Finding Inspiration In Difficult Times w/ Ron Dawson

“You get to a point where there’s always going to be something that could hold you back, and you have to decide, ‘Ok, at which point am I not going to let that something be a hindrance to me starting to check things off of that bucket list that so many people have but they never actually get through.” [33:57]

I’ve been a friend and admirer of Ron Dawson for over a decade now, and he seems to have a way of making everything he touches turn to gold. Ron is currently the host of Radio Film School, a podcast that many call “This American Life for filmmakers”. Before RFS though, Ron had started 2 more uber-popular podcasts geared towards the film and photography industry.

Ron is now in the process of filming his first feature documentary, as well as transitioning his business and family into becoming global digital nomads.

As with all successful people, Ron’s story has not been without struggle. In this episode, he shares how some of the hard times have inspired his life and business and forced him to focus only on the most high-value pursuits.

How do you decide which projects to focus on? Have you ever dreamed of taking your business to the digital nomad world? What obstacles stand in your way? Leave a comment below!

In this episode:

- How personal projects can help drive your business forward.
- Some personal mistakes Ron made in regards to debt when starting his business, and how those still affect him.
- Why you should come up with a manifesto for your business that can help guide your decisions.

Quotes:

“I think that’s one of the challenges we have as filmmakers, who are in this to make a living. How do we balance the work that keeps us inspired, that keeps us wanting to be filmmakers, with a lot of the work that sometimes you just have to do because you just have to pay the bills." [22:53]

"Given the crazy things that are going on in our country and the world right now, we’re really hoping to do something that can bring some positivity to the world [and] that can show the beauty of other cultures." [30:36]

Links:

Ron Dawson 
Radio Film School
Invisible Illness Film
Follow Ron on Twitter @RonDawson
Great video of Ryan and Ron 

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