Love Your Work

Breaking through resistance to be creative is a battle with your own mind. We learned last week from Dr. Robert Lustig about how commerce is set up to hack your mind into a state of constant wanting, wanting, wanting. But the more you seek satisfaction from the outside world, the harder time you'll have finding it. That's why I think you should shut off the consumer mind, and fire up the creator mind. Photo by Paul Skorupskas on Unsplash Thanks for sharing my work! On Instagram, tammylynnmcnabb, and tomjepsoncreative of The Sideman Designer podcast. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is the author of The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast and his Love Mondays newsletter, David explores what it takes to make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher RSS Email Facebook Messenger Show Notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/creator-mind-podcast/

Dr. Robert Lustig, UCSF professor emeritus and author who studies obesity, sugar, and brain chemistry. He explains how pleasure (dopamine) differs from happiness (serotonin). Short takes cover addiction-like effects of sugar and tech, why chasing pleasure blunts lasting contentment, the Four C's for contentment, and a wild origin story about Coca‑Cola's original formula.

Curiosity is powerful fuel. If you want to make it as a creative, you need to follow things you're curious about. It's your best shot at being able to put in the work necessary to succeed. But curiosity can be so powerful, it can take you off track. In this week's article, learn how to use curiosity strategically. You can harness the fuel of curiosity while driving toward your goals. Image by Steve Johnson New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Listener Showcase Frafri makes "music for entrepreneurs." Visit frafri.com to find all of the places you can listen. About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is the author of The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast and his Love Mondays newsletter, David explores what it takes to make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher RSS Email Facebook Messenger Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/strategic-curiosity-podcast/

We're living in a time of exciting technological innovation. But just because technology can do something for us, doesn't mean that it should. Cal Newport is author of the new book Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World. Digital Minimalism is a philosophy of using the power of technology only in the ways it serves us best, while eliminating use of technology in ways it harms us, or even in ways it only has a marginal benefit. Aside from Digital Minimalism, Cal Newport is an extremely prolific author. He's written books such as So Good They Can't Ignore You, Deep Work, and How to Become a Straight-A Student. He's a tenured computer science professor at Georgetown University. Cal has accomplished all of this in spite of – or maybe because – he's never had a single social media account. This is a fantastic conversation with Cal. He and I overlap a lot in our interests, so I was very eager to discuss with him the implications of technology usage, and also to dig deeper into his relationship with Deep Work. As you know if you listen to Love Your Work regularly, I'm always searching for ways to get more out of my mind, and to maintain a healthy relationship with technology that helps me get more creative work into the world, without distracting me from doing that creative work. In this conversation, you'll learn: How did we all get so addicted to Facebook? For many of us, it was an accident. For Facebook, it was no accident. How do Amish communities survive, despite being surrounded by a world with a rapid pace of technological innovation? It's all about using technology for its benefits, without damaging the community. Cal goes beyond "Deep Work" to talk about the different "flavors" of Deep Work he uses to power his wildly successful career as both an academic and an author. Links and resources mentioned Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport Tragedy of the commons Ten arguments for deleting your social media accounts right now by Jaron Lanier Pavlok Mouse Book Club Moleskine Medieval Technology and Social Change by Lynn White Technological instrumentalism Technological determinism Dynamical system Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport The Hedgehog and The Fox So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love by Cal Newport Cal Newport Photo Credit: Penny Gray Photography New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is the author of The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast and his Love Mondays newsletter, David explores what it takes to make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher RSS Email Facebook Messenger Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/cal-newport-podcast-interview/

If you want to be a master of your craft, you need to be able to see your skills and accomplishments objectively. You need to always be on the lookout for ways you might fool yourself – for ways you might cause yourself to feel as if you have accomplished something, when in fact you have accomplished nothing. One of the ways you can distort your vision of the truth is by identifying too strongly with the place you live. I talk about it in this week's article. Thanks for sharing my work! Thank you to the Meshed Society Newsletter; to @LivC2012, @rhysbmorgan, and @wes_mister on Twitter; and to @Aliceswalsh and @Maxam1 on Instagram. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is the author of The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast and his Love Mondays newsletter, David explores what it takes to make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher RSS Email Facebook Messenger Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/stop-loving-city-podcast/

Eric Zimmer (@etzimmer) was living in a van. He had Hepatitis C and weighed 100 pounds. Then he got arrested and lost his job. He was facing up to forty years in jail time. He had a $300-a-day addiction to heroin. Today, Eric is host of the popular podcast, The One You Feed, which was named one of the best podcasts on iTunes in 2014, and has more than 10 million downloads. The One You Feed is based upon an old parable about a good wolf and a bad wolf at battle inside each of us. The one who wins is the one you feed. Eric straightened out his life and has overcome addiction. He helps others not only through The One You Feed, but also through behavioral coaching work. How did Eric go from a $300-a-day heroin addiction to 13 years clean and sober? We'll find out today. We'll also talk about: The delicate relationship between creative pursuit and self image. How can creativity become a scapegoat for self-destruction, or a vehicle for self improvement? How was Eric able to integrate friendship and his love for music into his podcast? The One You Feed helps him feed his "good wolf."" Why is Eric grateful that he was drawn to heroin? Counterintuitively, the victory of a ""bad wolf" can spring the "good wolf" into action. Links and resources mentioned One You Feed Podcast The Two Wolves parable Keith Richards Kurt Cobain Vincent van Gogh Leonard Cohen Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Arthur Ashe What should be our next Patreon goal? Take our survey at kadavy.net/goals. Start supporting Love Your Work at patreon.com/kadavy. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net. Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/one-you-feed-podcast-eric-zimmer/

I often have listeners write to me, lamenting that they have "too many interests," or that they "lack focus." They've been taught to feel ashamed of their curiosity. It's interesting, the personality types of "introvert" and "extrovert" get a lot of attention. But I think equally as important is the difference between "perceiver" and "judger." What is that? Well those hopelessly curious people, they would fall into the perceiver category, and they should stop feeling ashamed about it. I'll tell you more in this week's article. What should be our next Patreon goal? Take our survey at kadavy.net/goals. Start supporting Love Your Work at patreon.com/kadavy. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net. Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/perceiving-judging-podcast/

Srdja Popovic (@SrdjaPopovic) is a revolutionary. He played a big part in overthrowing Serbian president Slobodan Milošević. He now coaches activists around the world in non-violent resistance techniques, through CANVAS (Center for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies). This may seem out of left field to have a political activist on the show. It's not meant to be some thinly-veiled political statement. Rather, I think anyone who is trying to get people on board with their message can learn a lot from the techniques of revolutionaries. I recently read Srdja's book, Blueprint for Revolution: How to Use Rice Pudding, Lego Men, and Other Nonviolent Techniques to Galvanize Communities, Overthrow Dictators, or Simply Change the World, and was blown away by the inventiveness and deft strategy of the techniques he shared. It's a fascinating book whether you're trying to overthrow a dictator, or you're merely trying to get people to read your blog. In this conversation, you'll learn: We think Rosa Parks's courageous stand was a spontaneous event. Learn how it was actually a strategic hit, designed for maximum effect. If you're trying to get people on board with your message, branding is everything. Learn how a movement like Occupy Wall Street missed a golden branding opportunity. Effective activists choose tactics that have the most influence, with the smallest risk. Learn Srdja's brainstorming techniques for homing in on these tactics. It's a valuable exercise for any influencer. Links and resources mentioned Blueprint for Revolution: How to Use Rice Pudding, Lego Men, and Other Nonviolent Techniques to Galvanize Communities, Overthrow Dictators, or Simply Change the World by Srdja Popovic Slobodan Miloševic The World's Greatest Unreported Hyperinflation The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien Otpor! Occupy Movement Democratic Opposition of Serbia Blitzkrieg Multi-level Marketing 198 Methods of Nonviolent Action Gene Sharp Montgomery bus boycott NYU Harvard Kennedy School Colorado College Arab Spring Civil Rights Movement Laughtivism Ghandi Salt March Why Dictators Don't Like Jokes Toys cannot hold protest because they are not citizens of Russia, officials rule Occupy Wall Street We are the 99% Orange Revolution Milk Harvey Milk James Lawson Sudanese protests Center for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies Image Credit: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung What should be our next Patreon goal? Take our survey at kadavy.net/goals. Start supporting Love Your Work at patreon.com/kadavy. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net. Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/srdja-popovic/

We live in a world rich with information, and algorithms help us find the things that fit us. Algorithms help us decide what books to buy, what music to listen to, and even who to date. But are algorithms always a good thing? If they aren't, how can you be "anti algorithm." I talked about this concept a little bit with Tyler Cowen back on episode 155. Now I'll expand on it. What should be our next Patreon goal? Take our survey at kadavy.net/goals. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net. Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/anti-algorithm-podcast/

How do you market something when you don't know what it is, or who it's for? If you're anything like me, you feel driven to create, but it's only through the process of creation that your vision takes form. It's only through putting that creation out into the world that you begin to realize what it means. This makes it a challenge to market your creations. If you don't know what it is, you don't know how to sell it. If you don't know who it's for, you don't know how to speak to those people. I'm honored to have the legendary Seth Godin back on the show. His first appearance was exactly one-hundred episodes ago, on episode 77. My first conversation with Seth proved to be a breakthrough moment for me. The things Seth said to me gave me the courage to self publish The Heart to Start, as well as other, shorter books. I'm still digesting this conversation, but I think it will prove to be another breakthrough. It helped me answer a lot of questions I had from reading Seth's most recent book, the instant classic, This is Marketing. In this conversation, you'll learn: What are "status roles," and how can you use them to help your product spread? Seth will tell you why status is more than just money and materialism. Why is "specific" a kind of bravery? If you don't know "who it's for," you might simply be hiding from a fear of failure. Seth calls me out with very direct advice that will stick with me for the rest of my life. Find out why Seth doesn't want me to sell out to easy money. Links and resources mentioned This Is Marketing by Seth Godin Paul Cézanne Jackson Pollock Permission Marketing Seth's Blog The Marketing Seminar In search of the minimum viable audience Myers–Briggs Type Indicator Samuel Beckett Waiting for Godot Kickstarter Keith Johnstone Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre by Keith Johnstone The Godfather Breaking Bad Microfinance WaterHealth International Akimbo The Podcast Fellowship J. K. Rowling Harper Lee Earnest Hemingway Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? by Seth Godin Free Prize Inside: How to Make a Purple Cow by Seth Godin How blind auditions help orchestras to eliminate gender bias Can 10,000 hours of practice make you an expert? Akimbo - The Big Sort: Why taxonomy matters Akimbo - Interoperability Becoming by Michelle Obama The Martian by Andy Weir The Domino Project altMBA What should be our next Patreon goal? Take our survey at kadavy.net/goals. New Weekly Newsletter: Love Mondays Start off each week with a dose of inspiration to help you make it as a creative entrepreneur. Sign up at: kadavy.net/mondays Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net. Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/seth-godin-podcast-2/