The Expiration Date on Creativity

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This week, we start with a strange milestone: Kevin takes his first-ever vacation at 42. But his time off wasn’t filled with sandy beaches or sunshine – in fact, it didn’t include any travel at all. We kick things off by finding out what he was really up to, and the answer makes us ask ourselves, what happens when your body forces you to slow down?

From there, we dig into the reality of always being “on,” especially when work never sleeps. What does constant availability do to creative focus? And why does halting creative output start to feel less like rest and more like withdrawal?

That leads us to a piece of advice given years ago by a media legend: that creatives have a narrow window to produce their best work. Is that true? Or is it just fear dressed up as wisdom? We explore how age, health, relationships, and stability quietly reshape creative lives, and why so many artists seem to unravel right around the same time.

By the end, we’re left with a much bigger question: is creativity something you race against time to extract, or is it something that evolves if you survive long enough to understand it?

Big thanks to our patrons, we’ll be back soon!

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CREDITS:

Hosts: Kevin Lieber and Matt Tabor

Executive Producer: Ben Webster

Editor: Spencer Vann

"Created in the Unknown" theme by Basswaite: https://linktr.ee/Basswaite

Theme by Mega Drive → http://megadrivemusic.com

Opening Animation: Kidmograph

City Animation: Eric Langlay

"The Create Unknown" is produced by Unknown Media.

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