If Then Podcast: Content Kings
"Writing forces you to stay up to date and actually learn what's happening . . . it forces you to become an expert and you don't realize it." - Reggie Young of Fintech TL;DR and Lithic
We’re back with another installment of IF:Then, the hottest newsletter podcast about strategy at the intersection of law and technology. To stay up to date with interviews and news recaps on career intentionality and product strategy, hit that subscribe below.
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I started writing this newsletter largely as a vehicle to discuss with the IF:Then community my thoughts on product and regulatory strategy, largely as in-house counsel, and to generally support IF:Then’s goal to encourage the community to embody the Legal Wayfinder spirit, as well as keep others up to date on interesting topics and items at the intersection of law and technology. After a handful of articles and a pivot to podcasting, the main takeaway from this experience is quite clear: it’s really helped me learn.
Content creation - especially if it involves some sort of topical analysis - is fairly similar to writing briefs in litigation. In order to make an argument, break down a topic, or spot a trend, you need to support the thesis with background and facts. Even if you have a good grasp of the subject, the need to cite your claims forces you to read. It forces you to synthesize disparate pieces of information. It forces you to think. Research!! If you want to explain something clearly and concisely, you have to know it well enough to simplify it. It’s harder than it sounds. Sitting down and writing The Underwrite Stuff helped me organize my thoughts around consumer lending in a way that I really hadn’t appreciated before putting pen to paper.
I also think writing makes you really challenge yourself to try to understand what you find interesting about a topic. The majority of newsletters I’ve written did not end up where I thought they would after writing. This is largely because as I was researching one take, the sources I was consuming ended up sending me on a different path. That type of microevolution was a huge part of self-discovery. What did I really want to write about? I think that can apply to your work or career as well. Where does your attention go when you’re creating whatever output your job requires? If you’re lucky enough to distill that, and it has any chance of being a productive trait, follow that instinct!
Content Kings
Just a couple of content guys making some content
This week’s guest on the podcast is newly minted Product Counsel at Lithic and the author of the questionably capitalized FinTech Law TL;DR. Reggie previously spent some time at Bluevine after doing fund formation work at a few law firms. Notably, Reggie was into content creation from the very beginning of his career, starting out as an editor for his college newspaper, penning a crypto blog for his early law firm, and eventually starting and maintaining Fintech Law TLDR.
Reggie chronicles for us how much he has been able to teach himself by writing. He details how it forces you to stay up to date with the news and deep dive yourself into your research topics. He also goes through his take on US stablecoin regulation before letting us in on the idea loosely featuring a Michael Scott run-in with the Juicero.
Lastly, Reggie walks us through his new job at Lithic, how #content plays directly into it, and the opportunity for card issuer processors.
Make sure you tune in, and even if you don’t, please subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, give us a 5-star review, and tell your friends that the If Then Podcast is full of wonders, insights, and joy. As I always say, do interesting work your are interested in. And if what you’re interested in is a strategic community full of attorneys and regulatory professionals, IF:Then is here to help.
Until next time, friends - David Ikenna Adams
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If you liked this content and want to see more, please subscribe. If you’d like to join the IF:Then community, please reach out to me david@ifthen.vc