We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Antonio Bond a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Antonio with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
My work ethic comes from years of genuinely enjoying what I do. When you love it, getting things done doesn’t feel like work — it just feels natural.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m turning 27 this January, and right now my creative world revolves around growth, reinvention, and discipline. I recently rebranded my film company to PolyMath60 (PM60), which reflects my long-term vision of mastering multiple creative lanes.
While the company is on a hiatus as we prepare for 2026, I’ve been pouring myself into a new challenge: guitar. In the last two months alone, I’ve logged over 500 hours of focused practice — essentially conservatory-level dedication. I love documenting the process, the progress, and the grind, and you can follow the entire journey on my YouTube channel, Squirem.
Whether it’s filmmaking or music, my brand is built on curiosity, consistency, and the belief that mastery comes from showing up every single day.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three qualities that changed everything for me were: knowing roughly what I wanted, refusing to overthink, and just trying things. If I love it, I double down. If I don’t, fine — I still walk away sharper, with experience I can use anywhere. Nothing you try is ever wasted.
My advice for anyone starting out? Stop talking. Stop planning. Stop waiting. Just do the thing. You’ve got at least ten years ahead of you in any craft. While you hesitate and make excuses, someone else is outworking you, outgrowing you, and passing you. The world doesn’t care if you’re not talented yet — that’s actually your advantage. No one’s watching. No one’s judging. That’s the perfect time to be messy, inconsistent, imperfect, and to learn fast. Perfectionism is the #1 killer of creative careers. Perfectionists rarely finish anything.
TL;DR: Start now. Start sloppy. Start scared. You don’t have time to wait for perfect. You get good by moving, not by thinking about moving.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
The only book any young adult—or any adult going through a transition—truly needs is Goat Joat by Antonio D’wayne Aaleick Bond. There’s an overload of self-help ‘gurus’ on YouTube handing out recycled advice. You don’t need a hundred voices telling you what to do. You need one perspective that pushes you toward taking action. That’s what this book does.
If you actually want to grow — not pretend, not talk about it — this is the book you pick up. It’s the only one you need. Read it, apply it, and it becomes a life manual. And yes, it’s on Amazon.
One of the core ideas in Goat Joat is the Theory of Neutrality. Chasing happiness eventually leads to disappointment; sadness is a natural part of life. But before happiness or sadness, every person starts in a neutral state. If you learn to return to neutrality — not attaching, not spiraling — you’ll find something stronger than temporary highs: stability. Balance. Control.
Happiness eventually fades. Sadness eventually crushes. Neutrality doesn’t hurt anybody. At worst, it feels boring — but boredom sparks creation, movement, and problem-solving. That’s where progress starts.
Be bored.
Be neutral.
That’s where the real growth begins.
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