Evidence-backed guidance for creators and solopreneurs. I study the world's best creators, run experiments, and share what I learn with 58,000+ readers every week.
How To Live (as a Creator) with Derek Sivers
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I almost feel behind writing this email because I've already gotten so much positive feedback about this week's episode of Creative Elements!
This week I'm speaking with Derek Sivers, who I originally heard on the Tim Ferriss podcast about seven years ago.
Derek is the founder of CD Baby, the largest seller of independent music online, with $100 million in sales for 150,000 musicians. In 2007, Derek sold that business for $22 million – almost all of which Derek donated to a charitable trust for music education.
I was interested in talking to Derek for three reasons:
- He has a ton of insight into the world of professional musicians
- He's written four incredible books that I'd call "philosophy for creatives"
- He's the guy behind the How To Start A Movement TED talk!
This episode truly does not disappoint. We talk about how we can live more balanced lives as creators and we get pretty existential.
Watch on YouTube:
It's also available in audio wherever you get your podcasts. I hope you enjoy it!
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Just six months ago, I launched my membership community, The Lab. In six months, that decision has resulted in more than $100K in revenue and nearly doubling my business. But even better than that – The Lab has become my favorite place on the internet. It's a place where the exact type of people I enjoy serving most self-select into joining. I don't have a massive audience. And the Lab has fewer than 150 members. And even still, this has been the single best decision I've made for my business this year. In this course, I walk you through everything I did to set my membership up for success so that you can build an engaged, beloved membership too (without it running your life). And this course is available at presale pricing (25% off) until Oct. 10. |
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If you have a hard time converting your followers into clients or customers, then you have a trust problem. And if you have a trust problem, you probably have a legitimacy problem. In a world of near-infinite choice, we don't look for reasons why we SHOULD trust someone...we take the shorter route. We look for reasons why we SHOULDN'T trust someone so that we can rule them out quickly and move on. We start our evaluation with one question: "Is this person legitimate?" And then we actively look for reasons to believe that you're not. It's far easier to find reasons NOT to believe in you than it is to find enough evidence to become a believer. In fact, the biggest reason to believe in someone is the inability to find reasons NOT to believe! So let's explore how you can intentionally improve your legitimacy in the eyes of increasingly impatient and discerning viewers. This advice applies to your entire creative platform – your email list, podcast, social media, books, YouTube channel, and products. Anywhere your light touches...is your kingdom. And you want your kingdom to look legit. |
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LAST WORD 👋
Podcast feedback? I'm all ears👂
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I'd love to hear your feedback on the podcast (audio or video)! We're always looking to improve – but even if it's just a "hey thumbs up, I love it" that means a lot to me.
Hit reply and let me know what you think of the show, recent episodes, or anything else that comes to mind. Thanks for reading!
Cheers,
Jay
Creator Science
Evidence-backed guidance for creators and solopreneurs. I study the world's best creators, run experiments, and share what I learn with 58,000+ readers every week.
Hey [FORMATTED_FIRST_NAME GOES HERE], We saw a bunch of folks join our Build A Beloved Membership cohort over the weekend — it's so exciting! This is going to be such a fun month building together. Most of what I sent about the cohort was intended for people considering starting a membership. But this one is for those who already have one. A lot of memberships go like this (maybe this sounds like you): The launch goes well, the energy is high, and then around month four or five, it gets...
Hey [FORMATTED_FIRST_NAME GOES HERE], This week, I hosted my first virtual summit. It was called the Membership Summit—and it was all about building a membership in 2026. You either got a lot of emails from me about it or somehow missed them. In either case, sorry! It was amazing. We had nearly 4,000 people register, ~2,000 show up live at some point, and an overall wonderful experience. On Friday, I hosted a group Q&A just for folks who purchased a VIP ticket and ended up talking for three...
Hey [FORMATTED_FIRST_NAME GOES HERE], Good morning! We're kicking off Day 3 of the Membership Summit today, but I wanted to make sure you have our Zoom link for tomorrow's VIP Q&A! Join Zoom (Friday at 1pm ET) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89727741585?pwd=oF0zafLxeMvnmg55Ch7mW0rPB1QUut.1 If you'd like to add this to your calendar directly, click here! We'll have our typical "starting soon" email coming this morning for today's session. Same link and time as the last two days — 1pm ET! Cheers,Jay