Navigating the Creative Process

David speaks with Michael Ashcroft, a writer and Alexander Technique teacher who previously spent 10 years consulting on clean energy innovation.

A lot of Michael's work centres around helping people expand their awareness. He's written several essays and posts I've loved, particularly about the concept of grinding, and how paying attention to our awareness can help us maximise our creativity, productivity, posture and physical engagement.

We talked about:

🔄 Corporate to Self-Employment – Freedom, ambition & avoiding burnout

🤔 Mindset & Decisions – Priorities, big choices & challenges

🧠 Awareness & Focus – Attention, non-fixation & efficiency

🎨 Productivity & Structure – Creativity, discipline & idea management

📝 Writing & Self-Discovery – Process, organising & personal growth

🥷🏽 Missionary vs. Mercenary – Mindset & long-term fulfilment

📜 Full transcript:

https://theknowledge.io/michaelashcroft-4/

📹 Watch on Youtube:

https://youtu.be/wTfFtMnnAk0

🗣 Mentioned in the show:

Alexander Technique | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Technique

KPMG | https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home.html

Escape from Freedom | https://amzn.to/3PtObCp

Erich Fromm | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Fromm

NaNoWriMo | https://nanowrimo.org/

Jonny Miller | https://www.theknowledge.io/jonnymiller/

Luca Dellanna | https://www.theknowledge.io/lucadellanna/

Ergodicity | https://amzn.to/47TWBd8

Christine Carrillo | https://www.theknowledge.io/carrillo/

The Carbon Trust | https://www.carbontrust.com/

Perceptual control theory | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perceptual_control_theory

Frederick Matthias Alexander | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._Matthias_Alexander

Richard Wiseman | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Wiseman

The Luck Factor | https://amzn.to/3PpX1Qe

Six degrees of separation | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_degrees_of_separation

Dzogchen | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dzogchen

Hooked | https://amzn.to/3PtSU5w

Nir Eyal | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nir_Eyal

Sam Harris | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Harris

Psycho-physical Unity | https://mouritz.org/companion/article/psycho-physical-unity

Hunter S. Thompson | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunter_S._Thompson

David Kadavy | https://www.theknowledge.io/kadavy/

Duolingo | https://www.duolingo.com/

Notion | https://www.notion.so/

James Altucher | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Altucher

Andrew Huberman | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_D._Huberman

Paul Millerd | https://www.theknowledge.io/paulmillerd/

Pathless Path | https://amzn.to/3i4LF7J

Khe Hy | https://www.theknowledge.io/khehy-1/

Rules Aren't Real | https://www.theknowledge.io/issue68/

Swimming and thrashing | https://www.theknowledge.io/swimming-vs-thrashing/

Tim Ferriss | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Ferriss

👤 Connect with Michael:

X/Twitter: @m_ashcroft | https://x.com/m_ashcroft

Course: Alexander Technique | https://expandingawareness.org/courses/

Website: Expanding Awareness | https://expandingawareness.org/

👨🏾‍💻 About David Elikwu:

David Elikwu FRSA is a serial entrepreneur, strategist, and writer. David is the founder of The Knowledge, a platform helping people think deeper and work smarter.

🐣 Twitter: @Delikwu / @itstheknowledge

🌐 Website: https://www.davidelikwu.com

📽️ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/davidelikwu

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/delikwu/

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@delikwu

🎙️ Podcast: http://plnk.to/theknowledge

📖 Free Book: https://pro.theknowledge.io/frames

My Online Course

🖥️ Decision Hacker: http://www.decisionhacker.io/

Decision Hacker will help you hack your default patterns and become an intentional architect of your life. You’ll learn everything you need to transform your decisions, your habits, and your outcomes.

The Knowledge

📩 Newsletter: https://theknowledge.io

The Knowledge is a weekly newsletter for people who want to get more out of life. It's full of insights from psychology, philosophy, productivity, and business, all designed to make you more productive, creative, and decisive.

My Favorite Tools

🎞️ Descript: https://bit.ly/descript-de

📨 Convertkit: https://bit.ly/convertkit-de

🔰 NordVPN: https://bit.ly/nordvpn-de

💹 Nutmeg: http://bit.ly/nutmegde

🎧 Audible: https://bit.ly/audiblede