The debate between nature and nurture - whether human behavior and traits are primarily shaped by genetics (nature) or environment and experience (nurture) — has been going on for over 400 years, and its roots stretch even further back to Plato and Aristotle. For Thomas Fellows, one day in 1993 at an Ace Hardware in North Atlanta will stand out the day he was nurtured by his mother’s challenge to rake leaves at age four to earn his toys, and years later, after much a stretch of failures that never seemed to end, he was nurtured further, and as a result, learned what Malcolm Gladwell in David and Goliath calls “compensation learning.” This is the process by which people develop exceptional skills or insights precisely because they must compensate for a disadvantage or limitation. His stretch of failures also led him to have a chip on his shoulder, which constantly got him into the “fight or flight” mode of being and thinking which has enabled ordinary people to do extraordinary things. It's widely known that Lincoln failed often and had many people doubt him along the way. Certainly not bad company.

Ordinary people prefer to be encouraged while the most remembered prefer to be challenged. In August of 2022, after publishing ten personal-growth books by the age of 32, in which he interviewed across the nation on local affiliate stations, Fellows heeded the challenge of turning his focus to the most pressing economic and workforce issues facing our country such as how college relates to workforce readiness, how artificial intelligence will affect the workforce/education systems, labor unions, and the recent Trump tariffs. In doing all of this, some have considered him a modern-day Alexander Hamilton. What he has said throughout his interviews is that, “It’s the economy, stupid — but the economy has changed.” Since he grew up understanding the value of money at age four, his opinion on money isn’t that it is evil, but that “it leads to security, happiness to an extent, and most of all, a chance for a family’s children to succeed.” Those interviews can be seen below:

While many politicians are coy about certain issues, in the last several months, Fellows has been unafraid to interview on hot button issues. He thought there would be no better chance to give voters a chance to see where he stood on issues than if he interviewed on four of the most important Supreme Court Cases that have faced our country in the last few years. He has said, “his ideal Justice would combine intellectual honesty with moral humility — someone who can recognize the complexity of issues like abortion, affirmative action, and religious freedom, yet still anchor every decision in principle, not popularity.” Below are all of the interviews he has done:

A few months ago, when Charlie Kirk was assassinated, Fellows penned an Op-ed in The Williamson Herald in Franklin, TN entitled “Learning from Those we Oppose: How the Charlie Kirk Tragedy Points to a Path Back to American Unity.” To close the piece, he wrote, "we must remember that the wisdom of those who challenge us can be the wind beneath our wings; learning from someone more accomplished — even in disagreement — turns friction into lift.” In the below interviews, Fellows explains how he would learn from the following politicians who he could face off in a debate in 2027; after all, he plans on continuing to live out the following wisdom: rather than vilify your opponents, learn from them – their conviction, their discipline, even their flaws – because that’s how you sharpen your own.

While Fellows has stated in the media that his political views are that of a moderate conservative (a modern-day Bill Clinton with how far left the left has gotten to be), he said he will run as an Independent.  Fellows may be deeply knowledgeable in every field he comments on, but his greatest strength is his willingness to listen—truly listen—to the voices of ordinary people he meets at a golf course, a restaurant bar, or anywhere life brings him. In that humble discipline, he mirrors what made Bill Clinton so politically formidable: an instinctive ability to absorb the hopes, frustrations, and wisdom of everyday Americans. That connection to real people—not elite circles—is what builds trust, credibility, and the kind of favorability that can’t be manufactured.  


While he does hope to unify the country, he thinks that to unify the country solely for the sake of unity is indefensible, unnecessary.  But if we were all to unify it so all of us can win more often, it would be worth the hassle and effort.  Someone once said “history is not the study of the past, but an explanation of the present.” If one were to look at the population of Birmingham, AL and Atlanta, GA in 1950, they would see that they were nearly identical.  Today, Atlanta is six times as big as Birmingham.  The reason why Atlanta’s population soared past Birmingham’s is because they were much more open to accepting African -Americans.  Unity to Atlanta led to the city having major sports teams, having the Olympics in 1996, getting the CDC, and having companies call Atlanta their home such as Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Delta.  For Birmingham, however, their decision not to be open left them open to defeat.

Two things to close: if anyone refuses to be defeated in 2028, it is Thomas Fellows. Again, because history is not a study of the past, but an explanation of the present. This is a picture of Fellows selling lemonade at age eight in 1997 at the corner of his street. Don’t let that Polo Ralph Lauren emblem fool you: he was clearly ready to work then, and he’ll be ready to work for the American people in 2028. On an aside, his maid noticed he was a hustler even then and one time outsourced her work of raking leaves to him for a dollar so she could take a smoke break. In the same vein, scores of affiliate stations in the last few years have also noticed his ability to produce results by bringing him on to inspire/inform their audiences with his personal-growth books or workforce/economic commentary. In doing so, he has done what FDR did with his “Fireside chats” before ever entering office. America has told Thomas to jump the last several years quite often. Fellows’ only response back to them was not a response, but rather a question: How high?!

Naturally, is Fellows a bit nervous about becoming the youngest president by over three years? Possibly, but if you were to look at his LinkedIn “About,” he has a quote from his mentor Bill McDermott, past CEO of SAP and present-day CEO of ServiceNow to encourage him: "Do your best always. You never know what you will be able to accomplish. You might even surprise yourself."


Fellows was drawn to model his career after McDermott when Fellows saw a TV interview that Mcdermott participated in discussing his book, Winners Dream: A Journey From Corner Store to Corner Office in 2014. Fellows, who has said repeatedly in the media that he is far from a self-made man with all of the advantages he had growing up, was impressed by the success that McDermott had despite growing up in the lower-middle class. Fellows has said in the media that McDermott has taught him "more about life than sales."


Again, two more things to close: McDermott is also just as accessible as Fellows considering Fellows established a relationship with McDermott while he had 75,000 employees at SAP through a cold LinkedIn message and email in June of 2015, and while McDermott doesn’t have anyone speculating that he might run in 2028, several financial media outlets are speculating that he would possibly run in 2024. Below are the interviews: