Not a Classroom Podcast: Recent Episodes
Kevin Foster
The Not a Classroom Podcast feeds you some bites of knowledge without feeling like a lecture hall. We dive into all sorts of topics like philosophy, ethics, biology, creativity, and culture with the underlying goal of understanding how people figure out what they want to do with their lives.
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
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?
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
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
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.
Today I talk with Jess, who holds a Bachelor's Degree in psychology and is currently conducting research in her field. We dive into various psychology topics, with a particular focus on therapy. Branching off into the details of less conventional forms of therapy, such as music and existential therapy, we discuss the benefits and uses of philosophy. Rounding out the episode, we talk a bit about the mental health crisis in the U.S. and swing back around to grad school, the GRE, and what doing your best really means.
Feel free to reach out with feedback or questions.
Hope you enjoy.
Keeping it going for the 4th month in a row! In this episode I talk to Jennie about pursuing a career/major in order to live a certain lifestyle. We dive into the mixture of goals people have going into college, work-life balance, and separating your career from your passion.
Enjoy!
I recorded this episode on a backpacking trip with my friend Wally. We discuss topics regarding farming, the environment, marine bio, and finding motivation in the face of adversity. I hope you can learn something cool.
p.s. Sorry for the wind and lateness of this episode. I did the best I could with the time I had at the end of the month, but I will try to do better next time.
Welcome to the Not a Classroom Podcast. I hope you can learn something from this without it feeling like a lecture hall. Today I talk with my friend Caleb who is an electrical engineer. We discuss Moore's law, ethics and sustainability in tech, and societal patterns of consumption in entertainment and media.
Hope you enjoy.
Wanna learn about random fun things and hear people's thoughts about life? You came to the right place! In today's episode I talk with my friend Katie about biomimicry, figuring out life decisions in college, dream job rejection, and spurious life revelations.