PROVIDENCE, RI — My guest today is Kyna Leski. Rhode Island Hall of Famer and RISD legend Kyna was introduced to me two years ago by a great friend and mentor, Heather McGowan. Heather told me that Kyna was the single most impactful professor she ever had. I didn’t need any more encouragement. 

Unfortunately, we were ships passing in the night back in 2019. But I vowed on my next return to Providence that I would reach out. And so, I was absolutely thrilled that this time it worked out and that Kyna was able to come and speak to our school members during a live podcast discussion during our Rhode Island retreat.

In this episode, we dive deep into how Kyna thinks about creativity as a storm, what it means to be shipwrecked, the role that language plays in helping you see things, make connections and ultimately conceive of creations that don’t yet exist. All the while staying rooted in your purpose and using your personal biography as your compass.

I can firmly say that this was more than worth the wait. Without further ado, here’s Kyna Leski.

Today’s episode comes to you from Scottsdale, Arizona. My business partner Cam Perna and long-time Fellow In-Residence Justin Fleischmann join me to recap Retreat VI in the Southwest. 

This weekend had it all from all-natural wine tastings and lights-out Thai meals to tongue-in-cheek late-night cocktails. We spent our early mornings hiking in the mountains, with the afternoons reserved strictly for lolling by the pool. This might be our best retreat yet.

Want to be at our next one? Join us now - https://everydayentrepreneur.co/breakouts/

Today’s episode comes to you from Savannah, GA. My business partner Cam Perna and I recap three amazing days of sunshine, beach, golf and conversation down South. Our weekend was littered with Pulitzer finalists, Michelin-star chefs, world-class architects and some of the incredible families who make Savannah what it is today. 

We cover why we were created for community, the difference between consuming and investing in a space, and the idea of the world's best city being not in a physical place but rather as an agglomeration of resources.

We hope you enjoy it.

I have three guests today—two usual suspects in Cam Perna + Josh Whelan. Cam’s my business partner in Breakouts and The School. Josh is our Minister of Culture. And one new addition, Maximillian Brown - one of our standout fellows in Breakouts3. The three of us spent some time reflecting on the first Breakouts retreat of 2021. 

We spent three days in Charlie Town eating great food, drinking delicious wine and curating some incredible conversations around village building, dreams and memories. We had visits from Ben Towill and Kirk Chambers - two of Charleston's best entrepreneurs and creatives.

We host these Breakouts retreat at the midpoint of our 10-week lifestyle accelerator. It’s a celebration of our fellows, our broader community and a rare opportunity to experience the magic of physical connectivity. And we’ll be posting retreat recaps like this every quarter.

If you’d like to learn more, visit breakouts.us now.

I have three guests today: Cam Perna, Josh Whelan and Michael Rubino. 

Cam’s my business partner in Breakouts and The School. Josh is our Minister of Culture and the guy who taught me community when I first arrived in the USA in 2013. And Mike is one of the most exciting entrepreneurs I know in Chicago. Cam, Josh and Mike are 3 of the 7 founding members of the Junto - Benjamin Franklin's social mutual improvement club that I revived in 2019 through this podcast. 

Today, The Junto is a thriving intellectual community with 50+ members all over the globe. As founding members, we meet every quarter in a different part of the world for a weekend-long retreat of ideas, conversation and community. Each weekend's capstone is a long slow dinner that we host for friends and people we admire local to the city we’re visiting. 

This past weekend we met together in-person on Lake Travis down in Austin, TX. We decided to record this podcast and document all the incredible ideas, people and conversations that we come across during our weekends together. We’ll be posting a founding members episode like this every month after each of our virtual meetings. And once a quarter, you’ll have the pleasure of being a fly on wall during our retreat debrief.

If you find yourself thinking “wow, I would have loved to be IN the room for conversations like this” then you should consider becoming a member of The Junto. It's a space made for those who want to teach what they do know and learn what they don’t alongside some of the brightest minds in the world today. 

Members have the opportunity to attend exclusive virtual retreats and get access to our digital publication called 1727. Not to mention countless life-changing conversations with new friends, peers and mentors you’ll cherish forever. Learn more at https://everydayentrepreneur.co/junto/

In this episode, we publically unveil The School — the world's premier performance institute for the game of life. 

Recorded at a beautiful mansion in Chicago, Cam Perna and I talk through our vision for The School. Namely, how we've thought about enriching daily life, what you can expect from our 2021 membership, our wildest dreams for Breakouts3, as well as a sneak-peek into our inaugural retreat.

Join The School now: https://everydayentrepreneur.co/the-school/

My guest today is Elliott Clark - the modern-day philosopher behind Apartment Bartender (@apartment_bartender) and Semi-Decent Creative (@semi_decent). 

This is the second time I’ve had Elliott on The Junto. For those of you who would like a deeper dive on Elliott’s back story, I suggest you first listen to episode #28 and then read the 8,000-word profile I wrote on him over the span of two years - https://everydayentrepreneur.co/articles/elliott-clark-hitting-every-green-light/

This conversation was recorded on April 1st, 2020 about 3 weeks into the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. I caught up with Elliott in the middle of his #WeCreateAnyway fundraising campaign for the hospitality industry. The campaign went on to raise $20,000 for bars, restaurants and employees affected by the pandemic.

We talked about the impact the pandemic has had on Elliott’s business, how he is using his creative outlet to inspire others during a time when it’s OK to not be OK, how brands can truly leverage their platforms for good and what we all need on deck in our home bars to ensure we can continue to drink well during life under quarantine.

In this episode, Cam Perna and I talk about Breakouts — the 10-week program we built over quarantine that exposes some of the brightest professional across the globe to the ideas, principles, skills and frameworks that govern how we think about living an extraordinary life.

We built Breakouts in just 5 weeks over quarantine and launched our first cohort (Breakouts1) on June 8th with 39 fellows. This conversation is a window into the vision behind Breakouts, and the story behind Cam + I's serendipitous reconnection.

Whether you're interested in joining Breakouts or are just fascinated by what the intersection of a modern-day university and social club looks like, this episode can't be missed.

For more info, or if you'd like to enrol in our next cohort,  visit: https://everydayentrepreneur.co/breakouts/

LONDON, UK — My guest today is Jason Touray. A fellow West London boy and entrepreneur based in Tower Hill.

Jason and I’s upbringing is so different. And yet our stories mirror each other; many of the same characters are weaved through our collective life narrative - football, religion, inspiring teachers, immigrant parents, comprehensive education and doing business in the United States. In short: Jason and I have been asking a lot of the same questions. Albeit from different places. 

In this episode, I get to grips with Jason's story. We talk up his time growing up with his Mum on a council estate, his life as a promising young footballer - including a boot deal with West Ham - and a run-in with Cesc Fabregas in the FA Youth Cup, the power of the Black Nod and the journey Jason believes we are all on as Black Unicorns: unlearning who we were told to be so we can figure out who we truly are.

Em Hutchins is the founder and owner of On Your Mark Studios, a world-class fitness facility based in Chicago, IL. On Your Mark is one of the most impressive spaces I’ve ever been lucky enough to grace, not to mention the best gym I’ve been to hands down.

In this episode, Em talks candidly about the tough realities of being a gym owner during a lockdown. But what’s evident is that Em is focused on the controllables, as well as the silver linings. Despite having worked in the industry for the 17 years, Em had never taught an online OYM class before Quarantine. She now recognizes that digital is a medium that cannot be ignored. And in fact, it should be embraced because it provides trainers like Em with a new level of reach, flexibility, and scalability they’ve always been chasing from the gym floor. 

In addition to all this, we chat about how to squeeze the most out of your home workouts, Em’s words of advice for advanced lifters during this time, the best equipment for getting a pump on at home and her go-to music playlist for Life Under Quarantine.