Brad Watanabe

Whenever someone asks “How are you doing?” my typical response is something like… “I’m busy, or I’m tired.” I think that needs to change. The truth is, I’m doing amazing.

I run a business and get to employ others while helping them grow and find value as a creative professional. I am healthy (for the most part) though I could use more “me time” to focus on exercise and well being.

But the biggest, most amazing part of life is the family I get to spend it with. I have a wonderful wife who supports me and has allowed me to pursue my career path, two ridiculously handsome young boys who bring me joy beyond measure and a family full of loving and caring individuals who have raised me well.

Yes, I could use more sleep most days… but today I’m doing amazing!

This current season is full of “I don’t know’s” and pivoting because of it. It’s never a complaint when I say I’m super busy, but maybe my body is actually complaining to my brain, without acknowledgement.

I’m definitely not getting enough sleep (as I type this note at 11:45pm). My connection with my family feels like it’s mostly while shuffling around to the next to do. Work is overflowing yet we’re doing some of our best work ever.

There’s a tipping point in all of this, and I don’t want any of this to topple.

It’s been a wild start to 2026. It ended with a busy schedule, and we haven’t skipped a beat. After today’s workload, I needed some Oli therapy.

Every year has victories of various types. 2025 challenged me to believe in my team in different ways. That was the biggest victory of all… and the way I celebrate wins – Sushi!

I still get excited every time I get a text from my clients asking “Hey Brad, do you have time for a quick call?” – translation: “We have an urgent project, are you available? Even though these calls typically end up being high stress, quick turnaround, big moment project requests, they remind me why I love this path I’ve chosen.

This project was one of those moments. Hawaiian Airlines just announced their Kahu‘ewai Investment program, a 5-year, $600 million dollar plan to renovate Hawai‘i airports, lobbies, aircraft, passenger system and every local news outlet was talking about it. Even Nadaq mentioned it on their news feed.

I rarely take meaningful time to reflect on these opportunities, often rushing into the next project brief, but this is my quick attempt to mark this moment and consider what an honor it is to be trusted with mission critical stories for brands that shape Hawai‘i

Swearing was something I learned when I was a kid. I’m not sure when I was first introduced to my first “bad word” but at some point, it became fun for the shock and awe factor and probably just to feel dangerous or rebellious.

When I was 15, I devoted my life to Jesus (even though mom brought us all to church since we were kids) and during my high school days, decided that swearing was no longer a part of my vocabulary. The thing I learned then was that our words our choices and the more we commit to using words we dislike, the harder it is to remove it from our behavior. Just like any habit, whether good or bad, the more we indulge, the more it becomes a part of us.

Tonight while getting ready to read with my son, he said “What the F___it”. It was strange because it was close enough to what he meant to say even though it was slightly off, so I knew that he’d misheard it from someone else… but he was using in the correct context. He was frustrated because he didn’t want to read, he didn’t get to watch YouTube because he hadn’t finished his reading assignments, and he got in trouble earlier because he was being careless and threw something that hit his younger (almost 11 month old) brother in the face.

It threw me in a tizzy and I immediately reacted. Not by yelling, but with a stern “what did you say?” We progressed to talk about why it wasn’t okay. He lost toy privileges and had to write “I will use good words” ten times before going to sleep.

I’ve been pretty messy since high school. I think it’s because I’ve always had so much going on in my head and heart that I rarely slow down enough to fully evaluate what’s going on… I just do.

Over the years, I’ve tried to clean things up. I’ve tried to streamline, minimize (both clutter and to do lists) and optimize, but I always find my self buried in piles of paper, responsibilities and unfinished thoughts.

I’m not sure if this is something that needs “fixing” or needs embracing… or maybe a little of both.