Stay ConnectedThe Side Hustler’s Perspective Podcast is fuel for your mind and creative grind.
Each week, Coach Scotty Russell puts you in a position to get paid to play creating work that lights you up…
All while navigating a day job, family life, the inner critic, and more.
This is for those who want to master the art of healthy hustling while growing their creative business.
You can follow Scotty on Twitter @ScottytheCoach and IG @CoachScottyRussell for all things coaching and art.
Copyright: © All Rights Reserved 2020
Brooke Robinson of Goodtype on Connecting with Yourself to Find Your Art
"Some things are better off not being spread too thin: you and peanut butter."
I couldn't find the owner of this quote, but it definitely hit home as someone who loves peanut butter and piles too many things on my plate.
We love to be busy—at least I do. Often, when we're busy, we focus on the wrong things and tend to fall short of the essentials like self-care.
It's important to unplug and connect with ourselves. Doing so not only helps us become more self-aware and grow, but it spills over into our creative grind and business pursuits.
Today's guest is someone who knows how to unplug and squeeze the most juice out of life.
She's also a spark plug for thousands of people by providing them confidence, connection, and community.
I'm talking about my good friend Brooke Robinson, the wizard pulling the strings behind the giant lettering Instagram account and global community Goodtype.
Brooke has an inspiring story: she stayed at a day job too long and then made the leap to take Goodtype full-time. She does this all while still making time for murals, travel, relationships, and mental/physical fitness.
In today's episode, Brook dishes out sage wisdom on:
She's also doing a killer fundraiser through Goodtype for the Flatwater Foundation to raise money for mental health support for individuals or families dealing with cancer.
She goes more in-depth in the episode, but if you want to learn and support, the link is in the show notes.
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Musketon on Passion Projects, Pushing Your Limits, & Adobe Illustrator
Often, as creatives, we take things too seriously and forget why we got started doing this in the first place.
We get obsessed with social vanity metrics to fuel our worth. Our happiness is often gauged by analytics and performance.
At the end of the day, we can’t lose sight of how much fun it is doing work that lights us up. We can still keep that artistic play and curiosity at the core, but implement some strategy behind it when hitting publish.
As my friend Michael Fugoso AKA The Fugstrator says, “Think like an artist, but execute like a designer.”
Today’s guest is someone who uses passion projects to push his limits and attract new work. He treats his work like play, which leads to working with massive brands like Nike, Hypebeast, Mazda, MTV, and Coca-Cola.
I’m talking about Bert Dries, a guru when it comes to all things Vector and Adobe Illustrator.
Today, Bert and I cover topics like:
He’s also an open book and loves to share what he knows, which is why I want to hype his Skillshare class he recently came out with—his process of how to Design with Textures in Illustrator.
If you’re needing a little extra fire to push yourself and your work to the next level, then this ‘sode with Musketon was made for you.
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The Motto: You Got This
If you happen to stick around to the end of each episode, you know I sign off with "Keep showing up, keep putting in the work, and keep creating—you got this."
This phrase originated from having internal dialogues in my head—and I promise you I'm not crazy.
It's no secret that I'm a big believer in affirmations and positive self-talk. The inner critic in me is alive and well, and I have to do my part each day to shout over its negative and draining influence.
If you're like me, you struggle with the comparison trap.
There's always someone who has what you desire: a better financial situation, more followers, killer clientele, better physical appearance, etc. Operating from this mindset of lack—instead of abundance—can really fuck you up.
Comparison has robbed me of so much joy in my life and has severely damaged my confidence on multiple occasions.
"You got this" is the motto. It's my battle cry to fight back and keep pushing forward along my creative path.
It's the motto I need to get back up to the plate each day and keep swinging after striking out.
Ritual Fuel
Once I began tapping into my potential around the age of 24 through 26, "You got this" became my pre-game ritual before any feat that required a little bit of courage.
It's become my fuel before or during events like:
In the beginning, it didn't have a profound impact on me. However, when I continued to drill it in my head, my brain believed it more and more. I'm to the point, where these words not only ground me, but they empower me and give me confidence that I'll figure it out just like I always do.
You're Not a Worthless Turd
I drop this at the end of each episode in hopes of empowering you and lighting you up with a dose of inspiration. It's hard to do this shit on our own; sometimes we need to know we have someone else in our corner rooting for us and coaching us to become our best selves.
That's why I do the podcast, and that's the person I want to be—the one in your corner when the comparison trap is getting the best of you.
I want to drill this in your head so you can use it as fuel to drown out the inner critic who's trying to convince you that you're a worthless turd.
You're not a worthless turd.
You're a priceless gem in the shape of a glorious slice of pizza, and you were meant to do incredible things.
It's hard to discover your worth if you don't show up and dig deep to reveal your potential gifts.
Keep digging deep, and don't be afraid to shower yourself with positive self-talk. Who cares if people think you're crazy?
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Your Permission Slip to Be Weird
I grew up under the impression that being weird was a bad thing. Being weird got you picked on and bullied. Being normal is what helped you fit in.
I was definitely a weirdo growing up. Getting severely bullied made it hard for me to express myself as I got older.
Popularity and acceptance are what I craved, so I did everything in my power to "blend in" with the cool crowd.
It's funny how the theme has changed now that we're creative adults.
We're told not to lose that child-like imagination.
We're told being weird is a good thing and that showcasing your uniqueness is how you'll stand out.
Back in episode 81, I gave you 3 Super Convincing Reasons to Show Your Weird and Wave Your Freak Flag.
That episode was more of a permission slip for me to dig deep on the weird shit I loved as a kid and the weird shit I love as an immature adult.
After attending Crop Conference last month, some of the biggest juggernauts in the creative realm all touched on this theme of embracing your weird—it just so happens they are all past guests on the podcast as well.
I felt inspired to combine their episodes with my thoughts and go deeper on this weird subject of showing your weird.
Today's episode is now a permission slip for you to connect the dots of your weirdness as a kid with your weirdness as an adult. Of course, I'm dishing out a fun drawing challenge with this to give you something to act on. More details on this at the end.
Let's start with going over the juggernaut speaker quotes from Crop and use those as our foundation.
Crop Conference Fuel
James Victore
During James's keynote, he talked a bit about his book Feck Perfuction. In his book and one of the messages he constantly drives home to creatives is the quote of, "The things that made you weird as a kid make you great today."
This quote formed the theme for today's assignment and got me thinking about all the weird things I loved as the kid and how those weird things influence me today.
You can listen to James back on episode 117 of the podcast.
Jon Contino
Jon Contino's talk was literally titled Born Weird.
He embraces the shit that's made him weird in his past and influenced his style and the person he's become today. A quote that resonates with me the most was when he said, "Creatives get to be weird forever."
He said that shit with so much conviction that it let me know I'm going in the right direction.
You can listen to Jon back on episode 123 of the podcast.
Lauren Hom
Last, but definitely not least, Lauren Hom rocked the stage and dropped some gems about how her passion projects spoke to her inner weirdo.
I'm meshing two quotes into one here when she said, "Embrace your inner weird. The things you love outside of design are the things you should explore in your work."
It got me thinking: how can I incorporate the weird things I loved in the past and in the present and show more of it in my work? Again, more fuel to this drawing challenge I'm giving you shortly.
You can listen to Lauren back on episode 75 of the podcast.
My Past & Present Weirdness
Since I've been back from the conference, I gave myself a little homework assignment to dig deep into the weird shit I was obsessed about when I was a kid.
In no particular order, things I loved as a kid:
The things I love as an immature adult:
When I list out my past and present weird obsessions, I can easily start connecting the dots and see the overlap in my work.
The Future Weird of Perspective-Collective
As I niche down and start the next chapter of Perspective-Collective, there are a few things I'm tapping into as I grow to know more about myself.
My goal isn't to attract and appeal to the widest audience possible like it once was.
In this day and age of social media, people crave an authentic connection to those who aren't afraid to be their true selves in their work—both online and offline.
I realize it's more important than ever to wave my freak flag with pride. Doing so helps me attract the right type of freaks to my tribe who vibe to my own flavor of weird. The rest can unfollow, and hopefully, they'll find their own community of like-minded weirdos.
Waving my freak flag moving forward involves understanding, embracing, and showing those weird things that make me unique from my past and present to shape my future.
That's where this challenge comes to play if you're vibin' to today's message.
The Challenge: Show Your Weird #PCFlashSheet
I want you to create a flash sheet (a collective collage of drawings) of the things that made you weird as a kid and now as an adult.
Use my episode artwork today as an example or search Flash Sheet on Instagram or Pinterest to get a better idea of what I'm talking about.
Tag me on Instagram on both my @prspctv_cllctv and @perspectivepodcast accounts and use #PCFlashSheet to make sure I see it.
That's it! Use color, go black and white, make a photo collage, whatever you want.
I'm hoping today's message and this challenge gets you one step closer to showing up and being your truest, weirdest self—the weirder the better.
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Becca Clason on Dealing with Negative Criticism in a Positive Way
Life is full of ups and downs, but you can’t appreciate the highs if you haven’t dealt with the lows.
We all deal with adversity, but how you respond to it is a true test of your character.
Today, we have someone who responds to adversity with class and finds a spin on her adversity to give some value to her community.
I’m talking about Becca Clason, Tactile Lettering and Stop Motion Artist, blowing minds in collaboration with her husband Josh through their creative production studio So Mighty.
She’s executed work for some of the biggest brands in the world like Starbucks, Target, Twitter, Nordstrom, and American Express. Her story leading up to landing these gigs will leave you feeling inspired.
She’s also the brains behind the Letter West Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, June 5–8 and the Letter West Retreat in Moab, Utah, September 25–28. Swoop a ticket ASAP to connect and learn from some of the best lettering artists in the world.
Today, Becca and I also go deep into topics like:
If you’re feeling stuck and uninspired, this episode with Becca was made for you.
Enjoy This Episode?
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Today's episode is an in-depth resource to help lettering artists grow an Instagram audience and potentially land client work.
Don’t worry if you’re not a lettering artist, there is so much value in here that no matter what medium or style you create in, this can help you grow an audience and elevate your craft.
Instagram Lettering Tips
The following are the 6 tips I cover in the blog post / episode.
Yes, these tips will this help you develop your craft and grow an audience. More importantly, it'll help you stand out and land work doing what you love.
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If you enjoyed and found this episode value, I need your help spreading it! Please, share a screenshot or video of the episode you're listening to and tag me on Instagram at @prspctv_cllctv and @perspectivepodcast—and let’s connect.
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Ben Johnston on Murals 101 & Creating Good Work That Makes an Impact
Have you ever had one of those jaw-dropping moments mid-scroll on social media because someone’s work was so incredible and unique?
Those are the people to watch closely. They are the ones who are raising the bar and pushing everyone industry to up their game.
I originally picked my jaw up off the floor a few years back when our guest’s work showed up on my Instagram feed. I find myself constantly prepared to hold my jaw in place when he drops something new.
I’m talking about my homie Ben Johnston who’s a Goliath of painting murals and canvases or designing branding and installations.
His mind-bending experiments speak volumes as big brands like Nike, Google, Toronto Raptors, and Aston Martin have come knocking on his door for his one-of-a-kind services.
Today, Ben and I chop it up over:
If you’re looking to get started with murals or need a fire lit under your ass to push your work to the next level, then Ben has you covered in this episode.
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If your social media game is boring, and your audience growth and engagement is basically non-existent...then we have on the perfect guest for you.
We have the insanely talented, introverted, cat-and-coffee loving lettering queen Elizabeth Gray of @TheGrayterGood on the show today to share her story. She’ll also blow your mind with her unique approach to building her online empire with a following of approximately 150k when this was recorded.
Today Elizabeth and I break down:
If you’re ready to dig deep into embracing and showing your true self in your work to attract like-minded souls in your tribe, then this episode was put into the universe for you.
If you enjoyed and found this episode value, I need your help spreading it! Please, share a screenshot or video of the episode you're listening to and tag me on Instagram at @prspctv_cllctv and @perspectivepodcast—and let’s connect.
I respect those who use adversity to fuel their relentless grind.
I respect hustlers—but I’m even more captivated by those who work smarter, not harder.
I respect those who put family and serving others above all else because they understand breakthroughs, money, and opportunities will eventually come their way.
Someone who I really respect is today’s guest who falls in each of these buckets: Mye De Leon, a lettering artist, designer, and online marketing wizard.
She’s the author of Mastering Hand Lettering and professor of the FREE COURSE Styling the Alphabet, where she teaches you the ABC’s of hand lettering, so you can monetize your craft.
Today, Mye and I cover:
This episode is sure to get you fired up to start taking yourself, your craft, and your side hustle more seriously!
If you enjoyed and found this episode value, I need your help spreading it! Please, share a screenshot or video of the episode you’re listening to and tag me on Instagram at @prspctv_cllctv and @perspectivepodcast—and let’s connect.
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When you’re on your creative grind, it’s important to get your hands dirty, make mistakes, and get lost in your work. This helps you develop your style, find your voice, and carve your niche. That, in turn, attracts commissions and people to your artistic mission and vision.
Jon Contino is someone who’s been doing cool shit before it was cool and unapologetically pours themselves into their work.
Jon’s a designer, letterer, illustrator, and branding sorcerer hailing from New York who conjures up dope work for massive brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and AT&T through his Contino Studio Agency.
Today, Jon and I peel back the layers of:
If you need a boost to go the extra mile in showing your true self in your work, then this episode was made for you.
If you enjoyed and found this episode value, I need your help spreading it! Please, share a screenshot or video of the episode you're listening to and tag me on Instagram at @prspctv_cllctv and @perspectivepodcast—and let’s connect.
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