Noel Dávila has developed a structured approach to productivity that centers around what he calls "one hour sprints" - a technique that has become key to his time management success. He explains: "I set up a timer for one hour and for that one hour I will work without interruption... I turn off all notifications everything, sometimes I even take off my apple watch." He typically does two of these focused sessions per day, which he considers "probably the most productive hours in my day."
His daily routine reflects his commitment to both personal and professional growth. Dávila starts early at 4:30 AM with exercise and stretching, followed by family time as his children get ready for school. He has recently reintroduced meditation into his routine after years away from the practice, and dedicates time to passion projects like handwritten journaling before beginning his 9-6 workday. For goal setting, he prefers quarterly goals spanning three months and maintains extensive lists using Evernote for cross-device accessibility.
The copywriter emphasizes the importance of accountability when working from home, noting that "when you're working from home you need to hold yourself accountable because you're not at the office." His approach to rewards himself with small incentives after completing focused work sessions, whether it's having some fruit or taking five minutes to check Twitter. This systematic approach to productivity has helped him balance a demanding creative career while maintaining strong family relationships and pursuing personal projects like his novel.
Dávila's closing message centers on the importance of clarity and decisive action in career development. His core advice is: "You need to kind of define what you want to do with your life professionally and then just do anything and everything you can to get there." He credits his own success to this approach, explaining that "when I decided I wanted to be a copywriter I had to seek out the people that would help me, the books I would read... I made a plan."
He emphasizes that execution without delay is crucial: "Making a plan and executing it without delay is what gave me a career." For aspiring copywriters specifically, Dávila offers ongoing support through his Twitter presence, where he consistently shares "resources about copywriting, storytelling and professional growth." He keeps his direct messages open and encourages anyone to reach out for guidance or resources.
Dávila's philosophy on helping others stems from his own experience receiving assistance along his journey: "I had people who helped me, so I think it's incumbent upon me to help others and just kind of pay that good will forward." This pay-it-forward mentality reflects his belief that career success isn't just about individual achievement, but about building a community that lifts others up along the way.
"I think everything that we go through is not in vain even the bad parts eventually they're gonna lead you to where you're going. I really believe that."
— Noel Dávila Reflecting on how his failures in film production led him to discover copywriting and advertising.
"When you fall that gives you some perspective and if you keep going despite your failures it just shows that you have conviction."
— Noel Dávila Discussing how mistakes and setbacks contribute to personal growth and career development.
"I wish somebody had told me what a copywriter was in high school. I could have better defined the road I would have taken."
— Noel Dávila Explaining how he discovered copywriting later in life and wishes he had known about it earlier to avoid nine years of career uncertainty.
[0:00] first of all thank you so much for your [0:02] time today [0:04] happy to be here um what i try to do [0:06] with these interview is to go through [0:08] your career journey [0:10] um how you started [0:13] and [0:14] how did you find that this is the right [0:17] career for you this is the right job [0:19] this is the work that you want to do and [0:21] then how [0:22] um you excel into that so that's kind of [0:25] the the core of it and then later in the [0:28] interview i ask how you find [0:31] your dreams how you set your goals what [0:33] your time management method and then [0:35] finally a message to the audience so [0:37] it's a very simple format [0:40] um [0:41] i wanted to give you an opportunity to [0:45] share with the audience who you are [0:48] and what you do and how you can help [0:50] them [0:51] okay well i [0:53] my name is [0:54] i live in puerto rico [0:56] i've been a copywriter for [0:58] over 10 years [1:00] what i try to do on twitter is [1:03] offer [1:05] guidance with you know for aspiring [1:07] copywriters other people who want to [1:10] possibly [1:11] have a career in advertising marketing [1:14] content creation [1:16] so what i do most of all is talk about [1:19] my experience i don't consider myself [1:20] necessarily an expert [1:22] but i do try to talk about my experience [1:25] and the steps i took [1:28] the myths the missteps as well [1:30] and hopefully that can help somebody [1:33] who's a couple steps behind [1:35] and it's been great so far i've because [1:38] i really do feel a sense of [1:40] achievement when i help somebody out [1:42] and so far i've had the opportunity to [1:45] do so [1:46] and uh you know right now i'm not [1:47] offering any any products [1:51] or services at the moment i'm just [1:53] trying to help out i don't discard [1:55] obviously this year at some point [1:57] maybe putting up some digital products [1:59] for sale [2:00] but for the time being i'm just really [2:02] sharing my knowledge [2:04] with my followers my my small community [2:07] on twitter and it's been very rewarding [2:12] so anybody who is listening to this uh [2:15] episode [2:16] connect with him on twitter [2:19] find the spaces that know i'll join [2:22] and you will learn a lot [2:24] from those discussions [2:26] i have been learning a lot from those [2:28] conversations [2:31] so noel um [2:33] am i pronouncing your name correct yeah [2:37] i mean you can pronounce it anyway i [2:39] some people say no [2:40] noelle it's fine [2:42] okay i don't have enough reference it's [2:43] okay okay thank you [2:47] so um [2:48] what you wanted to become when you was [2:50] in high school [2:51] in high school [2:53] well i mean i was i had a band [2:56] and [2:58] i guess i wanted [3:01] you know to be a working musician [3:03] and [3:04] at some point i started to realize i you [3:07] know i needed to study something so [3:10] i studied [3:11] literature [3:14] and i didn't really have a concrete goal [3:16] set up right there [3:18] and [3:19] what ultimately happened is [3:23] i ended up kind of wasting [3:26] a bit of time while i figured it out [3:29] when i continued to play music that was [3:31] a very creative [3:32] output [3:34] and [3:35] but the goal was always to [3:39] just [3:40] have some kind of [3:43] creative profession whether that was [3:45] that involved [3:47] playing an instrument or just writing [3:49] that was the goal in one way or another [3:52] and it kind of [3:53] the goal started to change as [3:56] you know high school turned into [3:58] university [4:00] but i kept my my [4:03] focus on [4:05] on having a creative career [4:07] and [4:08] i found that in advertising [4:11] but at [4:12] when i was in high school i mean i knew [4:15] what advertising was [4:17] obviously [4:18] as a consumer as a you know person who [4:21] watched tv and you were exposed to [4:23] advertising all the time but i didn't [4:25] know what a copywriter was uh i wish [4:29] somebody had told me that in high school [4:32] i could have better defined [4:34] uh the road i would have taken [4:37] but i mean it happened very organically [4:40] how i [4:43] uh to circle back in high school it was [4:45] it was [4:46] it was all about music that's really [4:49] what i wanted to be [4:50] but [4:52] in the end it it ended up being a career [4:54] with another kind of creative pursuit [4:57] so i guess [4:58] the goal is kind of aligned in one way [5:00] or another you could say [5:02] but yeah high school was a long time ago [5:07] so from there [5:09] you decided to go to college [5:13] and i'm assuming you finished the [5:15] literature there bachelor degree or [5:17] something [5:18] yes i studied [5:20] english literature [5:21] and [5:22] you know during those years i [5:25] i had the chance to write obviously you [5:27] know you have to write [5:29] studies [5:30] i got a really [5:33] i got a good sense of it i mean i got a [5:34] good [5:36] feeling from putting words together it's [5:38] not that i hadn't written before i had [5:41] but [5:43] i don't know something kind of changed [5:45] around the time i was 22 [5:47] i realized i [5:49] really wanted to kind of [5:52] find my voice as a writer i already i'd [5:55] written songs i [5:57] led the band i still had the band at the [5:59] time [6:00] [Music] [6:02] but i wanted to find my voice as a [6:03] writer and and that was a little harder [6:05] to do at first [6:07] so [6:07] [Music] [6:09] that [6:10] eventually led me to write for some [6:12] online publications that [6:15] had record reviews and stuff like that [6:18] at first it was just a blog that i had [6:21] that was a little pointless there wasn't [6:23] a whole lot going on there [6:25] i mean when i mean pointless i mean [6:27] there wasn't an audience except my [6:30] friends and you know my girlfriend [6:32] uh but that led me to [6:37] start writing for these other [6:38] publications [6:39] after that started happening [6:41] my uh other [6:43] websites reached out to me [6:45] so i can [6:47] write for them as well and on a variety [6:49] of subjects and the thing is i wasn't [6:52] getting paid you know this is when [6:54] you're doing record reviews [6:56] for websites and this is 2009 more or [6:59] less so things were different back then [7:03] uh [7:04] you know that [7:05] you get paid with the record essentially [7:07] they would send you some music and [7:10] that was good enough you got your name [7:11] on the website you got the recognition [7:14] uh [7:15] that was it there was no money coming in [7:18] eventually i started working at a hotel [7:20] and i would [7:22] i would [7:23] stay up all night and part of the time i [7:26] was supposed to be working was dedicated [7:28] to writing and i think that kind of [7:30] honed my craft i ended up writing for a [7:32] short-lived publication in new york [7:34] called biling beat [7:36] and i worked with uh [7:38] this guy named michael rush he would [7:40] become eventually [7:42] an editor for buzzfeed [7:44] but at the time he was he had this small [7:47] publication [7:48] i started fighting for it for them as [7:50] well and that kind of broadened my [7:52] horizons [7:53] i kind of saw what i was capable of and [7:57] as a storyteller [8:00] that was amazing that felt like a like a [8:02] turning point for me [8:04] and then at some point i met a lady [8:07] named sally [8:09] who was a copywriter [8:12] and [8:14] i was you know [8:15] you finally seen mad men you know the [8:17] the advertising show don draper [8:20] so when she said copywriter it clicked i [8:23] was like oh so [8:25] you write [8:27] you know tv commercials you write radio [8:29] spots [8:31] and i was immediately intrigued so i [8:34] asked her about the work she was doing [8:36] and we got to talking [8:38] but this this is like 2011 at this point [8:42] so [8:43] eventually she started telling me about [8:45] the project she was doing it was mostly [8:47] social media [8:49] for [8:50] uh digital ad [8:52] agencies at the time this was a very [8:54] novel concept [8:56] most if not all advertising agencies [8:58] were traditional meaning tv [9:01] radio [9:02] um out of home billboard stuff like that [9:05] digital was like very new so i started [9:09] writing [9:10] social media content for her and that [9:12] was my first [9:13] paid job [9:15] as a copywriter quote-unquote or content [9:18] creator [9:19] that eventually uh [9:22] led me to meet other people in the [9:24] business [9:26] and [9:27] then i finally about five or six months [9:29] later i signed my first contract with an [9:31] ad agency for a full-time job as a [9:34] junior copywriter [9:36] and that's it i've been on that train [9:39] ever since [9:40] but it's you know what i find [9:42] interesting is from a complete [9:45] lack of [9:46] direction [9:47] in [9:48] my years studying literature [9:51] the years afterward [9:53] uh working these you know [9:56] meager jobs [9:58] eventually [10:00] i landed or where i wanted to which was [10:03] you know a career in in a creative [10:06] pursuit which is you know marketing [10:09] and being part of creative department [10:12] that that's [10:13] it was very fulfilling and i i worked at [10:16] ad agencies for eight years after that [10:18] how many years it took [10:20] for you from [10:21] [Music] [10:23] the bachelor degree to [10:25] this job [10:28] it took a while it took a while i mean [10:30] this year is my my 20th uh [10:34] graduation [10:35] anniversary so [10:37] that was 2002 [10:40] i landed the job in 2011 so that was [10:44] nine years later [10:45] oh wow [10:47] yeah that was nine years later but you [10:48] need to i mean the way i put it into [10:51] perspective is [10:53] first of all i mean i had no direction [10:56] i was studying literature [10:58] i knew i wanted to write for a living [11:00] but then it's like well how do i do that [11:02] i mean do i become a professor [11:05] do i even want to become a professor and [11:08] i you know i wish somebody had kind of [11:10] given me some guidance so those years [11:14] were [11:15] [Music] [11:17] formidable because [11:18] you know i [11:20] i had to teach myself essentially [11:23] and having these [11:25] having these other jobs you know i even [11:27] worked as a production assistant on [11:30] tv commercials and film [11:33] even having those jobs and you know [11:36] sometimes even failing at those jobs [11:40] continued to kind of fuel my desire to [11:43] have a creative career [11:46] and at the same time i was teaching [11:48] myself i was writing for myself i was [11:51] writing for other publications [11:53] i was kind of honing these skills [11:56] that eventually led to that so i mean [11:59] no regrets for me [12:02] i do wish i'd i'd taking i had taken [12:04] less time to be honest [12:07] but those were great years it was were [12:09] really great years full of mistakes and [12:12] missteps [12:13] but there was a lot of catharsis when i [12:16] finally realized well this is what i [12:17] want to do this is what i can do this is [12:20] what i'm capable of doing [12:23] uh these are i mean this is how i'm [12:25] gonna use these skills to the best of my [12:28] ability [12:29] and have a career here that was eye [12:31] opening [12:32] you know i wish it taken less time [12:35] to have that that uh [12:38] moment of clarity [12:40] or that uh [12:41] to find that direction [12:44] but you know everything's gonna happen [12:46] when it needs to happen you know i i [12:48] like to to flow [12:51] you know and [12:52] yeah i can be very impatient but [12:54] eventually [12:57] through my experience eventually [12:59] we get to where we're going [13:01] sooner or later and that was that was [13:03] the case for me [13:06] and [13:06] i can resonate with that [13:09] noel that um [13:11] [Music] [13:12] i guess with everyone [13:14] this is a constant truth that they [13:17] they regret the time that they have lost [13:20] in different phases of their life i took [13:23] long time to complete my engineering [13:26] then i waited too long [13:28] to become a manager because i didn't [13:30] feel ready [13:33] and [13:35] last three years i was in circle on to [13:38] decide what i wanted to do next [13:40] do i want to continue with my corporate [13:42] letter aspiration or do i want to do [13:45] something different [13:47] and i feel like i started this channel [13:49] six months ago i started focus writing [13:52] three years ago i should have done it [13:55] a long time ago [13:56] right um i started my first blog in [13:58] 2006. i wish i continued i had a [14:03] proper um [14:05] writing blog where i was focused in 2012 [14:09] but then i abandoned it i focused more [14:11] on building an agency my own offshore [14:15] company [14:16] so there are different patches that i [14:19] feel i should have done [14:22] at that point [14:23] i but [14:25] the way i see things [14:27] is [14:28] i don't know if you have played that dot [14:30] picture game [14:32] it's a paper where bunch of dots and [14:35] then you connect the dot and end of um [14:38] when you complete you see a picture so [14:40] the way i see our life and especially [14:43] the career is we are working in [14:46] different areas of those dark pictures [14:49] so sometimes we work on the left side [14:51] then right side top middle [14:54] and then [14:56] while we are working on this it feel [14:58] like [14:59] the time that we was drawing the left [15:02] side was wasted [15:05] but then at some point we realized that [15:09] when we connect all the dots we realize [15:12] that all these experience was preparing [15:15] us for this picture [15:17] and then we see the big picture so i am [15:21] truly [15:22] that everything every situation every [15:24] person that we we came across [15:26] um gave us something an experience that [15:30] was that basically preparing us for the [15:33] future [15:34] yeah i agree i agree you know i [15:38] i think we're all made up of the [15:40] different experiences we have the people [15:42] we interact with [15:44] and the things we learn i mean and and [15:47] most of all are mistakes [15:49] i mean when you when you fall [15:52] that gives you some perspective yeah and [15:56] if you keep going despite [15:58] your failures [16:00] it just shows that you have conviction [16:02] and you know i i had [16:05] i had what i thought was a career [16:08] pathway in in [16:10] production when i started working in on [16:13] film sets [16:14] and that fell apart completely so i had [16:17] to do some soul searching and kind of [16:20] find [16:21] what was act 2 [16:23] and that led me to start writing for [16:26] this website called examiner.com that i [16:29] don't i don't think they exist anymore [16:31] and that put me on the path that led me [16:35] to advertising [16:36] so [16:37] i think everything that we go through [16:41] is not in vain even the bad parts [16:44] eventually they're gonna lead you [16:46] to where you're going i really believe [16:48] that i think [16:51] you know i mean there was some really [16:52] bad times for me just professionally [16:55] speaking where things fell apart [16:57] completely [16:58] you know [16:59] when i was fired from jobs [17:02] and that all really [17:05] contributed to me [17:08] wanting to have a career like really [17:10] wanting to have a career and once i had [17:12] it [17:13] like really appreciating it you know i i [17:17] eventually i did become jaded with the [17:19] advertising industry [17:21] uh [17:22] but [17:24] you know the fact that it [17:26] it was such a struggle to get there made [17:28] me appreciate it [17:29] so much and that to this day i still [17:31] carry those lessons with me [17:35] i took an um [17:37] interview with um somebody named mr [17:39] larry that's my second episode and one [17:41] of the things that he said that [17:44] i wish i knew this [17:47] the the wisdom that i have today in my [17:50] 20s [17:51] and then he added that but [17:55] i don't know if somebody have told me [17:57] exactly these things [17:59] i would have believed and followed it [18:02] so [18:03] his point was he needed to go through [18:06] this [18:07] situations and experience to be able to [18:10] believe and to [18:13] to gain that wisdom [18:15] to become what who he is and somebody [18:17] would have told him and he would not [18:19] have done it anyway [18:21] yeah now i agree with that notion [18:23] completely because [18:25] i mean [18:26] when you're when you're a young man you [18:28] kind of [18:29] think you have all the answers [18:31] you know you think you know better than [18:33] anybody else [18:34] so [18:36] yeah [18:37] you know it was [18:39] it was hard [18:41] at times but [18:42] it shaped me into the person [18:45] and [18:46] if it [18:47] if it had been different i would have [18:48] taken a different path and [18:51] i wouldn't be who i am today i wouldn't [18:53] be [18:54] where i am today and yeah that's that's [18:57] why i say you know there's no regrets [18:59] even even the times i made mistakes [19:03] and i screwed up [19:04] and there were major setbacks [19:06] and it was it's very disheartening [19:09] and you kind of think you found [19:12] the path you know this is going to be my [19:14] career and then that falls apart on you [19:16] that is very disheartening especially [19:18] for [19:19] you know a guy who's 24 [19:22] you know you kind of see that [19:25] shiny object [19:27] of a career and you think you almost [19:29] have it and then it's taken away and [19:31] it's like well what do i do now what's [19:33] what's my next step [19:35] but like i said everything led to here [19:39] to here [19:41] i'm i'm very happy with with my journey [19:45] you know and that doesn't mean it you [19:46] know i i don't look back with any [19:49] resentment [19:50] i try not to [19:52] but but you know everything that we go [19:54] through eventually leads us [19:57] to something better i i really do [20:00] believe that [20:02] and for me it was a career [20:04] it was a career in advertising [20:06] that's amazing you refer [20:09] soul searching part [20:12] um i wanted to touch uh a bit on that uh [20:15] what that process looked like for you [20:18] sometime i mean it's hard to [20:21] put it into words but sometimes you know [20:23] whenever there's [20:25] a crisis or something for me i kind of [20:28] try to find [20:30] i sometimes start reading a lot [20:33] about different things i [20:36] kind of seek out inspiration [20:39] uh [20:41] whether that's you know watching certain [20:43] movies [20:44] i do try to kind [20:46] of shake myself out of the [20:50] negative aspect of it because it could [20:52] be very overwhelming [20:55] and you know i i remember [20:59] i remember just after [21:02] everything when you know the [21:04] everything went went wrong with uh [21:07] my job in the film industry i ended up [21:09] going to europe for about [21:13] about three weeks my brother was [21:14] studying over there in [21:17] and i you know i just i went by myself [21:20] i turned 25 [21:22] on that trip in spain [21:25] and i really took those three weeks to [21:28] kind of i mean i had fun obviously i was [21:31] with my brother [21:32] mid-20s [21:34] but it i took the time to to kind of [21:36] reflect on what i wanted to do [21:40] because i mean when you turn 25 and [21:43] you lack direction you're not sure what [21:46] sex [21:47] you start to [21:49] you know you kind of hear the clock [21:50] ticking in the background like it's time [21:52] to do something you know like you're not [21:54] you're not 18 anymore [21:57] and [21:59] you know i [22:00] usually somebody tells you this usually [22:02] like your parents or somebody tells you [22:05] like you need to get your act together [22:06] but i realized that [22:08] and [22:10] then i started reading a lot i mean [22:13] just about everything you know different [22:15] things and i was already i've always [22:17] been a voracious reader but i just [22:19] started reading about [22:20] you know different people and and their [22:23] struggles i remember reading uh [22:26] this book uh by anthony bourdain kitchen [22:30] confidential that made me that made me [22:32] smile because you know it's very [22:34] entertaining and he also came from like [22:38] you know being [22:39] uh i guess a bus boy i'm not sure where [22:41] his start was to being a chef so you [22:44] know it's those kinds of stories are [22:46] very inspiring also hunter thompson [22:49] you know these are crazy individuals but [22:51] i mean [22:52] they're their journeys were very [22:55] inspiring you know hunter thompson [22:57] struggled a lot uh as a journalist and [23:01] he didn't know what he was gonna do and [23:03] he had trouble in the military and all [23:05] that and then he became a legend you [23:07] know and i guess there's different ways [23:09] to see that [23:10] uh [23:12] and [23:14] yeah and a lot of reflection a lot of [23:17] reflection it hap that happens i still [23:20] do that a lot [23:21] kind of pause and take stock of what's [23:23] going on [23:25] and kind of reflect on what's the next [23:28] step i had to do it again [23:31] in my advertising career [23:33] when i started to realize i wasn't [23:35] really [23:35] [Music] [23:37] i wasn't loving the ad agencies as much [23:39] as uh [23:41] as i had at the beginning [23:43] that kind of [23:45] that became a bit of a professional [23:47] crisis [23:48] and again i started [23:50] you know reading books i read uh the [23:53] subtle art and not giving a uh by [23:55] uh manson [23:57] and [23:59] you know i started watching [24:00] documentaries [24:02] i started [24:03] usually my antidote sorry my dog is here [24:08] he's he wants to play sorry [24:11] usually the antidote to like a crisis [24:14] point is [24:17] kind of consuming [24:19] educational resources [24:22] for whatever reason i kind of gravitated [24:24] toward that so i watched some [24:26] documentaries i [24:28] i watched the tony robbins documentary i [24:31] read the manson book [24:33] i just started [24:35] going to bed a little later than usual [24:37] and just reading [24:39] launching stuff listening to podcasts [24:42] just kind of [24:44] it's a way to [24:45] of kind of fumbling your way in the dark [24:48] trying to find something to [24:51] to kind of grab on to and [24:54] you know those can be difficult times [24:56] but eventually [24:58] you get through it and [25:00] yeah [25:02] that's been so that's that's what i [25:03] defined missile searching a lot of [25:06] a lot of contemplation [25:08] and [25:10] trying to find a way forward [25:12] sometimes it happens quickly [25:15] you know sometimes you can turn yourself [25:17] around in a month sometimes it takes a [25:19] little longer [25:21] but in the end it's always rewarding [25:24] well i don't know if you realize that [25:26] but this segment this what you have [25:29] shared will be beneficial to hundreds [25:32] and thousands of people whoever will [25:34] watch [25:37] and this is a common [25:40] problem or situation or [25:44] um [25:45] circumstances for many people [25:49] and it happens in two ways number one [25:52] that [25:54] people who completely not aware what [25:56] they want to do and they [25:58] are [26:00] trying to find it [26:01] right until they find [26:04] they kind of uh not taking many actions [26:07] because they're not sure [26:09] and then the second type of people who [26:11] are in autopilot [26:13] and they they're just [26:15] working they're going office or if [26:17] they're [26:18] having a if their business owner [26:21] they're doing it every day and they are [26:24] on autopilot they know somewhere in the [26:26] head that uh [26:28] something is missing but they don't know [26:30] what that missing missing part is [26:32] yeah [26:33] that can be very i mean [26:35] it's very sobering when you realize that [26:38] something's missing [26:40] and [26:41] yeah [26:43] it's just a matter of [26:45] not lying to yourself [26:46] be very honest with yourself i had to [26:49] realize [26:51] that i wasn't happy [26:53] with agency life [26:55] and [26:56] it was [26:58] it was really taking a toll on my mental [27:00] health it was [27:02] my [27:04] you know it was cutting down on the time [27:07] i could spend with my family [27:09] it was really it was rough [27:11] but that from that hardship came the [27:15] realization that [27:17] i wasn't gonna spend my life working [27:20] at agencies [27:22] so that [27:23] kind of made me [27:25] do some course correcting [27:28] seek out other opportunities [27:30] and now i'm i'm happier than i've ever [27:32] been in my professional career that [27:34] doesn't mean there aren't challenges [27:36] there's still [27:37] i mean anything worth doing is going to [27:39] have its challenges [27:41] so [27:43] i still [27:44] struggle sometimes i mean [27:46] when you write when you're when you're a [27:48] writer [27:49] you have frustrations [27:52] uh too many way too many frustrations [27:54] and when you have you know a wild [27:57] imagination [27:59] like the one i have [28:00] and this propensity to tell stories you [28:03] kind of sometimes [28:05] make up these stories in your head about [28:07] um [28:09] you know what what's going to happen and [28:11] you could there's kind of these doom [28:13] scenarios going on in my head and i [28:16] struggle with that sometimes too because [28:18] it's very easy to be [28:20] to kind of believe your own [28:22] stories this the stuff you make up in [28:24] your head like oh you know [28:26] like you know this this can be impostor [28:28] syndrome this can be [28:31] just kind of the the thought that oh [28:33] they're gonna find out i'm [28:36] not good at what i do and oh god you [28:39] know what's gonna happen then you know [28:41] like i've been i've [28:42] been i've been fooling everybody for 10 [28:45] plus years and they're going to find out [28:47] what's going to happen [28:49] that happens a lot i mean but i think it [28:51] comes from a place of really caring [28:54] about what you do [28:55] i really care about my craft i really i [28:58] try to be [28:59] a professional [29:00] and it's the fact that i care so much [29:03] that kind of makes me [29:06] have some of that impostor syndrome i [29:08] think it's just [29:09] you know the only people who are worried [29:11] about losing their jobs [29:14] or [29:15] or having falling into these [29:17] professional pitfalls are the people [29:19] that really care [29:21] i find that i care a little too much [29:24] and that can be detrimental at times [29:26] it's just a matter of balancing it out [29:29] you know [29:30] that's a great way of looking at it [29:33] that's a [29:34] definitely a different perspective and [29:37] it's make this it does make sense [29:39] so you you had the situation where you [29:42] was not sure and now you are in a [29:44] situation [29:45] where you sure what you want you are in [29:49] a job [29:50] that [29:51] matches to your aspiration how does that [29:54] feel like [29:56] i think it's great i mean for starters [29:58] you know the company i work for now has [30:01] great values [30:02] they really value [30:04] us as individuals they put family first [30:07] and that is very refreshing you know [30:09] after eight years spent in advertising [30:11] agencies where [30:14] you know they [30:16] the ad game makes [30:18] these completely [30:20] absurd requirements of the individual [30:23] you know working all night at times [30:26] missing [30:28] you know if i had to film a commercial [30:31] at home depot for instance i would have [30:33] to essentially stay up all night and [30:37] and sometimes i wouldn't have the [30:38] weekend with you know with my family [30:41] that's very [30:42] that can be very demoralizing so [30:45] coming from that and then coming to a [30:47] company that doesn't expect you [30:49] to work more than 40 hours a week [30:52] uh you know they value your mental [30:54] health [30:55] they value you as an individual [30:58] that's amazing that's really amazing so [31:02] like we talked about before it's it's [31:05] part of the journey you sometimes have [31:07] to [31:08] suffer those pitfalls and those missteps [31:11] before something better comes along [31:13] that's where i'm at now i'm very very [31:15] grateful [31:18] what's your day look like um [31:21] well i mean [31:23] with the pandemic it's kind of [31:25] it's weird but [31:27] i i get i get started [31:29] pretty early like around 4 30 a.m [31:32] uh i wake up i stretch [31:35] i go exercise [31:38] come back [31:40] and [31:41] you know that's usually when the kids [31:43] wake up [31:44] get the kids ready they go to school [31:48] uh [31:50] i've been doing meditation again [31:53] not doing it for [31:55] years [31:56] so i do that [31:58] and then usually i have a little bit of [32:00] time where i can [32:02] either [32:04] invest in you know passion projects uh [32:07] maybe do a little writing little [32:09] handwritten [32:10] uh journaling or something like that [32:14] and then i get started with my job at [32:16] nine [32:17] and that's it i work till [32:20] six or so you know usually between eight [32:23] and nine hours [32:25] and then after that it's [32:27] family time [32:30] and uh i try to get to bed early [32:33] but yeah i mean [32:37] it kind of took the pandemic for me to [32:40] everything in order you know i wasn't [32:42] exercising for about three years or so [32:45] it's kind of hard when you got when you [32:46] have really small kids [32:48] but they've grown a bit you know my [32:50] daughter is six my son is four so i kind [32:54] of feel [32:55] now is it you know i could [32:57] maybe around seven months ago i could [33:00] start making these changes [33:02] that would make me healthier [33:04] maybe you know give me more energy [33:07] you know make [33:08] me you know a better employee hopefully [33:11] a better person too [33:13] so [33:14] that's where i'm at now you know [33:16] especially with the [33:18] with the meditation and journaling i'm [33:20] trying to [33:22] kind of improve [33:23] a lot [33:25] and it's that's kind of the journey i'm [33:26] on right now [33:29] and you're writing a novel as well [33:32] i i finished the novel uh [33:35] you know i did the first draft [33:38] years ago and i've been you know right [33:40] now i'm on the fifth draft or the six i [33:43] don't know [33:44] but i i do want to finish it eventually [33:46] because [33:48] i [33:49] i'm sure when i write a second novel [33:51] it's not going to take that long [33:54] but i do want to get this one right [33:56] so i've been [33:58] i sometimes work on it for six months [34:00] and then i stop for a year [34:03] but i do have a lot of work to do on [34:05] that but i i'm confident i'll i'll get [34:07] it done and hopefully [34:09] you know [34:10] hopefully published in one way or [34:12] another maybe self-publish [34:15] these days anybody can do that so [34:18] but i do want [34:19] i do want to want to get it to a quality [34:22] that that i'm pleased with [34:24] as a storyteller obviously since i've [34:25] been working on it for years [34:28] i've gotten better at certain things [34:31] and i can and that's really rewarding [34:33] too i go back and i'm like well this i [34:35] could have done this a lot better and [34:36] then you realize now there's more [34:38] criteria at work [34:40] there's more experience for me to draw [34:42] from [34:43] so that's that's also rewarding and it's [34:46] also kind of a way to grow [34:48] but i think it's time to to kind of let [34:51] go of that project soon you know [34:54] hopefully [34:55] this year or the next of the latest i [34:58] really kind of have to put a deadline on [35:00] it because otherwise i'm just gonna work [35:02] on it for the rest of my life you know [35:04] i have a huge respect for you for doing [35:06] that [35:07] because um [35:09] i said two books and i couldn't make [35:11] much progress so i know what it takes [35:13] what it means and [35:16] how [35:17] i was rearranging chapters and so many [35:20] other things and couldn't make much [35:22] progress because [35:24] the thought process consumed me more [35:26] than the writing [35:28] yeah [35:29] yeah it's [35:30] it's something else [35:32] you know i i [35:35] i took a lot of inspiration from charles [35:37] bukowski he wrote his first novel in [35:39] like three or four weeks [35:41] so i said to myself i'm gonna write [35:43] you know like like uh [35:45] nanowrimo i think it is you have to [35:47] write [35:48] a 50 000 word novel in 30 days [35:51] so [35:52] i i kind of set out to do something [35:54] different but i ended up doing that [35:56] after 30 days i had 54 000 words [35:59] so that was great that was an [36:00] achievement [36:03] uh [36:03] but then [36:05] you know rewriting and [36:07] i took stuff out put stuff in it's been [36:11] it's been a roller coaster ride [36:14] but i'm learning i'm learning and like i [36:16] said hopefully when this one gets done [36:19] i can do the second one in two years [36:21] instead of [36:22] i don't even know how long i've been [36:24] working on it at this point maybe eight [36:25] or nine years not [36:27] not consistently [36:30] you know not just [36:31] yeah after the kids were born i probably [36:34] took like a three year break from it [36:37] but yeah uh [36:38] i'm gonna set deadlines and you know [36:41] maybe you can hold me to them and [36:43] when we talk again a year from now [36:45] hopefully that'll be done i hope [36:48] actually just this week somebody posted [36:50] something and i said i wanted to write [36:52] and that who is stopping you and and the [36:55] conversation has started so i will [36:57] attach you there i will tag you there to [37:00] that conversation um [37:02] and then you recently did 30 for 30. [37:05] oh yeah [37:07] yeah that was amazing i mean [37:11] you know some of the people that really [37:13] inspired me to to kind of grow my [37:15] audience on twitter were [37:17] dickie bush and nicholas [37:20] and [37:23] it was great i mean it was a challenge [37:26] undoubtedly it was a challenge [37:28] because you really have to write every [37:30] day and that includes weekends and you [37:32] know you're a father too so you know [37:34] weekends can be challenging for work [37:37] if you have kids running around [37:39] especially mine or [37:41] small [37:43] but i i i got through it you know i got [37:46] through it and [37:47] it's very rewarding i i think it's kind [37:50] of [37:51] made [37:52] you know made me realize [37:54] what i mean who my audience is [37:57] because i would realize [38:00] you know the kinds of essays that would [38:02] resonate more [38:04] so i i kind of realized that [38:06] a lot of my audience consists of [38:09] people who want to become copywriters or [38:11] people who are just starting out as [38:12] copywriters [38:14] so i've been honing in on that and [38:17] lately and it's been very [38:19] i've seen a lot of growth because of it [38:22] and it all comes from [38:25] from you know these principles that i've [38:27] been exposed to [38:29] just [38:30] even before shift 30 for 30 just [38:32] following these people [38:34] or writing every day [38:36] really consistently and i think that's [38:39] that's key if you stay consistent you're [38:42] going to see results [38:44] and and i knew that already going into [38:48] it but just [38:49] from this perspective on the other side [38:52] it's amazing it really is amazing i i [38:55] want to take it again i don't know if [38:56] this year but next year for sure because [38:59] it was very very rewarding and [39:02] a lot of people take it i know i know a [39:03] guy who's taking it i think four times [39:05] already [39:06] and wow because you can continue to find [39:09] value in the stuff you learn and when [39:11] you're doing it when you're writing for [39:13] 30 days as part of a community [39:16] you really do feel [39:18] like you're all kind of rowing in the [39:20] same direction and that's very [39:22] empowering [39:23] so i mean if [39:25] anybody who has a chance to do that i [39:27] would suggest you do so because it's [39:29] it's as a writer it was you know even [39:31] for me that i've been doing this [39:33] professionally for over 10 years you can [39:35] still learn new things [39:37] and you know there were people taking it [39:39] who were [39:41] you know retirement age like 60 plus [39:44] so [39:45] it doesn't matter what [39:47] what stage of your career you're in you [39:48] could definitely benefit from a cohort [39:51] based course because you're going to be [39:54] doing it with a group of people and that [39:56] is really empowering [39:58] yeah i i [40:00] heard about it last year i wanted to do [40:01] it but then it was i think it was 400 or [40:04] something so [40:06] i [40:07] didn't do it at that point [40:09] yeah [40:10] well i mean [40:11] i think they they're [40:13] if you sign up early you can get a [40:15] discount i'm not sure [40:18] but i think it's really rewarding i mean [40:22] a lot of people don't don't follow [40:24] through [40:25] a lot of people don't follow through i [40:27] notice a lot of people fell off [40:30] so [40:31] it can be frustrating but that's part of [40:33] growing you have to kind of take those [40:35] hits [40:37] and yeah [40:38] frustration is is a big part of it [40:41] um so last year [40:43] i wrote [40:44] 51 articles in 51 days that was i think [40:47] before i found [40:49] this program [40:50] but there were people who were writing [40:52] 30 days 60 days and i started doing that [40:56] and [40:58] it removed the blockage that you have in [41:00] the head and then your own personal [41:02] belief that how much you can write [41:05] writing for i started with 30 days and [41:07] then extended it up to 51 days 51 [41:11] and then [41:12] it was it was good it was [41:15] i think i was able to do a lot last year [41:17] and i started this channel because i [41:19] constantly consistently write for 51 [41:22] days [41:23] and was able to believe beyond what i [41:25] used to believe [41:27] you know i completely agree [41:29] and at some point i will [41:31] join not i mean especially to connect [41:34] with other people other writers [41:36] that's a part of it the community is [41:38] really big part of it and [41:40] and you get to learn from other people [41:43] you know who are [41:44] writing but in different areas you know [41:47] different [41:48] industries and stuff like that that's [41:50] very [41:51] you know that i think that's probably [41:52] the best part the community aspect [41:56] all right so let's move to the last two [41:59] questions um number one what's your goal [42:01] setting and time management method [42:04] goal setting and time management [42:07] yeah [42:08] uh well i usually you know i [42:11] i usually have goals set up for [42:14] quarterly goals which are you know three [42:17] months at a time [42:19] and [42:20] i [42:21] you know i have some that that [42:23] management holds me to but i have [42:25] my own i keep lists a lot [42:28] a lot of lists a lot of [42:30] stuff i use evernote too to keep lists [42:34] that i can access on a computer i can [42:36] access on my phone ipad [42:39] uh and just time management i i do [42:42] something that helps me a lot [42:45] which is one hour sprints [42:48] and what that consists of is [42:51] turning off [42:52] all notifications everything you know [42:54] sometimes i even take off my apple watch [42:58] and [43:00] set up a timer for one hour [43:03] and for that one hour i will work with [43:06] that interruption [43:08] and you know i i try to almost uh [43:13] kind of [43:15] fool myself into [43:16] you know i kind of give myself a little [43:19] reward at the end you know like maybe [43:20] i'll [43:22] have some fruit after an hour or i'll [43:24] take five minutes and i'll go on twitter [43:26] see what's happening [43:28] but that one hour needs to be solid work [43:32] and you know i sometimes if i'm working [43:34] from home i even tell my wife like i'm [43:36] gonna i'm gonna work for a straight hour [43:39] uh you know and then i'll come out [43:42] because work from home can be [43:43] challenging sometimes okay [43:45] i do that i try to do that twice a day [43:49] and those two hours are [43:51] probably the most productive hours in my [43:54] day [43:55] because [43:57] they're really i mean you're not going [43:58] to be if you turn off notifications [44:00] there's not going to be an email coming [44:01] in that you're going to [44:03] have to you know shift focus [44:05] there's not going to be [44:07] a text from a friend [44:10] or or some notification from the new [44:13] york times or anything anything and and [44:16] when you're working from home if you [44:18] also tell [44:19] others around you like i need an hour of [44:22] uninterrupted work [44:24] that that's i think that's it seems [44:27] simple [44:28] when i describe it to you [44:31] but [44:32] it can be it can be really good because [44:36] there's just so many distractions [44:38] there's so many distractions you know [44:40] and when you're working [44:41] when you're working from home you know [44:43] you need to hold yourself accountable [44:45] because you're not at the office you [44:47] know [44:48] like know nobody can see if you [44:52] if you you know if you're reading the [44:53] news on your phone [44:55] so i think [44:56] in terms of time management and [44:58] productivity [44:59] one hour sprints for me are key [45:03] i mean i know it seems simple like i [45:05] said [45:06] but [45:07] you can really get a lot of one hour of [45:09] completely focused work [45:12] you know the most powerful advice there [45:14] is [45:14] we try to manage the entire day we try [45:17] to [45:18] time manage everything but what you're [45:20] saying that out of those 24 hours if you [45:23] just manage those two hours it will be [45:25] way more productive than you're not [45:27] doing anything that's what i mean uh you [45:29] know there's nothing else [45:31] in that hour except the work [45:34] and [45:34] you get 60 minutes of uninterrupted work [45:37] it can be very very productive what's [45:40] your message to the audience you need to [45:42] kind of define what you want to do [45:44] with your life [45:46] professionally [45:48] and then just do anything and everything [45:50] you can to get there [45:52] you know when i decided i wanted to be a [45:54] copywriter i had to seek out the people [45:56] that would help me [45:58] the books i would read and [46:01] you know [46:02] i i made a plan [46:04] i think making a plan [46:06] and executing it you know without delay [46:10] is is what gave me a career [46:13] and you know for anybody who's who's [46:16] watching [46:17] that [46:18] you know wants to have a career as a [46:20] copywriter you can follow me [46:23] on twitter you know it's my name at [46:26] davila [46:28] i said that in spanish but you could say [46:30] noel [46:32] and [46:33] you know i i'm constantly tweeting [46:36] resources about [46:38] copywriting [46:39] storytelling and professional growth [46:42] and you know my dms are open anybody can [46:44] reach out i'm always always happy to [46:47] help you know [46:48] whether it's resources or just [46:51] a little bit of guidance [46:53] i had people who helped me [46:55] so i think it's incumbent upon me to [46:57] help others and just kind of pay that [46:59] good will forward [47:02] great great discussion [47:04] thank you so much for your time [47:17] you
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