What does resonance really mean? In this short episode, we explore the science of resonance and how understanding the definition of the word can help us to focus on making content that matters. SHARE THE SHOW: Help others find Unthinkable in their favorite podcast player by sharing this link: https://pod.link/jay SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: https://jayacunzo.com/newsletter Every Friday, I send a new idea, story, or framework for crafting more resonant work to thousands of subscribers, ranging f...
Nov 10, 2021•14 min•Ep. 168
In this episode, we follow multimedia journalist Natalia Aldana, organizer and artist Aisha White, podcaster and indie creator Jay Clouse, and we hear from marketing legend Joe Pulizzi as they (and me, Jay Acunzo) learn to navigate how these maker monsters attempt to take hostage their (and our) sense of self worth. So many of us conflate our professional success with personal worth, so what happens when we don’t believe in ourselves or we are paralyzed by potential rejection? And how can we all...
Oct 27, 2021•34 min•Ep. 167
The word "art" is often misunderstood, especially by those who don't consider themselves artists. But make no mistake, if you're in the change business, you're in the art business. In this episode, a short but inspiring look at how. SHARE THE SHOW: Help others find Unthinkable in their favorite podcast player by sharing this link: https://pod.link/jay SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: https://jayacunzo.com/newsletter Every Friday, I send a new idea, story, or framework for crafting more resonant work...
Oct 20, 2021•11 min•Ep. 166
So many of us focus on becoming an expert in our professional field. But what if instead, we wanted to become visionaries? Not THAT kind of visionary, mind you -- the over-hyped media machines that become the business world equivalents of the Kardashians. But instead, a type of useful, practical, attainable, and much-needed visionary. On this episode we begin to unpack what it means to be a visionary. We learn about the “Quest Matrix,” and we begin to chart a path away from Expertville toward so...
Oct 14, 2021•55 min•Ep. 165
It's time for another one-shot -- a short-form, monologue episode sharing short stories, metaphors, and frameworks from my perspective to complement the longer-form stories about others that we share every other week. In this one, I answer a crucial question -- some might say mission critical to all our careers. Then, I detail why my answer to the question is extremely, laughably biased, and why we all face that same bias when others make decisions involving our work. What does it take to resona...
Oct 07, 2021•20 min•Ep. 164
Why do we constantly underestimate how long something will take in the short-term? In other words, we tend to over-estimate just how much we can achieve right now. Then, when we think long term, the reverse tends to happen: we actually UNDER-estimate what we're capable of achieving over time. Today, we want to know more about the promise of a popular trend, the creative streak, and whether they can help us overcome our constant battle with planning our time and achieving something greater. This ...
Sep 30, 2021•52 min•Ep. 163
In 2019, I helped develop, write, and direct a business docuseries called Against the Grain, which I also hosted. You can find that series at helpscout.com/atg . We told three stories of teams rethinking what success in business looks like. It was epic. But the budget ... was not. It was a lean production, with a small budget and small team. In talking to others in documentary production, they were amazed to hear how we produced THAT series with THOSE resources. What helped was a technique known...
Sep 22, 2021•12 min•Ep. 162
Maker monsters often creep in at the least opportune times, drag us backwards, convince us of defeat, fill us with self-doubt, so where do we go from here? And what does that mean for our creative, professional work? We hear from Smithsonian’s Sidedoor podcast host and producer Lizzie Peabody and poet and keynote speaker, Tucker Bryant, about how their maker monster, perfectionism, creeps into their creative work. We dive into how they conquer, co-exist, or accept defeat with their own internal ...
Sep 15, 2021•32 min•Ep. 161
What's the worst advice you've ever received? Can you recall? Mine happened in my mid-20s. I'd just been hired to lead a team for the first time. I found myself in my first purely managerial role ... and I was miserable. Trying to salvage my schedule and my career, I marched into my boss's office and declared, "I'm not doing my best work here." What followed was the worst advice I've ever received. But here's the thing: at the time, I thought it was GREAT. I was wrong. Maybe we all are. * * * KE...
Sep 01, 2021•11 min•Ep. 160
We hear from education entrepreneur and former urban designer Saba Ghole, whose own education journey has led her to rethink and rebuild how we can teach young people. She cofounded NuVu Studio, creating an educational space for imagination and innovation to help build creative, critical thinkers and problem solvers. Writer and researcher Molly Donovan dives into the messiness that is growing up, learning to judge and chasing being right. She explores how we can start dismantling that need and i...
Aug 25, 2021•40 min•Ep. 159
I used to think I somehow escaped the clutches of imposter syndrome. Oh, the ego in that statement. Surprise, surprise, I was wrong. My imposter syndrome grips me as a writer, a podcaster, a speaker, and a creator-of-things-that-people-are-supposed-to-enjoyer. It's the worst when I face gatekeepers -- people like editors or publishers who decide whether or not someone is worthy of coming onto their platform or working with their service. Most of us face some flavor of imposter syndrome, and it c...
Aug 18, 2021•16 min•Ep. 158
The company Museum Hack, founded by Nick Gray, was at one point a promising new startup. It helped reinvent and reinvigorate a stale museum experience. It lured people out of their homes, away from their screens, and into groups of people. There, connection happened. Learning. Inspiration. And another concept, pulled from Dutch culture, known as "gezellig." As I re-air this story, we're in the midst of the pandemic. (Again? Still?) The Delta variant is raging. People are making foolish, selfish ...
Aug 11, 2021•47 min•Ep. 157
As creative people, how we see the world changes how we think about it which changes how we communicate which changes how we resonate which changes the results we see. Want to change you results? Start at the beginning. Consider changing, or at least thinking critically about, how you see the world. It's not often a tiny tactic or hidden marketing channel or technology that's needed. It's something far more transformative, but it needn't be difficult to grasp. (PS: Thanks to everyone who shared ...
Aug 04, 2021•9 min•Ep. 156
On the show, we keep talking about the importance of reaching that next rep of your creative process consistently, faster, and better, but often, those ideas are in conflict. Often, we shouldn't move to the next iteration or project quickly. Then there are other times where taking a break is actually a form of hiding. We want the perfect conditions or the Muse to visit us. How do we spot the difference? How do we know whether we should just keep showing up, shipping the work, putting in the reps...
Jul 29, 2021•55 min•Ep. 155
This week, another "One-Shot." These are my short-form, experimental episodes, where I read a short written piece for you, covering an observation I've made or story I've experienced firsthand. Whereas my main episodes share stories from the perspectives of others, these shorts are from my perspective alone. It's all part of the journey we're on to understand how to avoid stagnation, keep improving, and ultimately reach that next rep of the creative process consistently and better. In this one, ...
Jul 15, 2021•9 min•Ep. 154
While I'm on vacation, I wanted to ensure I shared something special. Jay Clouse's show, Creative Elements, is among my favorite interview podcasts about creativity and building a career as a content entrepreneur and artist online today. Jay asks me about... My experiences as a sports journalist and sports PR intern at ESPN and elsewhere, before getting into marketing. How I think about and develop stories. Why I aspire to be the Anthony Bourdain of workplace storytelling. How I structure and sc...
Jul 01, 2021•59 min•Ep. 153
Alex Cook's obsessions are ever-changing, from growing and farming mushrooms to men's haircare products to riding Fat bikes on the beach ... to investigating family mysteries involving his grandfather, a dog, and an old wooden chest full of clues. All of this led Alex to create his company, NanaGram. It's the most rewarding app you'll ever use (full disclosure: I'm a longtime customer). THANKS TO THOSE INVOLVED IN THIS EPISODE: Max Yoder, CEO of Lessonly. Check out his book: https://dobetterwork...
Jun 24, 2021•35 min•Ep. 152
The stories that inspire us and move others to action don't often feel within our grasp. Maybe we think it's about budget, or more time, or even more team. But so often, creativity is about resourcefulness, not resources. This applies squarely to storytelling. In fact, if we just learned (or re-learned) what a "story" really is, we might better equip ourselves to tell great stories. Stories require one ingredient above all others: tension. Want to evolve and improve as a storyteller? Master the ...
Jun 16, 2021•19 min•Ep. 151
Alex Cook's obsessions are ever-changing, from growing and farming mushrooms to men's haircare products to riding Fat bikes on the beach ... to investigating family mysteries involving his grandfather, a dog, and an old wooden chest full of clues. All of this led Alex to create his company, NanaGram. It's the most rewarding app you'll ever use (full disclosure: I'm a longtime customer). THANKS TO THOSE INVOLVED IN THIS EPISODE: Alex Cook: https://twitter.com/aacook NanaGram: https://nanagram.co/...
Jun 08, 2021•42 min•Ep. 150
In a new monologue story, we try to understand how to bring greater focus and our own unique form to our creative work more consistently. After all, being a professional creator means showing up even when we don't feel amazing in order to tinker, draft, and ship. We need to bring our focus and our form to our work upon command. How do we do that? We look to an unexpected source of inspiration. FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER: Playing Favorites shares one new story every Friday morning that you can't find...
May 26, 2021•12 min•Ep. 149
In a new story, we try to understand what the heck a "rep" is in creative work, so we can reach our next rep faster, better, and more consistently. We hear the story of visual artist Matthew Zaremba and learn more about reps from Grammy-nominated music educator and CrossFit coach Kevin Mazzarella. FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER: Playing Favorites shares one new story every Friday morning that you can't find anywhere else, focused on creating work that matters. Subscribe at jayacunzo.com/newsletter COMMU...
May 20, 2021•55 min•Ep. 148
In this episode, I experiment with something I'm calling "One-Shots." In this particular One-Shot, "making bad" -- what creative people we admire seem to have in common. FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER: Playing Favorites shares one new story every Friday morning that you can't find anywhere else, focused on creating work that matters. Subscribe at jayacunzo.com/newsletter COMMUNITY FOR CREATORS: $13/month makes you a supporter of this show, with bonus content shared monthly. Or you can become a full-blow...
Apr 29, 2021•16 min•Ep. 147
Every creative person is trying to make what matters. The projects and jobs they pursue, the bosses or clients they like or dislike, and the works they admire -- it all comes back to that one idea. Not "rank #1" or "drive massive growth." Make. What Matters. I believe everyone has what it takes to make what matters, but we often stop or stagnate in our creative process. So what do prolific, thriving, ever-improving creators have in common? What does a healthy body of work require to create? Well...
Apr 23, 2021•40 min•Ep. 146
Your knowledge is finite. Your curiosity is infinite. So why, oh why, do we usually rely more on our existing knowledge than our boundless curiosity? We live in a society that seems to value the ability to have the answers, but the path to making work that matters just might mean admitting, "I don't have the answers, but I'm going to figure this out." What if we stopped acting like experts and started acting like ... well ... something else? In this episode, we hear stories from keynote speaker ...
Apr 06, 2021•54 min•Ep. 145
In this episode, the story of Lisa Schneider, (former) Chief Digital Officer at Merriam-Webster, and their award-winning, President-trolling, brilliant and witty Twitter account, social media presence, and dictionary brand -- yes, a beloved dictionary brand. Their success started with a simple aspiration that threw into question the most accepted approach to their marketing work. It all ended in a very personal place for the team. Meanwhile, story producer Andrew Littlefield goes exploring in Ne...
Mar 23, 2021•28 min•Ep. 144
Standup comedian and comedy writer Sarah Cooper's rise to mainstream fame feels inevitable. Looking at her 2020, she was one of the biggest stories in entertainment and the creator economy more broadly. It started when her nephew turned her onto TikTok, and it's there where she went viral. She filmed herself in her apartment doing lip-sync videos of Donald Trump speeches and media appearances. Her popularity doing these didn't stop at TikTok, either. The surge in fame spilled across social media...
Mar 09, 2021•23 min•Ep. 143
Tim Urban writes a blog about ... well ... lots of stuff. Understanding ourselves and our relationship to each other and the world, maybe? From making friends to exploring space, cultural and societal forces to neuroscience breakthroughs ... all packaged as brilliant, entertaining, and sarcastic essays. Tim Urban has written about it all. But like any exceptional project or career, Tim's is not one that reveals any singular secret to success. In fact, it just might be the millions of "secrets to...
Feb 24, 2021•45 min•Ep. 142
How does your intent for your work change your results? If your goal is to build something big, does that increase the odds of succeeding? Why, then, do so many stories about huge successes start out the same way: with a shrug, and a quick, "I just wanted to brew some beer." ? Today, we explore the story of The Alchemist, makers of the industry sensation, Heady Topper. And we hear about a brutal setback they didn’t control, and how they rebounded stronger than ever -- -- -- If you like these sto...
May 06, 2020•32 min•Ep. 140
Jack Conte, CEO of Patreon, has some firm beliefs about making stuff on the internet -- namely, that the economics simply don't reward great, quality, resonant, service-minded creators. Thus, the sensationalism and clickbait and algorithm-gamers win out. But that trend is changing, with Jack's company helping lead the charge. This episode goes deep inside some rather cathartic ideas for creators. Enjoy! --- If you like these stories, there are a few ways to go deeper: - Inquire about my keynote ...
Mar 11, 2020•20 min•Ep. 136
Gibi can't use her real name publicly, at least not anymore. Yet her work on YouTube is her calling, it's her everything. Despite the harassment and public criticism for what might ultimately be something rather mundane and sometimes rather wonderful, Gibi persists. Why? And what is the project that most embodies this double-edged sword of her work? She takes us inside its making. Whether you love video, or just love makin' stuff, there's something in this episode for all creators. If you enjoy ...
Mar 04, 2020•43 min•Ep. 135
