The Futur with Chris Do

In the final episode of our series on self-sabotage, we pick up where the conversation between Nidhi and Chris left off. If you missed the first two episodes, we suggest you go back and listen to those first. At this point in the story, Chris is betting his future (and the future of his staff) on pivoting into a new teaching venture then called The Skool. But to do that, he must abandon his design agency. Everywhere Chris looks, he sees doubt. Doubt from internal management, creative teams, and even his business coach. At the time, that doubt seemed reasonable. Why leave a business earning $4 million annually in favor of something that generated a mere $10K the previous year? What everyone didn’t know was that Chris had a plan. And a quantifiable vision of what success looked like for The Futur. Sponsored by BetterHelp - https://betterhelp.com/futur Wix - https://wix.com/partners Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Have you ever worked so hard on something only to find yourself stuck and caught in what feels like a complete slog? At that moment, you may think: This isn’t working. It’s time to pivot. But what if, on the other side of that discomfort, awaits everything you want? More importantly: how do you know if it’s time to pivot or push through the discomfort? Welcome to part one of our three-part series tackling the concept of self-sabotage. Why we do it, how we do it, and finding the right balance between hard work and self-care. In this episode, mental health therapist Nidhi Tewari joins Chris to discuss the differences between an unhealthy grind and determined grit. While the two hold different perspectives on the path to proverbial success, they agree that many of us quit working before it gets good. If you’re at a crossroads and deciding whether to press on or pivot, this conversation is for you. Sponsored by Hubspot - https://hubspot.com Wix - https://wix.com/partners Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kyle T Webster is an award-winning international illustrator. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, TIME, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Nike, IDEO, and several other distinguished clients. Acclaimed industry publications like the Society of Illustrators, Communications Arts, and American Illustration have recognized his illustration work. Kyle also teaches at UNC School of the Arts and works for Adobe, hosting workshops and helping to make digital products like Adobe Fresco. But you may better know him by his best-selling Photoshop brushes. The Origin of KyleBrush As an illustrator, having a distinct visual style is a point of pride. But that's not something Kyle was interested in. He wanted to offer clients a range of illustrative styles. And to do that, he needed a range of flexible tools. As a result, KyleBrush was born. KyleBrush is a collection of thousands of high-quality digital brushes originally created for Adobe Photoshop. What started as a practical necessity transformed into a full-time business. Kyle's products became an industry staple. You could find his digital brushes everywhere, from Pixar to boutique animation studios. In 2017, Adobe acquired KyleBrush making all of his digital brushes available to anyone subscribed to Creative Cloud. They also hired Kyle to help their product team develop new digital drawing tools. In this episode We talk with Kyle about navigating the creative industry, price negotiation, overcoming anxiety, and the calculated career risks he took along the way. Beyond that, Kyle also offers a variety of practical tips that you can apply to your professional life right now. In particular, a clever way to connect with seemingly unreachable people. Sponsored by Hubspot - https://hubspot.com Superside - https://superside.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Just when you thought you had the internet figured out, new waves of technology approach. With them come a torrent of unfamiliar terms: non-fungible tokens, web3, DAOs, the Metaverse. Are they real, hype, or are they keys to solving the world's biggest problems? In this episode, we host investor and futurist Lisa Andrews. She's fascinated by this new technology and sees an opportunity in it to create a positive impact on humanity. As Lisa puts it, we are living in the phigital world. That is to say, a hybrid of the physical and digital world. Think about the life you lead online and the one you lead offline. They're not the same but are closely related. The Metaverse is where those two worlds start to converge. And therein lies a new opportunity for innovation, creativity, and of course, business. If you think you've missed this new wave of technology, think again. There is plenty more to learn and discover. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chris Franklin is a filmmaker, photographer, and budding YouTuber helping clients, and fellow creatives meet their goals. He's also a Futur Pro Group member, which is where he met and connected with Chris Do. In this friendly conversation, Chris shares his career path and how he went from studying pre-med biology to now running a thriving video production business. Spoiler alert: it wasn't a straight line from point A to point B. It took Chris time and inward reflection to understand who he is and what drives his motivations. And that kind of introspection is never easy. If you're interested in video production or are unsure about your path forward, this conversation might help you. Sponsored by Better Help - https://betterhelp.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kindra Hall is a storyteller, acclaimed keynote speaker, and bestselling author of Stories that Stick: How Storytelling Can Captivate Customers, Influence Audiences, and Transform Your Business. She's here to remind you how important storytelling is, especially for your business. We all recognize the need for connection, now more than ever. And telling stories is an excellent way to connect with people, but being a great storyteller is not easy. Like most important things, great storytelling requires strategy and effort. It's more than simply reporting information. You've got to feel it. By feel, we mean you have to care and communicate emotion in your story. That doesn't mean sharing your deepest, darkest, most private pieces of yourself. It could be fundamental, like feeling frustrated, nervous, or curious. In this episode, Kindra offers tips on what makes for good storytelling and how you can practice telling them. According to her, there are four critical components to storytelling, and you can start using them right now. Whether you give weekly presentations or are working on your very first, Kindra's advice for telling better stories can only help. Sponsored by Athletic Greens - https://athleticgreens.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mika Saulitis is the Director of Creative Strategy at branding and design studio, Trollbäck+Company. But what does a Director of Brand Strategy do exactly? As Mika puts it, there are two core components: strategy and creativity. Strategy involves strategic thinking, writing positioning statements, and determining the brand’s voice—the invisible traits of a brand. Creativity arrives in more tangible forms, like campaigns, videos, concepts, and copywriting. In this episode, Mika shares how he navigated the design industry and transitioned from fetching lunch orders to facilitating high-profile strategy sessions. Mika and Chris delve into how brand strategy works. The process, the pitfalls, and why the last thing a client wants is a “yes” person. If you work in or are curious about brand strategy, what it is, or how it works, then give this episode a listen. Mika is generous with what he’s learned and how he learned it. Maybe his story can help you. Sponsored by: Athletic Greens - https://athleticgreens.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Graham Cochrane is an entrepreneur, YouTuber, and business coach whose mission is to help other people start their own businesses. You might be thinking, “Great. Another online business guru telling me to sign up for their seminar while they pose in front of a rented Lamborghini.” But you would be wrong. In 2009, right after the financial collapse, Graham was laid off. He and his wife had recently purchased a house and just had their first baby. Not a great place to be. After struggling to find work and being unable to make enough through freelance work, Graham saw an opportunity, and a side project was born. Graham had unintentionally founded The Recording Revolution, the world’s largest online audio recording and music production resource. Years later, that little side project evolved into a seven-figure business with over twenty-thousand customers. The magic formula? Serve others. In this episode, Graham shares how spending his time and effort serving others has served him well. He and Chris talk about non-traditional ways to earn a living being creative, how to build a community, and why you don’t need to be an expert to teach. Graham was also generous enough to share the nuts and bolts of his business model and its financials. His first year in business, he earned $5,000, but by the end of his second, he was at $65,000, all from selling courses based on his experience. Sponsored by BetterHelp - https://betterhelp.com/futur Athletic Greens - https://athleticgreens.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ron Baker is a writer, speaker, educator, and recovering CPA. He is the author of seven best-selling books, most of which cover economic topics—specifically, value and pricing. Throughout history, value has always tied itself to labor. These many work hours cost this many dollars, also known as billable hours. The counter to this method is value-based pricing. This thing costs this many dollars because it is valuable to you. So, which is correct? Which is fair? In this episode, Ron and Chris dive deep into value, pricing, and the relationship between the two. Ron shares some great stories that clearly illustrate why value is determined by the utility it provides the consumer. They also discuss the concept of subscription-based pricing and why that model may find its way into everything from cars to creative services. Sponsored by BetterHelp - https://betterhelp.com/futur Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Wes Kao is co-founder of Maven, a platform that helps creators build cohort-based courses. Before that, she co-founded the altMBA with acclaimed author and marketer Seth Godin. If you’re not yet familiar with them, cohort-based courses (CBCs) are a not-so-new way of learning with a group of other people. They take the best parts of traditional classroom education and blend them with online classes to create a rich learning experience. In this episode, Wes shares why CBCs are the best way to learn and why it’s crucial you always test (and validate) your course idea. Having a substantial social following doesn’t guarantee a courses’ success. If you have an idea for a course, give this episode a listen before moving forward. And be sure to check out Wes’s free course accelerator. Sponsored by Grin.co - https://grin.co Athletic Greens - https://athleticgreens.com/futur Peloton - https://onepeloton.com/app Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices