The Chase Jarvis Live Show

Today I’m reaching into my quiver of keynotes  to share a talk I gave at CreativeMornings here in Seattle. If you’re not aware of CreativeMornings it’s a breakfast lecture series for the creative community started by my good friend Tina Roth Eisenberg. These talks are hosted in hundreds of cities around the globe and a great way to connect with your local community. There are thousands of talks on their website, creativemornings.com. The theme of this talk was bravery, so I talk about my own experience and my take on how Ansel Adams and Macklemore have used bravery and vulnerability to propel their careers by making things that only they could make. I showed some videos during the talk, and if you want to see them you can find the whole talk on my YouTube channel or on the CreativeMornings site. In this episode, * We really explore this idea of “the art of more”. The act of creating, and putting more work out there, despite our fear and it’s imperfections. * At the core of this talk is bravery. I dig into wh

Thomas Middleditch is an actor and comedian best known for his starring role on HBO’s Silicon Valley where he plays Richard, the struggling startup founder. He started his career doing improv theater for the likes of Second City and UCB, and certainly showed off his improv skills during our conversation. Silicon Valley is the only TV show that I watch religiously, due largely in part to its authentic portrayal of the startup world that I have one foot in the door of. Thomas lives the same authenticity, and isn’t one to shy away from removing the glamour from working in Hollywood. Whether you’re founding a startup, working your way up the rungs as a comedian, or trying to double your client base, you better remember to enjoy what you’re doing to get through the tough days. In this episode, * You can’t be passive! If you want things to be happening around you, you have to make them happen. * If you want to be a good artist, you have to experience life. * Pursuing your happiness is worth the arduousness, the str

Melissa Arnot Reid is a mountain guide, speaker, and founder of the nonprofit organization, The Juniper Fund. She was the first American woman to summit and descent Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen and also holds the record for summiting the tallest peak in the world more times than any other western woman with a total of 6 ascents. She’s a certifiable bone crushing badass with a lot of life experience to share from her years of sacrificing for her passions.   In this episode, you’ll learn that it wasn’t the final, most strenuous 250 feet of summiting Everest that got Melissa to be the first female to summit and descent the highest peak in the world without supplemental oxygen. It was every single step since the first mountain she had ever stepped on that got her there. The key to summiting Everest is taking small steps towards your bigger goals. If you liked that metaphor, brace yourself for another 942 of them that will help you be bold, find what calls you, and dig deep to make it all happen. In t

David Heinemeier Hansson is a programmer, writer, and entrepreneur. He changed the future of technology with Ruby on Rails, has influenced the way businesses are being built and run with his books; Getting Real, Rework, and Remote; Office Not Required, and has helped many businesses (including my own photo studio) stay organized and productive with the integrated project management solution, Basecamp. David is passionate about finding alternative ways to do things. He loves looking at the status quo, ripping it apart and putting back together only the elements that make the most sense. In our conversation, David helps budding entrepreneurs cross the bridge from wantrepreneur to taking first steps as well as offers some animated anecdotes and mind shifts for how to make your existing businesses and teams ultra productive, passionate, and value driven. In today's episode, * If you want to build a successful business, try integrating existing ideas and tools rather than creating a new standalone tool. * You don’

Eugene Mirman is a stand up comedian, actor, and writer. You’ve heard his voice as “Gene” from Bob’s Burgers, seen his face on Comedy Central, Netflix, and Flight of the Conchords and recently found his podcast on Audible, Hold On. From the outside, Eugene has lived what we may think of as the typical struggling comedian’s career. It took him six years of failing before got a bit of traction. Most people quit well before the 6 year mark. How did he persevere through those years of struggle? He never considered not being a comedian. He didn’t give himself a backup plan. He made the conscious decision to keep trying new things until things started to stick. Eugene is a living lesson of perseverance and tenacity, and his mindset is one that will help you thrive long term, regardless of what you’re creating. Listen to this episode if you want to laugh while getting a schooling on how to make sacrifices that pay off. In this episode: * If you have a skill, service, or product that serves someone’s need, your audie

Todd Henry is a creator for creators. He makes tools and resources that help creatives succeed, personally and professionally. His four books, The Accidental Creative, Louder Than Words, Die Empty, and his newest Herding Tigers, cover all angles of succeeding as a creative; from finding your voice, to being creative on demand, to managing teams of creatives. He’s an arms dealer for the creative revolution. Whether you’re just starting a project and aren’t sure how to structure your days, weeks, and deliverables or you manage an entire team of creatives, Todd shares insights, tools, and tactics on how to ensure you cross the finish line being proud of the body of work you created. In today's episode, * If you want to be a creative who is prolific for years to come, then creating habits that prioritize your longevity as a creator is mission critical. * We are bad at judging our own work, so it’s important to surround yourself with people who will speak the truth. * You’ve got to be very intentional about planni

No one has single-handedly given me better insight about the business side of art than the New York Times bestselling author, Ramit Sethi. He’s a business savant, mindset master, habit king, and money maker. Ramit is a regular on the show by now, and this episode is the first one we did together. It was such a hit and I still get so much positive feedback on how powerful his advice is that we had to share it with you on the podcast. Our conversation is packed full of both mindset shifts as well as tried and true tactical advice so you can earn more money. And we’re not talking nickels more. We’re talking 10x more. Give it a listen and give the techniques a try. In this episode: * If you can learn to understand your client, find solutions they need, and communicate in their language, price becomes a triviality.  Show your future clients you’ve done the work by using “the briefcase technique.” * We talk about negotiating. If you’re a freelancer, are you getting paid by the hour? We need to change that to value

We all have fear. The question is: Is fear holding you back? In today's show, we're mixing it up with my friends Tim Ferriss, Brené Brown, Daymond John, Mel Robbins, and Neil Strauss. We take a look back at how they think about fear, some strategies to deal with it, and how we can play through it. In this episode, Fear isn’t all bad. There's a healthy level of fear, and Daymond John shares how it's helped motivate him in business.   My man Tim Ferriss talks what he does to deflate his biggest fears by imagining the “worst case scenario”  The best way to overcome your fear is by risking failure. Every time you choose to get in the arena and battle your fear, you grow stronger and more confident.  As Neil Strauss says, “Uncertainty is a very confident place to be.” Enjoy! Today's episode is brought to you by CreativeLive. CreativeLive is the world's largest hub for online creative education in photo/video, art/design, music/audio, craft/maker and the ability to make a living in any of those disciplines. They

You’re stuck. You’ve plateaued. You’re making great work but nobody is seeing it and you’re asking yourself “how do I get noticed?” How did the blowout successes of YouTube and Instagram get to their million+ followers? The answer: they created community. Whether you're an individual, a hustler, an artist, a creator, an entrepreneur, or you represent a company, the fundamental principle is that making something great and promoting it is only 50% of the work, and that the other 50% (the community) is the part that makes the difference to ongoing and repeated success. In today’s episode: What building a community means. Why building a community is the path to your success. How to build your community. (step by step instructions) Enjoy! Today's episode is brought to you by CreativeLive. CreativeLive is the world's largest hub for online creative education in photo/video, art/design, music/audio, craft/maker and the ability to make a living in any of those disciplines. They are high quality, highly curated clas

Adam Gazzaley is a neuroscientist, speaker, entrepreneur, photographer, author… He’s a hyphen through and through. But what he’s obsessed with these days is using technology to retrain and improve the use of our human brains, using it even to treat ADHD and other mental conditions. Now more than ever before the world is moving at a pace faster than our 2 million year old brains can catch up. Adam says that as a species our brains aren’t evolving quickly enough so we’re experiencing a cognition crisis and the fallout of this crisis are attention deficit disorders. Through the application of treatments involving video games and mindfulness practices, we can not only be more productive in our life, but also feel more fulfilled in our lives. We talk about how to build our minds to increase our attention, expand our perception, improve our decision making, and better regulate our emotions. In today’s episode: The brain is a muscle - it’s trainable. We may soon be entering a time where doctors prescribe digital me

Austin Kleon is a writer who draws. He’s the best selling author of three illustrated books; Newspaper Blackout, Steal Like An Artist, and Show Your Work. Using his own words and borrowed (stolen) words alike, Austin articulates better than anyone how to find your own style and vision and then what to do with your work. He’s been featured on NPR, Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and this is quickly becoming a regular here on cjLIVE. This interview is from a few years ago, but I’ve been itching to share it again because it still packs such a heavy punch. Austin, the quote factory, Kleon seems to have a quote that perfectly encapsulates every topic we touch on. We go from tip to toe on the creative process; how to draw inspiration for your work, how to hone your style while growing an audience, and how to ship your work. In today’s episode: Boring life = best art. Schedules, habits, daily routines make you more productive and more creative. If you aren’t sharing your work, you’re missing out on half of

Daymond John is the CEO and founder of the iconic lifestyle brand, FUBU, which he started by selling handmade hats on the street and went on to have more than $6 billion in sales. You’ve seen him as the “snake in the grass” star on ABC’s Shark Tank, which is currently in its tenth season of filming. He released his first NY Times best selling book, Power of Broke, in 2016, and is just about to drop his second, Rise and Grind. This is Daymond’s second time bringing his buttery soft hands and understated wisdom on the show and somehow we had even more fun than last time. Between jokes and anecdotes, Daymond drops some serious wisdom on how to keep your goals, habits, and pursuit of your dream life simple and effective. In today’s episode: While writing Rise and Grind, Daymond found some killer recurring themes for living your most productive and best life. Most of them you’ve heard on the show before- meditation, importance of sleep, exercise- but he drops some new shared habits and techniques on prioritizat

December is generally a slow time- a lot of businesses shut down or slow down, people tend to spend time with family and loved ones, and it’s traditionally a time that offers us time and space. I love using this time of year and the traits that it bears to its full advantage to slow down, strategize, and synthesize my intentions. Whether it’s end of the year, beginning of a year, or the cusp of any time in your life, we unwrap the mindset of dreaming big, setting goals, and taking action. In today’s episode, Declaring your intention for yourself and where you want to go should be one of your first steps in setting your goals. Verbalizing your intentions is a signal to the universe that you’re ready to take the necessary action. How to use a playbook to creatively attack your goals and turn your intentions into actions. I have 7 habits that I use to feed my creativity. Use my playbook or start your own. Making your goals specific and quantifiable and then tracking them is incredibly important if you want to s

Gary Vaynerchuk and I gave a co-keynote in NYC at Photo Plus Expo. My background is as a creator turned entrepreneur, and Gary’s a born entrepreneur and then realized that creativity was how he was going to take his business to the next level. Unsurprisingly, we both ended up in roughly the same space. Instead of delivering a keynote that showed my own pictures or videos or stories like I’ve done at PhotoPlus in the past, we decided to co-host a Q&A and answer 3 audience members’ biggest current struggles. I’ve been getting a ton of great feedback on the Q&A style keynotes I’ve been doing, so I’m pumped to share another one with you. In today's episode, Jason has a growing portrait business in Chicago, but seems to have plateaued on the money that he’s able to make using his current strategies. We let him leave the stage only after offering a new blueprint for how to set his prices to make the kind of money he dreams of. Niki has been hustling like crazy shooting volume to grow her brand, but now sh

Ryan Hoover is most notably known as the founder of the website that brings you all the world’s newest products and technologies, Product Hunt. He’s also a writer and founder of his new VC firm, Weekend Fund which he admits he started because he’s constantly chasing the warm fuzzy feelings he gets from helping other people. Some call him Silicon Valley’s “resident nice guy” and it won’t take you long to figure out why. Ryan sees more product launches than perhaps anyone else in the world and knows how to do it well and how to do it poorly. He shares his insights for his path of launching (and continuing to launch) Product Hunt and what he notices in the 100’s of launches that make it to his virtual doorstep, daily. In today's episode, If you want to start something and stick with it for the long haul, scratch your own itch. Product Hunt was built out of Ryan’s own curiosity and drive to share new products with his friends. Building community>building products. Successful products are rarely built in a dark d

By popular demand, this week’s show is another microshow compiling some of the most popular + impactful questions from The Daily Creative (my YouTube show where I answer YOUR questions about the challenges you’re facing on your journey to become an aspiring or professional creative). In this episode: Joe wants to know how to overcome ego and self-doubt. I borrow from some powerful tools from Tony Robbins, Debbie Millman, and Brené Brown that creates a framework on how to program the brain to work for you. Winston asks about how to create when severe depression degrades motivation and energy. If you’re experiencing depression, a medical professional is always suggested to better understand what’s happening. I’ve personal experienced levels of depression and I share my habits and mindset that has helped me to keep deep lulls from my mental and physical state. Issac lives in a place where his passion isn’t abundant. I discuss some strategies to get started where you are, and finding/connecting to the commu

If there’s anyone qualified to lay out the blueprint for dreaming big, living life on your own terms and turning your passions into your career, it’s the iconic Sir Richard Branson. He’s fearlessly and boldly disrupted one industry after another as the founder of the Virgin Group, from publishing to airlines to creating Virgin Galactic (the world’s first commercial spaceliner), building an empire of more than 100 companies and 60,000 employees in over 50 countries. Drawing threads from his new book, Finding My Virginity, we talk about some of his recent projects as well as the steps he took to get from one stepping stone to the next. Sit down with Sir Richard and I as he uses stories to break down prioritizing your life, setting goals, and how to choose what to pursue. In today's episode, It’s time to spin the nasty term “dyslexia” into a positive; let’s start calling it “alternative thinker.” Richard actually credits his alternative thinking to shape him into a master delegator, a skill that he credits muc

Glennon Doyle is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling memoir Love Warrior, and Carry On, Warrior. Glennon is also the founder of Momastery an online community reaching millions each week, and Together Rising—a non-profit organization that has raised seven million dollars for families around the world through its Love Flash Mobs, which have revolutionized online giving. Prepare your ears for a healthy dose of honesty, as that’s what Glennon does best. She says things that others aren’t comfortable saying and does what she believes is true and beautiful, even under threat of career suicide. We talk about how perseverance, integrity and trust in her community made her a ten year overnight success and I know there’s some nuggets in here that’ll help you as you mine for the gold of life. In today’s episode: Glennon started writing every day. First to her friends, then on her blog. She talks about getting up at 4 am to write in her closet and hitting publish every day by 6. So many takeaways and about s

In speaking with people all over the world, I’ve found hearing other people’s struggles is a fascinating way to helping ourselves breakthrough. This week’s episode is my keynote from CreativeLive’s PhotoWeek. On stage, I sit down with four brave volunteers to discuss some of their biggest pain points, fears, and blind spots blocking us from living, and working toward our dreams. In this episode, we discuss: Defining your dream. Many creatives haven’t defined what they actually want. If you don’t know what you want it will be hard for you to get it. Understanding your why. When the going gets tough, and it will, your WHY is what will separate you from those who don’t want it as bad as you. I share some tactical steps to building a client base and portfolio that supports the work you want to be hired for. Enjoy! Today's episode is brought to you by CreativeLive. CreativeLive is the world's largest hub for online creative education in photo/video, art/design, music/audio, craft/maker and the ability to make a

Ryan Holiday is an author and media strategist. His career in marketing started at age 19, where he dropped out of college to work with Robert Green. He soon found his way as the director of marketing for American Apparel, then went on to start his own creative agency, Brass Check, who advises the likes of Google, Tim Ferriss, and Tony Robbins. He’s quite the writer, making the New York Times bestseller list with multiple of the 6 books he’s released in the last 5 years. Ryan is a master marketer and what you’ll find at the core of his marketing principles are his personal principles. He applies a Stoic philosophy to everything he does and this episode is overflowing with philosophies, self directed questions, and stories that has helped him make work that stands the test of time, and will help you do the same. In today's episode we discuss: Good marketing isn’t taking pictures or writing copy that sell shoes anymore. It’s just as much about making work that starts a discussion. You’re going to get a little