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💰 Stop waiting for brands to find you. Land them by pitching first. Go to https://onbento.com/unplugged and use code CREATOR to try Bento PRO free for one month. 📥 Content is the dream job. ManyChat is the system behind it. Try Manychat PRO free for a month at https://get.manychat.com/real-job with code CREATOR. 📧 Bookings/Partnerships: [email protected] Vivian Tu made $625,000 in her final year at BuzzFeed. She walked away anyway, terrified, with $100,000 set aside and a plan. Today, she's the creator behind Your Rich BFF, author of two New York Times bestsellers, podcast host, and the founder of Ask Dolly, a personal finance and AI companion app. This conversation is about the money side of content that almost nobody talks about: Why she saved a year of runway before quitting, how creator income actually works, the sponsors she turns down no matter the number, and the brand deal playbook every creator needs before they sign their next deal. She then gets into the parts that decide whether any of it lasts and how she’s already building her next reinvention before this one runs out, so that you can build something that outlives the algorithm too. This episode is for the creator who treats content like a business (or knows they need to start), the expert afraid that showing their life will cost them credibility, and anyone who wants their success to outlast their relevance window. Chapters: 01:47 Why your personal life is your superpower02:23 Every expert is replaceable05:55 "I don't actually like making content"10:24 The two-day content week14:08 Walking away from $625K16:31 WME, a podcast, and a book deal in 8 months21:07 Use your 9-to-5 to fund your 5-to-924:49 What brands actually grade you on28:18 Funnel content: awareness to conversion35:54 How hundreds of DMs a day became an app39:42 Why she refused to raise VC money46:53 A creator's shelf life is 5 to 10 years50:55 "Build a life YOU are proud of, not just your parents" Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTok Jun on Instagram

🎙️ With Riverside, launching your own podcast has never been easier. Go to https://creators.riverside.com/CreatorUnplugged and use code JunYuh for one month for FREE on the Pro or Glow Plan. Bookings/Partnerships: [email protected] Adley Kinsman spent four years making videos that couldn’t crack 5,000 views. Then the unlock happened. Her company Viralish now pulls in a billion views a month, she’s Meta’s most viewed female creator, and with over 80 billion organic views she can explain exactly why one video dies at 10,000 views while its twin clears 100,000. Adley explains exactly how Viralish engineers attention, the 90% rule for hooks, why tension equals retention, why niching down keeps experts invisible, and the frameworks her team runs on: simple, repeatable, scalable. Jun and Adley also dig deeper and talk about overcoming imposter syndrome, why passion fades the moment you stop winning (and how to avoid it), and the question that rewires anxious creators: are you making content about yourself, or for the people you serve? This episode is for the expert whose content is useful but invisible, the business owner who’s been told to niche down, and anyone who wants people to actually watch the content they creator. Chapters: 02:35 The 10K vs. 100K video breakdown 04:49 The retention numbers Viralish aims for 10:21 Stop calling out your avatar13:53 What people say they watch vs. what they actually watch 16:18 Selling to clients with money vs. without 18:41 Imposter syndrome never goes away 23:44 Entertaining doesn’t mean silly 26:56 Entertain the masses, educate the interested, sell to the committed 32:24 Cultural vs. contextual relevance 34:10 Finding your story: go to the pain 41:25 Conversion content frameworks 45:20 Her best-performing ad is one sentence 47:06 Making the ordinary extraordinary 50:57 Service media, not social media 52:25 “Passion is BS” 54:36 When your why outgrows you Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun on Instagram

📥 Create your dream job with Manychat. Try Manychat PRO free for a month at https://get.manychat.com/real-job with code CREATOR. Join Creator College's FREE online masterclass to learn how to bring in clients, sales and opportunities through content: https://creatorcollege.com/live-now Make sure you follow and leave a review! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Brock Johnson has taught Instagram strategy for almost a decade and built an audience of a million followers doing it. Jun and Brock get into the system that made him one of the most consistent creators in the game from the story bank he’s kept since his early days to the task-batching workflow that films a month of reels in one sitting. They also break down what’s working on Instagram right now, the two kinds of content that will win over the next few years, the number one rule that keeps videos feeling real, and a trial reels playbook that gets one video three separate rounds of reach. Then Brock opens up the business side: the funnel behind his audience, why he runs one offer instead of many, and the reason every creator needs an email list. This episode is for creators tired of overthinking their content, the expert whose page is all value and no story, and anyone who’s ready to own more of what they’ve built. Chapters: 02:48 How Jun and Brock met03:31 Breaking the “only share value” rule09:11 Weaving your life into your content10:46 Build a story bank15:58 Brock's upbringing in an entrepreneurial household20:25 How to practice discipline25:43 Work-life balance as priority number one30:10 Batching 30 reels in one sitting32:31 Hiring, leadership and who's on Brock’s team today43:39 Realness comes from speed51:21 The trial reels playbook58:02 Inside Brock’s funnel1:09:18 What still matters in 5 years Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun on Instagram

📥 Create your dream job with Manychat. Try Manychat PRO free for a month at https://get.manychat.com/real-job with code CREATOR. Make sure you follow to the podcast wherever you're listening right now! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Vishen Lakhiani built Mindvalley into a nine-figure company on blogs and email, and avoided the camera until age 40. Jun talks with Vishen about why founders who stay invisible are shooting themselves in the foot, and how showing up on camera helped take Mindvalley from $30M to $140M. Vishen unpacks the childhood programming that makes being seen feel unsafe, and traces his own back being bullied in school, plus the healing practice that finally freed him to post. Then comes the masterclass: his full storytelling framework with real examples, the science of why stories are 22x more memorable than facts, why confident voices beat qualified ones online, and the trick for creators who think they have no original ideas. At the end, Vishen flips the interview, pulling Jun's real story out of him layer by layer, and ends with a warning that everyone needs to hear. This is an episode you don't want to miss. Chapters: 02:36 The limiting beliefs Vishen started with04:20 "Is it too late for me?" and starting at 4006:10 The video that took on Nestlé08:07 How storytelling took Mindvalley from $30M to $140M10:49 Visibility wounding, explained15:24 The inner child & the meaning-making machine22:40 The practice for healing your fear of being seen25:04 The HSTSS storytelling framework25:46 The hook32:28 The stakes33:21 The turn38:45 The scene45:09 Vishen flips the interview on Jun55:05 Why Vishen won't stop until a million lives change Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun on Instagram

📥 Create your dream job with Manychat. Try Manychat PRO free for a month at https://get.manychat.com/real-job with code CREATOR. Make sure you follow the podcast wherever you're listening right now! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Jordan Schwarzenberger is the co-founder of Arcade, the entertainment company behind some of the biggest names in the creator world, and he has news for you: you're probably not as entertaining as you think you are. At 29, Jordan runs multiple companies, leads a 22-person agency, hosts his own podcast, and is raising 5 kids. Jun starts where most interviews don't: how he holds it all together. Jordan's answer runs through faith, why pride is at the root of most professional self-sabotage, and the ordering of his life that makes everything else work. Then it gets tactical: why the future belongs to "content engineers," what makes people care enough to follow you, why delivery beats hooks, and how to stop sounding like a presenter. And for those of you interested in expanding to live events, Jordan breaks down his fool-proof formula for his live-events business. This is for anyone who wants to stop guessing at content and start engineering it, and for the ambitious ones trying to build big without losing themselves in the process. Chapters: 02:20 What anchors Jordan 11:35 Pride, humility & checking yourself 17:26 How he manages it all 19:35 Detachment: the skill nobody talks about 25:28 Why experts won't own their story 28:41 Content is engineering, not talent 34:17 How to actually sound natural 39:48 Why full-time creator shouldn't be the goal 42:30 The economics of live events 52:14 The trust crisis on social platforms 53:23 Instagram's big mistake 55:49 Scarcity & spontaneity always win 57:47 What he wants to be remembered for Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTok Jun’s Instagram

📌 Ditch all the social planning tools for Rella. Go to getrella.com and use code “CREATOR" for 10% off your first three months or annual plan. 📥 Create your dream job with Manychat. Try Manychat PRO free for a month at get.manychat.com/real-job with code CREATOR. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] When something feels off with your health, you probably don't open Google anymore, you open TikTok, Instagram, Reddit... And for millions of people, the voice they land on is Dr. Karan Rajan, the surgeon who made the internet comfortable talking about the things it was too embarrassed to ask a doctor. Jun talks with Karan about what it means to be a trusted voice at scale, how to spot a fake expert (the red flags are more subtle than you think), and how he protects his credibility while building his supplement company Loam. They also get into the content strategy behind it all - reaction-video formats, vocalizing contrarian takes, scripting, and so much more. This episode is for professionals who think their field is too technical and boring for social media. Chapters 01:49 The patient who was too embarrassed to speak up03:28 Making taboo topics watchable04:46 Why informed patients are better patients06:33 Red flags of a fake health expert08:52 Building Loam for the skeptics10:27 How he engineers his content14:11 Inside the reaction-video format18:14 The "secret sauce" AI can't replicate22:10 How he sources what to react to25:19 What entrepreneurship taught him30:31 Brute-forcing your way past embarrassment32:13 How content transformed his communication36:26 Why he canceled his Oura ring subscription39:15 Real health is resilience45:46 Leaving surgery with zero regrets Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun on Instagram

📌 Ditch all the social planning tools for Rella. Go to getrella.com and use code “CREATOR" for 10% off your first three months or annual plan. Make sure you follow wherever you're listening! It takes 2 seconds and guarantees you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Maddie Borge has spent more than half her life on the internet. She started at 12, filming videos in her bedroom in Norway because she dreamed of living like the YouTubers she idolized. Today, she has an audience that literally grew up alongside her, and a travel brand that sold out its restock in 67 minutes. Jun talks with Maddie about what over a decade online really builds: Why she never felt split between her online self and her real one, the money habits she formed to set her up for success, long-form vs. short-form, and how all those years of trust turned into Pastael, her viral packing-cube brand. Then, they tackle the operator side of things when it comes to bootstrapping a physical product, six-figure stock orders, months of sellouts, hiring, and everything in between. Chapters: 01:55 Starting YouTube at 12 06:14 Identity online and offline09:35 The followers who grew up with her12:59 Why she diversified her income15:11 The idea for Pastel17:55 The real cost of physical products20:01 Building in public without knowing it22:41 Learning to be an operator25:46 What she's learned about hiring27:21 Long form vs. short form strategy32:28 Her "I made it" moment33:37 What makes a pop-up actually work39:30 Building community42:01 What she'd tell her 12-year-old self Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun’s Instagram

📌 Ditch all the social planning tools for Rella. Go to getrella.com and use code “CREATOR" for 10% off your first three months or annual plan. Learn how to attract the right audience, turn them into paying clients and build a real business off the back of your content. Sign up for the FREE 5 day Masterclass: creatorcollege.com/c/live-webinar-organic Make sure you follow the show! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Mia McGrath's first setup was an iPhone taped to her bedroom window. No mic, bad lighting, edited her videos on TikTok. Today, she’s making multiple six-figures from her content, signed a book deal, and started a cultural movement called “Frugal Chic.” Jun talks with Mia about money the way nobody in finance talks about it: through psychology. They get into how she became the representation she never saw growing up, how "strategic people pleasing" became her content superpower, why she deliberately pays herself less than she could, and the tension she felt from sharing her income online. They also break down the four-part framework behind every one of her talking videos and how to feel more natural speaking on camera. This episode is for anyone building online who wants the honest math behind the highlight reel. Chapters: 01:45 Money as psychology, not accounting 02:55 Becoming the representation she never had 04:41 The accidental first viral video 06:03 Strategic people pleasing 10:08 Journey POV vs. expert POV 12:16 Her 4-part video framework 15:39 From social anxiety to on-camera confidence 18:55 What watching yourself back teaches you 20:27 Leaving the 9-to-5 (and the 60-hour weeks) 21:38 Where the money actually goes now 24:34 The income transparency dilemma 26:48 How to share a win without losing people 29:28 The mistake that costs creators 50% of their income32:14 Landing her first book deal 33:57 Income splits & the product she wants to build 36:46 What she'd tell her 15-year-old self Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on Instagram Creator Unplugged on TikTokJun’s Instagram

Ditch all the social planning tools for Rella! Go to getrella.com and use code “CREATOR" for 10% off your first three months or annual plan. Learn how to attract the right audience, turn them into paying clients and build a real business off the back of your content. Sign up for the FREE 5 day Masterclass: creatorcollege.com/c/live-webinar-organic Make sure you follow the show wherever you're listening right now! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Partnerships/Inquiries: [email protected] Erin McGoff spent 30 minutes making a video about the world's most annoying interview question, went to sleep, and woke up to 20 million views. Then she deleted the account. She was an award-winning filmmaker with her sights on Sundance, and "influencer" was the last thing she wanted to be. Jun talks with Erin about what changed her mind, how her work as a filmmaker assisted her creator career, the impact of her work on other people’s lives, and her "seeding vs. harvesting" seasons for avoiding burnout. They break down her content strategy, operations, and systems that led her to scaling her platform to millions and launching her career-focused app “StupidFish.” This episode is for the creators who want to be taken seriously and the professionals scared a personal brand will cost them that. Chapters: 02:06 Where the drive to serve comes from04:27 Letting go of the Sundance dream08:24 The viral video she ran away from12:05 Inside her lean operation14:12 Why she still edits everything herself18:20 Treat content like a job20:02 Be your own CFO26:09 The one question that makes decisions easy27:54 Dream life vs. dream job32:45 Build StupidFish38:29 What hiring taught her about leadership43:22 The 25,000-person waitlist44:24 How she stays in tune with her audience47:41 For anyone afraid to be seen Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTokJun’s Instagram

Make sure you follow the show wherever you're listening right now! It takes 2 seconds and ensures you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] Noah Anderson turned down the corporate path his degree was built for, and started posting YouTube videos that nobody watched at first, but he kept going anyway. Now he's a full-time creator with several viral series, a self-produced Ironman documentary, and a video about quitting vaping that reached 18+ million people. Jun talks with Noah about becoming the proof of your own potential, posting through the long stretch when zero people were watching, how he builds content around big events instead of a finish line, and the power of experimenting and vulnerability. This is a masterclass in long-form storytelling: why YouTube rewards depth over hooks, how to turn your life into content people watch, and why most people quit two attempts too early. If you thought your stories were too ordinary to share, tune in and take notes. Chapters: 02:03 Proving yourself right 03:42 Turning down the corporate path 07:40 Posting when nobody watched 09:19 His self-produced documentary 10:55 Three tries at the ice bath series & how his strategy changed 15:38 Talk to one person, not an audience 17:10 Where his video ideas come from 21:10 The stranger who believed in him 23:58 Content as self-improvement 29:12 Full-time job, training & YouTube at once 31:32 Why YouTube and long-form is the priority 35:58 What's next (& how he decides) 38:41 What he'd tell 12-year-old Noah Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on InstagramCreator Unplugged on TikTok Jun’s Instagram

Turn “I don’t know what to post” into a daily habit that grows your audience. Join the Storytelling Challenge ⁠HERE⁠. Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] Tyler Chou is the attorney behind some of the biggest deals in the creator industry. She's in the middle of brokering a $100 million exit for one of her clients right now. And she'll tell you most creators are building their entire livelihood on rented land. Jun sits down with Tyler to talk about what it actually takes to turn a following into a business you can own and one day sell. They get into the first product every creator needs to build, the channels that are literally worthless to buyers, the contract clauses that unintentionally rob you, and the exact AI prompt to protect yourself before you sign anything. If you’re a creator with a dream of building a business (and not continuing to chase brand deals), this episode is for you. Chapters: 02:53 From Hollywood lawyer to creator attorney06:37 The power of a personal brand (and being job-proof)08:37 Owning assets vs. the brand-deal hamster wheel11:59 What buyers actually want12:32 When you should NOT sell your business18:00 Your first product: ask your audience20:28 The channels no one will ever buy25:36 The biggest contract mistakes creators make28:49 Partnerships, trademarks & when to hire a lawyer34:44 Burnout & the boundaries she set after39:33 The psychology of a creator who can exit for $100M42:06 The lawsuits big creators might face & how to avoid them Don't forget to follow to the podcast! It takes 2 seconds and makes sure you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Stay connected: ⁠⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jun’s Instagram

Turn “I don’t know what to post” into a daily habit that grows your audience. Join the Storytelling Challenge HERE. Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] Dr. Sasha Haddad became one of the internet's first doctor-creators almost by accident, filming lighthearted skits in her scrubs between shifts while the world was stuck at home during the pandemic. What started as a study break turned into a personal brand with millions of followers, even though nearly everyone around her told her it was a waste of time. Jun talks with Sasha about what it takes for a professional to put themselves online, the time she was told to choose between her platform and a job offer, and why she treated her following as an advantage to her career rather than a red flag, even when her mentors saw it the other way. This one's for those who’ve been told a personal brand isn't for someone like them, and experts who are sitting on knowledge they can't figure out how to share. Chapters: 01:24 Getting shunned by immigrant parents 03:06 The billboard test for what to post 07:00 Posting through med school 08:11 Why pressure made her most creative 12:55 The post-residency creative roadblock 16:19 "Once Upon a Doctor" & growing with your audience 18:20 Evolve or get left behind 21:56 Overcoming the cringe-factor of being a professional online 30:32 When she was told to choose between her platform and the job 36:06 How to stop overthinking getting started 42:02 How to package expertise into short form content 47:10 How platforms have changed 54:16 The mindset that kills the fear of posting Don't forget to follow to the podcast! It takes 2 seconds and makes sure you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Stay connected: ⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠Jun’s Instagram

Learn how to shape, tell, and share your story. Sign up for Jun's 3-day FREE live storytelling webinar ⁠HERE⁠ Join the Storytelling Content Challenge⁠ and be the first to know when it launches ⁠HERE⁠ Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] After creating content for nearly a decade, Molly McAdam decided to reinvent her online presence completely, pivoting from fashion and lifestyle content to what she now calls "the science of well-being." She has mastered the art of the pivot, and she's got the receipts. Jun talks with Molly about how to evolve your content without losing yourself, why every serious creator has to pivot eventually (plus why it's terrifying every time), and why losing followers can actually be a sign you're building the right audience. Then, they get into the nitty-gritty: Her full research-to-edit workflow, why perfecting yapping to camera means you can master anything, the brand-deal contract that still haunts her, and how she uses AI to pressure-test her own blind spots. This episode is for anyone who’s exploring switching up their content, be it a novice or a pro! Chapters: 01:56 The art of the pivot 03:54 The three layers of well-being 05:27 The fear behind every pivot 07:48 The weekly list of things that scare you 09:14 Losing followers to gain the right audience 12:22 Well-being beyond the screen 14:59 Inside Molly's content workflow 19:45 The optimal number of friends 20:54 Setting boundaries with social media22:26 How she uses AI (research, not scripts) 24:07 Getting comfortable talking to camera 28:07 Brand-deal mistakes & the contract that still haunts her 30:18 Owning your income: Substack, email & digital products 31:35 Using AI to price yourself 34:31 Why scripted brand deals don't work 36:41 The first step & the regret of inaction 39:47 Burnout & why she stopped filming her whole life 46:00 The carousel comeback & "why would someone save this?" 49:29 What's next 51:29 What she wants to be known for Make are you follow Creator Unplugged wherever you're listening right now so you never miss an episode! Stay connected: ⁠Creator Unplugged on Instagram ⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on TikTok⁠⁠Jun’s Instagram

Learn how to shape, tell, and share your story. Sign up for Jun's 3-day FREE live storytelling webinar HERE Join the waitlist for ⁠the Storytelling Content Challenge⁠ to be the first to know when it launches HERE Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] Mark Manson has been creating content for 16 years, which makes him one of the last people standing from the early internet. Jun talks with Mark, author, podcast host, and founder, about what it actually takes to last, when the "suck" is worth pushing through, why "I am the niche" should be your mantra, and how chasing virality is a recipe for disaster. Then it gets tactical: They get into how Mark surveys his audience, why equity and distribution are becoming the biggest plays in the creator industry, and how he uses AI to benefit his business (and where it's still useless). Chapters: 02:02 The sacrifices behind being a creator 04:56 The moral weight of influence 08:00 How he knows his audience 12:50 "You are the niche" 18:28 AI & hope for the next generation 21:25 Why live audiences matter now 23:36 Trust is your only real currency 27:15 How he uses AI in his workflow 30:52 Building & structuring a team around platforms 42:07 Online identity, how to pivot & avoiding burnout 51:50 Why he built the Purpose app 58:10 Distribution is the new moat 1:00:47 Longevity advice for the next 10 years Make sure you follow the show and leave a review! It takes 2 seconds and helps us bring you more episodes like this. Stay connected: Creator Unplugged on Instagram Creator Unplugged on TikTokJun’s Instagram

For years, Travis Mills hated opening Instagram. Every time he did, he felt like a failure - watching his likes fall from 150,000 to 2,000 and tying his self-worth to metrics. Then he started telling the truth. In the span of about 50 days of posting vulnerable, honest stories, his following grew for the first time in six years, and his DMs filled with people saying he'd changed their lives. Jun talks with Travis - rapper, singer and Apple Music podcast host - about the shift that changed everything, and why the stories he was most afraid to share, like addiction, sobriety, and mental health, became the ones that connected the deepest. If you’re struggling to connect with your “why” and having a hard time telling stories from your lived experiences, tune in and take notes. Chapters: 02:42 What posting content daily has done for him06:56 Getting sick of labels & his "ego death"14:32 Finding his "why" & the power of vulnerability in content19:02 Comparison is the thief of joy23:01 "Be a creator, not a perfectionist"27:11 Silent-film storytelling & reframing the past29:11 Why storytelling feels like meditation35:52 Your "mundane" life matters42:00 What he'd tell his 19-year-old self Make sure you follow the show so you never miss any of our upcoming episodes. Inquiries/Partnerships: [email protected] Sign up for the Storytelling Content Challenge. Join the waitlist and be the first to know when it launches. Stay connected: ⁠Creator Unplugged on Instagram⁠⁠⁠Creator Unplugged on TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jun’s Instagram This episode touches on addiction and mental health. If you need emotional support, please call or text 988.