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- [00:00]
Chris Do
Hey, everybody. Chris here, we're trying something a little bit different than what we normally do for the podcast. We're doing solo episodes. These are shorter, more contained, built around certain themes and questions I think are very relevant for us to be talking about. So wherever you're listening to this, however you're seeing this, let us know in the comments and the feedback what you think, and we'll make some adjustments. The classic story structure of the hero's Journey from Joseph Campbell goes something like this. A hero in an ordinary world has a call to adventure. Basically, a herald calls them to adventure. And then there's the initial refusal of the call. There's a reason that they don't want to do it, and there's a lot of reasons why. And then a mentor appears and then gets them to cross the threshold and leave the ordinary world for the new world. And once they enter the new world, they go through a series of trials and tribulations, and sometimes it's called the Relapse and the Resurrection. And they learn a valuable lesson that they return to the ordinary world to share with them. If you look at the story structure of Star wars, it's literally this. And the reason why it's not a coincidence is because Joseph Campbell has said, George Lucas was an amazing student of his. Pretty clear. So two years ago, I put out a call to adventure. I said, who would like to go fishing with me in the Canadian wilderness? First of all, people are thinking, chris likes to be outdoors. How's his sensitive skin going to handle this? And number two, he likes fishing. Isn't that barbaric? But all those things are true. I do love fishing in the outdoors. And only one person answered the call to adventure. His name was Paul Hoke. So Paul and I, two complete strangers, but we kind of sort of know each other in the way that anyone knows each other on the Internet. We go on a fishing trip together. He's from the south, so he has his kind of Southern, gentlemanly ways about him. And we kind of hit it off and we started to share stories on social. So one year ago, I put out the same call to adventure. And to my surprise, this time around, a whole bunch of people expressed interest in wanting to go fishing with me. So lo and behold, the date comes in September. We just passed 19 strangers and myself, 19 creatives, embark on the Canadian wilderness. And we experienced something wonderful, something I've done many times. But this time, unlike previous times, I was here as a host, not as one to participate in the lodge. First and foremost, my goal for this whole thing was to make sure each person experienced the adventure that I got to experience. And people would say this oftentimes in the trip. Photos do not do a place like this justice. And there is this representation of reality that's captured in pixels or pigment that when you see it with your own eyes and stereoscopic vision and you feel the atmosphere and the sun on your face and the. And the crispness of the water in the morning air, it does something to you. And I was thinking a lot about my kickoff lecture, if you will, when my 19 friends and strangers would get together. I said, if you open your heart and you're full of curiosity and if you let what happens happens and you don't try to control it, you will not be the same person that came to this trip. And that's a bold thing for me to say, and I want to sound so sappy, but that was the call to adventure. They'd taken the first step, but once they got in the lodge, it was time to experience the trials and tribulations, the frustrations of learning how to fish, having one on the line and getting off the line. Probably more than getting on the line and having boat troubles or thinking that you're lost but you're not really lost, and then having a good laugh when you're back at the lodge. Then the day recanting stories about what happened in the day. And we had all kinds of wonderful things happen. I mean, I'm sure for the person that happened to, it wasn't wonderful. But there was a moment when I saw a lot of excitement, another boat. And I thought, my God, they must have brought in a fish, a good one. As a fisherman, I'm very excited for them. So we motor up to them, we're like, hey, did you catch a big fish? And he goes, oh my God. I said, no, what happened? I'm thinking they lost a big fish. He goes, he goes, my phone is at the bottom of this ocean. I'm like, oh no, what were you doing? What happened? He says, I was so excited about getting this weird upside down shot of you guys in your boat. I was holding it upside down. It slipped right out of my hand and straight into the water. I said, I'm so sorry to hear that. Trying to express deep empathy and condolences for losing a thousand dollar iPhone. He goes, you know what? It was a lesson. And what's the lesson? To be fully present in the moment. I wasn't present, obviously, and I'm grateful that this happened now. And I was thinking his name is Phil, by the way. It's like, phil, what an incredible transformation. That 30 seconds ago, it's, oh, no, I just lost my phone. By the time we came up to you and asked you about it, it was a reminder to be present.
- [04:53]
Rich Cardona
It's time for a quick break, but we'll be right back.
- [05:05]
Chris Do
When I I started my motion design company blind in 95, there was a lot I didn't know. So I tried reaching out to other business owners and professionals for help. What did I find? Many saw me as competition, and those who didn't weren't able to give advice that made sense for my line of work. Thankfully, I was able to find my first and only business coach, Kieran McLaren, who mentored me for 13 years. I also learned that my story isn't unique. Many entrepreneurs feel like they're left to figure everything out on their own. It's why I created the Future Pro Membership, the community I wish I had when I first started. And I'd like to invite you to check out all that we have waiting for you inside@thefuture.com pro.
- [05:46]
Rich Cardona
And Rebecc, welcome back to our conversation.
- [05:51]
Chris Do
Here's the crazy thing about Phil. We had a jackpot. I think we agreed to $10, and there's 19 of us, so there's $190 in the pot minus the 10 that you put in, whoever gets the biggest fish. And it was, like, really close. We're talking about half pound here, half pound there. And Eric Mora had the biggest fish on the first day, and it was holding true to the entire trip. Second to last day, Phil, of all people, pulls in a fish, a salmon that's half a pound bigger, and he wins the jackpot. And we're all so happy. And it just could not have gone to a better person. A person who I think has grown so much and experienced the totality of being out in the Canadian wilderness. The really cool thing is we got to learn a lot about each other and to form a relationship in ways that we haven't been able to. If you're not familiar with this concept, it's called the Zmod the Zero Moment of Truth. It's published by Google, who did this study about all the things that people do before they make a purchase. So the zero moment of truth goes something like this. Somebody needs to spend at least seven hours getting to know you across 11 touch points and across four different spaces or places to really get to know you. That's where we stop becoming strangers. And it's the beginning of friendship. Seven hours, 11 touch points, four locations. And so I've been thinking about this. Is this a theory? Is there something more to this? And at every opportunity I've been able to do this, I've tried my best for whatever group I'm meeting with is to change the location three more times. And something does happen. People walk away feeling more connected, more themselves, just less alone. It's a wonderful thing. When these 19 strangers decided to go on this trip, we went to eating at a Cambodian Vietnamese restaurant that's really well known, that's like Michelin star level kind of eating, but really down to earth eating family style with the lazy Susan in the middle of us outrageously crowded table because there's too many humans at one table, experiencing that, then meeting up at the airport, this small, small airport, and then flying on a small two prop plane, then water taxiing in a boat and then landing on this floating lodge. And that was just day one, guys. That's just day one. And then being able to swap boats, trade stories, hang out at the cabin, bump into one another in the dry room, getting on our wet gear so that we go out fishing. And then the post trip shenanigans that happened. And which was really incredible for me because literally the day that we finished fishing that night, I was doing a fireside chat organized by one of my friends in Vancouver and my 19 friends, most of them came with a few others and they sat in the front row. And when Ami introduced me on stage, they were obnoxiously loud, clapping, applauding for me, standing up like, guys, you embarrassed me. Sit down. But I got to experience something. True connection, getting to know people beyond the surface level. I just want to share this story with you because maybe you want to organize something or maybe you were reluctant for a cult adventure. And the cool thing is, I guess this is the mystery of life. Some things that look like scary, challenging things on the opposite side will feel like the best decision you've ever made. So to the person, people would come up to me and thank me for allowing them to go on a trip like this.
- [09:14]
C
This episode is brought to you by Google Gemini. With the Gemini app, you can talk live and have a real time conversation with an AI assistant. It's great for all kinds of things, like if you want to practice for an upcoming interview, ask for advice on things to do in a new city or brainstorm creative ideas. And by the way, this script was actually read by Gemini. Download the Gemini app for iOS and Android today. Must be 18 + to use Gemini Live.
- [09:40]
Chris Do
I said, allow you. You pay the money, you get to go. That's how this works. And they experienced something, each and every single one of them, in a different way, and I got to see them in a different light. Many of them had talents that no one had ever seen and they'd never dared to share it with anybody. But when you feel safe and you feel really connected, I think your guard goes down and you let a little bit more of yourself out. And although I probably had one of the worst fishing trips on a how much fish did you catch? Level, I had one of the best fishing trips I've ever had in my life. Getting to share that with 19 strangers who became friends, I think. And the next time there's a call to adventure, whether it's from me or someone else, I hope you cross the threshold. Hey, thanks for listening to the story and I just want to give you a simple thing to do. If you are interested in going on trips like this with me, send me a dm, let me know I'm interested. There's a wait list that's already happening for trips like this and others, and I'd love to see you on one of these things. My feeling as a teacher is I share something with someone and they share it with two more people and they share with two more people. And that's the power of education and storytelling. So if you're ready to go on an adventure, to go totally outside of your comfort zone and do something weird with some wackos, let me know.
- [10:56]
Rich Cardona
Thanks for joining us. If you haven't already, subscribe to our show on your favorite podcasting app and get new insightful episodes from us every week. The Future Podcast is hosted by Chris do and produced and edited by Rich Cardona Media. Thank you to Adam Sanborn for our intro music. If you enjoyed this episode, then do us a favor by reviewing and rating our show on Apple Podcasts. It will help us grow the show and make future episodes that much better. If you'd like to support the show and invest in yourself while you're at it, visit thefuture.com and you'll find video courses, digital products, and a bunch of helpful resources about design and the creative business. Thanks again for listening and we'll see you next time.