Fits + Starts: Recent Episodes

Daniel Coulbourne & John Drexler

An ongoing conversation about work, internet culture, and what it means to be a mindful 20-something at the beginning of your career.

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We like Notion (sort of), Daniel hates Basecamp, and John is prototyping board games. Then Daniel lays out his unified field theory of software engineering and pounds the table for collective bargaining.

From the Folks Who Brought You the Weekend: A Short, Illustrated History of Labor in the United States
Labor's Story in the United States

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In our season finale, we talk about time and attention. Daniel takes John to task about whether or not time exists. And then we talk about ego. We'll be back with Season 4 soon!

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Relay.fm co-founder Stephen Hackett stops in to talk about the perils of finding personal identity in your work, whether or not it's important to "love" what you do, and the weird experience of having an emotional relationship with a corporation.

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This week we recap Discipline December. We talk discipline as a tool, the downside of letting fear motivate your work, and using experiments to diagnose your problems. Then John loses his mind over how much he loves “Holy Hour”.

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We return to form with this old school episode with no guest. John is having a hard time getting things done, and Daniel has ideas for how to help. We discuss working from home, making good check lists, slowing your roll, and taking notes.

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Daniel is going to be disciplined for (almost) a whole month! This is a very meta episode: protestant work ethic, work habits, budgeting, food, exercise, checklists, tidying up, and more! Follow along with our progress in the link in the show notes. If you want to join along, shoot us a tweet.

Special Guest: Caleb Porzio.

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Long time friend Michael Johnson calls in for our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY. We talk vlogging, managing multiple side hustles, unifying your life, finding identity, and living life without a calendar.

Special Guest: Michael Johnson.

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4-time NYT Best Selling Author Nancy French shares her thoughts on being a Conservative writer in the era of Trump. Nancy recently left the Republican party and faced harassment from the Alt-Right. We also get into the relationship between pop culture and politics, and why Nancy pays more attention to Judd Apatow than Mike Pence!

Special Guest: Nancy French.

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John's cousin Aaron Belz drops by to talk about how businesses use language, the difference between students and young employees, how social media can shape the way people make creative stuff online, baseball, and more!

Aaron is a poet and essayist who works in marketing.

Special Guest: Aaron Belz.

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Mike Rugnetta drops some knowledge about how to improve internet discourse, maintaining a productive comment section, focusing on the right stuff, why people join internet communities, and what it means for something to "end" on the internet. Lastly, we get into a discussion of video games that feel like work, and why we love them.

Special Guest: Mike Rugnetta.

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We're about to take a short break! This episode is about where the show has been and where it is going. John sings the praises of incrementalism. Our list of dream guests is getting long.

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Brianna is running for Congress! She stops by to share her insights about the work of running a campaign, seeking to support people you don't agree with, and why Millennials need to take direct action instead of making symbolic political gestures. We also get into info security, online harassment, and then some inside-baseball talk about Apple and the future of gaming.

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Fits + Starts: @fits\_and\_starts Daniel: @DCoulbourne John: @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Brianna Wu.

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Merlin stops by to talk about finding a job that fits you, prototyping your future, and manufacturing care. Then we have a lot of rapid fire questions for him.

Special Guest: Merlin Mann.

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Anil Dash (Founder / Writer / Speaker / Blogger / Preeminent force on the Internet) argues for a new definition of "open" on the web. We ask for advice on how to be more inclusive as a non-manager. Daniel has some big ideas about infrastructure.

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John: @johnrudolphdrex Daniel: @dcoulbourne Fits and Starts: @fits\_and\_starts

Special Guest: Anil Dash.

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Programmer, author, and teacher Adam Wathan stops by to talk about working in public, asking stupid questions, charting a weird career path, and dropping knowledge on your peers.

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Fits and Starts: @fits\_and\_starts Daniel: @dcoulbourne John: @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Adam Wathan.

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We just saw each other in Chicago! John is a friend of Tighten.co. The show is changing. John is afraid that his life is too comfortable. Daniel thinks it's all about leaning into your fear. We think that Donald Trump and Smash Mouth are indications that we are indeed living in a simulation.

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John Drexler: @johnrudolphdrex Daniel Coulbourne: @DCoulbourne Fits and Starts: @fits\_and\_starts

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Along with our guest Estelle Caswell, we discuss Twitter, YouTube comments, and how to handle negative feedback (especially in public). Then we talk about that magical moment when your work becomes less scary to you. Finally, we talk about Kanye West, Lil' Wayne, and Kendrick Lamar.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Estelle Caswell.

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Matt enumerates the differences between venture-backed and bootstrapped businesses. We discuss the difference between “useful” and “good” traits. Matt has some advice on how to talk about your strengths without sounding like a jerk, and then John meets a Titan of Industry.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Matt Stauffer.

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Guest host Jake Thomsen explains the real meaning of great operations / processes. John tries (and fails) to apply economic ideas to his personal life. Daniel blows everyone's mind with some mysticism. And then Jake settles a long-standing debate about the Protestant Work Ethic!

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Jake Thomsen.

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We discuss the very gross, but very real idea of personal brands. Kelly and Daniel talk about the exhausting plight of the freelancer. We also discuss turning your passion into your career, and mindfulness practices.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Kelly Walker.

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Along with our inaugural guest host Zay Smallman, we discuss who should and shouldn't take venture capital money, misadventures in Human Resources, and John takes Zay to task on strategy in the film industry.

Zay is a co-founder at Fancy Rhino and Mama Bear Studios.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

Special Guest: Zay Smallman.

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We discus where the show is and where it's headed. John wonders about when the right time is to change careers. Daniel thinks it's important to check your entitlement. Then Daniel has some personal finance tips, and John buys a SodaStream!

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We talk about growing out of being a slug-like process person. John claims erroneously to be a Californian. What does it take to claim that you've been to a state? John was late to recording this episode because he has disabled all notifications on his devices.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We talk about personality tests, and how they can guide your career path. Daniel is taken in by 16personalities.com. John wonders how to solve for his many shortcomings, and wonders if Daniel will be promoted to the level of his own incompetency. AND THEN DANIEL GETS ENGAGED.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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Daniel lays siege to Nevada. John has some existential dread about Apple. We discuss how to know when a project is working, and how to measure success. John has a great scam for Black Friday.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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The Greyhound bus system is a loosely held anarchy. Travel is insanity. It's hard to learn anything more from geniuses than how to hide your work. John moves back to the USA.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We talk about working remotely, being a good citizen on the internet, and John's fridge. We appeal to your kind sensibilities to subscribe.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We talk about the theoretical idea of a job and knowing what a job is like, our process of making the show.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We discuss getting your ducks in a row, the connection between mental hygiene and corporate culture, and the phenomenology of dogs.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We discuss the phenomenon of visionary bro culture. Daniel wonders about why helpful people are helpful. We get an unexpected update from a college friend.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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We figure out what the show is about. Daniel takes John to task on the Protestant Work Ethic. We reminisce about a DIY shelf, and we have two very different takes on how it was built.

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Fits and Starts - @fits\_and\_starts Daniel - @dcoulbourne John - @johnrudolphdrex

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