Comparison, Competition, and What We Get Wrong About Both

I woke up thinking about the Latin root of "com" which sent me down a rabbit hole -- turns out, these used to be quite positive words back in the day.The words "comparison" and "competition" had a whole different meaning before capitalism and industrialization took over (shocking!) and in this ep, I'm exploring how we can get back to its original roots: "to make equal with" and "to strive together". Come with me as I make comparisons to modern day media powerhouses like Alex Cooper, how the Threads ick comes back around every season, the skill gap hamster wheel and more.I end with "The Parable of the Mexican Fisherman" which I think should be required reading for all entrepreneurs.This is for anyone in a comparison spiral, feeling exhausted by "competing" to scale, and who want to do business differently. Connect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

Back with another off the cuff vlog today, and this time, I share a smoothie of thoughts, including:The power of constraints boosting imaginationHow I produce more coherent work with constraintsMy experience flying Business Class from Copenhagen to Lisbon and the glaring spotlight of class systems in travelWhat Business Class and the coaching space have in commonWhat "classes" are we creating in our own ecosystems and are we happy about it? Is there anything we can change?Why I'd never run a 4000+ person program and why I never desire toHow I make my business work focusing on intimacy and build that into my business modelWHEW, a lot can go down in 10 mins! Let me know your thoughts in the Spotify comment section, leave a written review, and slide in my DMs (on Threads)!Connect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

It's the weekend. I'm in Copenhagen. And I think I need Digital Nomad Rehab, a center for people who want to settle down but addicted to traveling.This is an off the cuff vlog sharing what's swirling around in my brain, including:How my Europe Summer is goingEmotional whiplash of starting over every few monthsWhy it's so hard to commit to one placeSome financial advice nuggets sprinkled inGeneral musings about my lifestyle and what's nextWe're having a Letting It Rip Summer, so let me know what ya think of this style!Connect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

Xanthe Appleyard and I are back on the mic with your State of the Internet June report, where we try to make sense of WTF is going on in the internet each month.Today's report includes:Jessi Jean's viral Yap Challenge and million-dollar launches — what makes offers go viral? How much did the role of FOMO play here? Plus, pricing strategy, timing, and the difference between viral content and viral offers. (Xanthe and I also share what we think our own viral offers could be!)Desire over data — Why do some creators like Kareem from Subway Takes deliberately ignore data? When are metrics actually useful vs. an armor? How much do you create for the love of the game over the numbers?Flodesk's AI Studio rollout — AI really is taking over and its latest target is Flodesk, a company near and dear to Xanthe's heart that's prompted quite the moral dilemma. Will we use it? For what? What does this mean for tech companies en masse, including the "smaller" ones?Plus, low-effort posting, personal diary content, and the surge in nostalgia  — is this all in resistance to AI?We discuss everything through the lens of online leadership, digital behavior, and modern philosophy. You’ll leave with clear takeaways to move forward with, as well as a deeper understanding of how these topics are already impacting the conversations you’re leading, online and off. The internet is chaos — we'll help you make sense of it from our corner of it all.Connect with Xanthe:Grab the Leadership Lifestyle Templates - strategic Carousel templates designed WITH your audience's reaction in mindJoin Social Life - the social media support system that solves your content execution problem, keeps your creative spark alive, and meaningfully grows your business — without asking you to post more, perform harder, or please the petty algorithmInstagramLove You To The Core PodcastLinks to all offers, including Leisure Ethic Planner, Content Planner and moreConnect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

My financial situation this year is giving... erratic. I share every detail in today's ep and why I'm not calling 911 yet.After YEARS of steady monthly recurring revenue that paid all my basic expenses and then some, I changed my business model in late 2025, which resulted in seeing income numbers I haven't seen since year 1 of starting my business. I'm talking "how am I going to afford all this month's expenses?" kind of numbers.At first, I was chill, leaning on my savings and systems. Then, I freaked out. HOW TF DID THIS HAPPEN?! I thought I mastered budgeting and forecasting??I share the full story, what I did to turn the ship around, and share practical advice on what to do when you're in a similar sitch.Episodes mentioned: How I Paid off $8K of Debt in One MonthHow I Planned My Sabbatical (So You Can Too) - Saving, Taking 2 Months Off and Why It’s Freaking Me Out☎️ Have more questions? Leave a voicemail on the hotline and I'll answer in the next ep!Connect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

We're back from the break room to discuss the second installment of this shitshow known as the Summer House Reunion.In Part 2, Shelly and I get into: WTF happened in that break room? Amanda and West's off-stage debrief sent chills down our spine. Baby voices. Fishing for reassurance. West coaching her like a PR handler. HUH??Is West Wilson a Companion Robot? The manchild said barely four sentences on stage, nodded along to Dara calling him out??, and then went home to yap with false BDE on his podcast. What IS West's strategy here?Amanda's post-Summer House reality check. Lost brand deals, a swimwear collab that's likely dunzo, and fully tied to a brand she said was never really fully invested in. What does the path "back" even look like — and does staying with West make it impossible?The Kyle and Amanda deep dive. Were they ever truly in love, or were they business partners who stayed together for the show? We unpack four years of no intimacy, the cheating admissions, Kyle's deflection Olympics, and what on earth did they think therapy was for?The "Carl's a Mess" ad moment. Was it harmless fun or did Amanda have a point? Also — did everyone forget about her Buffalo Wild Wings ad throwing shade at Kyle??? Because we didn't.Dara's speech. 10/10. No notes.What we need from Part 3: Andy asking Amanda and West to name what they actually like about each other. The Ben and Amanda Italy commentary that flew by way too fast. Jesse getting more airtime. Just a few things on our wishlist!We are SAT for Part 3 and cannot wait to see who gets asked back... filming starts next month! P.S. We get into convos like this inside POPCORN CLUB, my free monthly movie + TV debrief meetup. Next one is Weds June 10th at 11am EST to go IN on the three part Summer House Reunion. Come join us!Connect with Shelly:InstagramConnect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

Xanthe Appleyard and I are BACK for May's State of the Internet debrief, where we try to make sense of WTF is going on in the internet each month.Today's report includes:Spotify's AI-generated podcast announcement  — what does this mean for podcast hosts? Why do tech CEOs feel SO out of touch with these decisions? Plus why reading T&C's is IMPERATIVE these days and what to do with this info.Hot Chef Threads drama — IYKYK, and if you don't, we'll explain. Do we "owe" our audiences anything after we make our personal lives very public? Is it okay to paywall your vulnerability? How can we be more mindful of the dynamic we play in our online communities?The Met Gala x tech billionaires funding the arts — is this a good or bad thing in the long-run? Why are tech bros so obsessed with inserting themselves in fashion right now? What amount of money makes people bend on their morals/values and why?Everlane gets bought up by SHEIN  — WTF. Period.We discuss everything through the lens of online leadership, digital behavior, and modern philosophy. You’ll leave with clear takeaways to move forward with, as well as a deeper understanding of how these topics are already impacting the conversations you’re leading, online and off. The internet is chaos — we'll help you make sense of it from our corner of it all.Connect with Xanthe:InstagramLove You To The Core PodcastLife of the Party  — enrolling right now! Use code NOTES for $100 off!Links to all offers, including Leisure Ethic Planner, Content Planner, Social Life membership and moreConnect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

Crack open a Loverboy. We have lots to discuss. We get into the hard-hitting journalism, asking questions like:WTF is Amanda Batula's plan post-Summer House?Is West Wilson a Companion Robot?How did Ciara miss NO BEATS the entire episode?What did Jesse Soloman know?Are Sabrina and Dara more calculated than we think, or sweetie pies?Can we have a spinoff of just Ciara, KJ, and Mia called Pool House?Why is no one making a bigger deal of the Ben wanting to bang Amanda in Italy commentary?We wrap with our favorite lines from the show and what answers we need in Part 2 & 3. Also, can we wish that Andy would ask Amanda and West to name all the things they love about each other? Girls can dream!Connect with Shelly:InstagramConnect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

K, grab your glass of red and come sit. We need to talk about AI.The discourse has been rampant the last few months: vibe-coding, Claude Cowork, agentic AI, OpenAI and partnering with the Department of War, AI psychosis, custom dashboards, apps, and GPTs...We are FLOODED with info right now, and instead of leading with curiosity, social media has become a 360 slam-dunk fest on who's right or wrong. When the internet is filled with black and white thinking, name-calling, and passive aggressive posts... I can't help but wonder: isn't this what led to the surge of AI in the first place? Did the AI boom happen due to a lack of communication, conflict resolution, and critical thinking skills?Why would people turn to a robot instead of a human to ask questions about business, life and love? Why aren't we hiring real people right now, even when we know it's the "right" thing to do? What's the point of moving at lightning speed? Where is this all taking us?These are all the questions I ask today, from both sides of the debate. I was a Power User not too long ago, and am currently on an "AI cleanse". I share how one long afternoon with a custom GPT and one too many prompts led me to this point...As usual, no final answers here. Just observations, thoughts, questions, and ideas for how we can stop pieing each other in the face about AI and instead, build a bridge with curiosity, imagination, stories and some good ole fashioned empathy.I can't wait to hear your thoughts!People mentioned in this ep:Ximena - everyone's favorite Mexican Eco-PhilosopherKP Pilley - Editorial Strategist & 9-Grid ExtraordinaireXanthe Appleyard & Social LifeConnect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!

Hollis is one of those wise women I stumbled upon while scrolling Threads, and wondered: what is she doing over there and how can I be in her world?! Between her astrological insights and her design eye (yes, she's the design wiz behind my recent social media/email design glow up), she's become one of my favorite people to think out loud with.In this episode, we use astrology as an actual roadmap to understand our inner worlds (and why it's not just some fun personality quiz). We get into: ✨ why your chart is a fingerprint but transits are what you DO with your hands✨ how to access any zodiac archetype even if you have no placements in certain houses✨ why your moon sign is the single best entry point to understanding your body, your creative cycles, and how long anything is going to take you (mind-blowing info, NGL).We also get into Hollis leaving Instagram (SO. MANY. QUESTIONS.), Uranus entering Gemini cosmic weather report, and why vibe coding feels like a very on-brand sign for this transit.Plus: secret societies, invisible communities, and why building something slowly might be the most radical thing you can do right now. Casual, as always ;)Connect with Hollis:WebsiteThe Designed Life Podcast [Apple + Spotify]ThreadsSPACIOUS workshop - May 20th, 3:30pm EST: 60 minutes to identify the empty houses in your natal chart - what they are, what areas of life they pertain to, and how they’re already showing up in your life.Connect with Chelsea:Get on the Ultimate Pitch Kit waitlist 🪄🪐 Pitch Perfect Fall 2026 Waitlist (REVAMP COMING SOON!)☄️ SUPERNOVA waitlist: the thinking lab for the deep thinkers, world-builders, and curious visionaries who see futures that don't exist yet. 💻 Website🍿Popcorn Club: Monthly meet-up to debrief TV, movies, and the zeitgeist📜 Footnotes newsletter filled with rabbit holes💌 The Art of the Ask Podcast📱 IG: ⁠@chelseariffe⁠🧵 Threads: @chelseariffeSupport NFNTW: Your donations help cover costs of running the show; you can help fund NFTNW right HERE. If you're unable to donate financially, share it. It all adds up!Want to sponsor NFTNW? Email [email protected] to discuss partnership packages!