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The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Srinivas Rao
1689 episodes
2 days ago

Timeless Practical Wisdom For Living a Meaningful Life

Inspiring stories and practical advice from creatives, entrepreneurs, change-makers, misfits, and rebels to help you become successful on your own terms 


Our listeners say, “If TEDTalks met Oprah you’d have the Unmistakable Creative.” Eliminate the feeling of being stuck in your life, blocked in your creativity, and discover higher levels of meaning and purpose in your life and career. Listen to deeply personal, insightful, and thought-provoking stories from the world’s leading thinkers and doers including best-selling authors, artists, peak performance psychologists, happiness researchers, entrepreneurs, startup founders, artists, venture capitalists, and even former bank robbers. Former guests have included Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin, Justine Musk, Scott Adams, Rob Bell, David Heinemeier Hansson, Elle Luna, Jordan Harbinger Brett Mckay, and Simon Sinek.


Join The Unmistakable Collective


The Unmistakable Collective is a monthly membership for writers, bloggers, podcasters, and content creators that gives you access to workshops, AMA's, and accountability from other like-minded peers to help you accomplish any creative goals! Click here to become a member.



Connect with Us On Social


Twitter: @unmistakableceo

Instagram: @unmistkablecreative


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Society & Culture
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All content for The Unmistakable Creative Podcast is the property of Srinivas Rao and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Timeless Practical Wisdom For Living a Meaningful Life

Inspiring stories and practical advice from creatives, entrepreneurs, change-makers, misfits, and rebels to help you become successful on your own terms 


Our listeners say, “If TEDTalks met Oprah you’d have the Unmistakable Creative.” Eliminate the feeling of being stuck in your life, blocked in your creativity, and discover higher levels of meaning and purpose in your life and career. Listen to deeply personal, insightful, and thought-provoking stories from the world’s leading thinkers and doers including best-selling authors, artists, peak performance psychologists, happiness researchers, entrepreneurs, startup founders, artists, venture capitalists, and even former bank robbers. Former guests have included Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin, Justine Musk, Scott Adams, Rob Bell, David Heinemeier Hansson, Elle Luna, Jordan Harbinger Brett Mckay, and Simon Sinek.


Join The Unmistakable Collective


The Unmistakable Collective is a monthly membership for writers, bloggers, podcasters, and content creators that gives you access to workshops, AMA's, and accountability from other like-minded peers to help you accomplish any creative goals! Click here to become a member.



Connect with Us On Social


Twitter: @unmistakableceo

Instagram: @unmistkablecreative


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Society & Culture
Episodes (20/1689)
The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Donny Jackson: The Internalized Stains of Slavery and Why Empathy Cannot Develop Without Interaction Across Racial Lines
Donny Jackson, poet and psychologist, reflects on growing up as a working-class black kid in Pittsburgh where his father was a postal worker for 35 years and his mother was a nurse's aide—parents who instilled work ethic, integrity, and honor while navigating a world not built for young black children. Jackson traces the roots of American racism to the legacy of slavery where black people started as chattel on unequal footing and never shed that history, creating an internalized stain on both sides of the racial fence. He explains how separate but equal was never true, how tribalism prevents empathy development because it is much harder to oppress someone whose feelings you have taken into account, and why redlining and subtle discrimination in apartment rentals remain part of the disease of living a racialized life. Drawing from Isabel Wilkerson's research, Jackson highlights how FDR-era policies designed to improve American life excluded black people, creating structural racism that takes a toll. He warns that 70 million Trump voters represent at least 70 million reasons to remain fearful even after Biden's election.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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2 days ago
51 minutes 58 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Bjorn Ryan-Gorman: Coming Out as Gay in the Snowboarding World and Reclaiming Masculinity on Your Own Terms
Bjorn Ryan-Gorman, professional snowskater and LGBTQ+ advocate, shares his journey from hiding his sexuality behind aggressive board sports to building a life of authenticity in Portland. Growing up in Montana as a sponsored snow athlete, Ryan-Gorman used snowboarding and skateboarding as outlets for self-hatred and denial, pushing himself to dangerous extremes before hearing a podcast that changed everything. He reveals the complex reactions from family—his mom's unexpected resistance, his dad's surprising embrace, and grandparents who rejected him entirely. Ryan-Gorman explores masculine drag within the bear community, the importance of diverse LGBTQ+ representation beyond stereotypes, and the persistent question that haunts him in rural spaces: Am I safe here? This conversation challenges assumptions about what gay men look like, explores how coming out should be celebrated but not sensationalized, and offers insight into the ongoing struggle of navigating safety, identity, and belonging in America.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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5 days ago
45 minutes 23 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
David Epstein: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
David Epstein, author of Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, dismantles the myth that early specialization is the only path to excellence. Drawing from research on elite athletes, musicians, and scientists, David reveals how individual variability in learning means there is no one-size-fits-all approach to skill development. He reframes the Tiger Woods and Mozart narratives, showing how their success came from internal drive, not just parental pressure. From his own journey—leaving Sports Illustrated to investigate drug cartels—David demonstrates why sampling periods, lateral thinking, and diverse experiences create more adaptable, innovative problem-solvers than narrow expertise alone.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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6 days ago
51 minutes 45 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Ayelet Fishbach: The Science of Motivation, Why Fantasies Fail, and Balancing Abstract Goals with Concrete Plans
Ayelet Fishbach, motivation researcher at University of Chicago, dismantles the fantasy-driven approach to New Year's resolutions and goal-setting. Drawing from data spanning multiple years, she reveals that while temporal landmarks like New Year work for initiating goals, only 20% of people still pursue them by November—the difference comes down to whether you're fantasizing or planning. Fishbach explains how fantasies (envisioning yourself already achieving the goal) actually decrease motivation to send job applications or take action, whereas concrete plans ("I will call my connections, work on my resume, here are the steps") drive execution. She introduces the critical balance between "why" questions (abstract purpose that prevents you from giving up) and "how" questions (concrete steps that enable execution), warning that goals become too abstract when they reach "I want to be happy" and too concrete when you lose sight of why you're doing them. The conversation explores Michael Phelps' visualization strategy (preparing for goggles filling with water, not just winning gold) and why optimism without planning is just delusional fantasy masquerading as motivation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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1 week ago
1 hour 7 minutes 21 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Daniel Stillman: The Architecture of Conversations and Why Every Interface Shapes What We Say
Daniel Stillman, author of Good Talk: How to Design Conversations That Matter, reveals how conversations are designed—whether we realize it or not. Drawing from his background in design thinking and facilitation, Daniel breaks down the components of conversational architecture: openings, turns, power dynamics, and interfaces. He explains why physical and digital spaces fundamentally alter what conversations are possible, how to slow down heated exchanges through pacing and tone, and why the most important conversations we design might be the ones we have with ourselves. From boardrooms to Zoom rooms, Daniel shows how small changes to conversational structure can unlock radically different outcomes.

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1 week ago
1 hour 18 minutes 27 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Dandapani: Mastering Your Mind as an Operating System, Sexual Energy Transmutation, and the Monastic Path to Unwavering Focus
Dandapani, former Hindu monk who lived monastically for 10 years, shares teachings from his guru on treating the mind as an operating system that must be understood before it can be mastered. He explains the critical distinction between a focused life (giving undivided attention to whoever/whatever you're engaged with) and a purpose-focused life (where your life's purpose defines priorities that drive what you focus on). Drawing from Napoleon Hill and his guru's book *Merging with Siva*, Dandapani unpacks sexual energy transmutation—asking: if one sperm created a person who could change the world, what could a million create if that energy were harnessed instead of wasted? He reveals monastic teachings rarely shared: how to sleep, wake, eat, breathe, sit, and shower to put energy back into your body. Dandapani argues that without understanding how your mind works, you can't focus long enough on yourself to achieve self-reflection and discover what you truly want—making intentionality impossible before mastering the fundamental operating system we all carry but were never taught to use.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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1 week ago
1 hour 7 minutes 7 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Cal Newport: Slow Productivity, Escaping Pseudo Productivity, and the Three Principles for Sustainable Knowledge Work
Cal Newport unpacks his framework for Slow Productivity, built on three core principles: doing fewer things, working at a natural pace, and obsessing over quality. He introduces "pseudo productivity"—the toxic heuristic that emerged in mid-20th century knowledge work when visible activity became a proxy for useful effort because traditional productivity metrics (Model Ts per hour, bushels per acre) no longer applied. Newport argues that pseudo productivity was tolerable until the digital office revolution—email, Slack, mobile computing—enabled visible activity to be demonstrated at incredibly high frequency, anywhere, anytime, creating a performance theater that drains actual productive capacity. The conversation explores how to build custom AI systems for daily planning (using GPT models trained on transcripts and book notes), the three levels of working with large language models (training from scratch, fine-tuning, and software intermediaries), and why specialized vertical AI will dominate the next wave of innovation. Newport makes the case for abandoning industrial-era proxies and reclaiming knowledge work as a craft that requires depth, patience, and quality over constant performative busyness.

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1 week ago
1 hour 40 minutes 53 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Alan Stein Jr: The Performance Gap Between Knowing and Doing, and What Elite Athletes Teach Us About Execution
Alan Stein Jr, former basketball performance coach to Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant, and other NBA superstars, reveals why knowledge without execution is worthless and how the world's highest performers bridge the gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it. Drawing from decades working with elite athletes, Stein explains that performance gaps exist in every area of life—we all know we should eat healthier, sleep more, and exercise consistently, but implementation separates good from great. Through stories of Kevin Durant's transformation from a frail 15-year-old with pristine fundamentals to NBA superstar, Stein unpacks the perfect storm required for elite success: physical predisposition combined with high IQ, work ethic, coachability, resiliency, and love of competition. He introduces self-awareness as the foundational requirement for growth—defining it as alignment between how you see yourself and how the world sees you. From his divorce-driven awakening to parenting twin sons with unconditional love while demanding effort and coachability, Stein demonstrates how principles from basketball translate directly to business, parenting, and personal development through focus on process over outcomes.

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1 week ago
1 hour 5 minutes 31 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Christy Tennery-Spalding: Building Political Homes and Redefining Self-Care Beyond Capitalism
Christy Tennery-Spalding, activist and organizer, shares how growing up near Washington D.C. shaped her oppositional stance to power structures and led her to find a “political home” in San Francisco’s activist community. She introduces the concept of informed consent in organizing—ensuring participants feel safe, informed, and empowered rather than treated as bodies in the street. Tennery-Spalding challenges the wellness industrial complex’s version of self-care, revealing how she fell into the trap of “capitalist self-care”—overloading herself with yoga classes, meditation, and clean eating until she burned out from her own self-care routine. Drawing from her experience with severe scoliosis, depression, and PTSD, she advocates for anti-capitalist self-care that questions productivity culture and challenges the belief that our worth is tied to usefulness. She explores how childhood conditioning around pleasing others, performing, and being palatable shapes our relationship with rest, and why sometimes the most radical act of self-care is simply lying down and being intentionally “not useful.”

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1 week ago
48 minutes 12 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Andrew Yang: Universal Basic Income and the Automation Crisis Remaking America
Andrew Yang traces his path from failed entrepreneur to 2020 presidential candidate driven by a single realization: automation has already destroyed millions of American jobs, and the next wave will be exponentially worse. Through his work with Venture for America, he witnessed firsthand the economic devastation in Detroit, Ohio, and the Midwest—where automated manufacturing jobs created the conditions that elected Donald Trump. Yang argues that artificial intelligence will soon eliminate truck driving, retail, call centers, and even white-collar professions like law and accounting. His solution is Universal Basic Income—a $1,000 monthly Freedom Dividend for every American adult, funded by a Value Added Tax on tech companies. He dismantles objections about affordability and work ethic, revealing how the policy would grow GDP by $2.5 trillion, create 4.5 million jobs, and transform America into a human-centered economy before technological displacement pushes society off a cliff.

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1 week ago
44 minutes 31 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Chris Fussell: Systems, Mindset, and Leading at the Edge
Former Navy SEAL and leadership strategist Chris Fussell reveals how elite teams operate under pressure—and how those principles can be applied far beyond the battlefield. Drawing from years of operational experience and his work with General Stanley McChrystal, Fussell explains how systems thinking, decentralized decision-making, and shared consciousness can transform organizations in fast-changing environments. He discusses mindset lessons from SEAL training, the psychology of high-stakes leadership, and how individuals can build internal clarity to overcome fear and act with precision. With insights into decision triage, organizational agility, and the human need for physical, creative, and emotional outlets, this episode offers a rare, deeply personal look at what it takes to lead yourself and others when the stakes are high.

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2 weeks ago
56 minutes 27 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Andrew Bustamante: Inside the Mind of a Spy — Tradecraft, Trust, and the Cost of Secrecy
Former CIA field operative Andrew Bustamante pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to recruit spies, run intelligence operations, and navigate a life built on secrecy, loyalty, and manipulation. In this riveting and wide-ranging conversation, Bustamante shares stories from his military training at the Air Force Academy, his time at “The Farm” — the CIA’s elite training facility — and his years of fieldwork turning foreign agents into assets.He explains how spycraft isn't about glamour or violence — it's about reading people, controlling trust, and gaining influence through empathy and psychological leverage. Bustamante also discusses how operatives are recruited based on “moral flexibility,” why loneliness is built into the job, and how living in the shadows impacts everything from family to friendships.From breaking down the difference between motivation and manipulation to revealing how the CIA targets new recruits, this episode offers a rare, unfiltered look at the human side of espionage — and the psychological toll it takes on those who live it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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2 weeks ago
1 hour 10 minutes 20 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Carlos Adell: From Drug Dealer to Industrial Engineer to Finding True Success Through Strategic Environment Design
Carlos Adell shares his unconventional path from growing up in a small Spanish town with limited resources to running a six-figure drug dealing business while simultaneously working as a DJ and industrial engineer. After nearly dying from a heart attack at 29 while working in corporate, Adell discovered that he had been living other people’s dreams—adopting identities shaped by whoever surrounded him. He reveals the powerful principle that drove both his descent and his redemption: you become who you surround yourself with. Whether it was “bad boys” leading him into crime or successful entrepreneurs inspiring his transformation, Adell learned to reverse-engineer his environment deliberately. Moving to Australia without speaking English, he rebuilt himself from scratch, applying lessons from drug dealing (understanding markets and people) and engineering (systems thinking) to create a life designed for fulfillment rather than external validation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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2 weeks ago
52 minutes 37 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Alison Shcraeger: The Economics of Risk and What a Las Vegas Brothel Taught Me About Uncertainty
Alison Shcraeger, economist and author of An Economist Walks Into a Brothel, explains how risk really works and why most people misunderstand it. From studying sex workers in Nevada to analyzing probability theory, Alison reveals that humans are not naturally wired to process probabilities—but we can learn. She introduces the concept of natural frequencies over percentages, showing how translating 55 percent into 55 out of 100 helps people make better decisions. This conversation explores why probability theory should be taught like reading, how emotion distorts risk assessment, why the past is a flawed predictor of the future, and what economists can learn from industries society prefers to ignore.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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2 weeks ago
45 minutes 46 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
John Epstein: Testing Acast Sync and Update Functionality
This is a test episode to verify that our Acast sync system works correctly. We will upload this episode with a far-future publish date, then update the midroll timestamp to confirm that the PATCH endpoint successfully syncs changes from our local index to Acast without re-uploading the audio file.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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2 weeks ago
51 minutes 45 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Akshay Nanavati: Finding Bliss Through Suffering, Silence, and the Edge of Human Endurance
Akshay Nanavati is not your typical adventurer — he’s a former Marine, a survivor of war-induced PTSD, and a seeker of what he calls the “crucible of suffering.” In this deeply introspective and intensely raw conversation, Akshay explores how pain, guilt, and darkness became vehicles for transcendence in his life. From confronting suicidal despair and alcoholism to dragging sleds across frozen wastelands in Antarctica, Akshay shares why he deliberately ventures into physical and psychological extremes. He talks about the paradox of finding peace in chaos, the value of darkness retreats, the necessity of knowing when to quit, and how pushing to the edge can awaken a deeper meaning in life. This is a conversation about discipline, purpose, and the pursuit of inner freedom through radical self-mastery.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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3 weeks ago
49 minutes 36 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
David Brooks: Seeing People Deeply in a World of Shallow Interactions
New York Times columnist and bestselling author **David Brooks** joins Srini Rao to unpack what it really means to know and see another person — and how our ability to connect deeply has deteriorated in a world dominated by distraction, paradigmatic thinking, and judgment. Drawing from his latest book *How to Know a Person*, Brooks explores emotional architecture, the danger of moral detachment, the layers of trauma and transformation, and the developmental life tasks that shape our identities.Through deeply personal stories — including his own journey through divorce, emotional avoidance, and the workaholic tendencies that nearly derailed his relationships — Brooks offers a rare and unfiltered view of what it means to grow wiser. He shares the practices of “illuminators” who make others feel seen, the humble posture of accompaniment, and how curiosity, patience, and vulnerability are the cornerstones of human flourishing. This is a conversation about becoming unmistakable by showing up as fully human.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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4 weeks ago
56 minutes 45 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Damon Centola: Why Change Spreads from the Edges—Not the Influencers
Damon Centola, sociologist and author of *Change: How to Make Big Things Happen*, dismantles the myth of the influencer and introduces a radically different model of how ideas and behaviors actually spread. In this thought-provoking conversation, Centola explains why change doesn’t come from social media stars with massive followings—but from dense clusters in the network periphery. He explores how weak ties, wide bridges, and network dynamics shape everything from viral movements like Black Lives Matter to behavioral shifts like installing solar panels or quitting smoking. Drawing from decades of experimental research, Centola reveals that most people misjudge what causes change—believing it’s money, recognition, or messaging—when it’s actually subtle cues from peers. He shares how “complex contagions” require reinforcement from trusted networks, not mass exposure, and why virality alone fails to produce lasting impact. Whether you're a founder, activist, or creator, this episode will challenge how you think about social influence, innovation, and what truly drives societal tipping points.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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1 month ago
56 minutes 51 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Jennifer Wallace: Raising Resilient Kids in a Culture That Says They're Never Enough
Jennifer Wallace is a journalist, researcher, and mother of three who set out to answer one of the most pressing questions in modern parenting: *Why do our kids feel like they're never enough — and what can we do about it?* Drawing on insights from her book *Never Enough* and years of reporting, Wallace explains how achievement culture, status anxiety, and social comparison are undermining children's mental health, resilience, and self-worth.In this illuminating and deeply personal conversation, she explores how economic uncertainty and hyper-competitive education systems have created a toxic climate that pushes both parents and children toward perfectionism and burnout. From the myth of elite colleges to the danger of tying love to performance, Wallace makes the case for redefining success around the concept of **mattering** — feeling valued, and adding value to others. She shares practical interventions parents can use, and why adult resilience is a prerequisite for raising healthy kids.Whether you're a parent, teacher, or anyone invested in the next generation, this episode will reshape how you think about achievement, love, and what it truly means to succeed.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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1 month ago
51 minutes 53 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast
Laura Huang: Creating an Edge in a World That Won’t Hand You One
In this powerful and perspective-shifting episode, Harvard Business School professor and author **Laura Huang** shares a deeply human and practical roadmap for transforming disadvantage into advantage. Drawing from her book *Edge*, she breaks down the four-part EDGE framework—Enrich, Delight, Guide, and Effort—showing how each of us can flip bias, reshape perceptions, and build momentum on our own terms.Laura opens up about her experience as the daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, her non-linear path from engineering to investment banking to academia, and the real-world struggles of navigating privilege, expectations, and identity. She tells the story of Dave's Killer Bread as a case study in reclaiming a life shaped by systemic disadvantage. Throughout the conversation, she pushes back on the myth of pure meritocracy, arguing that hard work is critical—but not enough.This conversation will resonate with anyone who's ever felt underestimated, overlooked, or boxed in by other people’s assumptions—and who’s ready to turn that into power.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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1 month ago
1 hour 5 minutes 42 seconds

The Unmistakable Creative Podcast

Timeless Practical Wisdom For Living a Meaningful Life

Inspiring stories and practical advice from creatives, entrepreneurs, change-makers, misfits, and rebels to help you become successful on your own terms 


Our listeners say, “If TEDTalks met Oprah you’d have the Unmistakable Creative.” Eliminate the feeling of being stuck in your life, blocked in your creativity, and discover higher levels of meaning and purpose in your life and career. Listen to deeply personal, insightful, and thought-provoking stories from the world’s leading thinkers and doers including best-selling authors, artists, peak performance psychologists, happiness researchers, entrepreneurs, startup founders, artists, venture capitalists, and even former bank robbers. Former guests have included Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin, Justine Musk, Scott Adams, Rob Bell, David Heinemeier Hansson, Elle Luna, Jordan Harbinger Brett Mckay, and Simon Sinek.


Join The Unmistakable Collective


The Unmistakable Collective is a monthly membership for writers, bloggers, podcasters, and content creators that gives you access to workshops, AMA's, and accountability from other like-minded peers to help you accomplish any creative goals! Click here to become a member.



Connect with Us On Social


Twitter: @unmistakableceo

Instagram: @unmistkablecreative


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.