In today's episode I'm joined by Will Cady, a former professional musician, author of Which Way Is North?, and the former Global Brand Ambassador and creative strategist at Reddit. Will challenges the notion that marketing is a purely analytical pursuit, arguing that its true power lies in something far more intrinsic, human, and even spiritual. He believes the marketer's job is shifting towards creating experiences and context that spark a "light bulb" moment for the audience, all on their terms and in their truth.

In this episode, we dive into how Will bridges the worlds of marketing and mysticism, exploring everything from applying ancient wisdom to modern brand building, to navigating the future of work with a human-first approach. We discuss his core identities—the Maker, Marketer, and Mystic—and how they inform his commitment to uncovering truth rather than just telling lies in marketing. If you’ve ever felt like your marketing strategy should resonate on a deeper, almost mystical level, this conversation is your creative compass.

• [00:00] Intro: The Shift from Analytical Marketing to Creating Experiences
• [01:34] Defining the Maker, Marketer, and Mystic
• [03:00] Finding the Truth: Marketing as a Tool for Alignment
• [04:41] Experience vs. Explanation: The Human Skillset Adjacent to AI
• [08:52] The Marketer's Core: Leveraging Lived Experience for Better Concepts
• [14:50] Cultivating Creative Dexterity and Improvisational Skills
• [19:40] Framework for Clarity: The Seven Directions Meditation System
• [26:48] Transmuting Anxiety into Creative Opportunity
• [29:06] Navigating Career Transitions and Letting Go of Old Identities
• [33:38] The Power of Archetypal Symbols and Connection with Nature

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Ted Harrison, Founder and CEO of Neuemotion, a creative agency servicing Fortune 500 clients with neuroscience-driven video content, joins the podcast.

He is also the author of “Entrepreneurial Creativity: Repeatable Creative Success” and the former Head of Production at Twitter/X, where he built a nine-figure content business. In this episode, we discuss his journey from creative to founder, his unique perspective on personal branding, and how understanding the human brain can revolutionize your marketing strategy.

In this episode, we discuss:

[0:00] The Creative Vulnerability: Why creative people who put an idea out into the world are the most vulnerable people, especially when they are marketing themselves.

[2:26] Portability of Creativity: How his diverse career experiences—from animation in Iraq to leading production at Twitter—led to the realization that creativity is more portable than we often allow it to be.

[4:30] Process Over Ideas: Why the core of creative success is having a repeatable process, not just waiting for “blue sky” ideas to come to you.

[6:40] The Fear of Failure: How to overcome the fear of rejection by operating out of abundance instead of fear, and treating failure not as an end, but as a data point.

[9:59] Strategic Guardrails: The liberating power of creative limits and why having “a map” (like Tolkien creating the map for The Lord of the Rings trilogy) helps, rather than hinders, creativity.

[11:00] Separating Self from Work: The core belief that “We are not the result of our work. The work is a result of us” and how to use this idea to build a personal brand more thoughtfully.

[17:00] Founder-Led Marketing: The current distinction and future separation between marketing Ted Harrison and marketing the agency, Neuemotion, and why founder-led marketing is critical for early-stage startups.

[18:48] The Power of Peers: Why investing in your lateral network (your peers) is just as important as investing in your vertical network (mentors and managers) for long-term career growth.

[26:50] Neuroscience & Attention: The lightbulb moment that led to specializing in neuroscience-driven content, and how a deep dive into context and location explains why certain visual content—like a Spielberg film—captures our attention.

[33:30] Filmmaking and Storytelling: How his background in film school translates into marketing by providing an understanding of basic composition and the science of the three-act structure for effective storytelling.

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Jon Roberts, Senior Partner at the global coaching firm Novus Global, joins the podcast to share the principles elite athletes, CEOs, and top performers use to close the gap between their current reality and their biggest vision.

• [0:00] The Unstuck Framework: Breaking down the three critical components (Vision, Commitment, and Action) you need to master every time you get stuck.
• [1:00] Defining Vision: Why most people feel stuck and why Novus Global defines vision as “a picture of the future that produces passion within you.”
• [5:00] The Power of Commitment: Why commitment is less about what you do and more about who you choose to be in the face of a challenge.
• [10:00] The Be-Do-Have Mindset: Why most of us get the success formula backward, and how flipping the script to Be-Do-Have changes everything.
• [15:00] Overcoming Perfectionism: Jon shares the concept of the “Shitty First Draft“ and how embracing imperfection is the fastest path to progress.
• [20:00] The Cost of Inaction: Why the greatest cost in life isn’t failure, but the emotional and professional price of simply doing nothing.
• [25:00] Transforming Failure: How to use the inevitable roadblocks in marketing and life to sharpen your commitment and accelerate growth.
• [30:00] Final Wisdom: Being stuck is simply being human. The real question is: who will you choose to become in the process?

• Book: Beyond High Performance: What Great Coaches Know About How the Best Get Better by Jason Jaggard, CEO of Novus Global.
• Website: Find more articles, podcasts, and resources on leadership and coaching at Novus Global.

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