Why Leaving My Dream Job Was The Best Decision w/ Matthew Encina
الملخص
TLDRIn an engaging conversation, Chris Do interviews Matthew Encina, a creative entrepreneur who transitioned from corporate work to creating his own content and exploring industrial design. Matthew shares his journey from starting his YouTube channel in 2019, documenting his home office remodel, to achieving viral success with millions of views. He delves into the power of embracing curiosity and confidence, enabling him to leave his stable job and venture into personal creative pursuits without fear. Matthew's explorations have led him into product design and brand collaborations, notably in creating custom mechanical keyboards. The discussion illustrates how methodical planning and retaining the openness to explore new paths enriched Matthew's career and personal growth. He emphasizes the combination of curiosity with action, which unlocks creative potential and leads to unforeseen opportunities. This story not only underscores the significance of creativity without boundaries but also provides inspiration for those balancing commercial success with personal fulfillment.
الوجبات الجاهزة
- 🐔 Freedom in creativity allows you to explore and think beyond traditional confines.
- 🎥 Viral success can start as a personal project, as seen with Matthew's million-view video.
- 💼 Shifting from agency work to personal content creation can enhance opportunities and personal growth.
- 🔑 Trusting one's intuition and curiosity can help navigate unpredictable career paths.
- 📈 Intentionally planning every detail can lead to successful launches of content or products.
- 🎨 Exploring curiosity can lead to discovering new creative outlets and career paths.
- 🗝️ Identifying value within personal experiences can guide successful content creation.
- 💪 Balancing new creative endeavors with existing skills creates a solid foundation for growth.
- 🤹♂️ Diversifying interests allows for risk management and creative satisfaction.
- 📚 Continuous learning and exploring new areas can lead to fresh opportunities.
الجدول الزمني
- 00:00:00 - 00:05:00
The video opens with an introduction to Matthew Encina, who started his journey into content creation by documenting a home office rebuild in 2019, which rapidly garnered views. He reflects on the importance of preparation, confidence, and seizing opportunities.
- 00:05:00 - 00:10:00
Matthew Encina is introduced as a former creative director at Blind and a key figure at The Future, where he was involved in content creation. He highlights the importance of allowing creative freedom and the supportive role of his past work relationships.
- 00:10:00 - 00:15:00
Matthew discusses a pivotal moment when he decided to leave The Future to pursue personal ventures, illustrating the importance of recognizing personal growth opportunities and the supportive dynamics of leadership.
- 00:15:00 - 00:20:00
The discussion touches on the concept of letting creative personnel explore new opportunities and how such transitions often lead to growth. Matthew and Chris explore the healthy dynamics of their working relationship and how it evolved over time.
- 00:20:00 - 00:25:00
Matthew shares insights about starting his YouTube channel, which became successful unexpectedly, and how he diversified his content over time by tapping into his personal interests.
- 00:25:00 - 00:30:00
Delving into the creative process, Matthew describes how his past experiences shaped his approach to content creation. He emphasizes the blend of personal interest and meticulous planning as key to his online success.
- 00:30:00 - 00:35:00
Chris highlights how each of Matthew's projects is approached with the same level of meticulousness as in high-level commercial work, showcasing the importance of thorough planning and execution in content creation.
- 00:35:00 - 00:40:00
Matthew discusses his transition from content creation to product design. He reflects on how spontaneous opportunities and collaborations, like with Grovemade, opened new creative avenues.
- 00:40:00 - 00:45:00
The video transitions to discuss the ease with which Matthew adapted to self-employment and the mindset shift needed to pursue one's own projects. The transformation involves embracing risk and focusing on growth through an exploratory mindset.
- 00:45:00 - 00:54:37
Matthew wraps up with reflections on current projects, discussing his engagement with industrial design, lifestyle adjustments, and the excitement around creating meaningful and authentic work.
الخريطة الذهنية
فيديو أسئلة وأجوبة
Who is interviewed in the video?
Matthew Encina, a creative professional and former colleague of the host, is interviewed in the video.
When did Matthew start his YouTube channel?
Matthew started his YouTube channel in early 2019.
What type of content does Matthew create?
Matthew creates content around home office remodels, industrial and product design, often exploring topics like desk accessories.
What key lesson does Matthew discuss regarding career growth?
Matthew discusses the lesson to "lean into your curiosity" and fully explore interests to find unique and valuable insights.
How did Matthew feel about leaving his steady job?
Matthew felt confident leaving his job to explore personal projects, finding it refreshing and an opportunity to grow.
How did Matthew's first video perform on YouTube?
Matthew's first video on YouTube reached a million views within three months.
What kind of projects did Matthew work on before his YouTube success?
Matthew worked as a creative director, creating commercial projects for brands like Xbox and bands like Coldplay.
What notable shift in career did Matthew make?
Matthew shifted from making content for other agencies to focusing on his own projects, exploring product design.
What other creative field is Matthew involved in?
Matthew is also involved in breakdancing and integrates aspects of creativity gained from it into his work.
How has Matthew managed to handle different creative explorations?
Matthew manages his explorations by trusting his intuition, following curiosity, and balancing diverse interests without being constrained by strict plans.
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- 00:00:00when we worked for someone and then we
- 00:00:02started doing content for ourselves what
- 00:00:03we realized is when you open the gate
- 00:00:05the chickens run they don't want to go
- 00:00:07back in the cage I started my YouTube
- 00:00:09channel in early 2019 I kind of rebuilt
- 00:00:12my home office documented the whole
- 00:00:14thing and created a YouTube video around
- 00:00:16that probably 3 months later it might
- 00:00:17have reached a million views already
- 00:00:19these days I I work on content still on
- 00:00:21my own YouTube channel but I've also
- 00:00:23ventured into industrial product design
- 00:00:25do you ever get the moment where you're
- 00:00:26like is this a dream I'm living
- 00:00:28sometimes I look back it's like how did
- 00:00:30happen but this is the residual of all
- 00:00:32this planning and preparation hard work
- 00:00:34and preparation increases the surface
- 00:00:35area of luck to happen and it's like
- 00:00:37there's more opportunities for luck to
- 00:00:39hit it's just amazing what happens when
- 00:00:43you allow possibility to take over and
- 00:00:45you have confidence in the things that
- 00:00:47you're doing the first lesson that I've
- 00:00:50learned on this journey of exploring
- 00:00:52possibility for the past few years
- 00:00:56is all right everybody you've seen
- 00:00:59people on our Channel come and going in
- 00:01:00and out of the future's life and you
- 00:01:02might be wondering what happened to them
- 00:01:04where did where were the bodies buried
- 00:01:05well they're not buried they're still
- 00:01:07alive and well and I just want everybody
- 00:01:09know that they go on to live an amazing
- 00:01:11joyful illustrious life and I'm so
- 00:01:13thrilled to be talking to one of my
- 00:01:15former creative directors head of our
- 00:01:17content Matthew and Cena welcome back
- 00:01:19hey it's nice to be back finally yeah
- 00:01:21finally and I don't know why but I just
- 00:01:23imagine because we talk and we meet up
- 00:01:26that we've had this conversation but we
- 00:01:27have not no you've never been been on
- 00:01:30the podcast have you uh I think as just
- 00:01:32maybe a side guest or to add additional
- 00:01:35commentary to something but I don't
- 00:01:36think I was was ever a guest okay on the
- 00:01:39show so this episode is purely focused
- 00:01:41on you there is no side guest you are
- 00:01:42the main attraction here and if people
- 00:01:45recognize the voice it's probably for a
- 00:01:47couple different reasons but if you're
- 00:01:48an OG future fan and a blind fan then
- 00:01:51you'll know exactly who I'm talking to
- 00:01:52but for those people who don't can you
- 00:01:54introduce yourself and tell us a little
- 00:01:56of your backstory Matthew my name is
- 00:01:58Matthew in Cena born and raised in Los
- 00:02:00Angeles I've been a creative
- 00:02:01professional for over 20 years kind of
- 00:02:03exploring all kinds of stuff um in a fun
- 00:02:06way Chris was my teacher back in 2006 at
- 00:02:09Art Center where I studied graphic
- 00:02:10design and then I went to go intern for
- 00:02:13him I went to go freelance for him and
- 00:02:15eventually he locked me down as a
- 00:02:17creative director at blind where I was a
- 00:02:20creative director for about a decade
- 00:02:21working on fun amazing commercial
- 00:02:24projects for Brands like Xbox and bands
- 00:02:27like Coldplay and then I ventured off I
- 00:02:30got pulled into the future a few years
- 00:02:33later back in
- 00:02:342016 and then you know rode that Journey
- 00:02:39for a while and got my training wheels
- 00:02:41learning about content learning about
- 00:02:43teaching unpacking the things that I had
- 00:02:45inside realizing that there was a lot of
- 00:02:47value uh inside of me that I could share
- 00:02:49with others so thank you for that and
- 00:02:52you know did that for a couple of years
- 00:02:54and for the past 3 years I've kind of
- 00:02:56set my sale I I left the future just let
- 00:03:00the The Winds of curiosity kind of guide
- 00:03:03me to where uh I am now and these days I
- 00:03:06I work on content still on my own
- 00:03:08YouTube channel but I've also ventured
- 00:03:10into uh industrial product design so
- 00:03:12I've got into producing products in
- 00:03:15spaces that I'm very passionate about
- 00:03:17like desk accessories and keyboards and
- 00:03:19things of that nature yeah we'll get
- 00:03:21into that so before we go to the Future
- 00:03:22we're going to go to the Past Matthew
- 00:03:24and I have a long history together of
- 00:03:26working together and being inspired by
- 00:03:28one another and one of the beautiful
- 00:03:30things that you get to do as a boss is
- 00:03:32be around really great people people who
- 00:03:34have beautiful intentions and have a
- 00:03:37passion for doing the very best work and
- 00:03:39we can ride that wave together so
- 00:03:41Matthew comes to me one day I guess this
- 00:03:43is now part of the future and he goes
- 00:03:45Chris I have to talk to you and anybody
- 00:03:46ever has that meeting with me like I
- 00:03:48need to talk to you I already know
- 00:03:49what's coming and I can tell the
- 00:03:51hesitation and all the kinds of things I
- 00:03:53can only imagine whatever dialogue's
- 00:03:55been going on in your mind before and
- 00:03:57after but I try to recognize the moment
- 00:03:59and say hey whatever you're going to say
- 00:04:00it's going to be okay and there can be
- 00:04:02no such thing as bad news because I feel
- 00:04:05like as as a boss and as a friend we've
- 00:04:08both grown so much together and I'm so
- 00:04:09appreciative of the things you've
- 00:04:11already done at this point and every day
- 00:04:13forward it's just like icing on a very
- 00:04:15fickly iced cake so it didn't really
- 00:04:17matter right right and then you said hey
- 00:04:20um tell me what you said and then I'll
- 00:04:22quickly respond to to like what I said
- 00:04:23to you right afterwards do you remember
- 00:04:25roughly roughly was something along the
- 00:04:28lines of appreciate everything we've
- 00:04:30done I've I've enjoyed everything to
- 00:04:33this point I feel like I'm in my
- 00:04:35creative Prime and things are growing
- 00:04:37behind the scenes and I feel like I owe
- 00:04:39it to myself to see what happens if I
- 00:04:41invest all of that energy on my own
- 00:04:44journey and I don't know if I said
- 00:04:46literally this is how I want to remember
- 00:04:47so if it's not don't correct me and I
- 00:04:49said something to you like I'm so happy
- 00:04:51for you I've been wondering when you're
- 00:04:54going to have this conversation with me
- 00:04:56and I wish you nothing but the best my
- 00:04:58biggest question was why so long like
- 00:05:00why did it take you so long because one
- 00:05:02of the things that I feel like is if I
- 00:05:04do my job and and in some ways and I'm
- 00:05:07not trying to say this in a pejorative
- 00:05:08way part of running a company is like
- 00:05:10being a parent and I want the best for
- 00:05:12the people that come in and out of our
- 00:05:13company Sometimes the best means they
- 00:05:15need to be somewhere else and that often
- 00:05:17times means I have to ask them to leave
- 00:05:19and they wind up doing great things
- 00:05:21other times the teams that I need to
- 00:05:23explore my own thing and or explore this
- 00:05:25other opportunity I never begrudge them
- 00:05:28especially when they've given so much
- 00:05:29already so I just knew that there was a
- 00:05:31lot of emotion and energy around this
- 00:05:33and I just said hey man I'm just really
- 00:05:34happy for you and people always wondered
- 00:05:36like what happened to Matthew you ever I
- 00:05:38just had a sandwich or taco with him the
- 00:05:40other day you guys relax we just went to
- 00:05:41see a car show or something you know
- 00:05:43there's no animus as far as I know right
- 00:05:46but I can't say that's always the case
- 00:05:48because sometimes people leave or are
- 00:05:50asked to leave and I don't ever talk to
- 00:05:52them again and it makes me wonder a lot
- 00:05:54about was there more that was in the
- 00:05:56relationship than I thought or was there
- 00:05:58less cuz I thought we work together and
- 00:06:01all things come to an end but unless I
- 00:06:04betrayed you or was disloyal or did
- 00:06:05something that you thought was wrong and
- 00:06:07unethical why shouldn't we have a
- 00:06:09relationship but often times that's not
- 00:06:11the case at all so I I just want to just
- 00:06:14double dip on the whole I'm very
- 00:06:16appreciative of the relationship we've
- 00:06:18had that's going on over two decades
- 00:06:21from us just meeting each other as at
- 00:06:23our center student instructor and then
- 00:06:25continue on working together and growing
- 00:06:28together and doing content and just
- 00:06:30evolving and again I'm just super happy
- 00:06:31for you now when you left you started
- 00:06:34your own YouTube channel you you
- 00:06:37basically took all the things that you
- 00:06:39learned about what it is that you wanted
- 00:06:40to say in the world and you did it
- 00:06:41without compromise in your own way and
- 00:06:44you started making content and you had
- 00:06:46phenomenal success out of the gate let's
- 00:06:48before we get into the all the new stuff
- 00:06:50you're doing take me through like what
- 00:06:52you're doing what the expectation was
- 00:06:54and what how the internet responded to
- 00:06:56that type of content yeah so I started
- 00:06:59my YouTube channel in early
- 00:07:012019 and at that point i' already been
- 00:07:03working at the future for 3 years so I
- 00:07:06got my training wheels there I got to
- 00:07:07kind of experiment and learn all about
- 00:07:10YouTube because I didn't really have
- 00:07:12much experience in it prior to that
- 00:07:14obviously before that it's spent all
- 00:07:15that time in commercial directing 30
- 00:07:17second uh TV commercial so there's a lot
- 00:07:20of stuff that um helped me when I
- 00:07:22started when I started my YouTube
- 00:07:24channel I was just doing it purely out
- 00:07:27of Joy I was like okay I do this for
- 00:07:30work in my 99 to5 what would I want to
- 00:07:33do on my 5 to9 on the weekends and at
- 00:07:37the time I was uh remodeling one of our
- 00:07:40bedrooms at the at home to be a home
- 00:07:43office for me and I did a lot of
- 00:07:45research and and found some interesting
- 00:07:48content around that idea of kind of
- 00:07:50sharing your remodel your your desk
- 00:07:53setup but there wasn't any that kind of
- 00:07:55fit in the style or voice that I like so
- 00:07:59I was like you know what maybe I should
- 00:08:01do this cuz I'm I'm already going to do
- 00:08:02all this stuff I'm kind of passionate
- 00:08:04and very oddly interested in this so I'm
- 00:08:07going to document this whole process so
- 00:08:08I kind of rebuilt my home office
- 00:08:10documented the whole thing and created a
- 00:08:12YouTube video around that and when it
- 00:08:14came out it did pretty good out of the
- 00:08:17gate and then a week later I think it
- 00:08:20was like a 100,000 views and I was
- 00:08:22perplexed I did not expect that at all
- 00:08:25cuz I felt it was so much of a personal
- 00:08:28thing where it's like okay this is my
- 00:08:30space this is my little fun DIY project
- 00:08:33um and it kind of feels like you know
- 00:08:36when people make vacation videos or fun
- 00:08:38videos for their family it kind of felt
- 00:08:40like that a little bit so I had zero
- 00:08:42expectation other than I just want to
- 00:08:44show off this fun project that I'm doing
- 00:08:46on the weekends and then probably 3
- 00:08:48months later it might have reached a
- 00:08:49million views already and I was I was so
- 00:08:54surprised especially because all of the
- 00:08:56stuff we were doing at the future I felt
- 00:08:57was so high value high level is like oh
- 00:09:00my gosh I would pay for this information
- 00:09:03and the viewership there was nowhere
- 00:09:05near what I was getting on this one
- 00:09:08single video so I was just so perplexed
- 00:09:10and so surprised and so I was like okay
- 00:09:13people like this stuff this is
- 00:09:15interesting I I have a voice here that
- 00:09:17people are interested in I want to see
- 00:09:19is this a fluke or can I do it again so
- 00:09:22I produced a few more videos kind of
- 00:09:24around the same topic they all hit few
- 00:09:27million views each video and I was like
- 00:09:29okay
- 00:09:29this is this is wild there's there's
- 00:09:31something here it's not just a fluke
- 00:09:33like there's a formula here I kind of
- 00:09:35struck a nerve and I kind of figured
- 00:09:37something out so I kept doing that in
- 00:09:38the background and doing more and more
- 00:09:40videos kind of just taking a half step
- 00:09:43out each video to explore how big my
- 00:09:46voice and perspective how many kind of
- 00:09:49topics it can cover under the realm of
- 00:09:51what it is that I do and over the years
- 00:09:53what I've discovered is it kind of felt
- 00:09:55random when I was doing it but when I
- 00:09:57look back it kind of makes sense because
- 00:10:00all of it was me just sharing aspects of
- 00:10:03my life things that I like to design and
- 00:10:05build and make uh through the lens of a
- 00:10:07designer and because of all the things
- 00:10:09that I've done at the future learning
- 00:10:11how to unpack things and teach that to
- 00:10:13people in ways that are digestible and
- 00:10:15entertaining I felt like that came
- 00:10:17through with the content that I was
- 00:10:18making as well okay the the video that
- 00:10:21you dropped that Skyrocket it I think
- 00:10:25surpassed your expectations but it it
- 00:10:27completely blew me away I was in awe
- 00:10:29because for us a good video would get
- 00:10:31like 30,000 views and I always believe
- 00:10:34what we make is kind of boring it's
- 00:10:36educational content unless you're
- 00:10:38running a business and you're trying to
- 00:10:40sort out one problem that we're talking
- 00:10:42about no one else would be watching it
- 00:10:44so it's always to my surprised that many
- 00:10:46many years later we have a couple
- 00:10:47million subs and it's like I don't even
- 00:10:48know who's here why are you guys here
- 00:10:50but when I watch your video it takes all
- 00:10:52these like little boxes DIY Home
- 00:10:55Improvement ASMR meticulous planning and
- 00:10:58design so there's an aesthetic part so
- 00:11:00you could have tuned in for one and got
- 00:11:02a Bonus four and it was all wrapped in
- 00:11:04this really and I know a lot about how
- 00:11:06you work it's there's meticulous
- 00:11:08planning and researching and designing
- 00:11:09and working out the problem nothing is
- 00:11:11by chance and every frame every color
- 00:11:14grade every shot and the lighting is
- 00:11:17very meticulous from I think many years
- 00:11:19of you directing commercials and music
- 00:11:22videos for other people we have to put
- 00:11:23that insane amount of planning into it
- 00:11:25because it's very expensive to make a
- 00:11:26mistake but probably more so it's
- 00:11:29professionally very embarrassing to say
- 00:11:31like yeah I kind of effed up on that and
- 00:11:33that's the best I could do right right
- 00:11:35you took that same kind of discipline
- 00:11:37attention to detail into making videos
- 00:11:39for YouTube and this Banger comes out
- 00:11:41and of course we're all sitting there
- 00:11:43thinking did he crack The Da Vinci Code
- 00:11:45is he going to be able to do this again
- 00:11:47next video drops Banger and Banger after
- 00:11:49Banger it's like this ain't luck this is
- 00:11:52deliberate meticulous planning we just
- 00:11:55finished an episode with Adrien he goes
- 00:11:57through crazy amounts of planning too
- 00:11:59must be a Filipino thing because
- 00:12:01Matthew's Filipino too that's why we
- 00:12:02can't do it you're screwed and I'm
- 00:12:03screwed I don't have enough of that Jean
- 00:12:06right so when we see a video that's 10
- 00:12:10minutes long based on some general rules
- 00:12:12of thumb based on how you do things how
- 00:12:15much work in man hours is going into it
- 00:12:17before you even get to see this
- 00:12:1910-minute video uh yeah
- 00:12:22usually it depends but I would say it's
- 00:12:25at least a month probably three months
- 00:12:27oh my God but then some of the latest
- 00:12:30videos probably the last three or four
- 00:12:32videos have been all about uh product
- 00:12:34design yeah and that's in I'm
- 00:12:38documenting while I'm making and
- 00:12:40Manufacturing Goods it takes you know
- 00:12:42six months to a year so I documenting
- 00:12:45for a whole year and then and then it
- 00:12:47comes out so that's how long it takes
- 00:12:50okay so when you see really high high
- 00:12:52level production you don't understand
- 00:12:54that when you're watching it and you're
- 00:12:55just in awe you feel it but you don't
- 00:12:58understand it cuz quite literally when
- 00:12:59when I watch the your building the
- 00:13:02keyboard series and some of your
- 00:13:03industrial design stuff I kind of know
- 00:13:05what it takes you're going through
- 00:13:06rounds and okay now we're on a
- 00:13:07conference call I'm like oh my God we're
- 00:13:09not even manufacturing yet and they're
- 00:13:11just giving notes and I'm doing some
- 00:13:12more research I'm building more
- 00:13:14prototypes I'm solving a new problem and
- 00:13:16the process takes so long I'm just
- 00:13:18curious at some point when you get into
- 00:13:20these projects that are 3 six months
- 00:13:22plus do you ever get the feeling like
- 00:13:25I'm losing Steam and interest in this or
- 00:13:27I'm just a gung-ho about doing doing it
- 00:13:29surprisingly I don't lose Steam and
- 00:13:32interest because with the nature of a
- 00:13:35lot of product design it's a lot of
- 00:13:36hurry and weight where you do these
- 00:13:39Sprints of work where you're
- 00:13:40hyperfocused on something like all right
- 00:13:42I got to finish this iteration of this
- 00:13:44prototype and then it's off to
- 00:13:45manufacturing to make the Prototype and
- 00:13:47you might have to wait a couple of weeks
- 00:13:48before you get it back so what I do in
- 00:13:51those lull times is I have another
- 00:13:52project to work on I see so I have a
- 00:13:55good handful of projects that I'm just
- 00:13:57juggling very slowly
- 00:13:59to be able to pause on one and then
- 00:14:02resume another and then pause on that so
- 00:14:05they're kind of in a little bit of a
- 00:14:07relay race and they're just going around
- 00:14:10the track and luckily that just keeps me
- 00:14:11stimulated and it's always fun with
- 00:14:14those types of projects where I did a
- 00:14:16lot of work and I kind of forget about
- 00:14:17it for a couple of weeks and then all of
- 00:14:19a sudden I receive a package and I have
- 00:14:21a physical prototype of something and
- 00:14:22then I get re exting yeah it's exciting
- 00:14:25it's like oh I get to see it and I get
- 00:14:26to touch it and now it's like how can I
- 00:14:29make this better before we launch this
- 00:14:32how can I make this better and then we
- 00:14:33do another Sprint and then maybe more
- 00:14:35prototyping or so it it keeps things
- 00:14:39very engaging for me MH um especially
- 00:14:42because there's something about having a
- 00:14:45tangible physical product versus you
- 00:14:48know all the digital stuff we do on
- 00:14:50screen there's something very rewarding
- 00:14:53and I don't know you start to build a
- 00:14:55lot of energy and excitement towards
- 00:14:57this thing that you're going going to
- 00:14:59launch I won't talk to you so much more
- 00:15:00about the process and the direction in
- 00:15:02which you're going as a content creator
- 00:15:04and also the things that make you super
- 00:15:06excited but I want to take you back a
- 00:15:08little bit I want to talk about a little
- 00:15:10bit about this idea that you had shared
- 00:15:13with us before which was I wanted to
- 00:15:16make sure if I could sustain the living
- 00:15:19I was making before as a salaried
- 00:15:20employee and that's a pretty reasonable
- 00:15:22thing you make money and you think I
- 00:15:25just want to maintain a certain
- 00:15:26lifestyle I don't want to go backwards I
- 00:15:28can if necessary but it starts with the
- 00:15:29question like I wonder if I can and then
- 00:15:32you you leave and you take off tell us
- 00:15:34what happens then yeah I think that
- 00:15:36first year I was making four times my
- 00:15:39salary in in Revenue so that was very
- 00:15:42exciting the following year is not as
- 00:15:44much but I think it's because I had the
- 00:15:46overlap of the job everything at the
- 00:15:48future and then all of this kind of
- 00:15:50momentum coming out of it over the past
- 00:15:53two years I would say things have slowed
- 00:15:55down but in a good way because I have
- 00:15:59been exploring so much in industrial
- 00:16:02design things that I have never done
- 00:16:04before where I'm not producing a video
- 00:16:07that often maybe every 3 months I'm
- 00:16:09producing a video and I think when I
- 00:16:12first had uh left the future I was doing
- 00:16:14at least one every month and each one
- 00:16:16had a sponsor and a lot of that just
- 00:16:18generated a lot of Revenue and income
- 00:16:19for me now because my time is spent
- 00:16:22behind the scenes working and
- 00:16:24documenting stuff not releasing content
- 00:16:28um it's a it's a lot slower but I kind
- 00:16:31of like it I I really appreciate it
- 00:16:34because I'm I don't feel stressed to
- 00:16:35constantly feed this content machine
- 00:16:38it's like it comes out when it comes out
- 00:16:40and luckily I'm still able to maintain
- 00:16:41my lifestyle healthy good uh lifestyle
- 00:16:44and feel very engaged and focused in the
- 00:16:47work that I do where I could give it my
- 00:16:49attention and not feel like I'm spread
- 00:16:51thin let me clarify for the audience in
- 00:16:53case they just missed it because Matthew
- 00:16:54almost glided right over it which was he
- 00:16:57was hoping to make the same amount of
- 00:16:59money and then shortly thereafter
- 00:17:01leaving and doing his own thing taking
- 00:17:03on all the risk and Peter Ducker said
- 00:17:06this in business uh all profit comes
- 00:17:08from risk the more risk you take the
- 00:17:10more profit you have to make that's a
- 00:17:12potential not a guarantee so you go out
- 00:17:14instead of making 1X of what he used to
- 00:17:16make and I know what he was paid so now
- 00:17:17I know how much money he made I won't
- 00:17:19say he made not two times not three
- 00:17:21times but four times as much money in
- 00:17:24the first year so in theory he could
- 00:17:27have taken off the next three years and
- 00:17:29been all right yeah cuz you were used to
- 00:17:31making that kind of money right yeah
- 00:17:32that means you can Coast so you bought
- 00:17:34yourself a lot of freedom and I think
- 00:17:36that's the real meaning of wealth not
- 00:17:38that you have a lot of money but the
- 00:17:39freedom to do what you want and now you
- 00:17:41can say I can earn as much as I want but
- 00:17:45I can do it on my own timetable but
- 00:17:47here's the big question I have for you
- 00:17:49being almost kind of engineered from the
- 00:17:51jump to be a commercial artist you and I
- 00:17:52we went to our Center a place that is
- 00:17:55really well known for creating practical
- 00:17:59skilled designers who can enter into the
- 00:18:00field and make a decent living so we're
- 00:18:03hardwired to work for other people to
- 00:18:05fulfill the creative brief so what
- 00:18:07happens to you what happens to your
- 00:18:08psychology when there is no creative
- 00:18:11brief there is no master everything has
- 00:18:13to come from inside how does that feel
- 00:18:15for you because that's a very very
- 00:18:17radical change from somebody's going to
- 00:18:19tell me like there's a project to do and
- 00:18:21I'm going to work on it versus no more
- 00:18:23projects what am I going to do how how
- 00:18:25was that transition like for you that
- 00:18:27was very refreshing I was getting tastes
- 00:18:30of it along the way right because I was
- 00:18:32doing this stuff nights and weekends
- 00:18:34anyway while I was working at the future
- 00:18:35but even at the future I was
- 00:18:38experiencing some of that a little taste
- 00:18:40of Entrepreneurship a little taste of
- 00:18:43okay you gave me a lot of room at the
- 00:18:45future to just do whatever I want pretty
- 00:18:47much you're like okay make whatever you
- 00:18:49want under this umbrella and just try
- 00:18:52stuff so that was very helpful for me to
- 00:18:55realize okay I have a voice even though
- 00:18:58I'm trying all kinds of different things
- 00:19:00and I was able to learn I'm a very risk
- 00:19:02averse person I think I told you that
- 00:19:04when I had quit and so it felt very
- 00:19:07calculated to the point where I have
- 00:19:09confidence that if I leave you know
- 00:19:11things will be good for a while you know
- 00:19:14and ever since I left I feel that same
- 00:19:17confidence where I'm just existing in
- 00:19:20the world day to day and I kind of look
- 00:19:22around and all I see are possibilities I
- 00:19:24don't luckily I don't have to worry
- 00:19:26about the money I don't have to worry
- 00:19:27about necessarily when the next video is
- 00:19:30coming out like I do have timetables and
- 00:19:32stuff like that but I'm not stressed
- 00:19:34about it's not occupying my mind where
- 00:19:37with a client you know there's weekly
- 00:19:40deadlines you know bi-weekly deadlines
- 00:19:42things that come up all the time so that
- 00:19:45change of pace was actually very
- 00:19:48refreshing for me because I just create
- 00:19:51my own deadlines to a degree and luckily
- 00:19:54things are still happening so I'm I
- 00:19:56don't know I'm very grateful I'm very
- 00:19:58blessed that the universe is I feel is
- 00:20:00like whispering in one ear and I'm able
- 00:20:02to kind of flow with with all of that
- 00:20:04currently so what you're saying is had I
- 00:20:06kept a tigh of rope on you all gave you
- 00:20:08strict deadlines and kept being the
- 00:20:09Taskmaster you might not have tasted the
- 00:20:12freedom that's right and then you're
- 00:20:13like I'm not leaving I don't know what
- 00:20:15that's like but it's a smooth transition
- 00:20:17honey I screwed up I told the mess up
- 00:20:19the company by giv everybody so much
- 00:20:20Freedom that's the thing that we talk
- 00:20:22about though I remember this and you've
- 00:20:24you've been pretty instrumental and
- 00:20:25shaping a couple like big seismic
- 00:20:27changes within my own thinking the first
- 00:20:30time I can't recall all of them but I
- 00:20:32remember one right now because you're
- 00:20:34like Chris what if we just focus on
- 00:20:36doing just the Future No More blind
- 00:20:38service work and it took me a beat I'm
- 00:20:41like okay let's try cuz we were doing
- 00:20:45the math and the logic when we let's say
- 00:20:48book a $600,000 job you're not keeping
- 00:20:50600,000 you might keep
- 00:20:5210050 but then the rest of the year
- 00:20:54you're just burning that 150 down to
- 00:20:55nothing because we're not doing another
- 00:20:57project right you're just keep keeping
- 00:20:58the machine going at at a point you do
- 00:21:00kind of get caught up in in just the
- 00:21:02cycle of sustaining yourself so your
- 00:21:05framing of the question meant if we
- 00:21:06launched an educational product because
- 00:21:09isn't super expensive for us to produce
- 00:21:11we could make 100,000 or 200,000 but
- 00:21:14almost all of it would be profit and the
- 00:21:16the good news is it's IP it can it
- 00:21:19hopefully is a perennial seller and it
- 00:21:21can generate long-term Revenue but it's
- 00:21:23building a library of stuff and that
- 00:21:25kind of surprisingly just messed my
- 00:21:27brain up in the very best ways and so I
- 00:21:29do appreciate you saying things like
- 00:21:31that and so you kind of made me sense
- 00:21:33this other idea but I want to get back
- 00:21:35to the thing that we were just talking
- 00:21:36about which was when we worked for
- 00:21:39someone agencies there's always a master
- 00:21:42there's always a client and then we
- 00:21:43started doing content for ourselves
- 00:21:45which was radically different I remember
- 00:21:47slowly inviting each and every one of
- 00:21:48you into the the the circle whatever
- 00:21:51that is to taste the freedom yeah what
- 00:21:53we realize is when you open the gate the
- 00:21:55chickens run they don't want to go back
- 00:21:57in the cage and I'd ask you guys despite
- 00:21:59investing almost all of your Creative
- 00:22:01Energy up until this point in developing
- 00:22:03a professional re to do work for clients
- 00:22:05mhm to the man to the human you're like
- 00:22:08we don't want to go back MH even if it
- 00:22:10means this is weird undefined and it's
- 00:22:12not as sexy there aren't big Brands
- 00:22:14attached to it we just don't want to go
- 00:22:16back take me through a little bit of
- 00:22:17your thinking then when when that door
- 00:22:19was open and how it felt because not
- 00:22:21only you but Greg and others were like
- 00:22:23yes we don't want to go back yeah I
- 00:22:25think for me again I I just had full
- 00:22:28full confidence a lot of that um is owed
- 00:22:31to you and and how you've helped me see
- 00:22:35possibility and kind of focus on the
- 00:22:38abundance mindset rather than scarcity
- 00:22:41right so the whole time I always felt
- 00:22:44like we could always go back to that so
- 00:22:47I felt like we had a safety net so I
- 00:22:49didn't fear trying new things it was
- 00:22:52more exciting because you know that fear
- 00:22:54and excitement feels the same in your
- 00:22:55body right how you look at it determines
- 00:22:58which when you're actually feeling and
- 00:23:00for me it was mostly excitement it's
- 00:23:01like this is New
- 00:23:03Territory what will this reveal for us
- 00:23:07so I think about it almost like you're
- 00:23:09going into a a dark room no lights are
- 00:23:13on and you have a flashlight and you're
- 00:23:15flashing the light around and slowly but
- 00:23:18surely you know you're starting to
- 00:23:20reveal parts of the room you're starting
- 00:23:21to see and you're starting to understand
- 00:23:23what it is that's there you might walk
- 00:23:24in and you might bump your knee on
- 00:23:26something and that might hurt but you
- 00:23:28know that it's there right and the more
- 00:23:30you spend in this dark room the more you
- 00:23:32kind of feel where's the edges how big
- 00:23:34this room is what's actually in here and
- 00:23:36it felt like so much possibility at the
- 00:23:39time when we were starting the future
- 00:23:40when we were building the future because
- 00:23:43there was so many possibilities where we
- 00:23:45could take it what does the content look
- 00:23:47like what are we going to focus on what
- 00:23:48format does it take right that's one
- 00:23:50Avenue what products does that lead to
- 00:23:53what products can we develop what are
- 00:23:55things that we do every day that we
- 00:23:57might take for granted but could be
- 00:23:58valuable to somebody else that could be
- 00:24:01a source of content or product and then
- 00:24:04what about events we have all this
- 00:24:05physical space how do we use it how do
- 00:24:08we engage the community so all of these
- 00:24:10things were brand new versus all of the
- 00:24:14advertising work that we had been doing
- 00:24:15to that point it was I knew it like the
- 00:24:18back of my hand I knew what was going to
- 00:24:20happen in every single project it it was
- 00:24:22just a well oiled machine right and even
- 00:24:24though the work was fun and beautiful it
- 00:24:27just felt like doing the same thing over
- 00:24:29and over and it was nice to try
- 00:24:31something new okay let's take us now
- 00:24:34kind of more into present day when
- 00:24:36you're when you've got your own channel
- 00:24:38out you're exploring brain deals is how
- 00:24:40you make money and the videos get so
- 00:24:42many views that it's exposing it to so
- 00:24:44many folks that's great then what was
- 00:24:47the thing that led you to the first
- 00:24:48moment when you're like I I think I want
- 00:24:50to develop some products how did that
- 00:24:51come about and why did you decide to go
- 00:24:53down that path I owe a lot of My Success
- 00:24:57to people seeing things in me that I
- 00:25:01couldn't see for myself I think you saw
- 00:25:04that in me a lot of my instructors from
- 00:25:06the past as I was going through
- 00:25:07education always kind of pushed me
- 00:25:10beyond my capacity or what I felt um
- 00:25:13comfortable in and as soon as I had quit
- 00:25:16my job at the future which I made a
- 00:25:19public announcement about that you know
- 00:25:21all kinds of conversations started
- 00:25:23happening a lot of them were job offers
- 00:25:25and I'm like thank you I appreciate that
- 00:25:27um but not right now like I I owe it to
- 00:25:29myself to just have downtime do a little
- 00:25:31bit of a sabatical and some soul
- 00:25:33searching and see what happens but one
- 00:25:35of those conversations that came along
- 00:25:38was my friends over at grovemade they
- 00:25:40make desk accessories and they're based
- 00:25:42out of Portland they had been sponsoring
- 00:25:44and helping out my channel in various
- 00:25:46ways over the years so i' had been
- 00:25:47developing a relationship with them for
- 00:25:49about three years at that point and they
- 00:25:52asked me hey would you like to develop a
- 00:25:55product with us I highly respected them
- 00:25:57at that point I love the goods that they
- 00:25:59make and because they were inviting me
- 00:26:02into this process I was very excited to
- 00:26:05join just like I was explaining right
- 00:26:07before new things excite me new problems
- 00:26:10even though it can be a little scary I
- 00:26:11don't see it that way I see it as as
- 00:26:13pure possibilities I don't know what
- 00:26:14it's going to lead me to but I'm open to
- 00:26:17take the ride and see where it takes me
- 00:26:19so that was a two-year Journey with them
- 00:26:22of doing a little kind of Investigation
- 00:26:25doing a little bit of just exploring
- 00:26:28what
- 00:26:29products it could be they visited me a
- 00:26:30couple times I visited them and over a
- 00:26:33two-year process we developed a product
- 00:26:35that we called the not taking kit which
- 00:26:37is just a way to help you capture store
- 00:26:39and recall your ideas and that was an
- 00:26:42amazing process to me because I got to
- 00:26:44watch Masters at work something that I
- 00:26:48felt like I knew nothing about was
- 00:26:51always curious about uh cuz I love
- 00:26:54learning about how things are made and I
- 00:26:57was just a sponge in that situation I
- 00:26:59gave what I could as a designer as my
- 00:27:01perspective and I think one of the
- 00:27:03reasons why they worked with me is
- 00:27:04obviously because of my content and they
- 00:27:06like the perspective that I had and they
- 00:27:08felt there was alignment there and even
- 00:27:10though I didn't have any experience in
- 00:27:12industrial design or designing products
- 00:27:14they valued my opinion and perspective
- 00:27:16so they invited me into that process and
- 00:27:18that's really what set me off um down
- 00:27:20this path there was a lot of obvious
- 00:27:22synergies between the kinds of DIY Home
- 00:27:25Improvement aesthetic things that you're
- 00:27:26doing that would make a lot of sense for
- 00:27:28Grove May to kind of sponsor you and is
- 00:27:31being fans to the channel this is the
- 00:27:33power of I guess inbound content content
- 00:27:36marketing where you attract the kinds of
- 00:27:38people who have shared ideas or
- 00:27:40philosophies as you you're not actively
- 00:27:43chasing them down ultimately instead of
- 00:27:45chasing you're choosing who you want to
- 00:27:47work with and I know you're very
- 00:27:48particular as to who you align with and
- 00:27:50kinds of things that you'll talk about
- 00:27:52and never do I get this feeling from you
- 00:27:54like I'm going to take this because it's
- 00:27:55a cash grab in fact you're quite the
- 00:27:57opposite like I'm not sure that's a good
- 00:27:59fit for me and I think making smart
- 00:28:01decisions like that have allowed you to
- 00:28:02grow in the way that you want to line
- 00:28:04yourself with a partners that actually
- 00:28:06contribute to your own growth and for
- 00:28:07them seeing that within you to say hey
- 00:28:10and I can see it from their point of
- 00:28:11view man we got this guy who can make
- 00:28:12Banger videos so whatever he touches
- 00:28:15it's going to get a lot of eyeballs on
- 00:28:17the next Evolution to that relationship
- 00:28:19is why don't you develop a product and
- 00:28:22then we already know you're going to be
- 00:28:23able to tell a great story behind it and
- 00:28:25get lots of views so there's a natural
- 00:28:27built-in marketing device that's feels
- 00:28:30very organic to who you are I think if
- 00:28:32I'm not mistaken you guys want to visit
- 00:28:34me at the studio we're still in pandemic
- 00:28:38I think we're all masked up and we're
- 00:28:40talking about things and you're doing
- 00:28:41some user research right is same same
- 00:28:44people yeah same okay so even then you
- 00:28:46were still working despite certain
- 00:28:48limitations and figuring it out MH okay
- 00:28:50so one one Journey one door opens you go
- 00:28:54through that another door opens another
- 00:28:55door opens and yeah I don't know if you
- 00:28:57ever get this feeling
- 00:28:58cuz I do do you ever get the moment
- 00:29:00where you're like is this a dream I'm
- 00:29:02living because how is this happening for
- 00:29:04me right now and if you do can you tell
- 00:29:07me a little bit about that experience or
- 00:29:08if you don't that's okay too yeah no I I
- 00:29:10feel that way every day every time I
- 00:29:12pause and think about what it is I'm
- 00:29:14doing you know I I I just reflect on how
- 00:29:18grateful I am to be in this position to
- 00:29:21be doing the things that I'm doing to
- 00:29:24have the creativity the body and
- 00:29:25everything that I'm doing like my health
- 00:29:28wealth and luckily just being able to
- 00:29:31express my creativity in these forms and
- 00:29:33fashion I'm grateful for that every day
- 00:29:36and I I reflect on that often so I do
- 00:29:38feel like it's a dream it doesn't make
- 00:29:40sense sometimes I I I look back it's
- 00:29:42like how did this happen how did this
- 00:29:44even happen but then I tried to
- 00:29:46rationalize I was like actually it makes
- 00:29:48perfect sense and it's this weird kind
- 00:29:50of dichotomy of going back and forth of
- 00:29:54I'm so grateful do I even deserve this
- 00:29:56and it's like of course it makes perfect
- 00:29:57sense you you did all this hard work and
- 00:29:59all of these dots
- 00:30:00connect there you are let's take a quick
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- 00:30:51okay back to you Chris Matthew I agree
- 00:30:53with you we can simultaneously live in
- 00:30:56this dual state where we're like what
- 00:30:58the fud is happening but this is the
- 00:31:00residual of all this planning and
- 00:31:02preparation and so people tell me like
- 00:31:04hard work and preparation increases the
- 00:31:07surface area of luck to happen and it's
- 00:31:09like there's more opportunities for luck
- 00:31:11to hit you've done all that work now I
- 00:31:13want to get to the super exciting part
- 00:31:16you are developing a line of keyboards
- 00:31:19and other accessories so the the
- 00:31:20accessories getting more complicated now
- 00:31:22it used to be things with almost no
- 00:31:23moving parts and now there's lots of
- 00:31:25moving parts and I remember I was
- 00:31:27chatting with with one of our friends
- 00:31:29and colleagues Ben Burns who I think
- 00:31:32introduced you to Mechanical keyboards
- 00:31:34yeah that's right yeah like I have 100
- 00:31:36of like you're insane you guys have a
- 00:31:38sickness both of you and then I'm
- 00:31:41looking at him like I appreciate the
- 00:31:42video I appreciate all the clicky Clocky
- 00:31:45sounds and my son is super addicted to
- 00:31:47these things well you guys are crazy I
- 00:31:49just need a keyboard that works and then
- 00:31:51I find that there's a launch happening
- 00:31:53then I'm asleep not literally but and I
- 00:31:55check in I'm like hey I'm ready to buy
- 00:31:57it it's sold out like seconds it felt
- 00:31:59like right it was gone in a minute it
- 00:32:01was like what so I messaged you and
- 00:32:03you're like hey Chris I'll build one for
- 00:32:05you cuz what I don't even realize is you
- 00:32:07don't just order you got to build it
- 00:32:09yeah but that's when I tapped out I'm
- 00:32:11like dude I cannot solder it's too much
- 00:32:13I like this I can appreciate it but I
- 00:32:14can't and you did me one one further
- 00:32:16where like let's talk it through I'll
- 00:32:19build it for you and then I get this
- 00:32:21really beautiful and it weighs a ton and
- 00:32:23you know there's a thing about weight
- 00:32:24and quality the sense that the heavy
- 00:32:26things are built better mhm and I'm
- 00:32:28using it at the first I'm like I miss my
- 00:32:30full size keyboard and everything I'm
- 00:32:31using it I'm using it it's like it it is
- 00:32:35highly addictive and soothing to use a
- 00:32:38mechanical keyboard that's been tuned to
- 00:32:41exactly what you need and want MH and
- 00:32:43now I feel like I'm going to go down a
- 00:32:45dark Rabbit Hole or something which you
- 00:32:47I think was introduced to and fell down
- 00:32:48yourself right yeah yeah so for people
- 00:32:50who don't understand this why the heck
- 00:32:53would anyone want a keyboard that's hard
- 00:32:56to get that takes hours to build it may
- 00:32:59not even go right because you're like
- 00:33:00hey you got to test everything right why
- 00:33:02would people want that it describe that
- 00:33:03feeling to them that Joy yeah I I think
- 00:33:07a lot of folks like to Tinker and
- 00:33:10sometimes that's building and restoring
- 00:33:12an old car sometimes that's doing a DIY
- 00:33:14project sometimes that's working on a
- 00:33:16puzzle while you're drinking wine at
- 00:33:17night to Wine down and to me keyboards
- 00:33:20are very similar to that I got
- 00:33:22introduced to keyboards about three
- 00:33:24years ago maybe four years now and I had
- 00:33:27built out everything in my home that I
- 00:33:29could possibly bu be building and I ran
- 00:33:32out of stuff to Tinker with and so this
- 00:33:34had just come at the right time I was
- 00:33:35like okay mechanical keyboards give me
- 00:33:37the parts I'll kind of figure this out
- 00:33:39so it's intimidating at first because it
- 00:33:41can be overwhelming like anything new
- 00:33:43but once you build one keyboard you get
- 00:33:46to experience it and you get to break it
- 00:33:48down and modify it and build it again
- 00:33:51and then build it again and then maybe
- 00:33:52you buy a second keyboard and build it a
- 00:33:54different way and you'll realize that
- 00:33:56depending on the design of it the
- 00:33:58engineering of it what switches you use
- 00:34:00what key caps um you can change the
- 00:34:02aesthetic sound and feel so it just
- 00:34:05there's a lot of possibilities that you
- 00:34:07can explore within a custom mechanical
- 00:34:09keyboard that makes it very fun if you
- 00:34:12like to Tinker and then the nice thing
- 00:34:14is you get to use it as a device for
- 00:34:16your computer and I do a lot of writing
- 00:34:18I do a lot of stuff on the computer so
- 00:34:20it's it's a joy to type on for me so
- 00:34:22it's it's fun to to build these and then
- 00:34:25get to use them after I think industrial
- 00:34:27designers the really on obsess over
- 00:34:29every little nuance and detail from the
- 00:34:32reaction time to the noise it makes how
- 00:34:34squishy it is just the amount of
- 00:34:36resistance and you describe certain
- 00:34:38things to me that I just couldn't get
- 00:34:40until you start to use it often times
- 00:34:41when you type on a a Mac keyboard
- 00:34:44because of the scissor spring or
- 00:34:46whatever they've got in there I'm never
- 00:34:47sure like did I hit it and I have to
- 00:34:49stop and check no I hit it and you keep
- 00:34:51going but with the mechanical keyboard
- 00:34:53the one that you set up for me it has a
- 00:34:55resistance point so it can be it's
- 00:34:58harder to accidentally hit it so you can
- 00:35:00hover over it but then you really have
- 00:35:01to push it and you feel the resistance
- 00:35:02and there's a little bit of change and
- 00:35:04when you told me about it when I went to
- 00:35:06use it I'm like oh I now know what
- 00:35:07you're talking about so there's
- 00:35:09something very gratifying knowing very
- 00:35:11well I did what I did and I don't have
- 00:35:13to worry that I didn't do what I did and
- 00:35:16I know that sounds stupid until go get
- 00:35:18yourself mechanical keyboard it's like
- 00:35:19crap guys it really is it's it's a fun
- 00:35:21tactile experience and then there's just
- 00:35:23a nice kind of kinetic energy that you
- 00:35:25connect with when you're you're typing
- 00:35:27and I don't know it does get very
- 00:35:30addicting so tell me a little bit if you
- 00:35:32can about the business structure of this
- 00:35:34because people are listening cool cool I
- 00:35:36got a channel doing brand collabs I'm
- 00:35:38having products designed so correct me
- 00:35:41if I'm wrong it's your concept you
- 00:35:42designed it you spec everything they
- 00:35:44build it and then do you get a piece of
- 00:35:48it how does that work how do you make
- 00:35:49money from doing something like this
- 00:35:51yeah so I've worked with a lot of
- 00:35:53different partners um over the past
- 00:35:55three years and they all kind of break
- 00:35:57down down a little differently but
- 00:35:59usually what happens is I enter in as a
- 00:36:02designer and my role as a designer
- 00:36:04sometimes is very minimal where aspects
- 00:36:07of the product are already figured it
- 00:36:09out are figured out and I'm there
- 00:36:11selecting very particular you know
- 00:36:13materials or colorways and then other
- 00:36:15times like the keyboard The Encore
- 00:36:17keyboard they just give me cart blanch
- 00:36:19we we kind of do a kickoff call and they
- 00:36:22say here's what we would like it to be
- 00:36:24and I say yep I'm align there and then
- 00:36:27they're they just say go and then so I
- 00:36:29design it from scratch I kind of pass it
- 00:36:31back and forth with them cuz I'm not an
- 00:36:32expert in building any of that stuff I
- 00:36:34had to learn CAD modeling had to learn a
- 00:36:36lot of these things along the way and
- 00:36:38luckily my partners at mode were just
- 00:36:41very gracious in teaching me things that
- 00:36:43um I didn't know before so where there's
- 00:36:47moments of a lot more authorship or I'm
- 00:36:48taking a lot more risk that's where I
- 00:36:51would get more of the pie so with a lot
- 00:36:53of these products that I've worked on I
- 00:36:55usually get a royalty percentage as as
- 00:36:58the designer of the product so as long
- 00:37:00as we're selling the product I'll get a
- 00:37:02cut of that thing and um yeah it it's
- 00:37:05nice because some of these products I'll
- 00:37:07build once and then we'll do multiple
- 00:37:08runs of those things so then I just keep
- 00:37:10getting the uh royalty payments for
- 00:37:13those so that's that's nice and I've
- 00:37:15learned a lot in the past three years
- 00:37:16and again I've just been side by side
- 00:37:18with a lot of these experts now I'm kind
- 00:37:20of moving into the space where I'm
- 00:37:23wondering could I just do it on all on
- 00:37:25my own do I need the partner and can I
- 00:37:28just take the whole pie and so I'm doing
- 00:37:31a lot of research these days looking for
- 00:37:33manufacturers talking to different folks
- 00:37:36and I'm starting to see the dots that I
- 00:37:37can connect and I'm starting to get that
- 00:37:39excitement again even though it was very
- 00:37:41intimidating at first the reason why I
- 00:37:43partnered with a lot of these um Brands
- 00:37:45to manufacture these things for me is
- 00:37:47because I knew nothing and I just wanted
- 00:37:49to be the sponge in that situation I
- 00:37:51just want to learn now I have a lot more
- 00:37:53confidence where I feel like I know what
- 00:37:55it takes I've done this a couple times
- 00:37:58with the help of experts can I do this
- 00:38:00myself and I I do have that confidence
- 00:38:02and I'm feeling that trajectory is kind
- 00:38:04of pulling me in that direction now so
- 00:38:07you're increasing the amount of risk
- 00:38:09that you're willing to take on and kind
- 00:38:12of learning as you're going to kind of
- 00:38:13figure out what the pitfalls are yeah I
- 00:38:15think I I encourage you to do it there
- 00:38:18is one potential Pitfall which is this
- 00:38:20beautiful lifestyle business you've been
- 00:38:22able to build for yourself will most
- 00:38:24likely be going away yes cuz the minute
- 00:38:26you start taking on an inventory you're
- 00:38:27like now putting money into it there's
- 00:38:29fulfillment customer service so now it's
- 00:38:31a business and you're going to have to I
- 00:38:34I I because I know you as this ethical
- 00:38:36person you can't just ship it and
- 00:38:38abandon it if it doesn't feel like right
- 00:38:41anymore yes you kind of stuck with it
- 00:38:42for a while yes so I'm very aware of
- 00:38:45that and the thing that I've been so
- 00:38:46grateful for and been trying to maintain
- 00:38:48for these past three years is that
- 00:38:50lifestyle yeah where if tomorrow I don't
- 00:38:52want to work on any video content it's
- 00:38:54like I'll just pick up and go and do
- 00:38:56something else and I value that a lot um
- 00:38:59so I I've been meditating on this as I
- 00:39:02inch closer to thinking about this and
- 00:39:04I'm still looking for ways where I might
- 00:39:06be able to leverage somebody else's
- 00:39:08resources to be able to handle the
- 00:39:11things that I might not excel at or want
- 00:39:14to do so I could use something like a
- 00:39:163pl to do my fulfillment for me um what
- 00:39:21is the 3pl a third party Logistics oh
- 00:39:24look everybody knows that about me yeah
- 00:39:26that's like warehous like Amon has like
- 00:39:30they will do all the Fulfillment for you
- 00:39:32so I'm looking at options like that I'm
- 00:39:34just trying to understand the playing
- 00:39:35field I'm trying to understand where
- 00:39:37it's going to hurt and I'm warming up to
- 00:39:40the idea of taking on a little bit more
- 00:39:42of that pain the things that I I don't
- 00:39:44necessarily love doing but I could see
- 00:39:46me getting involved and actually liking
- 00:39:49it so I'm I'm warming up to it I'm not
- 00:39:51fully there yet but like I said earlier
- 00:39:53I'm risk averse and I'm just taking baby
- 00:39:55steps towards uh this direction well if
- 00:39:58the past is any indicator of the future
- 00:40:00I think you're going to do well and
- 00:40:01you'll do all the research the design
- 00:40:03and you'll figure it out I have a couple
- 00:40:05more questions for you one thing I
- 00:40:07wanted to ask you was what's the one
- 00:40:09thing that really surprised you about
- 00:40:12this whole journey and going on your own
- 00:40:14the biggest thing that surprised me when
- 00:40:17I left the future and went on my own was
- 00:40:22what I was able to do after and all the
- 00:40:26things I did after
- 00:40:27after were things I hadn't done before
- 00:40:32so those were that was the most exciting
- 00:40:34thing none of these things were planned
- 00:40:35like I barely know what I'm doing next
- 00:40:37week uh I don't have long-term Vision
- 00:40:40like I don't have a five-year plan or
- 00:40:42anything like that I kind of just listen
- 00:40:44to my intuition and my gut and I really
- 00:40:46let my curiosity and passion just pull
- 00:40:49me as hard as possible so these
- 00:40:52Curiosities when when I left the future
- 00:40:54my goal at the time was to become a
- 00:40:56better Storyteller in whatever form that
- 00:40:59would be and the universe kind of
- 00:41:01answered and our friends over at web
- 00:41:03flow had called me up and they said hey
- 00:41:05do you want to direct a documentary for
- 00:41:06us and I said you know I'm not a
- 00:41:08documentary director but they saw that
- 00:41:11possibility in me and I was like okay
- 00:41:13this is new it aligns with my goal which
- 00:41:15is just to become a better Storyteller
- 00:41:17let me try it in this format and we
- 00:41:19worked on a multi-part series um called
- 00:41:23uh generation no code and that was fun
- 00:41:25that was incredible it was at the time
- 00:41:27we were just inching out of the pandemic
- 00:41:29got to travel I got to meet a lot of
- 00:41:30designers John Saunders who you know
- 00:41:33great guy great people and so that was a
- 00:41:35great um project for me the thing with
- 00:41:39grade getting into product design things
- 00:41:41I had never anticipated for myself I
- 00:41:44never saw myself doing these things yet
- 00:41:46there I was and now something that I'm
- 00:41:49doing now with the keyboards is
- 00:41:50something that turned that started as a
- 00:41:52pandemic hobby uh that I got really
- 00:41:55passionate about turned into products
- 00:41:57and things that I'm making Expressions
- 00:41:59that I wanted to see in the world um
- 00:42:01that I didn't see before so it's just
- 00:42:04amazing what happens when you allow
- 00:42:07possibility to take over and you have
- 00:42:10confidence in the things that you're
- 00:42:11doing there's one thing I wanted to
- 00:42:13highlight real quickly you can respond
- 00:42:15to it or not and then I'll get to
- 00:42:16another question but I think your
- 00:42:18approach to making content is a little
- 00:42:21bit more akin to how Steven Barlett the
- 00:42:23diary CEO person does it there's a lot
- 00:42:25of planning there a lot of research
- 00:42:27there's a lot of AB testing for titles
- 00:42:28and thumbnails before anything is made
- 00:42:31and I admire the amount of energy and
- 00:42:34focus and intentionality you put behind
- 00:42:35your things because I can see it every
- 00:42:37time you drop a video there's Instagram
- 00:42:39posts there's reels and cutd downs
- 00:42:41trailers and all this stuff to drive
- 00:42:43that first a drop number and really
- 00:42:46pushing hard we're a volume kind of
- 00:42:48operation I have an idea we just make it
- 00:42:50there's not a lot of planning or
- 00:42:51thinking things go out we adjust on the
- 00:42:53Fly that's kind of our style but I can
- 00:42:55also really really appreciate them
- 00:42:57amount of focus energy put on it cuz if
- 00:42:59a video doesn't drop for like once a
- 00:43:01month or every other month yeah it's got
- 00:43:03to work otherwise you're like shoot yeah
- 00:43:05you're you're going to wait another
- 00:43:06three months before you see the next
- 00:43:07thing for me right yeah and so I just
- 00:43:09wanted to appreciate and acknowledge
- 00:43:10that so some of you are like yeah I'll
- 00:43:12just start out tomorrow I'll have a
- 00:43:13multi-million viewed video you might but
- 00:43:16you got to put in work I think you could
- 00:43:17get lucky yeah you know each video I
- 00:43:19treat like a lunch yeah so with working
- 00:43:23in the commercial uh advertising space
- 00:43:26we spend many months working on the
- 00:43:28launch usually of a product to announce
- 00:43:30something working at the future working
- 00:43:32with Ben and the folks there when we
- 00:43:34would launch a new digital product it
- 00:43:35was the same thing right we have a hard
- 00:43:37date we have to have all these assets
- 00:43:39and all these points that are all
- 00:43:41pushing down this final different
- 00:43:42messaging point so that there's a lot of
- 00:43:44excitement when it actually drops and I
- 00:43:47think about creating videos in the same
- 00:43:49way it is a launch for me it's a it's a
- 00:43:51big thing it's not just like a casual
- 00:43:53like I'm uploading today it's like no
- 00:43:56this is a launch so I I treat it as such
- 00:43:58okay this one's going to be a little
- 00:43:59harder so take as much time you need to
- 00:44:01reflect on this I'd love for you to
- 00:44:03reflect on this stored career that you
- 00:44:05have working with some of the biggest
- 00:44:06brands in the world and I think it was a
- 00:44:08beautiful way to kind of end one chapter
- 00:44:10to finish a video for Coldplay to do
- 00:44:12this amazing video for for
- 00:44:15Xbox and then now content Now product
- 00:44:18brand deals what are the three biggest
- 00:44:21lessons that you've learned that you
- 00:44:23wish you could tell Matt at 21 they
- 00:44:26could be on any
- 00:44:27it could be about relationships health
- 00:44:29wealth it could be about taking the shot
- 00:44:32earlier or believing yourself or
- 00:44:35grabbing the lion or whatever it is you
- 00:44:36want to say I'd love for you to look at
- 00:44:38the camera and say here are three of the
- 00:44:40lessons that I wish I knew when I was 21
- 00:44:42and just this is your Ted x
- 00:44:44moment I wouldn't change who I was at 21
- 00:44:48I wouldn't change my trajectory at all
- 00:44:51um but I will share the three lessons
- 00:44:53that I've learned I think the first
- 00:44:56lesson that I've ve learned on this
- 00:44:58journey of exploring possibility for the
- 00:45:01past few years is lean into your
- 00:45:04curiosity I think most people are
- 00:45:07surface level curious or they might do a
- 00:45:10Google search worth of something or try
- 00:45:12something on a surface level but never
- 00:45:14go deep enough where they're finding
- 00:45:18interesting novel perspectives or
- 00:45:21viewpoints or information that most of
- 00:45:23the world doesn't have so when you lean
- 00:45:25into your curiosity you discover all of
- 00:45:28these beautiful things that feels like
- 00:45:30you're treasure hunting a lot of the
- 00:45:32projects that I've been on um that
- 00:45:35Curiosity has unpacked so many bits of
- 00:45:38Novel information for me that get me
- 00:45:40excited that get me creating interesting
- 00:45:43features or aspects to the products or
- 00:45:46projects that I'm working on so if you
- 00:45:48lean into your curiosity it's you'll be
- 00:45:50finding treasure all day and when you
- 00:45:52find that treasure then you get to share
- 00:45:55that with the world and that is a big
- 00:45:57filter that I use when I create my
- 00:45:59content which is if it was novel and new
- 00:46:01to me that means it's going to be
- 00:46:03interesting for somebody else so that's
- 00:46:06those are the things that I tend to
- 00:46:07include in my video things that don't
- 00:46:10have that I tend to edit out two other
- 00:46:12things I don't know let me give me a
- 00:46:14second for that one if you want to
- 00:46:16respond maybe that'll give me a time to
- 00:46:19sure I I think the recap on the Leaning
- 00:46:22into your curiosity is it's like what we
- 00:46:24do is we we talk about the t- scale
- 00:46:26where you can know a little bit about a
- 00:46:29lot of things or a lot about one thing
- 00:46:31and it's the Bruce Lee quote I don't
- 00:46:32feel the person is practice 10,000 kicks
- 00:46:34one time but I do fear the man who's
- 00:46:36practiced one kick 10,000 times that
- 00:46:39repetition breeds skill skill breeds
- 00:46:41confidence and then eventually you start
- 00:46:43know those patterns and you can innovate
- 00:46:44from that so follow that and take it to
- 00:46:46the nth degree I always say reach the
- 00:46:48Terminus of what it is that you want to
- 00:46:49get into and that's what I do and then
- 00:46:51I'm bored then move on to the next thing
- 00:46:53move on to the next thing to that point
- 00:46:55moving on to the next thing the second
- 00:46:58thing that I would give advice or
- 00:47:01something that I've learned over these
- 00:47:03past few years is that everything adds
- 00:47:04up so the thing that you're doing right
- 00:47:06now the thing that you're exploring
- 00:47:08right now sometimes people project too
- 00:47:11much in the future and think am I
- 00:47:13wasting my time am I doing this and then
- 00:47:16it's not going to result in any money or
- 00:47:19it's not going to result in a career I
- 00:47:21never look at stuff like that I just
- 00:47:24keep going and some sometimes things
- 00:47:27don't click right away but it might take
- 00:47:30a few years where all of a sudden the
- 00:47:32dots connect and I've experienced that a
- 00:47:34lot in the the past few years where
- 00:47:36there's ideas for things that I've had
- 00:47:39things that I've noticed for products
- 00:47:41but I never had the skills for it fast
- 00:47:44forward a few years later once I've
- 00:47:46learned uh more skills now these
- 00:47:48perspectives and things that I've
- 00:47:50learned features that I've seen
- 00:47:51elsewhere that I've wanted to infuse I
- 00:47:53can express that because I now have the
- 00:47:55tools and dots to connect that I
- 00:47:57previously didn't have before so I think
- 00:47:59everything adds up so don't stress out
- 00:48:02too much about what's going to happen in
- 00:48:05the future I think just focusing and
- 00:48:07doing the thing that you're doing right
- 00:48:09now very well and earnestly is is key
- 00:48:12excellent you got number three yeah
- 00:48:14number three if someone else can do it
- 00:48:17so can you that was the biggest lesson
- 00:48:19that I felt like I'd learned and what
- 00:48:21gave me full confidence to leave the
- 00:48:23future I saw Chris build the future from
- 00:48:26nothing from zero subscribers up to over
- 00:48:292 million now and it was there's
- 00:48:32something to say where if there's
- 00:48:34somebody in your proximity or somebody
- 00:48:35that you can relate to or see and you
- 00:48:38see them build up something all of a
- 00:48:40sudden that possibility becomes very
- 00:48:42clear in your mind and you start to ask
- 00:48:44yourself if they can do it why not me
- 00:48:48and I think seeing people like you and
- 00:48:50seeing other like different content
- 00:48:52creators mature and develop and explore
- 00:48:55different routes over years it gave me a
- 00:48:57lot of possibilities in my mind like I'm
- 00:49:01actually pretty well equipped to tackle
- 00:49:02these things if they can do it why not
- 00:49:05me right and so that was a very big
- 00:49:07lesson so um it's one of the things that
- 00:49:10I'm very appreciative of um kind of
- 00:49:13growing up and maturing so one of the
- 00:49:16reasons why I do the content that I do
- 00:49:18is so that I could show people the
- 00:49:20possibilities if I can figure it out
- 00:49:22from zero you could do it as well and
- 00:49:24that's why I share the things that I do
- 00:49:27two personal questions real quick before
- 00:49:28we get out of here is what's going on
- 00:49:31with your B boy stuff that's the first
- 00:49:33one yeah so I'm still I'm still dancing
- 00:49:36I've been dancing since 1999 so I've
- 00:49:39been dancing for a long time and it's
- 00:49:40been a really big part of my life
- 00:49:43because I discovered dancing at a time
- 00:49:45where I was you know the scrawny 90b kid
- 00:49:48didn't have a lot of confidence but that
- 00:49:51gave me a certain perspective and
- 00:49:52attitude there's there's a whole kind of
- 00:49:54culture and lifestyle that you have to
- 00:49:56be kind of aggressive engaged and and
- 00:49:59expressive that just helped me slowly
- 00:50:02over time build that confidence so that
- 00:50:05was a second life that I kind of
- 00:50:07straddled for a long time and
- 00:50:09interestingly enough over my career I've
- 00:50:11hired and worked with a lot of people
- 00:50:12that I've met through the dance scene
- 00:50:14and a lot of those folks are doing
- 00:50:15interesting things themselves so dance
- 00:50:17is really important to me and I still
- 00:50:19get to practice probably once a week
- 00:50:21with with friends are you doing the
- 00:50:22dance competitions with the crew I I am
- 00:50:25it hurts
- 00:50:27it hurts it's not the same time Catches
- 00:50:30Us catches everybody no one's immune to
- 00:50:32that yeah but I'm not trying to compete
- 00:50:34I'm just trying to be creative all I
- 00:50:35care about is it's it's a form of
- 00:50:37expression for me so I take off all the
- 00:50:39pressure of competition and I just I
- 00:50:41just want to dance hot take you ready I
- 00:50:44don't want you to overthink this one we
- 00:50:45can edit this out if it doesn't work out
- 00:50:47um the Australian be be girl who did her
- 00:50:51thing was she a troll or was she being
- 00:50:53super creative or some something in
- 00:50:55between I think there's a lot of room
- 00:50:58for what she did at the Olympics if I
- 00:51:03think most people just saw that and made
- 00:51:06a headline judgment about dancing in its
- 00:51:09current state if that's all you focus on
- 00:51:12you missed out on all the beautiful
- 00:51:14performances that happened during the
- 00:51:16Olympics and if you think that what she
- 00:51:19was doing was uh trolling then you
- 00:51:22obviously have not spent any time in b
- 00:51:25boy culture and you don't understand and
- 00:51:26up breaking culture and all the room
- 00:51:30there is for creativity so she she took
- 00:51:33a big gamble took her shot and people
- 00:51:36are misinterpreting it I think she did
- 00:51:39her thing yeah I I think she just did
- 00:51:40her thing and I don't I mean that's
- 00:51:43there there's a lot of debate whether
- 00:51:44the breaking should even be in the
- 00:51:46Olympics right but it's a sport if you
- 00:51:48just look at the definition of the sport
- 00:51:51right people competing for entertainment
- 00:51:53I think that's like the most basic
- 00:51:55version of a sport but there's so many
- 00:51:57things like that but with that breaking
- 00:52:00is part art and then part sport yeah and
- 00:52:04for me I'm most interested in the
- 00:52:05creative aspects maybe it's just because
- 00:52:07of where I'm at in my life and the
- 00:52:10competitive stuff that's cool but it it
- 00:52:12doesn't interest me as much I've also
- 00:52:14witnessed you go through some
- 00:52:15Transformations not just in creativity
- 00:52:18design and the expressions of what you
- 00:52:20can do but physically as a student you
- 00:52:23were physically a certain way and then I
- 00:52:25remember there was a summer somewhere
- 00:52:26with you and Chris O'Neal and like
- 00:52:28everybody's trying to get into shape and
- 00:52:29it was like a six-pack competition and
- 00:52:32you got ripped yeah you got ripped where
- 00:52:35are you on your journey to physical
- 00:52:36fitness and all the crazy things you
- 00:52:38could do the flag pole you could do I
- 00:52:40don't know what what do you call that
- 00:52:41thing when you're just floating in air
- 00:52:43with your hands on the on the bar yeah
- 00:52:44that's a flag is that a flag like this
- 00:52:47way not not sideways oh a front lever
- 00:52:49front lever I didn't know the name he's
- 00:52:51showing me how to do the front lever I'm
- 00:52:52like I can't do the front lever can you
- 00:52:54still do the front lever I don't know I
- 00:52:55haven't tried a long time but I work I
- 00:52:57still work out pretty regularly it just
- 00:53:00it's important to me to I think be
- 00:53:03healthy because if my body is healthy
- 00:53:05and my mind is healthy then everything
- 00:53:07just works together and if one thing is
- 00:53:09lagging in your life then it will hurt
- 00:53:12and kind of become toxic to the other
- 00:53:14things so yeah so I'm going just say
- 00:53:15this ladies he's happily married but
- 00:53:17underneath that he's a specimen those
- 00:53:19are words that Mo would use he's a
- 00:53:21specimen we won't ask him to take off
- 00:53:22his shirt right now but we're good we'll
- 00:53:24just assume it's not that kind of show
- 00:53:27that's a different show that's after
- 00:53:28hours everybody subscribe to the channel
- 00:53:30to get that deep cut I'm just kidding
- 00:53:31it's not going to happen you don't have
- 00:53:32to subscribe to anything Matthew if
- 00:53:34people want to keep in touch with you I
- 00:53:36know the the the Instagram account mod
- 00:53:39musings right is there other accounts we
- 00:53:41can follow or yeah where do direct us to
- 00:53:43where we need to go yeah so you can find
- 00:53:45me on all socials at Matthew and Cena
- 00:53:48Matthew and ca.com and then my Design
- 00:53:50Studios modus.com and mod. musings on
- 00:53:54Instagram wonderful I just feel like
- 00:53:56we've had this conversation already
- 00:53:58because I just know you so well but I
- 00:54:00kind of looked in the records like we
- 00:54:01haven't had this conversation so it's
- 00:54:03not recorded no it's never been recorded
- 00:54:04just in my mind this podcast has
- 00:54:06happened many times before I'm glad that
- 00:54:08we got to do it now so now you guys know
- 00:54:10Matthew is alive well he's not buried in
- 00:54:12the desert that's right and he's got
- 00:54:14this whole thriving other career and Arc
- 00:54:16and I can't wait to see what the next
- 00:54:18five years holds for for him and I want
- 00:54:20to say this in closing the future's
- 00:54:22bright the future is expanding and the
- 00:54:24future's in really good hands with
- 00:54:25people like him
- 00:54:28[Music]
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