Because I'm Carlos

Cleaning up my channel subscriptions led me down thinking about creating content and some of the considerations I have in continuously making videos or podcasts consistently. Link to @bobblesandballcards interview stream: https://youtu.be/1eAGyoCLVKM Link to the YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/coZ051-ODzQ Link to Because I'm Carlos on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/p...

Thought I would outline some items for the rest of 2022 coming up on the channel in audio format. After that, the main topic is a discussion on the "Untapped Market" theory as I describe it, after listening to a recent live stream from "The Great Curator" where he described his idea to attend WrestleCon and "introduce" that market to wrestling trading cards. Such a transparent attempt to drum up a...

Discussing my thought process as I'm trying to work through what I'm planning to do with the upcoming AEW Spectrum product. As a collector, I want to pay the least amount possible, but with all the factors available how do I make decisions about that? How is the current hobby climate impact that? Just me talking through it on the pod. My discussion with  @She Blinded Me With Refractors  ...

With things slowing down on all fronts in the Fall of 2022 I discuss content and how that, amongst other things has been allowing me to find my enjoyment in participating in the hobby as things keep shifting around. My discussion with  @She Blinded Me With Refractors  on the channel as well: https://youtu.be/CLNd0Lq_L60 Link to the YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/noZEflw...

Some thoughts on avoiding being stuck with tunnel vision, the fun of having different projects (without too much of a good thing), and some hobby thoughts on a labor day weekend. The video referenced on the  @Bobbles & Ballcards  YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/Kr7-sZB0tX0 My discussion with  @She Blinded Me With Refractors  on the channel as well: https://youtu.be/CLNd0L...

For this one, I have some fun talking about my recent return to Wrestling cards a little bit, some more discussion on the irrationality of the market with some examples, and some content shoutouts in case you're interested in learning more. Check out  @Wrestling with Cards on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/c/WrestlingwithCards The Card Foundation Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/...

I had mentioned in a recent mail day of 2006 Razor poker cards that I wanted to take some time to talk a little more about them. This is that podcast. So in this one, I go back down memory lane thinking about past WSOP, my memories from the poker boom, and getting into poker in 2003. My run watching and playing a lot of online poker in those days and a little musical nostalgia to finish things off...

With the summer months underway and the card and economics markets in flux, I thought it would be a good time to go over the things that I'm thinking about in the Summer of 2022 and some of the other aspects beyond just the economic indicators that I think are factors and some things to observe as we go approach the National and other shows leading into the fall. These are my thoughts as always an...

Finally reaching episode 20 after a hiatus for the audio version, I discuss the current state of my 2022 Goals and some adjustments I'm facing with potential financial headwinds we're seeing out there in the world. Also open to thoughts on potential future topics you'd like to see discussed in this format. Link to the YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/-TdxMqfYKXY Link to Because I'm...

With Marvel, F1, and even wrestling cards getting their time in the spotlight over the past few months there has been no shortage of "influencers" trying to talk up the space to go along with the reactionary creators decrying their influence. In this episode, I discuss how influencers are not a new phenomenon and that rather than complaining about it the best defense is simply understanding their...

In this episode, I talk through my process of trying to collect cards for a set with no real comps and a variety of different unknowns. In this case, I'm focusing on the 2021 Upper Deck AEW series and how I decided what to pursue, and some of the thoughts I went through in making those choices. A lot of these ideas can apply to other entertainment as well as sports cards since we'll have some new...

In this episode, I talk through my process in putting together a checklist for a themed collection that I started thinking about after a recent pickup. With no set checklist, I actually have quite a large potential pool of cards and themes to draw from. From that starting point, I started narrowing it down by selecting some features I was looking for, eventually turning a list of thousands of card...

From the Holiday Virtual Convention, I give some thoughts on Josh Luber's interview regarding transparency in the hobby, distribution methods and where people really want more "hits" and if that's actually in their best interest. Link to the Sports Card Investor Interview itself: https://youtu.be/NBSCFjRQi60 Link to YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/jSPddUXyBpA Link to Because I'm C...

*This was originally a video on the YouTube channel, but I thought this could still work for the podcast as most of the information is verbal. Check out the link below if you would like to see the original video from the source with a demand graph and the cards that I'm citing as the examples* While a lot of folks like to discuss supply, part of the reason is that it's a lot less difficult than tr...

After a recent Personal Finance Dad episode, I thought it would be useful to discuss why and how I use hobby goals to help align my movements within the hobby. One key takeaway is that any good set of goals should allow some flexibility. Life gets in the way, or sometimes opportunities arise that require one to deviate from any "plan" they may have. Understanding and being ok with that is part of...

A recent pickup has me reflecting on how I ended up collecting Jamie Benn as my secondary player PC, along with a trip down memory lane on some previous secondary PCs I've had. I also consider briefly the value of having a secondary PC as a whole. Link to YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/RJdwY_odtOc Link to Because I'm Carlos on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast....

With Josh Luber releasing an essay "TRADING CARDS ARE COOL AGAIN" I do a walkthrough and consider some of the points made in the essay. Some of the thoughts and examples are interesting and I think give a glimpse into the thought process of someone that is going to be VERY relevant in the card market once Fanatics assumes control of production with its upcoming licences. The essay is available to...

A little bit of a mish-mash in this episode as I talk about the upcoming Fall Expo card show, getting some "inspiration" from Instagram, and my general laziness in embracing the act of sorting my collection as part of the intake process. In the latter portion, I discuss a question that came in from IG regarding the prospects of newer wax box prices holding value when the biggest hits have already...

Just some thoughts that I've been having lately on my current approach to collecting, and how it's evolved from previous incarnations of my approach. How do you sort out your various collecting projects? Something similar to this "roadmap" concept? Do you try to collect everything and anything all at once? Link to YouTube version of the episode: https://youtu.be/p3P7Ym33arM Link to Because I'm Car...

Coming off a discussion yesterday on HGA's latest marketing video to explain their "AI" I want to discuss the reaction to different third party graders based on the perception of their most visible spokespeople. The "Halo Effect" is how: "Perceptions of a single trait can carry over to how people perceive other aspects of that person." Based on that do we overvalue how much we like the messenger i...

A random YouTube rabbit hole leads to a discussion on how I build these podcasts, my preference for evergreen content, the lack of originality in said content, and then bringing it back to cards with the suggestion to take the time to appreciate our existing collections. All this is from a re-listen of Kid A from Radiohead. How exactly? All will be revealed on the pod. Video I cited: DEEP DISCOG D...

While watching the Thursday Night Football game I decided to have a chat about focus in collecting and then a fair bit on the exaggerated role that "transparency" has suddenly been given in the hobby. To be clear, I'm glad companies are pushing some transparency, but I don't appreciate it being used as the latest PR tool to suddenly try and claim some moral high ground where the type of transparen...

Some thoughts as the "next wave" of creator-driven sponsored content have started to crop up. I expect this will be more common going forward but makes for an interesting discussion as it remains early in the Sports Card content space. In particular, my interest goes to the original content that is generated for these platforms as a means to bring attention and leverage influencers to help grow br...

I wasn't planning on revisiting the trust topic so soon, but with PWCC/eBay going their separate ways and the knee jerk reaction to Fanatics getting their licenses and shaking up the hobby, there seems to be some additional room to talk about other ways that trust in the hobby can manifest itself. I even finish my WCW metaphor, which will make sense for those that caught this past week's live stre...

With Alt getting backlash with its browser extension and Panini getting flack for the autograph on the LeMelo Ball National Treasures RPA I thought it might be good to use these examples and discuss the role of trust in the hobby, especially as pertains to companies like these. Link to CardPorn's initial IG post on Alt's browser extension: https://www.instagram.com/p/CSZkKROBCDB/ Link to CardPorn'...