One of my favorite things to do is introduce someone to someone else. It’s so powerful to bring two people together, knowing that they are going to hit it off and naturally find a way to collaborate. And besides the satisfaction of making a connection, it’s one of the best ways to strengthen your relationships. But so few people proactively …
How I accidentally produced a film
It’s been about 16 months that Eric and I have been putting out a weekly podcast episode with upside. Along the way, we’ve had all kinds of other ideas — especially different episode formats. One of the formats Eric really wanted to explore was a deeper dive into one city. Bring in a bunch of voices into one podcast episode …
Life is a single player game – be a power up
The internet is full of quotes (and Tweets) from everyone’s favorite investor-turned-philosopher, Naval Ravikant. One I came across recently speaks to the way people approach living their lives: Life is a single player game. You’re born alone. You’re going to die alone. All of your interpretations are alone. All your memories are alone. You’re gone in three generations and no …
re-thinking risk
I was interviewed on The Video Community podcast recently, and the topic of risk came up. It comes up a lot in interviews with entrepreneurs, because starting your own business or working for yourself is risky. But is it? We’ve all been shown different paths. Growing up, going through college, or talking to a mentor…we are constantly being shown “the …
sell your first cup of coffee
I love new ideas. New ideas provide that beautiful breath of fresh air from whatever wall you’ve been banging your head into. A glimpse into a new world! I was sitting on a panel last week with Ryan McManus, the founder of SHARE. He told a story about one of his first business ventures — a coffee shop. He fell …
embracing acute stress
It’s late July, and I have distant memories of an intense month of May. I remember it being intense, but at the time, I probably would have described it as “very stressful.” That’s the benefit of time — as time passes, I don’t truly remember what felt, in the moment, “very stressful” and difficult. I remember it being a highly …
toxic environments
I woke up with a ton of energy and enthusiasm yesterday. I had an open morning, a lot of time to myself to create things, and it looked like it was going to be a B-E-A-UTIFUL day! Fast forward a few blissful, coffee-fueled hours, and I was in a fog. I was recording some podcast material with Eric, and I …
we don’t care what’s behind the scenes
There’s an adage in the startup world that says “everything costs 3x as much and takes 3x as long as you think it will.” It’s one of those things we hear and believe, we intellectualize it, but until you’re in it…you don’t quite understand. Or feel the pain. I am deep into a few projects I can’t wait to share …
your ambition as a domino
I think we all played with dominos as a kid. There’s something satisfying about setting up a perfect design, then knocking over the first piece and seeing a chain reaction take effect. But this week I came across the actual math and physics behind dominos, and it kind of blew my mind. Usually we see a chain of identical dominos falling …
design your life by designing your day
Lately, I’ve been having a lot of conversations with people who are at an inflection point. They are usually stressed, or anxious, which I totally get. Been there. Am there. There’s a lot of pressure we put on ourselves for picking the right path. For making the best choice. But what does that really mean? Best is a relative term. Nashville …
