Crack It In An Hour

In this episode the team sits down to discuss the future of college education and the value of a degree. There's no denying what college is capable of doing for people, but the disillusionment around it is real and valid. What is its role? What is the goal? And how the heck do you offer something worth the eye watering cost? Check it out and join in on the convo!

Simon loves a great market opportunity, and in this episode he thinks he found one. There's an activity that half of the U.S. participates in, continues to rise in popularity, and yet as a spectator event is still a niche pay-per-view play with no household names or mainstream attention. What is it? Give it a listen and tell us if you think Simon is crazy for believing in its future.

In-person retail has taken a beating recently. When you have the convenience of online shopping then the haymaker of the Covid shutdown, it's no surprise it ain't doing as well as it used to. But maybe there's a massive opportunity being missed here. On this episode Yann Caloghiris, Executive Director of Left Field Labs joins us to talk about the present and future of retail and how we could make...

This probably won't shock anyone but it turns out the natural world is incredibly good for us. Even just a walk around your block, breathing some fresh air and getting some sun has proven positive effects on our well-being. So in a world where it's getting easier and easier to do less and less, sit still and stay entertained, how do we get people back outside again? Check it out!

Only 48% of Americans can answer basic financial literacy questions. 43% of Americans don't know what a 401k is. It probably comes as no surprise this leads to serious financial problems down the road. Financial illiteracy costs Americans over $1,000 a year, and a staggering total of 243 billion. So why is money so hard to understand? Is it a system built to intentionally confuse? Is it a topic th...

Chances are you don't use all your vacation time. It could be fear of looking like a slacker, being "too busy" or just wanting to feel valued. But did you know that taking a vacation actually HELPS you get ahead in your career? The positive effects of some vacation go well beyond that but in the U.S. the rise and grind mentality often hinders us from doing the very thing that can actually help our...

On this episode Jen Costello, the Global Chief Strategy Officer at TBWA Worldwide joins the gang to talk about Play. While most people assume it's the thing of children, the effects of play on people aged 1 to 100 are incredible. Not only is it incredibly healthy, but it also helps with imagination, problem solving and a host of other benefits. But as we get older, we do it less and less. In fact...

As a society we have huge love and affection for our dogs...but less so for cleaning up after them. On this episode Jesse, Romain and Simon try to figure out how the heck to get the world to clean up after their dogs. From shame tactics to public policy to tech, the gang discusses motivations, the finicky nature of behavior change and a whole lot of other crap. Check it out

Everyone loves movies...but movie theaters? Well, people have never really gone back the way they did before the pandemic. In this episode of Crack it, the gang goes deep on trying to figure out how to get people back to movie theaters. Has the role of movie theaters changed? Do we need to rethink the actual facilities themselves? Is this just a point in culture where people have no interest in th...

From the golden age with Houdini front and center, to the post 9/11 world of David Blaine and Criss Angel, the magic industry has seen some huge moments of cultural prominence. On today's episode Jesse, Simon and Romain discuss what it would take to make it a bigger part of the cultural conversation, if now is the right time for its return to center stage and what's holding it back. Jesse and Simo...

The open road has always held a romantic place in the hearts and minds of Americans, but with the exotification of vacations and the want for people to do the holiday for the 'gram, the road trip isn't seen as the top tier option it once was. In this episode of Crack It, we're joined by Joe Staples, a brilliant creative thinker, as we discuss ways to help the road trip capture the attention and th...

Between the fires to start the year, the hard times of the movie industry, an exodus of people leaving Los Angeles for other places and a general not-so-great narrative lately around California, the story around Los Angeles hasn’t been positive. In this episode Jesse, Romain and Simon discuss how they would set up LA to make a massive comeback. 

35% of US Adults sleep less than 7 hours. 73% of US high school students don’t get enough sleep on school nights. The sleep deficit America is dealing with has massive financial and health repercussions not to mention the impact it has on personal happiness. Someone should ask some experts on how to fix this! Instead, Romain asks Jesse and Simon to figure out this super tough problem…in an hour.

Let's be honest, we live in a society obsessed with youth. This has had the unfortunate side effect of giving aging a surprisingly bad rep, making everyone focus on the negatives of aging without discussing any of the perks. In this episode, Jesse tasks Romain and Simon with trying to rebrand aging – trying to find a way to make it something people look forward to, not avoid. It’s a big, complicat...

Leotards, leg warmers, coordinated dancercise! In the first episode of Crack It, Simon wants to bring the glory days of aerobics back to the world and tasks Jesse and Romain with helping him figure out how. From a deep dive into what was so fantastic about aerobics in the first place, to a plan to go-to-market for a new generation of potential aerobic nuts, the team goes DEEP on all things aerobic...