The Creative Condition podcast

Ep 297: Always Growing. Why it's all, always unfolding and the importance of letting it happen

It's all, always unfolding. As we change and grow, so must our creativity. Otherwise, that way lies discontent, frustration, and diminishing returns.
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
Music for the show is by Dirty Freud https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
 
 

Ep 296: Are You Present? Harris and Micah Purnell discuss the role of phones in our creativity and our lives

Tethering Presence is a stunning project, encapsulating the truisms of Micah Purnell and the photography of Harris, exploring the role of distraction and smartphones in our lives across two books – a London and a New York edition. They join me to discuss the role of smartphones in our creativity and our lives, and the origins of the project.
 
The book is out now: https://micahpurnell.com/books-prints/p/power-giclee-69gmj-g9sks-atjb6
https://micahpurnell.com
https://www.the1harris.co.uk/
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
Music for the show is by Dirty Freud https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
 
 

Ep 295: I Am an Artist

I reminder to self, and to all artists that we are artists, and this is our way of life.
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
Music for the show is by Dirty Freud https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
 

The Creativity Diary: The AI Ignoramus

The latest instalment of The Creative Condition's Creativity Diary.
Covered in this edition:
Fear over AI ignorance and analog loyalty
Being unafraid of disorder and acknowledging the messy ways of creativity
An old friend returns in a second-hand bookshop
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
Music for the show is by Dirty Freud https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
 

Ep 294: The Things in Your Control with Abby and Owen's Owen Smith

Owen Smith was delighted to see I'd discovered and had begun using Stoicism teachings to improve my mental health and creativity. He told me so, and we hopped on a call to talk about getting active in your own rescue and the exhilarating feeling of being the author of the career you want to live.
We cover:
Responding, not reacting
Recognising what you can impact
Being the author of your next chapters
The upsides of shitty situations life throws our way
https://abbyandowen.com/
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua

Ep 293: The Mental Battery

Humans have finite mental energy.
Creativity thrives when our battery is well-managed.
But we live in a world drowning in information and data.
Some thoughts on the mental battery.
Hear the full episode of Do Radio on the mental battery now at https://thedoradio.com
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
Join the Paradiso Institute and a new wave of creative leaders at https://paradisoinstitute.org/
https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua

Ep 292: Self-Awareness in Creativity

The creative industry is deep in a damaging obsession with the external. We're terrified of the tools, spending our energy arguing in black and white about artificial intelligence, starting the design process trapped in programmes before we've considered what will serve the idea.
But really, we should be starting with the internal, and that's all grounded in self-awareness. Only then can we truly connect in the wider world.
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2c5NcXidirDDqL3sc3vW8S?si=bL3qx6zWQn6Mn03anHRPfQ
https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua

DO Something!

We all need to DO something.
I'm doing a new radio show. Here's what, why, and where you can listen.
https://thedoradio.com
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2c5NcXidirDDqL3sc3vW8S?si=bL3qx6zWQn6Mn03anHRPfQ
https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua

Ep 291: Evolving a Creative Industry Career with Dirty Freud

Dirty Freud takes time out of composing an opera to talk about the many directions his music career has taken him. We discuss the need to evolve, how variation or specialising fits different people in different ways, and the role of personality in proceeding in a way that's right for you.
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2c5NcXidirDDqL3sc3vW8S?si=bL3qx6zWQn6Mn03anHRPfQ
https://www.instagram.com/dirtyfreud/
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
 

Brew Brain Dump 12: There's a Fly's Brain in the Insect Matrix. How Creativity Can Preserve Sanity When Fiction Becomes Truth

A few years ago, I wrote a silly, speculative science fiction story about a teenager getting stuck in Snake 2. Now we live in a world where it's dated because someone in Silicon Valley has put a fruit fly's brain on a chip and it's doing fly things in the insect matrix.
Let's sit with that and consider what it means for our mental health and creativity.
Supported by https://illustrationx.com - the show's founding sponsor
To coach with Ben, https://thecreativecondition.com/coach
To support the Ukrainian creative community https://ui.org.ua
Guardian article in this episode:
https://www.theguardian.com/games/2026/mar/16/petri-dish-brain-cells-playing-doom-cortical-labs
My short story: https://www.bentallonwriter.com/shortstories/snake2-b7mew