Unmistakable Creative - Candid Conversations with Creative Entrepreneurs and Insanely Interesting People

Matt Frazier turned his passion for running and vegetarianism into a wildly popular blog called No Meat Athlete. (http://www.nomeatathlete.com/)  Today the site has over 20,000 subscribers and his first book  No Meat Athlete: Run on Plants and Discover Your Fittest, Fastest, Happiest Self just came out in October 2013. Here are some highlights from our chat: * How Matt Leveraged His Background in Applied Math (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/blogcastfm_matt_frazier-284x300.png) * Habit Change, Discipline, and Self-Management * Why Starting Small Is Really Important When You Want Change * Building a Community Through a Service Attitude * The Seeds for the Idea of No Meat Athlete * Why a Flagship Product Can Transform Your Business * The Power of Combining Your Interests to Create Intrigue * How Being Too Knowledgeable Can Make You Blind * Why Your Product Needs to Deliver a Tangible Result * Some Counterintuitive Insights into a Product Launch * The Power of Breaking Things Up into Pieces  * Why an Ethical Bribe Didn't Quite Work for Matt * A Tactical Exercise for Blending Your Common Interests * Inside the Book Marketing Plan for No Meat Athlete Matt Frazier is an ultrarunner, a vegan, a blogger, an author, and a dad. He jokes that he's way cooler on the internet. You can follow him on twitter @NoMeatAthlete (https://twitter.com/NoMeatAthlete). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/OnJvf) to post it to Twitter.

In this week's episode, we revisit our interview with Kimberly Gosney, Orchestrating a 365 Day Coaching Program with Kimberly Gosney (http://blogcastfm.com/blogcastfm/how-to-orchestrate-a-365-day-coaching-program-with-kimberly-gosney/). Greg also talks to me about some of his thoughts on life after a week long hospital stay. Here are some highlights from the episode: * Why This Is Not Your Practice Life (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BlogcastFM-Backstage-300x300.jpg) * Making Sure that You Live without Regret * How Meaningful Work Is at Your Fingertips Daily * The Reason You Can't Live Like It's Your Last Day * Taking Pride in the Day-to-Day of Your Life * Looking at the "How" vs. the "What" of Things * The Importance of Our Understated Interviews * Why Your Downtime is Your Freedom Time * The Power of Starting with Something Small * Finding People Different From You * Why You Don't Have to Be Perfect, Just Great * Setting a Standard for the Things You Create If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/Beqbe) to post it to Twitter. 

James Altucher returns to the show to hijack BlogcastFM and put me on the other side of the mic.  In this episode, we get into a deep discussion about my new book The Art of Being Unmistakable (http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Being-Unmistakable-Collection-ebook/dp/B00FP3PMI2). Here are some highlights from our chat: * A Look at the Creation of Process of this New Book (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/JamesCoverArt-284x300.jpg) * Why I subtitled the book a Collection of Essays * How to Let Go of Ego-Based Creation of Your Art * Why Writing is About Giving Advice to Yourself * Dealing with Negative Reviews of Your Books * Why There are Parts of Every Journey That Suck * The Challenges of Creating Unmistakable Art * The Ups and Downs of My Personal Journey * A Look at How You Reframe a Negative Situation  * How Letting Go of Measuring Anything Increases Our Happiness * A Look at How to Find Your Own Unmistakable Path * Some of the Byproducts that Will Emerge from the Future of My Work James Altucher (http://www.jamesaltucher.com/) is an American hedge fund manager, author and blogger. He has founded or cofounded several companies and has also published several books on investing. His writing has been frequently published by media outlets, including The Financial Times, TheStreet.com, Techcrunch and The Huffington Post. You can follow him on twitter @jaltucher (https://twitter.com/jaltucher). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/1cftp) to post it to Twitter.

Alex Franzen is a wildly successful copywriter who is always booked months in advance for her velocity sessions. She recently released  a new book titled 50 Ways to Say You're You're Awesome.  She previously appeared in our How to Be Unmistakable with Alex Franzen (http://blogcastfm.com/blogcastfm/how-to-be-unmistakable-with-alex-franzen/) episode. In this interview we discuss the evolution of her business and her body of work. Here are some highlights form our most recent chat: * Practical Techniques to Express Yourself More Clearly (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/33590718fd8c0ba129d0125e671db1af.png) * Being Aware that It's Time to Make a Change * The Power of Over the Top Generosity * The 3 Word Prompt that Will Make Your Writing More Effective * Leveraging Conversations with Your Friends Find Your Voice * An Amazing Story about Starting a Hotel with 1 Room * Stripping the Work You Do Down to Its Core  * Thinking More Like an Artist than a Business Owner * Knowing When to Go Small Instead of Going Big * How 50 Ways to Say You're Awesome (http://www.amazon.com/50-Ways-Say-Youre-Awesome/dp/1402285663) Came to Life * Looking at Your Analytics for Threads within Your Work * How to Begin with the Execution of a Grand Vision * A Discussion about Creating a Profitable Expression of Your Message Tweetable Insights Include: * Why hoard your best ideas? There's plenty of things you can monetize. (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/Ca0oX)) * The greatest thing you can do as a writer is remove all the "shouldness"  (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/NV44W)) Alex Franzen is a promotional wordsmith & personal scribe, soul stenographer, strumpet nerd, recovering socialist, and geriatric raver. She believes, “You’ve got gifts — let’s present ‘em.” You can follow her on twitter @Alex_Franzen (https://twitter.com/Alex_Franzen). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/ZdJsU) to post it to Twitter.

This week on BlogcastFM Backstage, we revisit our interview with Alli Worthington. Greg comes to us from his bed in the Westwood Medical Center. Here are some highlights from this episode: * Why You Can't Let Your Circumstances Dictate Your Actions (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BlogcastFM-Backstage-300x300.jpg) * How Greg Is Up to "Business as Usual" from a Hospital * Doing Something Meaningful Despite the Circumstances * Buying Business Off of Craigslist - And Where It Could Lead * Your Circumstances Can Make You Bitter or Better * An Update on The Instigator Experience (http://www.theinstigatorexperience.com/) * Why We're Treating the Event Like a Theatrical Performance * Turning Pain and Adversity into Opportunity * Taking a Look at Asking Some Tough Questions * Why Comparison is a Game that You Can't Possibly Win * The Importance of Surrounding Yourself with the Right Peer Group * Knowing When to Walk Away trom an Opportunity - Even When It Pays If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/ct7le) to post it to Twitter. 

Adam Chaloeicheep has been responsible for helping major brands like Nike and Lululemon create the visual voice of their brand. In addition, he's the mastermind behind the recent rebranding of JennyBlake.me. In this experience, we get into deep discussion of what goes into creating the visual voice of your brand. Here are some of the highlights from our chat: * Blending Backgrounds in Architecture, Ad Agencies, and Branding Firms (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Adam-Chaloeicheep.jpg) * The Importance of Consistency in a Brand Presence * Creating an Experience that Generates Emotional Responses * Why You Must Come Before Your Visual Branding * How Making Your Work Soulless Destroys It * Why It's an Ideal Time to Start and Build Something * Balancing Professional and Artistic Integrity * The Role that Curiosity and Asking "Why?" Plays in Your Success  * Applying the Concept of a Visual Voice to Your Brand * Key Questions to Ask Yourself in the Process of Defining Your Brand * Filtering Feedback Down to Its Essence * An In-Depth Look into Jenny Blake's Rebranding Process * How to Recognize You've Reached a Point of Transition  * Why You Must Always Be Creating Things that Inspire You * How to Translate Your Visual Voice into Your Actual Voice Resources Mentioned Include: * Behind the Rebranding of JennyBlake.me (http://jennyblake.me/blog/behind-the-launch/) Tweetable Insights Include: * What we create is an extension of who we are (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/7aAZd)) * We call it the recession, I call it reality (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/spgUO)) Adam Chaloeicheep (http://www.iamabc.me/) is a brand catalyst to help companies bridge this gap by collaboratively creating a cohesive strategy, product design, and user experience. He has a love for functional fashion, intuitive design, photography and sustainability. If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/Wi5Qq) to post it to Twitter.

AsapSCIENCE started simply as two guys that wanted to share their love for science with their friends. In their mission to make science interesting to everyone, they grew a YouTube channel to over 1 million subscribers in less than a year. Here are a few of the highlights from our chat: * Blending Backgrounds in Film Editing and Teaching (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/9e5p412uh6qwsuo8700e-300x300.jpeg) * The Power of Answering Simple Questions * How Things Grow and Evolve Over Time  * Lessons Learned from a Social Media Competition * The Combo of Traits that Get Your Work to Standout * Why You Must Combine Education and Entertainment * Getting Over the Fear of Self-Promotion * Outreach to the Community That Is Relevant to Your Content * A Look at Constantly Refining Your Craft * What It Takes to Create Amazing Whiteboard Videos * How to Boil Your Message Down to Its Essence * Building Community Around Millions of Subscribers * Some of the Amazing Things That Came as a Byproduct of a Fun Project * How a Hobby Ended Up Turning into a Business AsapSCIENCE provides a weekly dose of fun and interesting science. You can follow them on twitter @AsapSCIENCE. (https://twitter.com/AsapSCIENCE) If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/qyJ68) to post it to Twitter.

In this episode of BlogcastFM Backstage, we revisit our interview with Shawn Achor and discuss developing a happiness habit. Here are some highlights from this episode: * How Greg Made Something and Sold It with Selz (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BlogcastFM-Backstage-300x300.jpg) * An Amazing Story about a Nurse's Side Business * How Greg Connects with So Many Interesting People * Why We Need to Spend More Time Disconnected * The Importance of Being Open to Connections * A Glimpse into the End of Ten Dollars and a Laptop * Why You Can't Live by Cause and Effect  * Living in The Reality vs. A Reality * The Importance of Consistency in Changing Your Behavior * Why Gratitude Plays a Huge Role in Your Success * Understanding That Happiness is Not a Permanent State * The Difference Between Practice and Consumption  If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/xY2ce) to post it to Twitter. 

Cal Newport decided to challenge the wildly popular notion that you should "follow your passion." His research led to an interesting discovery. People who were successful and fulfilled in their career didn't follow their passion. They become masters of their craft. In this interview, we get into a very in-depth chat about how to  be so good they can't' ignore you. Here are just some of the highlights from our conversation: * How Cal Has Blended a Traditional and Untraditional Path (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Cal-Newport.jpg) * A Look at the Early Creation Process of Cal's Study Guides * Lessons from the MIT Theory of Computation Group * The Importance of Focus and Resisting Distractions * What it Takes to Develop Career Capital (Rare and Valuable Skills) * How Skills Give You More Leverage Than a Set Career Path * The Arbitrary Advice of Following Your Passion - And Why It's Flawed * Why You have to Become Really Good at Something to Love Your Work * Traits That Lead People to Absolutely Love What They Do * Making the Transition Match Theory to Capital Theory * The Philosophy of Deep Work and Becoming a Master of Your Craft * Why Cal Newport has No Social Media Accounts * The Importance of Developing Taste in Your Work  * Looking at the Mission Behind Somebody's Work * The Framework of Little Bets to Make Progress with Your Ideas * Why Publishers are Like Investors When it Comes to Your Book Deal * Finding the Threads that Persist in Your Body of Work Tweetable Insights Include: * The more career capital you have, the more control you have over your life (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/zWT5D)) * Ultimately what matters is how well you do the thing that you do best (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/q0HrN)) * I'm very afraid of shallow work  (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/pis7I)) Cal Newport (http://calnewport.com/blog/) is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Georgetown University. He previously earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 2009, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College in 2004. If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/JsP8c) to post it to Twitter.

Toddy Henry started his career in the music business, which eventually led to a role as a creative director and the start of a podcast called The Accidental Creative. He wanted to answer the question of how we can do sustainable creative work. He previously appeared as a guest in our episode, The Essential Elements to Creative Success with Todd Henry (http://blogcastfm.com/blogcastfm/todd-henry-accidental-creative/). Here are a few of the highlights from our chat: * A Look at Staying Energized and Doing Great Work (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/ToddHenry.jpeg) * The Common Threads Between People Who Are Prolific * What We Can Learn from the Success of Musicians  * Why the Creative Work You Do Is About the People You Serve * The Reason That Cover Bands Don't Change the World * Determining What Unique Value You Can Deliver * Building Bridges for Your Audience with Your Art * The Reality of What It Takes to Discover Your Gifts * 7 Deadly Sins That Lead to Mediocrity  * The Role of Fierce Curiosity in Your Growth * Why You Must Build a Study Plan to Stimulate You * How Our Comfort Zone Hurts Our Progress * The Role That Ego Plays in Destroying Your Success * The Myth of the Lone Innovator * Why You Need a Framework for Creative Work * Finding the Balance Between a Linear Process and Freedom * Why You Have to Love Reading the Book That You Write * Dying Empty of Regret and Not Going to Your Grave with Your Best * Approaching Your Work as a Craftsman  Tweetable Insights Include: * Everything that seems fresh and new to you will eventually bore you (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/lMUYH)) * You discover what you're good at only through action (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/yba0Q)) * Creativity is a constant series of compromises (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/q8ba5)) * I know that everything I do isn't going to be Citizen Kane (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/c6593)) Todd Henry is founder Accidental Creative, an arms dealer for the creative revolution, a thought follower, an obsessive notebook purchaser, and author of The Accidental Creative & Die Empty. You can follow him on twitter @toddhenry (https://twitter.com/toddhenry).  If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/wbaf3) to post it to Twitter.

This week we changed things up a little bit. Greg didn't have a chance to catch up on a recent interview, so we decided to wing it and share some stuff from behind the scenes of the business. You'll also learn about the wide array of tools available to you in order to make money online. Here are some highlights from this episode: * Taking Advantage of Free Resources That Are Available (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BlogcastFM-Backstage-300x300.jpg) * Inside the Rebranding of BlogcastFM and the Motivations * How Sticking with Something for a Long Time Makes a Difference * A Look at Lots of Ways to Make Money with the Sharing Economy * How Greg Mashed Up Tons of Free Services to Survive * Adventures in Babysitting with Greg and Why He's Good At It * Why a Project-Based  Approach to Your Business Can Be Powerful * What We Can Learn from the Starting Points of Succesful Businesses * A Look at a Few Completely Crazy Projects Greg Is Working On * How Parkour Training Can Help You Tap into Your Creativity * Using Selz without Even Having a Website If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/3UdW6) to post it to Twitter. 

Bernadette Jiwa's journey as a storyteller began in Dublin, Ireland, where she was exposed to theatrical storytelling by a merchant in a local market. She's developed a unique brand of storytelling that helps people fall in love with your products. Here are some highlights from our chat: * How a Story Creates an Intangible Value (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/BernadetteJiwa.jpeg) * Lessons from The Fortune Cookie Principle * The Difference Between Anecdotes and Your Story * Why Purpose and Mission Are Key to a Great Story * Disrupting the Way That People Feel About Your Brand * Lessons from Warby Parker and Dollar Shave Club * The Inner Soul Searching Required to Find Your Why * Why the Airbrushed Version of Who You Are Won't Work * The Role Values Will Play in Vision, Products, and Story * Commonalities Between the Biggest Online Personal Brands * How Your Intention Influences Everything You Do  * Uncovering the Threads for Interesting Stories in Your Life * Why Bernadette Gave up a Traditionally Published Book Deal Bernadette Jiwa is author of the #1 Amazon Bestseller The Fortune Cookie Principle. She is a speaker and brand story strategist who is unlocking the value in stories. You can follow her on twitter @bernadettejiwa (https://twitter.com/BernadetteJiwa). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/rjIeU) to post it to Twitter.

Alli Worthington's story starts with losing everything. But that loss turned out to be the catalyst for a remarkable journey. She went on to co-found Blissdom and Blissdom Canada, the single largest international women's small business conference. In addition she built and sold Blissfully Domestic a magazine for women.  In this interview you'll learn all about how to a sell a tribe on your vision. Here are some highlights from our chat: * Breaking the Conspicuous Consumption Cycle (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/7d3a3a8bfd3ba15d07a1257a53a5d850.jpeg) * A Look at Fear and Risk in the Online World * Knowing Whether You're Building to Sell or Grow * Creating a Filter for Your Most Important Decisions * Leading People and Selling Them on Your Vision * Why You Have to Be Painfully Transparent  * Why You Can't Play It Safe in Your Business * Developing Brand Partnerships and Content  * How to Organically Build Relationships with Brands * The Power of Starting with Something Small  * A Look at the Early Seeds of the Blissdom Conference * How Alli Built The Community and Content of Blissdom * Why Blissdom Has No Panel Based Segments * Bringing Distinctiveness to The Work That you Do * The Reason You Can't Become Completely Satisfied Tweetable Insights Include: * We have to edit out the good to make room for what's great (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/2IbOe)) * It is simplicity that will lead to great success (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/7Rvc0)) * For all leaders, it's important to be painfully transparent (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/VD4UU)) Alli Worthington Business Coach & Consultant. Speaker. Strategist. Believer. Humanitarian. Serial Entrepreneur. Startup Advisor. A founder of @BlissDom. Advisor to @Safeworld. You can follow her on twitter @alli (https://twitter.com/alli). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/b15TE) to post it to Twitter.

In this episode of BlogcastFM Backstage, we revisit our interview with Meg Worden and get into a really interesting discussion about how your mindset influences of your business. Here are some highlights from our chat: * Why Greg and I Probably Won't Be Running a Sports Team (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/BlogcastFM-Backstage-300x300.jpg) * Abandoning Positioning and Image and Replacing It with Story * The Importance of Not Treating Your Audience Like a Therapist * Using Your Story and Your Past to Shift People's Paradigms * Getting to a Place Where You're Completely OK with Your Past * The Story of Greg's Expulsion from High School and His Crazy Childhood * Why You Have to Learn to Be Bigger Than Your Circumstances * How to Escape the Prisons We Create in Our Everyday Lives * Why There Are Few People Who Could Survive on Talent Alone * The Importance of Acting Bigger Than Your Circumstances * Believing That You Are Somebody Before You Become Successful * Why You Must Develop a Tolerance for Uncertainty * How Living Ny Cause and Effect Is Completely Backwards * Using Your Memory and Imagination to Serve You * Greg's Secret Desire to be a Fashion Mogul If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/Tery9) to post it to Twitter. 

I came across Shawn Achor's book The Happiness Advantage because Danielle LaPorte mentioned it. Then I tracked down his TED talk. Of all the books I've read on happiness over the years, Shawn's book had some of the most practical tips on happiness I had ever encountered. Not only that, it was backed up by tons of research. So when I got a copy of his new book, I immediately asked his publicist if she'd be willing to let me interview him. Here are some highlights from our chat: * A Look at Shawn's Early Work in Religion and Psychology (http://blogcastfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Shawn-Achor-200x300.jpg) * Why Positive Brains Lead to Better Outcomes in All Areas of Life * An Interesting Look at Spirituality, Religion, and Happiness * The Opportunity to Choose Between Multiple Realities * Why You Don't Have to Meditate for 7 Years to Find Yourself * Divorcing Yourself from Your Genetic Make Up to Create a New Reality * How to Make Changes to Your Habits By Tapping into Past Successes * Making a Mindset Shift to Separate Happiness from Your Environment * Why We Study and Learn from Positive Outliers * Going Back to Places When You Have Less Than Now, But Were Really Happy * Why Genetics and Environment Don't Necessarily Indicate Our Potential * How People Experience Post Traumatic Growth  * Why We've Had the Formula for Happiness and Success Better * Learning How to Become More Optimistic and Productive  * Several Scientifically Proven Ways to Become Happier * Ideas for Speeding Yourself Towards Your Goal * Why Small Changes Have the Greatest Impact on Our Lives * A Productivity Hack for  Rocking Your To-Do List * Putting the Concept of Activation Energy to Work * How to Create Unconscious Positive Genius   * Why Your Vision Boards Don't Actually Work Tweetable Insights Include: * There are multiple ways of looking at the exact same reality (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/7cs12)) * You will be just genes and your environment unless you make changes to your mindset and habits (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/aQc1q)) * Every time your brain has a success, your brain changes the goal post for what success looks like (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/549UP)) * If you have a mindset change, but don't make a behavioral change it doesn't last very long (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/Y5hsn)) * The greatest competitive advantage in the modern economy is a positive and engaged brain (Click to Tweet (http://clicktotweet.com/X6N2I)) Shawn Achor is author of BEFORE HAPPINESS and THE HAPPINESS ADVANTAGE, founder of GoodThinkInc, a positive psychology researcher, and a speaker. You can follow him on twitter @shawnachor (https://twitter.com/shawnachor). If you liked this article, would you share it with your friends? Just click here (http://clicktotweet.com/977dR) to post it to Twitter.