Simone Giertz describes herself as a maker/robotics enthusiast/non-engineer. She’s also known as the Queen of Shitty Robots. She runs a YouTube channel about those robots and is a cohost on Tested with Adam Savage from MythBusters. https://www.youtube.com/simonegiertz https://twitter.com/SimoneGiertz https://www.patreon.com/simonegiertz Tested with Adam Savage - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiDJtJKMICpb9B1qf7qjEOA The YC Podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon. https://twitter.com/craigcannon Y Combinator invests a small amount of money ($150k) in a large number of startups (recently 200), twice a year. Learn more about YC and apply for funding here: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply/ *** Topics 00:00 - Intro 1:10 - "Whatever feeds the ego kills the soul." 3:50 - Maintaining passion for your work 6:45 - Building a sustainable business as a creator 8:30 - Shipping a real product - The Every Day Calendar 17:30 - Being scared to step away 19:00 - Generating ideas 20:15 - Finding out she had a brain tumor, having surgery, and sharing it 25:30 - Returning to work after brain surgery 27:30 - Learnings from taking time off 28:30 - Asking for help 30:00 - Evaluating how she's spending her time 31:45 - Giving herself permission to try other things 33:50 - Challenges as a creator and entrepreneur 35:30 - Not feeling guilty about play and pursuing the things you enjoy 40:30 - Becoming less disciplined in certain areas over time 42:15 - Ali asks - How to get started when dealing with imposters syndrome? 42:35 - beep boop asks - What's your favorite robot? 43:15 - Beste asks - Are there any moments where she is bored and feels like giving up on creating new things? 44:25 - Khawar Shehzad asks - What thing do you wish you knew when you started your career? 45:35 - Olaf Doschke asks - What would have happened if Simone's toothbrush helmet wouldn't have gone viral? 48:05 - Johnathan Nader asks - What is the best version of yourself?
Simone Giertz is an inventor, designer, engineer, and roboticist famous for a combination of humor and brilliant creative design in the systems and products she creates. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/lex to get 15% off - InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex to get 1 month of fish oil EPISODE LINKS: Simone's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@simonegiertz Simone's Twitter: https://twitter.com/SimoneGiertz Simone's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simonegiertz YETCH Store: https://yetch.store PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ Full episodes playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4 Clips playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOeciFP3CBCIEElOJeitOr41 OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 2:06 - Early creations 18:58 - Sh*tty Robots 33:56 - Robots and human connection 36:11 - Dating AI 39:30 - Proud parent machine 41:21 - Creative process 42:47 - Bubble wrap music box 48:09 - Education 53:43 - Difficult projects 55:13 - TED talk 1:01:29 - Brain tumor 1:10:07 - Fear of death 1:14:31 - Mass production 1:29:56 - Truckla 1:34:46 - Weapons 1:38:45 - Consciousness 1:40:49 - MMA 1:44:53 - China, Kenya, and USA 1:49:45 - Advice for young people 1:53:38 - Meaning of life SOCIAL: - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman - Reddit: https://reddit.com/r/lexfridman - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman