The Zack Arnold Podcast

Zack Arnold
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Biweekly

Hi I'm Zack! If you want to make things that matter, I want to help you. I’m a former award-winning Hollywood film editor, producer, and documentary director turned writer, podcaster, and creative career coach who loves having deep conversations with interesting, highly creative humans to better understand how we can survive and thrive in this crazy, chaotic world we call reality. I’m excited to share with you the hundreds of deep, honest, and vulnerable conversations I’ve had over the years to help you navigate the next act of work and life on your terms, build genuine relationships, better manage your well-being, overcome your fears and limiting beliefs, and build better habits and systems so you can stay focused on creating sh*t that matters. You're in the right place if: You live to create. Your work isn't just a job but an expression of who you are.You create to live. Your livelihood depends on your creativity.You love making cool shit. Whether you identify as introverted or neurodivergent (or both, like me)... No matter if you're a misfit, a rebel, an outlier, or a troublemaker... If you've been called weird, nerdy, dorky, quirky, or awkward... Or if you’re an over-thinker, procrastinator, or perfectionist… You are welcome here. 😊

  1. 4d ago

    Why Books Matter More In the Age of AI (And How to Read Better) | with Alex Wieckowski

    How do you make time to read more books and build a reading habit that lasts in a world full of distractions? Alex Wieckowski, better known online as Alex & Books, has been writing and posting about the importance of reading books to his more than 1 million followers across social media since 2017. He has read over 750 books and he's currently writing the 21st century version of Mortimer Adler's classic text How to Read a Book. In today's conversation, Alex and I talk about why reading real books matters more than ever in the age of AI. We discuss the four different types of reading and how better understanding these different approaches can help you build a more consistent reading habit. We'll help you choose what to read, reclaim the time to read it, and remember what you read long after you've closed the book. If you've got a stack of books you keep meaning to get to, or it's been so long since you read a book you don't even know where to start, Alex and I will show you that Reading is a skill anyone can develop and improve. Key TakeawaysMake reading part of the time you already have instead of waiting to find more time. Use a time journal to see where your hours are actually going, then prioritize reading or build it into an existing routine.Choose books that address what you’re working through right now. Reading when you need the information most makes it easier to remember what you learn and put it into practice.Read the whole book when the ideas matter instead of outsourcing the struggle to a summary. The stories, context, and effort of reading are part of what make the lessons memorable and meaningful.Episode HighlightsOrigin story of loving reading as a kid to losing it, then finding it again.Why books could become more popular in the age of AI as people look for ways to exercise their brains.Why the struggle of reading is part of the learning, and what gets lost when someone else does the work for you.Using the table of contents as a map and the three-chapter rule for knowing when to quit.How syntopical reading turns three to five books on one subject into a “mini PhD”.The simple time journal that reveals where your hours are actually going and helps you reclaim time for reading.Why “read it when you need it” can help you choose books that are relevant enough to remember and apply.How a simple distraction catcher can get intrusive thoughts out of your head without pulling you away from the book.Why reading 100 books a year is not the goal, and why speed reading can sacrifice the very things that make reading valuable.How the Reading Triangle forces you to choose between enjoyment, retention, and speed instead of trying to maximize all three.Recommended Next EpisodeHow Tiny Changes Can Create Remarkable Results | with James ClearHow to Become ‘Indistractable’ | with Nir EyalUseful ResourcesHow to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie BooksHow to Read a Book by Mortimer J. AdlerWrite a Must Read by A.J. HarperWrite Useful Books by Rob Fitzpatrick4,000 Weeks by Oliver BurkemanCommunity Made by Jayson GaignardNonviolent Communication by Marshall B. RosenbergThe Elephant in the Brain by Kevin Simler and Robin HansonGuest BioAlex Wieckowski is the creator of Alex & Books, where he shares book recommendations, summaries, reviews, and reading tips from more than 750 books. He is also the author of Learn To Love Reading and creator of The Art of Reading, a course focused on helping people find books, build better reading habits, take notes, remember what they read, and apply what they learn. His work is dedicated to helping more people discover the value and enjoyment of reading. Alex's Website Alex and Books Alex's Course The Art of Reding Alex's Book Learn To Love Reading Alex's Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn | YouTube | Substack Show CreditsEdited by: Curtis Fritsch Published by: Vim Pangantihon Music by: Thomas Cepeda

    Why Books Matter More In the Age of AI (And How to Read Better) | with Alex Wieckowski

  2. Oct 1

    How the Written Word Helps Us Connect (Especially In Our Hardest Moments) | with Allison Sweet Grant

    We seldom write for ourselves because we instead want our stories to touch others. Yet we’re often terrified to put our work (and ourselves!) out into the world. How can we walk the line between wanting to make things that matter while also making sure other people know we made these things for them? I discuss this (and so much more), with Allison Sweet Grant, a former psychiatric nurse practitioner turned author whose is the author of the novel I Am the Cage and the new memoir Lump: A Memoir in Ineloquent Reflections, which candidly explores her experience with breast cancer. In this conversation, we talked about the power of the written word to help create emotional connection, why she chose to write about what cancer actually feels like (rather than her “journey”), and how carefully chosen words can help someone feel less alone. If you're going through something hard, or trying to support someone who is, this conversation offers a different way to connect through uncertainty, pain, and shared experience. Key TakeawaysPut your hardest experiences into words instead of keeping them inside. Writing can help you process what happened, get it out of you, and onto something else.Write about what something feels like, not just what someone needs to do. Practical information can tell you what comes next, but emotional truth can help someone feel less alone.Stop apologizing for pain you didn't choose. Fear of being a burden can cause you to swallow your struggles and limit the possibility for connection. Episode HighlightsWhat a memoir looks like when it mirrors the most difficult period of your lifeHow the same chemo room can feel like hell to one patient and like a heaven that is saving someone's lifeWhy a book for people too sick to finish a chapter comes in bite-sized piecesWhy the language of the "cancer journey" never fit, and how they can place an identity on someoneOn Riches: a scene about pancakes that becomes a lesson in noticing the small details you want to rememberFive Letters: the poem about packing a chemo bag and leaving letters on the tableWhy putting real human words and real human experiences on the page matters moreI'm sorry, I'm okay: why we apologize for being an inconvenience and a burdenHow the involuntary combination of colors with letters and numbers has influenced her choicesJust My Luck: a rant against everything people say caused cancer Recommended Next EpisodeFrom Setback to Comeback: Finding Strength in the Hardest Moments | with Bevin FarrandHow to Keep Moving Forwards After You've Lost Everything | with Christina Rasmussen Useful ResourcesOn Vulnerability and the Courageous Act of Creating From a Place of Truth | with Allison Sweet GrantGlennon DoyleZingerman's Guest BioAllison Sweet Grant is an author who has been published in The New York Times and The Atlantic. Previously, she was a psychiatric nurse practitioner; she holds dual master's degrees from the University of Michigan. An introvert, synesthete, and avid poet, Allison can usually be found at home with a cup of hot tea in hand, reading or rewatching a film she has seen sixteen times. She lives outside of Philadelphia with her husband and their three children (and two cats, Pom-Pom and Jasper). Allison's Website Allison's Books: I Am the Cage | Lump: A Memoir in Ineloquent Reflections Allison's Instagram | Facebook Show CreditsEdited by: Curtis Fritsch Published by: Vim Pangantihon Music by: Thomas Cepeda

    How the Written Word Helps Us Connect (Especially In Our Hardest Moments) | with Allison Sweet Grant

  3. Sep 30

    New to the Podcast? Start Here!

    Quickly find exactly the right interview for your needs with this helpful index. If we haven't met before, hey! I'm Zack, an award-winning Hollywood editor and documentary director turned writer, speaker, and career coach who is fascinated by humans, especially the oddball, introverted, and often neurodivergent "creatives" like us who see the world just a little differently. If you're new to the podcast, I've provided the best of the best from my interview archive to get you started on the right learning path. And if you're looking to solve a specific problem, head over to zackarnold.com/episodes to search our entire library. Required ListeningOliver Burkeman | Why Optimization Isn’t the Answer (and How to Make the Most of Our Four Thousand Weeks On Earth)Amie McNee | Why the World Needs Your Art (Even When It's On Fire)James Clear | How Tiny Changes Can Create Remarkable ResultsCal Newport | Becoming a ‘Digital Minimalist’Greg McKeown | The Disciplined Pursuit of LessJay Papasan | How to Accomplish Your ‘One Thing’ Every DayGretchen Rubin | Using ‘The Four Tendencies’ to Better Understand Yourself (and Others)The Future of CreativityJay Clouse | The Intersection of Legacy Hollywood and Next-Gen Content CreatorsKylee Peña | Creativity in The Age of AIOpenAI’s Chad Nelson | How Artificial Intelligence Could Shape the Future of Creativity and Collaboration (and How We Can Survive)Navigate Your CareerChristina Wallace | How to Future-Proof Your Creative Career, Avoid Burnout, and Build a Life Bigger Than Your RésuméDr. Tal Ben-Shahar | How to Pursue Fulfilling Work and Find Your ‘Calling’Annie Duke | How to Know (Without a Doubt) If It’s Time to QuitMauro Guillén | Redefining Your Career Path in a Post Generational SocietyPhilippe Danielides | How to Know What You Actually Want (and Find Support to Make It Happen)Build Your NetworkChase Jarvis | Building Your Network of ‘A-Gamers,’ Designing the Life You Want, and Fulfilling Your ‘Creative Calling’Selena Soo | How to Build 'Rich Relationships' (Especially For Introverts)Carole Kirschner | How to Leave an Impression, Build Your Network, & Get HiredTroy Takaki, ACE | Networking (the Right Way), Mentorship, and Connecting with ‘Experts’Scott Davis | [CASE STUDY] Why People Don’t Respond to Your Cold Outreach (and How to Get a Response)Do Your Best Creative WorkJoey Cofone | What Creativity Is, How It Works, and the Laws to Learning ItScott Barry Kaufman | How We are “Wired to Create”, What It Means to Be a “Creative”, and How We Can Leverage Our Unique GiftsAllison Sweet Grant | On Vulnerability and the Courageous Act of Creating From a Place of TruthNir Eyal | How to Become ‘Indistractable’David Allen | The Zen-like Art of ‘Getting Things Done’Cal Newport | FOCUS: The Superpower of the 21st CenturyTake Care of YourselfDr. Edison de Mello | Understanding the Difference Between Integrative & Traditional MedicineDr. Azure Grant | Optimizing Sleep, Productivity, & Creativity Using Ultradian Rhythms and Self-TrackingShawn Stevenson | How to Sleep SmarterDr. John Ratey | How Regular Movement Makes You SmarterDr. Joan Vernikos | How Being Sedentary Is Damaging You (According to NASA)Be Inspired!Dr. David Fajgenbaum | What Five Near-Death Experiences Can Teach Us About LivingBevin Farrand | From Setback to Comeback: Finding Strength in the Hardest MomentsShane Burcaw | Rewiring Your Brain to Be HappierSandy Zimmerman, ANW | How to Overcome Doubting Yourself When You Know You’re Meant For MoreJimmy Choi, ANW | Using Fitness to Overcome Parkinson’s and Become a Ninja

    New to the Podcast? Start Here!

  4. Sep 30

    The People You Want to Connect With Want to Connect With You

    We’re living through a time when meaningful relationships have never been more important, yet reaching out to the people who could help us most can feel harder than ever. In this mini-episode, I explore why we’re lonelier and more disconnected despite being globally hyperconnected, and why so many of us are terrified to reach out. I share why our only path forwards through this confusing next phase of work and life is together, and how kind, thoughtful, and genuinely HUMAN outreach can turn connection into an act of service. Along the way, I pull back the curtain on how I built my entire creative career and my upcoming Connection Conference from the comfort of my pajamas, using hand-crafted, well-researched, and thoughtful cold outreach emails to connect with some of the world’s leading experts in psychology, communication, creativity, and AI. All that in more in my latest Substack → The People You Want to Connect With Want to Connect With You When you're done → ​I'd love your thoughts here in the comments! If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

    The People You Want to Connect With Want to Connect With You

  5. Sep 28

    Feel Like a Failure? Learn How to Try Again When Life Isn’t Going Your Way | with Steve Kamb

    What if success isn’t about avoiding failure but instead learning how to try again when you do fail? In this episode, I talk with Steve Kamb, founder of Nerd Fitness and author of How to Try Again. Steve built a global fitness community of over 50,000 members and 20 coaches, gave a TEDx talk, and has worked with companies like Google and Facebook. But he’s also faced procrastination, perfectionism, and personal setbacks. We explore why constant optimization doesn’t always work, and how accepting failure and learning to restart might be the real key to lasting progress. Key TakeawaysStop trying to win for a moment and focus on staying afloat. Sometimes the most courageous move is not making progress but treading water long enough to see what tomorrow brings.Accept your reality with complete sincerity and compassion. Acceptance is not resignation or giving up. It is looking clearly at what is actually happening so you can decide what to do next.Recognize that change often feels more like caterpillar goo than a beautiful transformation. The messy middle is not evidence that you're failing. It is often evidence that real change is happening. Episode HighlightsWhen everything crumbles all at once and you're forced to actually live the very advice you're writing about.Brett Archibald's unbelievable survival story and what it teaches about swimming in the wrong direction.Acceptance without resignation and how to face reality without losing hope.Why waiting for things to "get back to normal" may be the most dangerous habit of all.The concept of "yes, and" as a practical framework for navigating uncertainty.Caterpillar soup: the uncomfortable truth about what transformation actually looks like.Why Atomic Habits works for many people and what happens when consistency becomes impossible.The mindset shift that starts with: “You don’t have to”How vulnerability helps you find people who will do the thing with youWhy chasing perfection paralyze creativity, and embracing your voice unlocks breakthroughWhat future Steve would tell his 10-years-younger self about success, failure, and change Recommended Next EpisodeHow Tiny Changes Can Create Remarkable Results | with James ClearUsing ‘The Four Tendencies’ to Better Understand Yourself (and Others) | with Gretchen Rubin Useful ResourcesDialectical Behavior TherapyJames Clear’s Atomic HabitsCharles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit Guest BioSteve Kamb is an author and full-time internet writer who has been publishing online since 2010. He is the founder of Nerd Fitness, an organization he launched as a hobby in 2009 that expanded into a global health and wellness community with millions of readers. Steve is a dedicated bookworm, gamer, and cinephile who explores behavior change and personal development through his weekly newsletter, Level Up With Steve Kamb. He is a TEDx speaker who has delivered presentations for major corporations and Vanderbilt University. His published work includes the book Level Up Your Life and his June 2026 release, How to Try Again. Steve’s Website | Nerd Fitness Steve’s Books: How To Try Again | Level Up Your Life Steve’s Substack | Threads | Instagram | Youtube Show CreditsEdited by: Curtis Fritsch Published by: Vim Pangantihon Music by: Thomas Cepeda

    Feel Like a Failure? Learn How to Try Again When Life Isn’t Going Your Way | with Steve Kamb

  6. Sep 14

    Have the robots killed cold outreach?

    As someone who has built diverse professional networks across three industries, and secured over a decade’s worth of employment through cold outreach, I had to find out whether AI is actually killing one of the most effective and human ways we connect with one another. In this episode, I dig into the rise of AI-generated “personalized” messages, and why thoughtful, human-generated outreach may be more effective than ever in a world desperate for real, imperfect, authentic connections. All that in more in my latest Substack → Have the robots killed cold outreach? When you're done → ​I'd love your thoughts here in the comments! If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack. Not convinced yet that cold outreach can still be effective, even in The Age of AI? Join The Connection Conference, a live virtual event I’m launching in October. The guest list is absolutely BANANAS! Curious how I built my entire guest list? Yup, you guessed it. Kind, thoughtful, and value-driven cold outreach. 😁

    Have the robots killed cold outreach?

  7. Sep 7

    We’ve lost sight of what it means to “connect”

    If you’ve ever wondered why we’re more “connected” than any point in human history yet somehow more lonely and isolated than ever, this conversation is for you. In this episode, I explore why we’ve lost sight of what it means to “connect,” how social media turned an awkward, messy, and imperfect human process into mindless clicks, likes, and subscribes, and why AI now threatens to remove humans from the loop completely. As a self-proclaimed extreme introvert, I’ve desperately wanted to believe I could be “discovered” while working alone in my creative cave, but I’ve learned that the quality of our lives is dictated by the quality of our relationships, and creative inspiration doesn’t happen in isolation. All that in more in my latest Substack → We’ve lost sight of what it means to “connect” When you're done → ​I'd love your thoughts here in the comments! If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack. Ready to hit the reset button and rethink what it truly means to connect as analog humans in this digital nightmare? Join me at The Connection Conference, where we’ll explore the psychology, communication, creativity, and AI behind the art and science of true human connection.

    We’ve lost sight of what it means to “connect”

  8. Jun 29

    Everything you've ever wanted to know about connecting with humans (but were afraid to ask)

    I’ve built my entire creative career on outreach, yet I spent years believing it was just emails, nothing special, until my students began handing me their messages and asking why they weren’t getting responses. In this mini-episode, I pull back the curtain on the first “vomit draft” of my new book, The Outreach Survival Guide, and explore why everything we’ve ever wanted is on the other side of outreach, why everyone is reachable via email, and why the robots writing email slop are making it harder than ever to genuinely connect with another human being. If you’ve ever stared at your inbox, overthought every sentence, wondered why nobody taught us how to write a good email, or felt like your hopes and dreams were trapped behind someone else’s inbox, this essay will show you why thoughtful, kind, and personal messages still matter, why our survival depends on the strength of our relationships, and why a world of opportunities opens when we stop writing messages and start telling stories. All that in more in my latest Substack → Everything you've ever wanted to know about connecting with humans (but were afraid to ask) When you're done → ​I'd love your thoughts here in the comments! If you enjoyed this article and you don't want to miss my future essays, my actionable insights, and my soapbox rants about navigating the world as analog humans in today's digital hellscape, make sure to subscribe at zackarnold.com/substack.

    Everything you've ever wanted to know about connecting with humans (but were afraid to ask)
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About

Hi I'm Zack! If you want to make things that matter, I want to help you. I’m a former award-winning Hollywood film editor, producer, and documentary director turned writer, podcaster, and creative career coach who loves having deep conversations with interesting, highly creative humans to better understand how we can survive and thrive in this crazy, chaotic world we call reality. I’m excited to share with you the hundreds of deep, honest, and vulnerable conversations I’ve had over the years to help you navigate the next act of work and life on your terms, build genuine relationships, better manage your well-being, overcome your fears and limiting beliefs, and build better habits and systems so you can stay focused on creating sh*t that matters. You're in the right place if: You live to create. Your work isn't just a job but an expression of who you are.You create to live. Your livelihood depends on your creativity.You love making cool shit. Whether you identify as introverted or neurodivergent (or both, like me)... No matter if you're a misfit, a rebel, an outlier, or a troublemaker... If you've been called weird, nerdy, dorky, quirky, or awkward... Or if you’re an over-thinker, procrastinator, or perfectionist… You are welcome here. 😊

Information

  • Creator
    Zack Arnold
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    588
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    ©2026 Arnoland, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Zack Arnold Podcast