What idea have you been sitting on lately?
What’s been holding you back from starting?
Today, Jay sits down with engineer, innovator, and YouTube creator Mark Rober to explore the unexpected life experiences that shaped one of the internet’s most beloved minds. Mark shares the childhood moments that ignited his passion for building, breaking, and understanding how the world works, moments nurtured by a mother whose love, imagination, and encouragement helped lay the foundation for his life’s mission. He reflects on how her influence continues to ripple outward, inspiring millions of young people who learn, explore, and dream through his work today.
Jay and Mark explore the mindset that carried Mark from NASA engineer to innovative educator, unpacking what it really means to “think like an engineer:” experiment boldly, embrace failure, and treat every setback as an opportunity to learn. They follow Mark’s unusual pivots, from designing Mars rover hardware to crafting Halloween costumes, to ultimately shaping a career that blends curiosity, storytelling, science, and play. Together they reveal the deeper lessons behind Mark’s most viral experiments: why creativity thrives when we stay childlike, how passion reveals itself through repetition, and why the most meaningful work grows from genuine excitement rather than algorithms or expectations.
In this interview, you'll learn:
How to Think Like an Engineer
How to Stay Curious as an Adult
How to Follow Your Passion Practically
How to Build Ideas That Actually Work
How to Find Creativity in Everyday Life
How to Recognize Your Real Calling
How to Inspire Others Through Your Work
Keep following the questions that excite you, keep trying the things that scare you, and keep believing that you’re capable of far more than you realize. Your next breakthrough might be just one experiment, or one brave attempt away.
With Love and Gratitude,
Jay Shetty
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What We Discuss:
Intro
Were You Always Creative?
Understanding the Real Impact of Your Life
What It Really Takes to Work at NASA
Learning to Think Like an Engineer
How Rovers Are Tested for Mars
Searching for Life Beyond Earth
Follow What You Truly Love Doing
If You Can Imagine It, You Can Build It
Practical Wisdom from a Lifelong Tinkerer
The Pivot from NASA to Apple
Turning Ideas into Actionable Success
What is the Engineering Design Process?
Why Embracing Failure Matters
Relearning Trust and Finding Love Again
The Power of Immersion Weekends
Making Learning Engaging Through Creativity
Why Mastery Is Worth Pursuing
Balancing Business with True Creativity
How Communication Shapes Great Storytelling
Two Common Mistakes Creators Make
Staying True to Your Creative Style
The Importance of Focusing on One Passion
The Hidden Failures Behind Viral Success
Giving Kids Room to Be Creative
Curiosity as the Root of Creativity
Inside a Real Creative Process
Where Do You Get Your Big Ideas?
The Mind-Bending Question of Life in the Universe
The Promise and Peril of Rapid AI Growth
Focusing on What You Can Truly Influence
Mark on Final Five
Episode Resources:
Mark Rober | X
Mark Rober | Instagram
Mark Rober | Facebook
Mark Rober | LinkedIn
Mark Rober | TikTok
Mark Rober | YouTube
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
