So, all right. My homie's pulling up. Homie's
pulling up. Yes. We got him queued up, and he
was in the chat. He said, yo, I'm in the waiting
room. I said, oh, my God. I spaced on it. My
bad, Alyx. Not a problem. Alyx, you are on with
Tim Ross. What's up, my guy? Hey, what's going
on? Can you hear me? I can hear you, bro. All
is well? All is well. That was weird because
I was watching the live, and then. It's a few
seconds behind. No, it's all good, bro. I heard
you talking and then you were saying what up
to me. So you caught me off guard. No, it's all
good, man. It's so good to see your face, bro.
How's everything going? Likewise. It's going
well. We're doing a lot of really exciting things
with the movement that I'm really excited to
share with you and your audience. But yeah, man,
I miss you guys. I miss you too, man. It's so
good to see your face. So let me give a proper
introduction. Alyx Effron is a genius in the world
of advertising, in the world of marketing and
brand management and a host of other things.
I would definitely call him a multi -hyphenate.
And we had a conversation a few weeks back. About
something that he just felt really impassioned
and burdened to do. And it required him being
vulnerable about his own journey. And it's this
specific niche that is not discussed a lot. But
it's something that I really believe is going
to help a lot of people. Because they don't have
to be going to... through the exact same thing
to get the exact same breakthrough. So Alyx,
why don't you tell us what it was? First of all,
what even made you do it? I know that this is
personal to you, but I just want you to give
the audience the full context to it. Yeah, of
course. I appreciate that, Tim. And first, I
want to thank you so much. Thank you and the
team. Hector, Derek, I know you guys can hear
me in the back. Really appreciate you guys having
me on. This really means a lot. And so, you know,
with everything you just mentioned, Tim, I have
been in the world of collecting, if you will,
for the better part of my adulthood. I grew up,
you know, in the 90s. So things like Pokemon
and... the Chicago Bulls era with Michael Jordan
and his greatness and everything that came with
that with collecting basketball cards and memorabilia
has always been rooted in my DNA. So when I got
a bit older, I started to collect sneakers and
sneakers turned into memorabilia and memorabilia
turned into sports cards amongst other things.
And so the world of collecting in general in
today's society, especially... you know here
in the states it's just it's so massive and it's
evolved way beyond um you know the traditional
collecting of uh baseball cards and pokemon cards
and things like that so yeah whether it beakers
or luxury goods handbags digital collectibles
nfts even uh with gaming you know you have your
in -game skins and cosmetics yeah that these
kids are spending lucrative amount of money on
yeah you know there's a shared culture across
all of these different verticals um around chasing,
flipping, flexing, and finding that next big
hit, that next big item that you want to share
with your social following. And for a lot of
people, especially with sports cards, that chase
has turned into something that looks a lot like
gambling. And most people outside of these hobbies
don't realize how intense it has gotten. There's
this thing called breaking. uh basically what
it is it's live streamed acting box openings
where people buy in for a shot at the contents
of the box and you're watching someone else rip
the product you paid for this is uh sports card
specifically hoping your name gets called when
the big card comes out you know the environment
it's fast it's loud it's full of suspense and
it taps into the same dopamine centers that blackjack
and sports betting and even things like day trading
tap into and uh here's where it sort of gets
confusing and tricky unlike a casino there are
no posted odds there are no guardrails there's
no stepping in to slow you down it's all about
hype hope and foma almost a huge part of it and
uh the the prices of these items the prices of
these boxes have become so lucrative seven hundred
dollars a box a thousand dollars a box two thousand
dollars a box that you could spend and walk away
with forty dollars in cards and you see these
viral clips of somebody hitting what they call
a nuke so basically like a big hit and suddenly
you're itching to chase on your own and even
though you have no real chance of you know breaking
even you're still on the horse. You're still
trying to scratch that itch and get that dopamine
hit, right? And what's hot today is forgotten
tomorrow. So there's always something new and
fresh that's coming out. And so with all that
being said, that's where, or what I should say,
led me to this movement that I started about
a month ago. And that movement is called Collectors
MD. For short, it's CMD. And it's a support -based
platform for people navigating the emotional
and financial toll of collecting, especially
those that are caught in cycles they can't seem
to break. So it's not anti -hobby at all. I still
personally love the hobby. I love collecting.
But it's about helping people engage with it
in a healthier and more intentional way. And
honestly, a big part of the heart behind it came
from my time working with you. And, you know,
during our time working together at B -Side,
you would always say something that, you know,
always stuck with me. And that is everyone deserves
to be fully seen, fully heard, fully known and
fully loved. And, you know, you don't just say
that. That's something you live every day. And
you create a space for people to show up as they
are. And that really shapes how I think about
this community. So with Collectors MD, that's
what I'm trying to create, a space where people
in this hobby don't have to pretend that everything's
okay, where they can be honest about the hard
stuff, where they can be seen and supported without
shame. Because if we're going to stay in these
hobbies, many of us want to, we just have to
find a way to do it without completely losing
ourselves. Yeah, man. Bro, I so appreciate the
vulnerability of you sharing this because I was
talking with my best friend yesterday. Obviously,
the NFL draft was yesterday. I had on my Raiders
jersey. I mean, well, my Raiders jacket because,
you know, we had the number six pick. And we
were talking about how disheartening I am that...
all of the major sports leagues have now collaborated
with betting and gaming, right? Yep, it's right
in your face all day, every day. It's right in
your face every day. So now, because these sports
leagues who had historically banned gambling
and betting but never partnered with them, now
that they've come together, It has normalized
gambling to where ESPN, some of their shows are
just insider information on the gambling itself
and the point spreads, right? It's on the bottom
lower third ticking across. like encouraging
people to bet. And then after the game, they
have the nerve to put up a gambling disclaimer
that says, if you are an addict, please dial
this number. If you or you know somebody who
has a problem, call 1 -800 -GAMBLER. And that's
a part of their corporate responsibility. Of
course. It's a part of the corporate responsibility
of DraftKings and FanDuel and Caesars and all
these other... conglomerates of casinos and sports
books that have to create messaging to provide
their consumers their customers yep with a safety
net with the resources that are required for
people that you know have the um you know could
run into the risk of spiraling out of control.
Not everybody can be a fully responsible adult.
Addiction is a real thing. Absolutely. It affects
more than just alcoholics and drug addicts. And
none of that exists in terms of the security
blanket, the resources, the tools that are necessary.
to get that help. None of that exists in any
of these hobbies within the collecting world.
And so that's where Collectors MD comes into the
mix. I'm so grateful that you've done it and
that you've created this space because, again,
we can't be fully seen, fully heard, fully known,
fully loved if we don't continue to create spaces
for... communities to to to grow and evolve that
are dealing with the same thing like you gotta
have somebody that you can look in the eyeball
that can identify with you right like and you
creating this space allows that to happen i want
to deal i want to deal with um the nuances of
this because a lot of people think gambling and
they're only thinking about like hey i'm betting
on the lakers versus the the minnesota timberwolves
right but but let's get down to the micro level
that there are uh and i want you to break it
down um specifically with with with the cards
and with the memorabilia um but i was talking
to my best friend yesterday and we were talking
about the fact that they bet on a player's shoes
like the shoe color that they will wear that
if they have eight colorways they will be they
will literally bet like i think he's gonna wear
I think Luka will wear the pinkies tonight. Or
I think LeBron will wear his green shoes tonight.
Like, this doesn't even have to deal with the
outcome of the game. There's all these little
micro bets within the overall betting of the
game itself. I think Austin Reeves will... Right.
Yeah, it's crazy. You think of the Super Bowl,
people are betting on the color of the Gatorade
that's coming out at the end of the game. People
are betting on the coin toss. People are betting
on how long the national anthem is going to be.
That's crazy. All these processes, what they
call them, is what people are losing their minds
over. But again, that's traditional gambling.
It's regulated. There's a gaming commission.
They're looking over to make sure that these
things, these bets, All of this money that is
coming in and out is happening fairly, right?
With sports cards, with TCG. TCG is Pokemon,
I guess, trading card game is what it stands
for. Okay. It's the Wild West. None of that exists.
And so here's the thing. People outside of the
hobby don't understand. They don't fully... They
can't fully comprehend the intensity of what,
again, sports card breaking has become. And when
you really break it down, it actually shares
a lot of similarities. There's so many synergies
with traditional sports betting and with casino
games like blackjack and roulette. But also there
are a few key differences that make it a lot
riskier in a lot of different ways. So with sports
betting, it's pretty straightforward. You pick
a game, you place a bet, and you know the odds
going in, whether that's win or loss. You're
either cashing out or you're not. And yeah, it
can be addictive for sure. But at least you know
the stakes. At least you know when you sit down
at a blackjack table, there's a 50 -50 chance
of you winning. And I'm not endorsing gambling.
I'm not saying that that's the safer option.
I'm just getting facts. And you're also saying
that it's regulated. You're also saying that
at least that's regulated. It's regulated. Right.
sports card sports book are are required to show
you the odds the over the under the payouts right
all of that right with breaking um it's it's
a lot more of a gray area it's a lot murkier
you're buying into a box or a case of sports
cards usually through a live stream and hoping
whatever comes out of those packs ends up in
your spot and and that might be a random team
a specific player or even just like the left
or right side of the box and the problem is you
have No idea what's inside of that box. There
are no posted odds. There's no transparency.
You're trusting a breaker. So like the sports
card shop. you know that they didn't already
pull the best cards out of that particular case
or that you know you're not just getting the
leftover scraps from a dead run right and and
where it gets tricky in breaking it's not win
or lose it's win lose or lose really badly right
you can spend 200 500 even a thousand dollars
into one break and end up walking away with five
dollars worth of cards like i said before and
yet people keep chasing because they saw someone
hit a twenty thousand dollar card the night before
on the same back stream so it's it's that same
sort of slot machine energy yep yes all of this
social pressure the hype in the chat your next
bro comments yeah it's it's not just gambling
it's gambling with the crowd watching and again
at least at least with sports betting you're
choosing an outcome based on stats matchups logic
with breaking you're buying a sealed box and
praying that your name gets called when that
one big hit comes out and if it doesn't you're
walking away with a bunch of base cards that
you couldn't sell for a cup of coffee yeah so
yeah they're both risky but again with breaking
um you know it's basically gambling with no real
book so no odds no oversight no real way to know
if you're being taken advantage of or you're
just you know, unlucky. And that's why it's so
easy to spiral because the whole thing feels
like it's fun. Yeah. Right. You feel like you're
participating in a nostalgic hobby that you've,
you've been a part of your whole life until it
isn't until your, your bank account is empty
and you know, you have a significant other spouse
that is, is mad at you for spending, you know,
this month's mortgage payment on cardboard. Right.
Man. Okay. So I want to get into another nuance
here. You talked about actual gaming, right?
You got these microtransactions that happen within
a game, right? I'm a gamer, right? So take a
game like 2K, right? Basketball. Or take a game
like Fortnite. There's a reason why Fortnite
can get Katy Perry into the game. There's a reason
why Fortnite can get Snoop Dogg into the game,
wrestlers into the game. The game is actually
free. You can actually download Fortnite and
play it for free. Where they have made multiplied
millions of dollars is through this very subtle,
but to me it feels like a gateway drug into the
same type of addiction that you're talking about.
You're going to buy a pack. Hopefully you get
this rare skin. That's only coming out in this
season. And if you have it and if you're running
around with your avatar through the game, then
you are somehow the guy, the kid that got the
Willy Wonka ticket, right? Yeah. You look at
them. Same rules apply. Yeah. The micro currency
in 2K basketball, you know, you get a player,
but then you got to build that player up. And
some of these guys have invested $4 ,000, $6
,000, $7 ,000 into, like they bought the game
for $69 .99, but then they spent $7 ,000 on maxing
out their basketball player in the freaking game.
And does it even carry over to the next year?
Does it carry over to like NBA 2K? No. And so
you have to do it all over again. You got to
do it all over again. Yeah, it's crazy, man.
It's crazy. And you know what, Tim, as we continue
to evolve as a society and people are so focused
on social media and their virtual avatar, if
you will, as we adapt to a more virtual reality.
This is only going to become more and more of
a problem where people are just so focused on
their aesthetic, their digital avatar and what
they look like in this virtual world, right?
Whether that be through gaming, whether that
be through the metaverse or whatever universe
these tech companies are working on, you know,
behind the scenes. Think about what this landscape
is going to look like 10 years from now. right
yeah so it's it's a part of culture in so many
different facets and there are people that you
know if you really just break it down and make
it uh black and white it's it's it's spending
it's overspending it's it's retail therapy it's
over extending yourself it's whatever you want
to call it wow and there is no anonymous group
Like, you know, there's AA, there's Narcotics
Anonymous, there's Gamblers Anonymous. None of
this exists for collecting, for spending. So
what we're trying to do is not necessarily create
another, you know, anonymous program, like 12
-step program, but just create a safe space that
people can turn to and know. that they're not
alone. For sure. And that, you know, if they
need help, it's okay. It's okay to be vulnerable,
to come in and say, I have a problem. I want
to fix it. Yeah, absolutely. And that's where
we come in, you know, to help fix this together.
And we're not licensed therapists. We're not
doctors. Yep. But what we are, what I am, is
somebody who has lived through it, has experienced,
you know, the ups and downs of collecting. and
can speak firsthand of what that experience has
done to me, the toll it's taken on me and my
health, my mental health, my family, and ways
to overcome it. Absolutely. Man, I want everybody
who is listening to this, if you have, first
of all, if you can be self -aware and honest
enough to admit that you do struggle with gambling,
risky spending. the dopamine shot of what it
is to purchase a new bag, to open a new deck
of cards, to make that micro transaction within
a gaming platform. Listen, whether that is 2K
or whether that's Candy Crush, right? You're
paying for more coins to level up or to break
through a level or whatever. Like Alyx Effron
has stepped into the light. With his own story,
not like, hey, I want to help people that are
doing this because it's crazy. It's like, hey,
it was me. I have a personal story. He's created
a whole website. The movement is called Collectors
MD, CMD for short. He releases blogs that are
very transparent and vulnerable. He also has
other people within the collective that have
joined that are now sharing their stories as
well. If it's you or if it's someone that you
know and someone that you love. I want you to
take advantage of the resources that are available
to you. Alyx is a friend of ours. We've worked
with him. He wouldn't be doing this if he wasn't
passionate about it. Alyx, thank you so much
for taking the time to bring this to the forefront
and to the light. You already know we got your
back, and you're going to help a lot of people,
and I appreciate you leading this movement. I
appreciate that, Sam. Truly, it means the world.
If you want to learn more about Collectors MD,
you can follow us on Instagram at Collectors MD.
You can also check out the website that we dropped
in the chat. It's collectorsmd .com. There you
can find all the tools and resources you need.
We're going to be hosting our first support meeting,
which is going to be a virtual meeting on Google
Hangouts this coming Wednesday at 8. I think
it's 8 p .m. Eastern, and that's this coming
Wednesday, April 30th. And if you want to be
involved in any capacity, join the meeting or
just have a conversation, please don't hesitate
to reach out. And Tim, thank you again so much
for your support, your guidance, and for, you
know, honestly showing me the light. Man, I love
you, Alyx, and I'm so proud of you. We are behind
you. And I'm so glad we got the link in there.
Next Wednesday is the first virtual meeting.
Again, if it's you or somebody that you love,
strongly encourage them to be a part of it. If
it's you individually, be brave enough to step
into the light. We heal in group. We do not heal
by ourselves. You can make a thousand resolutions
as this is my last break. This is the last time
I spend like this. I'm not gonna do this anymore.
You need accountability. You need people to walk
with you. And you need support. So please take
advantage of the resources that are available
to you. And you are going to be living your best
life very soon. Alyx, I love you, bro. Yes, sir.
Love you too, man. Appreciate you. Have a great
weekend. You too. Take care. All right. Peace.
Yo. Yo. Yo. Fully seen, fully heard, fully known,
even if you're not agreed with. Huh? This is
like this is that's how we want communities to
spawn. Yeah. Right. Like, hey, get all the gamblers
over here. Get all the porn acts over here. Get
all the low self -esteem people over here. Let's
let's help each other like this. We're not going
to hold each other down. We're going to build
each other up. But again, you only heal in group
and you only heal in community. Nobody's healing
by themselves. Sorry, you're not going to do
it. A small little thing, Tim, if I may. As a
parent, kids be playing Roblox, too. My kids.
And they're grooming the younger generation to
these microtransactions that is not being seen.
So I have to monitor my children. Joanne and
I monitor our kids on how they purchase and how
they buy things. And it's kind of rewarded based.
But I see how there's kids that they compare
themselves to that parents throw bread at these
games so that they can level up. And then it
grows their virtual. like stance in how they
play their games and so it's like i see that
portion of it too oh bro their social status
in the game that's right and it satisfies something
that they don't have in real life that's exactly
right that's where it gets dangerous that's what
bro i mean i can't tell you how many times my
sons have come to me like dad can i have ten
dollars so i can get robux uh and and and and
then can i get vbucks on on uh fortnight and
i'm like what are you talking about? Well, I
want to get this new skin. I'm like real money
for fake money, bro. We've gotten Venmo's and
cash apps from the grandparents. Like, Oh, this
is for, you know what I'm saying? Like, Hey,
wait, wait, wait, wait, hold up. And, and it,
all it is is a gamified break, which is the same
thing Alyx is talking about. Right. And it's
like, well, like, well, I get that rare skin.
Well, like when I open up this up, well, that
the skin of the gun, the gun don't make you shoot.
The gun don't, it don't help you play better.
Reach that dude. Now he's going to go reach thousands.
I'm good. Are you kidding me? I'm good. Check
the box. Motives. Motives. Motives. Right? Like
that's a beautiful thing. You know what I'm saying?
Today's segment is this is what we doing. And
this is what we doing. This is what we doing.
This is what we doing. For sure.