The first recap episode of the show. Let me know what you think of the shortened format.
If you liked this recap, check out Ginger's full episode!
Ginger Kern knew she wanted to leave her childhood home in the Midwest even when she was a young. She grew up reading books on adventure and mythology, which fueled her desire to get away.
So, when she had the opportunity to visit her family in Germany, she jumped on it. Even though she didn’t speak German and her family didn’t speak English, she was hooked on travel and living abroad. This was the beginning of her life fueled by travel, adventure, and a desire to help other people do the same.
In this episode, Ginger talks about embracing your playful side, taking rites of passage, and transforming herself and others.
Here are three things you can learn from Ginger:
Once we become adults, most of use lose our sense of playfulness. While this may be good in some situations, it absolutely prevents us from being our most creative selves.
Being playful allows us to experiment without worrying about ridicule. It allows us to be curious as we explore the world. That’s why Ginger likes to put herself in playful environments. “It is a question of how can I surround myself with the external environment that pulls from me to be playful, to be creative, to be in a space of wonderment and curiosity and experimentation. ”
She also believes we need to intentionally set aside time to be playful. “It’s the structure of ‘Okay, I’m going to actually to block out a chunk of time in my week or in my day that is for whatever comes out of my creative forays.’ It could just be two hours and you don’t have a set plan for those hours but you do something.”
When we set aside that time, we can’t judge ourselves so much. we just have to see what comes out. “And just letting it come out and allowing it to just be what it is, and not judging it until maybe later… but during the process, just let it come out.”
This minor shift in playfulness can have a massive impact on our creativity. Creativity requires an open mind, exploration, and curiosity, and play makes those things possible.
Ginger deals a lot with transformation. She has helped people overcome their doubts and has helped push them past their comfort zones. One example she gave was helping a woman who was feeling stuck creatively. Before her call with Ginger, the woman wasn’t drawing at all. But within 48 hours, she was able to reconnect with her creative expression.
But one thing Ginger emphasized was, she wouldn’t be able to be a source of strength for others if she wasn’t a source of strength for herself first. “I can only take my clients as big as I have gone myself… but really being a powerful stand for someone, that is sometimes tricky if you’re not being a stand for yourself… because it’s hypocritical. And so, helping others, if you want to use the word help… my goal is to really be a powerful stand for their power… in order to be able to do that, I have to be able to do that for myself.”
One thing Ginger noticed about her clients is, they are so eager to jump to the next level, but you can’t rush the process. “It’s always a process, right. So, there’s always expansion. There’s always that next level. And I think where some entrepreneurs might get caught up, is trying to force that next level… and what I found at least is that there’s so much to be learned just through the process of that.”
That’s why, before she can help others reach the next level, she has to reach the next level herself, and the only way she could do that was by getting support herself. “In order to effectively help, or effectively support, or effectively coach any of those things, I also have to have people pulling for me and so that does really bring me into that next level.”
One interesting observation Ginger has made about the world is, we no longer go through rites of passage. Before modern civilization took it’s hold on the world, previous generations had traditions that were passed down the line. People had to go through symbolic journeys, or rites of passage, in order to transition from one part of life to the next.
The concepts behind these stories and journeys all come up in Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces. The archetypes found in the book spanned across all cultures and helped convey different messages and morals.
Ginger is now using travel as a rite of passage to help people deal with their own versions of these journeys from isolation to discomfort. “The rite of passage is a real tool and the way that I see it being a really effective tool… is going into a slightly scary situation of travel, where everything is unknown. You have to figure stuff out on the go. You have to deal with feelings of isolation, aloneness, uncomfortableness, discomfort… It’s such incredible work to see how someone can transform so thoroughly through travel.”
And when people come back from their trips, their hero’s journey, many come away completely transformed. “It’s beautiful, and inevitably, they come out on the other side and they’re so thrilled. They’re psyched about life because they see that they can handle it and they can take on a new challenge. They might even start seeking out new challenges and being more epic in their everyday life. That mentality, once you have it, it doesn’t leave you. It doesn’t just disappear.”
Chris Dessi was fired three times in two years, but that didn’t stop him from building a successful career. Instead of letting those setbacks get him down, he leveraged them into building his own business, writing multiple books, appearing on TV, and running his own summits. In this episode, learn about the power of a personal brand, being a taste maker, and defining success.
Here are three things you can learn from Chris:
Building a personal brand is one of the best things you can do to make a name for yourself. Once people recognize you for your thoughts and your work, it becomes easier to get your voice heard. But it’s not always easy.
If you want to build a personal brand, you have to stop taking what’s given to you. Instead, you need to look within yourself to discover what makes you unique, what differentiates you from everyone else. Chris believes we can do this by being introspective. “Building your personal brand is about becoming introspective and not a lot of people become introspective. A lot of people take what’s given to them.”
Building a personal brand is also about defining your goals. “That’s really where the personal branding starts. You need to have a definitive end goal in mind and understand that you have a voice, and then start to play with that.”
Finally, your personal brand is about exploring your curiosity. “If you do anything with fervor and interest and intellectual curiosity, people will start to come back to you and people will become part of your tribe. And if you’re interested in something that scares the hell out of you, at least learn about it.”
Once you’ve built your personal brand, and made yourself known to the world, you have the opportunity to become a tastemaker. Tastemakers are the people you look to for advice and guidance. They’re the ones we turn to when we are looking to make a decision. If you want your voice to be heard, you should aim to be a tastemaker.
Chris believes these people are the ones who make the biggest impact in the world. “It’s the tastemakers, the definitive people that are shaping society, that are shaping thought, shaping businesses, and shaping lives, we’re the ones that do, and go out there and listen to that curiosity and trust their own curiosity and trust that it will lead them to a place that will continue to help them to grow as a business person, as a creative, as a creator, as a human being.”
That’s why Chris thinks we need to stop worrying about our resumes. We need to start worrying about getting our voices heard instead. “Stop tweaking your resume, and create a blog… Don’t worry about the resume, worry about creating your own identity, and then you don’t have to worry about pandering to people to get a job, because other opportunities will come to you, because that system’s broken.”
One of my favorite parts of my conversation with Chris was hearing his definition of success. He’s not worried about bringing home the most money or having tons of fans on social media. Instead, he chooses to define success for himself.
The first thing he considers success is doing something that fulfills his curiosity. “If I am doing something that I am being true to myself, that allows me to feel excited, intellectually curious, and fulfilled, and generates revenue, that’s amazing.”
The other thing that defines his success is getting his girls onto the bus in the morning. “I think if I can stick to that, and put my daughters on the bus in the morning, follow things that allow me to continue to be intellectually curious, and things that will potentially generate revenue, I’ll be in a really good spot no matter where I end up, or what I’m doing.”
These two things may not equal success for other people, but they define what success means to Chris. In the end, that’s all that matters. We need to stop letting other people define what success means to us. We need to determine that for ourselves instead.
Puneet Sachdev worked for years in the hotel industry and with General Electric as a management consultant. He now uses that knowledge in his work as a consultant, creative philanthropist, and coach.
He is also the author of Deepa Wishes Daddy Happy Birthday, a book based on the time he’s spent with his daughter. He uses 100% of the proceeds from the book to support the education of underprivileged children. The book also began his work as a creative philanthropist.
In this episode, learn how Puneet turned his idea into reality, why you need to put yourself out there, and the importance of being present.
Here are three things you can learn from Puneet:
Many of us believe we aren’t destined for greatness, but we never take the first step. The first thing we must all do, if we want to find success, is accept the fact that we are all on a journey.
Puneet believes we all have a choice to make. We can choose to continue on the path we’ve been on, or we can choose the unbeaten path. “When you have that call to adventure. You have the choice of taking it or not.”
And once we’ve answered that call to adventure, things will begin to come together in unexpected ways. “I just feel like you step out of that path and put yourself out there, and … the clearer you get and the more you put yourself out there, serendipity is what shows you the way.”
But we can’t do it on our own. Luckily, life has a way of providing the help we need. “I feel that what happens is when you start off on your journey, when you start off saying ‘This is really important to me and I’m going to set sail on this path,’… I think somehow the teachers show up and that support network emerges at different points.”
One of the great things about creative projects is, they start off as just an idea in our heads. They are nothing more than a thought that sprouted and evolved into a something beautiful.
That’s exactly what happened to Puneet. He never considered himself a creative person. He believed only artists had the ability to be creative, but what he discovered was, everyone has the capacity to be creative. We just need the right people around us to make our ideas come to life.
So, while he is not a gifted writer or illustrator, he was still able to bring his idea to life. “I know I’m not a great, gifted, writer. I’m not taking any courses on creative writing. Nothing. It was just a desire and a passion behind it. I did that, and I used the people who have got those gifts.”
All it takes is combing that desire with action and the ability to bring the right people together. Just don’t expect it to be a quick process. “Desire, taking the action, using the people that will help me put it together. It’s a very long process, It’s much longer than I would have liked it to be.”
Puneet is a huge advocate of having a mindfulness practice. There are so many things around us that distract us from our goals. Sometimes we need to disconnect from everything and focus on ourselves. “The world that we live in is just in so much of a frenzy all the time and with technology it is very easy to get disconnected. It’s very easy to get just swayed away by whatever the most prevalent wind is… so I think practice (mindfulness) is what really helps in grounding you.”
One problem is, many people want to practice mindfulness, but they have the wrong ideas about what it is. They believe their minds have to be empty of thoughts, but that simply isn’t the case. “That’s really not the goal of it. The goal is for you to be present with yourself in this moment and time. So please get away from the notion that you should empty your mind of thoughts.”
Instead, we must aim for stillness. We must be in touch with ourselves. “[In] day to day life, the goal is stillness, being with yourself, [and] getting in touch with what your body is saying”
Sally Safadi was working at an after school program for kids between medical school and graduating . While there, she found it was difficult for children to learn in the traditional school environment after already spending eight hours in school. So she came up with different games for the kids to play to get them involved in learning.
This began her shift from studying science to studying and exploring creativity. Sally’s site, Neurons Away, is the hub for all her work including her book and card game. Each of her projects help people explore and exercise their imaginations.
In this episode learn about her various projects, the power of constraints, the benefits of trial and error, and much more.
Here are three things you can learn from Sally:
Most of us are taught to find a single answer to problems. We haven’t been give the proper tools to tackle problems with more than one possibility, which is why we struggle with empty spaces. “The way we are taught, especially through school, is to write in the lines and in the box. Color in the space.”
Instead of looking for the single answer, we need to develop the mindset to play in the empty spaces. “You have to have that specific mindset that develops to be able to do that. But most individuals haven’t really been given that opportunity.”
Sally believes the blank canvas can be used as an educational tool. She believes, that once you learn that form of expression, you can use it many aspects of your life. “Giving empty space in different areas of life, especially education, empowers an individual to be more creative in their own choices in life.”
We spend too much time worrying about whether our plans will fail or succeed instead of actually testing them out. One thing is for certain, if you don’t test your ideas, you will never know if they are going to work.
Sally likens testing ideas to planting seeds. Some will grow, and others won’t. “It’s just like these little things of trying, and trying, and trying til something catches or grows, or planting a bunch of seeds and hoping some of them take.” It is only by trying a bunch of ideas that you will be able to get one to bloom.
She also believes in listening to the feedback of your audience. That’s how she ended up with the cover for her book. Her first cover didn’t convey the message that was in book, so she tested a new one that worked much better.
She was able to leverage the opinions of her audience to create a cover that her audience liked. But you can’t listen to everything people say. You have to find the right balance.
“Seeking the opinions and constructive criticisms is really good, but people also need to create their bubble with that. I could ask a thousand people what they think about the cover, and each person… is telling me something different. So at some point, you just have to also just make your own decision and stick to it because you’re always going to find someone who has something different to say.”
Many people believe imaginations are stronger in children than they are in adults. But this is only partially true. Children may use their imaginations a lot more, but they mostly use them for play. Adults, on the other hand, use their imaginations to shape the world around us.
“Our realities are basically a moment’s expression of our collective imagination. Everything that is around us was once an idea or a thought that was applied, and directed, and grew into a tangible reality… which a lot of us fail to realize in this journey that we call life.”
Everything from our phones, to our cars, to our computers was the result of a creation from someone’s imagination. Before these things existed, someone had to dream them up. That is the power of imagination.
The problem is, many of us stop using our imaginations once we hit adulthood. If we all harnessed that power a little bit more, who knows what the world would be like.
Stop thinking play is for children. Leverage the power of your imagination to help change the world.
Catherine Orer was an award winning communications and PR expert for multinational corporations for years, but that job never felt fulfilling to her. So, when the opportunity to study at Christies in Paris opened up, she jumped on it.
While in Paris she gained hands on experience working in contemporary art galleries. After her studies, she brought this knowledge and experience back to Canada. While working at an art gallery in Montreal, many artists approached her for help. This began Catherine’s journey as The Artist Entrepreneur.
In this episode, find out why gratitude is so important, why there isn’t just one path to success, and why artists should find support.
Here are three things you can learn from Catherine:
Most people falsely believe there is only one path to success. They believe there’s a secret formula they can learn to become successful. They believe the people who’ve made it are all part of a secret club.
Catherine’s path is neither traditional or conventional. She went to school for public relations and communications and got management positions in corporations before even considering the art world. It was only when she noticed she wasn’t having fun at work that she decided to dip her toes back into the art world.
She went to Christies in Paris for training and worked at an art gallery when she got back. It was only then that she found how much help she could provide to artists. Artists came up to her hoping they could work together, and finally she relented.
Now she is working with thousands of artists in her Facebook group. She is doing one on one coaching, group coaching, and providing immense value to artists with her experience in PR and in the arts.
Catherine’s path to helping artists was not the traditional one and she believes artists should look for their own path too. “There’s not just one path to being a successful artist. Not every artist will get their retrospective at the MoMA at fifty and it’s fine. It’s not everybody’s path and it shouldn’t be. You just need to find yours, what makes you happy, and also where you can grow as an artist.”
One thing that I’ve found by speaking to many successful people is, gratitude is an essential part of their daily lives. Catherine is no exception. Leaving her corporate job was the turning point in her gratitude practice.
What she has found is, we aren’t always at our best. So the best thing to do at those times is be grateful for what you have. “We can’t always be on high, so life is what it is. You have your ups and your downs and that’s when I really started being more thankful with everything that was going on my life.”
She goes on to talk about why she has to practice gratitude every day. “If I don’t take some time to be grateful and thankful,for everything in my life, I would go crazy… At some point you just need to be like, okay, what I’m doing is enough and I’m just really thankful that I’m doing what I love, and that I have these people around me who support me.”
We all need to be thankful for what we have and embrace where we are in our journeys. “Being thankful is just being in the present. It’s just looking at what’s happening right now, and just embracing it all and opening up yourself to more abundance too.”
One of the things that artists get wrong is trying to do everything by themselves. They believe they don’t need to find support when they are struggling. They believe they have to do all the work themselves. They believe if they don’t do all the work, people look down on them.
Catherine believes you won’t find success unless you find people to support you. “My experience is that at some point, you’re going to hit a roadblock, and you’re going to want to get support.”
She even advocates finding help if it isn’t with her. “I don’t really mind if you don’t work with me. For me it’s not about working with me. It’s about finding support. So, if you find support… that’s fine, but doing it all by yourself is usually not the right way to go about it. You need to surround yourself with people who are going to support you.'”
She goes and talks about our need to connect with society. “If you want to grow, you need to be in contact with other people. We live in society, and if you want to sell your work to people, then you have to surround yourself with people. You need to network. You need to build a network around you, a support network, but also a network and following of people who are going to want to know more about you, and what you do, and how you can be of service to them, and how you can support them, and how you can communicate who you are and what you stand for.”
Jacob Sokol was climbing the corporate ladder at his job as a computer technician when he he realized there was a deep void in his life. His life was filled with the highest of highs, but also the lowest of lows. He didn’t trust his own happiness. He knew something had to change. So he took a 5 week trip to Europe. That is when he decided to embark on a quest to create his ideal life. In this episode, find out about Jacob’s beginnings, his quest to help people create their ideal lives, and also see what makes him tick.
Here are three things you can learn from Jacob:
We like to listen to the thoughts in our head. After all, they are all we know. The problem is, these thoughts often lead us astray. We let them control what we do, and how we think.
One of the biggest lessons Jacob learned on his trip to Europe was, he was not his thoughts. Although we all inherently know this, there’s a difference between hearing it and experiencing it. Jacob’s trip showed him the difference between the two.
What he discovered was, we are creatures of pattern, habit, and ritual. Since our thoughts are just patterns. if we can change our patterns, we can change ourselves.
“Suddenly I realized my thoughts are just patterns. If I can change my thoughts, that means I can change my life. And if I can change my life then I can create a life that is amazing.”
By changing his thought patterns, Jacob was able to build the life he wanted to live. He no longer had to live the role society told him to live. He was no longer trapped in the consumer cycle. He realized there was a life he could create for himself.
Too many of us believe we must be confident in order to take action. Jacob believes the opposite is true. He believes clarity comes from confidence. “It’s when we take action, then we become clear and confident. So clarity and confidence are not prerequisites, they’re actually results of action.”
The problem most of us have is, we wait for that moment when we are confident enough to take action, so we never take it. We wait and wait, and that confidence never comes.
Jacob believes confidence only comes as a result of taking action. “Confidence comes as a result of knowing you can handle something. You gotta try something a couple of times until you get better at it and competence leads to confidence… You don’t get competent unless you actually go do something and try it.”
Instead of waiting for confidence to come to us, we must be proactive and seize it for ourselves. We must be willing to fail and suck. We must do things for ourselves, and gain confidence by doing them.
One of the more interesting responses from Jacob came when I asked him how people can change the environment and people in their lives. His response surprised me with its beauty and simplicity.
“Any time someone asks how to, it’s because they don’t really understand the principle. So the principle here is… if you want it enough, you’ll figure out how to do it.”
I think he’s right. Although how-to’s can be helpful. They are just one person’s take on solving a problem. If you really want to solve a problem, you have to do it for yourself.
Jacob believes this comes from a place of instant gratification. “That’s kind of what people often times want. It’s the instant gratification of them wanting to be told what to do, instead of owning within themselves that they are a creator of life and can go out there and do and create based on what’s within them versus looking for the external to tell them.”
We need to stop looking for someone else to give us all the answers. We need to understand the principle first, and so we can figure it out for ourselves.
“If you understand the principle of something, then there’s a thousand ways you can go out there and do it.”
Miranda Aisling found her passion at a very young age. She went to college at the age of 14, and by her junior year of college, two things gave her a clear direction in life. The first was deciding to open up an art center. The second was a trip to El Salvador that changed her life. In this episode, learn about her work as an artist, community builder, and creator of Miranda’s Hearth, the first Community Art Hotel.
Here are three things you can learn from Miranda:
One of the things artists need to embrace more is the idea of experimentation. When we look up at the paintings hanging in gallery walls, we ask ourselves how someone was able to create that. What many of us don’t see is all the effort it took to get there.
Every artist goes through phases of exploration and experimentation. We start off trying to mimic our heroes. What we soon discover is, we can’t recreate a piece of art, no matter how hard we try. So we must experiment for ourselves.
Miranda believes the artists who came before can teach us the lessons they learned through experimentation. She believes after learning from the masters, we must experiment for ourselves. “I think how you find out what works is through experimentation.”
She also believes that, after experimenting and trying to mimic other people’s work, you discover yourself. “You can try and make something perfect and you can mimic it perfectly, but it’s actually in the way you can’t make it the same that you find your own voice.”
The beauty of art is, you can both learn from others and from experimentation. It is when those two worlds collide that we find what really works for us.
Miranda believes curiosity lies at the center of creativity. “Curiosity really is the root of creativity. Artists are the people that sit there and they ask, and they try to express what they find whether they can or not. Through expression they try to find the answers.”
She believes it is something that is missing from our education system. We don’t allow people to explore their curiosity. Instead we try to force people to memorize facts. “By playing to a test, we beat out curiosity, because we say, there is an answer. This is the right answer. This is what it is and if you tell me it back, you’ll be correct, and you’ll pass, and you’ll move on. But manifesting curiosity is actually really humbling.”
Instead of relying on people to give us the answers, we need to discover them for ourselves. We need to develop our own humble curiosity. We need to ask what if. We need to find our own expression. When we do, we will have found our connection to creativity.
While on her trip to El Salvador, Miranda discovered the importance of art. Her trip visiting a war torn town changed her entire perspective of what art could be. She saw the way it could bring people together after experiencing such tragedy.
The town was the site of a horrific massacre that left only one survivor. So along with Claudia Bernardi and Walls of Hope, they painted a mural with people who came back to the town. This trip is the reason Miranda does what she does and doesn’t stray off the path.
“It was at that moment that I realized how vital art is, that it’s not just million dollar pieces hanging on a museum wall behind a piece of glass. That, cliché as it sounds, it literally builds communities. It brings people back together. It brings meaning to life. And that was the moment when I realized that I didn’t want to dedicate my life to pursuing some gallery position selling artwork to the 1%. I wanted to help rebuild. I wanted to help create connection and I saw art as the vehicle. For me art has always been a vehicle. It is not a purpose in and of itself… for me art is the means, and human connection and finding meaning through life, that’s the purpose. That’s what art helps us do.”
This week is going to be a little different. Instead of interviewing another creative, I wanted to celebrate the fiftieth episode of Cracking Creativity by having someone else interview me.
I had my friend and former podcast guest, Jacques Ho, interview me. He has been a huge part of my work on this site and this podcast. Each week we meet to discuss what we are working on while also keeping each other accountable to our goals. He has a lot of insights on my work, which I thought would be great to have for this episode.
In it, I discuss the beginnings of my creative journey, why I started my blog Marketing Your Art the Right Way, my quote art collection and upcoming book, influences for my work, my podcast, and much more.
By the time you finish this episode, I hope you have a better idea of why I started this site and why I want to help all of you on your creative and artistic journeys.
Here are three things you can learn from me:
Many of us start each day without making room to do something for ourselves. We might start checking our email or social media. We might prepare for work. Or we might get ready and just head out the door. I used to be one of those people too.
Every morning I would wake up, eat breakfast, brush my teeth, get dressed, and head out the door. I would do the least amount of work possible before heading out the door to work for someone else.
It was only after listening to other people talk about their own mornings that I started to change mine too. Instead of using the beginning of the day to work for someone else, we need to work for ourselves.
We only have a certain amount of energy each day. Why don't we use our most productive hours working for ourselves? Why do we insist on giving our best hours to someone else?
Now, I begin each morning working for myself. I read the books I want to read. I write what I want to write And I create art for myself.
I'll tell you this, it has made a huge difference in my day. It has fueled my mornings. It has invigorated my passion for my work. It has changed everything.
Don't spend your most precious hours working for someone else. Use them on yourself instead.
One of the myths of creativity is that you are either born creative or you aren't creative at all. That simply isn't true.
If there's one thing I know about creativity it's that everyone has the capacity to be creative. As artists, we fall for this myth too. It's most common form is writer's block.
When we get stuck on an idea, we are stumped. We don't know what to do. We let it paralyze us. "I am a creative artist, why can't I be creative?"
The reason people think they aren't creative, or the reason so called creative people get stuck is, they haven't practiced using their creative muscle. Just like any other muscle in the body, if you don't use it, it will become weak. We must practice using our creative muscle every day if we want it grow strong.
One of my favorite methods for strengthening my creative muscle is James Altucher's ten ideas a day. Every day, I choose a topic and write ten ideas for it. In fact, it has helped me write some of my best and most successful articles.
The point of the exercise is not to come up with ten good ideas. It's to constantly practice using your creative muscle. When doing the exercise, you will come up with the first five ideas fairly quickly. It's those last five ideas that strain your brain. It's those same ideas that help make your creative muscle strong.
The next time you are feeling creative block, try coming up with ten ideas to overcome it. If you keep practicing it, you will notice yourself become more and more creative.
One of my favorite parts about working on this site and this podcast is hearing about and uncovering people's stories. We are all going through our own journeys in life. Often times we forget that other people are going through their own journeys too.
It is both an honor and a pleasure to hear about other people's projects and lives. Some of the greatest lessons in life don't come from our own experience. They come from learning from other people.
Other people have the capacity to inspire and move us the way we often can't ourselves. We are too close to ourselves to notice the things we need to change. By listening to the story of others, we can gain insights into our own faults and flaws.
That is the beauty of hosting this podcast and creating this site. My podcast has introduced me to people who are changing the world. But I would never have met many of my guests if I hadn't started this show.
One of my favorite parts of every week is when I get to jump on a call with one of my guests. Each one has an interesting and beautiful story to tell. I have made it my job as the host of Cracking Creativity to uncover the wonderful story behind each of my guests.
Too often, our connections with other people just scratch the surface. We rarely get the chance to dive deeper into other people's lives. We rarely give ourselves the chance to learn lessons from those around us. We are too busy with our own lives to care.
That is why I want to share these wonderful guests with all of you. It has been an absolute pleasure sharing the stories of my guests, and I hope they have inspired you too. Thanks for joining me for my fiftieth episode. I hope there are many more to come.
Thom Fox is a strategy consultant who helps companies with complex problems. He has created economic empowerment programs that have reached over 3 million people and has conducted 1,200 seminars, workshops and keynotes. But his story wasn’t always one filled with success.
Thom started off in a life of crime and with an addiction to angel dust. He broke into people’s homes and got arrested at the age of 14. It wasn’t until he was 19 years old that he realized he needed to make a change in his life. It was in that moment that clarity was brought into his life, and got him on the path towards success.
Here are three things you can learn from Thom:
Many people believe once you hit a snag in life, you are doomed to failure. That simply isn’t the case.
Thom started off his life as a criminal who was addicted to drugs. Yet, he still found a way to turn his life around.
Once he made the decision to change his life, he took on various customer service jobs. But the real moment of change happened when he took a job at a non-profit.
That job gave him the opportunity to learn and grow. They threw everything they could at him to see if he could figure things out. “They just kept throwing stuff at me and I looked at from that way. It was a great opportunity to just learn. I didn’t know what I was going to do with all that yet, but.. if they ask me to do this, let me understand what it means.”
It was also at this job that Thom learned to absorb information. “I guess what I learned was one of the biggest lessons is be a sponge. If anybody out there right now is trying to do something different in their lives, be a sponge and learn all that you can because you can apply that knowledge in different areas once you finally get the confidence of achieving some of those things, and then from there, it’s using your creativity to just put them in different situations.”
One day, the president of the company told Thom to become the lead of the marketing department. So Thom learned marketing on the fly, and started to do educational work for the company.
If there’s one thing we can learn from Thom, it’s that your life isn’t set for you. You can change who you are and what you do to impact other people and the world.
In 2005, Thom was working on a non-profit for college scholarships. After one of his pitches, Thom was approached by one of the directors of the board. When the director asked where Thom learned to build one of his programs, Thom told him he learned on the fly. He told him about dropping out of school and not going to college.
The director was shocked and told him he should pursue his degree. That moment convinced Thom to get his GED and pursue a degree in international business.
After graduating, Thom decided to venture out on his own. The biggest reason Thom was able to do this was because he already had good relationships. His work with the local school system and his work on a documentary allowed him to hit the ground running.
Thom’s belief is that relationships are crucial to your success. “Relationship building is probably the most important thing that I’ve seen in business… I mean the relationships that people really get to see you in your element. So I found a lot of success simply donating my time to organizations.”
When people see your involvement and passion, they are more wiling to work with you. “I fount that by serving on these boards and serving in communities and positions, people get to see what you do, and people get to see your passion for it.”
These relationships form the foundation of your reputation. They help you when you need help the most.
Thom is a huge proponent of the startup mentality. He believes it can teach you many things, even when you find failure.
Startups are often successful because the people who found them are so creative. “You don’t need a 500 person company to generate a billion dollars, you need to have people who are smart and know what they’re doing. People in that capacity are creative. You know, when your innovation takes creativity, that creativity has to come from the ability to have momentum.”
Startup founders also approach problems with an open mind and willingness to learn. “I appreciate entrepreneurs for their ability to be open minded, their ability to learn, to constantly challenge themselves, and their work ethic.”
They are also don’t let their fear of failure prevent them for continuing on. “That’s what I think I appreciate about that failure and that understanding. Just because you fail, doesn’t mean that it’s over. It just means you get to take all that stuff that you learned, and you get to do something else that’s pretty cool with it.”
That ability to learn and that ability to persevere are what make the startups mentality so special. Even if your idea fails, there is something to learn from that. We just need to be open and willing to learn and fail if we want to run a successful business.
Angela Lussier is a coach, public speaker, and author of three books. In this episode Angela talks about her journey towards creating her own business, how to overcome the imposter syndrome, why you need to live by your own rules, and the importance of play.
Here are three things you can learn from Angela:
If you think you are the only one who feels like an imposter, you are dead wrong. We all feel like imposters in some way or another. Even those who look like they have it all together have their doubts to.
Angela believes we are all students at something. “Even experts. Even gurus. Even millionaires. Everyone is a student and they may know a lot about what they’re doing in their business, but they still have a lot to learn somewhere else.”
Don’t believe people who tell you they have all the answers. We are all learning together. The key is to have the right mindset. “As long as we have the right intentions of trying to help people and trying to do our best work, then that’s the most we can hope for.”
By talking to a bunch of successful people, Angela has come to realize that you can feel like an imposter and still be successful. Don’t let the imposter syndrome keep you from achieving your dreams.
Too often we feel like we have a standard we need to live up to. We need to be like this person or run our business like that person. But that simply isn’t true.
Angela believes the problem is our fear of being ourselves. “I think a lot of people spend a lot of times being scared and afraid to show what they really want to say and what they really want to do and that’s a major problem.”
Many people get into business without ever considering the lifestyle they want to live, and that’s a mistake. At one point in her career, Angela was living life for everyone else, and it drove her to exhaustion. It was only when she started creating and living for herself that she felt whole again.
Stop living by other people’s expectations. Stop living in fear of being yourself. Determine how you want to live, and make steps towards living that way.
While creating classes for her community, the Do + Make Business District, Angela had the idea of recording one of the lessons at a playground.
Before releasing the lesson, she was scared what her community might think. Would they think it was unprofessional? Would they taker her seriously?
The beautiful thing is, her community loved the idea. They enjoyed seeing her having fun and liked the idea of having fun with business. This gave Angela the courage to experiment even more. She did classes dressed in costumes and played different characters. She wanted to make learning fun again.
Angela also believes in playing as an adult. “Just because you’re a kid doing something doesn’t mean it’s a kid thing. It’s something you can do for your whole entire life, but you abandoned it at some point because you thought you weren’t allowed to do it anymore. That’s a really freeing moment.”
We need to stop being so serious all the time. Play can be an essential part of living a more fulfilling life. We just need to allow ourselves to do it again.
Read more shownotes from episode 47 with Angela Lussier
Dr. Matt Westheimer is a chiropractor and the founder of Elite Blueprint. In this episode Matt talks about his journey of selling everything he had to build a chiropractic practice in Singapore, the role mentors have played in his life, why you need support from the people around you, and the reason the process is more important than the result.
Here are three things you can learn from Matt:
One constant throughout Matt's life has been the influence of mentors on his life. Early on, Matt made the mistake of only focusing on one aspect of what he considered success.
When Matt read an article about Michael Phelps, he brought it to one of his mentors and said Phelps was the type of person that inspired him. The mentor showed Matt that Phelps had success in one area of life, but was he excelling in other areas of life like relationships, friendships, and personal growth. From that moment on, Matt decided he didn't just want success in one area of life, he wanted it in all areas of life.
On another occasion, Matt had been struggling for months trying to decide whether he should make the move to Singapore. The mentor asked one simple question that changed Matt's perspective. "In fifteen years, what are you going to regret more? Are you going to regret not staying here and opening up practice... or are you going to regret not taking the time to travel around the world?" This was the catalyst that gave Matt the confidence to move overseas.
These moments were pivotal in Matt's growth. Without the help of mentors, Matt's life might be completely different. If you find yourself struggling, seek out guidance from a mentor. Their wisdom can have a profound affect on your life.
In one of the most vulnerable moments of his life, Matt found confidence, strength, and the courage to move on and achieve more. How did he do it? With the help of the people around him.
When his long term relationship ended, Matt felt stuck. He was a pivotal moment in his life where he could either grow or continue to live life in the middle.
It was during that moment that Matt turned to his friends. Even though his relationship didn't work out, he was able to build life long friendships because of it.
"I would say one of the biggest things that you can do is surround yourself with people that are going to inspire you, that are going to challenge you, that are going to support you. People that are going to build you up. People that aren't just playing it safe, that are going to call you out."
When you have a strong group of people on your side, you can overcome just about anything. Don't try to do everything on your own because the support these people provide is invaluable.
One of the big changes Matt made in his life was going from a results based mindset to a process based mindset. He used to write down all the things that he wanted out of life from workout goals to monetary goals.
Eventually, he realized when you have result based goals, and you don't achieve them, you feel down about yourself. When you have a process based goal, you get to enjoy the journey instead of focusing on the destination. Instead of worrying about whether you can achieve your goals, you get to enjoy the process along the way.
Here's what Matt has to say about his every day process, "I focus all of my energy on where if I do these things every single day, it's going to be impossible for me not to have the result that I would love to have... a lot of people get too focused on the result and less focused on the process, which I think is much more important."
The next time you find yourself down about not achieving your goals, re-frame your mindset to focus on the process instead.
Cynthia Morris is an author, illustrator, and the creator Original Impulse. She has turned many of her ideas to reality from completing a novel to running creativity workshops in Paris. In this episode, Cynthia talks about the struggles of a creative life, listening to your inner artist, and the need to create our own stories.
Here are three things you can learn from Cynthia:
Even though Cynthia has achieved many things in her creative career, that doesn’t mean it’s been easy. Just because she enjoys creating doesn’t mean the creative life is easy.
She believes putting things out into the world “involves an enormous perceived risk.” It has a very specific effect on our nervous systems and our psyches, and the only way to withstand that is to have a “commitment to your ultimate end goal.”
There are so many important factors that go into your creative work. There are the time and money commitments. There’s the possibility that your work may amount to nothing. Everything is a crap shoot. “You have no idea. It’s crazy. It’s ludicrous to make things.”
The mistake many creatives make is trying to do it all on their own. Many of us have fallen into the myth of the lone creative genius. If you want a successful creative career you need allies, peers, and mentors to help you. Creating should not be a solo adventure.
Often times, we are so concerned about what need to accomplish and how we need to accomplish it, that we don’t pay attention to what our creative self is telling us. Cynthia thinks we all need to stop worrying about everything and just “let your artist lead.”
There are times we got so caught up in the daily grind that we don’t listen to that inner voice. Sometimes we just need to let her be in charge. We need to get lost. We need to make bad decsions. We need to indulge in the part of us that is “oriented toward play and creativity and isn’t always practical in doing the right thing.”
It is those times that we let go that we can be our most creative self. We need that time to explore the world. “There’s so much value in free space.” That is why Cynthia tries to teach people to make space in their schedule. Stop packing every day with a ton of stuff. “If you don’t have space, you don’t have any way to create or be creative.”
We live in such a great time. There’s so much information available to us. There are enough resources and advice to keep us busy forever. And that’s why it’s also a problem.
We are consuming too much. We are listening to too many voices. Cynthia believes the biggest challenge a creative person faces is battling all that noise.
We become too occupied with what others are doing and accomplishing that we forget to listen to ourselves. We need to “learn how to develop a direct channel” to our own original impulse.
We need to learn to listen to our own voice. We need to figure out what we want to say and what we want to make. We need to temper other people’s stories with our own story and our own drive. We need to “develop a relationship with that deep inner voice” within ourselves.
Start living your own story instead of trying to mimic or live someone else’s.
Sarah Jackson is the founder of Casa de Paz, a hospitality home for families affected by immigrant detention. She is also the founder ofVolleyball Latino, a year-round indoor volleyball league that raises money for Casa de Paz. In this episode, Sarah talks about why she started Casa de Paz and Volleyball Latino, the importance of taking small steps, and why you need to take action if you want to achieve your goals.
Here are three things you can learn from Sarah:
Sarah was working at a church when she received an email that would change her life. The email was an invitation to the pastors of her church to visit Mexico and learn about immigration. The pastors couldn’t attend, so she volunteered to go to represent the church.
Before going, Sarah had never thought of immigration or its affect on people. She just thought it would nice to take a free trip to Mexico. Little did she know, the trip would radically affect her life.
While there, she learned that there are families who want to be together but can’t be. Since her family was so important to her, she wanted to help other families be together.
From that moment on, Sarah has spent most of her energy trying to figure out how to help the families of immigrant detainees. This led to the formation of Casa de Paz and Volleyball Latino.
There are days we all feel overwhelmed. We have so many tasks on our to-do list. That giant project looms over us. Instead of panicking and worrying about everything you need to accomplish, focus on the next thing on your list.
Sarah gives the example of cleaning her house. Even though she knows exactly what she needs to do, it can be overwhelming thinking of all the things that need to be done. Instead of being overwhelmed by the enormity of the task, she makes a list of everything that needs to get done.
“Even though I know in my head what needs to be done to clean the house, I still write it down.” This allows her to measure her progress. She can see that what she’s doing is making a difference. “It makes me feel better and it keeps me motivated.”
Whenever you feel like your task list is becoming overwhelming, just focus on the one thing you should work on next. This allows you to break down giant tasks into much more manageable ones, and you are also able to see the progress you are making.
We all have lofty goals, but how often do we act on them? We badly want to change the world, but we rarely ever take that chance.
We are afraid to fail. We let the enormity of the task overwhelm us. One piece of advice Sarah got was to just do something, even if it is something small. Just get started, and the path ahead will reveal itself before you.
When she first started, Sarah was intimidated and embarrassed about her idea of creating a hospitality home. Her thoughts were clouded by all the what ifs. Her fears overwhelmed her, but then she decided to just do it. She started with something small. It created momentum. “One thing led to another and now it’s it’s own apartment.”
Sarah believes you shouldn’t let your pride, your fear, or the embarrassment of being a failure “prevent you from starting something you know that you need to do.” It might not end up being the right thing for you, but you will never know until you try.
Find people who will support and respect your crazy ideas. Find someone who has done something similar and ask them for advice. You need to understand what your part is and just go after it.
Dustin Main is one of the photographers behind Lightmoves Creative and the creator of Date an Adventurer. He is also an entrepreneur, adventure photographer, and documentary film maker. In this episode, Dustin talks about being present, using storytelling in his photography, and the power of vulnerability and being open.
Here are three things you can learn from Dustin:
Every decision we make can alter the course of our lives. We just need to be aware of them.
Some days we will follow the same old path. We fall into the routine of daily life, and don’t recognize what’s going on around us.
Dustin gives the example of our daily commutes. It’s easy to drive down the same street and not see the people who walk down it. If we just stop for a moment, we can “realize how awesome things are.”
If Dustin wasn’t open to letting life show him the way, he would never have seen a camel race. Being open to the present moment opens opportunities around you. The first step is being aware that they are there.
One of the defining characteristics of a great artist is their ability to tell a story. It’s what sets us apart. Anyone can take a photo and call it art. Great photographers use their art to tell a story.
Dustin believes TV and podcasts are a great example of this idea in action. What sets apart a good TV show from a bad TV show and a good podcast from a bad podcast is the ability to tell a good story.
Stories are one of the defining elements of humanity. Our ancestors used stories to pass down lessons to the next generation. The only way to make these lessons stick was to tell an engaging story.
Dustin uses stories to connect with people through his photography. He feels it makes the “image come alive.” He uses it to relate to his audience so they can understand what it felt like to be there in the moment.
We are all afraid. We are afraid of what people think of us. We are afraid that people won’t understand us. We are afraid that we don’t have everything figured out.
It is those vulnerabilities and fears that make us human. Everyone feels them. Most people just hide them away.
Putting yourself out there is scary. Dustin felt this first hand when he created Date an Adventurer. He didn’t know what people would think, how they would react.
The results, however, were unimaginable. Within a week of creating a dating profile website for himself, his site had over 600 Facebook shares, 10,000 page hits, and more than 100 emails from women who were interested in him.
By putting himself out there, Dustin received overwhelming positive results. His openness and honesty attracted the type of people he wanted to meet and talk to. If there’s a big lesson to learn it’s “when you put yourself out there, people rally around you.”
Max Makewell is a New York City based artist and muralist, but it wasn’t always this way. He grew up in a family of artists and started his career as an artist, but then transitioned into the startup world. It was only after spending a few years there that he came back to being an artist full-time. In this episode, Max talks about owning your identity, making your way through obstacles, and building relationships as the core of marketing your art.
Here are three things you can learn from Max:
Although he didn’t realize it at the time, Max grew up as an artist. His grandfather and mother were both artists. He grew up thinking everyone had artistic upbringings, but only realized what being an artist meant later in life.
He studied it for many years thinking he had to be an artist. It’s all he knew.
Then, he changed his course and worked for a startup for a few years. It was only then that he realized he wasn’t just an artist. He wasn’t a search engine marketer. He was someone who is creative when he produces something.
It was at this point that he made a conscious decision to go back into the arts. It wasn’t because his parents told him to. It wasn’t because society told him to. It’s because he made the realization for himself.
We don’t need others to tell us who we should be or what we should do. You can determine your identity for yourself. Don’t let others label you as something you’re not.
No matter who you are or what you do, you will face obstacles in life. We face obstacles every day. There’s no use in trying to run from them. Instead we need to think about how to approach these problems.
Max thinks we should be like water. Water is malleable. It’s able to “assume different shapes” in order to make it past these obstacles. If we can adapt and endure through these challenges, we will make it through to the other side.
He believes that the best way to approach our biggest challenges is to think about the here and now. Figure out what your next move is. Just keep growing and moving in the right direction.
Instead of running from obstacles, figure out how to make your way around them. We all face obstacles in life, it’s what you do with them that really matters.
One of the most important things to remember about marketing your art is, it’s about relationships. It’s a relationship between you and your audience. It’s a relationship between you and the person who is deeply affected by it.
It is much better to create a relationship with people who like your art then it is to just try a bunch of different tactics to sell it. People don’t like being sold to. Art is no exception. People want to feel connection with each other and the world. Art is the perfect way to do that.
Max thinks you need to have a great relationship with your audience. When you are in a great relationship, you “don’t look for what you can get” from the other person. They don’t look at what they can get from you. In a great relationship “you’re both in a great place, so you want to share with one another.”
When you have a great relationship with people who love your art, you mutually benefit from it. It’s not a give and take relationship. It’s a give give relationship.
Charlie Gilkey is is the creator of Productive Flourishing and the host of the Creative Giants podcast. He describes himself as the result of mashing up an entrepreneur, Army officer, and philosopher. In this episode, Charlie talks about mindsets, business, and the power of art.
Here are three things you can learn from Charlie:
Many artists have painted themselves into a corner by calling themselves an artist. They are afraid of the fraud police that tell them they’re not good enough to be an artist. There’s a story they tell themselves about what it mean to be an artist.
While it can be empowering to call yourself an artist. That label also carries a lot of weight. If you feel the heaviness of the artist title, Charlie suggest dropping it. He advocates “focus on the craft” rather than “evaluation of the craft.
The challenge of the artist label is, “It’s an invitation for people to evaluate your work.” It can be hard to been seen this way, even though that is one of the reasons we create art.
“We want to be seen, but we’re scared to be seen.” Often times the thought of being an artist can be unhelpful. When you feel that weight, like Atlas holding the world on his shoulders, drop the label and just create.
As artists, we have this vision of what our work will look like when it’s complete. We spend hours on end trying to achieve that vision. Often times, it can prevent us from actually releasing our work.
It is in these moments that you must move on. Charlie thinks that what you’ve created is “more beautiful than that perfect image that you have in your head.” That piece of art can change and inspire lives, but it can’t do that if they never see it.
Perfection is unattainable. If we waited for perfection every time we create a piece of art, we would have nothing to show for it. Don’t use the excuse of unfinished work for not selling or showing your paintings to others.
There’s a sacredness in allowing someone to buy a piece that you’ve poured your soul into. Be willing to let go of your art, even it doesn’t meet your standards of perfection.
Artists often have trouble determining the right price for their work. According to Charlie, they are making it much harder than it needs to be.
Far too often, we become too attached to our art. We think the amount we sell our work for determines our worth, but that simply is not true. Art is worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
Charlie suggests looking at the art market and using it to choose your price. Go to an art fair, and see the range of prices people are willing to pay, then just pick a number. Don’t try to analyze it to death. These prices work because others are already willing to pay them.
Art is hard to quantify because it’s so subjective. People buy your art based on the way it makes them feel. If you can get your art in front of people who want to buy it, they will pay you what you are worth. Just make sure you find people who are willing to pay you in kind.
Josh Rivedal is the founder and director of the I'mPossible Project. He is also the author of two books and the star of his own one-man show. In this episode, Josh talks about overcoming his near suicide, the importance of marketing for artists, and the lessons we can learn from failure.
Here are three things you can learn from Josh:
One thing Josh has learned from all his trials and tribulations is the power of story. Josh's career jump started through the help of his one-man show. It helped spark the idea for his second book and the formation of his I'mPossible non-profit organization.
Stories are one of the most powerful things we have as humans. We are wired to tell stories. They are what allow us to connect with other people. Josh used the power of his own story to bring awareness to suicide prevention and social justice projects. They have become the foundation of his career.
Josh believes artists are against the idea of marketing because they are not good at it, but you can't be good at something you don't attempt. Instead of pushing against the idea of business and marketing, embrace them just like you embrace you art.
Art businesses, just like other businesses, are here to provide a solution to a problem. Art isn't a luxury when it's good. It's a necessity. So embrace marketing and treat your art like a business. This will help you create and sell more of your work.
We need to get over failure. We have been taught to avoid failure at all costs, but it has hampered our ability to grow. When we try to avoid failure, we stop experimenting. We don't try new things because we are afraid they won't work.
Instead of avoiding failure, embrace it. That doesn't mean we should try to fail. It just means we need to be willing to fail. The point is to learn from your failures.
Josh believes you have to be willing to fail to succeed. Failure is just part of the process. Thomas Edison attempted making the light bulb 10,000 times before finding the right solution. No one is above failure. Once you realize this, you will be able to use it as a spring board for success.
Juan Sepulveda is a painter and the creator of The Winding Stairs Podcastand The Gentleman’s Brotherhood. His art focuses around the lessons and symbols of free masonry. In this episode, Juan talks about marketing and creating art, why you must have the right mindset, and why you need to diversify your income streams.
Here are three things you can learn from Juan:
Artists are often opposed to the idea of marketing their work. People often criticized Juan for selling his art because they couldn’t sell theirs too.
If you are having trouble selling your art, you need to separate your artistic creation from your business. It requires to completely separate parts of yourself to be able to sell your art. You need to be able to put on different hats depending on whether you are selling or creating your art.
You can’t let selling get in the way of your creativity. Let your creative side work its magic on the art, but then, when you are done, you have to switch hats. Juan believes you have to be authentic to your inspiration, but you also have to be wiling to sell your work once you are done creating.
Your mindset determines everything about the way you approach the world. Just look at one of the artists you admire the most. They have the same amount of time as us, and sometimes they have even fewer resources, yet they are still able to create something amazing.
Juan believes that you create your own limits. We are the ones who confine or restrict ourselves from achieving our true potential. The good news is, in order to change that, all we have to do is change our mindset.
If your favorite artist can get their painting in a museum, you can too. Learn from those who came before you, and apply those lessons to what you want to accomplish. Just know that you can do it, and you are on the way to achieving it.
If you are relying solely on selling your art to make a living, you are missing out on some great opportunities. Art sales are hardly steady, and if you rely on that income, you can get yourself into some trouble.
Diversifying your sources of income can lead to more stability with your finances and with your life. Juan does not just create art. He also does public speaking and a podcast to help promote himself and his art.
By creating other income streams, you can have a bad month selling your art and not have to worry as much. These other income streams will allow you to rest more easily without worrying about selling your next painting to survive.
James Wightman and Kristen Cruz are the co-founders of Rebel Advisorsand the authors of The Rebel Way. They want to show students that college isn’t the only path towards success.
Here are three things you can learn from James and Kristen:
The problem with most students who go to college and don’t finish is, they never stopped to think about what they wanted out of the college experience. They are told by their parents and counselors that college is the path they need to take. They are never given the chance to decide for themselves whether college really is the best path.
That is why conversations with those who want to help you are so important. These conversations can help students identify the paths they can take, find something that makes them comfortable, and build the skills they need for what they are seeking. They can help you find the motivation necessary to find what lights you up inside.
It can be hard to find what you want to do with your life. The majority of college students change majors at least once and only 27% get their first job in their given major. That is why it is so important to do research and self-reflection before you choose a path.
James begins the process of helping students by doing research. He sees what options align with the skills they have. Then guides them towards something where they can use those skills.
Kristen begins with self-reflection. She has the student figure out what they want first before she can begin to help them. It is only when you know what you want that people can help you get there.
By doing research and self-reflection you can align your skills with what you want to do. These things will give you a better idea of what you should pursue in life.
One of the main problems with the education system is, we have taught people that there is only one right answer in life. Schools teach for the test instead of the process, and it has stifled our ability to be creative.
This has led to a society of people who are afraid to make mistakes. But mistakes are where you learn the most.
The thing is, you shouldn’t try to fail. Failure in itself isn’t the goal. It’s the lessons that you learn from failure that are the key to success.
One thing to consider is finding something you want to do, even if you fail at it. What thing are you willing to take risks for? What has a strong enough pull that you are willing to let go of fear?
Pursue that thing without fear of consequences and you will no longer look for the single right answer. You will try and try again until you’ve found the path forward.
More shownotes for episode 38 with James Wightman & Kristen Cruz
Tim Noxsinz aka Timitude is the creator of CreativeMondays.net and co-host of the Middle of Nowhere Show. In this episode, Tim talks about enabling others, seeking what you want, and reaching your potential.
Here are three things you can learn from Tim:
Although Tim is a writer and co-host of a podcast show, he believes his greatest strength is enabling others. Through his work on Timitude, Creative Mondays and the Middle of Nowhere Show, he is able to give people a platform to express themselves in an empowering way.
Here are Tim's four keys to empowering others: connecting, creativity, catalysts, and challenging. Connecting creates value through the connections you have. Creativity happens through his Creative Mondays platform. He is a catalyst of change through the Middle of Nowhere Show, and he challenges others through consulting.
Tim believes people spend too much time waiting for good things to happen to them instead of seeking them out. If you wait for good things to happen to you, you could wait your entire life.
That is why he likes to give people the belief that they can change the world. We often undervalue our ability to make a significant impact. If you truly want to make a difference, you need to believe in yourself first, then you must go out and seek it.
You can achieve your goals if you are intentional about it. Stop playing in the small pond of life. Go out and make a big splash in the ocean.
Everyone has the potential to achieve something great in life. We are more powerful than we believe. Don't let anyone tell you you are not good enough.
Tim believes it starts with believing in yourself. In order to go from where you are to where you want to be, you must first embrace the man in the mirror.
Then you must be willing to test and learn from your mistakes. Mistakes in life are inevitable. It's what you do after making those mistakes that really matters.
Don't take failure as a reflection of who you are. They are a part of becoming a more complete person.
If you are able to do these things, you can achieve your full potential.
Brandon Lee is an an entrepreneur and writer. After spending three years an an international speaker for churches and nonprofits, he reinvented himself and became a real estate investor. In this episode, Brandon talks about reinventing himself, making an impact, and mentorship.
Here are three things you can learn from Brandon:
While working as a speaker for non-profits, Brandon learned the impact he could have on people. He didn’t need to go to school or take a course to learn it. He discovered it intuitively.
After giving speeches, people would approach him and tell him how much his talk meant to them. It was in this moment that Brandon realized that something that seems trivial to you can mean the world to someone else.
This just goes to show that everything we do can have an impact on others, regardless of whether we are conscious of it or not. That is why it is so important to be aware of what we do and say around people. An insult can destroy a person’s day and a compliment can make someone else’s.
Most people believe once they choose a career they are stuck there. They think they have to live the rest of their life doing the same thing.
Brandon proves that statement is completely untrue. After building a successful career as a speaker for non-profits, Brandon felt the need to change. He didn’t think the non-profit space allowed him to to make enough money to make a difference doing what he truly loved, helping people.
So he shifted his focus and got into real estate, and he did it without knowing anything about real estate! He taught himself from the ground up and was not afraid to do it.
If you do not feel fulfilled in your current situation, make the necessary change. Just because you chose a certain career path does not mean you have to stay there.
Everyone seems to be enamored with the word passion. It feels like we need to find our passion or we will never be fulfilled.
Brandon sees it another way. Instead of trying to discover what you are good at or passionate about, find something you are interested in and explore it.
Many of us feel the need to go all-in on things in order to make something out of them, but that isn’t true.
Brandon uses the example of learning All of Me by John Schmidt. One day after hearing the song, he decided he wanted to learn it. So he bought a keyboard and began learning to play it.
Does this mean he is passionate about learning to play the piano? Not necessarily. Does it mean he could eventually develop that passion? Possibly.
Far too often we live in this black and white world, but the world doesn’t work that way. Instead living in the world of all or nothing, do some exploring. You might be surprised by what you find.
Alex Hanse is the owner of Foolies Clothing and the host of Dream Without Limits Radio. In this episode, Alex talks about why many people don’t pursue their dreams, why you need to have the right mindset to succeed, and why you shouldn’t give up.
Here are three things you can learn from Alex:
Often times, what separates those who make it from those who don’t is giving up. We focus too much on trying to figure out exactly how to get it right. We want to find the instant path to success.
Even when he hasn’t made a sale in a month, Alex never gives up. Every time he thinks about giving up, Alex reminds himself up Nick Vujicic. Nick has no arms or legs, but is still a motivational speaker. He has many disadvantages that most of us don’t, yet he still has the power to continue on.
Don’t go down without a fight. Fight those negative thoughts away and continue on.
The problem many people have is adopting the wrong mindsets. Our minds are the most powerful tool we have. It determines how we approach the world and everything around us.
If you want to improve your place in life, Alex suggests having a $2,000 mindset, not a $2 mindset.
People with $2 mindsets don’t think they can achieve anything. Instead of pursuing their goals, they do nothing because they think they will fail.
People with $2,000 mindsets ask themselves the necessary questions to achieve their goals. They are inquisitive and they take actions on their goals.
Your success is dependent on you. Stop getting in your own way. Do everything you can to change your mindset for the better.
The key to a successful business is giving people exactly what they want. Alex did not start off wanting to start his own clothing company. He was just wearing shirts he thought were cool. Eventually people started approaching him, asking where they could get his shirt. That’s when he knew he had a business.
Instead of trying to come up with ideas out of nothing, Alex asks people what they are having trouble with, then makes shirts out of it. He looks for common problems among the people that he talks to, and creates shirts with positive messages to encourage people who have those thoughts.
Successful businesses are always about fulfilling a need. Listen to what people are telling you, and give them exactly what they want.
Jim Hopkinson is an author, speaker, teacher, and, entrepreneur. Jim has worked at startups, big corporations, and for himself at SalaryTutor.com. In this episode, Jim talks about the lessons he learned while working at ESPN and WIRED, why side projects are important, and the best ways to negotiate your salary.
Jim has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to emerging technologies. He was a digital producer before that title even existed and he has always embraced new technology.
While at ESPN he worked on the team that was creating the ESPN phone before cell phones became a part of every day life. He helped manage the Twitter and Facebook accounts at WIRED, and helped WIRED get into podcasting.
All this isn't to tout his accomplishments. It just shows you that embracing change can put you ahead of the curve. Don't be stuck in your old ways. Be willing to pivot and try new things.
While Jim was working at WIRED he was also working on his own projects. He was podcasting on the side for five years and wrote his own eBook on salary negotiation.
These endeavors may not have paid off immediately, but when he was let got at WIRED, he had something to fall back on. Instead of scrambling to find a new job, Jim was prepared because he was doing things on the side.
Right around the time he was fired, he was also offered the chance to speak at SxSW. He has now spoken there six times. He was also able to leverage his eBook into SalaryTutor.com
All of this shows you that you can't rely on others to make your living. Jim has been let go multiple times, and each time he was able to get right back on his feet.
When most people accept a new job, they take what's given to them. They normally think "I should just be grateful to have a job." Jim doesn't think that way. If you don't negotiate your salary, you could be missing out on thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars.
The biggest problem with most people is, they do very little research when negotiating. Here are the five places to learn about how much your job could be paying you: salary research sites, job board sites, industry research guides, your internal network, and your external network. By doing a little research, you can find out exactly what you are worth. Instead of going in blind, be prepared to ask what you're worth.
Michael Zaytsev is a life coach and founder of High NY. Before taking on his current roles, he was a financial analyst for J.P. Morgan and a sales rep for Google. In this episode, Michael talks about lessons he learned at J.P. Morgan and Google, why coaching is important, and why he took up the mantle at High NY.
Here are three things you can learn from Michael:
Michael learned many lessons while working for J.P. Morgan and Google. One of the biggest lessons he learned was that of being of value.
While many people go in to startups expecting to make money from them, Michael created his knowing he would not make a lot of money in the beginning. Instead, he focused on creating value. When you create value, you will be rewarded in the long run.
Another thing he learned was analyzing risk and return. Many founders are only focused on the now. Instead of only looking at the present, Michael analyzes whether his actions are worth the risk. He also looks at the short and long term value of everything he does. By weighing risk and reward, he can make sound decisions that will help the long term future of his company.
Many people have a misconception about coaches and what their roles are. Before becoming a coach himself, Michael was only familiar with executive coaching. After meeting two life coaches in the short span before his accident, Michael became a life coach himself.
When people think of life coaches, they picture people bossing them around and telling them what to do. In fact, the opposite is true.
Coaches give you the space to go deep, explore, and push yourself. They provide you with accountability and structure. They give you an objective view of your problems and help reveal solutions to you.
Before you can start your own project, idea, or business, there are a few things to keep in mind. Michael’s first piece of advice is to make sure you are creating something of value. If your idea doesn’t provide people with value, it will fail.
Another important thing you must do is make sure you have a user base or audience. Without an audience, there is no business. An engaged audience is one of the keys to sustaining a successful business.
The last thing to remember is entrepreneurship is difficult and isolating. Don’t go into it expecting everything to work perfectly. Just know that there will be rough times and hard work ahead.