The Pattern Brief

Time isn't neutral in branding. It's a force multiplier for bad brands, and a drain on everyone trying to hold them accountable. I've been watching the predictable arc of scandal recovery. Andrew Cuomo resigns over sexual harassment then runs for NYC mayor. Diddy faces serious charges but will likely be "on the red carpet" if he beats the case. The same formula works for brands. Wells Fargo creates millions of fake accounts, Facebook enables election interference, Uber builds toxic culture....

A friend said this about NYC billionaires threatening to leave, and I haven't stopped thinking about it. "They're not afraid he won. They're afraid he'll call their bluff." Because this isn’t just about taxes.It’s about 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿, 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿.Rich people always threaten to leave New York when taxes go up.But they don’t leave. Why?Because 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲.They need access. They need community.They need to be seen.Fox News could operate out of Florida.But they pay Manhattan...

In part 1, I wrote what Zohran Mamdani's win in New York means to me. The crab bucket mentality. The maintenance problem. The toothpaste argument. But in this post I want to talk about why I'm seeing those exact same patterns play within how brands play. Because the way we think about political competition is identical to how most brands think about market competition. And it's killing both. The Launch Addiction Here's what happens in most companies: Team spends months on a launch. Product,...

Mamdani post win "Living in America is being so afraid that someone else will get something for free that you make life equally miserable for everyone." I've been thinking about this line since Zohran Mamdani won last night. We've built a culture where we'd rather all suffer together than risk someone getting ahead without "earning" it. Better to sink the boat than let someone bail water they didn't personally carry. Mamdani's win felt like the first real crack in that logic in years. The...

Welcome to The Pattern Brief! Hey, I’m Ishmael. I run Between Minds, a boutique strategy studio that finds what's next in the spaces between culture, technology, and human behavior. It's just me — no account team, no hand-offs. The same person who does the work is the one you'd be talking to.I work with founders and brand leaders who need to spot patterns others miss—using cultural intelligence and AI-enhanced strategy to build the future, not just react to it.My newsletter is going to blend...