The Gently Mad: Life, Business & Entrepreneurship Without The Bs

In all seriousness, Allan is a really funny and interesting guy who also happens to co-own the best accounting software in the world, Less Accounting. He’s one of those guys who can instantly raise my spirits no matter what’s going on. And I’ve always admired him for his ability to let work be work and enjoy having fun and spending time with his family. As someone who has let all my hobbies fall to the wayside, I love how much energy Allan puts into his own non-work pursuits. He’s not driven by nor obsessed with his work. I want to be more like that. If you’ve never met or talked to Allan, then settle in for a fun conversation about writing, building a software business, go-carts, hypothetical beer brewing and bees. Yes, bees. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Paddle Your Own Canoe: One Man’s Fundamentals for Delicious Living ~ Nick Offerman LessAccounting LessFilms More About Allan @allanbranchLessAccounting

We talked about all the stuff I hope TGM has become known for by now--happiness, meaning, purpose and how we find those things in our lives and work. Good thing for me, these are topics that Natalie is not just passionate about, but helps other people figure out as well. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Social Media Marketing World Brene Brown on Vulnerability thefreedomplan.rocks Eckhart Tolle - The Power of Now More About Natalie @nataliesissonThe Suitcase EntrepreneurThe Freedom Plan

Jordan Cooper is funny funny guy and someone I would call a friend. In addition to being a Stand-up comedian, he's a web designer & marketer for small businesses in Louisville, KY. He's also a podcaster and host at least four different shows. In addition to talking comedy and our respective careers, we talked about sticking with the things we start and the ever prevalent problem of quitting to soon. Jordan busted my balls about not sticking with anything and wondering if this podcast ever actually launch, which makes it a fitting "fuck you" as episode 50 fo TGM. ;) In all seriousness, I love Jordan and really enjoyed our conversation all those months ago and am excited to share it with you. Enjoy the show. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Mike Monteiro Hannibal Burres Marc Marron Nate Bargatze Paul F. Tompkins John Gruber More About Jordan @blenderhdblenderhead.me Jordan's Podcasts Tech DouchebagsInternet Outrage MachineConnected ComedyThe Morning Dump

It was my honor to get to speak with Daniel for an hour about podcasting, building online businesses, branding and all sorts of topics that have lately been rolling around in between my ears. Whether or not your into podcasting, Daniel has a lot of wisdom about life and entrepreneurship and we had a great conversation. As always, I had a great time talking to Daniel. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show MyPodcastReviews.com PodcastPlaces Patreon TWiT Noodle.mx More About Daniel @theramennoodledanieljlewis.nettheaudacitytopodcast.com

I don’t consider myself to be someone who has a lot of skills. But if there’s one thing I've been able to do over and over again, it’s create my own opportunities. In today's episode, I talk about five ways you can do the same. Enjoy. “You are a product of your environment. So choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you toward success - or are they holding you back?” ~ W. Clement Stone

I met Jon less than six months ago, but we hit it off pretty quickly. He's the host of the popular podcast, Hack The Entrepreneur, and we went deep into the struggles of building a business when it seems like nothing is happening. Jon pushed through months and month of "not knowing" with his podcast. But because he kept showing up, eventually he opened doors that never would have been opened otherwise. I love the fact that Jon is ready and willing to admit he didn't know what he's doing, but he knew one really important thing: keep showing up. And because of that, so many opportunities are opening up for him. We talked about all of that and what it's like to be on the other side of the dip. As always, I had a great time talking to Jon. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Jon's Entrepreneur.com Article CopyBlogger Rainmaker.fm VelocityPage Cliff Ravenscraft HTE73: How to Avoid the Entrepreneurial Gap w/ Brian Kurtz HTE 002: Julien Smith and The Ability To Destroy Anything TGM14 with

I've been getting Laura's newsletter for several months now and it’s a truly unique breath of fresh air in an industry where everyone’s trying to sell you something. It's not about writing tips or "leveling up". It's about her personal life and she has a way of telling stories that are witty and heartfelt. We talked about everything from our shared love of NYC to our distaste for online marketing buzzwords and bullshit. In addition to building a solid reputations as a TV writer, Laura has also managed to create an amazing freelance business as a writer for entrepreneurs. Her forthcoming course, The Copy Cure, with Marie Forleo, is all about finding your voice as a writer, minus the tired and cliched advice spouted by most "writing" courses. I found her to be a super genuine and endearing person. I loved talking to her and wish we could have talked for more than the hour and half we did. Maybe she'd be willing to do a part 2 some day. As always, I had a great time talking to Laura. Enjoy the show! Bits &

That's me. I do that all the time. In fact, I just spent a whole week doing that, instead of doing what I already knew. Getting advice, researching or preparing (after a point) is a really sneaky way of procrastinating and letting our self-doubt win. In this episode, I talk about a few things that can help if you find yourself in that situation.

So much great stuff in this episode. I first heard about Christa because of he latest album which covers songs from Nirvana, The Smiths, Depeche Mode, Smashing Pumpkins and U2. All favorite bands from over the last 20 years of my life. I'd been listening to the album on repeat when I decided to reach out to her and see if she'd be interested in coming on the show. I'm so glad she said yes. Like my conversation with Donald Miller, we talked about the art itself, but so much more than just that. Christa is a deep thinker and I loved talking with her about art and artifice, business, the idea of the "tortured artist", and many so much more. Every artist in an entrepreneur and I loved getting Christa's take on these topics. As always, I had a great time talking to Christa. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Christa's Young Songwriter's Workshop TGM14 with Seth Godin TGM09 with Donald Miller TGM28 with Pat Flynn Quiet ~ by Susan Cain Noisetrade TGM29 with Stephanie Halligan TGM08 with

Damn him and his productivity! Just kidding. I enjoyed getting to know him and talk about what it's like to run a website full-time at that age. As well as his plans for getting published and retiring by the time he's 40. As always, I had a great time talking to Thomas. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Listen Money Matters Mr. Money Mustache TGM14 with Seth Godin Adam Clark on the CollegeInfoGeek Podcast More About Thomas @TomFranklyCollegeInfoGeek.com

“Why do I keep doing this?”, I thought. I would like to think I’ve matured in 15 years, but I’ve been repeating the same all-nighter-before-a-deadline pattern since college. It worked fine then when the stakes weren’t as high. But now I have a family to support and bills to pay and every time I pull an all-nighter to meet a deadline, it wreaks havoc on my schedule, not to mention my health (it takes a lot longer to recover at 35 than it did at 20). Sure, it’s my first product and I vastly underestimated how much time it would take to make, but you would think I would have learned this lesson by now. I’ve plowed through half-a-dozen different careers since I was 20, but this whole deadline thing is the common element that connects them all together. Procrastination is something I’ve never been able to shake. But this time, as I look back over the last 90 days, I see a lot of things I wish I had done differently and hope I can do differently the next time. Here are 10 of them: 1. Spend less time planning.

The first time I talked to Jason about being on the show was more than a year ago. But we finally made it happen and he has quite a story. There was a lot we didn’t have time to get to, but I really enjoyed what we did discuss. Jason has been with Envy Labs since nearly the beginning. He helped build the company’s product, Code School, which they recently sold for $36 million. I was interested to know what it was like moving into the role of CEO, how he handles the pressure and, honestly, if he really enjoys it. And Jason didn’t disappoint. As always, I had a great time talking to Jason. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Jason's book - Three Pipe Problems Envy Code School Envy Labs sells Code School - Wired More About Jason @jasonvanluejasonvanlue.com

As an interviewer myself, I count myself as one of Andrew Warner's many fans. It was great to sit down with him and ditch all the facades of business and tactics and get right down to personal struggles we both face. Andrew "created Mixergy to help ambitious people who love business as much as I do learn from a mix of experienced mentors. I do that through interviews where founders tell their stories and courses where they teach a solution to issues that can cripple founders." As always, I had a great time talking to Andrew. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show B.C. Forbs How to Win Friends and Influence People ~ by Dale Carnegie TGM14: Seth Godin on Dancing with the Fear Andrew's WDS Talk about The True Mind More About Andrew @andrewwarnerMixergy.com

If you don't know Myke, he's the British guy you keep hearing on podcasts. He has been talking in to a microphone since 2010 and lives just outside of London, England with his sticker-covered MacBook Pro. Enjoy part 2 of my conversation with Myke Hurley! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGM38 - Part 1 w/ Myke Hurley Goodstuff Analog(ue) Patrick Rhone - Minimal Mac Stephen Hacket Back to Work - Merlin Mann Dan Benjamin - 5by5 Inquisitive Episode 27 More About Myke @iMykeRelay.FM

We talked about Myke's dream of being a full-time podcaster, the multi-year journey to get there and the new challenges he faces now that he is there. If you don't know Myke, he's the British guy you keep hearing on podcasts. He has been talking in to a microphone since 2010 and lives just outside of London, England with his sticker-covered MacBook Pro. Myke is an inspiration to keep at it no matter how difficult. This is the first TGM two-parter. Yes, I'll be back on Friday with the second half of our conversation. As always, I had a great time talking to Myke. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Goodstuff Analog(ue) Patrick Rhone - Minimal Mac Stephen Hacket Back to Work - Merlin Mann Dan Benjamin - 5by5 Inquisitive Episode 27 More About Myke @iMykeRelay.FM

We talked about the illusiveness of success and the exhaustion of always trying to attain it, as well as what happens when we finally let go and just be who we are. For Josh, it comes down to being willing to ask for help and "humiliate" oneself. I can't even describe how great this conversation was (all due to Josh). Whether you're struggling or not, this one is worth your time. Josh has been a public speaker since he was 17. He toured with Bill Cosby when he was still a kid, used to be on MTV’s Total Request Live, and just recently had his own TV show with Oprah’s executive producer. He now runs a seven-figure business as a “youths” speaker and founder of Youth Speaker University. Here are some of my favorite bits from the show: On Success "One thing I’ve done that I really think has made a difference, it isn’t sexy, it’s not the answer that people would like, it’s just I’m willing to be self aware enough to where I’m great and where I’m terrible. And I don’t wallow in it. That means I can go and get

My wife joined me on the show for the first time. As usual, her perception is painfully accurate and and advice, spot on. I enjoyed having her on the show with me. Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show TGM29 with Stephanie Halligan ArtToSelf.com Support The Gently Mad

The thing that inspired me to reach out to Matt was a blog post he wrote about how much he hates all the bullsh*t buzzwords and egotistical fakery that seems to fill our industry. Sound familiar? Matt is the creator of SwimUniversity.com and a number of popular and funny rap videos. His new project is all about coffee. We hit it off right away and this was a really fun conversation. As much as it pains me to say it, there were a lot of takeaways as well, for those of who listen for that sort of thing. ;) As always, I had a great time talking to Matt. Enjoy the show! Bits & Bytes Mentioned in the Show Delilah SoundDaddy.com Fizzle.co TGM02: Chase Reeves Thomas Frank Gumroad John Lee Dumas Alex Blumberg and Startup podcast NameMyProduct.co Omar Zenhom More About Matt @mattgiovanisciMattGiovanisci.comRoastyCoffee.comSwimUniversity.com

Aaron Draplin is not afraid to say what he thinks. I found myself resonating with so much of his story and especially his willingness to say what everyone is thinking, but is too afraid to say. His own about page sums it better than I could: Bred from the loins of the proud Midwest, this little fucker was squeezed out in Detroit, in the year 1973 to the proud parents of Jim and Lauren Draplin. More About Aaron @DraplinDraplin Design Co