The Age of Excuses Is Over (And MCC Just Proved It)
I didn't write this Friday. I was too consumed. My brain was full, my voice was gone, I had a head cold, and I hadn't stopped talking to people for three straight days. That's a good problem to have!
I’ve Been to a Lot of Conferences. This One Was Different.
Military Creator Con, Arlington, TX, April 16-18, was without question one of the best conferences I’ve ever attended in my life. And that’s not just me talking.
That was the sentiment from attendee after attendee after attendee. No drama, no tension, no egos running hot. Just a room full of veterans, military creators, and community builders walking around with genuine smiles on their faces, open and ready to receive. The energy was different.
Everybody knew it!
If you weren’t there, you already know; your feed has been lighting up with photos, recaps, and people saying “I wish I had known” and “I wish I had been there.” That FOMO is real, and it’s only going to get louder when the professional videography drops. And here’s the thing: we’re already building next year.
One Year Ago, I Was a Nobody in the Back of the Room
I need to give you some context before I go further, because this part matters.
One year ago, I was an attendee at Military Creator Con. I was in the back of the room trying to figure it out, just like a lot of you reading this right now. I didn’t know anybody. Nobody knew me. I had a vision, a mission, and a whole lot of work still ahead of me.
This year was different.
Not only was I on the stage, I was on the stage twice. I played a direct role in funneling speakers and connecting James and Marah with people who would go on to speak. I was personally responsible for some people even finding out about and attending the conference. As told to me when they showed up and found me to thank me for posting about it. When you see the actual proof of your reach, when it’s undeniable, it hits different.
In one year, I accomplished what I set out to accomplish.
That’s not luck.
That’s what happens when you decide to get to work.
The Closing Keynote Hit Me Different
Zack Starr closed out the conference, and it was the best talk of the entire event, full stop.
If you don’t know Zack, he’s a U.S. Navy veteran, a life transition expert, and a trust strategist who has spent decades helping veterans, first responders, and leaders figure out who they are after the uniform comes off. He nearly lost his life to chronic pain and invisible wounds, and he turned that into a 2,650-mile solo hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, which became a documentary called “The Epic Mile.” The man has lived it.
Here’s why his keynote hit so close to home for me. Zack and I had never met before MCC. The day before his talk, we had a real conversation, the kind where you realize you’ve been building the same thing from different angles. Same philosophies. Same methodologies. Different names for the same work.
His keynote reminded me of something I had completely let go of, something that actually built my LinkedIn platform to my first 1,000 followers: personalized video outreach. Thirty seconds to a minute. Sent directly to anyone who commented on my posts or connected with me. It’s simple, it’s human, and it works every single time.
I stopped doing it when I hit 2,000, 3,000, 5,000, 10,000 followers, because you can’t keep up with it at scale. But scale doesn’t mean you stop doing what works. It means you get smarter about it. Sitting in that room listening to Zack, I realized I had quietly let imposter syndrome talk me out of doing outreach I know gets results.
That changes now.
What Three Days Produced
I’m going to be straight with you. This wasn’t a vacation. This was work, nonstop, from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed, every single day.
Here’s what came out of it:
9 new Substack subscribers
Tens of new connections and phone contacts
Several real partnerships with serious people in their respective spaces
New revenue models and business avenues with people who actually want to help more people, not just make money
A keynote speaking slot at the Guideon 22 event, a 22-mile, 22-pound ruck march to end veteran suicide, the weekend before Thanksgiving in Fredericksburg, Virginia (Rich Brown asked me on the way to the after-party)
Professional speakers with hundreds of paid stages behind them telling me I belong up there
Partnerships forming in Central Florida
Monthly local MCC meetups, international expansion, and masterminds in the pipeline
I genuinely haven’t had a week this productive in a very long time. And it’s just getting started.
I Learned Something About Myself I Didn’t Expect
Multiple professional speakers, people who have stood on hundreds of paid stages, pulled me aside at this conference and told me this is where I belong.
My first instinct was to deflect. Because I’ve always said I refuse to be someone I’m not just to stand on a stage. I’m not putting on a suit. I’m not sanitizing my message. I’m not performing a version of myself that fits someone else’s idea of what a speaker looks like.
What I learned at MCC is that I don’t have to.
Shawn Douglas and Zack Starr, both elite level speakers in their own right, looked me in the eyes and said there’s a way to do this my way. I may have to play the game a little. But eventually, it’s fully on my terms.
This photo says everything I can’t put into words.
Tank top. Tattoos. Long hair. Sneakers. In front of a room full of sponsors, veterans, and professional creators. That’s not a costume. That’s just me. And the room listened.
Here’s What I Need You to Take From This
If you’re a veteran reading this, whether you served two years or twenty-two, here’s what I need you to hear.
Get off your ass and take action.
You can build an incredible life that aligns with who you actually are, as a person, as a parent, as a partner, as a sibling. You don’t have to shove yourself into the box that everybody tells you you belong in.
You are far more capable than you think. The tools exist. The community exists. And AI has officially ended the age of excuses. It’s not the enemy. It’s the game changer.
The same high leverage skills you built in the military, discipline, adaptability, mission focus, operating under pressure, those are worth more in the civilian world than you’ve been told. Use them. Grind with them. And build your own damn box.
As I was leaving the hotel this morning, hugging my mentor Adam Bird goodbye, he looked me in the eyes and said, “I hope you’re ready for what’s coming, because this is what you’ve built and this is what you’ve asked for. Buckle up, because it’s going to come a lot quicker than you think.”
I don’t know exactly what that looks like yet. But I know this: I don’t think things are going to move slowly anymore.
I’m living proof. The picture says the rest.
My name is Adam Peters, and I’m here to unfuck the transition.
One More Thing Before I Sign Off
I have the raw video of my talk at MCC. Not the professionally edited version, that comes later. The real one, shot from the audience while I was on stage. I’m pulling it off my Osmo on Tuesday and putting it behind the paywall exclusively for subscribers.
If you want access, subscribe before Tuesday. That’s it.
Adam, you are and continue to be an inspiration, resource, and safe haven for SO MANY. Particularly - I will never forget how you’ve changed my life and continue to. Thank you Adam. I’m so proud to know you, and so proud OF you.