Create with Franz

How can simple food traditions help us build everyday independence? In this episode, author and nutritionist Zuza Zak (@zuzazakcooks) joins me to explore how fermentation, foraging, and small-scale preserving can transform both our health and our self-reliance. Zuza shares easy, practical ways to nurture our gut flora, cut down on food waste, and create fun, wholesome recipes using what we already...

Think you don't have enough space, time, or a green thumb to grow your own food? In this episode, kitchen-garden coach and herbalist Corinne Beirne (founder of The Nourished Garden ) joins the show to debunk the myth that self-reliance requires an acre of land. Corinne shares simple, stress-free strategies to help you get your hands in the dirt today—even if you only have a sunny balcony, a patio,...

Are you a woman in your 40s or 50s losing your words mid-sentence? Are you struggling to start simple tasks, feeling unexpectedly fragile, or noticing that the organization strategies you relied on for decades have suddenly crumbled? You aren't losing your mind, and you aren't just "getting old"—your biology changed underneath you. For many women—especially those navigating ADHD—the tools used to...

Ever find yourself stress-shopping at midnight or avoiding your bank account?   It's not a lack of discipline—maybe your emotions are hijacking your wallet! In this episode of our Self-Reliance series, licensed financial therapist Kiki Jacobson drops by to teach us how to emotional-proof our finances. You'll learn: How to break the "Money Stress Loop" (and stop panic-buying). How to spot your pers...

If you feel constantly exhausted and like life is spinning out of control, you are not failing—your system could simply be overloaded. Our guest Oscar Trelles knows this battle firsthand. After spending over twenty years leading global teams in high-pressure tech and advertising industries, he hit a wall of severe, life-altering burnout. Determined to recover, Oscar spent years studying human phys...

You can store years of food and repair your own roof. But if you hand your body over to a pharmacy, that is not self-reliance, says Axay Shah. That is a well-stocked dependency. At age 50, exhausted and pre-diabetic, Axay decided his diagnosis was not his verdict. Today, at 67, he is on zero medications, has zero chronic disease, and has participated in eight marathons. Tune in to learn how to sto...

When we talk about self-reliance, we often focus on physical survival skills or financial security—but what happens when the biggest obstacle to our independence is our own lack of self-trust? How important is it to know yourself before you even begin to tackle self reliance? In this episode, I have a great conversation with TEDx speaker, coach, and author Christine Samuel to explore the deep psyc...

At 36 years old, Judy Armstrong was a Registered Nurse, a Director of Nursing, and a busy mom of two. Then, her body slowly shut down. Eventually diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus—an incurable autoimmune disease—Judy went from a strong, physically capable caregiver to a patient who couldn't even open a jar of juice for her children. But Judy refused to let her diagnosis define her. In th...

Financial self-reliance isn't about earning more; it's about  owning what you have. When we talk about self-sufficiency, we often focus on our mindset or physical skills—but true independence is impossible without getting a grip on our  finances. In this episode, we sit down with professional accountant Kayon Graham, founder of K. Graham Accounting & Advisory, LLC. With over 14 years of experience...

What does a world-renowned opera star, actor, and international producer know about self-reliance? Absolutely everything. Having performed on the world's biggest stages in over 50 countries, Mark Janicello has lived a life of high-stakes pressure, massive creative reinventions, and raw survival. He knows firsthand that when the curtain falls on a crisis, there is only one person who can get you th...

Mindset and money are crucial for self-reliance, but eventually, you have to build something with your own two hands. In this episode, we sit down with Dave Gulas, co-founder of EZDC 3PL and host of the Beyond Fulfillment Podcast . After 20 years in corporate sales, Dave decided to build a podcast from scratch with zero budget, zero tech skills, and zero permission. Today, nearly 300 episodes late...

What if sound is more than just a background track to our lives, but a fundamental tool for building brain function and human connection? Join us for an immersive conversation with Emmy-winning composer, jazz saxophonist, and educator Hayes Greenfield . With a career spanning over 70 film scores and decades of live performance, Hayes explores the "Human Premium"—the raw, tactile power of sound tha...

Are you a middle aged woman on the top of your career in a high-stakes environment? Maybe you are the one everyone depends on—meeting deadlines and managing teams with outward grace. But internally, the cost of "over-functioning" and now redesigning your role with AI in mind, has become unsustainable. If traditional productivity hacks like time-blocking and mindset reframes are making you feel wor...

I had the great experience of sitting down with  Jeralyn Glass , an internationally acclaimed opera star turned sound healing pioneer and author of Sacred Vibrations . Following the tragic loss of her son, Jeralyn transitioned from the stages of Broadway to the forefront of holistic medicine, discovering how crystalline sound can act as a powerful healing tool for the mind and body. From a scienti...

As the world debates if AI will take our jobs, playwright and CTO Doug Clarke is worried about something much quieter: is AI taking our humanity and replacing our friends and therapists?   In this frank chat, we dive into the meaning of our relationship with artificial intelligence through the unique intersection of Hollywood innovation and the Off-Broadway stage.   Doug shares his journey from bu...

Is ADHD creating a gap between you and your partner?   Maybe you cannot organize household tasks and chores, bills, appointments and shopping. You then get blamed by your partner for 'not caring', forgetting everything that is not written, being 'lazy' and 'not being there.' The accusations escalate and you become offended and defensive. Your partner might act like your parent taking over all the...

Have you ever looked at a piece of art in your home and felt… nothing? In a world of fleeting trends and mass-produced convenience, many of us end up with spaces that look "correct" but feel completely disconnected from who we actually are. We buy what is fashionable or what fits the sofa, yet we remain spiritually hungry for a deeper connection to our surroundings. The solution isn't to buy more...

If you've ever felt unwanted or stuck in the shadows of your past, there is a way back to your center. Today, Nathaniel Allenby shares how he used a 28,000-mile cycling journey across ten countries to transform survival into artistry and find the purpose he thought was lost. For those who have suffered from abuse or low confidence, the world can feel like a turbulent place where finding your path...

Have you heard the "autopilot" fear currently running through the creative world? It's the nagging thought that says: Why bother training for a career in voiceover when an AI can clone a voice in seconds? Many aspiring artists are stalling before they even begin, convinced that the machine has already won the race. But is a cloned voice actually the same as a human story? Or are we confusing "data...

So, you want to be an artist. But there is a "but" here, isn't there? A chorus of internal voices holding you back: I'll never get paid for this. Nobody will like it. I don't have time. It isn't a "real" career. If you've listened to our previous conversations on the "autopilot" brain, you'll recognise these as the classic scarcity narratives—the mental traps that lead to analysis paralysis before...

Have you ever felt that a diagnosis—for yourself or your child—was a definitive label of limitation? In the US and beyond, an ADHD diagnosis often arrives with a heavy cloud of fear: fear of academic failure, social struggle, and a lifetime of being "difficult." We fall into the autopilot habit of asking, "What is wrong with this person?" when the real question should be, "What is getting in the w...

If you have listened to a few episodes of Create with Franz, you probably noticed how many times we mentioned that we often act in automatic mode, without much thinking, and we repeat the same mistakes over and over. You also learned that while habits are hard to break, change is possible for everyone. This is particularly important when it comes to those youth who, for various reasons, are embrac...

Have you noticed how easily we fall into "panic mode" when we see technology evolving faster than we can keep up? Many artists and creators are currently operating on a high-stress autopilot, fearing that AI is coming for their livelihoods. We've been conditioned to think that if we just work faster or lower our prices, we might survive the digital shift. But what if the "race to the bottom" is a...

"Art isn't just for the elite or the political mural; it is a tool for collective liberation and a sustainable career." Many creators believe that "true art" and business cannot coexist, leading to the "starving artist" trap. Jaelyn Singleton breaks this myth by sharing a strategic blueprint for transforming raw creativity into a sustainable professional venture . This conversation explores how to...

"A CV is not a list of jobs; it is a story of capability." A CV is not just a list of jobs; it is a story of your capability. Most people believe a degree alone will get them hired, but in an AI-saturated market, academic theory is failing. In this episode, our guest reveals the invisible asset of emotional intelligence —the one skill a machine can never replicate. I learned about the critical mis...