Hey Josh

Advice Show 011 // College, Goals, Pregnancy, and Truth Telling

Episode 011! Jess wants to write a book and be an artist, but her parents think that’s waste of time and want her to go to college…but the thought of college makes Jess panic. What to do? In other email, JD and his fiance are pregnant but don’t want his parents or her grandparents to find out. I serve ‘em each a savory morsel of wisdom, so sink your teeth into this:

And now, my young apprenti (I’ve decided to make “apprenti” the plural form of “apprentice” instead of “apprentices” because, well, I think it sounds cooler), let’s hear YOUR advice for Jess and JD. What are some of the lessons you’ve learned about planning for your future and/or telling the truth even when it hurts?

Until next time,

// josh

P.S. Jaimie, thanks for sharing your toothless childhood smile with me. I found it both heartwarming and humorous. The rest of you…let’s see what you’ve got. Send your embarrassing childhood photos to josh@heyhosh.com.

“Jump Shipp” Premieres This FRIDAY!!

Yo,

Here’s some advice you don’t hear every day: QUIT. That’s right. Forget what you’ve heard about “winners never quitting” ’cause that’s not true–winners quit the right thing at the right time. Every week on Jump Shipp, my new hour-long reality series premiering on Halogen TV this Saturday (Oct. 24) at 2 p.m. FRIDAY at 11 p.m. EST, I’ll be intervening in the life of a young adult to help them avoid the dreaded “quarter-life crisis” by offering them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live out their dreams.

To find Halogen on your TV, click here. (If your cable or satellite provider is stingy and doesn’t carry Halogen, shame on them; do yourself a favor and submit a request that they start carrying it–you won’t regret it. Halogen is a new breed of television channel with big plans to do good in the world.)

Thanks for your support!

// josh

P.S. This “pilot” episode will be airing several times throughout the week, so if you miss it on Friday you can tune in on…

—Tuesday, Oct 27 at 7pm EST
—Wednesday, Oct 28 at 3pm EST
—Thursday, Oct 29 at 9pm EST
—Friday, Oct 30 at 1am EST

Advice Show 010 // IDENTITY, Trying New Things, and Getting Girls

Episode 010! Let me begin with some shameless self-promotion: today (Wednesday, October 21), in exactly one hour (at 3 p.m. EST), the greatest thing I’ve ever made is going on sale over at grownups.heyjosh.com, and I’m giving away some amazing free stuff to some of the first parents, teachers, and other adults who buy it for the teens in their life (that’s you). The product is all about helping grown-ups and teens work together to address the issue of labels and identity, because figuring out who you are is THE most important thing—it’s pretty much foundational to everything else. So, my advice to you? Get your parents to buy this for you.

In other news, Mara just switched schools and feels torn between her past and her future, and former ladies’ man Chris fears he’s lost his mojo after breaking up with his girlfriend. No fear, my friends—the Owl of Wisdom and I have got your back:

Now get thee unto the comments section and sling your own advice at Mara and Chris. Share your wisdom; the world is waiting.

Again, make sure to send the grown-ups in your life to grownups.heyjosh.com with special urgent instructions to make a worthwhile investment in your life. Feel free to craft your own personal plea, or just copy and paste this EMAIL TEMPLATE. Don’t forget, first five people to get their parent to buy this thing get a special personalized video from me (we’ll talk details later), not to mention a shot at winning tons of free swag.

Rock steady,

// josh

P.S. Hey William, welcome to the frame! You earned it, buddy–that turtleneck/cardigan combo is beautiful. Keep ‘em coming, people–the more the merrier! Send your embarrassing childhood photos to josh@heyjosh.com, and you, me, and William will hang out together.

How to Get Your Parents to Buy You The Most Awesome Thing I’ve Ever Made

Hey You,

**HEADS UP! Tomorrow (October 21) I’m giving some crazy free stuff, so read carefully!**

You know how I have an Advice Show? And make videos? And how they’re fantastic and brilliant and praiseworthy? Well, I’ve been working on something for the past few months that trumps it all. Seriously. It’s the sweetest thing since high-fructose corn syrup. And you can get your parents to BUY IT FOR YOU, no problem. (I don’t want your hard-earned money).

This thing is all about identity, because figuring out how to deal with being labeled and establishing a solid sense of who you are is super-freaky important. And, anyone who purchases this within the first 24-48 hours is eligible to win everything from $1000 to a whole day hanging out with me in person (Yes, I’m excited, too).

So, how do you get grown-ups to get you a copy and a chance to cash in on a bounty of giveaway goodness?

Use my nifty cut-and-paste email template below. Or flex your own creative persuasion skills.

Godspeed, young human.

// josh

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THE EMAIL TEMPLATE
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Dear [THEIR NAME GOES HERE],

Research shows that adolescents, teens, and young people like me really need a positive adult influence in their lives to succeed. I know you try really hard to be that for me…so, thank you.

Anyway, teen expert Josh Shipp is releasing this amazing interactive product about dealing with being labeled and discovering your identity. And the cool thing is he’s designed it to help young people (like me) AND grown-ups (like you) work together. I really think it would be a worthwhile investment in my development, especially since I’m planning on growing up to be president, cure cancer, and generally do amazing things.

You can order it starting Wednesday, October 21 at 3 p.m. (EST) while supplies last.

Check it out here: Grownups.HeyJosh.com

Thanks again for continuing to make an investment in me. You won’t regret it.

[YOUR NAME GOES HERE]

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THE END
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Advice Show 009 // Frienemies, Mom’s New Boyfriend, and Talking It Out

Yo. It’s Josh Shipp, dropping in with Episode 009. Word on the street/email is Tessa’s being pestered by a pointlessly competitive, copy-cat frienemy and Alyssa’s canned emotions are causing her to distance herself from friends and family. These kind folks asked for my advice…and I kindly obliged. Behold:

Alright, young earthling—time for a little personal reflection. One way or another, I’m guessing you’ve dealt with these issues in your own life, so I’d love to hear what you’ve learned in the process (as would Tessa and Alyssa). We’ve all been on both sides of the “monkey see, monkey do” imitation game, and we’ve all canned up our emotions and made ourselves miserable. What’s YOUR solution? How have you opened up to friends and family about stuff you really didn’t want to talk about? Or, if you’ve been in Tessa’s shoes, have you ever tried to help people who annoy you and, if so, how did that worked out for you?

Pardon all the questions—I’m feeling inquisitive today, I guess. If you’d rather ask a question than answer one, that’s cool, too. Bring it on.

Later,

// josh

P.S. Hey, Kristen! It’s been good seeing you and your crazy Bubba teeth in my frame—it helps remind me to brush and floss regularly. The rest of you…I imagine I’ll be seeing your embarrassing childhood photos arriving in my email inbox any day now. Please direct your photos to josh@heyjosh.com.

A Boy, a Milkshake…and a Goat

Sometimes I stumble upon random pieces of magnificence as I peruse the interwebs. For example, this wholesome slice of artistic beauty from an Australian designer who goes by the creepy/awesome moniker ghostpatrol:

What’s not to love? A milkshake, a dagger-wielding elfin boy with inspiring fashion sense…and a goat.

If you’re anything like me and want to make this fantastic image the background on your Macbook, you’re in luck: you can find the original artwork by scrolling waaaaaay down on The Desktop Wallpaper Project presented by Kitsune Noir.

Enjoy.

// josh

Advice Show 008 // Learning to Drive, Conformity, and Testing Everything

Episode 008 rolls in with a question from Alysa about how to deal with her dad—sounds like he’s driving her crazy trying to teach her how to drive—and a query from Patrick about whether conformity is a good thing or a bad thing. I believe good questions deserve good answers, so, here we go:

If you have words of hope to share with Alysa, insight to offer Patrick, or a narcoleptic Driver’s Ed teacher, the world needs to hear about it. Leave a comment below, budding advice slingers! If you have questions, issues, or troubling thoughts and you’re looking for advice yourself, hit me up—that’s what I’m here for.

Until next time,

// josh

P.S. Stephanie, looking sharp; you make an adorable dalmatian puppy. The rest of you, follow her lead and send in your embarrassing childhood photos to josh@heyjosh.com. Dog costumes, chicken suits, homemade superhero get-ups and other unflattering apparel are all welcome in my frame.

Your Next Driver’s License Photo Could be Awesome, Too

Yo, it’s me, coming at you with a random piece of hilarity. A friend of mine recently went in to the DMV to get his driver’s license renewed. As many of you know/are discovering, going to the DMV isn’t typically anyone’s favorite thing to do. So my genius friend Ryan decides to have a little fun. Here’s the set up:

• Walk into DMV wearing jeans with a tuxedo shirt with rolled up sleeves and carrying a bag.
• (After waiting for an hour) go up to desk, complete paperwork, and ask for a new photo to be taken. Get approval and the forms to take to the photographer.
• Restroom break! Go to the bathroom and put on a bow tie. Pull suit jacket out of the bag and carry it on arm.
• Get a few looks. Walk up to photo area and wait turn.
• Once up against the blue screen, put on jacket and grin like an idiot, making people laugh.
• Take photo, take off jacket, and walk out.
• Wait 9 days for the new license to come in mail, open it, laugh out loud, snap a photo, and post to Facebook.

Behold:

Best driver’s license photo ever. Bonus points for the mustache.

That’s all.

Had to share.

// josh

A Hey Josh Introduction: Comic Writer “Filly” Boone

Good evening, young human! There’s someone I’d like you to meet. A few weeks ago I met a talented young female writer/comic artist who goes by the name of “Filly” Boone. When I met her, she was a bit nervous to share her work, but, seriously, she has nothing to worry about: I think she’s rad.

It’s clear to me the girl has a lot of talent and, from the looks of things, she’s just getting warmed up. I think we’ll see some cool things from this one, so keep your eye on her. Right now, she’s working on a sci-fi series called The Selection about…well, I’ll let her tell you:

“Out among the galaxies of the universe, on the planet Ambivia, it’s hard to live a common life—especially if the entire world despises you. An immigrant Royal named Lord Federico and his newly ’selected’ wife face the many challenges inherent to living at the top. As troubles brew, reality and faith create bigger conflicts than they imagined. When deeper forces begin to reveal themselves, life doesn’t become any easier…not even in an alien world.

“The Selection was inspired by nothing more than a dream and the everyday struggles between our own way and the way of one’s faith…with a lot of laughs thrown in! With the love of friends, family, and fellow supporters, this story has only just begun. And I don’t plan on stopping any time soon!”

If you’d like even MORE info, she put together this nifty little FAQ. Here’s how the story begins…

Now, go ahead: dive in and read the whole series (thus far), or check out her entire gallery over at DeviantArt.

Cool, huh? Aren’t you glad you met?

Keep it up, “Filly”!

// josh

Inc. Magazine: “Josh Shipp is one of America’s Coolest Young Entrepeneurs”

Hey You!

The weirdest thing just happened: Inc. Magazine announced it’s annual “30 Under 30″ list…and there’s a guy on there (*cough* #24 *cough*) who looks JUST like me. : )

Seriously, I’m totally flattered to find myself on this list. You can read all the nice things they said about me here. Here’s the video they posted:

Very honored,

// josh

P.S. By the way, Inc. let’s you vote for your favorite “30 Under 30″ honoree. Just sayin…