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[#13] My 14-Year Old Niece Interviewed Me About Influence and Personal Branding

Release Date: 12/16/2025

[#27] From SXSW: The Work Behind the Work of Co-Presenting with Ryan Levesque

Brand You Personal Branding

Recently, I presented at SXSW called You Are Still the Brand: What AI Can’t Do For You alongside author, Ryan Levesque. Preparing together gave me a rare look at how someone I respect does their work, and it made me rethink a few things about my own process. Here’s what I learned about preparation, deep work, and why there’s a huge jump between $1,500 Hamilton tickets vs. $15 improv tickets. If you’re interested in hearing about an upcoming training I’m planning to offer around writing and marketing your book, get on my waitlist below. CONNECT WITH ME

[#26] How AI Will Impact Books with JJ Virgin

Brand You Personal Branding

AI isn't killing books. The numbers say otherwise, and the opportunity for authors has never been bigger. In this conversation, Mike Kim (Wall St. Journal and USA Today bestselling author) and JJ Virgin (4x NYT bestselling author) talk about what actually happens to books in an AI world: who survives, who doesn't, and why your personal brand matters more now than ever. They also get into AI clones, institutional knowledge, and why JJ literally has a digital version of herself running 24/7. If you're an author, aspiring author, or thought leader trying to figure out where books fit in your...

[#25] The Return to Real in a Post-AI World with Ryan Levesque

Brand You Personal Branding

Ryan Levesque built a SaaS company, had a life-changing exit offer fall apart at the 11th hour, and then realized something that shook him: he'd started hating his business, and as a result, he'd started hating himself. What followed was a radical reorientation: making a public confession to his audience that none of his emails over the past seven years had actually been written by him, moving to a Vermont farm, and writing every word of his newsletter without AI. This is a conversation about what it costs to take your voice back and why the unscalable things are the only real moat...

[#24] The Five Voices of Thought Leadership

Brand You Personal Branding

Your emails, posts, and captions sound generic because you shut off your real voice the moment you think you’re supposed to sound impressive. You don’t have a writing problem. You have a voice problem. I’ve spent over a decade as a brand strategist working with NYT bestselling authors and thought leaders, and I’ve found that nearly everyone falls into one of five voice types. This post may help you figure out which one is yours, and show you how to adapt it to any platform or situation. CONNECT WITH ME

[#23] The Inner Game: What Charlie Munger Hating Math And Selling Myself Taught Me About The Game No One Sees

Brand You Personal Branding

No business strategy will solve a nervous system problem. In this episode, I break down Charlie Munger's inversion principle, a powerful identity framework from mental performance coach Lauren Johnson, and why the most successful people I've worked with are always the most teachable. This is the inner game, and it matters more than any tactic. CONNECT WITH ME

[#22] 3 Ways to Protect Your Original Thinking and Voice in a Post-AI World

Brand You Personal Branding

Your inner voice powers everything: what you say, write, and how you show up. But most people try to force it louder instead of turning down the noise. In this episode, I cover how tracking behaviors, sorting ideas vs. notes, and building a simple capture system protects your original thinking and ensures you don’t default to being a copy of a copy or a copy. CONNECT WITH ME

[#21] The Voice Louder Than What You Say or Write

Brand You Personal Branding

Most people think voice is just what you say or write. But there's a third voice that matters more than both: the voice of presence—what you emanate when people are around you. In this video, I unpack why developing all three voices is what creates real opportunity. CONNECT WITH ME

[#20] AI is the Ozempic of Thinking

Brand You Personal Branding

What does a day worth repeating actually look like? Today, I talk about getting punched in the mouth by January (literally ended up in the hospital), why AI is the Ozempic of thinking, and how I'm putting guardrails around my brain in a post-AI world. If you're a hard-charging, high-achiever who defaults to being the engine instead of the architect, this one's for you. CONNECT WITH ME

[#19] Take My NEW Idea-to-IP Assessment (While it's Free)

Brand You Personal Branding

One of the most common problems I see: experts doing everything right but not getting the traction they should. Usually, it comes down to this: the right digits, the wrong order. You can have all the right numbers in a phone number, but if even one digit is out of place, you're not dialed in. That's why I built the Idea to IP Score Assessment—a free 30-question diagnostic that shows you exactly where you are and what to focus on next. CONNECT WITH ME

[#18] Reflections From Being Hospitalized Last Week

Brand You Personal Branding

I spent last week in the hospital getting tests done after experiencing bad headaches. Everything came back clear, and I'm on the mend. While I was there, a line from Matthew McConaughey's book Greenlights kept coming to mind: "Can I live in a way that I look forward to looking back?" Sharing some thoughts on that experience and a few updates on what's coming up. EPISODE LINKS: CONNECT WITH ME

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During her visit to New York City, my (sweetheart!!!) niece Nylah asked if I could help with a school project on social media and influence.

(She thinks I’m an actual influencer, haha.)

We braved the winter weather and did an interview while walking towards the Museum of Natural History.

I always tell people that if you want to explain what you do, try explaining it like you’re talking to a kid. Well, this is my attempt!

I could have explained it to her in way more complex terms and she would have understood me – she’s a smart cookie. She asked me some pretty deep questions! But you get what I mean.

Reflecting on our interview, I realized it’s really important to have these kinds of conversations with kids. I share some life skills I think will be really important for Nylah, as well as recommended books, the reality behind what people see online, and the pitfalls and opportunities social media affords.

If you're interested in the books that shaped me as a communicator and marketer, here are the originals I studied:

Ogilvy on Advertising - David Ogilvy
The Boron Letters - Gary Halbert
Advertising Headlines that Make You Rich - David Garfinkle
Influence - Robert Cialdini
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing - Al Ries & Jack Trout
Great Leads - Michael Masterson & John Forde
Tested Advertising Methods - John Caples

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