Unthinkable With Jay Acunzo

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/jaySUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER:https://jayacunzo.com/newsletterEvery Friday, I send a new idea, story, or framework for crafting more resonant work to thousands of subscribers, ranging from entrepreneurs, freelancers, and independent creators, to marketers and leaders at brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, Salesforce, the BBC, Wistia, HubSpot, Drift, ProfitWell, a16z, and the New York Times.SPONSOR: THE JUICEDiscover the world's best and brightest thinking and resources for sales and marketing pros on The Juice. They're like the Spotify of B2B, with content playlists and suggestions based on your job title and level. Avoid the endless lead-gen forms, skip all the system-gamers found via Google searches,

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 keep fighting back and overcome our own maker monsters? SHARE THE SHOW:Help others find Unthinkable in their favorite podcast player by sharing this link: https://pod.link/jaySUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER:https://jayacunzo.com/newsletterWeekly stories and frameworks about how to create more resonant work. Join thousands of subscribers, from entrepreneurs, freelancers, and independent creators, to marketers and leaders at brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, Salesforce, the BBC, Wistia, HubSpot, Drift, ProfitWell, a16z

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/jaySUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER:https://jayacunzo.com/newsletterEvery Friday, I send a new idea, story, or framework for crafting more resonant work to thousands of subscribers, ranging from entrepreneurs, freelancers, and independent creators, to marketers and leaders at brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, Salesforce, the BBC, Wistia, HubSpot, Drift, ProfitWell, a16z, and the New York Times.SPONSOR: THE JUICEDiscover the world's best and brightest thinking and resources for sales and marketing pros on The Juice. They're like the Spotify of B2B, with content playlists and suggestions based on your job title and level. Avoid the endless lead-gen forms, skip all the sy

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 some new territory.Along the way, we hear from John Bonini, a marketer at a crossroads.QUEST MATRIX IMAGE: https://bit.ly/quest-matrix 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/newsletterEvery Friday, I send a new idea, story, or framework for crafting more resonant work to thousands of subscribers, ranging from entrepreneurs, freelancers, and independent creators, to marketers and leaders at br

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 resonate? I have no idea. Sounds like a worthy investigation to me! Let's go... *   *   *FLYWHEEL VISUAL:Visit this blog post: https://jayacunzo.com/blog/how-to-resonate-a-framework-for-building-bigger-innovating-faster-and-reaching-higher-in-your-work*   *   *KEEP LEARNING + SUPPORT THE SHOWSubscribe to my free newsletter: jayacunzo.com/newsletterBuy a book: jayacunzo.com/booksHire me to speak to your organization or event: jayacunzo.com/keynotes*   *   *THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:The Juice, the Spotify of B2B, curates and suggests

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 week, Grant Faulkner, Executive Director of the world-wide phenomenon NaNoWriMo (aka National Novel Writing Month) gives us a peek into the power (and potential pitfalls) of creative writing streaks. Meanwhile, Giorgia Lupi, an information designer and partner at the firm Pentagram, reflects on her famous, collaborative creative streak, Dear Data, with Stefanie Posavec -- a year-long journey of sketching personal data-based postcards, which eventually led to exhibitions, book deals, critical acclaim, and internet fame. 

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 as "stealing shots." I think this technique has power even if you don't create films. In this episode, a short story and a powerful idea to help us all elevate our work WITHOUT adding resources.*   *   *KEEP LEARNING + SUPPORT THE SHOWSubscribe to my free newsletter: jayacunzo.com/newsletterBuy a book: jayacunzo.com/booksHire me to speak to your organization or event: jayacunzo.com/keynotes*   *   *THANKS FOR LISTENING AND SUPPORTING!Keep making what matters.-Jay

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 monsters and explore how we can each carve out ways to find joy in our work and continue to make what matters.*   *   *KEEP LEARNING + SUPPORT THE SHOWSubscribe to my free newsletter: jayacunzo.com/newsletterBuy a book: jayacunzo.com/booksHire me to speak to your organization or event: jayacunzo.com/keynotes*   *   *FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE:Lizzie Peabody: https://twitter.com/LizziePeabody and https://www.lizziepeabody.com/Lizzie's podcast, Sidedoor: https://twitter.com/SidedoorPod and https://www.si.edu/sidedoorTucke

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.*   *   *KEEP LEARNING + SUPPORT THE SHOWSubscribe to my free newsletter: jayacunzo.com/newsletterBuy a book: jayacunzo.com/booksConsider my course on podcast premise development, Growable Shows (for new or existing shows): jayacunzo.com/growable-showsHire me to speak to your organization or event: jayacunzo.com/keynotes*   *   *THANKS FOR LISTENING AND SUPPORTING!Keep making what matters.-Jay

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 instead chase the next messy rep, the possibility of something new, different, and maybe, the beginning of something else.   So how do we, with past experiences and habits, with routines and outside pressure, summon the beginner’s mindset on demand? How can we build in some sense of possibility and curiosity into our already busy days? And how can we use the beginner’s mindset to create work that is thoughtful, innovative, and imaginative?*   *   *KEEP LEARNING + SUPPORT THE SHOWSubscribe to my free newsletter: jayacunz

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 can feel impossible to beat. Recently, I heard the story of a friend's brother obsessed with searching for mushrooms in the woods behind his house. That led me to a realization that can help us change the way we view or work and our relationship to it, which can in turn help us beat imposter syndrome.In the end, we aren't experts. We're explorers. We're not creators. We're foragers.What might happen if we thought about our work in those terms?*   *   *TO GET MORE INSPIRATION + SUPPORT THE SHOW:Subscribe to my newsletter:

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 decisions about the vaccine, prolonging this difficult time and harming people near them who continue to get sick or even die because of those choices.It's time to remind ourselves of what it can feel like when we're together, not apart, both for nostalgia but also to stir up some hope for the future. As creators, we have a role to play in making this world better -- whether through companies we build or projects we ship. We can't lose sight of that. We can provide connection in a world in desperate need of more.*   *

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 feedback on the initial four One-Shots! People seem to like them, so I'll continue running roughly two of these each month.)*   *   *TO GET MORE INSPIRATION + SUPPORT THE SHOW:Subscribe to my newsletter:Equal parts human story and pep talk, my weekly newsletter is focused on inspiring us to make what matters to our careers and communities. Subscribe for free and join creatives from brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, and the NY Times, as well as thousands of freelancers, creators, and entrepreneurs. >>> jayacunzo.com/n

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 ... or we need to recover so the next rep is better?There's a hidden a tension between being consistent and being better. Sometimes, they work in harmony, but when they don't, we experience burn out.We'll visit with a writer, Margo Aaron, who became a marketer by accident, burnt out, and has found a smart, repeatable way to recover and consistently show up improved. We'll also hear from editor and researcher Molly Donovan, who brings us some of the science behind recovery in athletes, as well as a concept called Defau

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, we discuss an untapped creative superpower. It involves the story of a misshapen mug (to put it kindly) and my childhood home -- which I can no longer visit.GET MORE STORIES AND INSIGHTS TO ELEVATE YOUR CREATIVITY:Subscribe to my newsletter:Equal parts human story and pep talk, my weekly newsletter is focused on inspiring us to make what matters to our careers and communities. Subscribe for free and join creatives from brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, and the NY Times, as well as thousands of freelancers, creators,

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 schedule my weeks to juggle lots of projects.How I broke into public speaking as a big piece of my career and revenue. ...and a lot more.I hope you enjoy this bonus episode! If you do, consider listening to Creative Elements with Jay Clouse. Find your podcast player of choice at pod.link/elementsYou can also find Jay Clouse on Twitter @jayclouse. SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER:Equal parts human story and pep talk, my weekly newsletter is focused on inspiring us to make what matters to our careers and communities. Subscribe for fr

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.com/ or his company: https://www.lessonly.com/ SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER:Equal parts human story and pep talk, my weekly newsletter is focused on inspiring us to make what matters to our careers and communities. Subscribe for free and join creatives from brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, and the NY Times, as well as thousands of freelancers, creators, and entrepreneurs. >>> jayacunzo.com/newsletter BECOME A MEMBER:Get access to a community forum of ambitious creators who help each other level up, plus exclusive rif

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 use of tension, across three phases. Today, in another one-shot episode, we talk about the traits of each phase and use some examples, all so we can continue to change how we see the work and elevate our creativity -- without adding tons more resources.SUPPORT THE SHOW + CONTINUE TO ELEVATE YOUR CREATIVITY:1. NEWSLETTER: Subscribe to my free newsletter and get one new story each week. Join thousands of creators, from in-house makers and marketers at Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, Salesforce, the BBC, the NY Times, and similar,

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/aacookNanaGram: https://nanagram.co/ SUBSCRIBE TO MY FREE NEWSLETTER:Equal parts human story and pep talk, my weekly newsletter is focused on inspiring us to make what matters to our careers and communities. Subscribe for free and join creatives from brands like Adobe, Red Bull, Shopify, and the NY Times, as well as thousands of freelancers, creators, and entrepreneurs. >>> jayacunzo.com/newsletter LEVEL UP AS A CREATOR AND SUPPORT THE SHOW:Become a Supporter: Get bonus content and exclusive invites to projects and educational opportunities for creative peo

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 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-blown member of the group, Make What Matters.Make What Matters is where independent content creators (in function or in spirit) learn to elevate their creative skills,  earn more in resources and income, and execute their best work yet. Through peer support and members-only content (live and asynchronou