The Accidental Creative

Have you ever had an idea burning inside of you that you knew could really take off, yet you just couldn't stir up the courage to take the first steps? Unfortunately, many people choose to let those ideas die because they refuse to step outside of their comfort zone. Instead of taking strategic steps in the direction of their goals, they keep waiting for just the perfect moment to take a chance. (Of course, there is no perfect moment. Risks are inconvenient by nature.) On this episode, I re-visit a conversation with Julien Smith about the launch of his company Breather, and share three core principles to help you put your valuable work into the world every day.

Have you ever had an idea burning inside of you that you knew could really take off, yet you just couldn't stir up the courage to take the first steps? Unfortunately, many people choose to let those ideas die because they refuse to step outside of their comfort zone. Instead of taking strategic steps in the direction of their goals, they keep waiting for just the perfect moment to take a chance. (Of course, there is no perfect moment. Risks are inconvenient by nature.) On this episode, I re-visit a conversation with Julien Smith about the launch of his company Breather, and share three core principles to help you put your valuable work into the world every day.

Leadership and legacy are not just what you do, but also how you do it. It will be determined by a series of choices you make over your life about how to spend this moment – here, and now. The challenging thing is that each moment feels like a throwaway, because another one follows closely on its heels. How you choose to engage here and now speaks more to your character than whatever residual stuff you leave in your trail. Rather than asking “what do I want on my tombstone?”, which is nothing but a cold, dead piece of stone, ask yourself “who will gather by the road just to catch a glimpse as my hearse passes by?” Who will you impact so deeply that they will continue your work even after you are gone? Who will you challenge to up their game, to be better than they are? Who will you irreversibly impact? Who will you stand in the gap to defend? That, friends, is the stuff that lasting legacies are made of. Be a leader who makes echoes. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks. To claim your free month trial – with no credit card needed – visit Freshbooks.com/accidental.

Leadership and legacy are not just what you do, but also how you do it. It will be determined by a series of choices you make over your life about how to spend this moment – here, and now. The challenging thing is that each moment feels like a throwaway, because another one follows closely on its heels. How you choose to engage here and now speaks more to your character than whatever residual stuff you leave in your trail. Rather than asking “what do I want on my tombstone?”, which is nothing but a cold, dead piece of stone, ask yourself “who will gather by the road just to catch a glimpse as my hearse passes by?” Who will you impact so deeply that they will continue your work even after you are gone? Who will you challenge to up their game, to be better than they are? Who will you irreversibly impact? Who will you stand in the gap to defend? That, friends, is the stuff that lasting legacies are made of. Be a leader who makes echoes. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks. To claim your free month trial – with no credit card needed – visit Freshbooks.com/accidental.

What do highly creative people really need from their leader? Two things, primarily: stability and challenge. On this episode, I dive into the big idea from my latest book Herding Tigers, and explain why these two forces are the key to unlocking performance and brilliance in the team you lead, in your relationships with your clients, and in any complex collaborative relationship. Learn more about Herding Tigers. This episode is brought to you by Slack. Slack is where work happens. Go to Slack.com to learn more.

What do highly creative people really need from their leader? Two things, primarily: stability and challenge. On this episode, I dive into the big idea from my latest book Herding Tigers, and explain why these two forces are the key to unlocking performance and brilliance in the team you lead, in your relationships with your clients, and in any complex collaborative relationship. Learn more about Herding Tigers. This episode is brought to you by Slack. Slack is where work happens. Go to Slack.com to learn more.

Many of the best innovations are the ones we create to scratch our own itch. I started this very podcast back in 2005 because I was struggling as a Creative Director to find decent conversations about how to help my team stay healthy and productive over the long-term. Today’s guest also scratched an itch, and its now helped countless people around the globe better organize their thoughts and their days. I am a paper addict. I am. I’ve relented somewhat and now use an iPad Pro for some of my note taking and other tasks, but there’s nothing like a well-crafted notebook and the feel of a pen scratching on paper. So, when I came across the Bullet Journal Method a few years ago, I was at first intrigued, then quickly hooked. It’s a simple method for planning your day and tracking thoughts and ideas. What I loved about it was its simplicity, and that it removed the pressure to “get it right” that many journaling or productivity methods impose. The creator of the Bullet Journal Method is Ryder Carroll, and he’s on this episode of the show to help us understand a bit about how to use journaling to organize our lives and accomplish our goals. He’s just released a book called The Bullet Journal Method, and we’ll be discussing how to better organize your days, and how to know when to launch a passion project into the world. == Today’s episode is brought to you by Skillshare. To get 2 months of access for just 99 cents, visit Skillshare.com/creative. The intro music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

Many of the best innovations are the ones we create to scratch our own itch. I started this very podcast back in 2005 because I was struggling as a Creative Director to find decent conversations about how to help my team stay healthy and productive over the long-term. Today’s guest also scratched an itch, and its now helped countless people around the globe better organize their thoughts and their days. I am a paper addict. I am. I’ve relented somewhat and now use an iPad Pro for some of my note taking and other tasks, but there’s nothing like a well-crafted notebook and the feel of a pen scratching on paper. So, when I came across the Bullet Journal Method a few years ago, I was at first intrigued, then quickly hooked. It’s a simple method for planning your day and tracking thoughts and ideas. What I loved about it was its simplicity, and that it removed the pressure to “get it right” that many journaling or productivity methods impose. The creator of the Bullet Journal Method is Ryder Carroll, and he’s on this episode of the show to help us understand a bit about how to use journaling to organize our lives and accomplish our goals. He’s just released a book called The Bullet Journal Method, and we’ll be discussing how to better organize your days, and how to know when to launch a passion project into the world. == Today’s episode is brought to you by Skillshare. To get 2 months of access for just 99 cents, visit Skillshare.com/creative. The intro music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

How certain are you of how people actually perceive you? Because chances are, if you haven’t done the work to develop a unique voice, they might be encountering an entirely different you than you think you’re showing them, and it might be limiting your effectiveness in life and work. On today’s episode, we’ll begin to talk about the three drivers of a unique voice, and why they’re critical to your success. One of the most important distinctions to learn to make about work is the difference between occupation and vocation. Your occupation is your job. It’s how you make a living. It’s what you spend most of your waking hours doing. However, this is very different from your vocation. Your vocation is your calling, and it finds expression through your occupation, though not exclusively. It will spill over into all areas of your life. Your vocation is what is being called out of you. It’s what makes you unique. And clues to your vocation are all around, if you pay attention. As I wrote in chapter one of Louder Than Words: "Have you ever felt especially alive at the end of a meeting, task, or project? Maybe it’s because something went really well, and you know that it simply wouldn’t have happened without your efforts. It’s more than just the rush of relief for having checked something off your list; it’s that the value of your unique perspective and skills has been affirmed and that you’ve done something no one else could have. You experienced the thrill of operating in your “sweet spot.” In these circumstances, your vocation, or calling, has found expression through your occupation. This is often when we feel most alive and contributive in our work. However, for many people, it’s difficult to bridge the steep gap between who they are and what they do each day. Instead of heeding their intuition and taking risks with their work, they do what is expected, and play it safe by taking the tried-and-true route, trying not to stand out. As a result, their impact is limited, and they experience less of the joy that comes from pouring their unique and authentic self into their work." Unfortunately, many people spent their energy trying to grow their platform — their occupation, or sphere of influence — but they spend little time trying to figure out precisely how they want to use that platform, or what they want to do with the influence once they gain it. As a result, they end up with a lot of attention or responsibility, but their work is hollow. On this episode, I share the big idea of my third book Louder Than Words, and a few ideas for how to develop a voice that resonates with the people you lead and serve. Additional Resources: * My interview with Marie Forleo about the book. * The Louder Than Words Bookcast. === Today’s episode is sponsored by Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll. Visit Gusto.com/creative. Music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

How certain are you of how people actually perceive you? Because chances are, if you haven’t done the work to develop a unique voice, they might be encountering an entirely different you than you think you’re showing them, and it might be limiting your effectiveness in life and work. On today’s episode, we’ll begin to talk about the three drivers of a unique voice, and why they’re critical to your success. One of the most important distinctions to learn to make about work is the difference between occupation and vocation. Your occupation is your job. It’s how you make a living. It’s what you spend most of your waking hours doing. However, this is very different from your vocation. Your vocation is your calling, and it finds expression through your occupation, though not exclusively. It will spill over into all areas of your life. Your vocation is what is being called out of you. It’s what makes you unique. And clues to your vocation are all around, if you pay attention. As I wrote in chapter one of Louder Than Words: "Have you ever felt especially alive at the end of a meeting, task, or project? Maybe it’s because something went really well, and you know that it simply wouldn’t have happened without your efforts. It’s more than just the rush of relief for having checked something off your list; it’s that the value of your unique perspective and skills has been affirmed and that you’ve done something no one else could have. You experienced the thrill of operating in your “sweet spot.” In these circumstances, your vocation, or calling, has found expression through your occupation. This is often when we feel most alive and contributive in our work. However, for many people, it’s difficult to bridge the steep gap between who they are and what they do each day. Instead of heeding their intuition and taking risks with their work, they do what is expected, and play it safe by taking the tried-and-true route, trying not to stand out. As a result, their impact is limited, and they experience less of the joy that comes from pouring their unique and authentic self into their work." Unfortunately, many people spent their energy trying to grow their platform — their occupation, or sphere of influence — but they spend little time trying to figure out precisely how they want to use that platform, or what they want to do with the influence once they gain it. As a result, they end up with a lot of attention or responsibility, but their work is hollow. On this episode, I share the big idea of my third book Louder Than Words, and a few ideas for how to develop a voice that resonates with the people you lead and serve. Additional Resources: * My interview with Marie Forleo about the book. * The Louder Than Words Bookcast. === Today’s episode is sponsored by Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll. Visit Gusto.com/creative. Music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

Twyla Tharp once wrote “Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is the result of good work habits.” If we want to succeed, we need good habits. On the flip side, Warren Buffet said “Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken”, meaning that our bad habits often don’t seem that bad until they get to the point where we can no longer easily break them. So if habits are that important, understanding how they are formed, changed, and broken is crucial if we want to be prolific, brilliant, and healthy in life and in work. On today’s show we have a guest who can help us better understand the habits that form the foundation of our success or failure. His name is James Clear, and he’s just released a book called Atomic Habits, which is about the small changes we can make in our daily life to create big change on the other side. It’s a guidebook to healthier habits in life and work, and our conversation with James is coming up in just a moment. Additional Resources: * Subscribe to James Clear's excellent newsletter on his site. * Watch James discuss atomic habits on CBS This Morning. * Here's an episode on 5 Non-obvious, but productive habits. ==== Today’s episode is sponsored by Freshbooks. To claim your free month trial – with no credit card needed – visit Freshbooks.com/accidental. The intro music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

Twyla Tharp once wrote “Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is the result of good work habits.” If we want to succeed, we need good habits. On the flip side, Warren Buffet said “Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken”, meaning that our bad habits often don’t seem that bad until they get to the point where we can no longer easily break them. So if habits are that important, understanding how they are formed, changed, and broken is crucial if we want to be prolific, brilliant, and healthy in life and in work. On today’s show we have a guest who can help us better understand the habits that form the foundation of our success or failure. His name is James Clear, and he’s just released a book called Atomic Habits, which is about the small changes we can make in our daily life to create big change on the other side. It’s a guidebook to healthier habits in life and work, and our conversation with James is coming up in just a moment. Additional Resources: * Subscribe to James Clear's excellent newsletter on his site. * Watch James discuss atomic habits on CBS This Morning. * Here's an episode on 5 Non-obvious, but productive habits. ==== Today’s episode is sponsored by Freshbooks. To claim your free month trial – with no credit card needed – visit Freshbooks.com/accidental. The intro music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

This is part two in a series of episodes in which I share the "big idea" from each of my books. This episode covers the big idea from my 2013 book Die Empty, which is about the common places people and teams get stuck and fail to do the work they are capable of doing. I provide an overview of the seven deadly sins (Aimlessness, Boredom, Comfort, Delusion, Ego, Fear, Guardedness), and some questions and actions to help you move beyond them. Additional resources: * Here's a podcast episode about Productive Passion. * Here's the episode in which I originally announced the book Die Empty. * Here's the conversation with Richard Hytner about overcoming cultural narratives and expectations. === Today’s episode is sponsored by Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll. Visit Gusto.com/creative. Music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

This is part two in a series of episodes in which I share the "big idea" from each of my books. This episode covers the big idea from my 2013 book Die Empty, which is about the common places people and teams get stuck and fail to do the work they are capable of doing. I provide an overview of the seven deadly sins (Aimlessness, Boredom, Comfort, Delusion, Ego, Fear, Guardedness), and some questions and actions to help you move beyond them. Additional resources: * Here's a podcast episode about Productive Passion. * Here's the episode in which I originally announced the book Die Empty. * Here's the conversation with Richard Hytner about overcoming cultural narratives and expectations. === Today’s episode is sponsored by Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll. Visit Gusto.com/creative. Music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.

When you think of the restaurant The Cheesecake Factory, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Probably the menu, right? Or how about Doubletree Hotels? The chocolate chip cookie? These are examples of what Jay Baer calls "Talk Triggers", and they are essential in creating effective word of mouth marketing about your product or service. Whether you are a solopreneur, a freelancer, or run a large company or department, understanding how word of mouth marketing is critical if you want to spread your ideas. On this episode, Jay talks with Todd Henry about his new book Talk Triggers, and how to build mechanisms into your product and service to make them spread like wildfire. Additional Resources:  * Here's Jay's previous appearance on the podcast about how to embrace criticism and "hug your haters". * You can get all of the supplemental materials (discussion guide, etc.) for Jay's book here. * Looking to center in on your own talk triggers? Maybe you should begin by identifying your productive passion. == Today’s episode is brought to you by Skillshare. To get 2 months of access for just 99 cents, visit Skillshare.com/creative. The intro music for the AC podcast is by Joshua Seurkamp. End remix is by DJ Z-Trip.