A Productive Conversation

I’m excited to be joined by Mary Shores this week, the bestselling author of Conscious Communications: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Harnessing the Power of Your Words to Change Your Mind, Your Choices, and Your Life. Mary is an author, speaker, and entrepreneur. Through her work, she provides pragmatic solutions for people who are “freaking out”. With an extensive knowledge of neuroscience and human behaviour added to her repertoire, she guides businesses and individuals to defeat the “freak out” and create their ideal life.

The topics Mary and I discussed had a ton of significance regarding our choices and perception and how they shape our current situations.

Talking Points

How Tony Robbins impacted Mary’s work and changed her life

Developing communications strategies for debt collection calls

Reframing: Changing perspectives after personal tragedy and trauma

A serendipitous encounter with Chazz Palminteri back in 1993 for the movie A Bronx Tale

The Power of Words: How your words help shape your life and manifest your intentions

Mary’s daily practice of gratitude and journaling to harness the power of words

Motivation then Action: Writing a one page action plan that becomes the blueprint to integrate the plan into your life

Quote

“The most beautiful part of your story, even when these terrible things happen, the more empowering part and the more impactful part is in how did you move on. And so when you look at your circumstances in this way that creates you to be a victim, then you make choices that a victim makes… Whereas when you look at yourself as someone who’s overcome something, then you can look at yourself through a perception of empowerment and then you’re making choices that an empowered person makes.” 

Relevant Links

Conscious Communications: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Harnessing the Power of Your Words to Change Your Mind, Your Choices, and Your Life | Amazon

Tony Robbins

A Bronx Tale

Mary Shores 

Mary Shores on Instagram

Mary Shores on Twitter

Mary Shores on LinkedIn

The Daily Desires Diary Bundle

Fearless Ambition – Facebook Community

I encourage you to check out everything that we spoke about and to also pick up Mary’s book. This session’s message with Mary is powerful and I’m delighted to have had a very productive conscious communication with you through this podcast.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode, Cal Newport joins me to talk about his latest book, Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World. He is a computer science professor at Georgetown University and is a self-professed blogging nerd. He is also the author of six books, focusing on topics related to professional productivity, personal satisfaction and the intersection of technology and society.

My guest this time around is Cal Newport. Cal is a friend of mine and I’ve always loved chatting with him. This episode is no exception. We dived into a lot, talking about how I tend to share cool things on Facebook, the concept of “keeping things in boxes”, and being more intentional with birthday notifications – all in the name of what Cal has dubbed “Digital Minimalism.”

Talking Points

More of less is more: The rise of minimalism in the physical and digital world

Gaining meaning back into your life through less digital presence

Lifestyle philosophy over lifehacks, tips and tricks

Keeping boxes packed and installing only apps you miss

Clutter is costly: The negative cost that offsets the ‘benefits’ of clutter

Optimization is important: Make digital platforms work for you instead of you working for them

Intentionality trumps convenience: Reorienting your life to the things that provide most value

Quality analog friendships: Our lives pre-2007 and why Facebook birthday notifications is a giant Ponzi scheme 

Mindset shifts to make minimalism sustainable

Quote

“Digital minimalism is a movement. There’s a lot of people out there doing this. These are the people you see who are not looking at their phone when they’re waiting in line, they’re enjoying something outside and not documenting it, they have long conversations with friends where they don’t have a phone with them, they’re the guys building a canoe in their woodshed and haven’t seen their phone in three hours. They have so much more meaning and satisfaction they’re getting out of their lives.” 

Relevant Links

Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World

Deep Work with Cal Newport | The Productivityis Podcast

Leo Babauta | Zen Habits

Joshua Becke | Becoming Minimalist

Courtney Carver | Be More with Less

Ryan & Joshua | The Minimalists

Packing Party: Unpack a Simpler Life

Sensible Defaults | Patrick Rhone

Facebook Newsfeed Eradicator for Chrome and Mozilla

Instapaper

Buffer

Cal Newport

I’m pleased to bring you this insightful conversation between me and Cal. The two of us can just talk for hours and cover so many things; I look forward to having him on again soon. I hope you’ll find this episode packed with tidbits to help you deal with your digital (and life) clutter.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of The Productivityist Podcast, Joey Cofone, the co-founder and CEO of Baron Fig, joins the show. Baron Fig is a company that started as a Kickstarter project which has evolved into a brand that designs and offers inspiring products to thinkers such as writers, illustrators, and entrepreneurs around the world.

I just talked with James Clear on the previous episode, and now Joey Cofone is here! I’ve been wanting to chat with Joey for a while and on this episode, I finally got the chance. I had a great time discussing a range of topics from my well-documented affinity for Baron Fig, their collaboration with James Clear, what it’s like to create physical products, and how he builds a team that’s crafting these products.

Talking Points

Point, don’t plan: How to set goals, let them go, and keeping impostor syndrome and comparison at bay 

The Beginnings of Baron Fig: From a notebook idea at a Thai restaurant to selling nearly 10,000 notebooks in 30 days and now taking over my life 

Creating a design-oriented notebook and building a thinker company 

Digital vs Analog: What is the best tool for the job and why is a notebook still the best tool for thinking 

The freedom and restriction that apps tend to bring 

Rooting for digital tools and integrating new styles in paper products 

Guided editions including James Clear’s The Clear Habit Journal: the next evolutionary step for people intimidated by the blank page 

Balancing digital and analog tools in developing ideas simultaneously 

Why Joey supplanted the Nomad sticky notes with the Strategist note cards 

Good ideas come from anywhere: Talking to 500 thinkers around the world for feedback 

Quote

“Design is integrated into everything that I do and how I look at the world. And I don’t think it was something that I chose, it’s how I grew up, being very nitpicky and detail-oriented. And in design, it just seem that that is what I should do with this. So, when we started Baron Fig, we’re very much design-oriented.”

Relevant Links

Baron Fig

Horizontal Themes: Maintaining Time, Making Time, and Musing Time

Notion App

Patrick Rhone’s Sensible Defaults

James Clear’s Clear Habit Journal

Why You Need Atomic Habits with James Clear

How Did This Get Made?

Eureka

Michael Hyatt

Adam Kornfield

How I Built This with Guy Raz

SCOTTeVEST

Nomad Sticky Notes

Strategist Dot Grid Index Cards

Joey Cofone’s Website

@joeycofone on Twitter

@joeycofone on Instagram

Joey Cofone on Facebook

I had a (fittingly) productive discussion with Joey and I trust you’ll enjoy our chat as much as I did.  

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the podcast, I speak with James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones. James is an expert on habit formation who offers not only theories backed by science, but also practical strategies that will help you achieve powerful, atomic-level results.

On this episode, James and I had a really productive discussion on a range of topics from the journey of putting the book together, how alarm clocks fail me (or I fail alarm clocks), turning off the internet router at 10 PM to keeping the beer at the back of the fridge and Crossfit.

Talking Points

Designing and Defining Atomic Habits: Two main lenses to look the book through 

The two-minute rule in scaling down a habit and actually making it stick

Importance of slowing down and awareness for effective behavioral change 

Having a variety of small things organized toward the same goal 

Solutions for setting up efficient timing 

Strategies for building good seasonal habits 

Tools to make habits stick and break through biases 

The three reasons/meanings behind the use of the term “atomic” 

Creating a journal that makes it easier to build habits that is useful but not fixed 

Quote

“Many of our behaviors are socially reinforced… When the social reinforcement is so strong, we overcome the obstacles in our environment. The key insight there is you want to join a tribe, a group where your desired behavior is the normal behavior. Because if it’s normal in that group, then it’s going to seem attractive to you to do it even if it’s not convenient.”

Relevant Links

Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones by James Clear: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich | Amazon

The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris | Amazon

Baron Fig’s Clear Habit Journal

Use Freedom to Block Websites, Apps, & the Internet

Facebook Newsfeed Eradicator

Distraction-free YouTube (Chrome extension)

Trello.com

James Clear

@jamesclear on Twitter

@james_clear on Instagram

James Clear on Facebook

I learned a lot from reading Atomic Habits and through my conversations with James and I’m sure you will too. And make sure to catch the next episode where I have Joey Cofone as my guest for a back-to-back habit tracking and intentionality goodness.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode, I speak with my good friend and author of Company of One, Paul Jarvis. I’ve known Paul for years and am elated to finally have him appear on the show to talk about staying small and how to build a company of one.

My discussion with Paul nearly mimics the kind of thing we do every few weeks when we get together for coffee. I’ve admired how Paul goes about his work and we explore those elements during our conversation. Some of the things we talk about are how ego plays a role in building a business, how the “company of one” that Paul built happened accidentally at first, how you can implement the “company of one” mindset in business that are larger, and how to scale through automation in a way that doesn’t overwhelm you in the process.

Relevant Links

Company of One by Paul Jarvis | Amazon

How talking to Seth Godin on the phone changed my life and business by Jeff Goins | Ladders

Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday | Amazon

Beyond The E-Myth with Michael Gerber | The Productivityist Podcast

The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss | Amazon

Do Things You Can Sustain | James Clear

I Don’t Actually Care About Growth | Paul Jarvis

The Sunday Dispatches | Paul Jarvis

I learned a lot through this discussion (and by reading Paul’s book) and I trust that you will as well. If you do get value out of our conversation and enjoy the process along the way.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the show, my guest is Steve Glaveski. Steve is an entrepreneur, author, and podcast host whose mission is to unlock the latent potential of organizations and their people so that they can create more impact for humanity and ultimately to lead more fulfilling lives.

Our conversation focuses primarily on his book Employee to Entrepreneur: How to Earn Your Freedom and Do Work That Matters, as we explore the ideas and insights he peppered throughout its pages. We spoke about what one needs to have in mind before leaping from employee to entrepreneur, the importance of keeping a level head throughout an entrepreneurial journey (especially when you have a big spike in sales or performance that might not be sustainable), how to deal with the tough questions you need to ask and the answers that may come with those questions, and much more.

Relevant Links

Employee to Entrepreneur: How to Earn Your Freedom and Do Work That Matters by Steve Glaveski | Amazon

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | Amazon

Episode 222: How to Fight a Hydra with Josh Kaufman | The Productivityist Podcast

Episode 296: Jason Fried on Why It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work | Future Squared

Episode 60: Less Doing with Ari Meisel | The Productivityist Podcast

Repurpose.io

The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload by Daniel J. Levitin | Amazon

The Odyssey by Homer | Amazon

Employee to Entrepreneur

I had a great time chatting with Steve this week and I hope you enjoyed our conversation. If so, please let me know by giving the show a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. I’d also love it if you subscribed to the show. You can do that when you visit the podcast website or by doing so on a variety of popular podcast platforms and apps.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My guest for this episode is Dr. Bryan E. Robinson, author of the book #CHILL: Turn Off Your Job and Turn on Your Life. He is a licensed psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He currently has a blog on Psychology Today called “The Right Mindset.” He has been interviewed by Forbes, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, among countless other magazines.

During our discussion I asked Bryan about why this was the book that he needed to write now. He also reveals an easy to remember acronym that can help you slow down in a deliberate fashion and what the concept of #CHILL means. Beyond that we talk about the specific structure of the book, how he suggests readers approach the book, why being curious is so important, and more.

Relevant Links

#CHILL: Turn Off Your Job and Turn on Your Life by Bryan E. Robinson | Amazon

Creative Quest by Questlove | Amazon

Elizabeth Gilbert | The TED Interview

Bryan E. Robinson | Website

Dr. Bryan E. Robinson – @brtherapist | Twitter

I hope you were about to #chill while listening to this episode and found valuable insights along the way. If you enjoyed this episode and don’t want to miss another, make sure to subscribe to the podcast in Apple Podcasts or visit the podcast page to subscribe on one of several podcast listening mediums. Feedback is always helpful so if you can find time to rate and review the show, I’d appreciate it.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the show, I speak with Joe Ferraro. Joe is the man behind The One Percent Better Project and is a teacher and podcast host who helps to dissect the mindset, language, and behavior of daily improvement across the worlds of business, communication, and education.

During our conversation, we talk about the power of working towards getting one percent better, how making one change in your world can lead to so much more change that you’d never expect, where Joe starts with people when trying to help make a change, why embracing change that is unconventional can lead to great success, and much more.

Relevant Links

The One Percent Better Project

One Percent Better: The Podcast

TimeCraftingTV

VidIQ

The NOW Year Calendar | NeuYear & Productivityist (SAVE 20% with promo code FRESHSTART)     

Green Lantern and Philosophy: No Evil Shall Escape This Book | Amazon

Creative Quest by Questlove | Amazon

Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom | Amazon

The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea by Bob Burg | Amazon

Way of the Peaceful Warrior: A Book That Changes Lives by Dan Millman | Amazon

Episode 222: How to Fight a Hydra | The Productivityist Podcast

Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell | Amazon

Wine Library TV from Gary Vaynerchuk

The Five Minute Journal: A Happier You in Five Minutes a Day | Amazon

Comedian | Amazon

Joe Ferraro | Twitter

I had such a great time talking with Joe – so much so that we ran longer than I usually would. If you’re looking to get one percent better then I encourage you to check out Joe’s work and podcast. If you liked this episode, then I also encourage you to share it far and wide and subscribe to the show here. You can also rate and review the show in Apple Podcasts or wherever you’re listening to The Productivityist Podcast.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’m joined this time around by Josh Kaufman, the author of three bestselling books – including his latest effort How to Fight a Hydra: Face Your Fears, Pursue Your Ambitions, and Become the Hero You Are Destined to Be. Josh’s research focuses on business, entrepreneurship, skill acquisition, productivity, creativity, applied psychology, and practical wisdom and he’s someone I’ve wanted to have on the show for a long time.

Josh and I carry on a conversation that revolves around the differences between How to Fight a Hydra and his previous books, the power of story (particularly fables and parables), why I never thought of Josh as a productivity expert yet he describes himself as such, and much more.

Relevant Links

How to Fight a Hydra: Face Your Fears, Pursue Your Ambitions, and Become the Hero You Are Destined to Be | Amazon

The Legend of Bagger Vance by Steven Pressfield | Amazon

Josh Kaufman’s Website

I had a fantastic time chatting with Josh and I hope you enjoyed our conversation as well. If you did, I encourage you to share this episode and subscribe to the show. You can do that right from wherever you’re listening to this episode or by visiting the podcast website. And if you’re open to rating and reviewing the podcast, that’s even better.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode, after years of crossing paths both online and offline, I speak with Farnoosh Brock. Farnoosh went from electrical engineer and rising leader at corporate to business coach and entrepreneur. She shows businesses the mindset of serving over selling to build deep trust and sustainable profit. She is the author of several books, including the one we focus on during our conversation, The Serving Mindset.

Farnoosh and I have a lively discussion around changing your mindset when it comes to selling your services – something that I offer through my coaching practices. We dive into a variety of elements of this, but the core of our conversation revolves around how The Serving Mindset is helpful in making one not just more successful but also more efficient in one’s business.

Relevant Links

Prolific Living | Farnoosh Brock

The Serving Mindset: Stop Selling and Grow Your Business by Farnoosh Brock | Amazon

The Coaching Habit with Michael Bungay Stanier | The Productivityist Podcast

The NOW Year Calendar | NeuYear & Productivityist (SAVE 20% with promo code FRESHSTART)

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain | Amazon

The Simple Way to Develop a Pricing Strategy | Chris Ducker

Ego is The Enemy by Ryan Holiday | Amazon

I had a great time chatting with Farnoosh and I hope it also served you well. If it did, please let me know by giving the show a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. I’d also love it if you subscribed to the show, something you can do when you visit the podcast website or by doing so on a variety of popular podcast platforms.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices