Creator Science

Paul Millerd is the author of The Pathless Path, which has earned Paul $325,000 in royalties to date. In the process, Paul turned down a publishing offer from Penguin, one of the major publishers in the industry. Then, in December, Paul decided to double down and produce a new version of The Pathless Path, an ultra-premium hardcover book that is just beautiful. So in this episode, we talk about that decision, the dark side of traditional publishing, the book deal Paul WOULD have taken, and when traditional publishing actually makes sense. → Get The New Hardcover Pathless Path ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Paul's Website / Twitter *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Intro (05:53) Why He Self-Published (08:01) Designing Books Beyond the Obvious (13:13) Money Isn't A Reason to Write (16:54) Book's Success and New Opportunities (20:30) Rejecting Penguin (22:00) Redefining Self-Publishing Potential (25:00) Author Rights and Publishing Deals (30:29) Reviving Unpublished Books (31:33) Publishing Challenges and Opportunities (37:11) Write a Book You Love (39:38) Inside The Pathless Path Hardcover (43:02) Overcoming Doubts, Achieving Success (46:23) Inspired by Steel Brothers (48:43) Direct Sales for Higher Margins (53:04) Amazon Book Bundling Limitations *** RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#182: Noah Kagan — Behind the scenes of writing (and marketing) Million Dollar Weekend → #163: David Moldawer — Diving deep into book publishing with an industry insider *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A few weeks ago, I came across a post on X from a user named Yoni Smolyar. It said, "Posting a video on Instagram every day for 508 days in a row taught me that I never want to do that again." I realized that I had seen and followed Yoni on Instagram, where he has over 190,000 followers. In the process, Yoni built an iPhone app called Brainrot, which had a $10,000 launch that he credits to his social media presence that he built during this daily Instagram posting challenge. In this conversation, you'll hear Yoni's approach to Instagram, what worked for him, why he ultimately says he wouldn't do it again, and why he believes his ex-audience of 20,000 may be more valuable. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Yoni's Website / Instagram / Twitter / Brainrot App / YouTube / TikTok *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) 508 Days of Daily Videos (05:08) Building Habits: A Month In (08:55) From Hesitant Posts to Viral Storytelling (12:35) Documenting My Entrepreneurial Journey (14:07) Speak Your Mind, Hit Record (19:38) Entrepreneurial Journey: Transparency & Growth (21:19) Brainrot: Tackling Phone Overuse (24:42) Overcoming Cringe Through Posting (30:37) Seasons of Steak and Sizzle (32:12) Origins of Social Media Sharing (34:58) Trapped by Public Perception (38:48) Short Form Video's Negative Impact *** RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#275: From ignoring short-form video to 3.5 billion views | Pat Flynn’s Pokémon juggernaut (Part 1)⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today I am sharing an episode between Josh hall and myself. Josh hall is a good friend of mine, a business owner, and a creator here in Columbus, Ohio. His business is all about web design and he has a podcast called Web Design Business with Josh Hall, and I was a recent guest. So this is a conversation with Josh as friends, talking about what I've learned over the last year. Plus as a new father, how that has impacted my work and why it's not all sunshine and rainbows, but definitely a choice I would make 10 times out of 10. Subscribe to Web Design Business with Josh Hall 2024 Year in Review ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Jay Clouse: Creator Science Insights (06:37) Streamlined Video Content Creation (10:52) Balancing Work, Parenthood, and Time (20:42) Entrepreneurship: Survival and Uncertainty (25:37) Reflecting on Event Insights (28:28) Business Books vs. Viral Posts (34:53) Balancing Timeliness and Evergreen Content (37:59) Struggling with Content Switching (46:17) Balancing Priorities and Podcasts (51:55) Balancing Priorities and Passions (58:36) Low-Priced Offers Drive Sales (01:01:00) Scaling Success with Live Ads (01:06:32) Jay: Creator Science Highlights *** RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#270: Being a creator and a parent | Jay-Talking with Jay Acunzo⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2020, Ankur Nagpal sold his course platform, Teachable, for around $250 million. But he knew that the sale would come with a giant tax bill. So Ankur became obsessed with the tax code, and he wanted to make it easier for everyone to legally operate within it. That led him to discover Solo 401(k)s. So he built a new company called Carry that helps you legally keep more of what you earn and invest it the way you want. This podcast is for informational purposes, and not intended to be financial advice. Please consult a financial advisor about your specific situation. → Get Ankur's Free Tax Guide → Sign up for Carry ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Introduction (01:32) Ankur's Crash Course in Tax Law (08:18) Tax Loopholes and Bias (11:02) Solo 401(k) Benefits Explained (14:32) Solo 401(k) Contribution Guidelines (17:46) S-Corp Tax Benefits Explained (20:11) Maximizing QBI Deduction Strategies (23:22) Tax Planning CPA vs Planners (26:29) Solo 401(k) Advantages Explained (31:49) Direct Indexing (32:34) Tax Loss Harvesting Strategy (36:34) Maximizing Retirement Contributions (41:07) Solo 401(k) Tax Planning Deadlines (44:06) Solo 401(k) Setup Guide (46:12) Tax-Saving Strategy Money Markets *** RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#280: How to LEGALLY Protect Your Channel (YouTube Lawyer Tyler Chou Explains) *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before I went on my current podcast guesting hiatus, I sat down with Howie Chan. I met Howie in person earlier this year at Matt McGarry’s Newsletter Marketing Summit. I thought he was fun, friendly, and thoughtful — just like he is in his podcast, Influence Anyone. This podcast is all about applied influence psychology. Each episode, Howie sit downs with experts and practitioners to uncover the hidden psychology that helps you influence yourself (mastering your mindset, habits, and decisions) and get buy-in from others (your team, clients, and audiences.) In this episode, we talk about my recent topic of study: trust. We break down what I’m learning about how trust works, what it looks like to build a trust-first creator business, and why some creators frankly don’t care about that. We also talk about personal branding — Howie dug up a cringe video I made in 2012 — and what I’d do if I were starting over in 2026. Subscribe to Influence Anyone ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Full transcript and show notes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Trust, Branding, and Starting Over (05:39) Sentiment and Expectations Scatterplot (12:01) Declining Trust in Modern Society (19:49) Key Traits of Trustworthiness (24:08) Building Trust Through Consistency (27:37) Trust Over Manipulation (35:18) Think Big, Stay Persistent (40:58) Understand Your Audience Through Interviews (43:37) Understanding Buyer Hesitation (51:06) Pushing for Growth and Goals (55:30) Building Trust to Expand Business (01:00:05) Creating Your Own Path *** ASK CREATOR SCIENCE → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Submit your question here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** WHEN YOU'RE READY 📬 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Science Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🚀 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get CreatorHQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (creator operating system) 🧪 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join The Lab⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (private membership community) 🧞‍♂️ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get a Personalized Offer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** CONNECT 🐦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect on LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📹 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** SPONSORS 💼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠View all sponsors Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices