Pre-election thoughts
It’s the day before Election Day (May 7, 2022) as my first full foray into running for a public office. Am I nervous? Not really.
Why?
Before I submitted the paperwork to run, I asked myself what success would look like. And it actually wasn’t winning the seat.

Success is staying true to my sense of self. While there were times when I really wanted to go off script, I’m very pleased that my sense of self remains intact. I’m still focused on the reason why I was put on this earth: to educate and to comfort. I’m a work in progress and so I use this framework coupled with the guidelines below to keep me from spinning off my axis:
- In all things you do, be nice (and contextually assertive)
- Let no one leave your presence feeling worse than when they met you
- Let go of the things you can’t control
- Do what you’re good at and don’t do what you’re not good at
I think overall, I stayed true to myself despite an incredibly stressful April 2022. HOORAY for me!
What if I win?
Whew! As a kid who grew up on food stamps, I’m still managing the trauma of being poor: money makes me nervous. To clarify: getting money without a direct work action on my part makes me nervous. Lol, trust me, if I work my ass off, I feel I deserve every cent coming to me as an employee/entrepreneur. Political campaigns are different because there’s no tangible good or service to close the immediate transaction. The campaign raised over $43,000 to run this race and the return on their investment is a win. So if I win, “whew” indeed for those donors and hallelujah my guilt is resolved!
Personally, a win means that I get to work with likeminded folks (School Board, community, other politicians) to help build a better system for Fort Worth’s kids. I’m not overly concerned that people will come to expect me to act/vote any differently than I do now; I’m a pretty moderate Democrat who believes capitalism is the least crappy way of running a country and that personal accountability is key to building a strong society. So I’m not too worried about getting along with people who aren’t shamelessly sabotaging quality social discourse.
What if I lose?
I’ll feel horrible. Not because I won’t get to help Fort Worth’s kids (because I literally already do that), but because people from across the spectrum gave me $43,000 that’s now gone like a fart in the wind. That’s $43,000 that could have gone to kids scholarships or to the neighborhood associations in District 4, or to investing in Black startups. So yeah, I’ll feel horrible if I lost those people’s money.
Personally, losing won’t hurt my feelings because I’ve lost a lot in my life. Losing my Mom in 2016 changed everything for me. She always encouraged us to try and that’s what I did. So if I try and fail, it’s not a personal loss because I learned from it. Additionally, I have more than enough dreams and plans to keep me hyped and busy (www.FeelBetterFortWorth.com anyone?)
What if there’s a runoff?
Strangely, this is the worst outcome, lol. I like to know where I stand. Hire me, fire me, contract with me, cut me off. I’m a big fan of knowing exactly what you need and/or expect from me. Saturday night helps me know if I need to change my schedule to accommodate School Board Meetings or change my schedule to get back to seeing more patients and recruiting more mental health workers to the area (which is what my companies do among other things.)
A runoff means that there’s no conclusion; that I have to go back out and continue to put off plans for an additional month or two or three. Yes, I’ll do it but it makes me sad that neither area (FWISD or mental health world) gets my full undivided attention for the time we would have to continue politicking.
Regardless of outcome, I owe my family, friends, colleagues, patients, community, and political consultants all the credit. Y’all’s love and support of me made this whole thing possible; I just did what I was told (and not doing what I’m not good at).
Let’s see what happens! Onward and upward!
Brian