What's in a Name?

Housekeeping Items

When I started this Substack, I chose to publish on the 1st of every month as a starting point. The articles I’m producing here evolved from a column I wrote on the GORUCK blog called Mind Matters which was also put out monthly. And as much as I’d love to write more often, this is currently an activity that uses purely whatever free time I find myself having. Like many people, that usually isn’t much.

But that’s not the only reason to publish so infrequently. I’m also trying to provide commentary that’s unchained from current events. I don’t really care what’s being talked about on the various outlets of outrage we call the media. Part of my intent is to rise above such noise to explore timeless and ubiquitous themes of the human condition. These are the things we don’t talk about enough. And yet we must. I want to provide content that’s concise and cogent instead of prattling on like yet another pundit. Which is to say I’m more concerned with quality than quantity. The last thing most of us need is more emails. If I’m going to put yet another one in your inbox, it better be good, and worth reading. Not just filler.

All of this is a somewhat long-winded way of reminding you that today’s short article is not part of the normal cadence. Expect the next issue of the RARE SENSE newsletter around November 1st and on roughly the 1st of every month thereafter. For now, I simply have some housekeeping items I would like to put out.

The first is regarding the term This Chris Irwin which is the personal brand I’ve come up with to identify myself across various platforms. I don’t really dig personal branding but this has been largely a matter of necessity. I needed a digital signature of sorts, so you know it’s me. However, Chris Irwin alone is too common of a name to use as a social media handle or URL. I share it with a famous racecar driver, a famous horse trainer and other musicians (like me) to name a few. But I don't want to be someone who uses a pseudonym. Nor will I stoop to the moral cowardice of publishing things anonymously. Adding This to the front of my name solves the problem. It also offers me the pleasure of throwing a lexical jab at people who brand themselves as The XYZ or The Real XYZ which always struck me as such a strangely self-absorbed way of saying, “I’m the most important person that happened to be given this name.” So, This Chris Irwin is essentially a personal brand that’s making fun of personal branding. Plus, it rhymes…

To be clear, it's the ideas I’m putting forth that matter, not me. We are far too concerned with our own recognition these days instead of advancing what we believe is right and useful.​ While credibility does matter, good or bad advice can truly come from anyone. Which means the person saying the words is largely irrelevant in most cases. Any concept should stand or fall on its inherent merits (or lack thereof), regardless of who expresses it.

To that point, I’ve decided to change the URL of my Substack from thischrisirwin.substack.com to raresense.substack.com. The old links will redirect but if you are bookmarking anything please make the change. RARE SENSE is indeed the main concept I’m promoting, and this feels like the right move.

Finally, I’ve also started a YouTube channel as a way of augmenting this content from a visual and aural perspective. The first video is up which covers the basics of the RARE SENSE philosophy much like the Manifesto. I’m new to the solo TV studio game so excuse the rudimentary quality as I figure things out.

As always, please share any of this with someone you feel it could benefit. Once again, I’m not a licensed therapist. I am merely trying to encourage others to start thinking about mind fitness just like physical fitness. And advocate some best practices you can do on your own that I’ve found useful through my experience. No one can work out for you. It’s something you have to do because it’s your body. Mental fitness is no different. It’s your mind. You have to train it.

Talk to you again in a few weeks with some specifics on where to start.