This boxer, scientist & songwriter is the definition of success

I was on a podcast yesterday with Lance Tyson, and he asked me a great question that no one has ever asked me.

“If you were sitting with your kids and they asked you ‘What does it mean to be successful?’ what would you say?”

Man, what a question. So many people—especially founders—measure success in metrics that contradict how we want our kids to live:

• Massive company exits

• Huge paychecks

• Fame among our peers

Without hesitation I answered that living a successful life means that at the end of my days, when my time is coming to an end in this world, I look back and have as few regrets as possible. Success for me means I didn’t pass up opportunities, I wasn’t afraid to try, and I didn’t leave anything on the table. 

Now that you’re in that mindset, let’s get into today’s post. I love a good career pivot. And I love songwriters.

So when I read about Stephen Wilson Jr.’s story, I had to share it. 

His journey is inspiring:

Rural hunter and angler → Golden Gloves boxer → biology major → food scientist → songwriter for Nashville label → solo career 

You don’t need to like country music or even music to enjoy this one. It’s an inspiring tale that also redefines success. 

It starts in Indiana

Stephen was born in Seymour, Ind., a town of 20K people in Southern Indiana. It’s about an hour north of where I live in Louisville, Ky. 

Stephen's dad was a passionate outdoorsman, hunting and fishing in the area. He even made trips to Jamaica for spearfishing. He taught his boys, Nic and Stephen Junior, to hunt and fish as well. 

Small town life was the start of his writing. Stephen’s school bus driver loved country music and would play it on every trip. When Stephen was 11 or 12, he heard Tim McGraw’s “Don’t Take the Girl” and found himself crying on the bus (admittedly not a good look for a country boy approaching his teens). 

As he pondered how a three minute song could give him more emotion than a 90 minute movie, he realized songs were crafted to resonate, like tweaking cogs in a machine. He started writing poetry as a result. 

Stephen grew up with a single dad who worked as a mechanic to put food on the table for him and his siblings. His dad taught him to box, and Stephen was even a finalist in Indiana’s Gold Glove boxing competition. 

From boxing, Stephen’s journey takes an interesting pivot—he becomes a scientist.

He was writing music along the way, but after securing a bachelor degree in microbiology from Middle Tennessee State University, he went to work for Mars as a Product Development Scientist. 

Yes, Mars, the candy and pet company.

By now, Stephen was writing songs with a band, but his day gig was science. One day his boss at Mars pulled him aside and told him to quit. He said Stephen was about to get the corporate shackles, locking him into a path for life, complete with huge salaries but in a career he never wanted. 

His boss went further, saying if Stephen didn’t chase a record deal now, he’d spend the rest of his life miserable and wondering what could have been, according to an interview with Holler Country (no relation to my product, Holler Commerce, just a fun name). 

Stephen quit 3 weeks later.

It took a few years for Stephen to secure that deal—but he eventually did. 

After Mars, Stephen kept meeting with publishers, and they all told him he needed to write more party music. 

Then he met BMG’s Chris Oglesby, known as “Cowboy Chris.” The Cowboy signed Stephen on the spot.

“This is a publishing deal,” Cowboy Chris said. “I’m giving it to you right now because I believe in you. You’re the future of country music. All this bro-country bullshit is gonna be gone in 5 years. You’re going to be ahead of the pack.” 

Stephen went on to write tracks for some big names. Tim McGraw cut Stephen’s “For What It’s Worth” but never released it. He wrote for Caitlyn Smith, Old Dominion, Sixpence None the Richer, ‪Leigh Nash and many others. 

With some years of writing under his belt, he wanted to go solo. 

But tragedy struck. 

Son of dad

Stephen’s dad had a surgery in 2018. Junior was coming to see Senior the next day when he got a panicked call from his sister saying their father was dying. His sister held the phone while dad spoke.

“Hey man, it’s going to be okay. Write a good song for me.” Stephen’s dad said. 

He said “I love you” 4 times, then passed.

When you listen to his debut album, you’ll find that this was the inspiration behind many of the tracks. 

In early 2023, Stephen Wilson Jr. signed with Big Loud, the label behind some of pop country’s biggest names, but also rising stars like Charles Wesley Godwin and Maggie Rose. 

His first album was a tribute to his dad, five years after his death.

Critical reception

Stephen Wilson Jr.’s debut album, “søn of dad,” was named the No. 1 album of 2023 by Holler, and earned a spot as one of the best albums of the year from Whiskey Riff, Wide Open Country, and Rolling Stone. Stephen is opening for some great up and coming acts (and admittedly, some that I find to be terrible, but it will be good exposure for Jr. all the same). His debut triggered some country bloggers, who complained about Stephen’s big-time backing for a solo album. 

My take? I’m a fan. 

Anytime someone chases their dream, I think they’re on their way to success. It doesn’t matter if they make gold records or stack gold after selling their company—it matters they went for it. 

There is nothing worse than regret. I try to live my day to day with this mindset, although I don’t always succeed. Are you going to be in your final days, wishing you’d watched more Netflix? Probably not. But you might wish you’d taken more hikes. The same goes for jobs. Take the risky job change. Go try and build a company before you’re too old to justify the risk. 

Content idea for this week

Do you have any moments in your career where you took a risk? Looking back, how do you feel about it? Was it worth it? What did you learn? 

Who I’m listening to: Stephen Wilson Jr.

What I’m reading: Rex Chapman “It’s Hard for Me to Live with Me”

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