Today we’re starting our final three-part series of the season and I’m really excited to be sharing this next guest with you. If you’ve been listening to the show for a bit, you may know that it actually started with a Q&A interview series on my blog before it became a podcast. I really wanted to bring back some of the people I interviewed in 2013 and today we’re getting some updates from my friend Sami Abdou. 

Sami is a documentary director and he works on both small projects and some pretty notable ones. For example, right now he's a director for the TV show, Intervention. In today’s episode, we learn more about Sami’s background and the real story behind why he decided to get into filmmaking, what it’s like to direct documentary films and shows, how his career has evolved over the years and how he stays happy and healthy with his intense work schedule.

For the full episode + show notes, please visit creatingyourownpath.com.

CYOP #124 - Thinking Strategically About your Career Path + Making as Often as You Can with Documentary Director Sami Abdou

Creating Your Own Path is a weekly interview series featuring inspiring individuals and change-makers from various creative industries.

In asking others about their journeys, I've found that we creatives often veer off course, forge our own paths and don't always fit a particular mold. We tend to be a multifaceted bunch and this interview series seeks to find common ground among us all. Prepare to be challenged, inspired and motivated.

Arts

Literature

Performing Arts

Design

Food

Fashion & Beauty

Visual Arts

Business

Investing

Careers

Management & Marketing

Business News

Shopping

Today, I’m chatting with our CYOP artist resident Malia Tong as we wrap up Season 6 of CYOP. Listen in as we talk about what we’ve both learned over the course of the season, what’s changed in our lives and careers and some of the surprising things we see on the horizon for our respective work.

147: Navigating This Season of Change: A Final Chat Between Me + Malia Tong

On today’s show, we catch up with past CYOP guests Maritza and Roshaun Davis of the Sacramento Kings and Unseen Heroes, respectively, to talk about Maritza’s recent decision to take on a full-time role outside of Unseen Heroes and what it’s meant for their business, their family and their personal career goals. We also talk about what it’s been like for Roshaun as he’s taken the reins at Unseen Heroes, why he’s assessing how they want to scale the business next and what he does to stay grounded when both he and Maritza are moving a million miles a minute.

146: Innovating with Intention and Staying Present with Maritza Davis of the Sacramento Kings and Roshaun Davis of Unseen Heroes

On today’s show, I chat with illustrator and writer Ludi Leiva about how she’s transitioned from working in media full-time to working for herself. We also dive into what it means to be a creative in a place like New York (and why she’s decided to move out of the city), why she believes we all need to stop worrying about the perceptions of others, and why her family history has her dreaming of some really beautiful projects.

145: Taking the Unexpected Route and Finding the Right People with Writer and Illustrator Ludi Leiva

Today’s show is an interview with multidisciplinary artist Tia Keo. Her story is one I think many of us can relate to — especially if we’ve been working creatively for a while.

In the episode, we discuss how she’s been playing with different mediums over the years to stay creatively inspired and to combat the burnout that comes with working in one medium for so long. We also chat about the dangers of the creative hustle — pushing and pushing to find success — and how she’s discovered a certain amount of flow that is opening up opportunities she may have never considered. 

I loved hearing how intentional Tia is about creating habits while also making space for the unexpected. I hope you’ll get just as much as I did from this interview.

144: Stepping Away from the Hustle and Finding Flow with Multidisciplinary Artist Tia Keo

Today’s episode will get you a front row seat at my recent talk at Sacramento’s Creative Mornings event last month. In it, I discuss the challenges I’ve faced, both personally and professionally, as I’ve navigated significant losses over the last several years. The theme for this talk was END and I cover how I’ve worked to claim my narrative while I was going through the grief process surrounding my divorce and the death of a loved one. As always, my goal in sharing these kinds of topics is to help others who might be going through something similar.

CYOP #124 - Thinking Strategically About your Career Path + Making as Often as You Can with Documentary Director Sami Abdou

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