The Summer Doctrine
Live the dream summer. Test the hire honestly. Don't fight hurricane season.
Locked 2026-05-12 after iterating through 4 timeline variants. This is the structure that maximizes: SD family time + European summer + content production + Kennedy vetting + Jaci productivity + clean Miami restart.
The Full Calendar (May 13 - Oct 15)
May 13-18 ┃ SD landing solo — recovery, family, GT3 RS content
May 19-25 ┃ Kennedy SD test week with parents
May 26-31 ┃ SD wrap + Europe prep
Jun 1-15 ┃ Europe Part 1 with Kennedy (Copenhagen / Sweden / Mykonos)
~Jun 16 - Jul 3 ┃ Kennedy off-window (family, dates TBD) — Alex solo Italy → Jaci collab Spain
Jul 4 - Aug 15 ┃ Europe Part 2 with Kennedy (Madrid / Ibiza / Italy)
Aug 15-25 ┃ Wrap Europe, fly back
Aug 25 - Oct 15┃ SD reset + content batch + Miami prep
Oct 15 ┃ Miami restartTotal time breakdown:
- SD time: ~8 weeks (3 in May + 5 in Aug-Oct)
- Europe time: ~10-11 weeks (3 Part 1 + 2.5 solo/Jaci + 6 Part 2)
- Miami restart: Oct 15
Phase 1 — SD Landing (May 13-31, ~3 weeks)
May 13-18 — Solo SD landing (1 week)
- Brickell move-out completes (already scheduled)
- Arrive SD, settle, family time
- GT3 RS just landed (May 11-12) — fresh car content from California
- Gym, beach, recovery
- Solo content: lifestyle, GT3 RS, family vibes
- Goal: earn the recovery week. No work pressure. Reset.
May 19-25 — Kennedy SD test week
- Kennedy flies in for 7-day test
- Stays with/near parents (boundary structure)
- Real working week: Academy content + sales + ops
- Parents observe, give independent read
- Films together, tests dynamic
- Decision gate #1: end of week, both walk if not right. ~$2k SD travel sunk. Zero Europe risk.
May 26-31 — SD wrap (1 week)
- Last family time
- Pack, prep Europe
- Mental reset for the trip
- Flights booked, content storyboards mapped for Part 1
- Lock Jaci's collab window (~late June / early July, flex to Kennedy's off-window)
Phase 1 deliverables:
- 3 weeks of SD lifestyle content (beach, gym, GT3, family)
- Kennedy vet completed
- Europe Part 1 fully booked
Phase 2 — Europe Part 1 with Kennedy (June 1-15, 3 weeks)
Locations
| City | Days | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Copenhagen | 5-7 days | Peak bright summer (sun until 1am), social culture, best vibe to bond Kennedy in |
| Sweden (Stockholm) | 2-3 days | Aesthetic content, less-explored than Copenhagen, day-trip distance |
| Mykonos | 5-7 days | First lifestyle-flex location. Potential Miami Swim Week reroute. Beach club + influencer crossover. |
Purpose
- Real Kennedy trial — 3 weeks of constant proximity, real signal in both directions
- Content production at scale — 8-10 reels/week of Alex, Academy content
- Decision gate #2: End of Part 1 = clean exit during her off-window if not working
Phase 3 — Kennedy Off-Window (~2.5 weeks, dates flex)
Kennedy off-work for family commitments. Exact dates and locations TBD — somewhere in the mid-June / early-July range. Treat the window as flexible; Alex's parallel plan below works regardless of which 2.5-week slice she takes.
Alex's parallel plan
Week 1 — Italy alone (~1 week, slots into front of Kennedy's window)
- Amalfi, Capri, Positano
- Solo content from luxury slow travel
- Founder reset, sleep, gym, thinking
- No coordination overhead
Weeks 2-3 — Jaci collab in Spain or Italy (~10 days, lock once Kennedy confirms)
- Meet Jaci in Madrid or Italy
- Academy host content production
- Two-channel architecture content (@imalexgunnar + @ovo.academy)
- Different vibe from Kennedy-trip (Academy-focused, not lifestyle-focused)
- Productive block without Kennedy dynamics
Why this structure
- Kennedy's family time is preserved (real respect)
- Alex doesn't lose 2.5 weeks (Jaci collab fills it productively)
- Built-in decision gate — if Part 1 didn't work, Alex exits cleanly during this window with zero awkwardness
- Two different content "vibes" produced in same trip
Phase 4 — Europe Part 2 with Kennedy (July 4 - Aug 15, ~6 weeks)
Kennedy rejoins. This is the dream summer block — Part 1 already vetted, no new uncertainty, pure execution.
Locations
| Window | Where | Vibe |
|---|---|---|
| July 4-15 | Madrid, Barcelona | Spain — city + lifestyle |
| July 15-25 | Ibiza | Peak summer party, lifestyle-coded |
| July 25 - Aug 10 | South of Italy (Vico Equense, Amalfi, Capri) | Luxury slow travel + content |
| Aug 10-15 | Wildcard (Greek island? Croatia?) | Wrap with something fresh |
Purpose
- "Love my life" core block
- Maximum content production
- Kennedy as content partner + ops + brand-face fully integrated
- Last 6 weeks of trial before Miami decision
Decision gate #3: End of Part 2 = decide Miami long-term with Kennedy.
Phase 5 — Wrap + SD Reset (Aug 15 - Oct 15, ~9 weeks)
Aug 15-25 — Wind down Europe (10 days)
- Last 10 days of Europe = quiet, no events, prep
- Pack, ship items back, fly to US
- Land in SD
Aug 25 - Oct 15 — SD reset zone (~7 weeks)
| Window | Focus |
|---|---|
| Aug 25 - Sept 5 | Pure recovery. 10 weeks Europe = depleted. No work pressure. Family, gym, sleep. |
| Sept 5-20 | Content batch from California lifestyle. Inventory for fall feed. Big shoot days. |
| Sept 20 - Oct 5 | Miami logistics — lease/place locked, GT3 RS shipped back, Kennedy transition planning |
| Oct 5-15 | Final SD week, taper, prep Miami restart |
Why 7 weeks SD (not 4 or 5)
- Real recovery from 10 weeks of constant travel
- Content inventory built so first month in Miami isn't content-starved
- Miami logistics need real time (lease hunt, place, car ship, Kennedy transition)
- October is genuinely Miami's best month — waiting is the right call
Phase 6 — Miami Restart (Oct 15)
Why Oct 15 specifically (not mid-September)
Hurricane data: Atlantic hurricane season peaks Aug 20 - Oct 10. Mid-September lands inside the most dangerous 6-week window. By Oct 15, past 85% of the season's named storm activity. Statistically safer.
Weather: Miami doesn't break until late October. Mid-Sept = 90°F + 80% humidity. Mid-Oct = high 70s, breeze, city's best season begins.
Energy: "Mid-October Miami return" = fall restart. "Mid-September return" = barely escaped Europe and immediately stressed. Different psychological frame.
Operations: Kennedy converts cleanly → she relocates Oct 15. Lease market post-summer-rush = better selection. GT3 RS shipping window cleaner. Arrive refreshed, not depleted.
What launches Oct 15
- Kennedy as Miami COS (if she converts from summer)
- New lease / place
- GT3 RS back in Miami
- Fall content arc begins
- Q4 push: Academy, Talent, Samantha pipeline all in motion
Override condition
If serious work emergency hits Miami (key talent meltdown, Academy crisis, major hire arriving) → go back early. Hurricane risk vs business risk gets weighed at that point. Absent emergency, Oct 15 holds.
What gets locked this week (May 12-16)
| # | Item | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Confirm parents free May 19-25 for Kennedy SD week | Alex (text mom/dad tonight) |
| 2 | Confirm Jaci's flexible 10-day collab window (late June / early July) for Spain/Italy | Alex (Slack Jaci tomorrow) |
| 3 | Tomorrow's 3pm Kennedy call — lock SD week + Europe dates | Alex |
| 4 | Book flights: Brickell→SD, SD→Copenhagen, etc. | Alex (Tue-Wed) |
| 5 | Miami place hunt — start NOW for Oct 15 move-in | Alex or assistant |
The principles behind the structure
1. Built-in decision gates at every transition. SD week end. Europe Part 1 end. Europe Part 2 end. Each is a clean exit ramp for both sides. Kills the Mina-trap structurally.
2. Family time is real, not symbolic. 8 weeks SD across the summer = actual family/recovery time, not just lip service.
3. Productive without Kennedy where possible. Jaci collab block during Kennedy's off-window = no wasted 2.5 weeks.
4. Don't fight hurricane season. Mid-October over mid-September = lower risk + better weather + better energy at restart.
5. Content production embedded throughout. Every phase has explicit content output (SD lifestyle → Copenhagen scaling → Mykonos lifestyle → Solo Italy → Jaci Academy → Madrid/Ibiza/Italy → SD reset → Miami restart). Two-channel architecture (@imalexgunnar + @ovo.academy) feeds throughout.
6. Recovery is non-negotiable. Aug 25 - Sept 5 = pure recovery. Oct 5-15 = taper. Both built in. Founders who skip recovery break themselves in Q4.
Cross-references
chief-of-staff-hiring.md— the Kennedy/Miami COS playbookceo-operating-system.md— how to direct Kennedy + Jaci during the trip- Memory:
project_move_may_2026.md— original Brickell → SD → Europe → back plan - Memory:
project_active_team_payroll.md— current team this summer affects