What if the reason you feel stuck, burned out, or off course isn’t a lack of effort but the fact that you’ve been blindly walking in circles, absolutely convinced you were moving straight ahead?

Using the science of walking blindfolded as a metaphor for modern life, this episode "You are not lost. You are just asking the wrong question." unpacks how linear career paths, industrial-era education, and the question “WHAT do you want to be when you grow up?” train us to chase the wrong goalposts, confuse motion with progress, and sacrifice our creative soul. We explore why life is cyclical rather than linear, how Mark Manson’s Four Stages of Life better reflect the messy reality of growth, why transitions between stages suck ass, and how reframing the question from WHAT you do to WHO you want to become can help you stop walking in circles and start moving toward work and life that actually matter.

I’m curious...WHO do you want to be when you grow up?

→ let me know here in the comments

If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

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In today’s Hot Seat conversation, Julie and I dive deep into what it really feels like when your creativity and cognitive clarity start slipping through your fingers. I talk through the hidden impact of dopamine-driven distraction, and we explore how removing social media can expose just how out of shape our brains have become. Together we dig into boredom as a skill, cognitive fitness as training, and the fears that surface when you step into collaboration and authenticity. If you’ve ever felt foggy, scattered, or disconnected from your creativity… this is the episode you need.

Want to learn more about working with me and having your own Hot Seat session?

→ Click here to learn more about The Arnold Academy coaching & mentorship program

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This mini-episode taken from my latest article in the Digital Essentialism Series on Substack pulls back the curtain on the likes, comments, and compulsive urge to reach for your damn phone 205 times a day, all to uncover a deeper question: What might you be avoiding with your attention? From digital essentialism to deep work rituals, from messy garages to meaning, we dig into why we avoid the blank page, why we panic when life pauses, and why being “CrAAAAAAAAAAzy busy!!!!!” keeps us from confronting purpose, values, and meaningful goals. If you can only call something a distraction when you know what it’s distracting you from — do you really know?

If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

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In today’s Hot Seat, I’m talking with Joe Dobson, who’s feeling stuck trying to balance earning paychecks with actually building his career. He’s been organizing his time and putting in the work, but still feels unclear about direction and how to network strategically. In this conversation, I guide him through accepting that you’ll never get it all done — but you can choose what truly matters. Together, we explore how to stop chasing work-life balance and instead practice deliberate, strategic imbalance that aligns with your goals and values.

Want to learn more about working with me and having your own Hot Seat session?

→ Click here to learn more about The Arnold Academy coaching & mentorship program

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In today’s Hot Seat with one of the students in the Arnold Academy, Brandon Holmes, we dig deep and talk about some really existential stuff, moving far beyond just setting goals to explore the vision for the next phase of work and life. As we unpack his mind maps and scattered intentions, the real reason behind his uncertainty becomes clear. This reframing will help you shift your mindset so you can finally make progress on what you want to accomplish.

Want to learn more about working with me and having your own Hot Seat session?

→ Click here to learn more about The Arnold Academy coaching & mentorship program

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In this mini-episode, I unpack my 2198-word “old man yells at cloud” rant about how algorithms are the new cigarettes, diving into the sighs, huzzahs, and head scratches it sparked while exploring our global dilemma of knowing social media is engineered to farm our attention and fuel tribalism, rage, envy, jealousy, shame, inadequacy, and over-consumption, yet still relying on it for community, connection, and “what’s the haps,” leading into my mission for part two of this series where I break down how I’m reshaping my relationship with technology as a content consumer through my rules, boundaries, and guardrails rooted in digital essentialism so I can extract genuine value without this toxic ecosystem costing me my soul.

If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

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In today's conversation with my longtime student and even a former team member, Julie Fahrbach, we talk all about her relationship with social media and it's very complicated, both as a content consumer and a content creator. This conversation was born from my recent article Algorithms are the new cigarettes. Julie opens up about her current crossroads, asking whether she can throw social media in the trash can and still grow her business, and what it really means to build sustainably without getting pulled back into the feed.

Want to learn more about working with me and having your own Hot Seat session?

→ Click here to learn more about The Arnold Academy coaching & mentorship program

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-zack-arnold-podcast/exclusive-content

Hey, there, it's Zack. Remember me? Well, if you've been a long time listener and follower of The Zack Arnold Podcast, of my newsletter, or even a member of The Arnold Academy, you've probably been wondering the last couple of months, what in the world is going on and where is the podcast?

Well, the shorter answer is, I have a much longer answer to that question that I'm going to be explaining in my upcoming article series on Substack, and today is going to be the first of those articles, and this is going to be a mini episode that is going to be the reading of my latest article that is titled, Algorithms are the new cigarettes. Is it possible to quit cold turkey? Now if you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and frankly, my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

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What do you do when the life and career you’ve built no longer work for you?

In this episode, I’m joined by Anna Holtzman, a former reality TV editor turned therapist, now life coach, who helps creatives and entrepreneurs release imposter syndrome and step into the next chapter of their careers. Together we share our own pivots and life quakes, and what it really takes to keep moving one step at a time. If you’re frozen in fear, stuck in the messy middle, or wishing life could go back to “normal,” this episode offers comfort, clarity, and the reminder you don’t have to do it alone.

Key Takeaways

• Discern where your cheese has moved. The story of chasing cheese is a reminder that the old path may no longer serve you.
• Embrace pivots as part of the path. Change can feel like failure, but it is often the exact step toward alignment and renewal.
• Start with the smallest silly step. Action leads to motivation, not the other way around. Even tiny wins unlock momentum.

Episode Highlights

• Parallel pivots that sparked a reunion and deeper conversation
• Life in the before times versus surviving the after times
• Unlocking journaling as a hidden practice of reflection
• Reimagine identity by shifting from one brand to the next
• Learn how to stop chasing the wrong cheese and pivot with courage
• Fear, scarcity, and the power of “you’re not alone right now”
• Face fear in your pivot and discover what opens on the other side
• Find inspiration in real stories of clients choosing courage in chaos
• How to build momentum with small silly steps that spark motivation
• Calm fear and create clarity through journaling dialogues

Recommended Next Episode

Navigating the Messy Middle of a Career Pivot | with Sandy Zimmerman

🎧 Listen on [Apple Podcast] [Spotify] [Amazon Music]

Useful Resources

Who Moved My Cheese

Pivot with Purpose

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Guest Bio

Anna Holtzman is a therapist-turned-coach who helps sensitive creatives and entrepreneurs move through the fear of visibility and finally launch the work that feels most true to them. After 15 years in TV and publishing—and many false starts on her own creative dreams—burnout and chronic pain led her to the nervous system tools that helped her unblock her voice and show up for the work she loves. Now she helps others do the same: melt through imposter syndrome, bring their creative visions to life, and share them boldly. She lives in Queens, NY with her husband, stepdaughter, and three orange cats, and she hosts the podcast How to Trust Yourself.

Anna’s Website, Instagram, Email, Podcast, Workshop

Show Credits

Edited by: Curtis Fritsch

Produced by: Debby Germino

Published by: Vim Pangantihon

Music by: Thomas Cepeda

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-zack-arnold-podcast/exclusive-content

What if the emotions you’ve been taught to hide are actually the key to deeper connection?

In this episode, I’m joined by Sunil Joseph, mindfulness instructor, empathy coach, and former software developer. Sunil’s mission is to help us normalize all emotions so we can better process what we feel and connect more authentically with others. In our conversation, he guides me through this practice in real time, showing how naming and expressing emotions can shift everything. If you’ve ever struggled to understand or work through your feelings, this episode will give you tools to turn toward them instead of pushing them away.

Key Takeaways

• Shared humanity makes vulnerability safe. When you show your struggles, you create space for someone else to meet you with compassion.
• Prioritize emotional resonance over intellectual empathy. Understanding a person’s need at an emotional level changes the way they respond, making your interactions more effective.
• Balance logic and emotion to move forward. While logic reminds you of past successes, emotion brings fear; acknowledging both without judgment enables growth and action.

Episode Highlights

• When your dream life makes you unhappy, learn to chase meaning instead of following expectations.
• Learn to face hidden childhood wounds to understand your present and unlock freedom.
• Master the four steps of nonviolent communication (NVC): what happened, your feelings, your needs, and your requests.
• The power of shared humanity that turns empathy and vulnerability into daily practice and real connection.
• Learn the universal needs in NVC and stop confusing it with strategies, so you can meet what truly matters without blaming others.
• Understanding emotional needs builds real connection, but it takes consistent, lifelong practice.
• Use mindfulness to bridge the gap between stimulus and response, giving you space to choose your reaction.
• Discover how NVC revealed hidden feelings and unmet needs from my personal “ouch” moment.
• Serve the purpose, not the title: Skills are most powerful when aligned with the work or calling that matters to you.

Recommended Next Episode

Emotional Intelligence: What It Is, How to Improve Yours, and How It Makes You a Better Creative | with Robin Hills

The Benefits of Mindfulness & Therapy (and How to Know Which One You Need) | with Seth Gillihan

Useful Resources

Lisa Feldman

Marshall Rosenberg

We're all Doing Time

Viktor Frankl

List of Universal Human Needs and Emotions

The Center for Nonviolent Communication

GRIP: Guiding Rage Into Power

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Guest Bio

Sunil Joseph is a certified GRIP Facilitator, mindfulness instructor, and Nonviolent Communication coach. In 2018, he visited a GRIP class at San Quentin and was profoundly moved by the humanity and compassion in the room, a moment that transformed his path. He joined the program, eventually training to become a certified facilitator, supporting students in their growth, healing, and transformation through restorative justice. Sunil also leads weekly online meditation classes and NVC coaching sessions. With a Master’s in Computer Science and 25 years of software development experience, he brings a unique blend of technical expertise and human-centered insight to his work.

Sunil’s Website, LinkedIn

Show Credits

Edited by: Curtis Fritsch

Produced by: Debby Germino

Published by: Vim Pangantihon

Music by: Thomas Cepeda

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-zack-arnold-podcast/exclusive-content