Latest Episode
February 24, 2023
The Secret to Peak Performance Aging
with Steven Kotler
Baby Bathwater member Steven Kotler recently taught himself to park ski at age 53—which, for half-a-dozen different biological factors, is considered nearly impossible for anyone over the age of 35.
Then he performed a pilot experiment with folks up to 74 years old — the same thing with extraordinary results.
This led to his new book GNAR COUNTRY (which all of our members will receive).
But we wanted to get the real insight into just how we can all benefit from Peak Performance Aging, so…
Michael Lovitch interviewed Steven about the subject to a sometimes humorous effect.
Lovitch attempts to figure out a way to include drinking large amounts of alcohol, and one legged dart throwing into Kotler’s strategy.
If you want to know more about the book, you can go to:
It demonstrates a radically different view on aging – you CAN teach an old dog new tricks – and is a super enjoyable read.
October 28, 2021
How to Maximize Sales During Holidys and Special Events
with Joe Kensett, Neil Bannister, and Tyler Malinky
As the holidays quickly approach, this is often a noisy time of the year where brand owners are being pulled in every which way when it comes to what to do for Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
It’s important to have a clear, actionable plan for how to approach your copy, videos, landing pages, images, and much more…but what action do you need to take?
To help break this down and cut through the B.S. & airy “strategy”, Baby Bathwater members Joe Kensett and Neil Bannister of SV Marketing hopped on The Baby Bathwater Podcast to explain the ACTIONABLE steps you should be taking… No joke, this is FILLED with golden nuggets.
Another member, Tyler Malinky, also sat in to explain things from a brand’s perspective…
Joe & Neil look under the hood of Tyler’s company, Lowbrow Customs, to give real life examples of how to kill the ad game during the holiday season… including best-performing copy, landing pages, images, videos, and more.
Tune in to this recording for:
- How to build assets
- Examples of best-performing assets
- How to decide what types of offers to run over Black Friday/Cyber Monday
- How to provide seamless customer experiences
- How to create a clear and actionable holiday sales plan
Resources:
August 12, 2021
The Facebook Algorithm, What is Both Working and NOT Working
with Claire Winslow
The recent iOS 14 update has had a major impact on ad strategy across the board, but possibly the most prominently with Facebook ads. Many people have been unsure of what this means for their ad strategies long term and what actions they should be taking to combat these changes.
To help navigate the uncharted waters, we sat down with Baby Bathwater member Claire Winslow who knows her shit on this and articulates it well.
Definitely give this one a listen if you want a better understanding of what exactly this update means and what strategies people can implement moving forward…
Tune in to this recording for:
- How tracking conversions has been impacted
- Why top funnel audiences are getting less accurate
- In-platform objectives for combating audience data loss
- How to action wide net video views
- How to optimize for adds to cart or traffic
- How to diversify your ad strategy
Resources:
May 12, 2021
Finance & Crypto
with Trent Barnes
Whether you’re crypto-curious watching from the sidelines or you already have skin in the crypto game, one thing’s for certain: We’re all trying to find experts in the space who we can trust.
That’s why we tracked down Trent Barnes, Principal at Zerocap, a full-service digital asset investment platform. He joined Hollis and Baby Bathwater member Niraj Shah to help us break down the basics, debunk misconceptions, and weigh our options for getting involved.
(With this as a solid foundation for our crypto understanding, we’re planning follow up discussions to dive deeper into the meat and applications.)
Tune in to this recording for:
- The building blocks you need to understand bitcoin and cryptocurrency
- Defining money, value, and decentralization
- The “war on cash” — and why we should be paying attention to it
- Deconstructing DeFi & NFTs
- Predictions for high-net-worth family offices’ continued interest in crypto
- Is it too late to get into crypto?
- Applications that seem crazy to us today, but that we’ll take for granted in five years
Resources:
April 14, 2021
AI and Your Business
with Will Hanschell and James Chadwick
GPT3 is the largest and most advanced language-generating AI yet, and can produce unbelievably human-like text. The business applications have the potential to change the game completely, so we brought in outside experts who are on the forefront of wiring this technology to win at marketing.
James Chadwick and Will Hanschell of Pencil sat down with Lovitch and some of our AI-curious babies (Sachit Gupta, Mike Vineyard, and Todd Tzeng) to break it all down for us.
Catch the recording for:
- What the hell GPT-3 is and how that magic works in real life
- The implications and future of this ‘idiot savant” intelligence
- Applications & use cases, from writing college papers to creating ads that learn
- How Pencil trains its AI model, and the trends they’re seeing
- The other AI games in town, how GPT-3 compares, and what to look for
Resources:
- Pencil
- A good TED talk on the magic & surprise of machine ideas
- Best resource on various academic and commercial forays into AI & design Will has found
- 100+ examples of what GPT-3 can do if you want to get psyched about the potential for just text
- A fun one, if ever in any doubt about how big AI could be
April 7, 2021
Marketing to Gen Z
with Maxine Marcus
If you know that Gen Z is an important demographic you should be marketing to, but don’t understand their unique habits and fast-moving trends…well, you’re not alone.
Maxine Marcus, CEO of The Ambassadors Company, helps brands bridge that gap by harnessing her network of high schoolers and college students to give you the consumer insights you need.
Even though she’s still months away from being old enough to attend our events (21+, babies!), Maxine sat down with Lovitch and member Jenny Thompson to teach us old dogs some new tricks.
Tune in for:
- What the hell a Consumer Insights team is and what they do
- Patterns in Gen Z media consumption, and what they mean for you
- Ultimate “do’s” and “don’ts” of catering to Gen Z
- Examples of brands that are killing it with Gen Z right now
- The true power of no bullshit, user generated content
Resources:
Harnessing the Soul of Your Brand to Create Press, Attract Real Fans, and Actually Make a Difference
with Howard BloomIf you haven’t been introduced to the fascinating creature of Howard Bloom yet — well, it’s time to get acquainted.
Howard evolved from a child science prodigy into the king of music industry PR, working with the likes of Michael Jackson, Bob Marley, Cyndi Lauper, AC/DC, Billy Joel, Joan Jett, and Prince (to name a few).
He’s a master in highlighting the soul of your “brand” — and he sat down with Lovitch to lay down some wisdom, interlaced with stories of his PR glory days.
Catch the recording for:
- How to engage in “secular shamanism” to find the soul of your company
- Why everyday irritations are the best commercial opportunities in disguise
- What methods Howard trained his PR staff on that set them apart
- What the hell “tennis time” is, and why you need to live there if you want to get shit done
- How to kindle the fire of your brand’s soul, and how to get that fire to spread
Resources:
A Conversation with a World-Renowned Adventurer, Speaker, Author, and Teacher… Who Happens to be Blind
with Erik WeihenmayerErik Weihenmayer is one of the most celebrated and accomplished athletes in the world. In 2001, he became the only blind person in history to climb Mount Everest…and he has climbed the tallest peak on each of the seven continents.
Erik sat down with Hollis to discuss how we move forward in our lives towards growth and purpose – despite the barriers that get in our way…
Tune in for:
- How the hell Erik tackled athletic feats that most sighted people would never even dream of doing
- The case for “realistic optimism”
- The true meaning of leadership
- How to mentally prepare for taking big risks
- How to turn adversity into opportunity and growth
- And most importantly: How to make sure your greatest accomplishment isn’t just a line on your resume
Resources:
How to Take Your Email Marketing to the Next Level
with Melanie Balke & Jess ChanJess and Melanie are two babies that know their sh*t when it comes to email marketing (they each own their own agency dedicated to the topic).
We picked their brains on best practices, funnel ideas, campaign ideas, creative segmentation, and more.
Catch the recording for:
- Why Klaviyo is primed to become the most relevant email marketing software (as long as they get their data analysis/reporting shit together)
- The 7 core email flows that will give you the most bang for your buck
- Clever email capture testing
- The worst and best ways to hit your customers on SMS
- Clever email capture testing (and the psychology behind them)
- And a bonus tasteful disagreement on affiliate marketing in e-commerce
Resources:
Black Friday Breakdown: What Worked and How to Utilize It In “Q5”
with Joe Kensett & Neil BannisterGoing into what they’ve aptly named “Q5”, Joe and Neil of SV Marketing recap their record-shattering Black Friday haul.
Want to know how they made over $6.2 million dollars for their clients at a 6-to-1 margin?
Yeah, we did too.
Tune in for:
- Getting down and dirty with your Black Friday marketing
- Tactics and strategies for transitioning from Black Friday to Christmas
- How to use your data to hit the ground running for your next sale
- Mistakes clients make when starting to work with an agency
- And how they got all their duckies in a row to make this their most successful (and least stressful) Black Friday in company history
Resources:
- Digital Ecosystems — Why Limiting Yourself to Marketing Funnels Is Costing You a Fortune
- Another of Joe & Neil’s webinars that goes into their unique marketing approach
November 13, 2020
Expensive Lessons Learned on Business Partnerships
with Cathryn Lavery
Fresh from her jaunt in the hellscape of divorcing her toxic business partnership, Cathryn Lavery has learned some seriously expensive lessons that she’s been gracious enough to offer us for free.
Big thanks and props to Cathryn for turning her misfortune into a learning opportunity for the rest of us, and finding some baby in the bathwater.
Catch the recording for:
- Why 50/50 equal partnerships can be dangerous
- Little things to watch for BEFORE adding on a business partner
- Creating an operating agreement at the beginning without crushing momentum
- Why lawyers actually aren’t so bad after all
- Moving on AFTER divorcing your business partner
- Bonus: An unconventional but probably effective way to hash out an operating agreement, à la Hollis & Lovitch
Resources:
An Update on the Economy & Financial Markets
with Patrick BrewerPatrick Brewer is the Founder of SurePath Wealth Management an RIA headquartered in Austin, TX with offices around the country.
Patrick first joined us way back at the end of March to discuss finances during the pandemic, and he’s returned 7 months later to give us a little update.
Patrick gives us his predictions for the evolving state of pandemic-era finances and beyond.
And more importantly, he puts his recommendations in the context of entrepreneurship so they’re relevant to you.
Catch the recording for:
- Why the S&P is predicting that Trump will win the election
- Why return per unit of risk is evolving, and how to be realistic about your expected rate of return
- The best way to reduce your taxes when you have excess capital (and why you shouldn’t let tax strategy drive your long term financial future)
- When the wealth gap comes back to bite society in the ass, and what that means for your future plans as an entrepreneur
- And a bonus: how to protect yourself when negotiating your role during a merger / acquisition
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Forbes: Here’s How The Stock Market Has Performed Before, During, And After Presidential Elections
- Why the S&P 500 is predicting that Trump will win the election
- Dimensional: How Much Impact Does the President Have on Stocks?
- The growth of $100 during each presidency from 1929-2020
- Oaktree Capital: Latest memo from Howard Marks: Coming into Focus
- Graphing return per unit of risk
Optimize Your Company For Exit (Whether You Want to Sell or Not)
with Mac LackeyMac started, scaled and sold six of his own companies before launching ExitDNA (to help founders optimize their company to have the OPTION to exit – and at maximum value).
Back by popular demand, Mac Lackey returns to a screen near you to dive deeper into optimizing your company for exit.
We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again: this is important stuff that will change the way you see and run your business — regardless of if you’re planning on selling.
*Everyone* can benefit from Mac’s framework… don’t let this one pass you by.
Tune in for:
- Why traditional valuation isn’t the best way to determine your company’s worth.
- The four critical things that most founders don’t do that will dramatically change the trajectory of your business.
- Expanding your options for exiting.
- And a live Q&A that covers everything from knowing when to sell to decreasing your company’s dependency on you as the founder.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- ExitDNA
- Mac’s Company
Knowledge Bombs From the *Official* #2 Google Guy in the World
There’s a good reason Kevin Milani is the leader of his own BBW tribe and dedicated fan club… He’s just full of so much damn value.
What started as an interview about his life turned into a highly valuable discussion on the ins and outs of marketing on Google, how to feed Google the right data tracking and analytics, how to make custom affinity audiences work for you, and even developing a Google strategy for an up and coming supplement starting from zero.
Whew! When is the last time you got to drink from a knowledge fire hose for 73 minutes straight? And from the *official* #2 Google guy in the world no less!
How Neuromarketing Can Help You Persuade Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime
with Patrick RenvoiseTurns out we’re all just 500 million year old lizards walking on two feet — and so are your customers.
Don’t believe us? Patrick Renvoise, co-author of The Persuasion Code, proves it with just a few simple experiments that will blow your mind.
He covers the differences between primal brain vs rational brain, and how to deliver your message so that your customers’ primal brains respond.
Bonus: How not to answer a question in 3000 words or less…
In this very same interview, at minute 25…you can also observe Michael Lovitch attempt to ask the same question at least 10 times. Observe Patrick’s technique of not answering the question (brilliant)… and see how it turns out…
Resources:
How To Do Free Plus Shipping Offers…And Some Fuckups to Avoid
with Jake CarneyWant to stop paying for lead generation, and actually start making money off your leads?
Find out how you can free plus ship (almost) anything, and how to make the upsells and downsells work for you.
This session covers the nitty gritty of crafting your offer, making the numbers work, and delivering a great product.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Dr. Josh’s 21-Day Diet Program
- One example of Jake’s landers that are doing well for free plus shipping. Notice the short copy and solid video ad.
- Dr. Josh’s Honey Recipe Book
- Another example of Jake’s landers that are doing well for free plus shipping. Notice the short copy and solid video ad.
Discover the Low Hanging Fruit When Selling Online
with Joe Kensett & Neil BannisterDon’t want to leave money on the table when selling online?
Joe & Neil are specialists within paid media, websites and sales psychology. They primarily help brands/companies take a larger percentage of their audience to sale than anyone else through their “ecosystem” approach.
This session covers how to identify where your biggest opportunities are and how to plug the leaky holes in your ad campaigns.
With an airtight system, you can start testing messaging and audiences, and ultimately flood it with traffic and scale to infinity and beyond.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Digital Ecosystems — Why Limiting Yourself to Marketing Funnels Is Costing You a Fortune
- Another of Joe & Neil’s webinars that goes into their unique marketing approach
Creating a Cult Movement: Part II
with Dave LakhaniAfter watching Part 1 of Dave’s virtual content on persuasion, a lot of you wanted more tangible steps on how to grow your cult brand.
Using Harley Davidson, Patagonia, and our own Christopher Walker of UMZU as examples, Dave breaks down the key elements of a cult brand and how you can apply the heroic journey to your marketing funnel.
This part 2 is a must-watch if you want the exact steps you need to establish a manifesto, implement cult tactics in your brand, gain a devoted following, and crush the competition.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- The Harley Davidson Experience Video
- The best video Dave’s ever found about how a cult brand forms
April 29, 2020
How to Use Propaganda, Bias, and the Hero’s Journey to Create a Movement
with Dave Lakhani
Dave Lakhani is a former DEA agent and one of the nation’s most recognizable experts on the topics of applied persuasion, human influence, and cults.
Dave covers:
- Applying Story Selling, The Hero’s Journey and The True Believer Model to Create a Heroic Customer Who is Primed to Become a Brand Evangelist
- Reframing your Personal, Company or Brand Story to Make it Stronger and More Persuasive
- Creating Your Unique Brand Language, Key Phrases and Memes that Drive Your Messaging Deep into the Minds of Your Customers (yes, like a cult leader).
- Using Your Story and Unique Language to Create Effective Funnels, Advertising, and Customer Experiences
- Pre-framing and Building Consumption Models and Strategies into Your Messaging so that Your Customers Know Exactly What to do and When – This is critical in creating repeat buyers.
- Using the Power of Exclusion to Create an “In” Group and an “Out” Group – Remember, only polarized people buy things.
- Layering Persuasion, Behavior Change and Influence into Your Online and Offline Marketing Efforts.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Dave’s Slides
- The slides Dave put together for this virtual content session
Using Psychographics to Model Your Direct to Consumer Business
with Maegan ScarlettMaegan has built several self-funded businesses, including her current main gig, oVertone. oVertone is an exclusively DTC e-commerce business with a 9 figure EV built on $7,000 at a rickety kitchen table by a couple of 24-year-olds with no investors, no network connections, no industry experience, and absolutely no right to be taken seriously.
Maegan gives us her not-so-secret model for building a scalable, money making machine.
She covers why increasing your price could increase your conversions, how getting a therapist will make you a better marketer, and why “brand awareness” is the number one name for wasted money.
Do you want to be profitable on every sale, period? Watch this and let Maegan’s formula make you money.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- How to Create Highly Accurate Customer Personas for Marketing
- Neil Patel’s great explanation of how a persona should be a personified perfect consumer, not a vague set of psychographics that sound more like a group
Hiring Badass Marketers at an Executive Level
with Sujan PatelYou may have met Sujan on Baby Bathwater Island last summer…he’s hired 50+ marketers (and interviewed 1000s) in his career and he’s going to walk you through the steps of identifying and hiring process of a badass marketer at your organization. Sujan’s process has been refined over the last 10 years and is faster, cheaper and brings in better candidates than hiring a recruiter.
This one BLEW Lovitch’s mind and actually made him angry at how many hiring mistakes he’s made over the years.
Sujan schools us in how to hack marketing influencers’ LinkedIn connections, what questions to ask to weed out the bullshitters from the real marketers, and why you shouldn’t hire marketers from good brands.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Sujan’s Slides
- The slides Sujan put together for this virtual content session
March 18, 2020
How to Transition Your Business During The Pandemic
with Joe Mechlinski
Joe is the founder of SHIFT, a collective of businesses spanning consulting, executive membership, and venture capitalism.
His firm helps big companies like New Balance, Microsoft, Kaiser Permanent, and more create high performing organizations, and they specialize in helping these companies transition when the environment changes.
Joe has already been a HUGE help to us during this time of uncertainty and he has been ahead of the curve since well before the pandemic broke – making him the perfect person to kick off this new content for us in these new times.
During this call Joe discusses how you can effectively transition right now, and he delves into how he has transitioned his large organization to become virtual, and SHIFTed during this pandemic.
Resources:
- Watch the Recording
- Dealing With Disruption: Managing the Mindset of Yourself, Team, and Clients During a Crisis
- Another of Joe’s webinars and a slide deck that dives deeper into concepts discussed with Baby Bathwater
- Rapid Response Package
- Communication templates to provide steady and clear messaging to your team, clients, and community now and throughout the Coronavirus crisis
- Remote Work Best Practices
- Tips to help you stay connected, engaged, and healthy while working outside the office
- Hour of Power Webinar
- A weekly practice that allows you to efficiently manage your time and energy, focus on what matters most, and create a rhythm for achieving the priorities that align with your goals
- Design Your Ideal Day, Week, Month Tool
- An exercise (daily, weekly, and monthly) that helps you streamline tasks, align your actions with your priorities, and prioritize your well-being
About the show
This show is an audible adventure within entrepreneurial reality. Join us as we get actionable insights and stories from REAL entrepreneurs who have been shaped by ecstatic highs, gut-wrenching lows, a million blind alleys, strained relationships, and uncertainty.
This podcast gives you a wide range of topics in an exceptionally unscripted and underproduced format, all featuring remarkable guests and the musings of our hosts Michael Lovitch & Hollis Carter.
Meet the Hosts
Hollis Carter
Hollis Carter is a serial entrepreneur and avid skier.
He started his entrepreneurial journey in the early 2000’s, founding multiple companies, including a SAAS company he built into a 7-figure virtual business in less than a year.
In 2013, he became a founding investor in Utah’s Powder Mountain Ski Resort.
His experiences (and observations) led him toward co-founding the Baby Bathwater Institute, a unique membership-based community comprised of some of the world’s leading minds and entrepreneurs, with a focus on cultivating natural, mutually beneficial relationships.
Michael Lovitch
Michael Lovitch, MA is a former special education professional, over-educated grad student, and floundering tech sales guy who decided at the age of 34 to take the entrepreneurial path because nothing else was working. He started a publishing company in the psychology space that ended up being a 7-figure endeavor, then parlayed that into a physician-based nutritional supplement company (RealDose Nutrition) that ended up with annual revenues of $50 million dollars before he sold out his stake.
Now, he is the co-founder of the Baby Bathwater Institute, a community that helps bootstrapped entrepreneurs navigate the crazy world of business ownership while having good times and making lifelong friendships.
Meet the Hosts
Hollis Carter
Hollis Carter is a serial entrepreneur and avid skier.
He started his entrepreneurial journey in the early 2000’s, founding multiple companies, including a SAAS company he built into a 7-figure virtual business in less than a year.
In 2013, he became a founding investor in Utah’s Powder Mountain Ski Resort, where he now develops real estate and hosts events.
His experiences (and observations) led him toward co-founding the Baby Bathwater Institute, a unique membership-based community comprised of some of the world’s leading minds and entrepreneurs, with a focus on cultivating natural, mutually beneficial relationships.
Michael Lovitch
Michael Lovitch, MA is a former special education professional, over-educated grad student, and floundering tech sales guy who decided at the age of 34 to take the entrepreneurial path because nothing else was working. He started a publishing company in the psychology space that ended up being a 7-figure endeavor, then parlayed that into a physician-based nutritional supplement company (RealDose Nutrition) that ended up with annual revenues of $50 million dollars before he sold out his stake.
Now, he is the co-founder of the Baby Bathwater Institute, a community that helps bootstrapped entrepreneurs navigate the crazy world of business ownership while having good times and making lifelong friendships.