June 10, 2025 • 8 mins
What if the secret to unlocking your highest creative potential isn’t another productivity hack—but a personal ritual?
In this powerful episode of Culture Raises Us, Julian Reeves returns to explore the difference between routines and rituals—and why the latter might be the missing ingredient in your creative life. From cold plunges to frequency tuning, Julian breaks down his personal "ritual stack," a three-part framework built to prime the mind, protect the spirit, and shape chaotic thoughts into creative clarity.
Host Astor Chambers dives deep with Julian to explore:
- Why rituals are tied to identity, not just action
- The cultural and ancestral roots of modern creative practices
- How overstimulation kills creativity (and what to do about it)
- Why creators must "warm up" like athletes before producing great work
- How solitude and stillness can be a game-changer in a hyper-connected world
- Whether you're a writer, designer, filmmaker, or multi-hyphenate entrepreneur, this episode challenges you to rethink how you show up for your art—and your life.
Tap in, take notes, and start building your own ritual stack. This one might just change how you create forever.
#CreativityUnlocked #JulianReeves #CultureRaisesUs #CreativeRituals #MindsetMatters #DailyPractice #Podcast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Julian is back and again we're dissecting some amazing conversations
that we've had. And the other day we were talking
about tools for creators and the different values and principles
in place for different creators, and you brought up the
need for creators to have rituals and not just routines,
(00:21):
which I thought was impactful. Share your why behind that
statement and the difference too between the two, for sure.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
I mean, just like a routine is, like, you know,
what you do, while a ritual is basically like your identity,
what you become who you are through these constant, trained actions.
So you know, brushing your teeth, that's a routine. But
lighting a candle before you create, journaling your intentions every morning,
silencing your phone for ninety minutes, those are rituals. You know,
(00:49):
Those are portals to bring you to your ideal self
for sure.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
So those those aren't looked at as routines. I guess no,
I guess you're right if you're lighting a candle, but
that could be a routine.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Yeah, I think it's really just how you look at it,
for sure. And I feel like once you start combining
things together and really turning them into a habit. That's
when it becomes a ritual, especially when it's for something
to make you a more productive, spiritually empowered person.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
So when did this click for you that these rituals
became such a key part of your guiding principles.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, for sure. I feel like even when I was eighteen,
I got a tattoo from Aristotle said we are what
we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but
a habit. So for me, it just made it very
abundantly clear that to be excellent is not just going
to be one off. This means it's going to be
developing a ritual every single day, and the consistency is
(01:43):
what breeds excellence.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
Yeah, it reminds me of something that I've been living
by is repetition is reputation, Right, the more you do something,
it becomes iconic and an identifiable for you or it's
a good descriptive right, because it's something that you're you're
consistently doing. That's why repetition, I feel, in certain things,
(02:06):
is a really healthy thing. But it sounds like it
aligns very much as well with your whole ritual point
of view. You know, you also talk about this ritual stack.
You know, what are the what's the principles behind that? Like,
give me a little bit more of a breakdown behind
this ritual stack.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
Yeah for sure. I mean that's just basically how I
architecture my state of mind every single day. So I
like to break it up into three pillars. So first
you do like a signal which basically accused my body
that it's time to create. So for me, that could
be a cold plunge. I love cold plunges. I feel
like those changers state. That could even be silence in
a dark room to make sure my mind isn't too stimulated.
(02:45):
That could be listening to a certain frequency out of
certain hurts to make sure my mind is optimized. And
then from there it's sanctifying, you know, making sure the
moment is sacred through journaling, prayer, mental affirmations, and then
from their shaping, using tools to mold all that I
have in my head, all that chaos into the clarity.
So that's when I start going into my AI prompt thing,
(03:08):
you know, creating things, building things. So that's the three
pillars I like to organize it around. But I feel
like once I have that ritual together, I'm unstoppable, there's
nothing I can accomplish.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah, and it sounds like it's deeply tied to like
a cultural identity as well. Do you see your ritual
stacks like this modern reimagining of ancestral or even communal practice.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Interesting. I haven't actually done the research into that, but
I would love to for sure, because I do feel
like all of our actions are just compounded from our
previous generations. Yeah, so that for sure is probably rooted
in something deep, you know, in history. But I need
to learn more about it and research more about it
before I just come out here and act like you know,
I knew that before.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
No, No, But as I was listening to that, that's
kind of what prompted me to ask the question. And
I think that there probably is some of that, right,
because you got to be pulling some a little bit
of something from somewhere.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yeah, for sure, for sure, everything I do, I mean
it's basically like Kanye kind of said, it's like sampling.
You know, everything we do is taken from these different
sources of inspirations. I've come from something.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
For Sure's right. So do you think the creative community
kind of undervalues ritual in favor of trends and like
output matris and if so, how can that cultural mindset shift.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Yeah, I think the creative community prioritizes sponinaity. You know,
as somebody who used to be very deep into like
video editing and directing and you know, working with music artists,
they're all about you know, inspiration might come in to
by any moment. You know, they can't have those or
routines because they need to be ready for the universe
to give them creativity. But truthfully, that's not really how
(04:51):
it should work. You should get yourself and prime yourself
to be in a state to receive that inspiration, to
receive that creativity. So I feel like once we shoul
towards that where creators are making their own rituals and
routines rituals, hopefully primarily to get them in that state,
that's when we'll have this utopia of creativity.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
It's almost like, as I was hearing you talk the media,
the first thing that came to my mind is like
working out right, and you got a pre you got
your pre workout, your workout, and then your post. It
sounds like we need to approach our creative output in
the same way, right, you just don't jump into it,
right like you just don't jump into a workout. You
(05:31):
do some sort of a warm up. You know, some
of us more than others. You got to loosen up
the muscles and the body to then prepare it to
be its best optimal self when actually working out. And
then after the workout you have to do all the
necessary things like the further stretching and further decompression of
(05:52):
just relaxing your body to then fuel it with protein
or whatever they're after. I'm saying all that to say
it's no different now you're saying with creatives on how
how to approach your creative moments right your creative time
of output. How are you preparing yourself to be your
(06:13):
most creative best self? Is essentially what you're saying exactly.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
I mean, just like how you said you're working out
your muscles, creatives work out their mind. That's right brain
to think of these different, you know, amazing creative processes
where there's music, fashion, sports, et cetera. So you want
to prime your mind to be ready to do that.
You don't want to just jump into it while you're
too stimulated or you know your mind is not ready
to start thinking these things. So it's the same exact
(06:38):
thing in terms of metaphor, for sure.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
So you know what role then I would ask, and
I think you mentioned it a little bit with stillness
and solitude play in this process, right, because it's a
huge contrast with the hyper connected world that make creators
live in. How can that help to then be a better,
more impactful create.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Yeah, I mean we're all over stimulated, like completely, like
we just today alone, both of us individually, I've probably
seen over fifteen thousand messages and some type of capacity.
And so in order to be able to receive new inspiration,
original inspiration, you need to get to a place where
your mind can just focus on one thing, which is
(07:21):
why the stillness comes in, which is why you need
to sometimes get into a dark area or just get
into somewhere where your mind's and stimulated by everything around you,
and that's when your mind is more open to receiving
for sure.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Well, once again, you've dropped a great deal of insight
in these conversations. We can go even longer for and
might do part two or part three because I just
think it's while it sounds so simple, there are such
impactful game changing components that can literally take someone from
average to you know, excellence. Yes, you know in places
(07:59):
and in ways you would never even imagine yourself. But
because you've approached it with this mindset and this due
diligence of preparing yourself to be the most optimal version
of yourself and doing that in a very intentional way,
that it feels strong. It feels strong. So I want
(08:20):
to thank you again, bro.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
No, probably at all. One last thing I like to say,
it's the greatest time to ever be alive right now.
So if you move with that intention, just watch how
your life can change.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
For sure. I'm mad. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Love it
Julian is back and again we're dissecting some amazing conversations
that we've had. And the other day we were talking
about tools for creators and the different values and principles
in place for different creators, and you brought up the
need for creators to have rituals and not just routines,
(00:21):
which I thought was impactful. Share your why behind that
statement and the difference too between the two, for sure.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
I mean, just like a routine is, like, you know,
what you do, while a ritual is basically like your identity,
what you become who you are through these constant, trained actions.
So you know, brushing your teeth, that's a routine. But
lighting a candle before you create, journaling your intentions every morning,
silencing your phone for ninety minutes, those are rituals. You know,
(00:49):
Those are portals to bring you to your ideal self
for sure.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
So those those aren't looked at as routines. I guess no,
I guess you're right if you're lighting a candle, but
that could be a routine.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Yeah, I think it's really just how you look at it,
for sure. And I feel like once you start combining
things together and really turning them into a habit. That's
when it becomes a ritual, especially when it's for something
to make you a more productive, spiritually empowered person.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
So when did this click for you that these rituals
became such a key part of your guiding principles.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, for sure. I feel like even when I was eighteen,
I got a tattoo from Aristotle said we are what
we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but
a habit. So for me, it just made it very
abundantly clear that to be excellent is not just going
to be one off. This means it's going to be
developing a ritual every single day, and the consistency is
(01:43):
what breeds excellence.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
Yeah, it reminds me of something that I've been living
by is repetition is reputation, Right, the more you do something,
it becomes iconic and an identifiable for you or it's
a good descriptive right, because it's something that you're you're
consistently doing. That's why repetition, I feel, in certain things,
(02:06):
is a really healthy thing. But it sounds like it
aligns very much as well with your whole ritual point
of view. You know, you also talk about this ritual stack.
You know, what are the what's the principles behind that? Like,
give me a little bit more of a breakdown behind
this ritual stack.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
Yeah for sure. I mean that's just basically how I
architecture my state of mind every single day. So I
like to break it up into three pillars. So first
you do like a signal which basically accused my body
that it's time to create. So for me, that could
be a cold plunge. I love cold plunges. I feel
like those changers state. That could even be silence in
a dark room to make sure my mind isn't too stimulated.
(02:45):
That could be listening to a certain frequency out of
certain hurts to make sure my mind is optimized. And
then from there it's sanctifying, you know, making sure the
moment is sacred through journaling, prayer, mental affirmations, and then
from their shaping, using tools to mold all that I
have in my head, all that chaos into the clarity.
So that's when I start going into my AI prompt thing,
(03:08):
you know, creating things, building things. So that's the three
pillars I like to organize it around. But I feel
like once I have that ritual together, I'm unstoppable, there's
nothing I can accomplish.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah, and it sounds like it's deeply tied to like
a cultural identity as well. Do you see your ritual
stacks like this modern reimagining of ancestral or even communal practice.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Interesting. I haven't actually done the research into that, but
I would love to for sure, because I do feel
like all of our actions are just compounded from our
previous generations. Yeah, so that for sure is probably rooted
in something deep, you know, in history. But I need
to learn more about it and research more about it
before I just come out here and act like you know,
I knew that before.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
No, No, But as I was listening to that, that's
kind of what prompted me to ask the question. And
I think that there probably is some of that, right,
because you got to be pulling some a little bit
of something from somewhere.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yeah, for sure, for sure, everything I do, I mean
it's basically like Kanye kind of said, it's like sampling.
You know, everything we do is taken from these different
sources of inspirations. I've come from something.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
For Sure's right. So do you think the creative community
kind of undervalues ritual in favor of trends and like
output matris and if so, how can that cultural mindset shift.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Yeah, I think the creative community prioritizes sponinaity. You know,
as somebody who used to be very deep into like
video editing and directing and you know, working with music artists,
they're all about you know, inspiration might come in to
by any moment. You know, they can't have those or
routines because they need to be ready for the universe
to give them creativity. But truthfully, that's not really how
(04:51):
it should work. You should get yourself and prime yourself
to be in a state to receive that inspiration, to
receive that creativity. So I feel like once we shoul
towards that where creators are making their own rituals and
routines rituals, hopefully primarily to get them in that state,
that's when we'll have this utopia of creativity.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
It's almost like, as I was hearing you talk the media,
the first thing that came to my mind is like
working out right, and you got a pre you got
your pre workout, your workout, and then your post. It
sounds like we need to approach our creative output in
the same way, right, you just don't jump into it,
right like you just don't jump into a workout. You
(05:31):
do some sort of a warm up. You know, some
of us more than others. You got to loosen up
the muscles and the body to then prepare it to
be its best optimal self when actually working out. And
then after the workout you have to do all the
necessary things like the further stretching and further decompression of
(05:52):
just relaxing your body to then fuel it with protein
or whatever they're after. I'm saying all that to say
it's no different now you're saying with creatives on how
how to approach your creative moments right your creative time
of output. How are you preparing yourself to be your
(06:13):
most creative best self? Is essentially what you're saying exactly.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
I mean, just like how you said you're working out
your muscles, creatives work out their mind. That's right brain
to think of these different, you know, amazing creative processes
where there's music, fashion, sports, et cetera. So you want
to prime your mind to be ready to do that.
You don't want to just jump into it while you're
too stimulated or you know your mind is not ready
to start thinking these things. So it's the same exact
(06:38):
thing in terms of metaphor, for sure.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
So you know what role then I would ask, and
I think you mentioned it a little bit with stillness
and solitude play in this process, right, because it's a
huge contrast with the hyper connected world that make creators
live in. How can that help to then be a better,
more impactful create.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Yeah, I mean we're all over stimulated, like completely, like
we just today alone, both of us individually, I've probably
seen over fifteen thousand messages and some type of capacity.
And so in order to be able to receive new inspiration,
original inspiration, you need to get to a place where
your mind can just focus on one thing, which is
(07:21):
why the stillness comes in, which is why you need
to sometimes get into a dark area or just get
into somewhere where your mind's and stimulated by everything around you,
and that's when your mind is more open to receiving
for sure.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Well, once again, you've dropped a great deal of insight
in these conversations. We can go even longer for and
might do part two or part three because I just
think it's while it sounds so simple, there are such
impactful game changing components that can literally take someone from
average to you know, excellence. Yes, you know in places
(07:59):
and in ways you would never even imagine yourself. But
because you've approached it with this mindset and this due
diligence of preparing yourself to be the most optimal version
of yourself and doing that in a very intentional way,
that it feels strong. It feels strong. So I want
(08:20):
to thank you again, bro.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
No, probably at all. One last thing I like to say,
it's the greatest time to ever be alive right now.
So if you move with that intention, just watch how
your life can change.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
For sure. I'm mad. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Love it
Host
Astor Chamber
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