Ruben Chavez

May 24, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

Ask Me Anything #2

Ruben Chavez

May 24, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

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

Hey -- long time no podcast!

After a brief hiatus, I'm back with the second Ask Me Anything episode of this podcast.

The reason for the delay?

1. Vanessa and I were on our honeymoon for a couple weeks and I decided to take a break and enjoy our adventures through Spain, France and Italy! (It was wonderful).

2. I've been reflecting and reassessing the ideas I put forth on TGP to make sure I'm creating content that is both useful and also an accurate reflection of my current areas of interest.

For the past year or so, I've been going through what you might call a "Brainaissance." I've been exploring a variety of subjects with which I was unfamiliar with and also diving deeper into subjects about which I had some knowledge (i.e. evolution, personality types, political theory, philosophy, etc...).

This process has led me to look at many of the ideas I talk about on TGP through a variety of different lenses and from a variety of different perspectives. I want to make sure that as I grow, my content grows with me.

Part of what I've been doing is reflecting on the best way to align "ThinkGrowProsper, the brand" with "Ruben Chavez, the ever-evolving human."

I'm happy to say that I'm feeling very good about the ideas I've come up with and the goals I've set for myself.

I also want to thank you all for your patience and unwavering support while I took some time to gather my thoughts. There would be no ThinkGrowProsper without you. You are the reason I have this platform on which I can share my thoughts and (hopefully) add value to the lives of others. I do not take this responsibility lightly and truly appreciate your support.

I’d love to hear your biggest takeaway from the episode. Let me know by leaving a review on iTunes with something that resonated with you in this episode. (I read every review).

Questions Answered

Is it necessary to do something great and earn fame? Can't I just live a normal life and make my family and people around me happy? (7:35)
How do you deal with difficult people (13:00)
How do you read so much without getting overwhelmed? (17:45)
How do you retain information better? (21:37)
How did you get into Stoicism? What books do you recommend on this philosophy? (25:34)
What do you have to say about confidence? What is it? What books can I read? Most importantly, what can I do to be more confident (please don't say "believe in yourself" because I do). (28:35)
You talked about overthinking in a recent podcast episode and gave some strategies for overcoming it. But I don't think overthinking is a bad thing. Wouldn't the opposite of overthinking be underthinking? (34:05)
Are you able to give more advice on self-worth and staying positive? (38:05)
You mentioned you were working on a book. When will it be done? (46:50)

If you enjoy this episode and find value in this podcast, I humbly ask you to please subscribe and/or leave me a review on iTunes. Or you can just share this podcast with a friend who you think might find value in it. If you’ve already done any of these, I want to take a moment to sincerely thank you. I truly appreciate your support.

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

What did you think about this episode? Leave me a comment below!

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.

Ruben Chavez

April 19, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

Practical Philosophy, Career Advice, and Tools For Better Learning With Ryan Holiday

Ruben Chavez

April 19, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

In this episode, I speak with writer and media strategist Ryan Holiday, whose work I’ve admired for years. I ask Ryan about his mindset and attitude toward philosophy, reading, his early success and much more.

Ruben Chavez

April 13, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

5 Ways to Increase Your Intelligence

Ruben Chavez

April 13, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

I'm obsessed with the human brain. I'm especially interested in how to make it work better — how to think better, how to learn better and how to maximize my overall cognitive potential. In this episode, I summarize those strategies and give you actionable ways to integrate them into your life.

Ruben Chavez

April 9, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

Cultivating Creativity with Writer and Creative Mentor Markus Almond

Ruben Chavez

April 9, 2018

The Think Grow Podcast

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

If you're a writer, musician, or other creative type (OR, if you would like tips on how to become more creative) I think you'll find a lot value in this episode.

I’ve shared the writings of today’s guest numerous times on my Instagram page, ThinkGrowProsper. His name is Markus Almond. You might not recognize the name but there’s a good chance you’ve seen a quote from his books on my Instagram page or somewhere else on the internet.

Markus is the author of the book Motivational Quotes to Get the Blood Moving, a collection of notes he wrote to himself to help guide him in different areas of his life.

I came across this book in a random Brooklyn bookstore I wandered into one day while Vanessa and I were visiting New York. I resonated with many of his insights and have wanted to pick his brain ever since.

Who is Markus Almond?

Markus started his career in the music industry as a songwriter with many of his songs played on MTV, E! Network and other television shows.

After moving to New York, he transitioned into writing books and poetry. Many of his works ended up reaching the Amazon best-sellers list.

I was impressed when I learned that some of his earlier self-published works were shared by celebrities and popular artists like Travis Barker (Blink-182), Rob Dyrdek (MTV), Steven Pressfield (War of Art), and others. In our conversation, I ask Markus how he was able to accomplish this.

After his success in the music industry and then later as a published author, he began teaching some of the principles he’d learned to other songwriters and authors. Today, he runs a mentorship program for songwriters and authors of all genres.

One of Markus’ deeply held beliefs is that success in any creative field can be replicated no matter where a person is starting from.

You can connect with Markus through Instagram (@MarkusAlmond) or through his website MarkusAlmond.com

Show Notes and Time Stamps

How he wrote his book, Motivational Quotes to Get the Blood Moving (8:45)
Markus’ thoughts on intuition (13:45)
Strategies he uses to cultivate his intuition (18:20)
What compelled Markus to change careers from his punk rock music lifestyle to becoming a writer (19:25)
Markus’ writing process (22:05)
How Markus got influential people like Travis Barker, Rob Dyrdek, Steven Pressfield to share his work on social media (22:35)
The number one piece of advice he gives his coaching clients when it comes to getting their message out there (25:45)
His views on self-publishing (23:45)
Tips for cultivating creativity (28:55)
His top book recommendations for creatives (31:55)
How he got best-selling author Steven Pressfield to give him feedback on his book (38:20)
Creative strategies Markus has used to get his work out there (39:45)
What a “Dream 100” list is and why he thinks it’s important (42:45)
His three most important principles for success in any field (45:00)
The concept of a "Customer Avatar" and why it's important (48:00)
The overarching philosophy/ethic that guides his life (49:55)