Happy Sunday,

If I’m honest, all we’ve really wanted in our career is to find people like us.

Creators are kind of irrational. We spend our days chasing ideas, getting way too deep into them, then obsessing over bringing them to life… with zero guarantee of what’s on the other side. It doesn’t make sense. And that’s exactly why I love it. I love being around people who are just as irrational.

Finding those people matters. It makes you feel less alone. It gives you fuel. You learn from what others figured out, you skip a few mistakes, you move a little faster. And most important, it’s just fun to share your irrational ideas with people who will get just as excited as you.

That’s what this community has been for me over the last 15 years. Every video, every newsletter, more of “us” show up.

If you’re here reading this, you’re probably one of us too.

On Thursday, 450 of us got together in New York for Press Publish NYC. It was surreal… i’m still digesting it to be honest. So considering 11,000+ of you weren’t there, I figured i’d share my notes app from the day:

Casey Neisat on What Actually Matters

Our first surprise guest at Press Publish was Casey Neistat. For me, this was a big deal. I’ve wanted to have this conversation with him ever since I watched Make It Count back in 2010.

Colin asked what he thought about the whole “Creator Economy.” Casey said he hates the term. He feels like lately it’s been way more economy than creator.

The thing he kept coming back to was: “Be honest with yourself about why you’re doing it.”

Casey told us he hit all the goals he thought he wanted and at some point the trade wasn’t worth it anymore. He was spending more time feeding the YouTube machine and less time with his family. So he pulled back. Slowed down.

He pointed out how much he respects MrBeast. Because Jimmy never claimed he wanted to be a filmmaker. He just wanted the most views. And he’s been clear about that from day one.

For me, it was a good gut check. I started out wanting to be a filmmaker. Somewhere along the way, I’ve definitely traded a lot of creative opportunity for financial opportunity. And this past year - my house burned down, my first kid was born - I’ve been working harder than maybe ever before. I do have a lot of stories I want to tell, but I spend most of my time on the business. So Casey’s words made me pause and ask: what does enough look like?

He wrapped up with a line from Oscar Wilde that stuck with me:

 “Some things are too important to be taken seriously.”

Max Joseph & Cleo Abram Reminded Me To Stop Chasing Views & Stay Curious

Max and Cleo are two of the best storytellers I know. Whenever I want to understand how to tell a better story, I turn to their work. (If you haven’t seen them yet, start with Bookstores from Max and this video from Cleo.)

We broke down the 7 timeless rules of storytelling which I’ll share soon. But two lines from my notes stood out:

“Make a mix CD.”

Max said your videos should feel like a mix CD. Back in the day (yes, my day…) we made mix CDs for friends…or more often the people we had crushes on. The whole point was to take someone on a journey. Track 1 flowed into 2, 3, 4. There was rhythm. A mix. That’s what your videos should feel like, a journey with flow.

“Surround yourself with people who have the same gut as you.”

Cleo talked about how her growth (0 to 6M subscribers in 3 years) was really supported by her team. Of course they are talented… but more importantly they share the same storytelling intuition she has. You need people around you who tell you if something is boring, good, needs work etc.. 

We also talked about how fine-tuned the audience’s bullsh*t meter is right now. If you’re making something because it excites you, people can feel it. If you’re making something just because you think it’ll get views… they can feel that too.

Steven Bartlett on Small Wins & Big Outcomes

Our final surprise guest was Steven Bartlett, host of Diary of a CEO. If Casey represents the artist, Steven represents the entrepreneur.

He’s one of the most inspiring and thoughtful people I’ve had the chance to hang out with - and I can’t wait to share more from our conversation. But here are two lines I wrote down:

“Most people are concerned with moving a rock, but our team is working to move a pebble.”

Steven explained that he pushes his team to focus on 1% improvements instead of chasing giant leaps. When he interviewed UFC fighter Israel Adesanya, his team noticed Israel kept mentioning a Nipsey Hussle song he grew up loving. So they played it when he walked in. He lit up.

As an interviewer myself, I know how powerful those small wins can be. They shift the entire conversation.

On his podcast, Steven’s team has tested everything: CO₂ levels in the room, the music guests hear when they arrive, even the air freshener. Tiny details. But stack enough of them, and you get big breakthroughs.

“Be romantic about winning, not about being right.”

Early on, it’s easy to get attached to your original vision - to want to be right about your idea. But if you cling too tightly, you miss how things naturally evolve. Steven’s point: stay romantic about the outcome, not the ego of being right.

To be totally honest, this was a lot to try to fit into one email. I’d love if you can reply and let me know how you like the longer style. 

I worry about peoples’ attention spans here, but I also want you to get as many of my notes from the event as possible.

But also, I just can’t fit everything here. So I put together this free download of notes from Thursday. If you want to hear my recap from all 5 speakers, click here to download it. 

More next Sunday,

 - Samir

PS – We’re having a lot of fun getting to spend time with you guys as much as possible, so we’re thinking of opening up another round of our live mentorship cohort called Brand Deal Blueprint.

If that at all interests you, click here and submit your application. It’ll just help us figure out timing, pricing + who we have interested so we know if this is a good idea.