In The Know with Tony Reeves

At what point does sharing your experience become telling someone else how they should live? In my recent video, I told the story of a decision my mother made when I chose to attend the University of Tampa. She knew my choice could create financial difficulties. She knew I had other opportunities. And she knew that if she told me to choose another school, I probably would have listened. But she also knew what it felt like to have the direction of her own education changed by circumstances outside of her control. So she made a deliberate choice: She would give me guidance, but she wouldn’t make the decision for me.In this companion episode of IN THE KNOW with Tony Reeves, I want to take that story one step further. As members of Generation X—and simply as people who have accumulated decades of life and professional experience—we have knowledge worth sharing. But Gen Z and Gen Alpha aren’t entering the world we entered.Their economy is different.Their educational landscape is different.Their workplace is different.Their opportunities are different.So how do we give younger generations the benefit of what we’ve learned without handing them a roadmap for a world that no longer exists? Maybe the goal isn’t: “Do what I did.” Maybe it’s: “Here’s what I learned. Let’s figure out what still applies to the world you’re navigating.”🎧 Listen as we explore the difference between experience, advice, influence and allowing the next generation to build a path of its own.GO DEEPER INTO THE ANTHONY REEVES EXPERIENCE🎥 Watch the story that inspired this conversation:https://youtu.be/5mXm809vAOg Then explore The Anthony Reeves Experience through the links in my profile for additional videos, podcasts, written reflections, resources and deeper conversations. Experience gives us lessons. Wisdom is knowing how to pass them on without requiring someone else to live our life.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

In 1987, I made one of the biggest decisions of my young life: where I would go to college. I chose the University of Tampa without visiting the campus, without social media, without virtual tours, and without access to the enormous amount of information students have today. Much of my decision was based on a college catalog, reputation, and the recommendation of someone I trusted. That raises an interesting question:If I were 17 years old today, would I make the same choice? The answer is that I really don’t know. And in this companion podcast, I explore why that uncertainty matters.We often look back at our younger selves and ask what we would have done differently. But that question sometimes ignores something important: we were making decisions with the information, resources, circumstances, and perspective available to us at that particular moment.Today’s students can research tuition, campus culture, dorm rooms, student organizations, financial aid, student reviews, career outcomes, and even communicate directly with current students before ever visiting a school.My generation didn’t have that same level of access. So maybe the better question isn’t whether we would make the same decision today. Maybe it’s: Did we make the best decision we could with what we knew at the time?This conversation goes beyond college. It applies to careers, relationships, money, opportunities, and many of the choices we make throughout our lives. Sometimes a decision wasn’t wrong. Sometimes the world simply changed.Call to Action:Think about one major decision you made when you were younger. Would you make the same decision today? And if not, ask yourself why. Was the original decision actually wrong—or do you simply have access to information and perspective today that you didn’t have then? I’d love to hear your thoughts.Follow IN THE KNOW with Tony Reeves for more conversations about life, education, career, personal growth, and the lessons we discover when we look back with a little more perspective.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

Sometimes the job you’re in isn’t where you’re ultimately supposed to stay. Sometimes its real value is what it makes possible next. In this episode, I share how my first job with the State of Florida became the vehicle that helped me earn my Master of Public Health while taking on very little additional student debt. At the time, I wasn’t making much money. The job wasn’t necessarily where I wanted to remain long term. But once I discovered the educational benefits available to me, I realized something important: leaving immediately might actually cost me more than staying. So I made a trade-off. I endured some short-term financial discomfort, took advantage of the educational payment and leave programs available to me, and focused on walking away with something that could create greater opportunities later. This episode is about more than graduate school. It’s about recognizing the hidden value in where you are right now. Sometimes the question isn’t simply: “Should I leave?” Sometimes the better question is: “What can I extract from this opportunity before I move on?” Because the thing you’re ready to leave behind may actually be helping finance, prepare, or position you for what comes next. Call to Action:If this episode connects with where you are right now, share it with someone who’s trying to decide whether it’s time to move on—or whether there’s still something valuable to gain from where they are. And follow IN THE KNOW with Tony Reeves on Spreaker so you don’t miss the next conversation.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

There are moments in life that don’t seem particularly significant when they’re happening. Then you look back 10, 20, or 30 years later and realize:That conversation changed everything. During my junior year of college, I was struggling with some of my science courses and seriously considering leaving my biology major. I wasn’t failing to understand the material. I was struggling to produce the grades I expected from myself—and I started interpreting that struggle as evidence that maybe I didn’t belong. Then I had a conversation with my advisor, Dr. Fred Punzo. He didn’t promise me that staying in biology would make me a doctor. He didn’t tell me exactly what career I would have. Instead, he helped me look at my situation from 30,000 feet. He recognized that there weren’t many Black and Latino students completing STEM degrees and believed that staying the course could create opportunities for me that I couldn’t see yet.Decades later, I can trace pieces of my journey—from government work and graduate school to the military, law school, private practice, entrepreneurship, and becoming a judge—back to completing that biology degree. And when I graduated, of the Black men who had started in that STEM environment with me, I was the only one who finished as a STEM major. This episode isn’t simply about staying in a difficult major. It’s about understanding the importance of having people in your life who can see possibilities that you can’t see yet.Sometimes you don’t need someone to give you a roadmap. You need someone with enough experience to show you that the road you’re standing on goes farther than you think.CALL TO ACTION Think about the people who gave you advice that changed the trajectory of your life. Did you recognize its importance immediately—or did it take years before you understood what they were trying to tell you? Share this episode with someone who’s questioning their abilities or wondering whether their current struggle means they’re on the wrong path. And remember: struggling with something doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t belong there. Sometimes you just haven’t reached the part of the journey where you understand why staying mattered.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

For many members of Generation X, success did not come with a roadmap. We entered colleges, professions, leadership positions, and social spaces that were unfamiliar to our families. We learned through experience, experimentation, mistakes, and persistence. Along the way, we became the attorneys, doctors, judges, executives, educators, entrepreneurs, and mentors we may not have personally known when we were younger. That matters because the generations coming behind us are no longer starting where we started. They have access to us. In this companion podcast,I reflect on the responsibility Gen X has to make our experiences, relationships, and knowledge available to younger generations. I also discuss why young people should be encouraged to study abroad, explore beyond their immediate surroundings, build relationships, and use each opportunity as a gateway to the next one. We are not telling them to repeat our journey. We are helping them understand that the doors we struggled to open are now part of their normal reality—and they have a responsibility to walk through them and keep moving forward.Call to Action:After listening, identify one young person who could benefit from your experience, guidance, or network. Reach out, make an introduction, share what you know, or help them see an opportunity they may not yet recognize. Our progress becomes permanent when the next generation knows how to use it.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

In this companion podcast to my YouTube video, “The Fall of 1988: When I Had to Rebuild My Life Without My Friends,” I reflect on one of the biggest lessons I learned from returning to college after nearly everyone in my support system had disappeared. When I came back to the University of Tampa as a Resident Assistant, I expected to continue building on the friendships I’d made during my freshman year. Instead, I found myself almost completely alone. My closest friends had transferred or chosen not to return, leaving me to rebuild my life from the ground up. In this episode, I go beyond the story and explore what that season taught me:Why we sometimes build our identity around the people closest to us.How losing your support system can force you to discover who you really are.Why starting over is often more frightening than it is dangerous.How unexpected relationships can expand your world in ways you never imagined.Why the greatest periods of personal growth often begin with uncertainty rather than confidence.Looking back, I realize that what felt like one of the loneliest moments of my young adulthood became one of the most transformative. Sometimes the relationships we lose make room for the relationships—and the person—we were always meant to become.🎥 Watch the original YouTube video:The Fall of 1988: When I Had to Rebuild My Life Without My Friendshttps://youtu.be/cd2lFns1usQCall to ActionHave you ever had to rebuild your life after losing the people or circumstances you depended on? I’d love to hear your story. Leave a comment on the YouTube video or connect with me on social media and share what your “starting over” season taught you. If you enjoy these reflections on resilience, personal growth, and the lessons life teaches us, please subscribe to the podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who’s facing a new beginning. Every new chapter carries possibilities we often can’t see until we’re living them.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

We often assume we’re alone when life changes.That’s exactly how I felt when I returned to college in the fall of 1988.My closest friends were gone, and I believed I was beginning the year without a support system. What I didn’t know was that others had already stepped into that role.In this episode, I share how my best friend’s family continued to watch over me, how an unexpected friendship introduced me to an entirely different culture, and why one conversation changed the way I think about being approachable.This episode is about the quiet ways people invest in us before we even realize they care. Sometimes grace arrives long before we recognize it.Call to Action:If this episode encouraged you, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with someone who may need the reminder that they aren’t as alone as they think they are. To explore more stories, books, podcasts, and resources, visit AnthonyReeves.com. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.

In this episode of IN THE KNOW with Tony Reeves, Tony reflects on the danger of romanticizing survival, especially from the perspective of Black Gen X.Many of us grew up having to figure things out with limited support, limited resources, and few backup plans. We learned how to survive because we had no other choice. But survival should not be confused with something glamorous. Through personal stories about college, financial pressure, unreliable cars, family support, and generational differences,Tony breaks down why resilience matters — but why struggle should not be celebrated as if it was ideal.This conversation is not about calling younger generations soft. It is about understanding that the goal was never for them to suffer the way we did. The goal was to create better options. Survival may have shaped us. But there was nothing romantic about it.Call to Action What is something you survived that people now try to make sound “normal” or “character-building”? Drop your thoughts in the comments — because some of these stories need to be understood, not romanticized.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/in-the-know-with-tony-reeves--5596987/support.