The Gently Mad

Rob Walling is a man of many talents. Over the course of his career he has been an programmer, a freelancer, a bootstrapper,  a business owner, an author, a speaker, a podcaster. The list goes on... A few years back he founded  Drip (and email marketing company), which he later sold to LeadPages. It's a path that many of us aspire to. But what I loved about Rob's story was his realization that there are different kinds of freedom, and what we think will make us happy in the beginning, almost never does, and changes dramatically with the passage of time. We talked about the struggle of finding meaning and purpose in our lives and how that relates to our work, as well as Rob's own realizations about what really matters and why it takes so long to figure that out. I thought we were going to talk a lot about entrepreneurship and building meaningful business. And while, we did talk about that, our conversation ended up being a littler more philosophical (which are my favorite kinds of conversations). I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did. There's a lot to glean here. Happy listening! Rob Walling: @robwallingThe Gently Mad: @tgmpodcastAdam Clark: @avclark

Matt Giovanisci is one those guys that I can talk to for hours. We have a ton in common, but just enough differences that it stays interesting. A lot has changed since his first appearance on the show, which you can listen to back in episode ??. I feel like we've both changed in some very similar ways since then. Where last time there seemed to be a lot of doubt and questioning, now there's assurance and confidence. And I think some of that only comes with certain amount of life experience. We talked about all the different projects we've both been involved in and, what the ultimate point of it all is, and how all these different interests and projects are connected. If you think of yourself as a generalist, or as the kind of person who really enjoys doing a lot of different things, this episode is for you. I'm definitely that kind of person and sometimes it can feel like I'm trying to do a million different things, and doing none of them well. We got into that exact issue and wether or not it's even possible to do a lot of different things well. I think Matt is a clear example that it is possible. But it takes time and hard work. He also just launched a new show, which was kind of the impetus for this conversation. Enjoy! Show Notes 28:28 - Chewbacca Bob 31:14 - The Hugh Hefner of pool care 47:04 - Why you shouldn't do what everyone else is doing 71:40 - What to do you when you fail 98:36 - What connects it all 122:37 - There's no such thing as a bad idea More about Matt Twitter Moneylab.co Matt's new podcast

Justin Jackson is no stranger to this show. Technically this is only his second appearance (check out his first episode nearly four years ago), but there are hours of recorded conversations floating around my hard drive. I always enjoy talking to Justin. Despite how much we have in common, he always helps me see things from a fresh and different angle. And his episode was no exception. Every time we talk, it's like catching up with an old friend. And even though we only just met in person for the first time at MicroConf in Las Vegas, he is indeed someone I would consider an old friend. Justin's career has spanned the gamut of the product, start up and SaaS worlds. He's an author, podcaster, educator and most recently a SaaS founder. There's no bonus episode this week because I decided to release the entire conversation. At just over 120 minutes, it's a long one, but worth listening to. Our conversation ranged from parenting, to business building, to the things that hold us back as entrepreneurs, to why every entrepreneur should have a therapist, and literally everything you could imagine in-between. These are my favorite kinds of episodes, because there's so much to glean from a guy like Justin about life in general. I hope you love it as much as I do. Enjoy! Note: Yesterday I released a two-minute teaser of some of the most fun bits from the show. Here it is as well: Show Notes Min 25:05 - The power of podcasting Min 38:45 - Why it's important to evaluate what we're putting out into the world Min 53 - A surprising realizing about people Min 67:22 - The time to get support is before you really need it Min 71:12 - How Justin came back from bottoming out Min 79:09 - Everything is a balancing act between chaos and order Min 87:47 - How to move forward when everything falls apart Min 92:45 - Why you're not winning Min 101:08 - Ego is the enemy Min 102:37 - The disaster of always running from discomfort Min 125:52 - Maslow's hierarchy of needs for businesses Min 128:47 - What if you had to completely start over? Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Justin's first appearance on TGM MicroConf Startups For the Rest of Us Billy Corgan on The Joe Rogan Experience Billy Corgan Disney meme Will Smith on Fault vs Responsibility Cortland Allen Indie Hackers Corbett Barr The Fizzle Show Dan Harmon Paul Jarvis

The Gently Mad is a podcast about meaning, disguised as a podcast about entrepreneurship. It's a bright-eyed and sweary look at what it takes to make a living on the internet (and still sleep at night).

Paul Jarvis is back! This is third or fourth time I think. We always have a lot of fun and this conversation was no different. Paul is a long-time web designer turned author and product maker. He has handful of great courses you should check out. We talked a lot about the difference between an idea and an actual business, what makes our businesses sustainable for the long haul, and the discipline it takes to do something well. Like last week, the bonus episode was as long as the main episode and we covered the specifics of how Paul uses podcasting to grow and engage his audience. As well the specific strategies he's using to make a full-time living from his courses. Enjoy! If you want access to this bonus episode and all future bonus episodes, subscribe below. If you're on your phone, you can subscribe be texting the word “TGM” to 345345.

In this week's episode of TGM, Brian and I talk about "idea fatigue", what to do when when your idea is the same as some else's, as well as why Brian believes that a productized service is *still* the fastest way to start generating revenue. Brian has been around the block with more than a few businesses. His newest, AudienceOps, helps businesses with done-for-you written content. But he's also expanding into done-for-you podcasting. In fact, I had a bit of a mini freakout when he first announced the new service, because it was so close to Podcast Royale (which hadn't been launched yet). We talked about that and what to do when your idea is very similar to something that already exists. I really enjoyed the part of the episode where Brian talked about how he come up with the idea for AudienceOps and launched quickly. A lot of great inspiration in there. Don't forget to subscribe for access to the bonus episode. We did a deep dive into productized services, podcasting, what Brian would do differently if he had to start all over, and so much more. Bonus Episode Show Notes 0:42 - How podcasting transformed his business 4:00 - How to compete in a saturated market 7:20 - How do you manage so many different projects? 10:40 - Should you try to combine your various projects (personal writing, products, businesses, services, etc.)? 16:30 - Why Brian rebranded and reorganized all his projects 19:00 - How to increase sales of info products 29:00 - How to keep your audience engaged 34:35 - The problem with the whole “charge more” advice 41:15 - What Brian would do if starting over today Enjoy! If you want access to this bonus episode and all future bonus episodes, subscribe below. If you're on your phone, you can subscribe be texting the word "TGM" to 345345.

Janelle Allen is the founder of ZenCourses.co and is an expert in Instructional Design and online learning. We talked a lot about entrepreneurship and why it's so important to not only know your why, but to own it. Don't forget to subscribe for access to the bonus episode. We did a deep dive into online course creation, what's working, what's not, mistakes to avoid, and, of course, how to create profitable online courses in 2018. What we covered in the bonus episode 1:30 - Can someone still create a profitable online course in 2018? 5:50 - Why passive income is bullshit 8:55 - How do you resolve the disconnect between creating something once vs guided programs and ongoing 10:30 - How do you create a course that gets result? 13:10 - What do you do when your course has multiple outcomes and/or goals? 16:00 - What kind of courses work the best? 18:25 - What's the difference between course goals and outcomes and why does it matter? 21:35 - What video link is best? 23:40 - Is it easier to sell a smaller ultra specific course or a bigger “cover-everything” kind of course? 26:30 - Why segmenting your audience is important 28 - How to know if you should change your course topic? Enjoy! If you want access to this bonus episode and all future bonus episodes, subscribe below. If you're on your phone, you can subscribe be texting the word "TGM" to 345345.

I've been a fan of Derek Webb for as long as I can remember. But's it's only been in the last couple years that I've gotten to know him a little bit more personally. He was a guest on this show a few years ago and that time we talked a lot about the music industry in general and how it's changing (for the better) for those who want to make a living as an independent artist. A lot of sh*t has gone down since then. Both for me and for Derek. And one of the reason's I love him and his music so much is that our stages of life seem to have a weird sort of symbiotic relationship. Usually whenever I'm going through something, Derek releases a new record and it's exactly what I needed at that time. That's certainly true for his latest record, Fingers Crossed. It's an album about the loss and grief that comes with change and the hope we have to find within ourselves if we're to grow rather than wither within the sadness of life's turbulence. To use Derek's own words, “It's a sad as sh*t record”. But it's a kind of *necessary* sadness. The kind of sadness that comes from serious soul work. And, honestly, that's the best way I have of describing this conversation. It was sad at times, but also poignant and surprisingly buoyant with hope. Hope for what's next, despite the pain of leaving behind the past. I hope you'll check out Derek's album. And I hope you get something out of this conversation. I certainly had a great time doing it. Enjoy the show.

Ok folks this was like a mini sales masterclass. Not what I intended, but I'm always down for a pleasant surprise. Lots of tips to be gleaned just from listening to the stories of a guy who has been doing this indieprenuer thing for a long time and knows what he's talking about.  It was a good one. Enjoy. 

Today's guest is the one and only Sean McCabe of seanwes.com. Sean just published his new book, Overlap about how to get unstuck in your life and business and it's great. I read it and have alreaday re-ead several sections several times. If you trying to do this whole "indiepreneur" thing, it is worth every minute (and penny)!  Sean is giving away the audiobook for free until September 14, 2017, so make sure and head over to OverlapBook.com and download it. We had such a great conversation. Seriously, one of my favs so far. I know you're going to enjoy it.  I'd love it if you would take a minute to leave me a rating and review in iTunes. It's super helpful in getting the show noticed by other people and I'd greatly appreciate it. Don't forget to head over to TheGentlyMad.com and subscribe, if you're into that kind of thing. And, as always, see you next time!

Decided to drop another teaser with some clips from upcoming episodes. Why? Because I like making teasers. ;) Hoping to drop the first full episode next week.  Enjoy!

After a VERY long hiatus, we. are. back. I'm super excited to kick off some stuff. I've been recording for the past couple of months and new episodes will be dropping soon. Head over to http://thegentlymad.com and subscribe to be notified when they do.

Thank you so much for listening and supporting TGM during what I'm now calling "Season 2". If you don't know yet, I'm taking a break from the show to get my new show and course off the ground. As well as record some more conversations for Season 2 of TGM. You can subscribe to the new show and, if you feel like being awesome, leave me a rating and review. Enjoy the show!

Amy has created a very successful business teaching people about online marketing and we spent a lot of time talking about the ins and outs of that. This is definitely an atypical episode because I really wanted to dig into some tactics, given that I'm going through my own product launch at the moment. Nevertheless, we did touch on some of the bigger issues, such as burnout, the pursuit of freedom and the bigger purpose behind what we do. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Chris Ducker TGM28 w/ Pat Flynn Tony Robbins Mike Stelzner Michael Hyatt Marie Forleo Jeff Walker Brad Martineau Invisible Selling Machine ~ by Ryan Deiss More About Amy @amyporterfieldAmyPorterfield.comProfitLab Course

He knows how to work hard, but how to take breaks and have fun as well. He seems happy and content with his work and is able to change it up when he needs/wants to. Basically the opposite of everything I did when I was a full-time freelancer. In all seriousness, though, Paul and I talk on a fairly regular basis and it's great when we're able to record a conversation like this—about meaning, happiness, what we like, what we don't, what we wish were different. This is my favorite kind of TGM episode. And Paul is a great, no-nonsense guy to learn from. He lives near the beautiful Canadian west coast and has purposely surrounded himself with the peace of nature, but still has a thriving career as a designer, writer and teacher. Enjoy the show! More About Paul @pjrvspjrvs.comthecreativeclass.ioPaul's books on Amazon

Nate is a Grammy-nominated musician, whom I met when I was 12. We started one band together when we were teens and then later in my mid-20s I joined his current band as the drummer. After one album and a couple years of touring I ended up leaving the band, but Nate has stuck with it and continues to put out music that just gets better and better. Besides being one of my best friends, Nate's story is a perfect example of sticking with a dream even when it practically kills you. Lots of ups and downs both financial and personal, but he's stuck with it and I admire him for that. I've never had someone on the show that I have this much history with or known for so long, so, honestly, I wasn't sure how it was going to go. But I'm glad we did it because it turned out great. Despite all my curmudgeonly attempts to not be inspirational, this one definitely veers into that territory. He may not admit it, but I think Nate is an optimist, and like he says, you really can do whatever it is you want to do with your live—if you're willing to put in the required effort and stick with it. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Sputnik Sound Counting Crows TGM14 with Seth Godin More About Nate @natecurrinnatecurrin.comNate on RdioNate on iTunes

Our conversation was one of the first in-person interviews I recorded and certainly the first with an artist that has had such a huge impact on my life. I've been listening to Jars of Clay since their first album was released in 1995 and can attach specific songs to specific experiences as a teenager, college student and, later, husband and father. It was truly amazing to get to sit down with him in Sputnik Studios in Nashville for an hour and talk about the history of the band and his personal evolution as a person and musician. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Sputnik Sound Noisetrade Greenville College More About Dan Dan on TwitterDan on WikipediaJars of ClayThe Hawk in ParisBlood:Water Mission

Omar is an incredibly hard worker, that much is clear. But, as I said in part 1, I was continually struck by his perseverance. He's the kind of guy who keeps working, long after many of us would have quit. I hope you enjoy part 2 of Omar's incredible story. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Robert Kiyosaki Michael Port - Book Yourself Solid Mark Zuckerberg Noah Kagan App Sumo More About Omar Omar on TwitterThe $100 MBAWebinarNinja

There's something to the idea of continually re-inventing oneself. Omar currently runs The $100 MBA and WebinarNinja, but he's spent many years trying (and often succeeding) at many other things as well. As someone who has often missed opportunities because of various fears and self-doubts, it was incredibly encouraging to hear the story of someone who has made those leaps and found that the other side isn't so bad after all. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Robert Kiyosaki Michael Port - Book Yourself Solid Mark Zuckerberg Noah Kagan App Sumo More About Omar Omar on TwitterThe $100 MBAWebinarNinja

In all seriousness, Allan is a really funny and interesting guy who also happens to co-own the best accounting software in the world, Less Accounting. He's one of those guys who can instantly raise my spirits no matter what's going on. And I've always admired him for his ability to let work be work and enjoy having fun and spending time with his family. As someone who has let all my hobbies fall to the wayside, I love how much energy Allan puts into his own non-work pursuits. He's not driven by nor obsessed with his work. I want to be more like that. If you've never met or talked to Allan, then settle in for a fun conversation about writing, building a software business, go-carts, hypothetical beer brewing and bees. Yes, bees. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Paddle Your Own Canoe: One Man's Fundamentals for Delicious Living ~ Nick Offerman LessAccounting LessFilms More About Allan @allanbranchLessAccounting

We talked about all the stuff I hope TGM has become known for by now--happiness, meaning, purpose and how we find those things in our lives and work. Good thing for me, these are topics that Natalie is not just passionate about, but helps other people figure out as well. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Social Media Marketing World Brene Brown on Vulnerability thefreedomplan.rocks Eckhart Tolle - The Power of Now More About Natalie @nataliesissonThe Suitcase EntrepreneurThe Freedom Plan

Jordan Cooper is funny funny guy and someone I would call a friend. In addition to being a Stand-up comedian, he's a web designer & marketer for small businesses in Louisville, KY. He's also a podcaster and host at least four different shows. In addition to talking comedy and our respective careers, we talked about sticking with the things we start and the ever prevalent problem of quitting to soon. Jordan busted my balls about not sticking with anything and wondering if this podcast ever actually launch, which makes it a fitting "fuck you" as episode 50 fo TGM. ;) In all seriousness, I love Jordan and really enjoyed our conversation all those months ago and am excited to share it with you. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Mike Monteiro Hannibal Burres Marc Marron Nate Bargatze Paul F. Tompkins John Gruber More About Jordan @blenderhdblenderhead.me Jordan's Podcasts Tech DouchebagsInternet Outrage MachineConnected ComedyThe Morning Dump

It was my honor to get to speak with Daniel for an hour about podcasting, building online businesses, branding and all sorts of topics that have lately been rolling around in between my ears. Whether or not your into podcasting, Daniel has a lot of wisdom about life and entrepreneurship and we had a great conversation. As always, I had a great time talking to Daniel. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show MyPodcastReviews.com PodcastPlaces Patreon TWiT Noodle.mx More About Daniel @theramennoodledanieljlewis.nettheaudacitytopodcast.com

I don't consider myself to be someone who has a lot of skills. But if there's one thing I've been able to do over and over again, it's create my own opportunities. In today's episode, I talk about five ways you can do the same. Enjoy. “You are a product of your environment. So choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you toward success - or are they holding you back?” ~ W. Clement Stone

I met Jon less than six months ago, but we hit it off pretty quickly. He's the host of the popular podcast, Hack The Entrepreneur, and we went deep into the struggles of building a business when it seems like nothing is happening. Jon pushed through months and month of "not knowing" with his podcast. But because he kept showing up, eventually he opened doors that never would have been opened otherwise. I love the fact that Jon is ready and willing to admit he didn't know what he's doing, but he knew one really important thing: keep showing up. And because of that, so many opportunities are opening up for him. We talked about all of that and what it's like to be on the other side of the dip. As always, I had a great time talking to Jon. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Jon's Entrepreneur.com Article CopyBlogger Rainmaker.fm VelocityPage Cliff Ravenscraft HTE73: How to Avoid the Entrepreneurial Gap w/ Brian Kurtz HTE 002: Julien Smith and The Ability To Destroy Anything TGM14 with Seth Godin More About Jon @jonnastorhacktheentrepreneur.com

I've been getting Laura's newsletter for several months now and it's a truly unique breath of fresh air in an industry where everyone's trying to sell you something. It's not about writing tips or "leveling up". It's about her personal life and she has a way of telling stories that are witty and heartfelt. We talked about everything from our shared love of NYC to our distaste for online marketing buzzwords and bullshit. In addition to building a solid reputations as a TV writer, Laura has also managed to create an amazing freelance business as a writer for entrepreneurs. Her forthcoming course, The Copy Cure, with Marie Forleo, is all about finding your voice as a writer, minus the tired and cliched advice spouted by most "writing" courses. I found her to be a super genuine and endearing person. I loved talking to her and wish we could have talked for more than the hour and half we did. Maybe she'd be willing to do a part 2 some day. As always, I had a great time talking to Laura. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Marie Forleo David Sedaris David Rakoff Michael Chabon Jonathan Franzen - The Corrections Jeffrey Eugenides - Middlesex The Copy Cure More About Laura @lbelgraytalkingshrimp.com

That's me. I do that all the time. In fact, I just spent a whole week doing that, instead of doing what I already knew. Getting advice, researching or preparing (after a point) is a really sneaky way of procrastinating and letting our self-doubt win. In this episode, I talk about a few things that can help if you find yourself in that situation.

So much great stuff in this episode. I first heard about Christa because of he latest album which covers songs from Nirvana, The Smiths, Depeche Mode, Smashing Pumpkins and U2. All favorite bands from over the last 20 years of my life. I'd been listening to the album on repeat when I decided to reach out to her and see if she'd be interested in coming on the show. I'm so glad she said yes. Like my conversation with Donald Miller, we talked about the art itself, but so much more than just that. Christa is a deep thinker and I loved talking with her about art and artifice, business, the idea of the "tortured artist", and many so much more. Every artist in an entrepreneur and I loved getting Christa's take on these topics. As always, I had a great time talking to Christa. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Christa's Young Songwriter's Workshop TGM14 with Seth Godin TGM09 with Donald Miller TGM28 with Pat Flynn Quiet ~ by Susan Cain Noisetrade TGM29 with Stephanie Halligan TGM08 with Derek Webb Nicole Witt More About Christa @ChristaWellsChristaWellsMusic.comChrista on iTunesChrista on Rdio

Damn him and his productivity! Just kidding. I enjoyed getting to know him and talk about what it's like to run a website full-time at that age. As well as his plans for getting published and retiring by the time he's 40. As always, I had a great time talking to Thomas. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Listen Money Matters Mr. Money Mustache TGM14 with Seth Godin Adam Clark on the CollegeInfoGeek Podcast More About Thomas @TomFranklyCollegeInfoGeek.com

“Why do I keep doing this?”, I thought. I would like to think I've matured in 15 years, but I've been repeating the same all-nighter-before-a-deadline pattern since college. It worked fine then when the stakes weren't as high. But now I have a family to support and bills to pay and every time I pull an all-nighter to meet a deadline, it wreaks havoc on my schedule, not to mention my health (it takes a lot longer to recover at 35 than it did at 20). Sure, it's my first product and I vastly underestimated how much time it would take to make, but you would think I would have learned this lesson by now. I've plowed through half-a-dozen different careers since I was 20, but this whole deadline thing is the common element that connects them all together. Procrastination is something I've never been able to shake. But this time, as I look back over the last 90 days, I see a lot of things I wish I had done differently and hope I can do differently the next time. Here are 10 of them: 1. Spend less time planning. What? Surely you mean spend more time planning, Adam. Nope. Planning, for me, is the thing I do to convince myself I'm not procrastinating, that I'm actually getting shit done. I'm great at planning and organizing. But if I'm honest, I only do that to avoid actually doing the Work. It's a form of Resistance, as Steven Pressfield would say. It masquerades as progress, but in reality it's just another thing that keeps me from doing the real work. Which brings me to number 2. 2. Work on the Work. Every day. I look at all the hours I've spent during the last 90 days. If I had just forced myself to do the real work of creating every day, I would have been finished way ahead of deadline. Instead, I let myself get sidetracked and distracted by all the urgent things that pop up, instead of doing the important things. Freedom can be a double-edged sword. I like not having a set schedule, but if the Work is going to get done, it must be scheduled and given priority. 3. Don't get distracted by what's loudest. Every time I sat down to focus, something would happen. My server would go down. A client would email with an urgent need. I would get stuck on a call. I'd have a fight with my wife. And before I knew it, the whole day was gone. The truth is, I let this happen. Looking back, there were so many things that seemed huge and loud (and out of my control) at the time, but could have waited until the Work was done. 4. Miniaturize my schedule. Urgent things tended to overrun my schedule because my schedule wasn't small enough. I gave myself way too much room to “be comfortable”. It's not enough to say, “Tuesday I will get the Work done.” It will never happen. Because at 3p.m. my mind will tell me there's still more “Tuesday” left. My schedule needs to be as close to hourly as it can be. It would have been much harder to wrangle out of “Tuesday from 8a.m. - 10a.m.”. 5. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day. This sounds like a preference, right? It's not, if you want to get the Work done. My irregular sleeping patterns were a huge part of why I couldn't make or stick to a tighter schedule. If I'm going to create from 8a.m. - 10 a.m. or whatever the schedule is, the non-working parts of my life have to be scheduled as well. I know all this scheduling sounds depressing. We became entrepreneurs because we wanted freedom from the 9-5, right? That's what I told myself for five years. And I'm still exactly where I started. That's depressing. 6. Do the har

The first time I talked to Jason about being on the show was more than a year ago. But we finally made it happen and he has quite a story. There was a lot we didn't have time to get to, but I really enjoyed what we did discuss. Jason has been with Envy Labs since nearly the beginning. He helped build the company's product, Code School, which they recently sold for $36 million. I was interested to know what it was like moving into the role of CEO, how he handles the pressure and, honestly, if he really enjoys it. And Jason didn't disappoint. As always, I had a great time talking to Jason. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Jason's book - Three Pipe Problems Envy Code School Envy Labs sells Code School - Wired More About Jason @jasonvanluejasonvanlue.com

As an interviewer myself, I count myself as one of Andrew Warner's many fans. It was great to sit down with him and ditch all the facades of business and tactics and get right down to personal struggles we both face. Andrew "created Mixergy to help ambitious people who love business as much as I do learn from a mix of experienced mentors. I do that through interviews where founders tell their stories and courses where they teach a solution to issues that can cripple founders." As always, I had a great time talking to Andrew. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show B.C. Forbs How to Win Friends and Influence People ~ by Dale Carnegie TGM14: Seth Godin on Dancing with the Fear Andrew's WDS Talk about The True Mind More About Andrew @andrewwarnerMixergy.com

If you don't know Myke, he's the British guy you keep hearing on podcasts. He has been talking in to a microphone since 2010 and lives just outside of London, England with his sticker-covered MacBook Pro. Enjoy part 2 of my conversation with Myke Hurley! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGM38 - Part 1 w/ Myke Hurley Goodstuff Analog(ue) Patrick Rhone - Minimal Mac Stephen Hacket Back to Work - Merlin Mann Dan Benjamin - 5by5 Inquisitive Episode 27 More About Myke @iMykeRelay.FM

We talked about Myke's dream of being a full-time podcaster, the multi-year journey to get there and the new challenges he faces now that he is there. If you don't know Myke, he's the British guy you keep hearing on podcasts. He has been talking in to a microphone since 2010 and lives just outside of London, England with his sticker-covered MacBook Pro. Myke is an inspiration to keep at it no matter how difficult. This is the first TGM two-parter. Yes, I'll be back on Friday with the second half of our conversation. As always, I had a great time talking to Myke. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Goodstuff Analog(ue) Patrick Rhone - Minimal Mac Stephen Hacket Back to Work - Merlin Mann Dan Benjamin - 5by5 Inquisitive Episode 27 More About Myke @iMykeRelay.FM

We talked about the illusiveness of success and the exhaustion of always trying to attain it, as well as what happens when we finally let go and just be who we are. For Josh, it comes down to being willing to ask for help and "humiliate" oneself. I can't even describe how great this conversation was (all due to Josh). Whether you're struggling or not, this one is worth your time. Josh has been a public speaker since he was 17. He toured with Bill Cosby when he was still a kid, used to be on MTV's Total Request Live, and just recently had his own TV show with Oprah's executive producer. He now runs a seven-figure business as a “youths” speaker and founder of Youth Speaker University. Here are some of my favorite bits from the show: On Success "One thing I've done that I really think has made a difference, it isn't sexy, it's not the answer that people would like, it's just I'm willing to be self aware enough to where I'm great and where I'm terrible. And I don't wallow in it. That means I can go and get a little bit better at that." "Here's what it comes down to to me: timely selfishness. To me selfishness is something that has negative connotation, but if you're gonna be selfish, you need to be selfish at the start of the road, not once you're down the road. From the get go, be very clear on who you are, who you're not, what you bring to the table, what you don't bring to the table, so that people can choose you and know what they're getting into and be clear about that." Why You Need Help “The issue is never, 'can I trust myself when I'm thinking clearly?', when I'm at 80 percent, it's those 10 or 20 percent days. I cannot count on myself on those days." "All inspiration is temporary courage. So when I feel that, I try to, as best I can, push myself as far down the road as I can, because I know come the next day or next week or whenever, it's going to eventually fade." "If you think you can do this marathon, whatever that marathon means to you, either a) overnight or b) by yourself, you are without question (and this is not an insult to your talent, to your intelligence, to your perseverance) you are inevitably setting yourself up for failure." What To Do After Success “What I wish I could have figured out sooner was just to humiliate yourself in front of a handful of people and you won't look like an idiot in front of the bigger group of people. You'll be ready, you'll have a healthier perspective, you'll have the right heart and intention, but also the strategy and steps in place so that your pure, good idea actually has a shot of living and moving forward." "Often times the very things that have helped us survive the difficulties in our life, later become a hindrance. Because my stubbornness, my relentlessness, my thick skin, my unattachment to anybody and anything and any outcome, is the very reason I survived the foster care system. But then later, when the game is no longer survival, but improvement and progress, that became my greatest hindrance." As always, I had a great time talking to Josh. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGM02 with Chase Reeves Fizzle

My wife joined me on the show for the first time. As usual, her perception is painfully accurate and and advice, spot on. I enjoyed having her on the show with me. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGM29 with Stephanie Halligan ArtToSelf.com Support The Gently Mad

The thing that inspired me to reach out to Matt was a blog post he wrote about how much he hates all the bullsh*t buzzwords and egotistical fakery that seems to fill our industry. Sound familiar? Matt is the creator of SwimUniversity.com and a number of popular and funny rap videos. His new project is all about coffee. We hit it off right away and this was a really fun conversation. As much as it pains me to say it, there were a lot of takeaways as well, for those of who listen for that sort of thing. ;) As always, I had a great time talking to Matt. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Delilah SoundDaddy.com Fizzle.co TGM02: Chase Reeves Thomas Frank Gumroad John Lee Dumas Alex Blumberg and Startup podcast NameMyProduct.co Omar Zenhom More About Matt @mattgiovanisciMattGiovanisci.comRoastyCoffee.comSwimUniversity.com

Aaron Draplin is not afraid to say what he thinks. I found myself resonating with so much of his story and especially his willingness to say what everyone is thinking, but is too afraid to say. His own about page sums it better than I could: Bred from the loins of the proud Midwest, this little fucker was squeezed out in Detroit, in the year 1973 to the proud parents of Jim and Lauren Draplin. More About Aaron @DraplinDraplin Design Co

What do you do when you have no good choices in front of you? Are you a failure if you quit or delay? I don't think so. I talked to my Justin about my podcasting course and give you a behind the scenes look about what's been going on and where I'm at with the course. Seth Godin says, in his book, The Dip: "Sometimes we get discouraged and turn to inspirational writing, like stuff from Vince Lombardi: 'Quitters never win and winners never quit.' Bad advice. Winners quite all the time. They just quit the right stuff at the right time. Most people quit. They just don't quit successfully." If you've ever created a product or wanted to, I hope this will be an encouragement to you. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Build & Launch Episode 12 The Dip ~ by Seth Godin Real Life ~ by Justin Jackson The 80% Principle Marketing for Developers Zen Founder

Barrett is an amazingly smart dude with a great story and super helpful advice. In addition to being the Director of Member Success at Fizzle.co, a training platform and community for honest independent entrepreneurs building businesses they believe in, he's also worked for Seth Godin & founded a company called Living for Monday. We pretty much covered the gamut, talking about our common roots in the Southeast, our distaste for the current state of American education and how to do what you really want to do, plus a lot more. As always, I had a great time talking to Barrett. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show The Fizzle Show FS089: Do Podcaster's have to Blog? So Good They Can't Ignore You ~ by Cal Newport TGM14: Seth Godin TGM02: Chase Reeves TGM11: Caleb Wojcik TGM07: Corbett Barr More About Barrett @barrettabrooksBarrettBrooks.comFizzle.co

I was beyond excited to get to sit down with him and have a conversation about what actually matters in these little lives we lead and businesses we're trying to build. Merlin is an independent writer, speaker, and podcaster based in San Francisco. You may know him from Back to Work, Roderick on the Line, and You Look Nice Today. I loved these two quotes, which pretty much sums it all up for me: “My narrative is that I've never known what's coming next—I still don't. I fell down the right set of stairs and have been surrounded by people who have picked me up and said, “Let's try this again.” It's been one anxious block of uncertainty after another.” “…most of us are so stuck in this notion of how stuff should go that we want to find one of seven stories that matches our narrative. The fact is that most of us are wandering around, scared shitless, wondering what the fuck's going to happen next.” As always, I had a great time talking to Merlin. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGMlistener.com Jason Snell MacBreak Weekly TGM02: Chase Reeves TGM14: Dancing With The Fear with Seth Godin More About Merlin @hotdogsladiesMerlinMann.comBack To WorkRoderick on the Line

But there are some principles here and I loved going through them because I really needed to hear it myself. Everything I'm talking about is pretty much stolen straight from Seth Godin and how I've applied what he talks about to my own situation. So, all credit to Seth for his amazing work on this topic. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show The Dip ~ by Seth Godin Startup School TGM14: Dancing With The Fear with Seth Godin  

Stephanie is the cartoonist and writer behind ArtToSelf.com, sending you a daily personalized, inspiring cartoon and note to help you start the day from a positive place. She is also the cartoonist and money expert at EmpoweredDollar.com On her website, she describes herself this way: "If you asked me in this moment to describe myself in a few words, I'd say that I'm a curious, creative, contemplative, positive, spiritual, grounded, joyful woman who's full of love. But in the not-so-good moments, I'd describe myself  as an over-analytical, obsessive, untethered, self-critical perfectionist. Ouch." I fuckin love that because I feel the same way most of the time, except for the "joyful woman" part. This was a great conversation. Stephanie's story was an inspiration to me to keep at it and I know it will be for you too. As always, I had a great time talking to Stephanie. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Noah Kagan AppSumo BrainPickings TGM14: Dancing With The Fear with Seth Godin More About Stephanie @stephhalliganArtToSelf.comEmpowereddollar.com

There are so many sleazy tactics and practices, half-truths and outright lies. If you're not a part of it, you wouldn't believe some of the things that people do. Pat Flynn, on the other hand, has built a reputation for being an honest, completely above board kind of guy. And I was curious about how he did that? And more importantly, how do you stay true to yourself when money enters the equation (and in Pat's case, lot's of money)? We talked about all of that and a lot more in this packed conversation. I learned a lot of things about Pat that I didn't know. What's the point of it all? Is he satisfied? Has his success brought the fulfillment he had hoped for? As always, I had a great time talking to Pat. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Alex Blumberg and Gimlet Media WTF with Marc Maron On Being with Krista Tippett The Tim Ferriss Show Fizzle Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die Pencils of Promise Chris Ducker Internet Business Mastery More About Pat @patflynnSmartPassiveIncome.comPatFlynn.comSPI TV

I decided to talk about exactly that in today's episode. Really I was trying to encourage myself, but I hope it encourages you too. It's a marathon. Not a sprint. Keep moving. Keep getting better. Keep showing up. And good things will happen. “Patience and perseverance have a magical affect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” ~ John Quincy Adams Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Jenn Going - Whole Life To Live Stephen King Giveaway Support the Show TGM14 with Seth Godin

Mary Beth spent more than a decade in the financial planning industry before deciding she'd had enough of the corporate world and made the indiepreneur leap. Now, she works for herself, shaking up the traditional views of that industry by focusing specifically on GenYers, helping them make smart choices with their money. As always, I had a great time talking to Mary Beth. Enjoy the show. More About Mary Beth @marybstorjWorkableWealth.com

It was my honor to sit down with Leigh in Nashville last year and talk about her life, music, the struggle of being an artist and what has ended being the truly meaningful things in her life. As always, I had a great time talking to Leigh. Enjoy the show. More About Leigh @leighannenashLeigh on Facebook

I'm excited to give a shoutout to some great podcasts in today's episode. I find that I listen to very few "entrepreneurial" podcasts. So here are some of my favorites. And I'd love to know your favorites. Shoot me an email and let me know. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show The Fizzle Show AskPat The $100 MBA Show Rainmaker.fm Build & Launch WTF with Marc Maron This American Life Stuff You Should Know #AskGaryVee StartUp

I had the opportunity to sit down with Chris Brogan for a minutes several months ago while I was preparing for a new show that eventually evolved into The Gently Mad.  It was great to talk to him and find out dive a little deeper into what he's all about. My favorite part of the discussion revolved around the idea of life/work balance and/or separation. It was great to hear Chris' somewhat contrarian take on that (since I happen to agree with him). We also talked about failure, the importance of "mission" and lots of other great stuff. Here are some of my favorite bits from the show: On the Separation of Life and Work “A lot of times people are under this weird pretense that they leave home at home when they head off to work and we all know that's not true.” “It's interesting to me that we even try to separate [life and business], because even when I've been brought into really big companies, a lot of times it ends up feeling like a personal therapy session. To me it's not that different.” On Failure, Systems and Mission “Don't fear failure. We learn from failure. Everything we do that's worth doing in life involves failure.” “We don't win all the time and the more we lose, the more we learn how to do better.” “There are a lot of system's that are there just because you had to have something. Those are the systems we can most work with.” “There's a difference between quitting and giving up.” "There's a difference between bering pretty good at guitar or writing fiction etc. and creating a business with mission." "Everything to do with being helpful usually is the best way to parse out if you're doing what you should be doing." As always, I had a great time talking to Chris. Enjoy the show! Show Notes Min 18:14: Why work and life are inextricably connected. Min 20:29: Fitting in vs blazing your own path. Min 22:23: Why a sense of “mission” is so important. Min 25:45: The difference between your “passion” and your “mission”. Min 27:40: Why business are different than projects. Min 30:34: The No. 1 thing to which Chris attributes his success. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show The War of Art Giveaway The Freaks Shall Inherit the Earth ~ by Chris Brogan The Owner's Path Start with Why ~ by Simon Sinek The 10x Rule ~ by Grant Cardone More About Chris @chrisbroganChrisBrogan.com