Book Is the Hook

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Sarah Peck -- founder and CEO of Startup Pregnant, a media company documenting the stories of women's leadership across family and work -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

As they say, it's not the destination... but the journey. For Sarah Peck, she thought her destination was publishing a book -- a project she undertook with her typical gusto -- but along the way she learned that the conversations she was having with other ambitious women were just too good *not* to share.  As she thought long and hard about what to do with it, she leapt and launched Startup Pregna...

Does making a choice mean you close the door on the choice you *don't* make? That fear of making the wrong choice can hold many of us back researchers say -- described as the paradox of choice.  But Greg Gottesman offers a perspective that says quite the opposite: making a choice -- and always staying curious regardless of that choice -- can actually open MORE doors than you imagined. I've had the...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Allen Gannett -- founder and CEO of Track Maven which was acquired in 2018 and the author of the critically acclaimed book the Creative Curve -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next. 

How did you market your book? According to Allen Gannett, he basically didn't.  Allen realized that today most people don't *really* respond to marketing. Sure, it's helped people recognize him, trust him and see him as credible.  But when it came to actually selling copies of his book... well, as he admits in our conversation, that was all about creating one-on-one relationships with the thousand...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Jessica Carson -- founder of Wired This Way and the creator of the Colorful Cortex -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

How do you go from just creating content to creating content that drives impact?  Jessica Carson was wrestling with that very question -- she was a frequent blogger, had robust relationships in the community and was active in the speaking circuit. But she hadn't had that breakthrough... her inflection point. Many of us struggle to find out how to stand out in a world where more and more people are...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Evan Baehr -- founder of Able Lending, author of Get Backed and professor of Marketing at the University of Texas at Austin -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

Should I find a co-author or a co-host for my project?  It's a common question and on the surface seems like it should obviously be a good idea.  Work with someone, divide the contribution, provide accountability and extend your reach.  But as Evan Baehr shares, co-authoring a book is probably a lot like cofounding a startup venture... or even a bit like a marriage. That's not to say you *shouldn'...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Gini Dietrich -- one of the nationals preeminent voices in public relations and publicity, the creator of the Spin Suck site and community and the author of "Spin Sucks" -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

How do you balance transparency and marketing?  Or can you?   David Perell has begun championing the 'Naked Brands', brands that are transparent, are founded by social media influencers, and prize on-going communication with fans and customers. Gini Dietrich is a public relations guru and she says you can actually balance the two, and describes the power in being transparent AS a marketing tactic...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Carl Schramm -- the author of "Burn the Business Plan" and a person the Economist named the "evangelist of entrepreneurship" -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

Are you curious?  Researchers have found curiosity as a way to improve our self esteem, to increase our sense of purpose and even a way to learn faster. And yet, Carl Schramm worries we're doing it lip service as more student choose STEM fields forsaking the humanities.  Schramm should know as he spent a decade at the helm of Kauffman Foundation the world's largest entrepreneurship focused researc...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Ryan McKee -- Emmy-Winning Producer at the Late Late Show with James Corden and the founder/editor of the Modest Proposal Magazine -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

Can you "fail forward"?  Is it possible to fail at something and yet come out ahead?  For Ryan McKee, the failure of the comedy magazine he'd founded stung hard -- it never gained much traction outside of a few places and what momentum it created in his early comedy career was wiped away with a cross country move to New York City in 2008 at the height of the Great Recession.  And yet, just a few y...

Can you "fail forward"?  Is it possible to fail at something and yet come out ahead?  For Ryan McKee, the failure of the comedy magazine he'd founded stung hard -- it never gained much traction outside of a few places and what momentum it created in his early comedy career was wiped away with a cross country move to New York City in 2008 at the height of the Great Recession.  And yet, just a few y...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Justin Lafazan -- founder and CEO of Next Gen Summit and the author of What Wakes You Up?: Designing Kick-Ass Lives Through Entrepreneurship -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

How do you build the largest network in the world of ambitious and successful 20-somethings?  According to Next Gen Summit founder and CEO Justin Lafazan, you just ask questions.  Justin had a 'mid-life' crisis at 18 years old before beginning college, deferred his start and decided to go on a gap year.  As he began mapping out what he'd do, he was advised he should try to create something... he w...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Alec Ross -- NY Times Bestselling Author of Industries of the Future, Senior Advisor for Innovation in the State Department and former candidate for Governor of Maryland -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

Observe. Take Notes. Review Your Notes. Hunt for Patterns. Share the Patterns. This is the secret of learning out loud like Alec Ross, a NY Times Bestselling Author and former candidate for governor of Maryland.  Yes, Ross had a super cool and unique job: he was the former Senior Advisor for Innovation for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the duration of her term as Secretary of State and th...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Chris Luecke -- the creator and host of the Pubcast Worldwide podcast and the Manufacturing Happy Hour YouTube show -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

How do you feel about your job?  For most people the "its complicated" status would probably be a good answer -- it's mostly good with some elements of not good, and a splash of 'there's something missing to make it better.'  Chris Luecke was one of those people.  He was early in his career and steadily advancing up the ranks of a large Fortune 500 company, but "I was missing that creative element...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Diane Mulcahy -- the author of the Gig Economy and award-winning Babson professor -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.

36% of the U.S. workforce has freelanced this year -- and it may offer one of the best ways to grow and manage your own career path. According to author and Babson Professor Diane Mulcahy, the future is quickly becoming about developing a portfolio of work -- perhaps its a full-time job and something on the side to scratch our creative itch or perhaps its a freelance career made up of multiple cli...

On this bonus "library" episode, you'll hear what Chris Voss -- former FBI Hostage Negotiator, the founder of Black Swan and the author of Wall Street Journal Bestseller Never Split the Difference -- is reading, writing and thinking about creating next.