The Art of Self-Expression with Illustrator and Author Mari Andrew

Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing "save as."

If you are an artist or creator of any kind, this episode is for you. Mari Andrew (@bymariandrew on Instagram) is an author and illustrator who has built a massive and loyal following by sharing refreshingly honest illustrations about life, love, and vulnerability.

In our conversation, we talk about:

• How she created a career as an illustrator despite not having any formal art training
   

• What she contributes most to her success as an artist
   

• Why you shouldn’t feel guilty for getting paid for your creative work
   

• The benefit of not “fitting in”
   

• How she deals with criticism and trolls
   

• The power of stories

...and much more

Mari is also coming out with a book that expands upon some of her drawings with mini-essays about her journey: Am I There Yet? The Loop-de-loop, Ziggzagging Journey to Adulthood. We also talk about how that book came about. Mari is a delightful and intelligent woman who is not afraid to speak candidly about who she is and what she’s been through. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

Selected Links and Resources From the Episode

• Mari's drawing about grief
   

• Show Your Work by Austin Kleon
   

• The album Mari said was like a life raft for her when she was dealing with grief
   

• Mari's website

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Using Meta-Habits and Foundational Principles to Improve Your Life with Daniel DiPiazza

Listen to this episode on iTunes here. Or, stream and download it below.

Daniel DiPiazza is the founder of Rich20Something, where he teaches young people how to start businesses they care about and live happier lives. He's also the author of the book Rich20Something: Ditch Your Average Job, Start an Epic Business, and Score the Life You Want (which I am fortunate enough to be a part of). You can find him on Instagram @Rich20Something.

Daniel and I have been friends for a few years so this is a fun interview. We talk about a variety of topics including:

• How he built his first business that allowed him to quit his job
   

• Why he journals every day
   

• The power of consistency
   

• The difference between working IN your life versus working ON your life
   

• His morning routine
   

• Foundational principles and the philosophy that spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle and retired Navy SEAL Jocko Willink both live by
   

• His reasons for using DMT

My favorite part is when we discuss working on your life on a macro level -- what that looks like and why it's important (starting at around 24:55). We discuss various behaviors I like to think of as meta-habits (although I don't think we ever actually use this term in our conversation).

If you enjoyed this episode and want me to continue producing this kind of content, the best way to let me know is by subscribing to the podcast or leaving a review on iTunes. I appreciate your support!

Also, if you have any suggestions for future guests or topics you’d like to hear covered, you can email podcast@thinkgrowprosper.org.

Selected Links and Resources From the Episode:

Principles by Ray Dalio

Deep Work by Cal Newport

Tao Te Ching

The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

Jocko Willink's "Good" philosophy

Eckhart Tolle's "Accept What Is" philosophy

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki

Jim Kwik (memory and brain performance training)

What It’s Like to Die: Meeting God Through My Experiences With DMT by Daniel DiPiazza

Daniel's Alpha Mentorship Program

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The Think Grow PODCAST

I’m a passionately curious guy. I spend a lot of time thinking and learning about a variety of subjects and I tend to filter much of what I learn through the lens of personal development.

To me, personal development is anything that helps me improve intellectually, emotionally, physically, spiritually, socially, financially, or in any other aspect of my life.

Some of the questions that fuel my curiosity are:

• What’s the best way to live?

• Why do people think the way they think?

• What is the common ground between seemingly disparate philosophies/worldviews?

• How can the study of evolution help us better understand ourselves and others?

• What do we know about the history of the universe?

• ...and many others

For the past year or so, I’ve been wanting to explore these and many other topics with you all on ThinkGrowProsper, but didn’t know exactly how to go about it. It seems the answer was staring me in the face all along: Podcasting.

“To me, personal development is anything that helps me improve intellectually, emotionally, physically, spiritually, socially, financially, or in any other aspect of my life.”

I’m a huge fan of podcasts and have been listening to them for years. They are a convenient and effective learning tool -- long enough to explore complex ideas thoroughly but short enough that you can finish an episode during a few commutes.

Where I See This Going

I envision The Think Grow Podcast as being a place where personal development meets real life. I plan on exploring a variety of topics with interesting people to expose you to different perspectives you can use to enrich your mind and improve your life in whatever way you see fit.

I want to create a space where I can explore topics in more depth and nuance than in an Instagram caption or even a blog post. With social media training us to have shorter and shorter attention spans, I want to help people have a richer and more meaningful media experience through this kind of long-form content.

“I want this podcast to be a place where personal development meets real life.”

This podcast may also end up being a place where I provide book recommendations, reviews, and breakdowns to keep you updated on what I’m reading, since you all seem to be interested in that. 

I don’t know exactly where it will go but I’m open to wherever it leads. As of now, it’s more of an experiment than anything. Whether or not I continue will ultimately depend on your response to it and my enjoyment of it.

Listen To The First Episode

This first episode is very special to me -- not just because it’s the first but because my wife and business partner, Vanessa is my co-host! I wanted to introduce her to you all from the very beginning because I’ll likely reference her from time to time and she may even pop up in future episodes.

For the first few minutes, we chat about some of the reasons that compelled me to start this podcast. The rest of the episode (starting at around (08:45) is a Q&A kind of format where I answer questions that were submitted by you all several weeks ago.

“I want to create a space where I can explore subjects in more depth and nuance than in an Instagram caption.”

You can listen to The Think Grow Podcast on iTunes, or wherever you consume your podcasts.

If you like what you hear and want me to continue producing this kind of stuff, the best way to let me know is by subscribing and/or leaving a review on iTunes. You can also shoot me an email at podcast@thinkgrowprosper.org.

This would be extremely helpful data for me to have because if either you or I aren’t getting value from this project, then it’s probably not worth continuing.

Questions I Answer In The First Episode:

• What’s the first step to creating one’s own reality?
   

• How do you keep going and stay positive after all the rejection you’ve experienced in your life?
   

• What are your thoughts on mindfulness and stress reduction?
   

• How do you balance the "give-it-your-all / keep-trying / hard-work-pays-off" message with the "relax-and-watch-the-universe-do-its-thing / think-good-and-it-will-be-good" mindset?
   

• How and why did you start ThinkGrowProsper? What steps did you take? What have been your failures and successes? What mindset has helped you?
   

• What is your philosophy and how has it helped you to get where you are now?
   

• How do you know when it’s time to quit your job and become an entrepreneur?
   

• What is your daily/morning routine?
   

Ruben Chavez is a writer, personal development educator, and host of The Think Grow Podcast. His Instagram account, ThinkGrowProsper, has amassed over 3 million followers. Along with his blog, these platforms are his way of inspiring and connecting with thoughtful, creative, and ambitious people just like you.

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