Meet Javon Rustin | Poet, Speaker & Software Engineer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Javon Rustin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Javon, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I grew up in North Carolina and moved to Dallas after graduating from NC A&T. No friends. No family. Knew no one. Eighteen hours from home. Worked as a successful software developer for four year. Quit to pursue poetry full time. Let other people tell it, those two acts were risky AF. But they defined my career. I’m all for taking chances, but before I cook up any idea I marinate it with a plan. Before moving to Dallas, I spent months searching for the right job. Honestly would have moved anywhere for the right offer as none were coming from North Carolina and no income seems much riskier than further-from-family income. After performing and competing in poetry slams around the city, I started getting offers to feature that continuously had to be turned down because of my work schedule. I spent a year planning before leaving my job to pursue poetry full time. Planning for this career switch consisted of saving up money for emergency use. If emergency funds started to deplete, it was a sign that some change was needed. I knew exactly how much was needed each month and attempted to plan shows ahead of time to reach that. Also kept flexible back-up plans like Uber driving and substitute teaching. Having back-up plans and fail-safe funds makes it easier to take chances. I can risk purchasing a flight for shows hoping the turn out is well because I know there are emergency funds if the turn is lower than expected. But some people find back-up plans to be crippling. If you have a safety net, you won’t focus on walking the tight-rope as well. There is less fear of falling. My risk mindset is “explore but avoid danger”. I’m the moderate versus aggressive stock investor. And some aggressive stock investors reach success much quicker. I admit that overplanning or overthinking has caused me to miss out on some opportunities that I should have taken risks or sacrificed for. However, due to my planning, I believe the risks that have been taken are panning out very successfully. I have performed all over the country and will hopefully continue to do so whenever Covid is done ruining our year.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I worked as a software engineer for four years. I quit to pursue poetry while working as a teaching artist, substitute teacher, and Uber driver. My shows consist of stories strung together with poems. I speak on professional development, mental health, and racial equality. The hardest part for me is interacting with people. I know exactly what to say before I get on stage. I plan everything and work with computers almost all the time. Unless I have it written down, I really suck at candid conversation with strangers. It’s not my strong suit at all. But it’s so necessary when making connections.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Food. Lots of food. We’re starting at Rodeo Goat for burgers. Lekka for this Greek salad and macaroons. The Whiskey Cake. Ocean Prime. The best poetry (in my opinion) would be Heroes Lounge on Friday and Dock Bookshop on Tuesday. The Galleria because why is there an ice rink in a mall??? Deep Ellum and Downtown for whatever food places I missed. Somewhere there are duck-fries and I know the building by sight but not by name.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I could make a really long list of specific people that helped me and are continuing to help me today. I think I’ve narrowed it down to three broad groups… DFW Arts Scene – Very few places I’ve been to (and I was a military brat) welcome art the way DFW does. From businesses like Envision Health who asked me to perform in a video for their conference (http://philipheinrich.com/portfolio/art-of-medicine) to clubs like Heroes Lounge with poetry every Friday night. There can be something found on almost every night of the week in this scene and without seeing this first hand, I don’t know if I would have ever considered poetry as a full time opportunity. NC A&T – This school, it’s staff, and it’s students have all taught me to manage my career. I’m thankful for my classmates in the famous McNair engineering building that stayed up all night with me for both work and parties. That balance was necessary. I’m thankful for the staff that drilled us on professionalism so much so that Professor Effort kept a clicker to count how many times we said “um” in our presentations. I’m thankful for Dr. Ahmad, who taught a poetry class that I was not enrolled in and asked me to start coming anyway after hearing me perform. Going to NC A&T was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. The Rustins – My family. Mom. Dad. Brothers. Aunts. Cousins. Grandmas. This is the fail-safe plan of all fail-safe plans. This is the “if you fight one you might have to fight us all” family. These are the people I go to for wisdom, a good laugh, some inspiration. I had a chapbook (sold out) full of poems inspired by my family called “The Bombs My Blood Has Swallowed”. Knowing I could always call home if I’m in need is what made leaving North Carolina easier.

Website: www.JavonRustin.com
Instagram: @JavonRustin

Image Credits
Anthony Najera Brittney Dubose