Podcast Summary: We're Out of Time

Episode: The Truth About Going Viral: Ryan Burton on Success, Anxiety & Growth

Host: Richard Taite
Guest: Ryan Burton
Date: January 6, 2026

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode centers on the rise of content creator Ryan Burton, whose comedic skits and viral interviews have made millions of people laugh—and think—about youth culture, success, and self-awareness. Through stories about going viral, the challenges of creative growth, and frank discussions around anxiety, burnout, and the meaning of success, Ryan and host Richard Taite (an addiction recovery expert) explore the real impact of internet fame and the deeper purpose behind both comedy and lived experience.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Journey to Virality (00:00–13:30)

• Ryan’s Start: Ryan recounts meeting his creative partner, Noah, in sixth grade, their eventual decision to go to Drexel University together, and starting a YouTube channel that grew from 13,000 to 5 million subscribers during college.

  • “We just were going in the libraries, filming those videos, doing skits, experimenting... And we went from about 13,000 subscribers our freshman year to about 5 million by the time we graduated.” (01:00)

• First Viral Hit: Their early viral video involved blasting inappropriate music in a college library—an idea inspired by existing internet trends, but made their own.

  • “It’s surprising how that concept...gave me a career...It was really fun and exciting and it didn’t feel like work.” (01:51)

• Balancing Education and Creation: Ryan insists their success was more about using college resources and community (computer labs as sets, classmates as performers) than about the curriculum itself.

  • “It’s more about what you do in the real world...what we were doing in between the classes that made all the difference.” (09:39)

2. Satire, Social Commentary, and Keeping It Kind (03:25–18:56)

• Comedy with Perspective: Ryan describes his “college kids don’t know basic facts” series, in which students reveal humorous gaps in knowledge (e.g., “Who’s on the $20 bill?”) and how this holds a mirror to society.

  • “Sometimes they’ll be in competition of who’s the dumbest...There’s no way you guys should be this excited about being the dumbest. But that’s where we are as a society.” (04:33)

• Never Mean-Spirited: Both Ryan and Taite agree that the best comedy makes the comedian the butt of the joke, not innocent bystanders.

  • “The best type of pranks are the ones where you make yourself the butt of the joke as opposed to the helpless Walmart employee.” (15:53)
  • “That’s what I loved about it...the joke is, I’m the idiot who forgot to plug in his headphones.” (16:14)

3. Behind the Scenes: Viral Culture’s Real Impact (19:11–21:46)

• Views as Social Currency: Discussion about how “views are the new currency,” equating influencer fame with pulling up at a club in a Lamborghini.

  • “Views are the new currency.” (19:04)
  • “It’s a drug.” (19:23)

• Serious Side: Taite turns the conversation to the fentanyl crisis and using platforms for social good, underscoring the importance of reaching young viewers with life-saving messages.

4. Mental Health, Burnout, and Coping Strategies (22:08–29:00)

• Anxiety and Burnout: Ryan opens up about experiencing panic attacks, insomnia, and depressive waves during the height of his online success.

  • “Around my senior year of college...I started getting panic attacks, sleeping problems, shortness of breath. I was getting the anxiety and...depressive waves.” (22:08)

• Self-Care Tactics: He credits physical activity, eating well, and social connection with managing his mental health. Therapy, he admits, didn’t resonate at first, feeling more connected to friends than to therapists.

  • “Low hanging fruit of like physical fitness, staying active...Calling my parents, talking to a friend.” (22:53)

• Male Emotional Dynamics: Ryan posits that men might bond and heal better “side by side” (doing activities together), which can make traditional, face-to-face therapy intimidating. Taite compares male and female problem-solving and consolation.

5. Self-Infantilization, Resilience, and Real Talk (29:12–41:00)

• Infantilization & Tough Love: Ryan shares concerns about self-infantilization and how some exploit “victimhood” instead of working on real trauma or change.

  • “There’s people who just are going through life struggling and if they, for lack of a better term, pulled themselves up by their bootstraps and snapped out of it, they’d be doing better.” (29:55)

• Truth and Compassion in Recovery: Taite balances honesty and empathy:

  • “You have to tell people the truth...You didn’t accomplish nothing during that period of time...you learned a lot...you got an education of some sort that is going to help you down the road.” (31:14)

• Changing Through Pain: On regret and lost time, Taite illuminates how pain catalyzes change, not achievement alone.

  • “When you have pain, that creates change...There’s only two things that make you change: pleasure or pain.” (34:32)

6. Meaning, Motivation & Success Redefined (41:07–65:36)

• The Trap of Material Success: Taite describes reaching financial success, only to find it joyless and spiraling into a three-year depression.

  • "How the hell do you go through over 50 grand cash a month? How do you do it?...I bought everything I could possibly want for three straight years...And then it hit me...it doesn't matter how much money I have or what I buy. That doesn't work. That doesn't make you happy." (62:08)

• Purpose Through Service: Both agree that helping others, not accumulating things, instills deep meaning and joy.

  • “If you can help people, wouldn’t the world be a better place?...Leave this place better than I found it. Try to help whoever you can and try not to harm anybody, okay? If you can, unless they deserve it, then you really harm them.” (64:26)

• Advice for Young Creators:

  • “The biggest decision you’ll ever make in your life is the person to have children with. That is the only decision you have to get perfect.” (45:01)
  • “If you ain’t early, you’re late. And if you just show up, you’re 80% ahead of the other people...Time management is another one.” (41:07)

• Getting Out of a Rut: Taite shares his story—from poverty and addiction to building a thriving life—thanks to self-development, hard work, and mindset.

  • “Growth happens fast if you have the right teacher. If not, you got problems. You ain’t moving very fast. You don’t work on things. You change or you don’t.” (55:29)

• Finding Motivation: Taite recommends Tony Robbins’ original motivational cassettes as a starting point.

  • “Go get his tapes...This is the guy. This is the best in the world at this.” (56:35)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the power of perspective in comedy:

  • “The best type of pranks are the ones where you make yourself the butt of the joke.” —Ryan Burton (15:53)

• On anxiety and mental fitness:

  • “If you just sit in bed all day and rot...and eat Twizzlers...well, what did you do all day? Like, nothing. You haven’t even moved or been outside or touched grass or spoken...” —Ryan Burton (22:53)

• On pain and transformation:

  • “When you have pain, that creates change...There’s only two things that make you change: pleasure or pain.” —Host (34:32)

• On views and social capital:

  • “Views are the new currency.” —Ryan Burton (19:04)

• On meaning and service:

  • “Leave the world a better place than you found it. Help whoever you can and try not to harm anyone. I promise you, your life will get a thousand times better.” —Host (64:27)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Ryan’s Origin Story & First Viral Video: 00:00–02:45
• Satirical Interviews & Commentary: 03:25–06:58
• Library Pranks & Good-Natured Humor: 13:30–16:35
• Social Currency/Views Discussion: 19:04–21:46
• Mental Health Challenges & Coping: 22:08–24:50, 26:38–29:00
• Burnout, Infantilization, and Resilience: 29:12–37:14
• Life Lessons: Pain, Change, Running Through Fear: 34:24–39:49
• Money, Happiness, and True Fulfillment: 41:07–65:36
• Advice for Getting Out of a Rut: 47:24–56:19
• Tony Robbins and Motivation: 56:32–58:52

Tone & Language

Candid, raw, and conversational, with humor—sometimes irreverent but never mean-spirited. Ryan is self-aware and humble, quick to share credit, while Taite is deeply direct, weaving together tough love with empathy and a mission to help listeners find real, sustainable self-worth beyond fame or fortune.

Closing Thoughts

This is a rich, honest, and fast-paced episode that uses comedic internet culture as a springboard for deeper dialogue on resilience, mental health, and where meaning is really found in life. Both guest and host model vulnerability, self-reflection, and an ongoing commitment to living—and giving—a little better each day.