Do you often feel like you’re meant for more, that you’re not living up to your true potential? If so, let’s change that right now! You are made for greatness. And you owe it to yourself and to the rest of the world to be sure that greatness is shining through each and everyday!

In today’s episode, Alan Lazaros shares his journey from struggling with self-worth and feeling lost to achieving extraordinary success. His story and insights are perfect for anyone looking to overcome personal challenges, improve their self-perception, and unlock their full potential.

What’s It All About?

Join your host, Kevin Lowe, as Alan Lazaros opens up about his transformative journey from self-doubt to self-empowerment. Alan’s life changed drastically after a car accident, forcing him to reevaluate his self-worth and purpose. Despite his academic and professional achievements, he struggled to feel proud of himself until he discovered the power of mindset shifts and personal growth. Through candid reflections, Alan reveals how he built resilience, embraced his potential, and created a life of fulfillment and success. He shares practical strategies for overcoming personal and professional challenges, the importance of surrounding yourself with positive influences, and the ongoing journey of aligning with your true purpose.

This episode is not just about Alan’s story; it’s about how you can apply these lessons to level up your own life. Get ready to be inspired, take notes, and embark on a journey of self-discovery and empowerment.

Some Key Takeaways:

  1. Discover how to evolve your self-worth and embrace your achievements.
  2. Learn practical strategies for shifting your mindset and unlocking your potential.
  3. Gain insights into building a positive support system and aligning with your true purpose.

Don’t miss out on this truly powerful conversation with Alan Lazaros – He’s here to help you level up your life, your love, your health, and your wealth all by sharing his own journey from then to now.

Mentioned Links & Resources

Sizzlin’ Summer Special!

Your host, Kevin Lowe, is offering FREE coaching all Summer long! During your 30-minute 1-on-1 coaching session you will get clear on your goals, understand the obstacles trying to stand in your way, and leave with a roadmap to be sure the second half of 2024 succeeds all expectations!

SIGN-UP ASAP!

Today’s Awesome Guest

Alan Lazaros

Alan Lazaros is a renowned speaker, coach, and podcast host known for his transformative insights on personal development and success. After overcoming significant personal challenges, Alan dedicated his life to helping others achieve their fullest potential. He co-hosts the highly successful podcast, “Next Level University,” and is a sought-after speaker on topics including mindset, habits, and resilience. Alan’s mission is to empower individuals to unlock their next level in life and achieve extraordinary results.

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Transcript

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Have you ever found yourself at a point in life, maybe it's even where you are

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right now, where you kind of feel like you're in a hole?

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You've had something happen that's kind of shook you, that's made you look at

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life from a different angle.

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And to be honest, you don't really understand who you even are,

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what you're doing, where you're going, and you just feel lost.

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Lost well you're not alone in matter

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of fact today's guest alan Lazaros he

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was in that very position now what's awesome about alan's story is that he's

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going to prove to you that there's a way out and as you hear his story he's

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going to help you at the same time today's episode is one that

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you're probably going to want to take some notes on because the information,

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the stories, just the unbelievable knowledge dropped in your lap by Alan Lazaros

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is absolutely incredible.

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My friend, this is the episode that is going to take things to the next level,

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helping you to level up your life, your love, your health, and your wealth.

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This is episode 296.

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Bye.

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Yo, are you ready to flip the script on life? Because those bad days,

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they're just doors to better days.

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And that's exactly what we do here at Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

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Your host, Kevin Lowe, he's been flipping the script on his own life,

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turning over 20 years of being completely blind into straight-up inspiration,

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motivation, and encouragement just for you.

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So, kick back, relax, and let me introduce you to your host,

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Kevin Lowe. My friend, is there any chance that you are looking to get the most out of this summer?

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That you are ready to make these summer months into a launch pad to be sure

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that the second half of 2024 is your best year ever?

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Well, then you need to take advantage of my sizzling summer special.

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I'm offering free coaching sessions all summer long.

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Yes, all June, July, and August, I have opened up my calendar for you to book

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a free 30-minute breakthrough coaching session where we can get clear on your goals,

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figure out what's standing in your way, and to set you up for success in the second half of 2024.

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All you have to do to grab your spot is to text SUMMER2024. That is all one

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word, no spaces, SUMMER2024 to the phone number 33777.

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That is 33777.

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And I will respond with a link for you to book your session.

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Now, if you would rather just have a link to click, well, then just scroll down

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and check out today's show notes where you can do just that.

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And with that, it's back to today's episode.

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I used to listen to shows, podcasts, and I used to hear these people tell their

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stories and they always seemed so articulate and they seemed like they had it

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all figured out and they seemed like they understood the narrative.

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And now here I am nine years later, I started listening to podcasts nine years

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ago and I'm a podcaster as well.

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And so now I'm telling my story starting to sound like that.

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So the first thing I want to share with everybody is I did not have any of this

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figured out So when I share my story,

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that is my 35-year-old re-watching the movie of my own life version.

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It is not the understanding that I had at the time during it.

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So I always use Finding Nemo as a reference because it's an awesome movie.

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I went and saw Finding Nemo when it was 2003 when I was in, I think,

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middle school. I used to ride my bike to Bellingham and to the movie theater.

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And we were supposed to see a different movie. We ended up seeing Finding Nemo.

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But my point of Finding Nemo is I saw that movie when I was a kid.

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And then my second date with my beautiful girlfriend, Amelia,

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I ended up watching Finding Nemo again.

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And there was jokes that I now understand. There was moral of the story I now kind of understand.

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So when you're an adult and you see a movie that you saw as a kid,

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you recognize things in the movie.

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Nothing changed about the movie. Something changed inside of you.

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Yes. And so when I tell this story, I want everyone to understand that I am

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telling it from the 35-year-old frame of reference, having rewatched the movie of my life.

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Whereas at the time, I had no clue what was going on.

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So I was born into adversity, although I didn't know that at the time.

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Again, that'll be a theme. Yes.

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And I was two years old and my father died in a car accident when he was 28.

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So he was 28. My sister was six. I was almost three. So I was two and my mom was 31.

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And my real last name is actually McCorkle. So I came from the McCorkles and

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my birth father, John, John McCorkle, had five siblings.

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So six kids, big Irish Catholic family.

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John, Joe, Jim, Jane, Joan, Jeanette, all J.

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And so when he had passed away, my stepfather came into the picture and my stepfather,

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so my last name, Alan Lazaros, I took his last name, which was Lazaros when I was around seven.

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So between ages three and 14...

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We kind of didn't talk much or at all, really, with the McCorkles.

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And the reason why is we were trying to be the Lazaroses, quote unquote.

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And so it was me, my mom, my sister, and my stepfather, Steve Lazaros.

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And my mom and stepfather did not get along well.

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And that is a polite way to say it on a public medium.

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Yes. And so, and again, I didn't have the courage to share any of this until

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my 30s. So you're in for a real treat, Kev. No, I'm kidding. Yeah.

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But again, I didn't understand any of this until recently. I started doing therapy

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in my 30s, Kevin, and I reflected again on all this and now I kind of get it.

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So from three to 14, I had a stepfather and I now playfully refer to that part

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of my life as boats and BS.

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And so we had motorcycles, we had snowmobiles, we had trucks.

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My mom drove a BMW. We had ski trips and we had vacations and we had a yacht

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and we had ocean boats and all kinds of stuff. Not to mention,

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it was also the 90s, late 90s, early 2000s.

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And the 90s, particularly in the US, but globally, the dot-com bubble,

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the economy was booming.

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And so, there was definitely a lot of money. My stepfather worked for a company

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called Agfa. They did hospital computers during the computer boom.

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And so, we did very well financially. initially at 14.

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So I was, I was Xbox, Dreamcast. I was, I was early Christmas presents,

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but at home things weren't good behind the scenes, but it looked really good

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from the outside looking in based on the boats and the, and the snowmobiles

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and the vacations, all that stuff.

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So 14 years old come, I'm 14 and my stepfather leaves.

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Now he takes not only 90% of the income with him. And I go from Dreamcast,

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Xbox, early Christmas presents.

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I'm quote unquote, the rich kid living on a small pond, big lake to,

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I now get free lunch at school because our income is so low.

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I now shop at Salvation Army for clothing.

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My mom trades in her BMW for a little Honda Civic back in the early 2000s.

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And not only that, but my stepdad leaves and takes his entire extended family with him.

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So my grandma, Joan, grandpa, George, my uncles and aunts, that whole side of the family gone.

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I haven't spoken to a single one of them since. Wow. Yeah.

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My mom and her sister got in a fight, my Aunt Sandy, and my Aunt Sandy kind

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of ostracized us from her side of the family, the Higgins.

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So we're not talking on the McCorkle's, my birth father's side,

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because we're being Lazaroses. The Lazaroses leave when my stepdad leaves.

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And then on top of that, the Higgins kind of ostracize us from that side of the family.

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And the only person I've seen from that side of the family since is actually

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my cousin Jeff, who I didn't see until eight years later.

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So 14 was a tough year. Now, on top of that, my sister moves out with her older

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boyfriend at that same year.

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And so I essentially, for lack of better phrasing, lost three families by the time I'm 14 years old.

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Wow. And I didn't realize the abandonment issues that came with that at all.

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Because at the time, I didn't know anything except for challenge, struggle, adversity.

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And obviously, there were some bright spots too. You know, we grew up in a nice

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area in terms of the nature.

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I grew up on a pond. And so there was a lot of fun and bright things too.

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But at the end of the day, it was definitely not normal and definitely not super positive.

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So now I'm 14 years old. It's just me and my mom in that big house.

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And my dream was to go to Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

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It's WPI. It's kind of like a mini MIT in Massachusetts. It's one of the best

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technical colleges in the world.

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And it's extremely, extremely, extremely expensive.

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It was $50,000 a year back then. And so when I was 10 years old,

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my uncle Merle was the track and field coach at WPI.

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And so the field there is still called Norcross Field, named after him. He's since passed away.

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And since I was 10 years old, It was my dream. My mom said, you're good at math.

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Engineers make a lot of money. You should be an engineer. You should go to the WPI.

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You'll make a lot of money. And so I had two paths in life, two big dreams.

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I had a lot of little ones, but I had two really big dreams.

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My two career paths when I was a kid, which now I realize is weird,

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were lawyer, politician, president.

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I kid you not. That was actually what I was considering. I'm not even kidding.

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It was lawyer, politician, president. I now realize how crazy that is now.

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Or it was going to be engineer, MBA, CEO, like my hero at the time of a Fortune

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500 company, a tech company like my hero, Steve Jobs, at the time.

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Steve Jobs is no longer my hero, but at the time he was. So it was always Bill

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Gates versus Steve Jobs.

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And I built my first computer when I was 13 and that kind of thing.

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So anyways, lawyer, politician, president, or engineer, MBA,

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master's in business and Fortune 50 CEO or Fortune 500 CEO of a tech company.

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So I chose obviously the engineer road.

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I got into WPI and I went from, I'm excited to see if I can get in to,

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I don't even know if I can pay for it if I do get in.

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So I ended up just doing what I now refer to as my trauma response,

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which I didn't understand back then.

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Whenever life was really painful, fortunately, my trauma response was aim higher,

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work harder, get smarter, fortunately.

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Yeah. And so I did. I bootstrapped through all of high school.

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I got what's called the President's Award. It's actually behind me right now in my office.

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And it's signed by President George W. Bush. And it's essentially you get straight

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A's all through high school in all report cards.

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So that's four report cards per year, four years, 16 report cards straight.

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I got straight A's. I got 189 in honors English. Fortunately,

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it was an honors class, so it was weighted.

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But I never took honors English again after that, I'll tell you what.

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I was the math and science guy, Kevin.

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So I call it STEM, science, technology, engineering, mathematics,

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business, and finance. Those are my jam.

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And writing and reading and all that kind of stuff weren't nearly as natural for me.

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So anyways, what I had to do, got into college, did it, straight A's in high

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school, and I got financial aid and scholarships, so I was able to go.

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But you can't lose, those are academic based. So if I screw this up, I'm in trouble, right?

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And this is a $50,000 a year school. And I realized real quick that some of

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the other people that came to this school, my peers at that time,

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did not have to face what I had to face to get there.

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And they also have have the money to pay for it. Whereas if I flunk out, I'm screwed.

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So it's a little bit of a different dynamic there.

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So I just found the smartest people I could, surrounded myself with them.

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I did a lot of partying too, which we will get to.

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But essentially I got a 3.4. I graduated with computer engineering.

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I graduated with distinction.

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And then I stayed for my master's in business. And then I was off to the races.

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And that's when I went into corporate.

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So I worked for a bunch of different tech companies. I worked for iRobot,

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Sensata Technologies, Oz Development, development, Tyco Safety Products.

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Lens America, a bunch of different tech companies.

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And I did a lot of job hopping and soul searching post-college.

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And I went from 65 to 85, 85 to 105, 105 to 125, 125 to nearly 200,000.

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So I was at about 180 when I peaked.

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And now I'm 26 years old. At this stage, I paid off $84,000 worth of college debt in a single year.

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I have $150,000 in an investment account for Vanguard and I bought S&P 500, which is an index fund.

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I bought a bunch of Cognex and a bunch of other tech companies that I knew would grow.

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And I had no mortgage, no family.

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I went from basically bootstrapping bro college kid to 1% global earner.

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And again, earner, not net worth, earner in a very short amount of time.

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I remember painting houses in Maine, the sophomore summer of college to when

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I graduated college making so much money, I didn't even know what to do with it all.

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That's why I invested most of it, fortunately. But so now I'm 26.

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I'm working for a company called Cognex.

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Cognex's motto is work hard, play hard. I used to say work hard,

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play harder, which we're going to get to.

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And I was an inside sales engineer, started a little inside sales engineering

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team. And then I was an outside sales engineer and I managed a territory.

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So my territory was Vermont, Vermont, Western Massachusetts, and Connecticut.

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I'm selling industrial automation equipment into manufacturing facilities.

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So imagine the biggest ice cream company you can think of that you adore or

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the chips that you eat, I would sell into those manufacturing facilities.

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And it was machine vision equipment. So we would sell the eyes of robots, so to speak.

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And again, it's a very simplified version of what we were actually doing. So I did very well.

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Boom, boom, boom. Now I'm 26, SpaceX making almost $200,000 a year.

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I'm rising in corporate and I have what I thought was the American dream and

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I did it, right? I made it, quote unquote.

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Now, I'm 26 years old. I'm in New Hampshire with my little cousin.

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We're playing Call of Duty, also known as Call of Dudeski.

00:14:53.902 --> 00:14:56.682

We're playing Call of Duty and we're not drinking, not partying or anything

00:14:56.682 --> 00:14:59.342

like that. It's a Friday night. We're going to TGI Fridays and I'm driving.

00:14:59.742 --> 00:15:03.202

Now, to save money and get out of college debt, because that was my goal.

00:15:04.242 --> 00:15:09.482

Several years earlier, I had bought this 2004 Volkswagen Passat. Thank you, Volkswagen.

00:15:09.842 --> 00:15:12.882

So, this car, I bought it in cash, five grand cash.

00:15:13.262 --> 00:15:17.102

And I used to call it the tank. This is a German an engineered steel trap of

00:15:17.102 --> 00:15:18.282

a car that I called the tank.

00:15:18.482 --> 00:15:21.942

And that car definitely saved my life. So we're driving to TGI Fridays.

00:15:22.182 --> 00:15:27.222

It's 2015, really bad winter. The snow banks are covering the signs and there's

00:15:27.222 --> 00:15:28.582

a yield sign that I don't see.

00:15:28.922 --> 00:15:32.722

I'm supposed to yield and I don't. I end up on the wrong side of the road and

00:15:32.722 --> 00:15:35.622

I look up and I see what I thought was a Mack truck.

00:15:36.102 --> 00:15:41.382

And my computer engineering brain goes, there's no chance. This is the end. No question.

00:15:42.062 --> 00:15:45.542

Fortunately, it was not a Mack truck. It was a lift kitted pickup truck.

00:15:45.702 --> 00:15:49.922

And I was driving that steel trap tank of a car. Thank you, Volkswagen.

00:15:50.482 --> 00:15:54.762

So both airbags did deploy. My little cousin hurt his knee on the airbag.

00:15:54.822 --> 00:15:57.462

I hurt my face on the airbag, but we were okay.

00:15:57.582 --> 00:16:01.082

Now, normally I show the pictures of this car in my speeches.

00:16:01.202 --> 00:16:05.942

And the reason why is because I've seen pictures of my dad's car and they don't look very different.

00:16:06.422 --> 00:16:10.742

And so for me, this was the physically we were okay, but mentally,

00:16:10.782 --> 00:16:13.542

emotionally emotionally, and spiritually, I was beyond messed up after this.

00:16:13.622 --> 00:16:19.122

This was my quarter life crisis because I got the second chance that my dad never got. Wow.

00:16:19.722 --> 00:16:24.882

And so this is when I flipped the script and I was filled with regret. What did it all mean?

00:16:25.562 --> 00:16:30.662

Who was I as a man? Did I make good choices? Were these really my dreams or were they ego driven?

00:16:31.082 --> 00:16:34.502

Was this what I was supposed to do versus what I am called to do?

00:16:35.002 --> 00:16:38.682

And so the best way I can describe it as this, and I promised you that I'd do

00:16:38.682 --> 00:16:42.002

the short, mid, or long version, so two guesses which one this is.

00:16:43.102 --> 00:16:48.082

This is the long version. The point is, though, is that I now,

00:16:48.202 --> 00:16:50.262

the best way I can describe it, again, this is in hindsight,

00:16:50.302 --> 00:16:51.922

whereas at the time, I had no idea.

00:16:52.502 --> 00:16:56.502

Before 26, I was very achievement-oriented, I was very gritty,

00:16:56.502 --> 00:17:01.122

to the point of this podcast, I had big dreams, and I was improvement-oriented

00:17:01.122 --> 00:17:04.002

toward those dreams, but I wasn't self-sufficient.

00:17:04.560 --> 00:17:09.860

Improvement-oriented. I wasn't personally developed. I was professionally developed.

00:17:10.140 --> 00:17:13.660

I wasn't personal growth. I was external growth.

00:17:13.920 --> 00:17:19.360

And so rather than achieving at the expense of fulfillment and inner work,

00:17:19.560 --> 00:17:21.540

I now flip the script hard.

00:17:21.800 --> 00:17:26.800

And that was nine years ago. I often playfully joke, I'm hoping to hit puberty at 36. I'm now 35.

00:17:27.400 --> 00:17:31.980

And I look very young. I know know, you haven't seen me, but I look very young.

00:17:32.200 --> 00:17:36.300

And so, so anyways, I often get made fun of, I look 12.

00:17:36.820 --> 00:17:42.980

So, but anyways, so now I fortunately, so I've been successful without fulfillment and that sucked.

00:17:43.300 --> 00:17:47.120

I have been fulfilled also without success because after that car accident,

00:17:47.180 --> 00:17:50.840

I went all the way past broke as a broke entrepreneur starting my own thing.

00:17:51.020 --> 00:17:52.220

I know a lot of people can relate.

00:17:52.580 --> 00:17:56.840

And so I've been successful without fulfillment. I've been professionally developed

00:17:56.840 --> 00:17:59.080

without self-improvement and personal development.

00:17:59.460 --> 00:18:02.240

And then I went all the the way past and I was fully personally developed,

00:18:02.400 --> 00:18:05.000

but I wasn't successful. And so I was fulfilled, but unsuccessful.

00:18:05.320 --> 00:18:08.160

And so I always say this, success without fulfillment sucks.

00:18:09.020 --> 00:18:14.920

Fulfillment without success turns out also sucks. And so the best way to move

00:18:14.920 --> 00:18:19.700

forward and what I've found over the last nine years really is how do you design

00:18:19.700 --> 00:18:23.660

a life that you can be successful and fulfilled simultaneously?

00:18:24.020 --> 00:18:29.480

How can you be professionally developed and personally How can you be the duality,

00:18:29.480 --> 00:18:34.100

the dance, the yin and the yang of a holistically well-rounded man or woman?

00:18:34.360 --> 00:18:39.220

And that's really what I've come to is it's actually really difficult to be

00:18:39.220 --> 00:18:42.580

ambidextrous in the 21st century. Yeah. Wow.

00:18:43.280 --> 00:18:49.880

What a crazy journey just to get to 26 years old.

00:18:51.160 --> 00:18:54.400

I mean, it's crazy when you think about it.

00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:59.800

And I want us to go back because I want to unpack a little bit more about the

00:18:59.800 --> 00:19:05.180

fact that you had told us that at 14 years old, your entire life changed.

00:19:05.740 --> 00:19:14.760

Everything changed. and yet you stayed the course and you still got into this top college.

00:19:15.160 --> 00:19:17.420

Why do you think that you didn't,

00:19:18.099 --> 00:19:23.179

fall victim to what so many would, what they would allow what was happening

00:19:23.179 --> 00:19:25.499

at home to drag them down at school?

00:19:26.179 --> 00:19:29.779

Yeah, so I've been contemplating that question a ton.

00:19:30.079 --> 00:19:34.619

And I try to use humble curiosity to constantly be asking and understanding

00:19:34.619 --> 00:19:37.759

things. And the answer is twofold.

00:19:38.059 --> 00:19:41.019

The first one is I had an awesome teacher named Mrs.

00:19:41.219 --> 00:19:44.759

Pryor, who I've actually since emailed and thanked because there's this thing

00:19:44.759 --> 00:19:47.959

called the Teddy story that you can probably look up online line and it's anonymous,

00:19:48.159 --> 00:19:51.699

but it's a story that touches my heart at the deepest level.

00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:54.899

And it's about this young boy named Teddy, who the teacher thinks is a trouble

00:19:54.899 --> 00:19:57.219

child, when in reality, his mother has cancer.

00:19:58.039 --> 00:20:01.719

And the story just is so heartwarming and unbelievable.

00:20:01.939 --> 00:20:04.739

So the right teacher at the right time, the right mentor at the right time,

00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:07.259

someone who believes in you at the right time can change everything,

00:20:07.379 --> 00:20:09.779

which I live by now at Next Level University.

00:20:09.979 --> 00:20:12.379

We try to believe in people at the right time.

00:20:12.739 --> 00:20:17.819

And so I was believed in by a woman named Christine Pryor. I've actually emailed

00:20:17.819 --> 00:20:19.379

her and I sent her the Teddy story.

00:20:19.599 --> 00:20:22.839

This was actually last week, believe it or not. And I said, thank you so much

00:20:22.839 --> 00:20:27.979

for being there during a time that was my darkest, being a light for me in my darkest time.

00:20:28.299 --> 00:20:32.419

And I was tearing up while writing this email and she actually said she was

00:20:32.419 --> 00:20:35.339

tearing up responding to it. And I'm going to go visit her at some point soon.

00:20:35.499 --> 00:20:41.799

But the first answer is, how did I stay and persevere? I would say having someone who believed in me.

00:20:42.259 --> 00:20:45.879

And she actually brought me to the math meets at WPI.

00:20:46.039 --> 00:20:50.859

So she picked us all up and we did a field trip and WPI holds these mathematic

00:20:50.859 --> 00:20:52.779

competitions every year.

00:20:52.899 --> 00:20:55.979

And so she really helped not just pour into my dream and say,

00:20:56.019 --> 00:20:58.279

you can do it, but actually brought me there.

00:20:58.419 --> 00:21:01.139

And my mom always believed in me as well. So that's there as well.

00:21:01.399 --> 00:21:06.839

That said, I think the the thing that made the difference because I've contemplated this a lot.

00:21:06.939 --> 00:21:09.919

There's something called an ACE score. It's called the diverse childhood experiences.

00:21:10.159 --> 00:21:15.199

And they've done tons and tons of research and studies on this idea of ACE.

00:21:15.339 --> 00:21:20.059

And the idea is the higher your ACE score, the more likely you are headed towards

00:21:20.059 --> 00:21:23.439

early mortality, statistically speaking.

00:21:23.659 --> 00:21:30.519

And after 26, I think I I really broke the paradigm of that.

00:21:30.879 --> 00:21:36.439

And I look now at how can two siblings grow up in the same challenging environment

00:21:36.439 --> 00:21:38.739

and have completely different outcomes?

00:21:39.019 --> 00:21:41.879

You know, what makes the difference? I've been asking myself that question my

00:21:41.879 --> 00:21:44.339

whole life in some ways, my whole adult life anyways.

00:21:44.619 --> 00:21:48.539

Yeah. And the answer that I've come to now, and I just surpassed,

00:21:48.539 --> 00:21:51.499

so I'm coming up on my 10,000 hours of coaching, podcasting,

00:21:51.499 --> 00:21:56.659

speaking, training, and all different walks of life. My youngest client is 18. My oldest is 63.

00:21:56.939 --> 00:22:00.559

I have 23 people on my roster right now, but many have come and gone over the years.

00:22:00.639 --> 00:22:04.999

And I've been coaching for a little over seven years now and all different walks

00:22:04.999 --> 00:22:07.159

of life, all different countries, all different backgrounds,

00:22:07.439 --> 00:22:09.279

all different ethnicities and sexes.

00:22:09.399 --> 00:22:14.859

And what you come to realize is that the number one, most important indicator

00:22:14.859 --> 00:22:17.419

of future success for anyone.

00:22:18.505 --> 00:22:23.205

Is self-belief. And what's weird about it is the people who have high self-belief

00:22:23.205 --> 00:22:26.505

don't actually talk that much about it because they don't know that they have it.

00:22:26.685 --> 00:22:31.485

So, I now understand that it was weird for me to say, okay, I'm going to be

00:22:31.485 --> 00:22:35.065

a lawyer, politician, or president, or I'm going to be an engineer,

00:22:35.225 --> 00:22:39.505

MBA, and then Fortune 50 or Fortune 500 CEO of a tech company.

00:22:39.825 --> 00:22:42.565

But here's the thing, I wasn't just saying it. A lot of kids say,

00:22:42.605 --> 00:22:45.665

I want to be an astronaut, or I want to be a police officer or I want to be an XYZ.

00:22:45.985 --> 00:22:49.125

I actually calculated it. I remember actually sitting down. Now,

00:22:49.145 --> 00:22:52.225

this is scary for me to share, but I remember actually sitting down contemplating

00:22:52.225 --> 00:22:53.245

this conversation in my head.

00:22:53.585 --> 00:22:58.085

Okay, well, I am an American male who was born into adversity,

00:22:58.585 --> 00:23:04.665

who was blessed with a big brain, who is fairly charismatic and can communicate well.

00:23:05.125 --> 00:23:08.805

And if I work really hard as becoming a lawyer and a politician,

00:23:08.965 --> 00:23:11.445

I could do a good job at it. and I think one day I could be president.

00:23:11.665 --> 00:23:13.905

That is something that I actually calculated.

00:23:14.745 --> 00:23:18.465

And I do believe I actually could. Now, I know how nuts that sounds,

00:23:19.065 --> 00:23:22.985

but I decided not to, which also sounds nuts, right?

00:23:23.625 --> 00:23:27.905

So I decided to do the engineer road. And I think, you know,

00:23:27.905 --> 00:23:29.845

I'm good at math. I love science, blah, blah, blah.

00:23:29.945 --> 00:23:34.285

But I wasn't just aiming aimlessly. I was calculating things.

00:23:34.665 --> 00:23:38.465

And so some people get their belief from faith.

00:23:38.785 --> 00:23:42.225

Some people get their belief from self-concept. Some people get their belief

00:23:42.225 --> 00:23:45.025

from their quantum abilities, which is just their natural talents.

00:23:45.245 --> 00:23:48.565

It's not probably that hard for LeBron James to believe in himself in basketball.

00:23:48.925 --> 00:23:54.745

And that's okay. For me, what I find really fascinating is that the people who

00:23:54.745 --> 00:23:58.065

have ridiculously high self-belief actually don't know that they do.

00:23:58.565 --> 00:24:04.065

And by the way, the people who claim to have high self-belief actually don't.

00:24:04.065 --> 00:24:07.765

Their over-correcting from deep insecurity and lack of self-belief.

00:24:07.905 --> 00:24:12.565

And that has been wildly fascinating for me to study as a scientist.

00:24:12.825 --> 00:24:15.665

And when I say as a scientist, that's me kind of self-proclaiming,

00:24:15.665 --> 00:24:18.845

but I'm studying people every single day in my coaching.

00:24:18.925 --> 00:24:23.585

And what I've found fascinating is people who believe in themselves a lot actually

00:24:23.585 --> 00:24:27.525

don't know that other people don't have that because everyone around them is

00:24:27.525 --> 00:24:29.265

faking it. They're mirroring them.

00:24:29.705 --> 00:24:33.485

So people around me, my whole life have been mirroring my self-belief.

00:24:33.805 --> 00:24:37.425

They either think I'm full of it or they mirror it. And so I,

00:24:37.605 --> 00:24:39.005

or they puff up and pretend.

00:24:39.505 --> 00:24:43.305

I grew up thinking everyone had tons of self-belief and then you become older

00:24:43.305 --> 00:24:44.925

and older and older and hopefully wiser.

00:24:44.985 --> 00:24:50.545

And you look around and go, oh, so I really was the only one who ended up doing

00:24:50.545 --> 00:24:51.925

these things that I said I would do.

00:24:52.285 --> 00:24:55.805

And then people come up to you and I'm sure you've gotten this as well of,

00:24:55.885 --> 00:24:58.625

oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, you did it. You did it.

00:24:58.705 --> 00:25:01.085

And I'm sitting there going, one. Yeah.

00:25:02.517 --> 00:25:08.257

Said I was going to do this. I didn't say I'm going to start a podcast and then go to the beach.

00:25:09.377 --> 00:25:14.337

I just intended on it. And so Kevin, my business partner, my other Kevin,

00:25:14.437 --> 00:25:18.557

he has really illuminated for me that what makes the biggest difference is self-belief

00:25:18.557 --> 00:25:22.417

because he's someone who struggled with self-belief because he had a lot of self-doubt.

00:25:22.777 --> 00:25:28.397

And that's helped me understand that I have this self-belief thing that I don't

00:25:28.397 --> 00:25:30.237

know if it's my math brain calculating it.

00:25:31.917 --> 00:25:35.917

I I think there's truth to both of those things, which I never used to share because I was a coward.

00:25:36.317 --> 00:25:40.097

But the truth of the matter is, is everything has always come fairly easy to me.

00:25:40.617 --> 00:25:43.417

And I feel like I can get good at stuff fairly easily.

00:25:44.417 --> 00:25:47.657

And one thing that comes with that, unfortunately, though, is one thing that's

00:25:47.657 --> 00:25:50.957

never been easy for me, which is fitting in, has never felt easy for me.

00:25:51.437 --> 00:25:55.237

Being liked has never felt easy for me. As a matter of fact, that feels impossible.

00:25:55.697 --> 00:25:58.917

Some of your listeners right now are probably having a hard time not villainizing me.

00:25:58.997 --> 00:26:03.397

I've never felt easily likable. And so fortunately, I have this business partner,

00:26:03.497 --> 00:26:05.417

Kevin Palmieri, who is on the

00:26:05.417 --> 00:26:09.417

other side of the spectrum where he had self-doubt and I had self-belief.

00:26:09.517 --> 00:26:12.377

But he was relatable and likable and I was villainized.

00:26:12.537 --> 00:26:17.377

And so we kind of figured out through each other that the most important thing

00:26:17.377 --> 00:26:18.637

in the world is self-belief.

00:26:18.757 --> 00:26:22.657

But unfortunately, people who actually have high self-belief and aren't faking

00:26:22.657 --> 00:26:26.737

it usually have low self-worth because they're often bullied energetically.

00:26:27.357 --> 00:26:30.797

And they're usually these sort of tortured behind the scenes.

00:26:30.877 --> 00:26:35.277

I do hard work, but then when I'm in public, no one gets me type of thing because

00:26:35.277 --> 00:26:37.597

statistically speaking, most people don't believe in themselves.

00:26:37.717 --> 00:26:39.137

That's why most people don't have goals.

00:26:39.297 --> 00:26:42.157

That's why statistically speaking, everyone has new year's resolutions,

00:26:42.217 --> 00:26:44.257

but very few people actually follow through on those.

00:26:44.557 --> 00:26:50.257

And it's this weird thing where no one knows that you have something they don't,

00:26:50.257 --> 00:26:52.297

but unconsciously they do. So they mirror it.

00:26:52.437 --> 00:26:56.597

So you kind of just go around with this massive blind spot your whole life and

00:26:56.597 --> 00:26:58.637

wonder why you don't fit in. Yeah.

00:27:00.060 --> 00:27:04.340

I know that you obviously didn't get to know your dad,

00:27:04.540 --> 00:27:09.800

but I'm curious, based on maybe things that your mom told you,

00:27:09.900 --> 00:27:15.520

I'm wondering this personality that you have, this drive that you have,

00:27:15.640 --> 00:27:22.500

this way of going much deeper than most people's brains will allow.

00:27:22.760 --> 00:27:26.960

Do you know if either your parents, you feel like you got it from either of

00:27:26.960 --> 00:27:29.440

them, or is this something unique to you? you.

00:27:29.600 --> 00:27:36.500

It's so interesting. I, I do know that my father, my birth father was very confident.

00:27:36.640 --> 00:27:39.300

And, and as a matter of fact, he was overconfident, which is,

00:27:39.400 --> 00:27:43.220

I think in some ways, and I never used to share this, but I think that's in

00:27:43.220 --> 00:27:44.860

some ways what he was reckless.

00:27:45.060 --> 00:27:47.460

I would say he he's, he was reckless. I'll leave it there.

00:27:47.780 --> 00:27:50.800

And that's been hard to face by the way. I didn't face that until my thirties,

00:27:50.840 --> 00:27:53.260

but I would say he was overconfident. Yeah.

00:27:53.340 --> 00:27:56.200

And, and some of his choices were reckless listen and arrogant.

00:27:56.640 --> 00:28:00.900

And that's a whole nother level of self-reflection of, you know,

00:28:00.900 --> 00:28:04.980

no one's perfect, but if you want to depedestal your own, your own caregivers,

00:28:05.160 --> 00:28:06.760

that's, that's a whole process.

00:28:07.080 --> 00:28:11.380

But I do know he was intelligent. I do know that he was very confident.

00:28:11.520 --> 00:28:16.360

I know he was extremely charismatic and I'm talking, my mom would say they had

00:28:16.360 --> 00:28:19.820

to shut down the town when he passed away because everybody,

00:28:19.820 --> 00:28:23.440

everybody loved John, everybody bought from John. So John was in sales.

00:28:24.100 --> 00:28:28.580

And I ended up in sales too. What a, what a total shocker. And I remember I

00:28:28.580 --> 00:28:29.500

was like, I'm going to be an engineer.

00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:33.700

And one of my best friends, fathers, he was definitely a father figure to me

00:28:33.700 --> 00:28:36.240

in some ways used to say, you're going to end up in sales.

00:28:36.900 --> 00:28:40.160

And I was like, no, no, no, I'm going to be an engineer. I'm going to be an engineer.

00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:43.900

And he's like, no, you're going to end up in sales. And he's like,

00:28:43.920 --> 00:28:46.380

Alan, that's where all the money is anyway. And I said, I'm an engineer.

00:28:46.540 --> 00:28:48.880

I'm going to be an engineer. And, and, and I ended up in sales.

00:28:49.580 --> 00:28:53.560

So, but I was a a sales engineer. So I was half right. You know what I'm saying?

00:28:53.960 --> 00:28:58.140

But anyway, so, so at the end of the day, I know I got a lot of that from him,

00:28:58.180 --> 00:29:02.620

but I do think, and this is something that I never used to share either.

00:29:02.680 --> 00:29:06.020

Cause I quite frankly just didn't have the courage, but I read a book once called

00:29:06.020 --> 00:29:07.200

the hidden habits of genius.

00:29:07.720 --> 00:29:12.440

And it's by a Yale professor who spent 30 years studying and researching the

00:29:12.440 --> 00:29:16.700

geniuses of history, which by the way, many of the geniuses of history are just awful human beings.

00:29:16.780 --> 00:29:20.360

Okay. So if you ever pick up this book, it's called the hidden habits of genius.

00:29:21.060 --> 00:29:25.740

And he opens the book with this sort of soliloquy, for lack of a better phrasing,

00:29:25.760 --> 00:29:30.360

of, listen, only a non-genius could write this book because geniuses don't know

00:29:30.360 --> 00:29:32.880

they're geniuses. They're just too busy doing genius stuff.

00:29:33.200 --> 00:29:35.840

And again, that's my shorter version of it, obviously.

00:29:36.280 --> 00:29:39.980

And I remember when I read that, I was like, interesting. And so I kept reading.

00:29:40.777 --> 00:29:45.157

And the whole book is predicated on him studying the commonalities of all geniuses.

00:29:45.157 --> 00:29:47.757

And there's a whole different bunch of different types of geniuses.

00:29:47.757 --> 00:29:52.457

There's the Mozart's and there's the Einstein's and the Steve Jobs and all that.

00:29:52.557 --> 00:29:58.517

But at the end of the day, there are 14 common character traits that he uncovers

00:29:58.517 --> 00:30:00.917

for all geniuses of all history.

00:30:01.197 --> 00:30:04.157

And when I saw that list, I freaked out.

00:30:04.157 --> 00:30:10.817

And the reason I freaked out is because you know deep down what you are and

00:30:10.817 --> 00:30:14.637

you don't fit in and you never have and you kind of never will and you know

00:30:14.637 --> 00:30:18.157

it and people like you, but only when you're kind of not fully you.

00:30:18.777 --> 00:30:24.197

It's this weird thing where everything feels like fairly easy for you.

00:30:24.317 --> 00:30:29.017

You feel super confident in your abilities where everyone else thinks you're delusional.

00:30:29.337 --> 00:30:34.157

And but yet you you don't fit in at all. And the part of my story I haven't

00:30:34.157 --> 00:30:35.597

shared yet is I had a drinking problem.

00:30:35.717 --> 00:30:38.697

And one of the reasons why is because it just dialed down my future orientation.

00:30:38.737 --> 00:30:41.477

It dialed down my science, technology, engineering, mathematics,

00:30:41.677 --> 00:30:42.737

business, and finance brain.

00:30:43.017 --> 00:30:49.797

And so I, after reading that book, had this sort of mid-re-quarter life crisis, so to speak.

00:30:50.419 --> 00:30:54.559

And I realized that I had all 14 of those character traits at like a level 12

00:30:54.559 --> 00:30:58.139

out of 10. And so again, am I a self-proclaimed genius?

00:30:58.339 --> 00:31:02.939

No, that's not what I'm saying. What I am saying is that I exiled the part of

00:31:02.939 --> 00:31:04.539

me that is most authentic.

00:31:04.699 --> 00:31:09.579

When I'm alone behind the scenes, that is who I am. I don't hang out.

00:31:09.719 --> 00:31:13.479

I never have. I watch movies. I like movies. I love food.

00:31:14.839 --> 00:31:19.799

I'm lazy at times, but honestly, not usually. And so it's interesting because

00:31:19.799 --> 00:31:23.319

what's scary for me is social.

00:31:23.959 --> 00:31:27.539

So Kevin and I, we kind of figured this out. If we're going to go give a speech

00:31:27.539 --> 00:31:29.639

in front of a thousand people, we speak together.

00:31:30.239 --> 00:31:34.339

He's afraid he's not going to add value. And I'm not concerned about that whatsoever.

00:31:34.819 --> 00:31:38.379

I know this is going to add value. you. I'm going to get you to think differently.

00:31:38.759 --> 00:31:42.019

I'm going to get you to contemplate things you never have. I'm going to get

00:31:42.019 --> 00:31:45.359

you to understand things you never would have understood had I not been there.

00:31:45.539 --> 00:31:48.259

And even just saying that, I'll get villainized for.

00:31:48.659 --> 00:31:51.239

But here's the thing. He's certain everyone's going to like him.

00:31:51.739 --> 00:31:56.499

I am not at all. If you said, Alan, you have to give a speech in front of a

00:31:56.499 --> 00:32:00.959

thousand people and everyone there has to understand more and get value.

00:32:01.139 --> 00:32:04.179

I would say 10 out of 10. Let's rock and roll. I'm in. I'm your guy.

00:32:04.559 --> 00:32:06.459

There's no one who can do that better.

00:32:06.859 --> 00:32:11.559

But if you said, Alan, everyone there needs to like you, I would say that is literally impossible.

00:32:12.119 --> 00:32:15.299

And you can see it in my energy. You can hear it in my tone.

00:32:15.399 --> 00:32:17.099

I'm telling you right now that is impossible.

00:32:17.819 --> 00:32:21.799

Now, here's the thing. I want to change the world. I want to help people.

00:32:21.859 --> 00:32:23.619

I want to bring self-improvement to their lives.

00:32:24.239 --> 00:32:27.799

I'm here right now to do that. But it turns out people need to like me to learn

00:32:27.799 --> 00:32:29.799

from me. And I'm not a likable guy. eye.

00:32:30.019 --> 00:32:35.719

And so it's this weird duality where everyone who meets me kind of knows I'm

00:32:35.719 --> 00:32:38.639

not like them, but they don't know why. It's unconscious.

00:32:38.859 --> 00:32:42.579

And I trigger them. And I think what it is at an unconscious level,

00:32:42.679 --> 00:32:45.039

and I never used to understand this, is that people that are really,

00:32:45.079 --> 00:32:49.719

really, really, really, really smart, they trigger people because most people

00:32:49.719 --> 00:32:50.999

are insecure about their intelligence.

00:32:51.539 --> 00:32:56.199

For me, I'm not insecure about my intelligence. I say dumb stuff all the time.

00:32:56.219 --> 00:33:00.479

I ask dumb questions, but truth be told, I know I'm not dumb and other people

00:33:00.479 --> 00:33:01.419

are usually the opposite.

00:33:01.539 --> 00:33:02.899

So most people are pretending to

00:33:02.899 --> 00:33:05.479

be smarter than they are. I'm actually pretending to be dumber than I am.

00:33:06.019 --> 00:33:09.139

And why? Because we all want to belong. Yes.

00:33:09.279 --> 00:33:12.399

And so behind the scenes, it's safe for me to be my computer engineering,

00:33:12.659 --> 00:33:16.399

freaky, deaky Dutch genius, but in front of people, it's not.

00:33:16.859 --> 00:33:20.579

But then it's this weird thing where that's also your greatest strength.

00:33:20.679 --> 00:33:24.159

So your Your greatest strength comes with this massive fear,

00:33:24.379 --> 00:33:27.639

this massive weakness. So for me, my pain was social.

00:33:28.435 --> 00:33:34.135

Why am I the only one with dreams? Why am I the only one who believes in himself?

00:33:34.635 --> 00:33:39.115

Why does everyone think I'm so arrogant? Why does everyone think I'm delusional?

00:33:39.375 --> 00:33:42.435

And the cool part about this is if you actually do stick with it,

00:33:42.475 --> 00:33:45.435

people think you're less arrogant and less delusional as you actually start

00:33:45.435 --> 00:33:48.155

to achieve these things that you said you were going to achieve.

00:33:48.155 --> 00:33:51.895

So eventually it's like, oh, I've gotten the text of, hey, don't look too far

00:33:51.895 --> 00:33:54.855

into this, bro. But I'm sorry for being such a dick back in the day.

00:33:56.715 --> 00:34:00.035

It's like, thank you so much. You believe in me now. I didn't need it now.

00:34:00.195 --> 00:34:05.515

I need it then. And, you know, so at the end of the day, we all have two pains.

00:34:05.555 --> 00:34:07.795

And this will be my last thing I'll say about this point.

00:34:08.235 --> 00:34:12.075

Your pain is either social or it's competence.

00:34:12.655 --> 00:34:15.775

So there's social pain and then there's competence pain.

00:34:16.455 --> 00:34:19.635

Competence pain is more common. It's I don't know if I'm going to get the job.

00:34:19.735 --> 00:34:21.475

I don't know if I'm going to be able to pass the test.

00:34:21.595 --> 00:34:24.055

I don't know if I'm going to be able to be on that sports team.

00:34:24.115 --> 00:34:25.075

I don't know if I can do it.

00:34:25.135 --> 00:34:27.655

I don't know if I'm smart enough, good enough, good looking enough,

00:34:27.715 --> 00:34:29.715

whatever. Okay, that I don't have.

00:34:29.775 --> 00:34:33.355

And everyone listening who does have that kind of knows intuitively I don't.

00:34:33.375 --> 00:34:36.875

The other one is the social pain.

00:34:37.055 --> 00:34:39.155

And I'm talking this one.

00:34:39.415 --> 00:34:45.855

If you do have really high belief and you are extraordinary and you know it,

00:34:45.995 --> 00:34:50.335

you have this one in spades. People lash out at you and you have no idea why.

00:34:50.675 --> 00:34:54.835

Nobody likes you and you don't know why. you've always felt villainized for

00:34:54.835 --> 00:34:56.215

what seems like no reason.

00:34:56.715 --> 00:35:00.595

You always feel like you're bullied and people make rude comments.

00:35:00.775 --> 00:35:03.615

They rib you for no reason. They talk behind your back.

00:35:03.855 --> 00:35:08.455

And I'm sitting here going, I'm trying to help kids. If you were going to hate

00:35:08.455 --> 00:35:11.315

me, why didn't you hate me when I was drinking and being an idiot?

00:35:12.075 --> 00:35:17.415

Now I have a charity for underprivileged kids and you're still asking on me, right?

00:35:17.715 --> 00:35:20.615

So at the end of the day, you just have to own who you are.

00:35:20.735 --> 00:35:25.595

And the people who are on my end are afraid of success because when you're more

00:35:25.595 --> 00:35:28.775

successful, you're less relatable and more villainized.

00:35:29.135 --> 00:35:33.895

The people on the other end are afraid of failure because they are afraid they're not good enough.

00:35:34.015 --> 00:35:37.355

And the irony of all of this I've come to realize is face the fear,

00:35:37.475 --> 00:35:38.995

false expectations appearing real.

00:35:39.235 --> 00:35:43.495

I am so afraid to be villainized. I have to face that fear inside of me.

00:35:43.535 --> 00:35:45.695

And I have to say, it's okay if you don't like me.

00:35:45.795 --> 00:35:49.795

It's okay. And I have to face my social fears and I have to have social courage.

00:35:49.995 --> 00:35:52.055

But I don't need more competence, courage.

00:35:52.335 --> 00:35:54.355

I applied to the jobs. I do the whatever.

00:35:54.855 --> 00:35:57.935

It's all good. Resume, LinkedIn, cover letter, rock and roll,

00:35:58.015 --> 00:36:03.095

spreadsheets, habits, consistency, discipline, got it. That's no problem for me.

00:36:03.335 --> 00:36:07.195

So all the advice that's being given in the self-improvement space wasn't for me.

00:36:07.515 --> 00:36:11.635

Because statistically speaking, people who don't struggle with self-belief...

00:36:12.727 --> 00:36:18.387

Aren't common. So there's no market for it. And so we live in this world where

00:36:18.387 --> 00:36:22.007

some people think you're delusional. Like everyone thinks Elon's delusional.

00:36:22.107 --> 00:36:24.507

He actually isn't though. He did most of it.

00:36:24.687 --> 00:36:27.987

Now there are certain things about him that are delusional and please don't

00:36:27.987 --> 00:36:31.327

associate me with Elon Musk because I do not necessarily think that he's a good

00:36:31.327 --> 00:36:34.687

person and I'm not saying he's bad or good. Just please don't associate me with him whatsoever.

00:36:34.907 --> 00:36:38.827

Okay. But my point is, is that he's definitely misunderstood and,

00:36:38.867 --> 00:36:40.687

and understandably misunderstood by the way.

00:36:40.687 --> 00:36:44.847

But the point i'm making is you are on one end or the other you are either afraid

00:36:44.847 --> 00:36:48.847

to not be good enough Or you're afraid to be too much And if you're afraid to

00:36:48.847 --> 00:36:52.367

not be good enough, you're pretending to be more than you are and that needs to stop.

00:36:52.947 --> 00:36:57.067

And you need to own who you are And ironically, you'll actually be good enough

00:36:57.067 --> 00:37:00.127

and then on my end you're afraid you're too much.

00:37:00.267 --> 00:37:04.367

So you have to own The part of you that's too much and still have the courage

00:37:04.367 --> 00:37:08.507

to sit in that And be that because that's the light and the guide that people

00:37:08.507 --> 00:37:13.147

need And ironically, the fears self-perpetuate if you let them drive.

00:37:13.367 --> 00:37:16.487

If you're afraid you're not smart enough, you're going to avoid asking a dumb

00:37:16.487 --> 00:37:18.307

question and then you're not going to be smart enough.

00:37:18.547 --> 00:37:22.647

If you're afraid you're too much for people, you're going to dial down constantly

00:37:22.647 --> 00:37:25.867

and therefore eventually they're going to find out you're too much and it's

00:37:25.867 --> 00:37:28.707

going to ruin your relationships, which is going to what? Make it better or worse.

00:37:29.187 --> 00:37:32.647

And so we all have to face the deepest fear inside of us. I used to think fear

00:37:32.647 --> 00:37:33.407

was something external.

00:37:33.627 --> 00:37:36.747

I don't agree with that anymore. I think it's something inside that you have

00:37:36.747 --> 00:37:39.947

to look at. You're either afraid you're too smart or you're afraid you're not.

00:37:40.067 --> 00:37:44.407

And either way, you got to face that demon down and you got to you got to overcome

00:37:44.407 --> 00:37:46.247

it by accepting who you really are.

00:37:46.407 --> 00:37:50.527

And then you either make up for your lack of giftedness with humility and work

00:37:50.527 --> 00:37:57.387

ethic or you face the fact that you are gifted and then go serve the world with those gifts. Wow.

00:37:58.587 --> 00:38:05.587

So I'm going to say something and you can take it however you want is. Yeah.

00:38:05.966 --> 00:38:11.986

I'm wondering what it says about me and the fact that I think I like you.

00:38:15.486 --> 00:38:21.486

I mean, granted, I mean, I just know you from outside world.

00:38:21.606 --> 00:38:26.246

I'm not in your world, but I'm like, I mean, I don't know. I like the guy.

00:38:26.426 --> 00:38:30.966

Maybe there's something wrong with me. But, you know, I appreciate that.

00:38:31.026 --> 00:38:34.266

I think my my scientist brain turns on and goes, why is that?

00:38:34.266 --> 00:38:36.686

Yeah. Number one, I do think I've healed a lot of my stuff.

00:38:36.746 --> 00:38:41.446

So I'm being villainized less than I used to because I think the old me used

00:38:41.446 --> 00:38:45.266

to pretend to not be smart and then turn on smarts randomly.

00:38:45.506 --> 00:38:47.126

And so it was this weird wonky thing.

00:38:47.666 --> 00:38:51.726

So I'm more vulnerable and honest now. And I've worked on my trauma.

00:38:51.866 --> 00:38:55.206

So I think that's part of it. I don't trigger people as much as I used to.

00:38:55.266 --> 00:38:59.246

I think that's part of it. And then the other piece of it is you probably believe in yourself a lot.

00:38:59.366 --> 00:39:01.626

People with high self-belief, I don't trigger.

00:39:02.166 --> 00:39:07.546

Because they get it. They're like, yeah, I wish more people were like this. Well, of course you do.

00:39:08.666 --> 00:39:11.886

And by the way, they're not. And that's okay.

00:39:12.126 --> 00:39:16.506

And that's okay. But you have to be that, which ironically, you're probably scared to be.

00:39:16.666 --> 00:39:18.226

And so I would tell you, you have

00:39:18.226 --> 00:39:21.246

sneaky self-belief. You have a lot more self-belief than people realize.

00:39:21.606 --> 00:39:25.646

That's why you're doing this podcast right now. I mean, how many people have

00:39:25.646 --> 00:39:28.426

thought about chasing a dream and not done it?

00:39:28.486 --> 00:39:30.666

I mean, what's the real reason underneath it? I always say this.

00:39:30.726 --> 00:39:33.906

I say, why would someone, you ever meet those guys, Kev, where,

00:39:34.146 --> 00:39:37.726

Kev, as if we're buddies. We are buddies. Kev, my man Kev.

00:39:38.946 --> 00:39:43.126

All right. So you ever meet those guys who act so confident?

00:39:43.306 --> 00:39:45.106

Like the, I call them the puffer fish.

00:39:45.546 --> 00:39:51.946

They just walk around like, oh yeah, I'm the man.

00:39:52.526 --> 00:39:59.086

Right? And I ask this question, why would someone with level 10 self-belief,

00:39:59.629 --> 00:40:05.329

have level two goals. It's not real. It's actually an overcorrection from the

00:40:05.329 --> 00:40:07.269

deep insecurity of feeling not enough.

00:40:07.449 --> 00:40:11.649

And so the people who actually feel enough don't have to flaunt it. Yes.

00:40:12.089 --> 00:40:14.649

So that's why you don't dislike me.

00:40:17.869 --> 00:40:22.589

That's my thesis. I'm sticking to it. And see, this is what's the difference

00:40:22.589 --> 00:40:25.009

between you and me, because the only thing I could come up with,

00:40:25.089 --> 00:40:29.429

I'm like, well, his business partner is named Kevin. It must be something to do with the name Kevin.

00:40:29.969 --> 00:40:34.629

Well, I think through association, you know, I must be a good dude because Kevin's a good dude.

00:40:34.709 --> 00:40:37.389

And so people like me because I'm associated with Kevin. They're like,

00:40:37.449 --> 00:40:41.529

well, if Kev can put up with him, maybe I can too, you know?

00:40:41.729 --> 00:40:43.629

Yeah. Oh my gosh. I love it.

00:40:44.709 --> 00:40:48.769

So back on kind of lined with this story that you were sharing earlier,

00:40:48.849 --> 00:40:52.509

and you talked about the car accident that you were in.

00:40:52.749 --> 00:41:01.209

And I mean, let's face it, the irony of the closeness and age to that of your

00:41:01.209 --> 00:41:04.789

dad when he was in this car accident is very crazy.

00:41:05.049 --> 00:41:10.549

But what I wonder about it is why do you think.

00:41:11.944 --> 00:41:15.124

That was such a pivotal moment.

00:41:15.444 --> 00:41:20.324

Why do you think that it wasn't just a car accident and you go on with life?

00:41:20.444 --> 00:41:22.964

Why do you think it made such a big difference?

00:41:23.924 --> 00:41:27.684

Well, I've been asking myself that a lot, too, over the last nine years because

00:41:27.684 --> 00:41:29.064

this happened nine years ago.

00:41:29.384 --> 00:41:34.244

And I've always been a bit of an existentialist. And for those of you who don't

00:41:34.244 --> 00:41:36.944

know what an existentialist means, it means what is the point?

00:41:37.364 --> 00:41:41.984

Existence. Existentialism means what is the point? What is the purpose?

00:41:42.164 --> 00:41:44.884

Why are we here? And what does it all mean?

00:41:45.364 --> 00:41:49.544

And there's a book called A Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.

00:41:49.604 --> 00:41:54.184

And for the women listening, please do not be turned off by the title because

00:41:54.184 --> 00:41:56.984

it's a wonderful, he means mankind, not just men.

00:41:57.564 --> 00:42:03.244

And so Viktor Frankl is a genius. And Viktor Frankl was in concentration camps during World War II.

00:42:03.804 --> 00:42:08.684

And he reflects on his experience in the worst circumstances you can possibly imagine.

00:42:09.004 --> 00:42:12.744

And for me, it's my perspective reset. Every time I think I'm having a hard

00:42:12.744 --> 00:42:16.464

day, Kev, I say, Alan, you've got running water, you've got a roof over your

00:42:16.464 --> 00:42:17.884

head, you've got nice clothing.

00:42:18.024 --> 00:42:20.644

Like, come on, man, you're fine. You have a 30-second commute.

00:42:20.864 --> 00:42:23.104

Oh, I can't believe I have to do this podcast, right?

00:42:23.384 --> 00:42:27.944

It's like, Alan, come on. Come on, man. So it's my perspective reset.

00:42:28.124 --> 00:42:32.884

And it brings me back down to earth when things are going good or bad.

00:42:33.224 --> 00:42:36.924

And the point of that is I've always been a bit of an existentialist.

00:42:36.944 --> 00:42:40.504

And so when things happen to me, I don't just let them ride.

00:42:40.704 --> 00:42:43.324

Oh, well, car accidents happen. I mean, I do my research.

00:42:43.544 --> 00:42:47.044

Back when I did get in my car accident, this was back in 2015.

00:42:47.664 --> 00:42:54.344

The average, I believe I looked this up at the time, it was 43,000 motor vehicle deaths in the US.

00:42:54.564 --> 00:42:58.224

And I think at the time we had like 300 million people. I think it's 338 now.

00:42:58.324 --> 00:43:01.564

I'm a big numbers guy, by the way. So I've done my research,

00:43:01.684 --> 00:43:05.984

but at the end of the day, I can't move forward. And I think this might be unique to me. I'm not sure.

00:43:06.184 --> 00:43:10.024

I can't move forward until I understand what happened there.

00:43:10.864 --> 00:43:16.464

Why did that happen? And I remember this really silly quote that I read way, way, way back.

00:43:16.564 --> 00:43:19.464

And it said, the person who understands how will always have a job.

00:43:19.564 --> 00:43:21.544

The person who understands why will always be their boss.

00:43:22.004 --> 00:43:26.724

Now, what I mean by that, because I hate the word boss, I like leader, being a leader.

00:43:27.404 --> 00:43:30.724

You'll never hear me use manager or boss. You'll never hear employee.

00:43:31.004 --> 00:43:33.984

We have 21 team members, but I'm not their boss.

00:43:34.244 --> 00:43:38.304

I am a leader. But anyways, so that quote, I do believe is valid though.

00:43:38.524 --> 00:43:42.264

Meaning, you have to know how things work and why they work.

00:43:42.544 --> 00:43:45.764

And for me, there's three main categories that I'm trying to understand.

00:43:45.764 --> 00:43:49.304

And, and I, again, I do think this is kind of weird, but I remember in my early

00:43:49.304 --> 00:43:52.984

twenties, I decided I wanted to be as intelligent as I possibly could.

00:43:53.024 --> 00:43:56.324

Meaning I wanted to understand more about the world than anyone ever had.

00:43:56.444 --> 00:44:00.544

And I know that's really weird, but whatever. That was my honest conversation myself.

00:44:00.984 --> 00:44:05.564

Now there's three categories. Number one is yourself, self-awareness.

00:44:06.228 --> 00:44:09.708

You need to understand how you work and why you work that way.

00:44:09.828 --> 00:44:11.308

You've got to study the self.

00:44:11.448 --> 00:44:15.028

Now, in the analogy of the GPS, that's the current location.

00:44:15.228 --> 00:44:18.508

So your GPS needs three things. It needs destination address,

00:44:18.808 --> 00:44:21.828

accurate destination address, aka a goal.

00:44:21.968 --> 00:44:26.888

It needs current location, accurate current location, aka self-awareness.

00:44:27.048 --> 00:44:31.428

And it needs updated data about the terrain and the roads and the lakes and

00:44:31.428 --> 00:44:35.628

the mountains and whatever else. If you're off on any of those three things,

00:44:35.748 --> 00:44:38.248

the GPS is going to drive you right into a lake.

00:44:38.468 --> 00:44:41.768

And so I think that's what life is, right? We set these goals,

00:44:41.868 --> 00:44:45.268

but they're inaccurate goals based on who we really are. Why?

00:44:45.368 --> 00:44:47.168

Because we're inaccurate about who we really are.

00:44:47.308 --> 00:44:49.928

Because we're drowning in all this misinformation of feedback,

00:44:50.168 --> 00:44:52.988

people bullying us, our upbringings were tough.

00:44:53.828 --> 00:44:56.728

We're told we're dumb when we're smart. We're told we're smart when we're dumb.

00:44:56.848 --> 00:45:00.908

It's this whole massive misinformation, inaccurate self-perception.

00:45:00.908 --> 00:45:04.308

And then you don't know how the world works. You don't know how the economy works.

00:45:04.508 --> 00:45:06.908

You don't know how business works. You don't have the skills.

00:45:07.048 --> 00:45:11.588

So you're driving into mountains or into lakes because you have the inaccurate data.

00:45:11.728 --> 00:45:17.428

I don't know if anyone listening is my age or older, but we used to have something called a Garmin.

00:45:17.508 --> 00:45:22.588

And the Garmin was a GPS before Google Maps, before Waze, before Apple Maps.

00:45:22.888 --> 00:45:25.628

And it was garbage. It was absolute garbage.

00:45:26.148 --> 00:45:30.748

And this thing will drive you into a lake, right? And it needs to update the data.

00:45:31.268 --> 00:45:34.568

And so my coaching is really just how do we update the data?

00:45:34.608 --> 00:45:37.528

Even this podcast right now, there's three buckets of understanding.

00:45:37.768 --> 00:45:40.568

Number one is yourself, how you work and why you work that way.

00:45:40.688 --> 00:45:45.588

Number two is other people, human beings, how they work and why they work that

00:45:45.588 --> 00:45:48.548

way. And then number three is the world, how it works and why it works.

00:45:48.899 --> 00:45:51.399

Why it works that way. I had this one client one time, her name's Bianca.

00:45:51.419 --> 00:45:54.179

She doesn't mind me sharing this. She said, Alan, I just don't think I'm self-aware enough.

00:45:54.519 --> 00:45:58.219

I said, you've got to stop. You're one of the most self-aware people I've ever

00:45:58.219 --> 00:45:59.079

met. You're a clinician.

00:45:59.439 --> 00:46:03.439

You self-reflect every single day. You have a coach who's constantly telling

00:46:03.439 --> 00:46:06.579

you and giving you feedback about your blind spots.

00:46:06.979 --> 00:46:09.939

You are one of the most self-aware people I've ever met. You want to know the

00:46:09.939 --> 00:46:13.619

truth? You just don't know how business works. You're trying to build a business

00:46:13.619 --> 00:46:14.879

and you don't know how to build a business.

00:46:15.299 --> 00:46:18.359

You don't know how science, technology, engineering mathematics business

00:46:18.359 --> 00:46:21.859

and finance works you don't need more self-awareness i

00:46:21.859 --> 00:46:24.539

mean you do because you always do but you know what i'm saying what you

00:46:24.539 --> 00:46:27.479

if what you wanted was what you needed you'd already have

00:46:27.479 --> 00:46:31.539

it remember that if what you wanted was what you needed you'd already have it

00:46:31.539 --> 00:46:36.179

so here i am over here studying the goddamn economy again in my 20s and here

00:46:36.179 --> 00:46:41.039

she is studying self and she needs to go learn the economy and i need to self-reflect

00:46:41.039 --> 00:46:44.619

and so we're We're all righty or lefty,

00:46:44.619 --> 00:46:48.459

but we need to work on the opposite arm and we need to be ambidextrous.

00:46:48.539 --> 00:46:54.399

And so the longest winded answer ever to your original question is I'm an existentialist

00:46:54.399 --> 00:46:55.719

who needed to understand.

00:46:55.819 --> 00:47:00.579

I playfully joke with my partner, Emilia. I say, I don't want to know. I effing need to know.

00:47:01.599 --> 00:47:06.179

And that's that's my life is to learn as much as humanly possible. Yeah, absolutely.

00:47:06.539 --> 00:47:11.679

Oh, my God. And so my next question is,

00:47:11.699 --> 00:47:23.379

is if the car accident was a massive pivot point in life and you set off on this, this direction,

00:47:23.499 --> 00:47:31.439

what is the, the pivot point though, that actually makes the turn to get you

00:47:31.439 --> 00:47:33.419

to where you are today? Yeah.

00:47:33.775 --> 00:47:40.955

Yeah. So the pivot point post car accident, I think the one thing I would point

00:47:40.955 --> 00:47:43.255

to more than anything is getting my health and fitness in order.

00:47:43.935 --> 00:47:49.035

I tell this story. I wrote a blog about this once. It was 2014, I think.

00:47:49.215 --> 00:47:53.155

No. Whenever the Superman movie came out with Henry Cable, I don't remember

00:47:53.155 --> 00:47:56.815

when, but there's this shirtless scene where he gets out of this lake and he's

00:47:56.815 --> 00:48:00.515

jacked. And I was not taking my fitness seriously.

00:48:01.095 --> 00:48:05.935

I was drinking too much and too often. I just was letting myself down,

00:48:06.055 --> 00:48:10.355

letting myself down, letting myself down, letting myself down and stuck in the shame of all that.

00:48:10.355 --> 00:48:16.175

And I remember when that scene happened, I saw his physique and I was just, whoa.

00:48:16.495 --> 00:48:20.575

And I said, I got to go to the bathroom. I had a Mountain Dew and Captain Morgan

00:48:20.575 --> 00:48:23.135

and I was drinking at the time and it was after dinner.

00:48:23.195 --> 00:48:24.855

I was with a friend and I said, I got to go to the bathroom.

00:48:24.935 --> 00:48:25.655

I didn't have to go to the bathroom.

00:48:25.775 --> 00:48:28.875

I just looked in the mirror and I just ended up weeping, crying.

00:48:29.055 --> 00:48:34.655

I just looked at my frail, let myself down physique and I just started weeping.

00:48:35.375 --> 00:48:40.455

And after that, I started to dial in fitness. I started to try to go to the

00:48:40.455 --> 00:48:43.955

gym and it took a while and post-car accident, same deal.

00:48:44.035 --> 00:48:48.175

I started really getting my fitness going and so much in fact,

00:48:48.175 --> 00:48:51.735

that I ended up being a fitness coach, fitness competitor, fitness model.

00:48:51.875 --> 00:48:53.195

I've done 41 photo shoots.

00:48:53.415 --> 00:49:00.375

So if you Google my name, there will be some pictures of me in my skivvies, nothing nude.

00:49:00.495 --> 00:49:02.355

It's underwear, some underwear stuff.

00:49:02.495 --> 00:49:06.095

But at the end of the day, it's interesting. Engineer turned fitness model.

00:49:06.215 --> 00:49:11.035

It's a weird life, but not an often combination. You know what I mean?

00:49:11.475 --> 00:49:14.155

But the point that I'm making is, is the thing that got me here,

00:49:14.235 --> 00:49:17.175

I think more than anything was finally dialing in my health and fitness.

00:49:17.435 --> 00:49:22.235

Cause I was this tall, lanky, ectomorphic prepubescent high schooler.

00:49:22.275 --> 00:49:27.575

My sister was older and she was a senior when I was a freshman and I was just, I hadn't hit puberty.

00:49:27.675 --> 00:49:30.175

I still kind of haven't. So imagine me back then. Right.

00:49:30.735 --> 00:49:35.215

And so I just was so jealous of all these guys who could dunk in high school

00:49:35.215 --> 00:49:39.075

and they all looked like men with beards. And my sister's friends used to give

00:49:39.075 --> 00:49:42.295

me pity dances and she was the most popular girl in the high school for the

00:49:42.295 --> 00:49:44.935

most part. And I, I just remember feeling so insignificant.

00:49:45.255 --> 00:49:50.215

And so when I finally started getting my fitness going, everything else changed

00:49:50.215 --> 00:49:51.915

for me. I started feeling stronger.

00:49:52.215 --> 00:49:55.435

I started feeling better about myself. And more importantly,

00:49:55.495 --> 00:49:58.195

underneath all this to answer your original question is self-worth. Thank you.

00:49:58.622 --> 00:50:01.782

I believe now that those are the two things that matter most.

00:50:01.902 --> 00:50:04.582

I know you and I have talked about this in our group coaching program.

00:50:05.062 --> 00:50:09.422

The self-belief is critical. And I always felt like I had self-belief,

00:50:09.442 --> 00:50:11.882

but I never felt like I had self-worth.

00:50:12.422 --> 00:50:18.182

Self-belief is I can build the castle. Self-worth is I deserve to live here

00:50:18.182 --> 00:50:21.382

and I'm going to honor and respect the castle and I'm going to set boundaries

00:50:21.382 --> 00:50:23.842

and I'm going to take care of it and I'm going to clean it and I'm I'm going

00:50:23.842 --> 00:50:28.262

to renovate it versus I'm going to invite my friends to spill beer on the carpets

00:50:28.262 --> 00:50:31.122

and treat me like trash and that kind of thing.

00:50:31.262 --> 00:50:34.242

And so for those of you who have had adverse childhood experiences,

00:50:34.402 --> 00:50:36.642

back to the ACE score, ACE, your

00:50:36.642 --> 00:50:40.382

self-worth is most likely lower than it should be. Mine certainly was.

00:50:40.682 --> 00:50:44.362

And so as I got older and wiser and I worked harder and harder and harder on

00:50:44.362 --> 00:50:47.882

building my castle, so to speak, self-improvement versus just achievement,

00:50:48.062 --> 00:50:50.602

I started to really build self-esteem and self-worth.

00:50:50.762 --> 00:50:53.422

And fortunately, that's what's really made the biggest difference for me.

00:50:53.762 --> 00:50:57.942

And again, if what you were already good at was what you needed to work on,

00:50:58.062 --> 00:51:00.682

we would all be well-rounded.

00:51:00.822 --> 00:51:04.462

And so a lot of us are not holistic and not well-rounded because we want to

00:51:04.462 --> 00:51:06.682

just double down on what's already easy for us.

00:51:07.242 --> 00:51:12.122

When in reality, what we have to do is look at, usually our strengths are in

00:51:12.122 --> 00:51:15.482

the opposite direction of whatever our deepest pain is. And if you can turn

00:51:15.482 --> 00:51:16.722

around and look at that pain.

00:51:16.862 --> 00:51:20.622

So for me, feeling insignificant, feeling like my stepdad never wanted kids,

00:51:20.762 --> 00:51:24.942

losing my dad, not having male role models, being a prepubescent,

00:51:24.962 --> 00:51:29.342

insignificant young man who was playing the long game, but was overseen by all the girls.

00:51:29.742 --> 00:51:34.782

All that stuff drove me. And then I eventually got all these results and realized

00:51:34.782 --> 00:51:37.482

it wasn't fulfilling because that wasn't the answer.

00:51:37.622 --> 00:51:40.222

What was the real problem was self-worth, which is building the self.

00:51:40.802 --> 00:51:44.642

And so building the self is how you build self-worth. Invest in yourself.

00:51:45.242 --> 00:51:48.902

Keep the small promises you make to yourself. Set and honor clear boundaries.

00:51:49.062 --> 00:51:52.942

Have the courage to stick up to bullies. Stand up for yourself. Stick up for yourself.

00:51:53.702 --> 00:51:57.642

And then the last one is make sure you don't do, Kevin calls this,

00:51:57.682 --> 00:51:59.222

don't compare apples to apple pie.

00:51:59.442 --> 00:52:03.122

And what he means by that is don't compare your podcast that's brand new to

00:52:03.122 --> 00:52:05.942

ours that we've been doing for seven years, because that's a good way to feel

00:52:05.942 --> 00:52:07.942

terrible about where you are. Wow.

00:52:08.502 --> 00:52:17.902

You have such wisdom. You know, it's really incredible for somebody to have

00:52:17.902 --> 00:52:21.322

gained the amount of insight on life that you have.

00:52:22.325 --> 00:52:25.505

It's honestly, it's really, really amazing.

00:52:26.105 --> 00:52:29.345

Thank you. Seriously. Thank you. I really appreciate it. That is hard for me

00:52:29.345 --> 00:52:34.145

to receive because like I said, the self-worth challenges, but I really,

00:52:34.145 --> 00:52:36.405

I really do appreciate it. It's definitely been hard earned.

00:52:36.545 --> 00:52:40.165

I have not, uh, I've not been hanging out eating Cheetos. You know what I'm saying?

00:52:44.485 --> 00:52:48.025

Only on the weekends, Kevin. You know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, exactly. Exactly.

00:52:49.025 --> 00:52:54.005

So I want to shift gears a little bit and I want to ask you to talk about two

00:52:54.005 --> 00:52:58.065

relationships, the one with your business partner, Kevin Palmieri,

00:52:58.225 --> 00:53:02.545

and the other with, is it your wife, Amelia, or partner?

00:53:02.545 --> 00:53:05.065

So I always say future wife. I actually said that recently.

00:53:05.405 --> 00:53:07.645

And someone said, oh, congratulations.

00:53:08.125 --> 00:53:14.545

I was like, oh, well, we talk about it all the time because we're very future oriented.

00:53:14.805 --> 00:53:18.245

She's an entrepreneur as well. She's extremely future oriented, visionary.

00:53:18.625 --> 00:53:22.985

And we intend on being together forever. And so I say future wife,

00:53:23.125 --> 00:53:24.325

but we're not engaged yet.

00:53:24.785 --> 00:53:28.325

You know, so girlfriend, future wife.

00:53:29.025 --> 00:53:36.525

I love it. I love it. So what I want to ask you about these these two relationships is,

00:53:36.725 --> 00:53:43.505

you know, when you talked about your childhood and it's would make me think

00:53:43.505 --> 00:53:49.585

that relationships could be hard because people leave.

00:53:50.085 --> 00:53:55.845

I'm wondering, though, these two relationships, because of the massive impact

00:53:55.845 --> 00:54:01.725

they are on your day-to-day life, I would love for you just to share a little bit about this.

00:54:01.985 --> 00:54:07.285

Yeah, the two biggest positive impact people in my life are Kevin and Emilia.

00:54:07.465 --> 00:54:11.785

And the truth is, I wouldn't have met Emilia. I don't believe I would have met

00:54:11.785 --> 00:54:14.005

Emilia without Kevin. And so he helped me a lot.

00:54:14.145 --> 00:54:17.045

We talk often about how we playfully joke.

00:54:17.105 --> 00:54:19.865

He's like, I wouldn't have been successful without you. And I say,

00:54:19.945 --> 00:54:23.025

I probably wouldn't have been well-rounded without you.

00:54:23.205 --> 00:54:26.965

So we definitely helped each other tremendously.

00:54:27.465 --> 00:54:31.005

He's helped me become a better man for sure. And if I hadn't become a better

00:54:31.005 --> 00:54:33.685

man, I would never have met my beautiful girlfriend, Emilia.

00:54:33.765 --> 00:54:38.125

She is the most magnificent human being I've ever met. She's the greatest gift of my life.

00:54:38.585 --> 00:54:41.525

I always say the best decision I ever made was going to WPI.

00:54:41.685 --> 00:54:45.485

The second best decision I ever made was leaving my ex. And the best decision

00:54:45.485 --> 00:54:47.105

I ever made was DMing Emilia Smith.

00:54:47.405 --> 00:54:52.085

So without those three, I would be in a very different spot.

00:54:52.465 --> 00:54:56.945

Playfulness aside, Kev and Emilia have definitely, and again,

00:54:56.985 --> 00:55:02.185

I didn't know that I had this sort of unlovable little genius part of me.

00:55:02.405 --> 00:55:05.565

And for those of you out there who have ever heard of internal family systems,

00:55:05.685 --> 00:55:09.385

it's a modality of therapy where we have different parts and we all have an

00:55:09.385 --> 00:55:12.685

exile and it's usually our deepest fear, the part of us that we have shame around.

00:55:12.685 --> 00:55:17.405

But I had no idea that I had these abandonment issues until I started doing therapy in my thirties.

00:55:18.518 --> 00:55:21.038

I think I had an inkling and I've always been working on it,

00:55:21.078 --> 00:55:25.598

but unconsciously it was, it wasn't until 30 that I started really working on this consciously.

00:55:25.978 --> 00:55:29.178

And the truth of the matter is, is relationships never felt easy for me.

00:55:29.578 --> 00:55:32.298

I always felt like success came very easy.

00:55:33.038 --> 00:55:37.678

Numbers always felt easy. You know, I was the obnoxious guy who could party

00:55:37.678 --> 00:55:40.818

all night, not go to class and then ace all the calculus tests.

00:55:41.078 --> 00:55:44.238

I remember one, one friend of mine in high school, she used to say,

00:55:44.298 --> 00:55:48.098

it takes me 10 hours to study. I teach it to you in 10 minutes and then you beat me on the test.

00:55:49.938 --> 00:55:55.058

I was like, thank you so much for your efforts. We appreciate you so much.

00:55:55.238 --> 00:55:59.458

But anyways, so that stuff, achievement always felt fairly easy for me.

00:55:59.498 --> 00:56:04.398

And again, it's never easy, but it felt fairly easy. The hard part was always social.

00:56:04.498 --> 00:56:07.238

Like I mentioned, relationships were always hard.

00:56:07.378 --> 00:56:10.038

I didn't understand vulnerability. I didn't understand courage.

00:56:10.558 --> 00:56:13.978

I didn't understand humility, what it really meant, what it looked like in a

00:56:13.978 --> 00:56:17.618

relationship. I didn't understand how to communicate effectively.

00:56:17.838 --> 00:56:20.718

I didn't understand core values and love languages.

00:56:21.278 --> 00:56:24.838

And now we have a podcast, Emilia and I, called The Conscious Couples Podcast.

00:56:24.978 --> 00:56:29.478

And now we've been coaching intimate relationship couples for coming up on four

00:56:29.478 --> 00:56:30.638

years now, which is wild.

00:56:30.678 --> 00:56:33.118

Because truth be told, I'm learning more than anyone else is,

00:56:33.138 --> 00:56:36.098

which is great. It's more her genius zone than it is mine.

00:56:36.238 --> 00:56:42.778

I'm the business guy. But Kevin and Emilia have given me the certainty and the

00:56:42.778 --> 00:56:43.978

unconditional love that I think

00:56:43.978 --> 00:56:48.738

I need or needed to to grow into the man that I think I'm meant to be.

00:56:48.838 --> 00:56:55.358

And I do believe that having people around you that want you to be you,

00:56:55.598 --> 00:56:57.258

regardless of themselves.

00:56:58.442 --> 00:57:02.002

Is absolutely critical. And the truth of the matter is that's actually rare.

00:57:02.202 --> 00:57:04.422

And I can break down some of the psychology quickly about that,

00:57:04.462 --> 00:57:08.202

which is there's four sort of types of relationships.

00:57:08.502 --> 00:57:10.642

We all are born as dependent.

00:57:11.002 --> 00:57:15.522

We're dependent on our caregiver, our mom or our dad or our grandma or grandpa or whatever.

00:57:15.642 --> 00:57:20.422

And so we're all born naked, scared and ignorant and dependent on a caregiver.

00:57:20.682 --> 00:57:25.642

And then we grow up and we're a teenager and we're independent and I don't need

00:57:25.642 --> 00:57:29.682

you anymore. I am my own man or my own woman or my own whatever.

00:57:29.962 --> 00:57:33.442

And then we go out and we get humbled quick.

00:57:34.242 --> 00:57:37.782

And then we come crawling back to mommy or daddy or whoever,

00:57:38.562 --> 00:57:42.882

because we were arrogant teenagers who made some seriously bad decisions.

00:57:43.042 --> 00:57:47.082

And maybe I'm just talking about myself, a friend of mine, right?

00:57:47.402 --> 00:57:51.542

A friend of mine made some bad choices, quote unquote. It wasn't me.

00:57:51.682 --> 00:57:54.762

It was a friend of mine. No, it was me for sure.

00:57:55.542 --> 00:57:59.982

And so you are dependent and then you're independent. And then eventually after

00:57:59.982 --> 00:58:03.702

you get smacked down by life, inevitably you become codependent.

00:58:03.822 --> 00:58:06.102

And codependent is not a good place.

00:58:06.362 --> 00:58:09.022

Codependent is I need you rather than I want you.

00:58:09.962 --> 00:58:15.082

Codependent is I need you to stay with me and you hold on too tightly.

00:58:15.162 --> 00:58:16.982

There's that hold on loosely, but don't let go.

00:58:17.102 --> 00:58:20.302

That is the fourth step that most people don't get to.

00:58:20.562 --> 00:58:23.062

And it took me years and years and years and years to realize this.

00:58:23.062 --> 00:58:27.802

But interdependent is I don't need you and you don't need me,

00:58:27.862 --> 00:58:28.762

but we're better together.

00:58:29.022 --> 00:58:32.442

And so at NLU, I say better together, hashtag better together all the time.

00:58:32.502 --> 00:58:36.282

But the truth is, I don't need Kevin and he doesn't need me.

00:58:37.162 --> 00:58:41.722

Now, if that's true, I need oxygen. Oxygen goes away and I'm screwed.

00:58:41.922 --> 00:58:45.362

So I need oxygen. I don't need Kevin. I want Kevin.

00:58:46.322 --> 00:58:51.662

Unconditional love is not needy. Unconditional love is we are two independent

00:58:51.662 --> 00:58:54.642

human beings who are interdependent,

00:58:55.355 --> 00:58:58.615

Because we're better off together than we are apart. The whole is greater than

00:58:58.615 --> 00:59:01.715

the sum of its parts. And so it took me so many years to figure that out.

00:59:02.055 --> 00:59:06.795

But a lot of us have codependent relationships with our caregivers or with our

00:59:06.795 --> 00:59:09.095

kids. And I don't have kids, so I'm not speaking about that.

00:59:09.275 --> 00:59:14.135

But our friends, our intimate partners, and it creates this,

00:59:14.295 --> 00:59:19.295

you have to be who I need you to be instead of you get to be and evolve and

00:59:19.295 --> 00:59:20.575

grow into who you're meant to be.

00:59:20.575 --> 00:59:25.735

And fortunately, Emilia and Kev have been that for me, where they have evolved

00:59:25.735 --> 00:59:31.735

along the way to a point where they aren't trying to get me to be anything other than who I really am.

00:59:32.075 --> 00:59:36.995

And they want to help my phoenix burn down and regrow from those ashes every

00:59:36.995 --> 00:59:40.175

day, every week, every month, every quarter, every year, and every decade.

00:59:40.335 --> 00:59:43.915

And so coming from a childhood where that was definitely not the case,

00:59:43.915 --> 00:59:46.215

there was a lot of codependence, there was a lot of independence,

00:59:46.535 --> 00:59:50.075

there was a lot of dependence, and not a lot of interdependence going on.

00:59:50.075 --> 00:59:53.755

Because quite frankly, it takes a lot of emotional maturity for you to have

00:59:53.755 --> 00:59:54.915

an interdependent relationship.

00:59:55.195 --> 00:59:58.515

Like even right now, this podcast, you don't need me as a guest and I don't

00:59:58.515 --> 01:00:03.855

need to be here, but we're both better off because we're both here. Yeah, absolutely.

01:00:04.195 --> 01:00:08.755

Makes sense. Makes sense to me. I have one last question for you.

01:00:08.795 --> 01:00:14.995

But before we get to that, I want you to tell everybody about what you and Kevin

01:00:14.995 --> 01:00:20.455

have have built and all the ways that they can get plugged into your world.

01:00:20.455 --> 01:00:24.735

Okay, so Next Level University has an interesting origin story.

01:00:24.815 --> 01:00:27.495

I had a podcast called Conversations Change Lives.

01:00:28.195 --> 01:00:34.035

I think people learn four ways. The three big ones that everyone knows is auditory,

01:00:34.035 --> 01:00:36.035

visual, and kinesthetic.

01:00:36.155 --> 01:00:38.795

The one that not a lot of people know about is talking.

01:00:39.815 --> 01:00:43.995

So I learn from conversation. And I think you do as well.

01:00:44.508 --> 01:00:48.868

Kevin, which is why you love podcasting. Yeah. And so we learned through conversation.

01:00:48.988 --> 01:00:52.028

So I started a little podcast called Conversations Change Lives.

01:00:52.208 --> 01:00:53.708

And Kevin was my first guest.

01:00:53.988 --> 01:00:57.848

And he had a podcast called The Hyperconscious Podcast. Change the way you act

01:00:57.848 --> 01:01:00.148

or change the way you think, change the way you act, change the way you live.

01:01:00.228 --> 01:01:01.888

He's never going to forgive me for butchering that.

01:01:03.748 --> 01:01:06.608

But if you look up hyperconscious in the dictionary, it means acutely aware.

01:01:06.808 --> 01:01:10.428

So I was his first guest. He was my first guest. And then we teamed up and had

01:01:10.428 --> 01:01:13.268

the worst podcast title of all time. Are you ready?

01:01:13.628 --> 01:01:18.128

Let's hear it. The Conversations Change Lives Meets Hyperconscious Podcast.

01:01:20.528 --> 01:01:24.948

Brutal. So we did that for about 20 episodes before we woke up from that nightmare.

01:01:25.388 --> 01:01:27.788

And we decided to go all in on hyperconscious.

01:01:28.288 --> 01:01:34.308

And then about 400 to 500 episodes later, we rebranded to what's now known as Next Level University.

01:01:34.648 --> 01:01:39.428

Level up your life, love, health, and wealth. and it's holistic self-improvement

01:01:39.428 --> 01:01:44.308

in your pocket from anywhere on the planet every single day, completely free.

01:01:44.448 --> 01:01:47.148

And we believe in your bigger, better, brighter future.

01:01:47.348 --> 01:01:52.308

And we believe in open source knowledge, which is if you're a young kid who

01:01:52.308 --> 01:01:56.508

needs a guide or a role model, we're there for you every single day from anywhere

01:01:56.508 --> 01:01:57.688

on the planet, completely free.

01:01:57.808 --> 01:02:02.108

Now, we also have a ton of other, you mentioned plug-in, plug-in to Next Level

01:02:02.108 --> 01:02:07.088

Universe or Next Level University. So the website is nextleveluniverse.com.

01:02:07.668 --> 01:02:12.608

That's universe spelled just like it sounds. And then the podcast is Next Level University.

01:02:13.568 --> 01:02:17.788

And we're on all the podcast platforms. I have Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn.

01:02:17.888 --> 01:02:24.188

You can look up my name. You can also email me, A-L-A-N at nextleveluniverse.com.

01:02:24.748 --> 01:02:28.028

And if you do email me, please just provide context.

01:02:28.208 --> 01:02:31.748

Because like all of us, I get a lot of spam email. mail and uh kev

01:02:31.748 --> 01:02:35.808

so the the person who holds next level university.com egg

01:02:35.808 --> 01:02:38.688

on their face because they're charging way too much money so we

01:02:38.688 --> 01:02:43.768

just said you know what this is the next level universe so all all things next

01:02:43.768 --> 01:02:51.888

level next level universe.com so i like it yes well i will be positive that

01:02:51.888 --> 01:02:57.728

everything you just mentioned is in the show notes for anybody interested in accessing that Yeah.

01:02:58.028 --> 01:03:01.028

Alan, I got one last question for you.

01:03:01.068 --> 01:03:08.368

And I listened to our conversation today and I listened to your story of where

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you've come from, where you are today, what you've built.

01:03:11.908 --> 01:03:19.868

You have all this massive, massive success in your business and I would even say your life.

01:03:19.868 --> 01:03:28.788

And what I, though, would love to know is when it's the end of the day and no

01:03:28.788 --> 01:03:31.108

one else is around, you're just maybe laying in bed.

01:03:32.184 --> 01:03:38.124

What do you think? Are you recognizing that what you've built,

01:03:38.184 --> 01:03:40.364

what you've done is because of you?

01:03:40.464 --> 01:03:46.464

Or do you still default to not feeling like you deserve that credit?

01:03:46.704 --> 01:03:50.384

I would say if you had asked me that question before my car accident,

01:03:50.544 --> 01:03:55.344

I would not have been able to honestly say that I was proud of me because I

01:03:55.344 --> 01:04:01.144

wasn't. The truth is I was not maximizing my own I have a quote in the corner of my office.

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It's written there every single day. You are here to maximize your own unique

01:04:06.584 --> 01:04:09.064

potential and to help others do the same.

01:04:09.464 --> 01:04:12.644

Everything else is secondary. That's my calling.

01:04:13.264 --> 01:04:17.304

And it always has been. I don't know if you create a calling or if you uncover

01:04:17.304 --> 01:04:20.664

it. I'm starting to think you uncover it. I've been coaching people my whole life.

01:04:20.744 --> 01:04:24.184

I just started getting paid for it recently in the last seven years.

01:04:25.124 --> 01:04:29.024

You know, I'm the pain in the butt that a lot of people thank later and or just

01:04:29.024 --> 01:04:33.464

run away from, but which, you know, helps the abandonment issue really well.

01:04:33.544 --> 01:04:38.964

So if you want people to like you, don't focus on helping them achieve their

01:04:38.964 --> 01:04:41.424

goals and dreams that they're really just trying to talk about.

01:04:41.544 --> 01:04:46.144

They don't actually want to do the work. But anyways, so I've smartened up over the years.

01:04:46.284 --> 01:04:51.124

And the truth of the matter is I do feel now like I'm in alignment with that calling.

01:04:51.284 --> 01:04:53.284

And so I can honestly say I'm fulfilled.

01:04:53.684 --> 01:04:58.424

Now, if I were to not stay in alignment with that for several weeks,

01:04:58.544 --> 01:05:00.144

I think we all know when we're out of alignment.

01:05:00.284 --> 01:05:03.864

We all know when we're letting ourselves down. We all know when we're not living

01:05:03.864 --> 01:05:07.724

our passion, our purpose, and our profit. We all know deep down.

01:05:08.144 --> 01:05:13.384

And usually it's a whisper saying, Hey, Alan, you really should consider doing

01:05:13.384 --> 01:05:16.084

a little better. Hey, Alan, you should go to the gym.

01:05:16.264 --> 01:05:18.544

Hey, Alan, you should do this.

01:05:18.824 --> 01:05:21.564

You gotta start answering those whispers and answering those calls.

01:05:21.744 --> 01:05:25.544

And so we all have a journey. We all have a hero's journey.

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And I think that the answer is to answer that call and to have the courage to

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become who you're meant to be.

01:05:32.363 --> 01:05:34.763

And only you know for you what that is.

01:05:35.283 --> 01:05:41.563

And I can say now wholeheartedly that I am finally in alignment with that better

01:05:41.563 --> 01:05:46.503

than I've ever been. but I doubt it will be as in alignment as I'll be able

01:05:46.503 --> 01:05:48.483

to say next year and the year after that and the year after that.

01:05:48.583 --> 01:05:51.823

So I'm doing all I can with all I have. And the truth is I never could have

01:05:51.823 --> 01:05:55.923

said that before 26, but now I can say I'm doing all I can with all I have every day.

01:05:55.983 --> 01:06:00.443

I'm not perfect, but I am getting better and I'm getting better with a lot of

01:06:00.443 --> 01:06:01.643

other people that are getting better.

01:06:01.723 --> 01:06:05.103

And so the compound effect of that is definitely rippling outward and the impact

01:06:05.103 --> 01:06:10.203

is rippling outward and it's creating a hell of a quality of life that I'm enjoying thoroughly.

01:06:10.383 --> 01:06:13.963

So thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it, Kev. This is awesome.

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One of my favorites, to be completely honest. I'm sure you get that all the time.

01:06:17.803 --> 01:06:22.983

And I really appreciate the platform. Oh, man, you have no idea how much I've

01:06:22.983 --> 01:06:24.463

enjoyed our conversation today.

01:06:24.963 --> 01:06:31.683

I write back at you. Thank you for being here and for just being so open and honest and real and raw.

01:06:39.463 --> 01:06:42.163

And listening is like i need to re-listen and maybe

01:06:42.163 --> 01:06:44.823

take some notes a second time because it's that

01:06:44.823 --> 01:06:49.563

kind of good so uh man thank you in the most sincere way possible well said

01:06:49.563 --> 01:06:55.883

it's that kind of good i like that it's that kind of good yes it is for you

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listening today i hope you feel the same that it is indeed that kind of good

01:07:01.183 --> 01:07:03.783

this is kevin with great grace and inspiration,

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enjoy the rest of your day.

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