Hey friends, Chase here.

Ever feel like failure means you're broken?

You messed up. You launched something and it flopped. Maybe you put your heart on the line and it didn’t go your way. That sting? It’s real. No quote on Instagram is going to make it magically go away.

But here's the truth:

Failure isn’t the opposite of progress. It’s part of it.

We live in a world that either glamorizes failure like it’s some kind of badge of honor—or tells us to avoid it like the plague. But neither story is complete.

Failure hurts—especially when you care. That’s what makes it meaningful.

A bad pitch, a failed launch, a relationship gone sideways—if you tried, if you truly cared, then the pain you're feeling is proof that you're alive and in the game. It’s data. It's a signal. It's the exact thing that helps you grow.

So what's the play? Try hard. Ship often. Then do it again.

Don’t make garbage just to say you did something. Don’t fake effort to avoid real disappointment. Give it what you’ve got—then put it out there before it’s perfect.

That’s the sweet spot.

Not hiding behind polished perfection. Not pretending you don’t care. But showing up. Again and again.

And when it hurts? When you fail? Good. That means you're learning something that matters.

Failure isn’t your enemy. It’s your frenemy. You don’t have to love it—but you do need to make peace with it.

Until next time, stay bold, and keep shipping.

Hey friends, Chase here.

Ever feel like life is happening somewhere else?

You're in the room, but your mind’s a thousand miles away—replaying something you said, stressing about what’s next. It's normal. It's human. But it's also how we miss the best parts of life.

The past is over. The future isn’t real yet. All we ever really have is right now.

It took an avalanche—yes, a literal one—for me to fully understand this. In those few terrifying seconds, time slowed down. I was completely present. Fully alive.

That experience changed me. And I’ve been trying to live like that ever since.

You don’t need something dramatic to wake up. You just need to start paying attention. That’s what this episode is about: why this moment is everything, and how to stop missing it.

Until next time, stay present, and stay awake.

Hey friends, Chase here.

Ever feel like your mind is all over the place?

Emails. Notifications. News. Noise. We live in a world designed to hijack our attention, and it’s working.

In a world this noisy, your ability to focus isn’t just helpful. It’s everything.

Viktor Frankl found purpose in the darkest of places by choosing where to direct his mind. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi discovered flow while surviving war by focusing on a single game of chess. Louis Zamperini endured torture by turning his attention toward faith and forgiveness.

These weren’t magic tricks. They were choices. Repeated. Intentional. Life-saving.

Science backs it up. As Dr. Andrew Huberman says, “The ability to focus and direct one's attention is the distinguishing factor between those who will succeed and those who won’t.”

That’s not just about work or goals. That’s about everything. Your relationships. Your health. Your sense of self.

Because attention doesn’t just shape what you see. It shapes who you become.

You don't have to escape to the mountains or delete every app on your phone. You just have to start noticing where your attention goes, and gently bring it back to what matters most.

Ask yourself:

• What am I really focusing on right now?

• Is it helping me or draining me?

• What would happen if I chose differently?

Your attention is yours. Don’t give it away without a fight.

Until next time, stay focused and stay free.

In this episode, Chris Guillebeau shares how time anxiety affects nearly everyone—and why naming it might be the first step to freedom. Chris is a New York Times bestselling author known for books like The $100 Startup and The Art of Non-Conformity, and the founder of several beloved communities and events, including the World Domination Summit and Neurodiversion.

We dive into his latest book Time Anxiety: The Illusion of Urgency and a Better Way to Live, exploring why productivity often leaves us feeling emptier, not more fulfilled. Chris shares how his own stress around time led him to uncover this nearly universal tension—and why the answer isn’t just doing less, but living more intentionally. If you’ve ever felt like there’s never enough time (and who hasn’t?), this conversation is for you.

Some highlights we explore:

• “I've never heard of that, but I have that.” — Chris on why time anxiety hit a nerve with almost everyone he talked to.
• A man who flies to nowhere every week – and what it teaches us about practicing joy.
• The illusion of control – why managing time is often just magical thinking.
• The eighth day of the week – a practical tool for designing the life you actually want.

Enjoy!

In this episode, Soren Gordhamer shares how to find what really matters in a world full of noise. Soren is the founder of Wisdom 2.0, a global movement bridging mindfulness, compassion, and technology. He’s also the creator of the new conference Wisdom + AI and co-leads Wisdom Ventures, a fund investing in companies that combine profits with human-centered purpose.

We talk about what it means to live with intention in a time of constant distraction. Soren shares hard-won lessons from teaching meditation in a New York juvenile detention center to working alongside some of the world’s top tech leaders. This episode is a powerful reminder that while AI and external success may be evolving fast, the real work is upgrading our inner life—learning to listen, slow down, and connect to what truly matters before our limited heartbeats run out.

Some highlights we explore:

• The hug that meant more than meditation – Why a teen in juvie showed up week after week for something deeper than a lesson.
• “If you’re not available for magic…” – Soren on why putting down your phone might be the first step to real connection.
• The right kind of hard – How to know when difficulty is actually a sign you’re on the right path.

Enjoy!

In this episode, I share how not playing it safe can be the most powerful decision you make—for your creativity, your career, and your life. I open up about scrapping a nearly finished book to write something bolder and truer, and why embracing discomfort is the path to fulfillment and impact.

This is a syndicate episode from the LinkedIn Speaker Series, where I sit down with Ashley Levy, Senior Director of Brand Marketing at LinkedIn, for a deep conversation about my latest book Never Play It Safe. We talk about trusting intuition, the myth of the linear career path, and the hidden cost of living by someone else’s script. If you’ve ever felt stuck in “shoulds” or worried that taking a leap is too risky, this one’s for you.

Some highlights we explore:

• The yellow sticky note that sparked the idea behind Never Play It Safe.
• Why playing it safe is actually the riskiest move you can make.
• The #1 shared trait of top performers from my 1,000+ podcast interviews.
• How attention, not time, is your most valuable creative asset.

Enjoy!

Hey friends, Chase here.

Ever feel like you're taking life a little too seriously?

Wake up. Work. Hustle. Repeat. Somewhere along the way, we stopped playing—and started grinding through our days like machines.

We were taught that being serious means being responsible. That fun is a distraction. That joy is something we earn.

But let’s be real—seriousness without joy just leads to burnout.

Play is where creativity begins. It’s what makes challenges fun and failure less scary. It helps you breathe, think, connect, and feel again.

You already know how to play, you’ve just forgotten. But it’s still there, waiting.

So try it. Loosen the grip. Smile more. Make life a little less rigid and a lot more yours.

Until next time, stay curious, and stay in the game.

In this episode, I share how putting your creative work into the world—no matter how small—can lead to massive, unexpected impact. I open up about my early days as a self-taught photographer, the pain and joy of learning through film, and how a backpacking trip with my wife turned into the start of an unconventional creative career.

This is a syndicate episode from the B&H Photography Podcast, where I sit down with Derek, Jill, and Mike to trace the arc of my journey—from building the Best Camera app and pioneering mobile photography, to founding CreativeLive and finding purpose through community. We talk about the cost of taking creative risks, the billion-dollar idea that got away, and the deeper why behind making and sharing your art. If you’ve ever doubted whether your creative voice matters, this episode is for you.

Some highlights we explore:

• • Why you only need 20 people to support your work and make a living.

• WThe emotional cost—and wisdom—of losing out on the Instagram moment.
• What “the best camera is the one that’s with you” really means.
• The key mindset shift: You’re not promoting, you’re connecting people to something they need.

Enjoy!

Hey friends, Chase here.

Ever get a gut feeling—but second-guess it because it doesn’t “make sense”?

You’re not alone. From a young age, we’re taught to value logic over instinct. To follow the rules. To ignore the quiet signals coming from within.

But science shows that your body—especially your gut—is constantly processing more than your conscious mind ever could. That inner knowing? It’s real. And it’s powerful.

In this post, we’ll talk about why so many of us lost touch with our intuition—and how to start tuning back in, one small decision at a time.

Your gut knows. It always has. The question is: are you listening?

In this episode, Debbie Millman shares how to begin—even when you feel unready, unqualified, or full of doubt. Debbie is a designer, author, educator, and host of the pioneering podcast Design Matters. She's also the chair of the Masters in Branding program at the School of Visual Arts and editorial director at Print magazine.

We talk about the creative risks Debbie took later in life, why fear and shame shaped her early path, and how she found fulfillment by making deeply personal work—without waiting for permission. From the grief of losing family to the joy of marrying at 57, this is a raw, powerful conversation about love, legacy, and the courage to start—even if you feel like a mess.

Some highlights we explore:

• The myth of readiness – Why waiting to feel “good enough” keeps us stuck in place.
• Failures that shaped the path – From rejected applications to bad jobs, how struggle created space for clarity.
• Creating without permission – Why Debbie’s most meaningful work began when she stopped waiting to be chosen.

Enjoy!