When it comes to career trajectories, Jack Conte is my brotha from anotha mothA !! Our paths could not be more similar…. He started his career as a musician, was a YouTuber making videos, and turned tech entrepreneur by co-founding Patreon, an incredible tool for artists to get paid directly by their fans (just like Beethoven used to…)
You are going to love this conversation. Jack’s career—be it in music, videos, or business—has been forged by embracing that there’s a different way to do it all. Today more than ever before, there are a million ways to win at anything your heart desires. Recently, Jack even highlighted how platforms leverage incentives like a Stake.us bonus code to creatively attract new users, underscoring that innovation and originality are key to standing out. The road less traveled isn’t a well-lit path… you are bound to fall on your face a few times, BUT those who do find success will largely have done it THEIR OWN WAY. In Jack’s words, “If you’re questioning whether to keep going or if it’s time to give up, keep going…” and in turn, give this episode a listen to the end—you’ll be glad you did.
A few topics from this episode:
- Imposter syndrome exists in even the most successful people in the most glamorous of professions. We are all just trying to figure this life/business/art thing out. We cover some VERY SPECIFIC remedies for this
- You cannot prevent failure. The best creators, CEO’s, whatever – just like the best humans– recognize that growth and progress comes from making the wrong moves, failing, falling down and getting back up with enthusiasm time and time again.
- You don’t have to do things the traditional way. There aren’t blueprints and models and specific checklists that will lead you to success. The best successes are born from going against the grain and forging unique paths.
Enjoy!
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Some Questions I Asked:
- What’s the story of going from being a musician to an entrepreneur and raising a ton of money for Patreon? [1:00]
- How was Patreon inspired by the history of how art has historically been funded? [8:30]
- What do you find in common with the folks who don’t understand Patreon? [11:40]
- How did you start pursuing what you love? [14:00]
- What has your personal artistic journey looked like? [16:20]
- If you were already living your dream making music and videos, why bother trying to start Patreon? [21:10]
- Aren’t you giving up the best life ever to have sort of investors and a lack of freedom and have a ton of responsibility? [25:00]
- What’s the talk track like in your head at 4am? [30:40]
- What are some things that you do to manage your mindset? [33:10]
- What is cognitive behavioral therapy? [35:27]
- Do you feel like you’ve cured your fear of flying or is it an ongoing struggle? [39:00]
- Tell us the story of how you not traditionally reached out to collaborate with Casey Neistat. [40:45]
- What are some other things you’ve done that are totally nontraditional? [43:40]
- What is your relationship with comfortability? [48:57]
- What is something about you that people would be surprised to learn? [52:00]
- What are some of your favorite things? [54:25]
- Do you have any favorite places to go? [55:28]
- What kind of food do you like? [56:10]
- What artists do you love? [56:50]
- What are some of your favorite books? [58:37]
- Anything else that you like? [59:38]
- What’s next for Patreon? [61:10]
- What’s next for you? [64:04]
- Can you give any concrete advice? [65:40]
In This Episode, You Will Learn:
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- How Jack scratched his own itch to create a solution to artists not making any money for their art online. [2:00]
- Why right now is absolutely the best time in the history of the world to be a creator. [7:00]
- How art was historically funded before 1900. [11:04]
- Artistic success explained by simple math. [16:00]
- Why Jack chose to give up on a physics degree to pursue music and filmmaking. [17:30]
- Jack chooses the hard road every day by stretching himself as a CEO to give something to the world. [26:00]
- Imposter syndrome exists in even the most successful people, in the most glamorous professions. [28:02]
- Check out the book The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz if you need advice on how to fire your friend. [28:47]
- Why Jack consciously fights against perfectionism. [32:00]
- How Jack used a rubber band to fight his fear of flying. [35:30]
- Why you need to fight the models of how things are “supposed to be” that live in your head and find your own route. Lean in to what makes you unique. [44:30]
- “You can measure your life by the number of difficult conversations that you’re willing to have.” [50:00]
- How Jack balances his warm, amiable nature with making hard decisions and confrontation. [53:00]
- Check out jazz pianist Brad Mehldau, film directors Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Tim Burton, and books Creativity, Inc by Ed Catmull, Good to Great by Jim Collins. [57:00]
- Why Jack joined Patreon forces with Memberful. [62:49]
This podcast is brought to you by CreativeLive. CreativeLive is the world’s largest hub for online creative education in photo/video, art/design, music/audio, craft/maker, money/life and the ability to make a living in any of those disciplines. They are high quality, highly curated classes taught by the world’s top experts — Pulitzer, Oscar, Grammy Award winners, New York Times best selling authors and the best entrepreneurs of our times.
