Key Moments
The Random Show with Tim Ferriss & Kevin Rose | Episode 27 | Tim Ferriss
Tim FerrissKey Moments
Tim Ferriss and Kevin Rose discuss entrepreneurship, app ideas, and life hacks.
Key Insights
Kevin Rose has left Google Ventures to focus full-time on his startup, having raised $5 million and planning to "aggressively kill" underperforming products.
Tim Ferriss is focusing on writing again, potentially a book compiling success stories from "The 4-Hour Workweek" and exploring new conceptual directions.
Both hosts are exploring intimate fan engagement models, potentially through paid memberships, to foster deeper conversations and share exclusive content.
Kevin Rose recommends 'Contactually' and 'Relate IQ' for contact management and 'Humin' for localized friend notifications.
Tim Ferriss discusses using vinyl records for a more deliberate listening experience and Tim Ferriss's new walking treadmill desk for increased daily activity.
Kevin Rose discusses his New Year's resolution to track and reduce alcohol consumption, sharing his tracking spreadsheet and goals.
TRANSITIONING FROM INVESTING TO STARTUP FOCUS
Kevin Rose shares his departure from Google Ventures after nearly three years to dedicate himself full-time to his new startup. He has successfully raised $5 million, providing ample runway. Rose emphasizes a strategy of "aggressively killing" products that aren't performing well, contrasting this with the typical startup tendency to over-invest in a single idea for too long. This approach aims to avoid burning through capital and facing down rounds or an inability to raise future funds.
THE REINVIGORATION OF WRITING AND CONTENT CREATION
Tim Ferriss discusses a renewed focus on writing, inspired by his podcasting experiences and a desire to delve deeper into his craft. He likens the intensity of past projects, like "The 4-Hour Chef," to a traumatic experience that necessitated a break. Now, feeling reset, he has the energy for focused creative work. He's considering a book celebrating the 10th anniversary of "The 4-Hour Workweek," featuring user success stories and diverse implementation examples.
EXPLORING INTIMATE FAN ENGAGEMENT MODELS
Both Tim Ferriss and Kevin Rose express interest in creating more intimate spaces for their most dedicated fans. They discuss the challenges of scaling direct interaction and the idea of a paid membership or exclusive community. This would offer deeper access to content, Q&As, or personal insights, fostering structured conversations beyond typical social media replies. The potential for a tiered approach, with most content remaining free, is considered to balance accessibility with exclusivity.
PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS AND APPS FOR MANAGING CONNECTIONS
Kevin Rose highlights several productivity apps. For managing professional contacts, he recommends 'Contactually' for setting follow-up reminders and organizing contacts into buckets, and 'Relate IQ' for its Gmail integration, read receipts, and advanced scripting. He also introduces 'Humin,' an app designed to help users discover which of their friends are in the same geographical area, acting as a relationship-aware address book. Burner, a temporary phone number app, is discussed for privacy when engaging in transactions or online dating.
THE DELIBERATE EXPERIENCE OF VINYL AND PRODUCTIVITY HABITS
Tim Ferriss shares his recent enjoyment of vinyl records, not for typical hipster reasons, but for the deliberate experience they offer. Flipping records breaks up the day and encourages listening to albums in their entirety, a contrast to the ease of skipping tracks on digital platforms. This tactile process and the unique warmth of analog audio are appealing. He also touches on the benefits of a walking treadmill desk, which allows for work at a low speed while increasing daily steps, using it for tasks like answering emails.
TRACKING ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION AND LANGUAGE LEARNING TOOLS
Kevin Rose details his New Year's resolution to track and subsequently reduce his alcohol intake, using a Google Sheets spreadsheet to categorize days as 'good' (under two drinks), 'neutral' (2.1-3 drinks), or 'bad' (over three drinks). He shares his current average and his goal for reduction. Tim Ferriss shifts to discussing language learning, showing flashcards for Arabic and the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), and mentions an upcoming visit to an effective language institute in Monterey.
TECHNOLOGY, FUTURE PREDICTIONS, AND FINANCED PROJECTS
The conversation touches on the technological landscape, including observations from Kevin Kelly regarding AI and future predictions. Kevin Rose presents 'The Silver Cord,' a graphic novel financed by fans, highlighting the growing trend of crowdfunding and direct audience support for creative projects. The discussion also briefly explores the potential legality and accessibility of illicit goods on the dark web, referencing the Silk Road case as a cautionary tale about operational security.
CURATED BOXES AND CUSTOMIZED MERCHANDISE
Kevin Rose elaborates on his 'Quarterly' box, explaining the value proposition of offering curated items at a price below their retail cost, often acquired directly from manufacturers at a discount. He highlights the potential for customized products, like unique print runs of graphic novels for subscribers, demonstrating a deeper level of engagement for dedicated fans who might miss out on initial offerings.
Mentioned in This Episode
●Software & Apps
●Companies
●Organizations
●Books
●People Referenced
Kevin Rose's Drink Tracking (Last Month)
Data extracted from this episode
| Day Type | Drinks Range | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Good Days | Less than 2 drinks | 8 |
| Neutral Days | 2.1 to 3 drinks | 6 |
| Bad Days | More than 3 to Infinity | 17 |
Common Questions
Kevin Rose left Google Ventures to focus full-time on his new startup. He felt he needed to be 'all in' on a single venture and could not dedicate the necessary focus while simultaneously vetting deals for GV.
Topics
Mentioned in this video
An app that acts as a replacement address book for the iPhone, connecting users with friends in their vicinity and automatically updating contact information.
Tim Ferriss prefers recording interviews over Skype using Ecom call recorder and two cheap USB mics, finding it more reliable than in-person recordings.
An app that helps manage contacts by providing reminders to follow up based on set time intervals, linking to Google accounts to track email interactions.
An app that allows users to create temporary, disposable phone numbers for calls and texts, offering a privacy buffer for online transactions or dating.
Mentioned in the context of law enforcement capturing its founder, highlighting a dramatic instance of digital investigation and a raid at a public library.
Tim Ferriss bought an unopened vinyl copy of Michael Jackson's album 'Thriller', which was his favorite album as a child.
Tim Ferriss mentions using a Zoom H4n audio recorder and two traditional microphones for an in-person interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Mentioned as an example of someone Tim Ferriss might conduct a traditional interview with for a podcast.
An artist mentioned in relation to the graphic novel 'Lobo', for which a unique print run was commissioned.
The voice actor for Ernie on Sesame Street, who also performed the voice for 'Rubber Duckie'.
Mentioned as the founding editor of Wired Magazine, a futurist, and technology predictor who sent Tim Ferriss a graphic novel titled 'The Silver Cord'.
Kevin Rose discusses his departure from Google Ventures after almost three years to focus entirely on his new startup.
A nonprofit organization that helps veterans with education and resources for entrepreneurship or finding jobs. They have a language institute in Monterey.
The character was discussed in relation to alleged Nazi propaganda films, though the context suggests it might have been US war propaganda using the character.
Cited as an example of an album whose track order and composition Tim Ferriss remembers, akin to a screenplay.
A graphic novel with fantastic artwork by Simon Bisley, mentioned in the context of custom print runs for subscription boxes.
A children's song featuring Donald Duck's voice, discussed in the context of vintage vinyl records and its Billboard charting.
A service offering curated subscription boxes. Both Tim Ferriss and Kevin Rose have had or are involved with their own boxes.
A ceramics company based in San Francisco, known for its mugs, including a unique design that allowed users to smoke and drink coffee simultaneously.
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