Human School

• Ashley Gorley: Staying Human When Everyone Expects You to Be a Machine

  What does it mean to have more number one songs than anyone in country music history and still struggle with sleepless nights, wondering if any of it matters?What if the machine everyone thinks you are is actually just a person trying to figure out why they're here? Ashley Gorley has written more number-one songs than anyone in country music history. His work has shaped the sound of modern country music through hits recorded by Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Morgan Wallen, and countless others. But the numbers don't tell his story. Ashley grew up in Danville, Kentucky, a small farm town where sports were everything and nobody he knew loved their job. He moved to Nashville for college, then spent eleven years grinding before his first real success. He has built a career on a simple goal: to write "songwriter" on his taxes. Despite achieving what most would consider impossible, including 85+ number one songs, induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and running one of Nashville's most successful publishing companies, Ashley found himself wrestling with the weight of wondering what it all means. Partnering with The Onsite Foundation, the success of the hit "I Am Not Okay" with Jelly Roll funded the Creatives Support Network, a place where songwriters can process their stories and struggles in a therapeutic space for no charge. Today's conversation is an honest look at what it takes to stay human when everyone expects you to be a machine, how to carry success without letting it carry you, and why the best legacy has nothing to do with the songs you write. In this conversation, you'll learn:How to Navigate Rejection Even at the Top of Your FieldHow Your Greatest Compliment Might Have Nothing to Do With Your CareerHow to Set Goals You Can Actually ControlHow to Recognize When Being "Used" Is Actually OkayHow to Build Time for Vulnerability Into High-Pressure Creative SpacesHow to Dissolve Yourself and Write for Someone Else's VoiceHow to Protect Your Family When Your Career Demands EverythingHow to Process the Gap Between Achievement and FulfillmentHow to Turn Success Into Service for Your Creative Community Welcome to Human School, where we learn what matters most. - Miles Adcox Follow Human School:YouTube - Human School PodcastInstagram - @humanschoolofficialThreads - @humanschoolofficialTikTok - @humanschoolofficial What We Discuss:00:01:38 Ashley Gorley: Introduction00:07:03 Growing Up in Danville, Kentucky: Where Sports Were Everything 00:14:18 The ACL Tear That Changed Everything 00:17:08 The Moment He Discovered Songwriting Was Actually a Job 00:19:01 The Eleven-Year Grind Before Anything Made Money 00:21:13 The Truth About Networking in Nashville00:26:00 When the Spotlight Gets Too Bright: Protecting Privacy in a Public Industry 00:30:05 Why Being Critical of Songs for a Living Makes Life Harder 00:38:35 The Counterbalance: His Wife 00:41:09 Curating Environments vs. Living in Them—The Trap of High Expectations 00:43:17 The Myth That You Have to Choose Between Success and a Life 00:49:03 Why "I Am Not Okay" Became More Than a Song00:52:08 The 95% Rejection Rate Nobody Talks About 00:58:11 Never Set Goals You Can't Control—The Wisdom That Changed Everything 01:03:53 His Daughter's Hall of Fame Speech: The Greatest Thing Ever Written About Him 01:06:15 Why Being Present Matters More Than Being Prolific 01:09:34 The Myth of the Machine—And the Human Behind the Hits 01:14:05 Opening the Door to Vulnerability in the Writing Room 01:18:03 Writing "I Am Not Okay"—The Ten-Minute Freestyle That Became a Movement 01:21:29 The Creative Support Network: Fully Funded Therapy for Struggling Songwriters 01:29:30 The Struggle He Still Can't Shake: "Does This Even Matter?" 01:31:30 Go After Your Core Relationships the Way You Go After Your Career 01:34:25 The Moving Target of Success and Why Small-Town Sideline Parents Might Have It Right

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• Victor The Good Boss: A Story About Second Chances For the People Who Need Them Most

  What if the person society gave up on is one conversation away from changing their entire life? What if the best leaders don't wait for people to ask for help, but they go find them? Victor Oliveira, known to millions as "The Good Boss," doesn't just talk about second chances. He drives the streets looking for people who need one. From buying coffee for his employees to pulling over on highways to offer hope to people living on the streets, Victor has built a movement around one simple truth: everyone deserves to be seen as equals who've just been through different struggles. Victor's story didn't start with generosity. It started in a Massachusetts state prison, where a young man who'd dropped out of high school and fallen into drug dealing sat on a prison bed and decided his life wasn't over. That two-year sentence became his reset button. In this raw and moving conversation, Victor opens up about the monumental moments that happened before becoming the man millions now know for stopping on the side of the road and asking one question: "Do you want help?" Through the stories he has been a part of, Victor reveals why refusing to hold people's hands and giving tough love is often what can help change people's stories. This is a conversation about redemption, leadership, and what it really means to see people. Victor doesn't just save lives. He reminds us that the most overlooked person in your city might be the one who changes everything if someone just stops long enough to care. In this conversation, you'll learn:How to Turn a Prison Sentence Into a Second Chance at LifeHow to Offer Opportunity Without Enabling DependenceHow to Approach Someone Living on the Streets With Dignity and RespectHow to Build a Business That Reflects Your Values From Day OneHow to Navigate the Treatment World With No Experience and Pure DeterminationHow to Raise Money and Manage Resources for People in CrisisHow to Balance Tough Love With Radical CompassionHow to Use Social Media to Inspire a Movement of GenerosityHow to Teach Your Kids That Everyone Deserves Kindness, Not JudgmentHow to Create Ripple Effects That Change Lives You'll Never Meet Welcome to Human School, where we learn what matters most. - Miles Adcox Follow Human School: YouTube - Human School PodcastInstagram - @humanschoolofficialThreads - @humanschoolofficialTikTok - @humanschoolofficial What We Discuss:00:00 Intro - Welcome to Human School 00:02:05 From Average Guy to Prison - Victor's Early Story 00:05:53 Selling Drugs to Control the Habit - The Beginning of the End 00:07:52 What State Prison in Massachusetts Was Really Like 00:09:02 Seeing the Pattern - Why People Reoffend Without Family Support 00:12:51 Starting a Landscaping Business While on Bail 00:15:07 The Freedom and Nerves of Leaving Prison 00:17:06 What It Means to Be "The Good Boss" - Leadership Through Action00:21:20 Driving Job to Job and Seeing People Holding Signs - The First Video 00:22:03 The Viral Moment That Started Everything - Meeting Kevin 00:24:37 Learning the Treatment World From Scratch 00:27:16 Building a Nonprofit With No Idea What He Was Doing 00:37:50 The Airport Story  00:39:03 Tay From Las Vegas - Reuniting a Father With His Kids After Five Years 00:39:42 Where the Money Goes - Transportation, Sober Living, and Fresh Starts 00:41:25 Case Managing Every Person - Interventionist, Placement Specialist, and Lifeline 00:42:17 The App That Will Change Everything - A Menu of Stories People Can Support 00:47:12 The Ripple Effect - Why Generosity Inspires More Generosity 00:48:13 What Victor Wants for His Two Daughters - Prevention and Compassion 00:50:02 How Jelly Roll and Victor Connected - A DM in the Orlando Airport 00:51:37 Finding Sean in Florida - The Kid From the Viral Hallelujah Video 00:55:30 How You Can Support - Do Something Good Right Now 

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• Moments with Miles: When the Life You Built Starts to Stretch You

  What if the thing that's exhausting you is actually the life you once begged the universe for? What if your tiredness isn't evidence of failure, but proof that you're living a life that asks something of you? In this solo episode, Miles Adcox shares a message that unexpectedly resonated with millions. But before unpacking why this landed so deeply, he tells a story that changed his entire perspective on gratitude, loss, and what we choose to focus on. Miles opens up about the tension between being tired and being grateful, between feeling overwhelmed by the life you built and remembering you once dreamed about having it. He reveals why so much of the advice we hear about rest and unplugging can feel idealistic when you're in the thick of raising kids, leading teams, or building something from nothing. This isn't about glorifying burnout or romanticizing exhaustion. It's about learning to hold two truths at once: you can be stretched and still be exactly where you're supposed to be. Miles goes deep into the concept of reframing, explaining how shifting the way we interpret our experience changes how our brain and body hold it. He shares the psychological principle that "gratitude without honesty is denial, but honesty without gratitude is despair." This conversation will help you see that not everything stretching you is breaking you; sometimes it's growing you. In this conversation, you'll learn:How to distinguish between exhaustion that drains you and exhaustion that sustains youHow a brown dead spot in a yard became a prized possession and shifted everythingHow to reframe "I have to" into "I get to" without denying the weight you're carryingHow psychological reframing changes the way your brain and body hold stressHow to hold both tiredness and gratitude without falling into denial or despairHow to recognize if your overwhelm is evidence of purpose, not failureHow the life you dreamed about still asks something of you (and why that's not a problem)How to notice whether you're the victim of your momentum or the author of itHow to find dignity in your fatigue by asking one simple questionHow to practice honesty and gratitude at the same time without choosing just one Welcome to Human School, where we learn what matters most. - Miles Adcox Follow Human School: YouTube - Human School Podcast Instagram - @humanschoolofficial Threads - @humanschoolofficial TikTok - @humanschoolofficial What We Discuss:00:00:00:00 Intro - Welcome to Human School 00:00:30 Miles's Introduction 00:01:35 The story of Dakota00:09:00 How subtle perspective shifts get our attention 00:11:04 Why advice to "slow down" can feel idealistic 00:13:27 The psychology of reframing: how shifting interpretation changes everything00:14:35 The art is learning to hold both

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• Dax: What Happens When You Finally Take the Shot You've Been Too Afraid to Take

  What if the anger you've been running from is actually the fuel you need? What happens when an 11-year-old discovers manifestation, commits a decade to basketball, then rewrites his entire life story with a poem on a bus? Dax has built a career on saying what most people are afraid to say out loud. He is blending hip hop, gospel and country influences into music speaking from a place of raw vulnerability. But before the millions of followers and sold-out tours, he was a kid who felt invisible. In this conversation, Dax opens up about discovering the Law of Attraction at age 11, spending ten years in what he calls an "unhealthy commitment" to basketball, and the pivotal moment on a team bus when he wrote his first poem and opened up a new outcome for his life. He reveals his ten-month journey of sobriety, confronting the tough questions and realizations of his lifestyle that changed everything. Dax shares how anger became his alchemy; not something to escape, but a force he learned to harness through repetition and mental discipline. From mental health walks to the liquor store to performing sober for the first time, Dax's story is about transforming every rejection, every missed opportunity, and every uncomfortable emotion into art that changes lives. This is a conversation about standing in your divinity, taking the jump when it matters most, and discovering that the person you're chasing when you drink is actually who you already are when you're fully present. In this conversation, you'll learn:How to Transform Anger Into Your Greatest MotivatorHow the Law of Attraction Changed Everything at Age 11How to Use Repetition as Your Only Real SuperpowerHow Missing Your Shot Can Become Your Greatest TeacherHow to Build an Audience From Zero to Millions Through Strategic FocusHow to Know When Alcohol Has Stopped Being a Tool and Started Being a CrutchHow to Perform Without the Substance You Thought You NeededHow to Quiet the Noise of the World So You Can Hear God's VoiceHow to Give Yourself Six Months of Real Focus to Change Your Life Welcome to Human School, where we learn what matters most.- Miles Adcox Follow Human School: YouTube - Human School Podcast Instagram - @humanschoolofficial Threads - @humanschoolofficial TikTok - @humanschoolofficial What We Discuss:00:00:00 Intro - Welcome to Human School 00:00:30 Meet Dax: Artist, Poet, and Truth Teller 00:03:45 Discovering The Secret and the Law of Attraction at Age 11 00:09:00 Walking Into Seventh Grade Feeling Completely Invisible 00:11:40 Kobe vs. Jordan: What Dax Learned From the Greatest 00:19:10 When Anger Becomes Alchemy Instead of Destruction 00:25:35 The Hidden Cost of Medications We Use to Numb 00:30:50 Writing His First Poem on a Bus to a Basketball Game 00:34:55 Mental Health Walks to the Liquor Store in College 00:37:15 The Game That Changed Everything: Getting Called In With 30 Seconds Left 00:45:50 How to Get Your Art to the People Who Need It 00:50:25 The Oprah Story: Learning to Stand in Your Divinity 00:59:05 From 0 to 10K Followers: The Button Poetry Strategy 01:03:15 Why We're Losing the Ability to Think and Only Learning to Feel 01:08:40 When Dax Realized Drinking Had Become Unsustainable 01:12:30 Writing "Dear Alcohol" and Confronting the Truth 01:16:49 Why Presence Is the Currency the World Is Starving For 01:21:30 Discovering He Could Sing in a College Class He Almost Skipped 01:26:24 Faith, God, and a Mother Who Prays All Day 01:36:40 The Importance of Visual Storytelling: Why Dax Makes a Video for Every Song 

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• Will Guidara: The Night He Came in Last Changed Everything

  What does it cost to be exceptional at something? And is that price worth paying? How do you know when competitiveness becomes calling—or when it just becomes noise? Will Guidara grew up in restaurants, watching his father balance being a Hall of Fame dad while caring for Will's mother, who developed quadriplegia after a brain cancer diagnosis. At 12 years old, a single dinner at The Four Seasons changed everything. That night sparked a journey that would take him from Cornell to working for legendary restaurateur Danny Meyer, eventually transform Eleven Madison Park into the #1 restaurant in the world. But this isn't a story about climbing to the top; it's about what happened after. Will opens up about the night he came in dead last on the World's 50 Best Restaurants list and how that became the catalyst for completely reimagining what excellence could mean. He shares the legendary stories behind the restaurant's most magical moments. Then COVID hit, allowing Will to rethink his next steps in the New York restaurant scene. Miles and Will explore the danger of tying your entire identity to your work, what it means to welcome people truly, and why small gestures matter more than grand productions. This conversation is about hospitality as a philosophy for life—turning toward people with curiosity, being fully present, and remembering that excellence and empathy can live in the same room. In this conversation, you'll learn:How to Turn Adversity Into Your Greatest Teacher Instead of Your Biggest EnemyHow to Know If Competitiveness Is Serving You or Destroying YouHow to Create Unreasonable Hospitality in Any Relationship or Work You DoHow to Recognize When Your Identity Has Become Too Wrapped Up in What You DoHow to Be Intentional and Creative in the Pursuit of the Relationships That MatterHow to Give Yourself Grace to Feel Disappointment Before Jumping Into Cheerleader ModeHow to Create Margin When Everything You're Invited to Feels MeaningfulHow to Make People Feel Seen With the Smallest GesturesHow to Evaluate Opportunities Using Three Simple Questions Welcome to Human School, where we learn what matters most.Miles Adcox Follow Human School:YouTube - Human School PodcastInstagram - @humanschoolofficialThreads - @humanschoolofficialTikTok - @humanschoolofficial What We Discuss:00:00:00 Intro - Welcome to Human School with Will Guidara 00:01:36 Why We All Still Need Praise and Affirmation No Matter How Much We've Accomplished00:04:06 Criticism Is Not a Bad Word - Why We've Given Negative Connotations to Helpful Things00:10:27 How Hospitality Could Actually Heal the Division We're All Feeling00:14:01 How Will's Dad Became His Hero While Caring for His Mom and Running Restaurants00:16:36 The First Time Will Went to The Four Seasons and Fell in Love With Fine Dining00:18:00 Why Understanding the Higher Purpose of Your Work Changes Everything on Hard Days00:21:20 The Email That Changed Everything - Being Ranked #50 on the World's 50 Best List00:26:10 Why Leaning Into What Never Changes Is the Answer When Everything Is Changing00:29:16 The Dream Weavers - Hiring People Whose Only Job Was Turning Details Into Memories00:31:49 The Night They Became the #1 Restaurant in the World in Melbourne00:47:08 Why They Immediately Closed the Restaurant to Rebuild It Into Their Dream00:49:41 How COVID Gave Will the Gift of Deciding What to Do Next Instead of Just Reacting00:52:05 The Conversation About Margin - Why It's So Hard to Create Space in a Full Life00:55:05 Why "No" Is Not a Bad Word - Learning to Protect Your Time and Energy00:59:36 Knowing There Will Be a Day When No One Cares Who You Are01:05:21 The Reminder That You Hold the Flashlight01:10:20 Becoming a Producer on The Bear01:13:00 What Will Is Working on Now - A Season of Going With the Flow01:17:03 The Three Buckets for Saying Yes01:20:10 Will's Dad's Advice on Finding Inspiration Everywhere

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