Hey everyone, sorry I haven’t posted lately. The past couple of weeks have been a mix of sadness and gratitude as I’ve been processing the passing of my dad, Mike Maples, Sr. I had planned to share some stories about his life, but I just haven’t had the time to put my very best thoughts into writing.
Thankfully, I had the opportunity to be on Ryan Hawk’s Learning Leader podcast, which gave me a chance to share some of those stories, even if accidentally. It was a raw experience since it happened right after I said my final goodbye to my dad in Austin, but in a way, it was also cathartic.
If you’re interested in hearing some “fish stories” and what it was like growing up with my dad, I recommend listening to the interview from 2:04 to around 15:00. It was tough to talk about less than a week later, but Ryan handled it with care, and I’m grateful I got to share.
I wrote this right after I fully grasped that the end was real:
https://x.com/m2jr/status/1877420337949782212
This next post is from late 2023, when I had a clear sense of where things were headed. I shared some thoughts on why having a great dad—and striving to be one—matters so much. Around that time, Walter Isaacson’s book on Elon Musk came out (which was amazing), but it also revealed how Musk’s dad was (and is) terrible. That, along with the fact that Steve Jobs’ father abandoned him, really stuck with me.
I think people underestimate just how important a great dad is. And we shouldn’t get the wrong idea that boys who grow up without a loving father somehow have an 'advantage' because of their struggles. Instead, we should celebrate the dads who show up and recognize that being a great father might be the most important role a man can have in his lifetime.
https://x.com/m2jr/status/1725694847141753339
GeekWire wrote a piece about Mike Sr., with some great comments from Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, and many others from Microsoft:
Steven Sinofsky, a legendary product leader who worked with my dad at Microsoft in the late ’80s, wrote an incredibly kind tribute:
And this was my original in-impromptu post about “fish stories” as a reply to my good friend Chris Hyams, who is having a pretty good run these days as the CEO of Indeed:
I especially love how Mike Sr entered the chat when lots were skeptical that the story was “too good to be true” as if it was from a Hollywood movie that wasn’t real.
Thanks for sticking with me through this post. I really wish more of the people I’ve met in recent years had the chance to know him. He was an incredible force of kindness, always at ease with himself, and had a rare gift for bringing out the best in the very best. I feel lucky to have had a front-row seat to how he lived.
And then there is this song by Chet Atkins, which is living rent-free in my head right now:
I’ve got some awesomtacular ideas on the horizon, I promise.—I just need another week or two. Then I’ll be back in full force! :)
Mike Sr. would have expected nothing less.
DO. YOUR. BEST
.….always.
I do not know what to say except my heart still aches. If I had just known he was sick before he was sick…just one last visit. Just to see that kindness with that great mind all in one person. My dad did the best he could….he returned firm WWII shell shocked (now called PTSD) and we did not understand why alcohol was his personal escape. I have known less than five men in my life that is have trusted with my all my soul. Your dad was one of them.
Love you Mike Jr. And loved Mike Sr. too🙏