Episode 212 | "The Restart"

Mike Brown returns to his podcast, 'The Art of Letting Go,' sharing updates on his life and the show's future. He discusses moving back to Houston for family time, relocating to Newark, NJ, and restarting his creative journey. Mike emphasizes the importance of taking time for stillness, rebuilding, and community support. He talks about overcoming burnout, embracing opportunities, and the challenges of finding jobs in the audio industry. Mike encourages listeners to be creative and proactive. He aims to engage with the audience through his podcast, Patreon, and newsletter.

Meditation by: James "DatYogaDude" Woods
Music by: Mike Brown

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome and Announcements
• 0:38 Personal Reflections and Restart
• 1:46 Life in Houston and Family Time
• 4:42 Moving to the East Coast
• 6:13 Challenges and Opportunities
• 11:21 Creative Journey and Affirmations
• 17:06 Future Plans and Goals
• 22:28 Closing Remarks and Call to Action

Transcript

Episode 212 The Restart

Mike Brown: [00:00:00] Hey everybody. This is Mike Brown, and I wanted to welcome you to today's show. We got a really dope episode in store for you. Uh, it's been a minute since we've been at the podcast, but we are back. And I wanted to share with y'all just what's coming up next for The Art of Letting Go. Also, I would love for you to join me on Patreon, where I'll be giving some exclusive content.

Also sign up for my newsletter. My goal is to get a thousand people signed up for the newsletter and a hundred people on the Patreon. The link is in the bio. Thank you and enjoy the show.

Yo, what up? This is Mike Brown and this is the art of letting go. It's probably like my second time restarting this episode that I'm recording right now. That's probably like my 10th time restarting the show. Um, probably my third time, second guessing it and really trying to see if I [00:01:00] Can even do this again.

I say that all the time and you know what? I've noticed the pattern in myself of always being blonde and always restarting the show. And I guess this is the restart, but yo, this is Mike Brown. This is the art of letting go and welcome to the show. First, I want to send some love to everybody. Out in LA. Um, I used to live out there.

So, you know, it's near and dear to my heart. Um, to all my friends and my family and just everybody that is lost out there. I want to send some love and, um, yeah, send some energy to y'all and I'll probably put some links down in, in the, uh, bio of this episode. So. People can support the people out there, but yeah, man, we back we back My apologies to y'all for not being as consistent last year I really was burnt out burnt out but also [00:02:00] trying to figure out just life and Where and what was going on?

So, you know if you listen to the past episodes I was Moving around a little bit right before I took a break. I was moving around. I actually was on the East coast for a minute, um, as a nomad and just not even knowing what was next for me. And you know, when my funds got dry. I went back home to Houston to go spend time with my family.

And I told y'all, I said on that episode, I said, uh, I always got my mama's house to go to, and I did. And in addition to that was having my sister's house to go to. And that was where I was staying when I was in Houston. I was in between my parents and in between my sister, just really getting some time for stillness.

It's not often. That I take time to slow down. I'm always just kind of like what's next. And even when I am doing well or [00:03:00] perceived doing well, it used to not be enough for me. And being in Houston, it made me appreciate just my time and where I was at. I hadn't been around my family in almost Shoot, almost 20 years, um, like living with them consistently.

Like, I'm saying it like I'm, I'm in a strange, but no. Uh, I would see my family on visits, uh, going to Houston, you know, whether it be for the holidays or just going out there. And this was probably the most time I spent with them at one time. I spent five months. And it was a beautiful experience. It was nice to see where they are today and also introduce them to who I am today.

You know, I feel like family, we all hold each other to a place or a memory or an experience. And don't allow each other to evolve past that. So it was dope to give my family the space to [00:04:00] evolve and also to be given the space to show who I am today. When we found ourselves in old patterns, it was nice to have conversations about just where we are.

And it even led to us getting into family therapy, which was so dope because, uh, my dad was definitely not interested in it at all. So And every session he wanted to quit and every session he opened up more and more. So shout out to my family. Shout out to them for just doing the work and yeah, just being so supportive of me and my journey.

Fast forward a little bit. I left Houston in April to move to Newark. New Jersey. I'm in New Jersey now. I'm, I'm on the East Coast. Never in a million years did I think that I would live on the East Coast. I just had a perception of [00:05:00] what it was in my mind. And actually when I visited last year for the first, well, that wasn't my first time visiting, but when I stayed out here for a month, it really made me feel like, Oh, I could possibly do this.

And. Fast forward. Here I am today. I'm living out here and I've been out here since April and just navigating and I feel like I'm finally getting my, my footing into just where I want to be. And man, I'm not gonna lie. It was rough. It was rough because, you know, I'm comparing myself to who and where I was.

You know, when I lived in LA, like I, before I left LA, I was doing a couple of live shows. I was doing workshops. I was having my own afterschool program. In, in my life, I was, I was the man, still am the man, but, um, you know, judging myself from those externals of like my work and my career, like that was giving me [00:06:00] validation and to move to a place where I don't have any of that and starting from the bottom.

Now we here, but moving to a place where I didn't have any of that, I had to find value other places. I'm not going to lie to you. The audio industry is shit right now when it comes to finding jobs. Every industry, every, everything is messed up when is, when it comes time to find a job. But, you know, I'm speaking from my own personal experience, like getting four or five rejections in a day.

Um, some of these shits just being automated and you could just tell, like, they didn't take time to read the resume or the cover letter. And, you know, I feel so much for people that are. In that, that, that job hunt, because I'm not there and I wasn't there even when I was doing it. Like I really, after I quit teaching, like I really been in like a, just entrepreneurial mindset.

And, [00:07:00] you know, when the money was slow, I had that feeling of like, I got to get a job. I got to find something to do. Um, I got to find some type of way to bring some money in and, you know, blessed to have a supportive partner to, um, support me on this journey as well. Um, But man, it's not easy. And like I said, when your worth is tied into.

It's unhealthy. And that's not to say that I wasn't doing things out here, because I had hosted a live episode with, uh, the Soho House for Pride. I had hosted a live episode with Newark, the city, for Pride. So I was doing things. I hosted some shit with PBS, too. I was doing a little bit. I was doing a lot of shit.

But I just wasn't feeling it. And, you know, feeling like, I just was starting from ground zero with everything from building community to, um, you know, and shout out [00:08:00] to my community that is here. Like, you know, my mentor and friend TK is out here. I got homies from college out here. I got homies from basketball out here.

I got a lot of people out here, but also, um, it's different, you know, moving around on public transportation and. Not being able to just go drive to somebody or, you know, just being out of the city, like Newark is close, but it's also, you know, it's not that close for everybody. So, you know, at times. I would find myself just being isolated with my thoughts and, you know, just being consumed with, I have to get here.

I have to go there. And, um, I would say probably not till like November, I really just had a reality check of slowing down. I needed to slow down, um, [00:09:00] and not be so desperate of looking for things and really let life come to me. And I will say in doing that, Um, it created some opportunities for me, created some opportunities for me.

Uh, I am working with some podcasts, doing some social media work. I'm, uh, doing some story editing for another podcast. And like I said, really taking time to focus on the things I want, supporting me and getting there. Like, like I said, I'm, I'm an entrepreneur. I'm a creative entrepreneur. Like. I essentially want to, and I am not, I want to, I am using my skills to, uh, bring in income and exchange energy.

And I just have to remember that. And I do remind myself that every day, like I have a list of affirmations. And when I tell you, man, my toolkit has been so strong lately and I [00:10:00] said, I'm, I'm taking my time to build physical community, but I do have. community that spread out. Like I meet with my friends from college every Wednesday and we just talk about life, our goals, and just how are we going to get to where we want to go.

And um, we give each other feedback, like we give each other praise, like we really show each other a lot of love. And it's special because, um, I don't know another group of men that does that. And if you are a man listening to this, like, I hope. That you reach out to, to your homies, reach out to your friends and, um, yeah, just start talking more.

It's James Woods, 

DatYogaDude: a. k. a. That Yoga Dude with Feel Free to Feel Free. Slowing it down, I have appreciation for all the people, places, and things in my life that work today. [00:11:00] So many things don't work, so many times. But I'm appreciating the things that do. The copier, my password, the person I was supposed to bring, that thing that usually doesn't work.

Those things are not bothering me today. Right now, I'm just appreciating the things that do work. Like my breath, my heartbeat, my mind. My ability to let go just for this moment. Breathing in and being grateful for what works in my mind and my body. Focus it on what works with each and every breath. As always, feel free to feel free and namaste.

Peace.

Mike Brown: You know, we all [00:12:00] pushing 40. I'm not 40 yet. Uh, but I'm close. I'm close. I'm like two years away. And, um, you know, life is different. Life is different. Like, you know, for the most part, it feels like we, we all are like either in relationships or have kids or, you know, just, uh, on the path of like finding like that life passion balance because all of us are pursuing dreams and chasing goals.

And it's like, you know, I don't know anybody that's gotten there. on their own. So my community is valuable. Um, I have accountability partners now, like shout out to Jeremiah, like Jeremiah is my creative entrepreneurial, um, accountability partner. And we meet every two weeks and just check in with each other on our goals on life and Meejin, um, who is now my creative accountability partner.

[00:13:00] Like I thrive in community and. I'm building community. I used to hate reading books and I built a book club for men just to read and also have conversations. And I ended up finishing 15 books last year just to, uh, just to put that out there. And, uh, you can check out my sub stack for the book list. Um, I am on sub stack.

I am on sub stack, so y'all can check me out there. What else we got? I took a couple of notes and I'm telling you my energy feels so much higher recording right now because when I recorded Sunday, I was terrified. I felt rusty. I felt like I didn't have this anymore. So I was gonna put the episode out and I'm still gonna put the episode out.

It'll be on Patreon, but I just wanted to share [00:14:00] with the listeners, with the other creatives, you know, um, just do it. Just do it. Don't worry about you know, how good it is or how bad it is. Just do whatever the task is that you want to do. You want to put out a podcast, turn on that microphone. You want to make a song, record it.

You want to paint, put the paint on the canvas. Just do the things you want to do because the longer you prolong them, the more that negative voice starts kicking in on the inside and this just gets harder. You know, um, and ain't none of us getting younger. You know, when I was younger, I just, I acknowledge I was just fearless.

And I still feel that that person inside of me, I still feel that. that child that just didn't care about looking crazy, didn't care about [00:15:00] any of that stuff because he knew that he was going to be successful. And, um, I had to reconnect with that. And I will say like the artist way is definitely supportive in my journey.

Um, journaling. Every day, like just writing every day, dumping my thoughts in the morning has been super supportive again, my affirmations and I'll give y'all a cheat code of something that's been helpful for me is, um, writing out the good things that are happening for me. Like I got a whiteboard and every day I try to write at least one good thing that came up in that day because I'm gonna tell you, like my thoughts be so negative that, uh, I need a reference point.

To just go see like, Oh shit, something did happen today or something happened this week. You know, um, that's why I hadn't been podcasting also, you know, I was moving around a lot and it just was hard to do. It was hard [00:16:00] to do. I, I didn't have a I didn't have a home base. I didn't have a foundation. And even when I was in Houston, I tried recording, but I just wasn't motivated.

And shout out to my barber. Uh, we recorded a couple of episodes and it was really dope to just connect with him. And it, and it just showed me like, I'm really able to connect with anybody. So when I take the show to Mexico, um, I'm, I'm practicing my Spanish too. So when I get to Mexico, And the show turns it to a Spanish show.

Um, I just hope y'all still on the journey with me. Maybe I'll start using some Spanish words on the show so we could all practice together. But yeah, in Houston, I just didn't feel inspired to podcast. Um, when I first got out here, like it was dope to do the live shows and. You know, I'm in that space of just trying to run where the energy is, lemme try to get more live shows, and it wasn't happening that fast.

So it just, [00:17:00] it just didn't spark me to do it. But I feel committed to the journey again. Um, I can't promise that I'll do this every week, but I will commit to doing it biweekly. Um, I'll still record in those in between times and I'll probably share those on Patreon. Um, it's just hard to keep up with this by myself.

And, you know, one of my goals this year is to grow to a place where I could hire two people. Um, shit, last time I did something like this and put out that bat signal for people to come work with me. Um, I connected with Jeremiah and he supported me and like really coming up with the branding and everything that I'm doing.

Um, and I want to connect with more people like that. Definitely am looking for an editor to bring on to my team because while I'm producing this show, um, I'm working on producing a couple of other shows. Like I said, I am producing a show for someone. Um, when I'm able to give more detail on that, [00:18:00] I will, uh, just, just know that I'm, I'm getting work off what I learned how to do in my passion.

So yeah, I'm, I'm looking to, Pick up some more clients, but I also want some support in the work that I'm doing and even producing some of the other shows I'm passionate about. I got some ideas that I want to get off and, um, yeah, I would love some support in that. And I really would love some support on the business end.

Um, I know I got a dope product. I know I'm dope. Uh, I get a lot of opportunities to like speak and shit like that and I want more of them. I want more of them. So it would be dope to have somebody that could support me and just finding those opportunities for myself and maybe even like helping me come up with a strategy to just grow my brand and my business so we all could uh, Make some money off of this.

My goal is to get a hundred people signed up on the [00:19:00] Patreon. Um, I think I'm at like 22 right now. So if you listen to this, sign up for the Patreon. There is a free option. I would love if you did a paid option, but you know, the free option is cool too. Um, and I want to get a thousand people signed up for my newsletter.

So, man, I, I, I know I'm putting a lot out there, but I would, love for y'all to support and all that. And if you know people that would be open to working with me, or you're one of those people, like, reach out to me. Um, you know, we'll figure something out. Maybe, maybe it's a way that I could support you as well in your journey.

Yeah. Yeah. I, I feel like I covered everything that I wanted to cover. I'm looking at my notes and I said, I'm, I'm trying to be a better podcaster until I can get back to that space of just, Freestyling it, which freestyling is fun, but also having notes is fun too. Um,

So what's next for the [00:20:00] show? What is next for the show? Um, yeah, like I said, I'm probably going to be doing this bi weekly. Um, I'll be weekly sometimes. I'll let y'all know. Uh, I'm not going to just disappear as I, as I did before. I will let you know when I'm going on break. So I will let you know when I'm coming back.

And, um, Yeah, we're going to talk to more creatives like, you know, I really love having the conversations about, you know, mental health and stuff like that, but I also want to go deeper into like creativity and using that as a way to support yourself in your mental health journey and just in expressing yourself, like, you know, I know so many creatives and so many artists that are just free.

And I think that is what this version of the artist. artist way. Um, you could tell, I've, I've been doing workshops on the artist way. So that is like at the [00:21:00] forefront of my mind right now. But with the art of letting go, um, I really just want to support people in finding their freedom and their creativity.

And, you know, that just goes beyond all like the, the surface level boxes. that we all exist in. Like, I really want everybody to exist as an artist and to express yourself freely with or without, um, the compensation of finances, you know? Yeah, that's, that's my goal and my dream with this. But I'm glad I re recorded this episode because I'm feeling really hype right now.

And, uh, I was not giving this on the other one. Y'all could listen to it on Patreon. It was really bad. It was terrible. It's a terrible episode, but I recorded it because I just wanted to let people know to just fucking do it. If you get anything from this episode, I don't care what I'm talking about with the, the [00:22:00] Patreon, with the this, where I was at, just go create something, create something like live a full creative life.

You know. In the way you cook, in the way you create, in the way you make love, in the way you work, like, just be creative. That's all I got for y'all. Um, thank y'all so much for tuning in. This is Mike Brown, and this is the Art of Letting Go. Peace. Thank you so much for tuning into this episode of the Art of Letting Go.

If you like what you heard, please be sure to subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen. Don't forget, we're also on YouTube and leave a review. Leave a comment, let people know what you think about the show. If you want to further connect, we are on Patreon. Sign up for the Patreon. There is a free tier.

I would love for y'all to join me and I want to connect more direct with y'all. So Patreon, I'm on Substack. Just Mike Brown sharing a newsletter every week. My [00:23:00] goal is to get 52 of those out as well as a thousand people signed up. So please sign up. Be one of those thousand and thank y'all so much for tuning in.

See you on the next episode.