About Me
I created this space to make sense of my life—and hopefully help someone else do the same. There’s no neat origin story for this. No single moment made everything clear. Just a series of wake-up calls that hit harder than I expected.
Like spending Christmas morning in a hospital bed with COVID and a pulmonary embolism…
Driving hours from a listing I knew wasn’t going anywhere…
Losing my mentor. Then two more people I deeply loved.
And staring in the mirror one day, realizing I didn’t fully recognize the man looking back.
Each of those moments asked me to slow down. To look deeper.
To stop chasing what I thought I should want and start paying attention to what I actually needed.
What I’ve learned—through life, loss, education, recovery, and reflection—is that most people are performing some version of themselves. They’re following rules that were handed to them, building lives that look right on paper but feel hollow in real time.
And I know that feeling.
It’s not laziness. It’s not weakness.
It’s just misalignment.
We’re taught the theory. The professionalism. The systems.
We’re handed scripts for how to “succeed.”
But we’re rarely invited to slow down and ask:
Is this version of success even mine?
What I’ve found—both in myself and in the people I work with—is that the most meaningful work begins when we stop performing and start remembering who we are underneath the roles, titles, and polished language.
That’s what I’m here for.
That’s the kind of space I try to hold.
Whether through conversation, content, coaching, or just being present—I’m here for people who want to live and lead from a more honest place.I don’t have all the answers. But I have a compass.
And if you’re feeling lost, stuck, or like something’s just off…
You’re not broken. You’re being redirected.
Thanks for being here.— OJ
About The Margins of Meaning
Margins of Meaning is an independent publication launched in April 2025 by Orlando Spikes. If you subscribe today, you'll get full access to the website and email newsletters about new content when it's available. Your subscription makes this site possible and allows Margins of Meaning to continue to exist. Thank you!
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