Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain

In episode 12 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about blame and responsibility with guest host Jenn Lisak. They discuss knowing when stuff is your fault and when it’s not, how to avoid being unfairly blamed, and the factors that contribute to success. On a lighter note, they discuss their favorite productivity tools. One of the biggest things that blindsides young professionals is that nothing ever seems to make sense, and when things go wrong they can’t help but feel like it’s all their fault. They often get things assigned to them in the form of tasks, but they’re expecting success to be completing the tasks, when it’s often really the assumed results of those tasks. The success of anything you do basically comes down to whether or not it’s making money, but we as human beings are not necessarily motivated by money. We’re usually motivated by working for a purpose and having someone tell us we’re doing a good job. Unfortunately, “good job” may or may not correlate to money, and making the money machine work may cause people to hate you. There are a lot of layers that have to happen for you to succeed at your job: a sound business model, leadership with a clear understanding of what needs to be done and the ability to effectively describe it to the rest of the team, and choosing the right people to do those things. Having all four of those things in place is impossible; a really good business is not one that has everything figured out, but one that has a culture that allows for things to get figured out effectively, and gives people at the bottom the ability to push insights up to leadership. If you’re in a terrible company, you’re not going to be able to turn it into a good one, but if you’re in a mediocre company, you can start turning it into a better one by starting to push back, setting good expectations, and taking care of yourself. Learn to say no; just because someone gives you something to do doesn’t mean you have to do it. It all comes back to communication. It’s better to say you can’t get it done than to say you’ll try and then end up not doing it. Make sure you know (and get written acknowledgement) who has responsibility for a task...only one person has it at a time, and you have to pass it to someone who accepts it. Don’t just finish your part and leave it without knowing who needs to pick it up next. On a lighter note, Chris and Jenn suggest their favorite productivity tools. Chris’s productivity stack: Slack, for team communication Trello, for project management Evernote, for taking notes and collaboration Google Drive, for sharing files Jenn’s productivity stack: Boomerang for Gmail, for scheduling emails to send later and cleaning up your inbox Slack, for team communication Monday, for project management Everlance, for mileage tracking Google Drive, shor sharing files Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, the digital marketing company that lets us use their podcast studio Sapphire Strategy, guest host Jenn’s company Fail Fest, an event guest host Jenn spoke at

In episode 11 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about being a woman in the workplace with guest host Danielle McDowell. They discuss the #MeToo movement, the male standard of professionalism, and mom guilt. To cool down, they talk about the benefits of coworking spaces. The episode starts with a discussion of the #MeToo movement and Time’s Up. Kait and Danielle are excited to see the conversation permeating into our culture and society, and the fact that you can see the horizon; harassment will never totally go away, but a line is being drawn. Many men were shocked to discover the level of harassment being experienced by women in the workplace, but many women weren’t surprised at all. It may not be anything extremely overt or obscene, but women often experience snide remarks, awkward situations, and unwelcome advances, whether it’s in the company they work for or with clients or other people outside the company. It’s typically a combination of power and inappropriate behavior, and when you’re in a more established institution that power gets a lot more tempting to throw around carelessly. Passive sexism is often a problem, too, and because it’s passive there’s no urgency to address the issue. True gender diversity means that the different ways a woman might do something and the different styles they may bring to the workplace are welcome; if you’re just hiring a woman to have a woman and look diverse, it’s not helping. It’s important for our society to be aware that much of what we’ve accepted as “professional culture” is actually “male culture.” Having and caring for children can be an issue at work; there’s often a culture where you won’t be considered successful if you have children, and it’s “unprofessional” if you have to leave work to care for them. It’s important to change the definition of professionalism so that not just women, but also men, are able to take responsibility for children without being considered unprofessional. We also need to stop telling people how they should behave as mothers. If you want to go right back to work after having a child, do it; if you want to take six months off, make a plan and do that. It’s all about being true to yourself and surrounding yourself with the tribe of people that will support you in the way that you need to be supported. To cool down, the hosts discuss coworking spaces. There are often misconceptions that coworking spaces are only used by entrepreneurs and startups, that there’s a frat party atmosphere, you can’t make money or have a stable job, or you can’t get work done. In reality, none of those things are correct. You can have a feeling of belonging despite the fact that there are different people every day, and introducing yourself to people is welcome (it’s weird if you do it when you work at Starbucks). Learn more about The Speak Easy at: www.speakeasyindy.com Facebook and Twitter @SpeakEasyIndy info@speakeasyindy.com Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, the digital marketing company that lets us use their podcast studio Scott Jones, the man who invented modern-day voicemail Cha Cha, Scott Jones’ startup, which Danielle worked for Sally Beauty, the company that acquired Danielle’s startup The Speak Easy, the network of coworking spaces Danielle works for The #MeToo Movement, which encouraged women to speak up about their experiences with harassment Time’s Up, a movement and legal defense fund to support lower-income women fighting sexual harassment ZIO, the startup Kait’s brother Bill works for Intentional, an app Danielle is testing High Alpha, the guys who put out the Intentional app

In episode 10 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about diversity in Indiana’s business world with guest host Tony Sanders. They discuss Indiana’s lack of diversity, people who don’t think there’s a diversity issue, and the code of conduct that excludes people who have different ideas or backgrounds. On a lighter note, they give advice on what to look for in a pair of headphones and suggest their favorites. The episode starts with a discussion of Chris’s “supervillain” status, how to be good at sales and why most salespeople suck, and what led to Chris, Kait, and Tony becoming entrepreneurs. Then, the main topic kicks off with comments on Indiana’s “old boys’ club” business environment. The hosts mention that the biggest issue is people who don’t think the diversity issue exists; the first part of solving a problem is being aware that there is a problem. If you think there isn’t an issue, it’s usually because it either doesn’t affect you, or it doesn’t affect anyone important to you. Some people are aware and still not changing their course of action, often having the attitude that since they’re not racist, they don’t have anything else to do about it. You don’t have to be racist for it to be a problem; the system is inherently bigoted. We’re operating based on a definition of professionalism that was created at a time when the only people it would apply to were white men, meaning that minorities have to change who they are to fit into business culture. If you’re a minority, you’re in a position where you have to decide whether you’re going to play the game or buck the system. We’re never going to have racial equality or gender equality until we can create a vision of a world in which people with different ideas and background can be considered professional. Progress is being made, but not quickly enough, and it’s great that there are things that incentivize diversity, but they still don’t create enough change. On a lighter note, the hosts have a discussion headphones (which gets crashed by the appearance of a bat in the studio). They’re your gateway to escapism, and the modern day pocket knife - you should always carry them because you never know when you’ll need them. Tony’s Suggestions: Standard Apple iPhone headphones, his everyday reliable headphones Apple AirPods, which Tony and Kait want, but Chris thinks are way too expensive for a wireless solution without high quality sound Wireless Beats, his go-to if he doesn’t have his Apple headphones Bose, headphones Tony uses for really enjoying music; Chris thinks they’re great for sound but ugly Monster, headphones Tony uses for really enjoying music If you’re not a big music lover, don’t buy really nice wired headphones, cheap headphones or wireless is the way to go. Chris’s Suggestions for Wireless Headphones: Jaybird JBL Anker, which makes gadgets (including wireless headphones) that are good, not great, but inexpensive If you don’t want to go above $200 and you want great sound, you’re going to have to buy wired. Chris suggests Bowers & Wilkins. The reason you can’t get great sound on wireless is because bluetooth doesn’t send enough data from music to the headset for it to ever sound good enough. There are a few ways to get good wireless sound (a codec called aptX and Sony’s LDAC), but for them to work right, both your headphones and your gadget need to support the software. Get in touch with Tony: Tonyrsanders.com Twitter and Instagram @TonyRSanders tony@tonyrsanders.com Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, the digital marketing company that lets us use their podcast studio 1 Million Cups, an event where Chris and Kait met guest host Tony Zig Ziglar, a sales coach both Chris and Tony respect Mark Zuckerberg, Marcus Lemonis, and Gary Vee, who have changed what the perception of a billionaire is by wearing jeans and sneakers to work IUPUI, where Kait went to school Pink Floyd’s The Wall, an album Kait’s father uses as an example of why you need to listen to a complete album and not just singles Goodfellas, a movie Tony loves (you can’t just watch one part, just like you can’t just listen to one song from an album) NPR, the reason Chris listens to the radio

In episode 9 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about business transparency with guest host Doug Karr. They discuss the stuff no one tells young professionals, talking about failure, and the real definition of success. They wrap up the episode by talking about the things that still don’t work in 2018. There’s a lot of stuff about business that no one tells young professionals, and a lot of lies perpetuated. We’re under pressure to look like the perfect company or the perfect individual and not talk about the bad stuff all the time, but there’s almost a gasp of relief when someone shares that things are really tough. Because we don’t often hear about the failures and the hard times, we are don’t know what success really looks like. It’s not sexy; it takes a lot of hard work, time, and mistakes. Almost every company that seems like it had overnight success actually had years of drudgery first. Some of the biggest reasons that startups fail are scaling too fast and rushing to release product too quickly. They also often have the wrong investors. If you can get your company off the ground without investors, you’ll be happier because you’re still in charge of your own company, instead of having to answer to the people who lent you money. If you want investment, choose an investor that has had at least three different successful companies; having one successful company doesn’t mean you know what you’re doing. People tend to look at success as having money, being able to go on vacation wherever and whenever you want, and having luxury items, but wealthy people are often not successful - they’re miserable. The real definition should be taking pleasure in your work and having a purpose. Success is more about making the day-to-day great than sacrificing today in hopes of winning the lottery tomorrow. And if you crash and burn, it’s okay (and almost a necessity) to talk about it. We all have to fake it til we make it to some extent, but don’t buy your own hype, and whenever possible, help someone else know it’s hype. The episode wraps up with a discussion of stuff that still doesn’t work, even though it’s 2018. Chris’s biggest complaint is that cell phone batteries don’t last all day, and the phones break easily. Doug’s is that web conferencing software is all terrible and doesn’t have a solid or maintained connection. Other things on the list include rechargeable batteries, paper towel dispensers, automated bathrooms, non-automated trains, bluetooth, reading on tablets, haircuts, seats that don’t accommodate big people, products that clean off dogs’ and cats’ paws, wi-fi, printers, and forms. What do you think still sucks in 2018? Leave a comment below. Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, guest host Doug’s digital marketing company that lets us use their podcast studio The Speak Easy, where DK New Media’s podcast studio is located Kelly Schwedland of Elevate Ventures, an investor that listens, is hands-off with the company, and operates as a coach and guide instead of a boss Streets of Compton, an A&E special about the city of Compton, where they gave gang members opportunity to work and the crime rate went down What to Do When You’re Getting Fired, a Forbes article by guest host Doug How Digital Marketing Will Change in 2018, a Forbes article Doug contributed to Shure, where Doug got his high-quality headphones Apple AirPods, which have significantly better quality than most headphones but are still without bass or depth Bose, where Doug got one of his pairs of bluetooth headphones Kindle Voyage, Chris’s e-reader of choice, the e-ink is much easier on the eyes Epson, where Doug got his printer that works most of the time

In episode 8 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about how to deal with it when you make mistakes, have bad luck, or are in an unpleasant situation. They discuss the sunk cost fallacy, owning your suffering, and leaning in to the hard times. On a more cheerful note, they share their favorite Christmas shopping tips. The episode kicks off with a discussion of the sunk cost fallacy, where the more money and time you put into something, the less likely you are to abandon it, even if it’s not working or making you miserable. Often, thinking that you’ve put too much into something to throw it away overrides your knowledge that it’s not going to get any better. However, bad stuff just happens, and it’s important to learn how to handle it when it does. The best way to get through the hardest parts of life is to own your suffering and push through the situation fast. As examples, the hosts discuss Senator John McCain’s experience as a POW and Nelson Mandela’s jail time during apartheid in South Africa. One of the worst things we can do is avoid or ignore negative experiences; it’s crucial to know that you can do everything right and still fail. Chris and Kait mention their own experiences with divorce, business ownership, and getting kicked out of college, and talk about how it was or would have been easier if they accepted that things often don’t get better until they get worse. The good news is, we grow more as people in the hard moments than the good ones. On a more cheerful note, the hosts share their favorite tips for Christmas shopping. Chris suggests that if you don’t know what to buy for someone, you shouldn’t buy them anything. Some good bets if you still want to buy something are practical luxuries, nice everyday carry items, things that people want but would never buy themselves, personalized gifts, nice chocolates, and books with handwritten notes in the covers. Planning ahead is always helpful, too; if you see something during the year that makes you think of someone, buy it and hold on to it for Christmas. Good Places to Shop for Universally Loved Gifts: L’Occitane, where Chris goes to buy nice soaps for people Shinola, tons of great everyday carry stuff Urban EDC Supply, another good place to get everyday carry stuff Dollar Shave Club Joe’s Butcher Shop, a really great local butcher shop Vine and Table, puts together really nice fine cheese sets Godiva Chocolates DeBrand Chocolates Yankee Candle, Chris’s favorite candle store, you can get customized ones with photos Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio The Speak Easy, where DK New Media’s podcast studio is located Idealab, whose founder, Bill Gross, researched the number one factor of success (it’s timing)

In episode 7 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk with guest host Harry about grit, a growing buzzword used everywhere from parenting to business. They discuss definitions of grit, common misconceptions about the term, and why failure isn’t always a bad thing. Grit is probably the most important factor of success, often more so than talent, inherent skill, and initial opportunities. It takes hard work to have grit; it causes anxiety and stress on the mind to question your assumptions and rethink a problem. When faced with difficulty, those that try different ways to solve it often perform better than those who give up when they don’t succeed right away. We often don’t see all the failures along the path to others’ successes because people are more comfortable talking about the successes than the failures. Part of grit is accepting failure as a part of being human, and in many ways a part of the work you put into getting good. Failure isn’t necessarily a sign that you’re doing the wrong thing. People in school, business, and life in general like to tell people to “just toughen up,” but toughening up and grit are not the same thing. Grit’s not a silver bullet or something you can manufacture; it’s a framework for providing an opportunity and structure to work and develop. It’s not about forcing yourself beyond your limits, it’s about when you fall get back up, when you’re tired learn to rest, and just keep going. To cool down, the hosts discuss Harry’s everyday carry: his favorite pen, his favorite pencil, his phone, his glasses, glasses cleaner, and business cards. He also has a backpack like a MacGyver bag with various adapters, all sorts of cords, chargers, etc. Where Harry’s everyday carry comes from: Levenger, for everything in his everyday carry eBags, where he got his smaller “stuff bags” L.L. Bean, where he got his backpack Chris’s suggestions for similar everyday carry items: Leatherology, which is very similar to Levenger Urban EDC Supply, a great place to go for small items like pens and pencils; they have expensive everything Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio Angela Duckworth’s book, which popularized the term grit The Failure Institute, a tribe of people who are serious about learning from their failures and feel free to open up and discuss them The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed by Jessica Lahey Aaron Dimmock, who’s coming out with a book on candor and will be speaking at the Failure Institute quarterly summit in January

In episode 6 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk with guest host Ashley about being stereotyped, then punished for stepping out of the stereotype. They discuss getting comments on your looks in a business setting, resisting being confined to the box you’re put in, and ways to change society’s subconsciously malicious instincts. We process people through stereotypes, and that becomes a problem when we confine people and don’t allow them out of the boxes we put them in. Chris mentions being stereotyped as geeky and constantly being asked to fix people’s phones, while Kait and Ashley constantly get comments on their looks in business settings. The hosts also discuss being treated like you don’t belong at a bike shop or gym because you’re not already in amazing shape, and getting crushing offhand comments about weight and diet. We’re always struggling to grow out of the stereotypes people put us in, and feel like we have to go above and beyond to prove that we deserve to be where we want to be. You can keep who you are and be successful at the same time, though; you don’t have to conform to the stereotype of a consultant, lawyer, businessperson, or whatever you’re trying to be. People who don’t fit the stereotype for a job are often the best at it. There’s often not a conscious malicious intent behind “stay in your lane” comments, but we typically don’t take the time to reflect and be aware of our motives. As a society, we should continue to encourage conversations for people to self-reflect and think about how, without thinking about it, they’re treating people in ways that might be harmful. Think before you speak! On a lighter note, Chris and Kait discuss keeping your email inbox organized. Chris is an “inbox zero” person and says that for most people, when their inbox is full, it’s a bunch of deferred decisions. These are his rules for emails: Don’t have conversations in email. Period. It takes up too much time and inbox space. Figure out the best way to reach someone and how they prefer to communicate. It’s not always email. No drama in email. Email is almost always misread, and you tone rarely translates. Don’t leave to-dos in email. If you can’t immediately reply or complete what you’re asked to do in the email, put it in some kind of to-do list and then get rid of the email. Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio The Speak Easy, the network of coworking spaces guest host Ashley works for Bicycle Garage Indy, Chris’s favorite bike store, where they don’t treat him like he doesn’t belong there Planet Fitness, Kait’s gym, where they don’t look at you funny for not already being in shape “Lane Boy,” a Twenty One Pilots song about being told to stay in your lane Legally Blonde, the world’s greatest “Stay in Your Lane” movie Lauren Schregardus from Content by Carter, Speak Easy’s awesome PR person The Pivot for Equality event led by Julie Kratz, where men and women collaborate for gender equality Slack, a place to have conversations with your coworkers without cluttering up your email Tony Sanders, a sales coach who’s been helping Kait with her career Google Voice, where you can keep your personal phone number separate from your work number without having two phones Salesforce, the most well-known CRM

In episode 5 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about podcasts with guest host Paul. They discuss why podcasts are great, the shows they love, and where you should listen. Podcasts are becoming very personal for people; in the last 2 years or so, it went from people thinking you made up a word to people having favorite podcast production companies. They started as a subversive media where you could easily talk about anything, and are a great way to hear about people having experiences like yours, and get perspectives you wouldn’t usually hear in the news. They’re also perfect for workaholics and being productive, because you can listen while you’re doing other things. The hosts discuss some of the best ways to find podcasts, including referrals from other podcasts, favorite podcast networks like Radiotopia or Gimlet Media, hearing people talking about a show, and searching for what you’re interested in. Chances are, if you want to hear more about something, someone is podcasting about it. Businesses are starting to get on board with podcasting, too, and most of the results of that suck. Constantly promoting and talking about your business on a podcast is exhausting, and if your business is podcasting just because you’ve heard podcasts are a thing, you shouldn’t be doing it. If you’re intimidated by all this information, Chris and guest host Paul suggest some of their favorites to get you started. The Podcasts Chris Thinks Everyone Should Start With: Up First - a short news podcast by NPR that gives you all the major news for the day in 15 minutes TED Radio Hour - a staple; you owe it to society/yourself/the world to expose yourself to new ideas Ask Me Another - a podcast that will help you enjoy listening to podcasts; it’s just fun The Moth - a podcast that shows the power of podcasting The Intelligence Squared Debates - Chris’s guilty pleasure podcast; where two intelligent people on a controversial subject have a civil formal debate The Podcasts Paul Thinks Everyone Should Start With: Reply All - a show about the internet The Way I Heard It - Mike Rowe’s 5-minute Paul-Harvey-style “now you know the rest of the story” podcast Hardcore History - Dan Carlin’s podcast, where he goes in depth on a historical situation for 5 hours and you’re hooked the entire time The episode winds down with a discussion of where you should listen to podcasts. If you’re tired of iTunes and Google Play not having the features you want when listening to podcasts, try one of Chris and Paul’s favorite players. Chris’s Favorite Podcast Players: Pocket Casts, which allows you to sync your library and play history across all of your devices and automatically add episodes to your up next playlist, and has an easy to use interface NPR One, which is great if you don’t want to research what to listen to; it’s free and learns what you like when you rate shows Paul’s Favorite Podcast Player: Overcast, which is very similar to Pocket Casts but it’s free Every Podcast Mentioned in this Episode: The Moth Radio Hour, live true stories told on stage with no notes The Mortified Podcast, people getting up on stage to share things that they wrote as teenagers 99% Invisible, a podcast by the owner of Radiotopia, Roman Mars TED Radio Hour, a podcast that goes more in depth on a subject than TED Talks do, with multiple experts and behind the scenes discussions Ask Me Another, a game show podcast from NPR Diane Rehm’s podcast, which brings people from all sides of the debate and is always civil and reasonable Katie Couric’s podcast Code Switch, a podcast that discusses world events from the perspective of the people they actually affect, with a lot of talk about bias and privilege Wait Wait...Don’t Tell Me!, a classic radio game show Tell Me Something I Don’t Know, the game show for know-it-alls who can’t help bringing up random facts Serial, a true crime podcast that’s the only podcast Kait has listened to consistently, a game changer for podcasts Adam Ruins Everything, a podcast that’s great if you like TED Talks Radiolab, a podcast that’s very much like TED Talks More Perfect, a new podcast by Radiolab about real Supreme Court cases and their impact on the world 1A, a good fill-in podcast for Diane Rehm, stands for 1st Amendment The NPR Politics Podcast Here and Now, a podcast with good in-depth news stories Lovett or Leave It, Chris’s current favorite podcast, it’s like if politics were a game show and a therapy session at the same time NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour, a podcast that talks about all the new TV shows and movies so you know which ones are worth your time A Way with Words, a call-in show about where words come from S Town, another story-based podcast by the makers of Serial; it’s a true story about people in a crappy little town This American Life, a podcast that shares three related stories each episode Open for Business, a podcast created by Gimlet Media and eBay focused on stories of people starting businesses The JoyPowered Workspace Podcast, a good example of a podcast for business, where two delightful ladies who work in HR try to make human resources more human, less resource (they interviewed Chris for an episode) Up First The Intelligence Squared Debates Reply All The Way I Heard It Hardcore History Marketplace Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow. DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio 91.9 WITT, a radio station guest host Paul joined and volunteered with Radiotopia, one of guest host Paul’s favorite podcast production networks NPR Podcasts, which have the largest audience and earn more than $10 million in podcast revenue Crooked Media podcasts, podcasts that are like therapy if you find everything going on in the world right now depressing Gimlet Media, another favorite podcast network of guest host Paul Purple Ink, the HR company owned by one of the hosts of JoyPowered Gallup StrengthsFinder, an assessment that tells you 5 things you’re really good at Stitcher, a popular podcast player DoggCatcher, a podcast player Chris used, which had a lot of features he wanted but wasn’t fun to use

In episode 4 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about minimalism with guest host Dexter. They discuss why you should consider a minimalist lifestyle, how to get started, and the hardest areas to minimize. The episode kicks off with a discussion of minimalist James Altucher, who claims to only own 15 things. The hosts discuss whether or not “15 things” is accurate and if Altucher has given minimalism a bad rap. Minimalism shouldn’t be a contest about who can have the least items, but there are several reasons that minimalism is a good choice. It helps you avoid decision fatigue, frees up time and money to spend on experiences instead of things, allows you the flexibility to move quickly, and embraces the idea of accepting the life that has been given to you instead of coddling yourself with stuff. It’s not always easy to get into minimalism, and you can’t do it all at one time. Try identifying the easiest area to minimize and start there, or put all your stuff in one room and only take things out as you need them. The Minimalism Challenge is going viral on social media - for a month you get rid of a certain number of items each day - but it’s not a great way to embrace minimalism. You shouldn’t try to figure out what to get rid of, you should figure out what to keep. The hosts discuss what they find the most challenging to minimize; sentimental items can be hard to give up, and clothes are difficult because of society’s expectations (people think it’s weird when you wear the same thing every day). Ultimately, it’s about intentionally deciding what’s most important in your life so you can let go of what’s less important. Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow. DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio Choose Yourself, a book by James Altucher This Business Insider article about Altucher

In episode 3 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about the perils of social media, why people are even still using it, and some positive and negative ways to use it. To cool down, Chris gives his suggestions on the best products for managing cables. People often talk about social media the way they talk about traffic - a necessary evil. But social media’s not compulsory, so why are we even still using it? What started as a tool for expression and connecting to our tribe went downhill when everyone started using it and it became a professional profile that needed to be taken seriously. Social media triggers a dopamine response, which gives us pleasure, but is connected to addiction - and too much of it leads to stress. In her book “Braving the Wilderness,” author Brené Brown says that the biggest mistake people make with social media is using it as a place to process pain. Chris and Kait discuss that when you process your pain by venting frustration on social media, someone else is often there to vent the opposite frustration, and you end up venting your anger at each other instead of having a conversation. They also mention that people can fall prey to a subconscious one-upsmanship when posting the good things about their lives. Chris and Kait are fans of Twitter, which is great for talking to people interested in the same thing as you in real time, following things that you’re interested in, and following people without others knowing about it via the list feature. They also point out that there isn’t pressure to post; you can just use it as a customized news feed. Here are their thoughts on other networks: Instagram - Great for use as a family album and keeping up with what your friends and family are doing LinkedIn - The true professional homepage, it’s more important than your resume for some recruiters Pinterest - Perfect if you make stuff and want to share with other people who make stuff Tumblr - A place to geek out on things you really like Snapchat - Making bad decisions have less consequences Reddit - Where people who say actually a lot go to prove people wrong about things Tinder - Making bad decisions have more consequences Facebook - It’s too much work to make Facebook work for you. On a lighter note, Chris gives a run-down on the best products for managing cables. Apple has (illogically) removed most of the ports in their newest products, which requires dozens of dongles and adapters. Chris’s Suggestions: GRID-IT! - takes a variety of objects and consolidates them into one nice organized system Waterfield Design and NutSac Bags - make lots of high-quality tiny gear bags Henge Docks - great docks for your MacBook, everything plugs into them Satechi - unified docking solutions for Macs, their Aluminum Type C Pro Hub Adapter is much better than the Apple dongles Shout Outs To: Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow. DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone, Brené Brown’s book about cultivating true belonging Discord, an app for gamers to chat Slack, a business and team tool that’s now being used to create small groups for conversations

In episode 2 of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and Kait talk about the terrible advice often given to smart, driven, passionate, and creative individuals. They also discuss some of their favorite good advice, then cool down with some tips on organizing your smartphone. A lot of advice that people think is great is actually horrible. Chris and Kait explain why they think “Follow your passion,” “Suck it up,” “Work hard enough and you’ll be successful,” and “Buy a house” fall into that category. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the co-hosts mention some common advice that they think is actually helpful. This list includes “Don’t sweat the petty things, and don’t pet the sweaty things,” “Problems can not be solved with the same level of consciousness that created them,” “A bird in hand is worth two in the bush,” and “It’s okay not to be okay.” Wrapping up the episode on a more fun note, Chris and Kait discuss why disorganized smartphones make them angry and share some tips for getting your phone under control.

In the first episode of “Post-Modern Living with Chris The Brain,” Chris and his co-host, Kait, talk about the social debt young professionals start out life with, why older generations hate on Millennials, and why Millennials hate on each other. To cool down, Chris gives the down-low on where to get the best backpacks for daily tech life. Millennials are often seen as the most open-minded generation but tend to be mean to each other. They also get criticism from older generations, many of whom think that because they suffered when they were young, young people today should have to suffer, too. Older relatives and friends often don’t understand or support Millennials’ entrepreneurial passions and use of co-working spaces. On top of all that, this generation’s being blamed for “killing” industries right and left. Traditional work environments often teach interns and young professionals outdated bad habits and require them to compete in a “corporate survivor” contest. Young people leave organizations where they’re expected to do what they’re told and not bring their own thoughts and ideas to the table. All this plus the incorrect assumption that leaders are extroverted, loud, and ego-driven causes many Millennials to seek alternative career paths. The downside is that they often have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet, and that means they’re unlikely to get benefits from their employer. Young people would benefit from learning conflict resolution and being upfront with people instead of constantly trying to “keep the peace.” It’s also important that in social media and in life, people have the courage to show people their struggles and failures instead of trying to look like they have perfect lives. The reason we talk so much about success stories and we can think of examples off the top of our heads is because they’re unusual. On a lighter note, Chris and Kait discuss their favorite backpacks. They hate seeing saggy, beat-up, disorganized backpacks; one of the best things you can do to look professional is to have a nice backpack. Chris’s suggestions: Booq – Chris’s first professional backpack Saddleback Leather – The sturdiest backpack Chris has ever owned eBags and Timbuk2 – Nice, less expensive options Tumi – Sturdy but less stylish Kait’s suggestions for women: Kate Spade – Kait’s current laptop bag Ban.do – Fun backpacks that are less professional but great for students Coach – Some of the simpler styles Shout outs to: The Speak Easy, a network of co-working spaces in the Indianapolis area The Failure Institute, an event for sharing failures and what you’ve learned from them DK New Media, a digital marketing company who lets us use their podcast studio Apprenace, a company creating meaningful internship programs that help businesses and careers grow.