March 12 is an important date in my life. It’s the date the greatest challenge I ever met was conquered.

That challenge – epilepsy.

On March 12, 2018 I had a front left temporal lobe lobotomy, losing a little over one cubic centimeter of brain to remove the Focal Cortical Dysplasia that had been causing uncontrollable seizures since 2007.

During my battle with epilepsy I came up with the phrase, “epileptic opportunity.” It was tattooed on my wrist and visited whenever I was having a tough time. This was my reminder that despite the difficulties epilepsy created, it also provided some rare opportunities.

In 2025, March 12 came without as much celebration as usual. But it still came at the right time. One week prior, on March 5, 2025, I was laid off from my role at Bragg Live Food Products. A company restructure pushed me out the door despite great reviews and accomplishments. This left me with a new challenge – my career.

Up until this time I have been fortunate to have an amazing set of career opportunities and experiences. Out of college I got to work at the website I looked at every day, Surfline. After that I got to work with the company that sponsored my surf hero, Andy Irons, at Billabong. Then I got a chance to work for the man who let his people go surfing at Patagonia. And then came an opportunity to market the healthy, but definitely not tasty – ACV at Bragg.

During my time at these roles I learned and learned and learned. My dream has always been to be an entrepreneur. And as you can read in the About page, I did in fact succeed at doing that once.

But now, I have a bigger challenge than buying a car. And a different challenge than epilepsy.

That challenge – rebounding from a layoff.

When I received the news, I looked at my wrist and looked for the unique opportunity the lay off provided. And there it was, right in front of me laid out in plain site with my resume and my ever-present entrepreneurial spirit.

So I introduce, Keep it Stoked. An agency focused to support your mission driven brand with essential marketing expertise.

Keep it Stoked is here to help grow your brand with our Steep & Deep Approach. We will create data driven, unique strategies to drive optimal outcomes. So that you can grow the rest of your brand at the pace and scale that keeps those missions intact.

I say that because I want to grow Keep it Stoked as well. Today, it’s just me – Jared A Muscat. But at some point, there will be a team. Heck, for some projects I will bring on a team cast from an incredible network of freelance and contract legends.

The point being – my goal is to grow my brand at scale. And I will bring that focus to my work with your brand.

On March 12, 2025 – I reflected on the great outcome of the critical approach I took to epilepsy. Then I buckled down on building this website, organizing my business plan, finalizing the launch strategy…and playing with my kids.

When it all comes down to it – March 12, 2018 was a surgery with a goal for me to be a father without epilepsy. And as a father without epilepsy, I have the energy and epilepsy control to take this new challenge as an opportunity. And still be the dad I aim to be.

So join me for the ride. Let’s grow your brand.