Robert Arlen Hotz has completed numerous psychological assessments, including several years of diagnostic practicum experience at the Landstrom Center and the New Mexico Center for Forensic Psychology. In 2024, Robert Arlen Hotz joined Dr. Erin Caskey at the Rush Neurobehavioral Center. His practicum has involved writing reports based on interviews, legal documents, and neurobehavioral assessments.
Moreover, Robert Arlen Hotz gained additional clinical experience as a crisis counselor at the Crisis Text Line and as a care advocate at Greenwich House. He contributed to the report “Auditory processing remains sensitive to environmental experience during adolescence in a rodent model,” which Nature Communications published.
A merit scholar and doctoral candidate at The Chicago School, Robert Arlen Hotz submitted his dissertation proposal, “The Mediating Role that ADHD Plays in the Relationship Between Childhood Trauma and Adult Crime,” to psychology department chair Shanavia Dansy, PhD, and has completed a psychoanalysis fellowship at the Chicago Center. He earned an undergraduate degree in psychology from New York University, a certification in the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, and a diploma in hypnotherapy from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
I weightlift or box. I either go to class, externship, or work on my startup (Kratic.com). My big hobbies are fitness, taking care of my dog, and taking notes. I take a lot of notes on books that I read. I like to read and write a lot. I also carry a pocket notebook around with me that I write in.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I write in my pocket notebook. I type up these notebooks and put them in Notion, which is an organization management tool. Most of my ideas revolve around developing self-knowledge and optimizing my life.
What’s one trend that excites you?
I am really into the whole AI craze. I just recently developed a business called Kratic, which is an AI life assistant. You can use it to link Google Tasks, Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar, Fitbit, Whoop, and Notion to an LLM which will provide behavioural analysis, life insights, and action plans.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
Reading and notetaking, fitness, and caring for my dog and two cats.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Don’t be in a rush to get things done, take care of yourself, and do the things that will make you happy in the long run.
Tell us something you believe that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Watching sports is boring.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
I love to work out, and I believe that it is the biggest staple of a happy life.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
I take a lot of walks. I love to walk and listen to music. I just recently got a dog, so now I walk with my dog.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Trying to be long-term oriented. That manifests in things like doing a little bit of work but actually working every day. Working on physical and emotional health has also been key. Self-insight, honesty, and a capacity to receive criticism always goes a long way.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
I had to take some time off in undergraduate, and now I have had to take a year off in graduate school due to medical issues. It taught me to be in it for the long haul and persevere.
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Get in on the AI hype train. This is the moment. All sorts of simple, functional services can now be turned into AI services. For instance, how about an AI text-management app, which can read your texts and respond to them for you.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
I initially built my website Kratic.com to help run my own life. I use it all the time. It was only because of how much I use it that I decided to try to provide it as a service for other people.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
I bought a smart water bottle. It tracks how much water I drink, and it also links to my website, so I am able to integrate my hydration data into my overall productivity and health data.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
Huberman Lab podcast.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
I just watched Toy Story for the first time and liked it.
Key learnings
- AI has enormous potential across all areas of life and business.
- One of AI’s greatest offerings is the vast array of simple, functional solutions it can provide, which can then be turned into marketable services and business ideas.
- Notetaking is a valuable tool for productivity and idea development and implementation.
- Fitness, physical activity, and mental health are not only important to a happy life but can translate to positive business and career outcomes.