Happiness & Habits with Gretchen Rubin | Episode 022

Play

GretchenRubin

“Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” These are familiar words here in the United States. It seems fitting that this Converge episode about exploring happiness, is releasing only a few days before we celebrate Independence Day and the signing of our Declaration that secured us those rights.

What does the pursuit of happiness actually look like?

Well-known author and speaker, Gretchen Rubin, joins Dane to talk about happiness, habits and what it looks like to pursue those things. And not only just pursue them but do it in a way that reflects what’s important to you. Not what someone else thinks should be important to you.

They explore ideas around embracing what you already love and letting go of the fantasy of what you think you should or wish you did love. Gretchen talks about habit formation and how to look at your past for cues on how best set yourself up for success in the future.

If you find yourself exhausted at the idea of infinite potential this episode may offer a freedom you have never considered before.

Follow @GretchenRubin on Twitter or Facebook. Check out her books The Happiness Project, Happier at Home and Better Than Before (coming soon).

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Testing Your Good Idea with Charles Lee | Episode 021

Play

CharlesLee

When is the last time you woke up in the middle of the night with a great idea?

Or maybe your good ideas come in the shower. What is it with the shower and good ideas anyway?

No matter when your brilliance strikes, it remains only an idea until you do something about it. So what should you do about it? Join Dane along with author and speaker, Charles Lee, as they talk about what to do with your good idea to take it from living in your head to seeing it come to fruition.

They talk about the process to go through to test your ideas, how to deal with the disappointment of realizing someone else had your good idea already and did something about it as well as when to share your ideas and invite collaboration.

If you want to see more of Charles’s work or connect with him:
charlestlee.com
On Twitter @charlestlee
On Facebook
His Book: Good Idea, Now What?
theideation.com

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Reality Check with Grant Baldwin | Episode 020

Play

What do you do when you realize life as you know it isn’t how you want to live your life? More specifically, what do you do when your career, that you may have spent years studying to earn a degree for, isn’t what you want to do for the rest of your life? Was earning that degree wasted time? What will your friends and family say if you completely change directions?

Author and speaker Grant Baldwin is all too familiar with the described scenario. He decided to leave a job with a steady paycheck in pursuit of something he enjoyed. And he choose to do it when he and his wife were expecting their first child.

In this episode of Converge Dane and Grant talk about freedom, the risk and fear (positive and negative) involved and how our past experiences set us up for the unique contribution we have to offer the world. If you are considering a career change or any significant life change and are struggling with fear and uncertainty about making the jump, take a listen to Dane and Grant’s conversation.

Also, check out Grant’s book Reality Check.

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

 

Customer Obsessed with Tara Gentile | Episode 019

Play

TaraGentile-Converge

Photo Credit: TORLEY via Compfight cc

“If you ask yourself the questions, ‘How can I be of service?’ ‘How can I be of value?’ You can see an opportunity to do that anywhere.”

If you are reading this I think it’s safe to assume that you have some sort of skills, passion and talent and you want to find a way to make money from those things. To do that we often dream up a way to package those skills, passion and talent then put them out for the world to consume.

What if we listened to our clients first?

Listen in as Dane talks with customer obsessed, business strategist, Tara Gentile. As Tara’s career has progressed over the years it may look a bit haphazard at first glance. If you take a second look it is evident that as her career has evolved the constant thread line is her focus on her customer. She is always looking for ways she can serve them, meet their needs and bring value based on her skills, passion and talent. The result of her outward focus on the real need of her customer has opened up all sorts of opportunity.

This episode is sure to leave you with lots to consider about how you are relating to your customers. You also have an opportunity to take a concrete next step in learning how to better listen and consider your customer by checking out Tara’s Perspective Map, a really helpful free resource she has available over on her site.

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Get Rich Slowly with J.D. Roth | Episode 018

Play

JDRothB

“If you want to be successful you have to act with intention and move in a particular direction or towards a particular goal.”

Financial freedom may feel like a distant dream or maybe even impossible to you. You may feel like you are living proof of the “starving artist” no matter how hard you try to put solid business practices to work. J.D. Roth, describes himself as an accidental personal-financial expert and he has been there. Just 10 years ago he found himself $35K in debt and today he has more than $1M in the bank.

How did he get there?

Listen in as Dane talks with J.D. about his road to financial freedom. The decisions he made not only freed him from debt but set him up for financial abundance. None of it included winning the lottery, by the way. Hear how a change in perspective and developing habits paid off for him in a big way.

You can check out J.D.’s Get Rich Slowly Unconventional Guide if you want to start down your own road to financial freedom.

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Intentional Wandering in the Creative Process with Dan Rubin | Converge Episode 017

Play

Dan Rubin

“Exploration has to be part of the creative process. You have to be lost before you can see the way out.”

As creatives we are aware of the body of work we are producing and sharing with the world but are we as intentional with our creative process and how that can inform our personal brand?

In this episode of Converge, Dane is joined by London based designer, photographer, creative director and Webgraph founder Dan Rubin as they discuss the creative process. They explore not just what you create but how you create and how what you choose to share impacts your personal brand.

A self-professed intentional wanderer that collects ways of being creative, Dan has amassed an impressive following on Instagram and shares some of his strategy behind how he chooses what to share with his audience there as well as on other public platforms.

Prepare to be inspired to think about your creative process in new and fresh ways. And if you find yourself interested in a seeming wide range of creative endeavors that you can’t seem to fit together, Dan has some great insight on how you might do just that.

If you want to check out Dan’s work he can be found at…

Dan Rubin

Webgraph

Twitter

Instagram

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Innovation From Within | Converge Episode 016

Play

 

016-spencerboerup

Have you ever had a big idea that you were sure would be a success if only you acted on it?

That’s exactly what Spencer Boerup, creator of MagMod, did. He acted on his big idea and the result has been wildly successful.

Join Spencer and Dane as they talk about getting curious, having an idea, testing it and taking it to market. In this episode, Spencer talks about everything from getting backers through his Kickstarter campaign to the early design phase of MagMod and the risks involved.

Be inspired and hear why Spencer thinks anyone can do what he has done.

Thanks to Triple Scoop Music for providing the music for today’s show and thanks to our wonderful audio producer Anna Queza of AQreative.

Links mentioned on today’s show:
MagMod

Using Your Problems to Build a Business | Converge Episode 015

Play

015-Converge

Photo Credit: @Doug88888 via Compfight cc

Buster Benson has been around the block a few times in the online space. As a former Amazon employee and current Twitter employee he has had his hand in all kinds of online projects including six or more of his own personal projects. Some of them have translated into viable businesses and some of them haven’t.

Either way, Buster is committed to discovering how we change ourselves.

[Read more…]

A Pure Creative Place | Converge Episode 014

Play

JenOmar copy

Jen Adrion and Omar Noory call their creative business an accident, but is it really? In this episode Dane talks with Jen and Omar about their seeming haphazard beginnings, the success that has followed and how you can do the same.

Discover how they have made a living making the art they love. The kind that comes from that pure creative place that artists long to create from but often don’t because they fear it won’t pay the bills.

[Read more…]

Skill is the New Black | Converge Episode 013

Play

Skill is the New Black

Photo Credit: ShotHotspot.com via Compfight cc

A peek into the life of one extraordinary individual who is living the life of his dreams traveling the world.

In this episode of Converge Dane Sanders is joined by creative entrepreneur Jake Jorgovan who up and moved to Mexico to live the life of his dreams.

Dane and Jake explore the idea of the American dream, working remotely, what that means and how to do it. Jake describes his formula for how to put yourself in a position to go anywhere in the world you desire and still make a living.

He boils it down to three things:

[Read more…]