- Joshua Hale: The Holistic Tech Wizard
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Turkey Day Truth Bombs & Birthday Reflections
When family gatherings feel like emotional obstacle courses (and why that's actually normal)
Joshua Hale
November 27, 2025
6min Read | Watch | Listen
Hey there Visionaries!
Happy Thanksgiving.
This week already kicked my tail.
Marriage stuff. Friend stuff. Community stuff.
All of it hitting at once.
And I'm the guy who just made a Holiday Survival Guide.
The irony isn't lost on me.
I screwed up. Had to apologize. Felt like an idiot.
But nobody graduates from being human.
You don't get a pass on messy weeks just because you teach this stuff.
If the holiday tension is getting to you, there is help below.
Why You Should Give All the Cares:
Real Holiday Talk: What to do when family love comes with too many strings
AI Model Showdown: Which one actually helps you run your business
Book News: AWAKEN hit #1 in three Amazon categories (still weird to say)
Thanksgiving tension hitting yet?
You know what family gatherings actually are?
A stress test for which version of yourself you're still running.
The people-pleaser version. The defensive version. The over-explainer who can't just be.
That's not you. That's survival software you installed at 12 to get through dinner without conflict.
Most people never uninstall it.
Remember that time Jim Carrie came for turkey?
They sit at the table nodding through questions about their life choices while internally screaming.
They leave exhausted, wondering why people who "love them" make them feel like shit.
Here's the thing nobody says out loud:
You can show up without losing yourself.
Not through better communication tips or deep breathing exercises.
Through actually knowing which version of yourself you're running—and consciously choosing which one shows up.
I made something for this exact problem.
Not family therapy advice. Not "set better boundaries" platitudes.
Just practical moves for staying grounded when everyone around you is running their default settings.
Use it. Or don't. But stop pretending you have to perform for people just because you share blood.
Tech Update: Which AI Can Actually Run a Business
Google dropped their new Nano Banana Pro image generation model right after my last email.
Available now when you select 'Create images' with the 'Thinking' model in the Gemini app.
Free users get limited runs. Paid subscribers get more quota.
You can download in 4k!
Cool. But here's what actually matters for your business:
Someone tested the major models on real business work, not demos or marketing examples. Actual messy, real-world tasks.
Opus 4.5: Most reliable for messy, real-world tasks. Big context, fuzzy data. This one doesn't choke when things get complicated. Gemini 3: Best for synthesis work. Big picture thinking. Connecting dots across content. ChatGPT 5.1: Strongest on clean, structured problems. Give it clear inputs, get solid outputs. Grock 4.1: Did worse than ChatGPT 5.1. Couldn't count correctly. Failed basic analysis. Skip it for business work. New feature: ChatGPT Shopping Mode. Try this: "I need gifts under $75 for my WFH gamer brother and my tech-averse mom who loves gardening. Black Friday timing, fast shipping." It actually works. |  Now in your chat options |
Birthday Reflection: Oregon Trail Generation
 | Every year I look back at how I got here. This time I went all the way back. The culture that programmed me: 80s: Legos, Transformers, Back to the Future, Ninja Turtles 90s: Grunge, Nine Inch Nails, The Matrix, Fight Club Then the climb out. The full story is on my Facebook. It's wild how a JW kid ended up becoming the Holistic Tech Wizard. Nothing about it was straight. Every version of myself thought they had it figured out. Every version was wrong. |
Beyond The Matrix: Week 10
We just finished week 10 in the current cohort.
This week covered the awakening entrepreneur.
Not "how to start a business"—that's everywhere.
We covered:
How to find work that doesn't feel like dying slowly
How to build income streams robots can't replace
How to become your own brand so you're never at the mercy of one employer again
Here's what founding member Daniel Rosenberg said:
Beyond The Matrix isn't about learning more information.
It's about rebuilding your internal operating system so everything else actually flows.
Because you can't build a free life while running slave software.
Next cohort starts January.
Join the waitlist for builders who refuse to stay stuck.
Just Hit Bestseller Status
Still processing this. Our anthology book AWAKEN just went best seller.
Grab AWAKEN on Amazon
AWAKEN just hit #1 on Amazon in three categories:
Communication in Management
Business Project Management
Media & Communications Industry
Twenty-five speakers. One book. Built outside the algorithm.
This is what happens when you stop trying to game the system and just build something real with people who actually get it.
Proof that you don't need to compromise your values to win.
You just need the right people building with you.
Today’s Takeaways:
Holidays: You can show up without losing yourself. Use the guide.
AI Models: Opus 4.5 for messy real work. ChatGPT 5.1 for clean problems. Pick based on your task.
Book: AWAKEN hit #1 in three categories. Still surreal.
How are you handling the holiday chaos?
What's your move when family gatherings get intense?
Hit reply. I actually read these.
Stay grounded,
Joshua | The Holistic Tech Wizard
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P.S. If this newsletter didn't melt your brain, you're probably already dead. But if you're still kicking, share it with a friend who's ready to join our army of AI-powered world-dominators!