Interview with Matt Tuckey (Guest Post #25)

Matt is a fellow blogger. Be sure to check him out on social media. Thank you, Matt for being a guest. 🙂 

1. What is your name (or blog/channel name)? Hi! I’m Matt Tuckey and I write the blog Power is a State of Mind.
2. Age? 37
3. Who has inspired you the most in life? That’s a tough one! I read Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs screenplay when I was 15, and thought, ‘this isn’t that complicated. I could do this.’ QT got me into writing fiction, and moved into non-fiction once I started blogging.
4. Who has inspired you for your blog or YouTube channel? Hunter S Thompon’s ‘gonzo’ style of fast writing, resulting in contemporary accounts of events that have just happened, has been a big inspiration. I’m not necessarily as politically minded, but I try to capture his style and mix it in with my own.
5. Besides writing or making YouTube videos what do you like to do in your spare time? I run nightlife events on a voluntary basis, using a website called Meetup. It’s a great way of meeting new people and seeing parts of a city that you ordinarily wouldn’t.
6. Name a bad habit that you have? I doubt myself way too much. I’m single because of this.
7. Name your best quality? Honesty. You might not like what I have to say, but I’ll never hurt anyone’s feelings.
8. If you could interview anyone living or dead who would it be and why? Probably Sergio Leone, director of Once Upon a Time in America. He made the greatest film ever made, and I’d love to ask him about the film’s production. I’m a bit late though: he passed in ‘89.
9. What is your college major/minor? I got a BSC Hons in Professional Broadcast Techniques. In the UK we don’t ‘major’ or ‘minor’ in anything, but my focus was on radio. I managed to get some experience with a couple of stations, as my voice was good, but it wasn’t to last.
10. Why did you choose the title of your blog or YouTube Channel? I chose ‘Power is a State of Mind’ on a whim- I had a postcard advertising the 2004 Sean Penn movie ‘The Assassination of Richard Nixon.’ ‘Power is a State of Mind’ was the strapline. There was something about it that meant something to me, and at the time I was trying to get a diagnosis for some memory difficulties I had. I knew if I got help with that problem, I’d develop a lot more confidence. I eventually did, and I was right. As well as developing organisational techniques, I became a lot braver.
11. When and why did you start your blog or YouTube channel? I started blogging on MySpace in late ‘06, but didn’t open PIAOM on Blogger until late ‘08. Prior to that I’d found myself getting into odd predicaments that needed documenting. It wasn’t fair to keep these stories to myself!
12. Where do you see yourself in five years? I’m trying to move into Public Relations, where I’ll be able to put my promo / marketing / media background to use and I’ll hopefully get to write for a living too. I’ve volunteered at a PR agency recently and it convinced me that I need to move into that field.
13. What is the name/cause of your visual impairment (or other disabilities that you may have)? Short Term Memory Difficulties.
14. How does your visual impairment (or other disabilities that you may have) effect you on a daily basis? It has a number of effects on me, most of which people don’t see. I’m constantly on my phone, not necessarily scrolling social media (although I do that too), but my calendar and notes are on there, which store everything that I’d never otherwise remember. I forget people’s names, which people take great offense to. They usually don’t give me the time to explain my condition. That’s on them, though! It takes a while for me to get to know people personally, as they can tell me about themselves, and I’ll only remember bits of what they’ve said. Added to this, these difficulties come from a head injury at birth but I only got a proper assessment at 26 years old. Since then, I’ve continuously learned more organisational techniques.                   
15. What do other people feel about your visual impairment (or other disability that you may have)? My systems and strategies are that tight now that people don’t even notice it… until I forget something important to them! The place where it’s taken into account most is work- I do my best but it’s really not the most appropriate role for me. I’ve got good colleagues and an understanding manager, but I’m working in admin, the processes for which I take AGES to learn.     
16. If you had to give one piece of advice to others about having a visual impairment (or other disability that you may have What would that be? Keep records of everything. You will need it. Become a strong notetaker.
17. Where can other people find you on social media? (Please list and provide the links.) I’m on Twitter at @matthewtuckey, Instagram at @matttuckey and YouTube at youtube.com/matthewtuckey.