meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
The Futur with Chris Do

Why Talent Isn’t Enough w/ Simon Squibb | Ep 391

The Futur with Chris Do

The Futur

Business, Arts, Education, Self-improvement, Marketing, Design

4.9 • 998 Ratings

🗓️ 23 October 2025

⏱️ 101 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode, Chris Do sits down with entrepreneur and philanthropist Simon Squibb to explore the imbalance between talent and opportunity. Together, they discuss how people can break through systemic barriers, the importance of resilience in creative fields, and why access—not ability—often determines success. They reflect on Simon’s viral “What’s Your Dream?” project, the lessons he’s learned from mentoring others, and how creative education can become more inclusive. If you’ve ever questioned how to turn your skills into real opportunities, this conversation delivers unfiltered clarity and practical wisdom. Timestamps (00:00) - Intro (02:10) - The Real Tests of Resilience (04:42) - Building a Personal Brand (07:28) - Getting Paid Speaking Gigs (10:15) - How Representation Creates Access (13:09) - Mentoring Young Designers Online (16:45) - Why Women Hesitate to Apply (19:52) - Fame Over Craft Discussion (23:17) - Creating a Creator Accelerator (27:44) - How to Price Creative Work (31:55) - Overcoming Imposter Syndrome (36:20) - Freelancer to Business Owner Journey (41:08) - Social Media Exposure Ethics (45:50) - Diversity in Art Education (50:32) - Why Minorities Lack Visibility (55:04) - Cultural Expectations and Creativity (59:58) - Representation and Role Models (01:05:17) - How Simon Picks Dreamers (01:10:23) - The Doorbell of Dreams Idea (01:15:42) - Luck vs Hard Work Mindset (01:21:50) - What Defines Good Design (01:28:12) - Art vs Design in Practice (01:34:25) - Mentorship That Scales Globally (01:38:40) - Final Reflections on Opportunity Check out today's guest, Simon Squibb: LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/simonsquibb YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/c/SimonSquibb Website: https://simonsquibb.com/ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/simonsquibb/?hl=en Check out The Futur: Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.thefutur.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Courses: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.thefutur.com/shop⁠⁠⁠⁠ Linkedin: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-futur/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://thefutur.com/podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thefuturishere/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/theFuturisHere/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/thefuturishere⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thefuturishere⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/thefuturishere⁠⁠⁠⁠ Check out Chris Do: Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zaap.bio/thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/thechrisdo/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/BizOfDesign⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thechrisdo/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ Threads:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.net/@thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ Zaap: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://zaap.bio/thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ Clubhouse:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.clubhouse.com/@thechrisdo⁠⁠⁠⁠ Behance: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.behance.net/chrisdo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Talent is actually equally distributed, but opportunity isn't.

0:04.8

So if your dream is to do something, the first check is, when do you quit when you hit a wall?

0:10.7

Is it admission the process?

0:12.1

Is it not getting a portfolio or you can't buy a computer or someone says you can't have this dream?

0:18.0

Whether it be your mom or Simon Squibb or Chris Doe.

0:21.1

And I think these are all tests.

0:23.1

Yeah, your mom can tell you you're not good.

0:25.6

Or the footballer can say you're not going to play in the sleep.

0:28.0

If you quit there, I think they were right.

0:34.2

So I don't know if you know this, but your episode aired.

0:36.2

I did see that and I was just looking in the comments this morning and people seem to like us. They like us. One of my good friends, she's Swedish, her name's Annali and she's a brand strategist. She goes, you know, Simon's the first guest you've ever had on your show that I feel like I could just listen to you guys talk all day because you have similar energy but different ideas and life experiences. So I thought that was a pretty good comment. Yeah, I've had that feedback

0:57.9

from people. So maybe there's something there. Who knows? I did talk to Leah, your agent,

1:04.6

and I think they're considering representing us. And so I have to kind of go through an 18-page

1:09.7

legal document first to see what's up with

1:11.9

that. I wish someone had told me all the different elements of like building a personal brand,

1:16.7

apart from the obvious stuff, I had to stand up for something and believe in things and so on.

1:21.2

But I didn't really understand all the different buttons you could push. And like Penguin,

1:25.7

for example, and getting a publishing deal and how that worked,

1:28.6

I had no idea.

1:29.7

Getting speaking gigs, I got them organically here and there, but like, it's not the same as

1:34.6

proactively going after it and having it structured properly by someone that knows what all

1:39.0

the events are that you won't even know exist.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Futur, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of The Futur and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.