I can't read.

At least, not like you can polish off a book or two. It would take me a month or more to read a book I was interested in. Longer, if the material did not jump off the page. Sadly, many don't.

I always felt like I was born too late. Do you ever wonder if you would have thrived during a different era?

I would have enjoyed oral lore, or oral tradition, when ideas and stories where passed down by generations of people to one another. The best stories survived the true test of time -- memorability through reach and repetition.

It sounds a lot like marketing in a very noisy, competitive world today. right?

Discovering the best information takes effort and determination. In a world where millions of books are released annually, it also takes some luck and good ole word-of-mouth (WoM).

Thanks to advances in technology like being able to carry around a super computer in our pockets and purses, we can listen to podcasts, books, the radio, or watch essentially whatever our hearts desire. For me, in 2015, something magical happened -- I discovered the Audible service. Over 300 books later, I can say I consume at least 2-3 books a month. My CMO wife calls my list "boring books" on brain health, intelligence, resilience, endurance, identity, category design, product development, sales, and marketing. We share marketing in common, but she really likes true crime non-fiction. I like exploring the brain and business topics.

Tetris is a global phenomenon.

In fact, Apple TV+ recently released a movie about the history of the game I'd like to watch at some point in the future.

The game invaded my household in the 1990's like many others.

What intrigues me about elite players like my mom Dianne who can play the game for hours with the blocks dropping at WARPspeed is how quickly they have to decide where the shape fits in -- even if it is not the one they want right now.

Information we gather through activities like reading can work this way too, right?

As the game progresses, the different shapes keep getting dropped at faster and faster speed. The "gravity" is changing inside the game of Tetris.

Have you experienced this gravity with the amount of information now available in your favorite medium? Overwhelming, right? -- even when it is an area of interest for you.

So, how do you decided to tackle something like breaking down the information on long-term brain health -- cracking Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and other cognitive disorders?

This was my quest and what lead to Cracking ALZ.

A lot of the information on brain health is not written for the average person to consume in my experience reading and listening to books on the topics of brain health, longevity, intelligence, learning, etc.

But, you're not average. You are a top achiever or someone striving to be -- or you likely would not be here now.

Even if you are interested in long-term brain health, the gravity in the game of life is dropping those different shaped blocks ever faster.

Can you keep up? Can anyone?

There are scary statistics on the amount of research reports available to healthcare providers I will share in the future. It's impossible to keep up even if you can read at warp speed. Good thing the AI models are here to save us and healthcare. (some truth and sarcasm)

The shapes are dropping faster and faster. Gravity in this case is not our friend.

If you are going to tackle a topic like brain health, you start with the popular experts and work you way out. Obvious advice, right?

How does one go about figuring out what is important the information is dropping too fast?

It's easy. Look for the soapboxes, shipping containers, and sticks of dynamite.

Wait, what?

Let me explain my research framework. It will make sense. Please use it yourself going forward.

Soapboxes have a long history in politics, but your modern day soapboxes are simply your prolific speakers and influencers; doing live events and shows, media interviews, webinars, and virtual events. It often gives the speaker credibility when you see them on all of the above. It does not guarantee they are a credible source. But, it is start -- thus the soapbox. Some of this is often discovery. When someone on a soapbox recommends someone else, I will take their recommendation or referral.

Shipping containers are often filled with valuable merchandise and tools. They go everywhere too around the world. A good shipping container goes global, right? Plus, it has wear and tear on the outside. When I am working on a project, I am looking for individuals who ship -- print and audio books are a great place to start. Someone who goes to the effort to record their book for a platform like Audible shoots up the list for challenged reader like me -- and it says the material was usually worth the extra step. Materials that get translated shows it is valuable for more than just English-speaking individuals too.

Dyn-o-mite! Do you remember JJ's catchword from the show Good Times in the 80's? We need someone who standouts like JJ, but we certainly don't want their ideas blowing up in our faces. While we would never want to mess around with real dynamite explosives, we want to look for explosive ideas which destroy the status quo or long-held believes. Healthcare change moves at a glacial pace often with good reason. Christopher Lochhead (Play Bigger, Category Pirates) likes to say, "Everything is the way it is because someone changed the way it was." He challenges us to look for those doing something different.

I look for dynamite thinking like you'll see in several of the books below on preventing cognitive decline which is incurable today. Some of it simply needs to be translated so it is more consumable by a broader audience of top achievers -- this is where I come in with Cracking ALZ.

Here is a radical idea -- we don't need reactive healthcare if we prevent the silent self decay taking place today.

The entire premise of Cracking ALZ is most people are not interested in brain health as much as someone like me because it is very complex, hard to understand, and real science-y.

I'm a marketer by profession. Why have I read the list of books above or listened to hundreds of books on Audible. It is not entertainment.

My dad, Larry, transitioned in February of 2021. The information in the books would have helped him decades ago potentially avoid his fate of dying to ALZ -- except he would not have read, listened, or consumed the cliff notes because they are not written for achievers like him.

Good marketers get solutions out in the world which solve problems. Great marketers are legendary at language -- turning complex products and services into easy to understand solutions we are compelled to buy with our money and time.

This post already does not follow my framework of "Be Brief, Be Brilliant, and Be Gone"...

So...if you like it that way like I do, Cracking Daily and my video series will give you everything are looking for to expand your plan for long-term brain health.

Let's get cracking!