Optimize Yourself Zack Arnold

What I’d love to do is give you an insider’s glimpse into the world of my Optimizer coaching & mentorship program and what we call the ‘Hot Seat.’ What you’ll hear today is a recording of an actual live session with an Optimizer student where on the Hot Seat we tackle various questions about career transitions, productivity, workflows, networking, burnout, habit formation, resumes and websites, and any number of other work or life challenges that students bring to the table as they navigate their own path towards success.
In the following hot seat session, community member Fabian Corrado wants to create a solid networking and outreach plan to make the transition into scripted television as an assistant editor. Fabian has been an assistant editor working in trailer houses for many years and he has decided that scripted television is what he really wants to do. This episode is filled with tips, advice, and strategies for making the leap into scripted television. Listen in for the inside scoop so you can apply it to your own career. And as an added bonus (and spoiler alert), after listening if you want to see how all this worked out for Fabian, listen to episode 172 at optimizeyourself.me/episode172.
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Want to learn more about working with me and having your own Hot Seat session?
→ Click here to learn more about the Optimizer coaching & mentorship program

As creative professionals, we constantly have to reinvent ourselves to stay relevant (and frankly just to survive the insanity of our industry). The pressure to come up with new ideas and be daring is stressful at best, and debilitating at worst. Many of us are under the illusion that this pressure we place on ourselves gives us our edge - that it helps us continue to perform our best. But instead this pressure leads to limiting beliefs, imposter syndrome, and procrastination. And if it persists over long periods of time…even total burnout.
What if there was a better approach to reinventing yourself, your work, and even your health & body image so you could fully tap into your limitless creativity?
How different would it feel to be able to say 'yes' to the things that scared you and 'no' to the things that were comfortable and easy, rather than feeling stuck in a job you no longer enjoy? Or sliding into bad habits that are sapping your energy (like that sleeve of oreos that tasted soooooo good) and killing your motivation (just one more episode, then I'll be productive!!!!), you could actually rise to the challenge with a 'can-do' attitude and a believe that your dreams are possible?
My guest today, Scott Morgan, is a PGA Golf Professional turned Online Fitness Trainer, husband, father of 2, a plant based athlete and creator of The Sweatville Club. He also happens to be 58 years old. And only in the last few years has he made this transition to online fitness trainer, plant based athlete, and entrepreneur during the period of life when most people would have considered it “too late” to learn something new and follow a passion that seemed risky or even foolish. Scott's story will inspire you to take a risk, jump out of your comfort zone and discover what it's like to live life with a "can-do" attitude.
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Here's What You'll Learn: The role Scott played in my Ninja training in Tony Horton's backyard. KEY TAKEAWAY: It’s never too late to learn something new. Scott's story of P90X and the changes it brought to his life. The many positive side effects that come from taking control of your health and fitness. How Scott made the jump from doing P90X to training with Tony Horton in person each week. How Scott dealt with limiting beliefs and imposter syndrome. KEY TAKEAWAY: The people you look up to are humans just like you. The challenges Scott faced when starting his own business. What you should say yes to and what you should say no and how to tell the difference. How switching to a plant based diet affected Scott's fitness ability. The changes Scott noticed in his mental acuity after going plant based. Scott's advice to his younger self who quit on week one of P90X. Why you should always take the scary path. How to join the Sweatville Club and contact Scott.
Useful Resources Mentioned: The Big Picture: 11 Laws That Will Change Your Life: Horton, Tony
Ep122: 'Superfood Hunter' Darin Olien On How To Be Healthy, Fit, and Eternally Awesome
Continue to Listen & Learn Ep84: How to Use 'Intuitive Eating' To Change Your Relationship With Food | with Melissa Costello
Ep165: How to Overcome Doubting Yourself When You Know You’re Meant For More | with Sandy Zimmerman, ANW
Ep161: Managing Limiting Beliefs, Imposter Syndrome, and all the “Chatter” In Our Heads | with Ethan Kross
Ep98: P90X Creator Tony Horton on Covid-19, Staying Healthy During Quarantine, Boosting Immunity, & More
Ep120: The Ninja Warrior Mother-Daughter Dynamic Duo, Part 1 | with Ginny MacColl, ANW
Ep121: The Ninja Warrior Mother-Daughter Dynamic Duo, Part 2 | with Jessie Graff, ANW
Ep06: Defining Your Purpose and Living Large | with Tony Horton
Ep68: How to Go From Couch to the (Spartan) Course | with Rose Wetzel, ANW
Ep60: Getting 1% Better Every Single Day | with Westley Silvestri, ANW
Guest Bio:

Scott Morgan is a PGA Golf Professio

From the outside it often looks as if the dominant factor that determines whether someone achieves their careers goals or not is luck (And you all know how I feel about “luck.”) From an insider’s perspective, having helped hundreds of people successfully make career transitions, I believe luck is simply when their hard work intersects with the right opportunity. And this intersection is no accident when you have the right strategy.
One of my favorite aspects of the Optimizer coaching & mentorship community is the relationships that are built when students support each other to pursue work they feel most passionate about. When Optimizer students Nick Towle and Fabian Corrado originally came to me, neither one of them knew each other. But they both knew they were tired of the jobs they had, they felt stuck after trying for years to make a seemingly impossible career change, and they were ready to do anything to get on the right path.
Nick Towle had been an editor in reality tv and transitioned to the scripted world as an assistant editor (AE). He was finding plenty of regular work, and he even had the opportunity to cut in addition to his AE duties, but he couldn't seem to land his first full-fledged scripted editing gig. Nobody was willing to give him the experience…without already having the experience.
Fabian Corrado was working successfully as an Assistant Editor in the trailer industry but felt unsatisfied and unfulfilled, and he knew he wanted to make the jump to scripted. He worked hard and spent many years climbing his way up the wrong ladder and felt stuck and trapped doing a job he no longer loved.
If you too are struggling to make a career transition, you feel stuck in a dead end career path, or you cringe when you think of networking, this episode will help you get unstuck and think of networking in a whole new light as you learn the strategies that both Nick & Fabian used to land huge career-changing opportunities (and ultimately work together on the same show!).
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Here's What You'll Learn: Fabian started his career in EPK trailer houses but after 5 years wanted to make the transition to scripted. How Fabian got connected with me and the Optimize Yourself program. Fabian describes what it was like for him to 'hit the wall' in trailer editing. Nick was an editor in reality tv and transitioned to scripted television as an assistant editor. Nick talks about what motivated him to look for the Focus Yourself program. Fabian explains the importance of uncovering your purpose and determining what career path is going to be most fulfilling. KEY TAKEAWAY: Networking strategy is all about planting the right seeds. Fabian was juggling two jobs while trying to do Focus Yourself. Nick balanced raising a 3 year old while working through the program. The story of how Fabian connected with an editor on his dream show. Nick describes how he had to make the psychological switch in his own mind to see himself as an editor. Why Fabian made the decision to walk away from a full-time job to do a 3 week freelance job. The financial component to having the freedom to turn down work that isn't the right fit. What made Fabian stand out amongst other qualified assistant editors to get his dream job. How important it is to set yourself up for success in a job even if there are knowledge gaps that need to be filled. KEY TAKEAWAY: Don’t pursue perfect at the expense of good enough. Nick and Fabian's advice to their younger selves.
Useful Resources Mentioned: Ep62: [CASE STUDY] Transitioning to Scripted Television | with Len Ciccotello
Ep146: [CASE STUDY] From “Out of Ideas” to Becoming an Idea Machine | with Paul Del Vecchio
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
Ep159: Overcoming Limiting Beliefs (and Lack of Experience) to Break Into Scripted Television | with Marcella Garcia
Ep134: Leveraging Your Skills

As 2021 winds down and we approach the New Year, it’s so easy to get caught up in the chaos of the holiday season and write off the end of the year as a loss, putting our goals and intentions aside and telling ourselves “We’’ll start fresh again in January.” But then inevitably when the new year hits and we create resolutions, life still gets in the way which leads to over 92% of New Year’s resolutions failing. (Don’t worry...I’m just as guilty as anyone else.)
If you intend to make things happen in 2022, you don’t need resolutions → you need a plan.
That’s why for the last 5 weeks of this year I’m going to share with you my top 5 interviews on designing a more fulfilling life, setting goals, building habits, and taking actions that get you long term results. Imagine if instead of crawling to the finish line the next five weeks in a haze of holiday indulgence you instead took the time to identify your true values, prioritize your life down to only the essential, learn to set habits that you’ll stick to, and ultimately focus on doing important work that matters to you? How much further ahead of the game would you be?
I’m not saying you have to start exercising 5 days a week, stop eating sugar and carbs, wake up and meditate at 5am every morning, or add 20 new activities to your daily routine during the most stressful month of the year...but wouldn’t it be awesome starting 2022 with a clear plan and the motivation to get started?
If this sounds like a better alternative, then stick with me for the next five weeks as I and five of the world’s foremost experts on setting goals and getting things done help you design a plan so 2022 can be the year that everything finally came together for you.
So without further adieu, here is the fifth and final part of this five interview series with New York Times bestselling author Cal Newport to discuss his seminal book Deep Work.
→ Click here to go to the original episode show notes of the interview with Cal Newport
→ Click here to get my free 5-part email course that will help you get started on your hero's journey

As 2021 winds down and we approach the New Year, it’s so easy to get caught up in the chaos of the holiday season and write off the end of the year as a loss, putting our goals and intentions aside and telling ourselves “We’’ll start fresh again in January.” But then inevitably when the new year hits and we create resolutions, life still gets in the way which leads to over 92% of New Year’s resolutions failing. (Don’t worry...I’m just as guilty as anyone else.)
If you intend to make things happen in 2022, you don’t need resolutions → you need a plan.
That’s why for the last 5 weeks of this year I’m going to share with you my top 5 interviews on designing a more fulfilling life, setting goals, building habits, and taking actions that get you long term results. Imagine if instead of crawling to the finish line the next five weeks in a haze of holiday indulgence you instead took the time to identify your true values, prioritize your life down to only the essential, learn to set habits that you’ll stick to, and ultimately focus on doing important work that matters to you? How much further ahead of the game would you be?
I’m not saying you have to start exercising 5 days a week, stop eating sugar and carbs, wake up and meditate at 5am every morning, or add 20 new activities to your daily routine during the most stressful month of the year...but wouldn’t it be awesome starting 2022 with a clear plan and the motivation to get started?
If this sounds like a better alternative, then stick with me for the next five weeks as I and five of the world’s foremost experts on setting goals and getting things done help you design a plan so 2022 can be the year that everything finally came together for you.
So without further adieu, here is the fourth part of this five interview series with New York Times bestselling author James Clear, author of Atomic Habits.
→ Click here to go to the original episode show notes of the interview with James Clear
→ Click here to get my free 5-part email course that will help you get started on your hero's journey

As 2021 winds down and we approach the New Year, it’s so easy to get caught up in the chaos of the holiday season and write off the end of the year as a loss, putting our goals and intentions aside and telling ourselves “We’’ll start fresh again in January.” But then inevitably when the new year hits and we create resolutions, life still gets in the way which leads to over 92% of New Year’s resolutions failing. (Don’t worry...I’m just as guilty as anyone else.)
If you intend to make things happen in 2022, you don’t need resolutions → you need a plan.
That’s why for the last 5 weeks of this year I’m going to share with you my top 5 interviews on designing a more fulfilling life, setting goals, building habits, and taking actions that get you long term results. Imagine if instead of crawling to the finish line the next five weeks in a haze of holiday indulgence you instead took the time to identify your true values, prioritize your life down to only the essential, learn to set habits that you’ll stick to, and ultimately focus on doing important work that matters to you? How much further ahead of the game would you be?
I’m not saying you have to start exercising 5 days a week, stop eating sugar and carbs, wake up and meditate at 5am every morning, or add 20 new activities to your daily routine during the most stressful month of the year...but wouldn’t it be awesome starting 2022 with a clear plan and the motivation to get started?
If this sounds like a better alternative, then stick with me for the next five weeks as I and five of the world’s foremost experts on setting goals and getting things done help you design a plan so 2022 can be the year that everything finally came together for you.
So without further adieu, here is the third part of this five interview series with New York Times bestselling author and podcaster Gretchen Rubin.
→ Click here to go to the original episode show notes of the interview with Gretchen Rubin
→ Click here to get my free 5-part email course that will help you get started on your hero's journey