Good morning, friends!

You may remember that I published a Profile Dossier on Robert Hoge in April 2021. I just got the chance to interview him, and it was an extraordinary conversation.

I will be publishing more original interviews over the next month so make sure you’re subscribed to my YouTube channel here.

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“Shattered. Brokenhearted. Afraid. Upset. Any adjective would almost describe how I felt — providing it wasn't describing happiness. I was destroyed.”

Fifty years later, Robert Hoge still reads the journal in which his mom Mary documented her most intimate thoughts after he was born. “She was expecting a lovely fifth child as her birthday present,” which was the day after Hoge was born. “And alas, she got me.”

Hoge’s appearance wasn’t at all what his mom expected. He was born with a large tumor in the middle of his face that pushed his eyes to the sides of his head and two severely mangled legs. His mom refused to take her baby home because she was worried about how his difficult upbringing would affect her other children.

“[My parents] cried together,” he said in an interview with The Profile. “It’s obviously a bit of a challenge seeing what was, you know, a monstrously ugly baby, not what they were expecting, not what they were prepared for. And my mom just didn't want to see me straight away.”

When she and her husband returned home without their newborn child, his mom kept second-guessing her decision. So she decided to give her kids a say. During a family meeting around the dinner table, she asked them to take a vote on whether they wanted Hoge to join the family. His siblings all voted that they wanted his parents to bring him home.

Even though he got a second chance at life, it wasn't easy. He spent the majority of his childhood at hospitals where doctors attempted surgery after surgery to remove the tumor. The procedures left Hoge with severe deformities on his face.

At age 14, Hoge's parents began talking to doctors about yet another major operation that would fill in the dents on the side of his head, reconstruct his nose (again), and bring his eyes a little closer together. The biggest risk? There was one in a four chance he might become permanently blind. So his parents said, "You're almost an adult. We'll let you make this decision."

For the first time since his birth, the fate of his face was in Hoge's own hands. He struggled with the decision until he heard his brother say, “What use is it being pretty if he can’t even see himself?”

He declined the surgery, and from that day on, Hoge has focused on accepting his imperfections, differences, and all the "ugly" things that made him who he is.

🎧 LISTEN.

Meet Robert Hoge, the ‘Ugly’ Human Living a Beautiful Life By Polina Marinova Pompliano Podcast episode

🎬 WATCH.

Read the Full Article Here

PROFILES.

— The driver revolutionizing Formula 1 [**HIGHLY RECOMMEND**]
— The cable news provocateur
— The tennis champion saying goodbye
— The librarian sharing love notes left behind in books
— The actress who found her most important role
— The crypto company in the eye of the storm

PEOPLE TO KNOW.

The driver revolutionizing Formula 1: Lewis Hamilton is now one of the most famous athletes on earth, even more so since Netflix’s documentary series Formula 1: Drive to Survive brought his sport to a new audience, particularly in the U.S. He has won a record-equaling seven world championships, and when it comes to driving cars like these around 200 miles an hour, some would argue he’s the best there’s ever been. In this profile, we learn what Hamilton does to perform at the highest levels and what he envisions for his next chapter. (For more, read Hamilton’s Profile Dossier here.)

“If anything, we should shine as bright as we can to liberate others to do the same.”

The cable news provocateur: Rachel Maddow signed a multimillion-dollar contract to not be on the air five nights a week. Now, Maddow opens up about why she’s changing gears, her upcoming projects, her health scares, and her surprisingly amiable rapport with Tucker Carlson. (Vanity Fair)

“A person could only do this job for five years.”

The tennis champion saying goodbye: After nearly 30 years of being at the top of her sport, tennis sensation Serena Williams is saying goodbye. In this first-person essay, Williams announced her impending retirement from the sport that has been at the center of her life for decades. “I’ve been reluctant to admit that I have to move on from playing tennis. It’s like a taboo topic,” she writes. “It comes up, and I start to cry.” (Vogue)

“It’s the hardest thing that I could ever imagine. I hate it. I hate that I have to be at this crossroads.”

The librarian sharing love notes left behind in books: In her 20 years as a librarian, Sharon McKellar has unearthed all kinds of left-behind personal items — from doodles to recipes to old photographs — nestled between the pages of returned library books. She carefully removes them and reads them, and then she scans and uploads them to the library’s website after scrubbing any personal identifying information. It has become a hobby, and she has got quite a following of people who are equally charmed by the forgotten finds. (The Washington Post)

“Things that seem the most mundane can be the most interesting.”

The actress who found her most important role: Starting with her rise to fame on 'The Office' to now creating some of streaming’s biggest hits, Mindy Kaling has transformed Hollywood. But her most fulfilling project yet is happening behind the scenes—as a mother, mentor, and mogul. (Marie Claire)

“If you don't have a partner, you can still have children.”

COMPANIES TO WATCH.

The crypto company in the eye of the storm: Brian Armstrong, an early devotee of blockchain technology, built the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to be big. He hired employees by the hundreds, pushed into new markets, and scaled up the number of digital tokens available on the platform. Coinbase became the largest crypto exchange in America and went public in spring 2021 with a market value of nearly $86 billion. This year’s crypto collapse has dropped that value to roughly $21 billion. And it has left Armstrong to wrestle with a sprawling business now faced with high expenses, dwindling cash and, more recently, a challenge from federal regulators. (WSJ; reply to this email if you can’t access this article)

“Coinbase expanded wildly before it got its sea legs.”

✨ This installment of The Profile is free for everyone. If you would like to get full access to all of the recommendations, including today’s audio and video sections, sign up below.

AUDIO TO HEAR.

Alex Zhu on creating a viral loop: Before TikTok, Musical.ly was the place you went to if you wanted to watch people dancing to pop songs. You may not know that ByteDance (the owner of TikTok) acquired Musical.ly and its 90M+ users in 2018. In this episode, Musical.ly co-founder and co-CEO, Alex Zhu shares how he grew the app without spending a cent on distribution. (Link available to premium members.)

Jarrid Tingle on running a $170-million VC firm: Jarrid Tingle, the founder of Harlem Capital, navigated his way from humble beginnings to an 8-figure fortune—all before turning 30. His secret weapon? His mother. “My mom sacrificed literally every penny she had to get me into a private school,” he recounts. “She was not like other moms, right? Her love language is service. And she knew that her life wasn't going exactly how she wanted, but she saw something in me and just wanted to pour into me.” (Link available to premium members.)

VIDEOS TO SEE.

Sidra Qasim on building a shoe empire: Sidra Qasim is the co-founder of Atoms, a sleek direct-to-consumer shoe startup. Qasim’s journey to entrepreneurship was neither easy nor straightforward. In this interview, Qasim details how she designed the life she wanted to live, how refused to give up time and time again, and why, after all these years of struggle, it's all been worth it. (Link available to premium members.)

Jeff Bezos on the power of obsession: In this interview, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos makes a tiny, but important distinction: Obsession can be a massive advantage if you choose to obsess over your customer instead of your competitor. Early in his journey, Bezos would allow his customers to make decisions on behalf of the company by emailing them surveys every time he had a business question. This is a good one. (Link available to premium members.)

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