Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 6: Change, Meaning, and Fading Passions (ft. Trenton Bastasch)

Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 10: Education, LA, Modeling, Music, and Purpose (ft. Dominic Corridori)

I talk with Dominic about not going to college and the unique experiences from his life path. For example, meeting Tyler, the Creator, modeling, and creating music. We dive into what it's like living in LA and the pressures of going off on your own. We also discuss the challenges with not going to college and the social aspects that are involved. Plus, we look into the difficulties and passion behind Dominic's music. Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:52 Podcast start 1:33 Graduating high school early 6:48 Desire to go to college? 10:08 Social dynamics outside of college 15:37 Growing up fast 19:39 Modeling for GOLF and meeting Tyler, the Creator 24:06 La La Land and the image of LA 29:27 Living for social media and pictures 37:00 Lessons from LA 37:43 Current creative projects 40:09 Challenges of making music 51:55 Music and therapy 54:33 Why make music? 59:00 Only making three albums 1:01:09 Uninspired music and when to call it quits 1:04:08 Losing interest in your own work 1:11:33 Capitalizing on motivation 1:16:43 Music taste 1:22:43 Definition of success 1:26:46 Being driven by dissatisfaction 1:29:16 Thoreau and the relativity of success 1:32:26 What really makes us happy? 1:36:23 Driven by purpose or something else? 1:38:13 Atlanta and the picture of success 1:41:42 Tyson Fury and post-accomplishment depression 1:46:27 Are we trying too hard to optimize our lives? 1:51:02 Wanting to be viewed in a certain way 1:59:46 Shoutouts

Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 9: Marketing, Social Media, Influencers, and Money (ft. Kenzie Cummings)

Today I talk with Kenzie who has a Bachelors in Marketing and has been working in tech sales for about a year. She provides tons of cool facts and info about marketing tactics, ethics, and her dilemmas within the field. We also talk quite a bit about influencer marketing, parasocial relationships, and social media. Near the end, we dive deeper into an individual's relationship with money and how Kenzie's changed after being laid off. Chapters 00:00 Intro 1:23 Podcast Start 2:07 Relationship between marketing and consumption 3:50 Marketing is not advertising 8:20 Do marketers want you to be unhappy? 10:54 Consumer neuroscience and mindful consumption 13:55 Data, social media, and target markets 16:58 Scams and predatory marketing 22:00 Influence of social media on young people 24:57 Fighting for your own time 29:10 Are ads purposefully annoying? 33:46 Cloud storage and streaming ad-tiers 37:44 Social value of Netflix and streaming services 39:30 Movie industry history and streaming changes 43:00 Subscriptions services 45:00 Social media 45:07 What is the value of influencer marketing? 46:46 What is a parasocial relationship? 47:16 Marketing value of parasocial relationships 49:26 Where do you draw the line on parasociality? 51:30 Branding 56:45 TikTok, addiction, and creative accessibility 1:01:34 Could you imagine a more addictive platform than TikTok? 1:04:04 How does society respond to social media? 1:06:15 Brave New World 1:07:58 Why do children want to be YouTubers? 1:10:01 The Consumption Bubble 1:10:55 Value from social media and mental health 1:14:32 How much effort should go into content? 1:17:29 Are we performing for people? 1:20:01 Getting laid off 1:25:25 Relationship with money after being laid off 1:28:39 Tech sector layoffs 1:34:18 Income vs Happiness Study 1:37:30 Personal finance and FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) 1:40:37 How do you manage your time?

Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 8: Reflections on making a movie, inspiration, and movie recommendations

Ever wanted creative advice from an amateur who is just trying to do cool stuff and have fun? Then this is the episode for you. I discuss the lessons I learned from making my first feature length film, as well as the struggles I've had over my creative journey. I also threw in some movie and video game topics regarding my inspirations and some quality stuff you may want to check out.  Hopefully some good advice can be gleaned from this.  Chapters: 00:00 Intro 1:51 Appreciating the journey 4:05 Motivation 15:47 Creating with self-doubt 24:13 Engaging with art  25:38 Why I watch sad movies 30:53 Movies that connect with me emotionally 35:14 Movie recommendations and why I like them 35:25 Beginners 37:25 Reservoir Dogs and Heat 39:21 Wes Anderson, Moonrise Kingdom and The Royal Tenenbaums 41:20 Sing Street 43:35 Blade Runner 2049 46:28 Akira Kurosawa and Sergio Leone 53:01 The Godfather 56:15 Other recommendations 57:57 Taking inspiration from others 59:03 The power of video games 1:00:23 Video game recommendations 1:00:34 The Last of Us 1:01:07 God of War 1:01:47 Play Skyrim to feel like a kid again 1:03:18 Indie Games 1:03:23 Before Your Eyes 1:05:02 Outer Wilds 1:07:00 A Short Hike and Breath of the Wild 1:07:57 Conclusion

Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 7: Writing, Discipline, Success, Doubts, and The Dream (ft. Noah Camuso)

Listen in if you wanna learn about writing and the creative process, along with the doubts, fears, and dreams that come with it.  Noah is currently working in the podcasting industry and writes fiction in his free time. We go in depth on our writing processes, as well as barriers to creativity. There's also a good bit of discussion about balancing time, acquiring financial stability as an artist, and seeking validation.  Hope you enjoy. Check out my Medium for fun articles on movies and games: https://medium.com/@newforza Podcast Chapters: 00:00 Intro 1:30 Podcast Start 4:10 Writing dialogue 5:15 TV is where it's at 9:05 Art in different stages of life 12:00 Have you always felt creative? 16:54 Discipline in writing 20:23 Filmmaking and getting famous 23:35 Putting ideas down 25:55 Working in podcasting and making it 28:46 Creative energy 30:49 Art and success 33:31 Self-belief and the dream 42:23 Attention and performing for others 45:53 Pride and Unemployment 52:30 Why do you write? 56:49 Having multiple competing interests 59:30 Financial stability and writing time 1:02:38 The writing process 1:05:50 Why so much self-doubt? 1:13:54 Will you create something of value? 1:29:23 Validation 1:33:10 Is being creative hard? 1:37:00 Fear of not finishing projects 1:41:50 Fear of being misunderstood

Not a Classroom Podcast Ep. 6: Change, Meaning, and Fading Passions (ft. Trenton Bastasch)

Hey everyone, this is a great episode if you wanna learn about some movies and get into some deeper life questions! Today I talk with Trenton, a recent Electrical Engineering graduate going through a transitionary period in life. We discuss what that change is like, and how our thoughts have shifted from before university. Reflecting on our viewing of Banshees of Inisherin, we take a look into some existential questions and why it is we do what we do. Finally, with both of us growing up playing video games, we discuss what it's like to have hobbies change, how it feels to have them fading away, and if it's worth trying to claw them back. Hope you enjoy.