A New Direction For Deep Dive - Let's Chat

Hey friends, welcome back to Deep Dive. This episode is going to be in a slightly different format than usual - it’s a solo episode where I sit down to chat about the future direction of the podcast and some of the new content we’re going to be sharing as we get ready to launch Season 8. This is a pretty relaxed convo - just wanted to give you guys an update and show you a sneak peak of the behind the scenes thinking that goes into the podcast. x
📚Check out my New York Times Bestselling book Feel-Good Productivity!
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Bonus Episode
00:00 Two years of Deep Dive
03:10 Hobby vs. growth
10:37 New content
11:39 We want to hear from you
14:08 Key takeaways
23:58 A big thank you
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📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED
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📄SHOW NOTES & TRANSCRIPT
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🎙 ABOUT THE PODCAST
Deep Dive is the podcast that delves into the minds of entrepreneurs, creators and other inspiring people to uncover the philosophies, strategies and tools that help us live happier, healthier and more productive lives.
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[@dipus4750]

Ali, we come to this channel not just for the content. We also love your personality & your vibe. Keep listening to your inner self !

[@Teresajhuang]

Can’t agree more! I come here for your raw thoughts, and progress through your journey. It empowers and motivates me that it’s ok to give it a try. There are days where doing your own thing is slow and no one understands - that’s why I come to your channel to get inspired again.

[@mwihaki__]

Ali I love how authentic you are to your why. I love that you aren't afraid to pivot. I just love you and every direction you take...we are there with you 100%. Your internal compass is so spot on. Keep at it Ali, we are here through it all and we trust every direction you take. Take us on this new journey.

[@askvinh]

I love how you always recalibrate and realign who you have become in the current chapter with the things that you do in your business ❤️ inspiring af.

[@adrianliung8374]

Woah Vinh, nice seeing you here 😁

[@amydement.]

Thank you so much for being vulnerable enough to share things that matter deeply to you. THAT is inspiring in ways that reach far beyond your words. Thank You!

[@lapalma1928]

Your authenticity and humble openness is something I have appreciated very much since I came across your KZbin videos. It takes a great deal of courage to follow your gut/heart and on top of that to be so open about it. I hope you know that through an act of courage like this, you are inspiring so many of us to be courageous in our own way. Thank you, Ali! May you continue to follow your gut/heart, and may you also continue to enjoy much success!!

[@francoflores8441]

In my opinion, the noise in the background made this video way better. That’s spontaneous, that’s real. That’s what people like nowadays I think. Probably its not about scripted videos anymore, more like real conversations and mistakes that we all experience in life

[@user-bg1py9sk6c]

I love watching you because of your personality, honesty, and passion. The fact that you stopped to reflect speaks volume so you. I love your videos and maybe in the future you could do videos where you talk our amazing bodies and its capacity. Like how our body systems work. They are not enough education on that out there...Thank you and God bless you and your family. I have learned a lot from you! Greetings from Minnesota

[@michelle_cen]

I love your honest authentic videos the most, when you share your deep thoughts. Thank you ❤

[@idrismoura8197]

It's awesome that you are being authentic about how you feel about the podcast. more authentic and genuine conversations = more value for all of us Thank you for all!

[@VioletIvy2]

Ali, I've enjoyed listening to this for a few years, and partly because I like seeing your journey and what is of interest to you about your guests at different stages. Are there things that aren't relatable sometime? Yes. But I don't listen to find everything relatable. I listen because I find you and your guests interesting and I enjoy your journey. Best of luck on your new direction! I'll be listening.

[@rollierollout]

I enjoy your podcasts. I love how you push the guest to provide an actual example of whatever they're talking about and roleplay with them. No one else brings the convo back to earth quite like you do. I think everyone is stuck with doing work, as work, for the sake of work until they get to a comfortable spot in life, like you've been able to achieve. At your level you can relax, work for fun, and pick & choose your daily activities. Leading up to that, we're drowning in work that isn't fun. And that's okay. Not everything is fun, nor should it be. Life comes with highs, lows, stagnation, growth, etc. Otherwise, the good parts wouldn't feel quite as good. 😊

[@mindiwilhelm4322]

Honestly, I just enjoy listening to you. I enjoyed all of the writing struggles that you shared because that is reality. Do what you enjoy, but please keep posting.

[@emilykaz1605]

I love your podcasts, but I love your personality, actually so refreshing to listen to someone so intellectual and has depth compared to many others that lack this completely. We are here to support your journey whichever way it goes 🙏🏻 🎉

[@ShellieCordell]

Absolutely, Ali. We appreciate you and the content you share. Go at your pace and know we support you. Best.

[@ET76001]

LOL

[@thedanielaros]

Ali, I am so excited for the change of Deep Dive. I read an interesting book recently, ‘Feel-Good Productivity’, and it’s sounds like you may have hit a bit of Misalignment Burnout with where Deep Dive and the main YT channel went. I’ve talked about this with some friends and we all agree that you were posting things way too frequent and it didn’t seem like you were enjoying it as much. I do recall your conversation with Steven Bartlett and what he said about seeing life as ‘seasons’ is very relevant for you right now. So take the time to recharge, slow down, and do the things that bring fun to your life, as that will most likely resonate with your true fans; old and new.

[@Orangew665]

Thank you for sharing your thought Ali. I personally have experienced having a hobby and suddenly it started to become a burden and lost joy in it. In my case, one of the causes is my high expectations on myself in this hobby, also the urge to see an improvement. At a point I asked myself, how some people can reach to an advanced level in a hobby, but some cannot or even end up leaving it. One thing I noticed is the mentality. In most things, it is inevitable to struggle in the process but what gets us through is the mentality to keep going (and of course, taking time off it). While improvement is what we want to see in a hobby, but we are totally in control of how fast we want it to happen. In my case, I tend to take a lot of constructive comments and work intentionally for improvement for a period of time eg 3 months. Then the next 2-3 months I would be more relaxed on comments and my work will be the product of my enjoyment plus the work I’ve worked on the last 3 months. And it repeats. It forms a loop: enjoyment > work > work on improvement > see improvement > more enjoyment > more work. I hope my sharing help you with your journey on your hobby. Not everyone has a hobby and it’s so so valuable and could be the highlight of our days. We also love to see different sides of you ! Keep going !

[@traceymayhewauthor]

I totally understand you decision to take a step back - if something stops being joyous then take a break. You have to follow your heart, I did that when I became a supply teacher in order to free up time to pursue my own writing/self-publishing career. Good luck and I'm looking forward to seeing how the new face of Deep Dive looks!

[@doublegame820]

Ali when I listen to your podcast with other guests, to be honest, is more important and more valuable and interesting to listen to what you this about some topics, than what are saying your guests.!

[@rikawhelan]

Love the authenticity! No worries what you do on channel, we’re here for it all! Loving the channel!

[@StefArth]

You came to the same realization I got. I love the path to achieve a goal but once it’s reached there is no enjoyment. I like the hard work, discover, implement try, fail, alternate,improve etc but when it’s reached it becomes a task and obligation and what I want is freedom. You do great content and no matter the feel of publishing I will follow!

[@tracyimmanuelmakeup]

I'm so happy to see this video Ali! Do what makes you happy! We all love you and want you to be happy too!❤

[@user-pi2gh6fx1b]

Your interviews have been really inspiring and interesting but I'm really excited for what's coming based on what you mention here - to hear and see the behind-the-scenes and see how you run your business, conversations with mentors etc. Many entrepreneurs don't preach what they teach, so this is going to be super transparent and informative. Am pumped for what's coming!!!

[@lamtodd2429]

Thank you for sharing this with us. I had a similar situation where I got burnt out and the very next day I let go of all my clients. My money was increasing, but my creativity was decreasing as I got higher paying clients. My work was no longer fun and I just burnt my business to the ground and decided to start over. I'm now doing very low ticket offers on purpose in order to place my creativity first over money. Of course, I understand I'm in a privileged position to do that! Thank you for sharing. I totally get what you are doing.

[@jamesbrackiniv]

Congratulations on the growth Ali, I love how introspective you are. It's so important to check in with yourself and continue pivoting, looking forward to your next chapter

[@leeleelui8248]

Good to hear this update. Can't wait for the business coaching session and all other kinds of zoom calls!

[@boglarka-horvath]

Ali, follow your heart! ❣I believe whichever way you choose to following, it will be amazing and you'll succeed at it.

[@RobinMWaite]

You’ve got to follow your heart at the end of the day Ali. I dialled back my own podcast 2 years ago for the exact reasons you gave here. It came down to the Dunning Kruger and also the laws of diminishing returns and marginal gains when it’s optimised as much as you possibly can do and then everything becomes very “samey” and “normal”. I personally thing the behind the scenes chats will be epic. 👊🏻👊🏻

[@prateekthanki5455]

Love Ali being open about his dilemmas and constantly conducting experiments!

[@sondosselnegahy7867]

All the best Ali - It's great to see you true to yourself no matter what the temptations.

[@BrendanEvan]

We get the podcast for free so we can’t complain about its existence or frequency. Do what works for you! Thanks!

[@ts-krishnan]

Love that you are open sourcing those bits of wisdom from Zoom calls :)

[@infinite-progression]

Yes, we want all of these new videos. I'm new to the channel but I love what I've seen so far

[@akgardens]

I think your new plan is great. There is so much value you can extract listening into a conversation, rather than have a "podcast situation" where sometimes half the time is spend on "fluff"

[@faizansheikh6010]

you have all my love and respect. looking forward to what comes next!

[@StacyWesson]

I love this. I have only heard 1/3 of your episodes so now I can catch up lol. I enjoy listening to you but in reality I can't listen to all the people I enjoy following when so much is put out. I am here for what works for you!

[@jakebferguson]

Very on brand in the best possible way. Do what brings you joy and meaning and course correct when you notice productivity becoming toxic. Way to demonstrate the values you espouse. I also think varying it up will be a differentiator that helps the podcast stand out and avoid going stale as your audience evolves.

[@Seriinudesu]

I love videos like those way more than all the polished one you used to create ❤

[@committedtodd]

these honest vulnerable chats are awesome

[@user-cv5cw8hu4w]

Great ep. 👌I could be wrong, but I feel like I can tell when you’re dialling it in for the views. And I sit up and take notice when you’re asking a real question that you don’t know the answer to. Those are the great conversations, when both parties drop into flow and go somewhere they’ve never been before, regardless of whether it matches my interest graph. Here’s to never having to ask, ‘What’s your advice to someone in their 20s who hasn’t “found their passion?”’ ever again. 😅

[@gardensbydaveforge]

Don't feel the need to be apologetic. You run your own race - we're here cheering for you whichever race you're choosing to run. Godspeed from Australia!

[@mannya_realtor]

You're a great example of pivoting. The only thing constant is change!

[@dr.elsat.khwaja]

You are such a sweetheart Ali... thanks for sharing this...

[@isalutfi]

Thank you Ali. Greetings from Indonesia.

[@effortlessjapanese222]

yep for sure. i have lately been so tired of seeing shorts after shorts from this channel. feels to me the channel was just trying to churn content out. looking forward to future episodes 🎉

[@ivneetkaur9393]

I think it is great that you are taking time to reevaluate why you do what you do and not to sacrifice that for external gains. I personally don’t get why people batch things like podcast recording, shooting videos, writing scripts. These are creative piece of work that require mental and creative energy that cannot be turned into assembly line production. Most of the problem that you or any other KZbinr/ creator is facing can be easily solved by treating creative work differently than other form of labour.

[@ilovejaysquared]

I've always enjoyed the Deep Dive pod. Seeing you speak to all of these skilled people is very inspiring and very insightful. However, I know the feeling of not being aligned with something that's working. I may be in the minority, but what does Deep Dive look like with dropping the "with Ali Abdaal" and have Deep Dive become something more ambiguous toward the Ali Abdaal brand but at the same time holding a platform for specialists in their field looking to grow from professionals in that similar field? I've got some ideas that would be cool to see but it feels good to see you choose you regardless of the pod. Sending mad love from Detroit, US.

[@imanAhmed]

Ali, I extend my heartfelt wishes for your utmost success. Your teachings and videos have profoundly impacted both my personal life and business endeavors, leading to significant improvements. Do whatever makes you happy, and keep your life balance. My prayers are with you, may Allah continue to guide you towards a path of success in this life and the hereafter.

[@AlexPresa]

Here no matter what, Ali 🙏

[@killer12950]

Ali, I've developed an opinion, and I'm curious about your response. I think you might have a challenge with boredom, grappling with the shift from the mindset of building to the mindset of something already built. Once an idea solidifies or business in your mind, it seems like your motivation dwindles rapidly. Do you think this is the case?

[@NBTJacklyn]

Five mins in so well said

[@juperrr]

I love this talks because they surface things, for us and for you. At 09:25 you say "Prestigious, stable and well payed". The majority of people I know, that are in the medical sector are there for exactly that (prestige, stability, money). Almost no one says anything about the pleasure of helping peoples health get better. And we wonder why it is as it is. I think you did the right thing leaving and pursuing your own path.

[@noelvn3]

Ali, I always love your content, because you’re able to stay real about your life, even when it vastly diverges from my own circumstances. But there’s something I heard you say here that I didn’t quite hear in your summing up. The mass, back-to-back, fill-the-pipeline approach didn’t seem to work for either you or your audience. It gave the illusion of you being stuck in a mindset when you were merely having a certain type of day or week. We’re here because we enjoy seeing your evolution as you get to meet all these amazing people and do things we would love to do. What I heard behind what you’ve saying was that it was time kill the pipeline approach, not the podcast, and let us see more of your realtime process. I honestly don’t care if podcasts emerge on a regular basis. What I care about is that you can stay real and keep growing as a person, not just as a business.

[@joshmoxey.]

W. Excited for you G

[@MichaelMaitlen]

I'd love to get actionable advice on how to get my side project off the ground and build a sustainable lifestyle business to gain financial freedom...I don't need a 10mil a year thing, but something that will pay the bills, provide health care (I'm in the US) and allow for retirement someday. Love the content you've been putting out and that you listen to your gut and do "what's healthy" and it's not just about the profits!

[@teodorhirs8640]

to be frank, it’s nice that you openly talk about your stream of thoughts and decessions, but this seemed like you wanted to make sort of excuse for not being frequent with content upload in the future. Since all of people who appreciate your work (I’m one of them :) ) will follow and digest your content regardless of your upload frequency, I really wouldn’t bother to make effort to explain my decessions. Just go your own tempo, continue to share your journey and enjoy it. Thanks for all until now, I’ve learned alot, and I hope I’ll have also a story to share one day as your guest :) Cheers and keep up the good work!

[@AnuragShukla-xv4xb]

i used to listen to this podcast when it was on zoom and ali used to create a notion page with notes

[@sr2109]

I completely love this kind of perspective conversation. I would also love to see the bits not in the internet.

[@gussiegus4943]

I listened to one of the deep dive podcasts a couple of days ago which had been filmed several weeks back. I enjoyed the conversation, and certainly received value from it. I could tell, though, that you were struggling with it. The passion was missing, and you weren’t personally connecting with your guest. It was a good interview, but it wasn’t one of your typically great conversations. Follow your gut. You put out great content when you’re doing what inspires you, and then you inspire us, too. I’m looking forward to your next steps.

[@Gojo.Saturo.05]

Love from India 🇮🇳

[@yesungC]

O... wait.... That was the news? Cool - I'll see you in the next one! don't sweat it!

[@DrBrianKeating]

❤😮

[@jacobmorres9817]

Love you ali

[@lucydenniss-arnold1871]

Hey Ali, i was wondering if you had any interest in posting interviews with people where you coach them into finding more joy in thier productivity/daily tasks? You would get that feeling of helping someone directly who might not benifit from the higher level business content and through posting it would also potentially help many more people in your audience. Your book has lots of great principles but they can be hard to work out how to meaningfully impliment them, it would be really cool to see people work through some of these issues real time.

[@aliabdaal]

Ah haha this is something I’d love to do :)

[@hennnnerz]

Where do I hear more for the relationship rituals?

[@Pogmothoin17]

I’m just happy that you’re going to continue them and would definitely prefer that you enjoyed doing them. I really love your interview style and unlike other podcasters I could listen to you talk to people on a variety if topics. One of my favourite ones that you did was when you talked to Louise Perry. Not your usual type but something that I’d never come across before and I always like how you approach the topics so I thoroughly enjoyed it. So personally, I’d be happy if your podcasts strayed off-topic so to speak from the usual productivity-based themes. If the interviews floated around depending on what your interests were at that point, that would keep it more hobby-like for you and also super interesting for us! I’d rather go along the journey with you and your interests as they evolve. Best of luck man.

[@trezr2d2]

Opening multiple channels diverts the magic elsewhere, in this case the pod, as podcasts are the in thing right now. I used to watch MKBHD but now only watch his podcasts. If u see your favorite creators so much in one place u don't really want to watch his 10/15 minute vdo. Hope that made sense.

[@shanaleselindo]

13:25 Integrity.

[@Faisal-Waseem]

Ali podcast with Iman Gadzhi it would definitely blew up I think

[@Faisal-Waseem]

@@DeepDivewithAliAbdaal957 who the hell are you b

[@NasivateLifestyle]

Just burnt out dude, you can tell from your energy, take a break, and come back.

[@paulamonteiro6162]

❤ I think the point of your videos is going after what you really are and not so what the KZbin wants you to do, Ali. Be what you wrote in your book Feel good productivity and slow down like Cal Newport says. We still love you anyway and your true audience still follow you anyway. I give you permission 😂😂😂. (Kidding)

[@waibeeYB]

Please do a podcast with India's Ankur Warikoo. And please let him know I gave you the idea...haha thanks

[@razabadass]

Idea = you do you so to speak :)

[@docnival]

I think right now I'm more likely to watch these kinda more "personal" videos from you compared to more polished or listicle type of videos. I think you should do more f these coz you already have a bunch of loyal followers who'd just listen to you :)

[@dicitapak]

What sound is this 3:34

[@BSPoK]

I’m really starting to like this guy 🤔

[@Susanrogers-pt9mf6hx1w]

Not sure when Ali recorded this but Ali you sound and look a bit under the weather -

[@Susanrogers-pt9mf6hx1w]

Hey I just received a reply from Ali’s customer service centre WhatsApp number - is this some sort of Romanian bot hack? Or genuine?

[@furrypuffskein6585]

Hear me out Ali , we don't really care about the production value of the podcast, as long as the audio and video is decent. We really enjoy the podcast when we feel like we are a part of the conversation between two friends. Not a well scripted video with 4 different camera angles and huge lights.

[@UmmahGuidance]

Ali..you're burnt out. We took lots of lessons from your videos, take one lesson from us.. this will be your MAIN channel, we are productive enough we don't need that channel anymore. And be productive with what?? The businesses we don't have? Delegate, let someone else do the interviews.. it's not just u we like to watch, we like the content too.

[@magnesium_subsoil_94]

Honestly I’ve felt less and less interested in the podcast the more it becomes about business It feels like just a set of interviews with the entrepreneur influencer de jour I think it was a lot more interesting when it was divided on health and wellness like the dating episodes This just feels like hyper mainstream hustle culture content ironically, as if you just walked into the aisle at the bookstore of the latest books out of HBS

[@mdabusaqibalamansari9979]

Your videos are very beneficial and have helped me a lot❤ I'll very soon buy your book (just once my exams get over) cause just from your videos i know that a book written by you is going to be awesome. and I currently don't have any income stream, but when i do I'll definitely purchase your part time youtuber course (very excited for that as well) ❤❤❤ May Allah bless you

[@polmacdiarmada]

Your podcast comes across very genuine and i watch all episodes... You have interviewed some great people, more of the same please - Daniel, Robin, Jodie etc were brilliant to hear from. Well done