Mindset
Get your mind right so you can get your business right. These pieces will help you see the creator game through a smarter lens.
The three we’d read first
Experimentality
It's hard to master any platform as a creator. Sure, there are best practices, trends, and some generally accepted truths about what
6 min read→Read secondHow To Keep Going
Sometimes being a creator feels like riding a bike in first gear on flat land. You're pedaling like hell, you're
5 min read→Read thirdSolving the Cobbler Problem
Unfortunately, I bet you have some experience with today's topic: 📬"Why does it come so naturally to help others solve problems,
3 min read→Every essay
How To Connect With Anyone
Even if you have a small audience.
9 min read→Mar 21, 2026"You give better advice than you take."
The brutal honesty of my AI identifying my blind spots.
6 min read→Apr 26, 2025When emotions get in the way
The biggest publishing challenge that no one talks about.
2 min read→Mar 22, 2025Push the Pace, Sustain the Standard
Have you ever had a boss who pushed you to perform? You may have hated it at the time. But in retrospect, you see
4 min read→Mar 7, 2025A lesson from basketball's 3-point line
The NBA was formed in 1949 after the merger of the National Basketball League (founded in 1937) and the Basketball Association of America (founded
2 min read→Feb 1, 2025Low-Cost Experiments
What to do when you feel like burning the boats.
3 min read→Jan 18, 2025Enthusiasm Generates Momentum
I've been thinking about momentum. When you have momentum, everything feels easy. Work feels effortless, and the outcome of that work feels
2 min read→Aug 17, 2024Solving the Cobbler Problem
Unfortunately, I bet you have some experience with today's topic: 📬"Why does it come so naturally to help others solve problems,
3 min read→Jun 20, 2024When to quit
One of our YouTube viewers recently asked, "At what point is it time to stop creating content due to lack of audience-niche
2 min read→Mar 17, 2024Platinum Handcuffs
Creators want control – control over their time, work, and who they work with. Having complete control over what you do, when you do it,
4 min read→Feb 18, 2024What a Harvard Psychiatrist says about burnout and performance
We spend all of our time expressing ourselves. We pour ourselves into our creative work and then we hit publish – awaiting the response. We
6 min read→Aug 27, 2023How To Keep Going
Sometimes being a creator feels like riding a bike in first gear on flat land. You're pedaling like hell, you're
5 min read→Jul 30, 2023Optimism – Your Secret Weapon
I've spoken to hundreds of professional creators on the podcast, and it's become clear to me that optimism is a
3 min read→Jun 25, 2023Experimentality
It's hard to master any platform as a creator. Sure, there are best practices, trends, and some generally accepted truths about what
6 min read→May 20, 2023Shiny Platform Syndrome
Every now and then, you may feel the pull to start investing time in some new platform that you're not currently active
3 min read→May 14, 2023Artist vs. Entrepreneur
Creators are notorious for dealing with burnout. People usually pin the blame on the volume of work, the pressure of performance, and the challenges
2 min read→Dec 11, 2022What if you're not an expert?
To become a great creator, you need to create. But many creators get in their own way because they believe "they're
3 min read→Oct 23, 2022Restraint
Creative people have the idea curse. Every day, maybe multiple times per day, we're coming up with new ideas that could work.
2 min read→Sep 9, 2022How to be consistent
In January 2017, I decided that I was going to publish an email newsletter every day for a year. And for 365 days, I
16 min read→Aug 21, 2022How would someone else run your creator business?
Inside The Lab this week, Cat Mulvihill shared a question that hit me like a ton of bricks. Here's what she said:
4 min read→Jul 31, 2022Creator Scientists
We've been conditioned to believe that art and science are at odds. They should be kept separate like church and state, right?
3 min read→Jun 25, 2022Your Art vs. Your Ego
This week I settled back into the saddle with five new interviews for Creative Elements. Five! So I spent a lot of time researching
3 min read→May 29, 2022The best teachers are students
There are two types of creators: a.) educators and b.) entertainers. The best educators are also entertaining – and yes, some entertainers who can teach
3 min read→May 22, 2022Quality and Belief
It's been a really great year for my business. Objectively, I know that to be true. But, more often than I'
4 min read→Apr 24, 2022Two traits of successful creators
The more I embrace my mission of helping people become professional creators, the more I find myself being more brutally honest. Because here'
4 min read→Feb 27, 2022Permission to be bad
As I get older, I have a growing number of skills and abilities that I feel really confident in. It's one of
2 min read→Jan 24, 2022Who are you becoming?
I've been a long-time listener of the Tim Ferriss podcast. It was probably the first podcast I really got into, and
3 min read→Jan 15, 2022Creative Independence vs. Financial Independence
For the last eight years or so, I’ve been fixated on financial independence. The idea of having enough financial resources that you can
4 min read→Jan 9, 2022Making better decisions
Our little family grew last month when we brought home our puppy, Teddy. If having a 10-week-old puppy has reminded me of
3 min read→Sep 19, 2021What will your luck look like?
Before I hit record on an interview of the podcast, I spend a little time talking with the guest. I share what they can
2 min read→Episodes about Mindset
Getting Unstuck: The Three Hidden Roadblocks Blocking Your Progress with Cat Mulvihill
Most productivity advice operates in one of two categories: you’re missing a skill or system, or you have a mindset problem. Cat Mulvihill thinks both camps are right — and both are incomplete.
Listen or watch→Apr 21, 2026Coaching Session: Overcoming My Delegation Problems with Michael Bungay Stanier
This episode is a little different. Michael Bungay Stanier, author of The Coaching Habit, with over a million copies sold, reached out and offered to do something I didn't expect: a live coaching session, recorded, here on the podcast. The topic: my delegation issue.
Listen or watch→Apr 14, 2026How To Stop Limiting Yourself (Backed By Science) with Nir Eyal
Nir Eyal has spent his career studying why people don't do what they know they should. After writing Hooked and Indistractable, he kept getting a strange kind of call: readers who'd read the book, knew the steps, and still didn't do them.
Listen or watch→Oct 21, 2025How we navigate our different internal characters (and her experience as a first time author) | Amanda Goetz
In today's episode, I am speaking with my dear friend Amanda Goetz. Amanda is my favorite kind of person. She works her butt off, but she's also sensitive and introspective.
Listen or watch→Jul 8, 2025I was falling into this negative loop – watch out! [Voice Memo]
A riff on psychological safety and creativity.
Listen or watch→Apr 8, 2025One of my favorite questions for finding clarity
I had a coach once upon a time, and he told me that our greatest strengths are often our greatest weaknesses. I think that applies to creators because we are so creative that we easily get inspired by new ideas.
Listen or watch→Mar 29, 2025This is helping me make better decisions (faster) [Voice Memo]
A short mantra to help you move a little faster.
Listen or watch→Jan 4, 2025Take 5 minutes and journal on this question [Voice Memo]
Take five minutes and journal on this question, a classic from Andy Grove.
Listen or watch→Dec 14, 2024"No friends’ weddings for 10 years" – my take on the Hormozi post [Voice Memo]
Is this really success?
Listen or watch→Nov 25, 2024A change I'm making in 2025 [Voice Memo]
Inspired by Derek Sivers on the Tim Ferriss Podcast
Listen or watch→Nov 15, 2024The number one thing getting in my way [Voice Memo]
The number one thing getting in my way, and a lesson from Zach Braff.
Listen or watch→Nov 9, 2024I cannot emphasize this enough [Voice Memo]
The reward for great work and exceeding expectations
Listen or watch→Oct 8, 2024Chase Jarvis – Thinking bigger and taking more risks as a creator
Chase Jarvis is an American photographer, director, artist, and entrepreneur. From April 2014 until July 2022 Jarvis was the chief executive officer of CreativeLive, an online education platform that he co-founded in 2010.
Listen or watch→Sep 14, 2024What to do when platforms stop working for you [Voice Memo]
Why giving up is probably the wrong answer.
Listen or watch→Feb 13, 2024Dr. K – The Harvard Psychiatrist helping creators with performance, burnout, and dealing with negative feedback.
Alok Kanojia, MD MPH, also known as “Dr. K”, is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist specializing in modern mental health.
Listen or watch→Aug 8, 2023Nuseir Yassin – The price of growing Nas Daily to 12 million subscribers
Nuseir Yassin started Nas Daily to highlight incredible people and places on the planet, and posted a video every day for 1,000 straight days.
Listen or watch→Oct 4, 2022Derek Sivers – How to Live as a Creator and Why You Should Focus Like a Monomaniac
Derek Sivers is a musician, producer, circus performer, entrepreneur, TED speaker, and book publisher. He's written four books including How To Live, Hell Yeah Or No, Your Music And People, and Anything You Want.
Listen or watch→Aug 24, 2021Nick Huber – What online creators can learn from sweaty startups
Nick Huber started Sweaty Startup in December of 2018 because he believed the Shark Tank and TechCrunch culture was ruining the real spirit of low-risk entrepreneurship.
Listen or watch→Aug 19, 2021BONUS: Managing Creative Overwhelm with Nick Wignall on Minds & Mics
In this episode of Minds & Mics, I talk with my friend Nick Wignall. Nick and I get into the details of creative overwhelm and burnout and how I (try to) manage it.
Listen or watch→May 20, 2021Let's talk about comparison traps
We’ve all fallen prey to comparison traps. In this short solo episode, I talk about why our comparisons are flawed.
Listen or watch→Jan 5, 2021Chris McAlister – Meet my business and creative coach
Chris McAlister is the founder of SightShift, a company that helps ambitious people be courageous and kind.
Listen or watch→Nov 24, 20205 things for creatives to be thankful for
It’s a weird year for Thanksgiving. It’s a hard year to feel very thankful. There's a lot to be angry about in 2020. There's a lot to be sad about and there's a lot to be hurt about.
Listen or watch→Jun 9, 2020Vanessa Van Edwards – Conversation starters, overcoming awkwardness, passive income, and pivoting around challenges
Vanessa Van Edwards is Lead Investigator at Science of People. She is also the bestselling author of Captivate: The Science of Succeeding with People.
Listen or watch→May 19, 2020Jason Zook – Learning the foundation, owning your weird, fighting fear, and showing up week after week
Jason Zook is a serial entrepreneur who has made millions through various "weird" methods: wearing t-shirts, auctioning off his last name (twice!), and selling off his future (BuyMyFuture.com).
Listen or watch→Apr 14, 2020Ash Ambirge – Humble beginnings, the Middle Finger moment, setbacks, and the unexpected impact Rihanna had on her life
Ash Ambirge is an internet entrepreneur, creative writer, speaker, and advocate for women being brave and doing disobedient things with their careers and their lives.
Listen or watch→Mar 31, 2020James Clear – Habits, research, and how to create A+ work from a New York Times best selling author
James Clear is a personal development keynote speaker and New York Times bestselling author of Atomic Habits. His book sold over 1 million copies in its first 12 months and received a ton of critical acclaim.
Listen or watch→