, Shame & Compassion
[20:00] Unraveling the Rope: Metaphors of Healing
[31:00] Mausoleum Ceremony: The Day Bruce Quit
[41:00] The Rain & Release
[50:00] Positivity, Merch, and Building a Platform
[55:00] Bruce’s “Three Do’s” & Closing Reflections
Bio: Bruce W. Brackett is a motivational speaker, visual artist, author, and social media advocate whose life journey took him from severe childhood trauma and addiction to sobriety and artistic purpose. His upcoming book, How to Breathe While Suffocating, documents that transformation and serves as a guide for others finding light in their own darkness.


📢 CTA for the Show:
If Bruce’s journey moved you, share it. Help someone find their light. Subscribe, review, and tell a friend that healing doesn’t always come easily, but it always comes from within.
🌟 Be cool and keep learning. 🌟
🌐 CTA for Bruce:
Follow Bruce at @BruceWBrackett on all platforms.
Grab his book How to Breathe While Suffocating at howtobreathewhilesuffocating.com
Explore his powerful merch line that speaks healing through design.
Support his voice, because it’s helping light the way for thousands still stuck in the flames. 🔥
🚀 Welcome to The Tragedy Academy Podcast
Discover stories of resilience, redemption, and the human spirit.
🎧 Podcasting Made Easy: https://bit.ly/3LSCBh5
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