We recently connected with Max Martínez and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Max thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?
Many people don’t understand why I spent all of 2021, an off-cycle election year, running versus a political dynasty for Mayor of Miami at 30 years old during a worldwide pandemic without prior government experience. The answer is simple. People make places, and cities are ever-changing canvasses continuously painted by the decisions elected officials make. As an entrepreneur, producer, athlete, and artist with a BA in Government from Cornell, I saw the role of mayor as the perfect opportunity to put my unique skillset to its best use and paint a different reality for residents of Miami by solving the root issues that have consistently plagued my hometown for decades.
Politics are a sport, and the proof is in the progress. The same elected officials have been in charge of the City of Miami for decades, and they are responsible for the bleak reality of constant chaos. Never held accountable, the shameful decisions they’ve made in favor of their own special interests are responsible for the multiple crises Miami is currently facing. I wanted to change residents’ perception of elected officials and give the City of Miami a new reputation as a stable, progressive city that would be able to pioneer time-sensitive issues successfully. I believed that I could only convince voters that I was different by running an entirely grassroots campaign, always being available, and putting in a year-long performance that showed I could navigate every storm. Maneuvering through the unknown to discover how residents and organizations truly felt through a mask during the height of the pre-vaccine pandemic was daunting, exhausting, and humbling. An obstacle not many candidates have had to deal with, I treated it as a chance to show how much harder I would fight for the opportunity.
I wanted to redefine how the job is done, shift the city’s priorities, show that I wasn’t a social media facade, and get residents to believe in ideas that would make Miami a better place for everyone. It takes a certain belief to walk up to a stranger and introduce yourself as a candidate running for mayor of a major metropolitan city, and I woke up every day and did so to the best of my ability for 348 days. I lost any fear of telling people that I am meant to be a great leader in this world.
Max, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Actions speak louder than words. I don’t complain about the size or complexity of problems; I find ways to solve them. If I think you suck at running a city, I will run my own campaign for 348 days to take your job because I believe I can do it better. I could manage my mayoral campaign’s design, strategy, production, fundraising, scheduling, and literature components because of my ability to adapt and use the skills I’ve built through my different industry experiences. I operate as an independent agency, and when we work together, you are getting a walking resource that brings that same intensity to your vision and team.
My goal is to always set the bar higher with every company and person I work with. When I met then-newly-retired NFL veteran Darius Butler in October 2019, we talked about his potential possible post-playing career in sports media. 2 days after meeting, I sent him a 2-minute video pitch on what I envisioned I could do to amplify his voice, and just 3 weeks later, with his brother Denzel as co-host, the Everything DB show was born. On air for just 2 months, we were invited to cover both the 2020 Pro Bowl and Super Bowl media days. Then when Covid hit, we adapted, covered the draft, offseason transactions, and, as I began my political run, Darius teamed up with his former Colts teammate Antoine Bethea to form the Man-to-Man Podcast. Just two-and-a-half years after that introduction, Darius is now a co-host on the Pat McAfee Show, which has 1.57 million YouTube subscribers and just signed a $120M sponsorship deal with FanDuel. The only promise I ever made to Darius was to amplify his voice to the best of my ability and provide him with structure. Happy to play a minor role in his story; I don’t need to be the center of attention to make a long-term impact on the people or teams I work with.
I am never afraid of a challenge and enjoy lifting people that I believe in across different mediums. When I texted DYFL, a Miami artist always hungry for opportunities, in January of 2020 and told him I wanted him to write and record the lyrics to the first song I ever produced, 2:24 Freestyle, a tribute track to Kobe Bryant, he was excited. Timed perfectly to end at 2:24 and released on 2/24, we didn’t know the song and video would become the most viewed on his YouTube channel and help his platform grow the way it did. I have a proven record of finding unique ways to bring the best out of people.
The one characteristic that sets me apart is my fearlessness to push boundaries. I do things that one else even thinks of doing. When the MLS granted Beckham’s franchise to Miami in 2015, I attempted to name and brand the team because I wanted to be a part of the development and integration of the franchise into our community. No one expected the ‘Miami Legacy’ to get featured on the cover of AS.com in both 2016 and ’18, but as people saw it begin to gain steam, they began to believe. When I got hired out of Cornell to co-found Phroogal, a financial literacy startup in San Francisco, no one expected me to become the first founder to crowdfund a FinLit startup successfully or for Phroogal to win Bank Innovation’s 2014 Most Promising FinTech Startup a year later. For over a decade, I have been turning concepts into realities and have learned to take losses as lessons that always keep me motivated to be the best version of myself.
Any individual, client, or company that chooses to work with me is getting a walking resource. My passion drives me, and if we believe in each other, you can count on me to use that passion to take your concept or problem and develop the best strategy or solution that I can. Any company, any idea, and any industry, I can make it happen. The best way to schedule a consultation is through my website maxmart1nez.com and you can follow on social @maxmart1nez.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
15 days into my campaign, my opponent responded to a tweet that made him the most famous mayor in America. If I had thrown in the towel, no one would have blinked. Still, I chose to fight because the numbers told me I could win, and I believed that, if given the opportunity, I could prove that I was a better leader by Election Day. I chose to step up, knew that no one else would, and I wasn’t going to let any tweet stop me from fighting to be a generational leader.
From filing my paperwork, acting as treasurer, penning my platform, designing the site, building the strategy, canvassing over 80,000 doors, producing my media, developing relationships with residents and organizations, calling potential donors, organizing community Zoom brainstorms, preparing and creating my signage, printing my literature, and coordinating a ground strategy during a pandemic, I took things into my own hands and produced every aspect of my campaign because that’s how badly I wanted to lead my hometown into the future. Unknown, unendorsed, and aware of my odds with special interests working hard against me, no one asked me to run, and losing was always a possibility.
No one teaches you how to step up for a moment, and it isn’t easy to get a measured percentage of a given population to believe in your message in under a year, but I wanted the pressure of putting thousands of roofs over residents’ heads, protecting my hometown from future climate catastrophes, and relished the challenge of solving ‘Miami traffic.’ Unfortunately, I finished runner-up, which means I lost the election. However, when my primary opponent didn’t acknowledge my presence or show up to any debates, I can’t say that I feel that I lost it to a person, but rather to a very controlled system.
Within that system, I made the most of every opportunity I could create in such a short amount of time, and that’s why I was the only other candidate to earn a double-digit percentage of the vote. I finished with more votes than the other 3 candidates combined, while the incumbent lost votes from 2017. From unknown 29-year-old to 30-year-old runner-up, the results speak for themselves, and I championed democracy, fought for the people of my hometown’s best interests, and did things the right way without sacrificing who I am.
You’ll be able to read all about it in my book, Running Against The Most F@mous Mayor In America, available on Amazon, Audible, Apple eBooks, and all other book outlets on July 1st.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
I’m only trying to be the best version of myself by inspiring the people around me to be the best they can be. I put my passion into all I do and always follow my heart. I refuse to accept anyone else’s ideas of happiness for me. I chase my dreams, not anyone else’s, and it’s never been my goal to compare or be better than anyone else. I’ve never let anybody put limits on what I can achieve. Why can’t I do it? Why can’t I do what you’re saying I can’t do?
Contact Info:
- Website: maxmart1nez.com
- Instagram: @maxmart1nez
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxwellmartinez/
- Twitter: @maxmartinez
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcXbCj_GrEazeUN1PawG8Ww
- Other: linktr.ee/maxmartinez