Do Hard Things and Thrive with Mark Drager

Thank you for tuning in to the True Grit and Grace podcast. I'm Amberly Lago, and I'll be sharing inspirational stories of resilience and empowering ideas to elevate your business and your life, ignite your passion, and fuel your purpose. Hey, y'. All. Thank you for tuning in to True Grit and Grace. I have one. One of my good friends on the show today, Mr. Mark Drager. He is an incredible podcast host. His show is, like. He's got incredible legends on his show. I was grateful to get to be on his show called We Do Hard Things. He's the founder of Phantom Media. He's also, like, he hosts amazing panels, and he's an emcee. And we originally met through our friend Bo Hawkins, and we did an event together in North Carolina, and we've been. I've been excited about doing this for a long time. So, Mark, thank you for being here. Welcome to the show.

Oh, thank you. Amberly. I, like, out of everything you just said, which was very nice and very gracious, when you said my friend, I was like, oh, we're friends.

Oh, my gosh. Well, I have to ask you, did I scare you the first time I met you in person?

I'm so glad you brought that up. So. So, audience, the first time, like, listen, if you're listening, as you know, the energy that Amberly brings, everything. Everything she does, and if you see her on Instag and TikTok and all this, if, you know, with all the dancing, the energy she brings to everything. So I'm, like, at this event, helping. I think I flew in a day before you. I'm in North Carolina. I'm like. I'm, like, setting stuff up, and I'm, like, up and off the ladder. And so, like, I'm, like, working and helping Amberly. You come in. You, like, come rocking in to the room as if, like, like, marching band type energy, right? Like. Like, like the party is here because you are here. And you come up and I'm, like, thinking, okay, like, maybe we're handshaking. Maybe we're hugging. You give me a hug.

And then you.

You, like, slap me on the chest, like, over my heart.

I did.

And, yeah, you, like, slap me on the chest over my heart, like, and. And, you know, like, I've been working out and getting fit. We could talk about that a bit, but. But you, like, touch my pec, and you literally go, like, whoo. Oh, that's solid. And I was like. I was like, oh, thank you. Like, first of all, I haven't really been fit for very long in my life. So I have never met anyone who is that, like, who has embraced me, who has noticed my fitness, been impressed with how solid I am. So much so that when I got home, I told my wife all about this. And this is like a life changing moment for me. Like, sometimes you don't realize how much you're progressing until something happens. And you going. Slapping my chest and going, for me, I was like, maybe I. Maybe I am physically fit. Oh, Amberly is impressed with me.

Well, you know what? I noticed that kind of stuff. I really applaud you for the transformation that you have had, but I could tell when I met you, I am like, oh, maybe I was a bit much for Mark, because I come in there like, Mark, hey, it is good to see you. But I really appreciate the hard work that it takes for you to get to where you are in your transformational journey. And I do want to talk about that before we get into, like, you've lost 70 pounds, you've transformed your life, and sometimes it takes your mind a little bit longer to catch up with what you see in the mirror, you know, and sometimes it helps when somebody can kind of go, hey, I see you. You're. You're amazing. And so I want to ask you, who is Mark Drager?

I always consider myself a husband first. You know, I've been with my wife for 22 years now. She was 16, I was 17. We met in high school.

We.

We've been together 22 years, married for 17. I have four absolutely stunning and amazing kids. My oldest is turning 16 this year, which is a bit of a head trip when. When you realize what I just mentioned, which is I met my wife when she was 16, and we started dating. My daughter's turning 16 this year, so two girls, two boys, and over Covid with all of the restrictions and time at home, as hard as it's been, we've grown so tight as a family unit. And so I'm, like, really, really proud of them. And so I start with those two things first, because, honestly, those are the most important things to me. And then I'm an entrepreneur. I'm a brand strategist. I love having conversations with people. And so. So when I'm not doing those things and when I'm not, like, working out, honestly, I'm just creating stuff and in kind of a scattered, really scattered way. But I just love imagining what could be and then taking enough steps to kind of kick off and get started. That's me. I think I mean, I love seeing

when I've seen, you know, pictures of your family and stuff on social media, most of the time you're sharing podcast guests and interviews and stuff like that. But I've loved seeing you and your family, and I love that you shared that in a scattered way, because some often people think that it has to be perfect, and every. All our ducks have to be in a row before we start something. And I love creating things, too, and sometimes it's very scattered. And I've noticed, noticed a lot of times my most creativity comes to me right before I go to bed for some reason. So my husband thinks I'm crazy when I'm, you know, sitting there making a reels or writing notes in my phone because I get these ideas that come to me. So thank you for making me feel not so alone in my scatteredness. But, yeah, I was so grateful when I met you and our friend Bo introduced us. And honestly, I've been on a lot of podcasts. I have not been on very many podcasts where the interviewer asks such incredible questions. And you do that in your show, in your very successful podcast. But you've also. I've seen how you do that on stage. And so today, I want to kind of flip the script and ask you a few questions about your entrepreneurial journey. And first of all, I'd like to tap into the fact that, like, there is such power in the fact that you've transformed your life and you've lost this weight and you have become so fit. But so many people, especially entrepreneurs, they're just hustle, hustle, hustle, work, work, work, work, work. Okay, got to spend some family time, and then it's back to work. And often the fitness falls off. The really healthy habits kind of fall off. What do you think? Being fit, how has that helped you in your entrepreneurial journey?

Basically, in 2018, my wife and I took our kids to Disney, and we, you know, we have four kids, airfare, hotel, a week in Disney at all the parks, and then another week at the beach. It was. It was a bit of an investment for us. And so I had this account where we just save up money. Like, money just goes there, every paycheck. And over the course of a few years, there's enough for a really big trip. And so we're doing this big trip, and we're in Disney and the kids are running around and we're taking photos of ourselves. And at that, for that trip to go down, I couldn't fit into any of my, like, summer Clothing and I had to go in before the trip and buy new stuff. I had to buy bigger stuff. I had to like, buy extra large shirts because I just couldn't fit everything. I had to buy size 40 pants or shorts because I couldn't fit into my older shorts. And that had been my life, basically. It's like each year I would gain a few pounds. Each year I would be less happy with how I looked. I hated going to weddings because I never felt comfortable in my clothes. I was always hot. I was even now I'm like hot and sweaty all the time. But now it's like, oh, it's working out. Hot and sweaty. It's so weird. But, you know, I didn't feel good. I had to hold my breath to tie my shoes. I couldn't carry my kids up the stairs without getting winded. And I didn't feel good. I didn't look good. I hated photos. I lacked confidence. I was constantly like, you know that man thing where you gotta, like, pull up your pants each time to like, to like, pull up the pants. Cause they're, you know, you got the belt and everything and it's just like, I didn't like it. And we're in. We're in on vacation in this amazing place and we're looking at photos of ourselves. And it's like no matter which way you stand, at a certain point you're just like, not happy with how you look and with how you feel. And we're on this trip and we're putting in like 30,000 steps a day. And I turned to my wife and I was like, I don't like how I look. I don't like how I feel. We're exercising like crazy when we get home. Things need to change. Things need to change. And so that was what kicked it off. But it took a really long time. It took a really long time because the first breakthrough I had to do was me trying to decide when in my schedule because I had family time and I had work time. And where is this workout time or this me time going to come from? Am I going to take a hit on my family time? I'm going to take a hit on my work time. I only have two buckets to pull from. And so the first breakthrough was me just deciding that I was going to work out and not care what people thought of me because I just started working out and I sucked at it. I remember there's this YouTube video, this YouTuber called Body Fit by Amy. She's out of LA and she puts out these great YouTube videos, mostly for newly expecting moms. And there was like this eight minute workout that I could not get through without pausing. It took me three months, three months to get through this eight minute workout before I could get through the whole thing without pausing it. And ultimately what it was was me just deciding, you know what? Actually I could stop, like, in the middle of the day at work. I don't have to go to a gym. I'm doing these, these YouTube workouts that are body weight only anyway. Why don't I just do it at work at lunch? I have a private office. In my office, in my team, I could close my door. My team doesn't have to know I'm working out. I don't have to shower. It doesn't matter if I get a little sweaty and change my clothes. I could just do this. So, like, the first challenge for me was deciding when could this happen? And then deciding not to care what people thought of me because going to the gym is too intimidating. And, and, and asking up, getting a personal trainer is way too intimidating. And all of this stuff was just like, so. Because who am I to do this? I was at the time, I was like 36 or 37, never having done any of this stuff before, like, really overweight, really out of shape, feeling terrible about it. And that was the hardest thing for me. I don't know if I'm answering your

question, but yeah, yeah, you are. And you know what? I have to say, like, I remember, you know, I've been in the fitness industry for 20. I started training clients at age 25, and I still have a handful of clients, to be honest with you, like, for 20 years.

Because it keeps you, like, in, it keeps you like, like in the profession, right?

Yes. Well, I mean, I love it. And for a long time, to be honest with you, you know, when I got into speaking and my, you know, had my book and my podcast and do more, doing more kind of life coaching instead of like training clients, I tried, I really tried to get away from fitness. And then I was like, why am I trying to run? Every time I was trying to kind of run away from it, and it would always come right back. And I would get asked to, like, by Athleta, to come and do a workshop there, or I just recently got asked to speak at a mastermind about fitness and entrepreneurialship, and I'm like, it is a part of my life and I love it, so why would I run away from it? It is who I am, you know, But I Have to say I. For the first time, I remember training clients and having people come in the gym and they were so intimidated to go over to a machine to see how it looked, or they were intimidated to go to the free weight section because that's where all the guys were or whatever it would be that they were scared of. I realized and had a perspective on what that was like when I first became, you know, a podcaster and doing events online, because five years ago, I didn't own a computer, and technology really scared me. And it was just that I didn't know how to work it. And once I just took that first step and was like, okay, well, I'm just going to try to figure it out. What could go wrong? I could mess up. And then I learned from that mistake. I had an understanding of what it was like for people who had never worked out to go into a gym. It was all new and kind of intimidating. Whereas me, I've worked out my whole life. So to me, I looked at it as curiosity and, ooh, what are they doing? Maybe I could try that too. You know what I mean? And so I really understand that. But. And I also love the fact that you're like, well, I could do it in my office, but it was almost like you were like, I'm gonna went from kind of hiding the fact that, like, I'm working out y', all to now you're like, yeah, I just did a Spartan race, and look at me, I've lost all this weight. But it's building that confidence, and that's what working out think does for you. And it really bleeds out into every other aspect of your life, whether you're going to Disney, you're going to be more confident in pictures that you take because you feel better in your body and your skin. You feel comfortable, more confident in your skin, or whether you're showing up to do an interview, like on your podcast, it does give you that confidence. How do you think it's helped you in your business? Because at first you're like, I've got two buckets to pull from. How do you think that it has really influenced your career in a positive way?

Well, so this is the thing that is so mind blowing to me, because until you're on the other side of it, you don't realize what you're missing. And you can apply this lesson to any part of your life or any area of your business. And that is, you know, when I started working away at it and I started chiseling away at it, And I got over the initial intimidation. I got more into it, I got more comfortable. The curiosity built. I started reading stuff, researching things, trying things, talking to people about it. But, but mostly I saw a little bit of. I saw some gains. You know, it was. I lost initially, I think over the first few months I lost what it was maybe £20 or something.

That's a lot.

And that, that was a lot. It was enough for me to go from like the high two 30s down to like the two, the two teens kind of thing. And it's like. And you start to feel good. And. And then I didn't take it quite so seriously. And then I was like losing some of my results. And then I took it seriously again and I tried the next thing. And each way I kind of leveled up. But, but here's what you don't realize until you're on both sides of it. When you, when you feel confident about how you look for the first time in your life, you bring a different energy into every space. People, people honestly treat you differently. And it might be, it might be cool to say, like, well, that's not fair. It's what on the inside that matters. But the truth is first impressions matter. And so the confidence that you bring, the way you carry yourself, the fact that people can tell that I take care of myself, which means that they instinctively think that maybe I have discipline whether I do or not.

Yes, it's so true.

Maybe I value myself whether I do or not. Like, like there are all of these cues in society and in business where now when I walk into a room, people treat me differently. There's some bad things, right? Like during COVID I was losing all my hair. So I started, for our listeners, I started shaving my head and now I'm like, you know, I'm a bald, fairly fit built white guy. So if I'm out on a jog and I come like, if I'm out on a run and I'm in like tough mode and I'm like doing a 10K and I'm like, really in the moment. There's some other things, like kids and women leave me a really clear path because here comes this like, really aggressive looking, hardcore dude and I got to work a lot harder to be more smiley and make sure they know, not like trying to intimidate them. But I know that people treat me differently. Now. How does this impact my business? I honestly believe that in four weeks of focusing on your health, you can see the greatest impact and see the most results compared to anywhere else. In your life. Yes. If you focus on sales in four weeks, you will get results. If you focus on team, you will get results. If you focus on launching a new product, you will launch that new product. If you focus on relationships, your relationships will get better. Or wealth or faith, or any other area of your life. But health, it's the difference between being sanitary to go for a one hour walk every single day for one month straight. I guarantee you at the end of that month you'll feel better. Or just focus on hydration for a month and you will be better. Focus on your sleep, reduce what you're eating, remove sugar for a month, go for a jog three times a week for a month. Just do something. And I guarantee you within one month of focus, you will see results you never even anticipated. And so imagine now having more confidence. Imagine walking into a place where people treat you differently. Imagine going shopping for clothing, where you walk out feeling proud of yourself. Imagine having a core strength where you don't even realize that you can just quickly run up and down the stairs and you don't even get winded and you don't even break a sweat. Imagine being outside in the yard doing work and your back doesn't hurt. Like, just imagine these little things that we have grown accustomed to. Imagine the benefits of all of that in four weeks. And when you do that for your physicality, when you do that for yourself, you realize that you can apply this to business as well.

Yes. That is so good, Mark. That is so good. And you know what? I have to say that when I do come across someone that is physically fit, I automatically think that person is disciplined. That person values, values themselves. When I come across someone who is, they look like they don't take care of themselves. You know what I mean? It is, I'm like, oh, wonder what's wrong. Like what's going on with them?

Like, and it shouldn't be that way. And it's, I know it shouldn't be that way.

Sure it's.

But, but we have to just deal in, in the truth at some point, right?

Yeah. And I mean, I'm being honest and, and people are probably going to go, oh, well, aren't you judgy? I think we all judge people. It's human nature to judge people. And I try to stop myself, like when I think that, I try to go to how is that person feeling? What is causing them to not value their health and take care of themselves? That's actually where I go.

But here's, here's like a perfect Example of how it affects the next level. And I would never have even thought of this before. So my wife and I were out on a walk yesterday with our dog every evening. Part of getting healthier is we're like, hey, we go for a one hour walk at four o' clock every day together. And that's the transition from work mode to family life. But it's like our, it's like our board meeting, like our family board meeting. My wife and I, every day we go for a walk at 4 o'. Clock. Rain, shine, snow, it doesn't matter. And yesterday we're on this walk. It's kind of warm out, it's pretty hot. I'm watching these parents sit on a bench. Father, mother, sitting on a bench. They're about my age and their two little boys are playing with the ball, standing there, and the mother is going, arms crossed, saying whatever his name is, like, patrick, throw the ball so that way Jamie can hit it back to you. That's how you play. And like, I had the most striking moment of realization going like, I used to parent this way too. Like, hey, parents sitting on the bench, on the sidelines, not wanting to do anything, kind of yelling at your kids, quote, unquote, how to play. The kids don't look like they're having fun. And immediately the thought that crossed my mind is, oh, why don't they jump up off the bench? Why don't they get in there? Why don't they start playing with their kids with the ball? Why don't they show them and teach them how to play as opposed to just kind of squawking from the sidelines? Well, you know, they're, they're tired, it's hot. They've been parenting all day. Kids should have like. And, and I would never have thought of this before, but now that I don't even have to worry about my fitness, I don't have to think about it. It's just like, oh, I would have jumped up off the bench, I would have gotten in there, I would have started playing and I would have never done this in the past. So being physically fit and not having to think about it or worry about it or thinking that this energy is going to cost me anything, or worried about whether I'm going to get sweaty or not. And how that looks or any of that stuff makes me now more able to just spontaneously show up as a dad or play with my kids or do any of those things. And I know, I know there's like cliche retirement commercials, like, I want to get fit so I can be there to run with my grandkids or, like, all of that golden age stuff. But right now, I can go out and do that, and it doesn't cost me anything. I don't have to, like, worry or think about it. And so being fit makes me a better dad. Being fit makes me a better entrepreneur. And that's just the fitness. We're not even talking about the mental stuff. Like, I've learned in the last year three or four pivotal mental mindset lessons that also make me stronger and better.

Yes. Like, you know, I was just asked to play in this celebrity softball tournament. Skill scared to death of a ball. Oh, gosh. I was just up to bat. Like I told. I was like, yes, I'll play. And then my husband was like, you're going to play softball? You've never played in your life? Are you kidding?

Austin? Isn't there, like, a really famous celebrity softball game? I've heard, like, comedians talk about it or something.

Like, there's like, this is in Dallas, and it was huge.

This is the famous one, is it?

It was huge. It's where the Rangers, the Texas Rangers play. Saw baseball. I mean, it's, like, crazy. And I said yes. And so were you scared? I was scared to death. I mean, I'm scared to death of a ball. Not anymore. I overcame that because I practiced every day. But what you said about playing ball with your kids every day. My daughter played ball with me. She became my coach, and I played with her, and I got out on that field and had the confidence to do it because I was willing to every single day, practice before I got hit in the face with a ball, got a bloody nose. I just am going to focus on the ball being in the mitt, not hit me in the face. And I was fine. But, you know, the best part about it was playing with Ruby every day, like, that was the best thing. And, you know, my biggest motivation for when I was stuck in a hospital bed was I wanted to be able to chase after her like she was only two years old. And so fitness can be motivation for you to do so many things in life, whether it's being a better parent or being a better entrepreneur. So I love that you share that, and I love that you share that. When you walk into a room, people look at you differently. So I was doing this. I was speaking at this one mastermind, and it was all men, you know, powerful men. I was a token female speaker there, and I had just posted something on my Instagram story. I Started. I was like, why am I of, like, getting away from fitness? Fitness is a part of my life. I'm going to post more about how I work out and even how crazy it looks because most of the time I'm in my boots working out because it just feels better with the crps in my leg. And I'm like, you know, I'm just going to wear whatever feels good. I don't care what it looks like. I'm going to work out. However. And I posted this video of me doing these ab exercises. And the guys at the event was. They were like, oh, my God, Amberly, I had no idea you had a six pack. Like, that's crazy. I swear, Mark, I got more respect because they were like, okay, dang, girl's got a six pack. She can keep up with us. She's okay. She's on the okay list. She can be in our club, she can sit at our table kind of thing. You know what I mean? Like, it was like, another level of respect. So I was like, dang, I gotta keep it up. I gotta keep doing some crunches and eat really clean. Because having that respect felt good. You know what I mean? I mean, so it does. When you walk in a room and people look at you differently, it does. It starts to. It builds your confidence. And I want to get to the mindset part because of, you know, I used to work out, really, only for, like, I want a six pack. I want, you know, shoulder caps, I want some quads, and I want a booty. Like, that's why I worked out. I work out now because of what it does for me mentally, for my mindset. Those endorphins that combat pain and they fight, they, like, push anxiety away. They just really have gotten me through depression. And it's my drug of choice, really. It makes me feel good. So I want to talk about those pivotal moments, that fitness, and what you've learned about mindset that has carried you through fear. Um. Cause we were talking about that before we hit record, but can you share some of the mindset pivots that, like the pivotal moments?

Yeah. So one of the early ones, for me, two of them happened in really tight time. But last year, about a year ago, I did this thing I called the Chunk to Hunk Challenge.

And I saw that on your website. Your website's beautiful, by the way.

Oh, thank you. The Chunk to Hunk Challenge. And I decided, you know what? I got down to, I guess, the 180s. I was about maybe 16% body fat, so, so fit. And I, I got to the point where after three years in, I was working out like five times a week, but I hadn't really done strength training. Hadn't done. It was mostly just this like CrossFit cardio type stuff. And I looked good and I felt good, but, but I was ready for like a new challenge. And so I asked a friend who's like a personal trainer and head coach, I said, what would it take for me to get six pack abs and is that even possible? And he said, well, I don't know, maybe like we would put you on a training program. And it was just like all this hypothetical thing, but finally we decided, okay, we're going to do it over 90 days. I'm going to do this thing I call the Chunk to Hunk challenge. And I got a nutritionist to help me and I got, I got my personal trainer and they put me on a program to see how lean I could get. And so we're about a week into this challenge and remember, I had never done strength training, so I never really lifted weights and I never, like, I never used the machines and stuff. I was used to, like, I could be on a treadmill. I was used to that. I was used to an exercise bike. I was used to a rower. And then mainly body weight exercises, squats and lunges and things like that, push ups. So they had me doing a chest day or something, let's say. And it just hurt so much, right? Like it just, it just hurt. And I'm looking at, I'm laughing because I kind of like that hurt right now. You do? But here's, here's the mindset thing that I did not know. No one told me it was supposed to hurt. Oh, think about that. Like, like, like, here's a perfect, here's a perfect example of the exact same thing you said that you choose to exercise as your drug of choice. Like, that's the thing that you like. And I apologize because I know that we have substance abuse issues, so maybe that's a bad term. But, but it's the thing that you enjoy doing and you really like. And so I always heard that people get addicted to the gym. I always heard people like going to the gym. I would go and work out. Let's, 10 years ago, I would go work out. And I hated it. I hated every minute of it. And I went, well, they seem to like it. I hate it. I guess I don't like this. I didn't realize that people hate working out while they're working out and they Just like it. After I didn't realize that when you're lifting weights and it hurts, it's supposed to hurt like. Like this. I might be an idiot, but no one told me that. And so I was always told, well, if it hurts, stop. You don't want to push too hard. You don't want to pull a muscle. You don't want to hurt yourself. You don't want to injure yourself, right? Like, so I'm lifting weights this one night, and I'm just like. I'm, like, complaining to my wife. I'm like, it just hurts so much. And she's like, mark, it's. My wife's a personal trainer as well. She goes, mark, it's supposed to hurt. And I go, it is. And she goes, yeah, it's supposed to hurt. And I'm like, oh, okay. And a switch went off in my head. It's supposed to hurt. Think about life and business. It's supposed to be hard. There are times you're supposed to be unhappy. There are times you're supposed to be happy, right? There are times you have to push. There are times you have to get uncomfortable. There are times you have to save, right? Like, there's this idea that there's a season for everything. I just didn't realize it was supposed to hurt. In business, I often forget or don't realize that it's supposed to take a long time and you need to be patient. I often forget that you're supposed to make sacrifices and things are not going to just come your way and be easy. I forget these things. And so that was the first one where it's like, oh, it's supposed to hurt. And then in the same week, during this challenge, again, I'm complaining to my. To my personal trainer on a call, because I'm saying I don't think you guys realize, like, how busy I am, and this meal plan is taking forever, and it's confusing and it's overwhelming, and I'm just, like, basically complaining to them why they're making me do this stuff and why aren't they making it easier for me? It's a very entitled point of view, right? To be like, you guys don't understand all of these reasons why you should make it easier for me. And then my personal trainer just said, mark, I don't know what you expected, man, but this is what it takes. This is what you asked for. You want the results. So, like, just either do it or don't do it. But, like, this isn't happening to you. You Are not a victim. This is what you asked for. And I'm not sure what you thought this was going to be like, but this is what it's like. So are you going to do it or aren't you going to do it? And I was like, oh, right, this is what I asked for. When I wanted six pack abs, I kind of knew I was going to be eating like salmon rice and broccoli. I kind of knew I wouldn't be eating ice cream. I kind of knew that I would have to focus some time on it and that I'd have to work out. But my coach saying, like, I don't understand why you're complaining, like, this is what you asked for. Do you want six pack abs? And I go, I do. Are you going to put in the time? I am. Are you going to be uncomfortable and be hungry sometimes or give the extra time for your meal plan and prioritize it? I guess I will. And guess what? I got results. Now since then, I've super struggled. I've struggled to stay that lean, I've struggled to stay on a meal plan, I've struggled to stay consistent because once again, I don't come back to those really core questions that, you know, do you want to be a good spouse or partner? Do you want to be a great parent? Do you want to get out of debt? Do you want to make more money? Like it comes back to that same moment where my coach is like, mark, I don't know what you thought was going to happen. So let's say you want to get out of debt. I don't know what you thought was going to happen, but you just, you have to put in the work, you have to look for ways to save money, you have to look to cut things, you have to look for ways to make money. You have to prioritize this and it's going to be uncomfortable, but then when you do it, it's going to work and on the other side of it you're going to feel so much better. So just do it.

And you know what, it's such a valuable lesson for your kids to see too. I mean, I was, you know, a lot of times my husband just got a new toy. He's got this pimped out like golf cart. It's actually really nice. Fancy lights, armrests, like music, speakers with the blast music. It's, it's actually fun. But we hop on it sometimes to go grab a bite to eat or just go for a ride around town. And that's one of the joys about living here in Texas that we can actually do stuff like that, you know, and it's so free and open and I can never imagine, you know, where I lived in la, just hopping on a golf cart, riding around, we would be taken out so quick. But anyway, we're on the golf cart and my daughter was talking about one of her friends that were just really, really wanted a horse. And my daughter has a horse and she takes really good care of it. But my daughter was like, I don't think she understands how much work goes into having a horse. Like, it's a lot of work. It's not like you just get to have this beautiful animal. Like, she goes, I have, I show up every day in two hours and, you know, groom my horse, like trained my horse, bathe my horse, all the things. And I said, yeah, Ruby, I said, you know, if something's important to you, you will find a way, but if it's not, you'll find an excuse, you'll complain and it won't happen. And so if something is really important and you want it, then you got to work for it. And I'm so proud of her. So there's this big horse event called Breyer Fest coming up and it cost a lot of money to buy these like special sculpted horses, collector item horses. And I love that. My daughter's like, well, I'm going to find a way to save up $800 for next year to buy those horses. So she has a website, she has all these horses, she took pictures of them. And my husband was like, what are you doing on your phone? You've been on your phone all day. And she goes, dad, I'm selling horses. We've now got four boxed horses out there ready to take ups. One day she's like, I want to make money one day. She's like, how can I do it? And she put in the work and she's selling these horses. But she realizes this thing is important to me. So I have to do whatever I'm going to do to make money and save up so I can do that. And I think that's that way for anything we do in life if we make it a priority as a non negotiable. That's something that I've really had to do because I was letting my workouts kind of slip. I had to go, whoa, whoa, whoa. Because it was affecting me in my marriage, in my, you know, being a parent. I wasn't as patient, I wasn't as loving as a wife. I was More cranky in my business. I didn't have as much confidence. And I'm like, I got to get back to putting me on my to do list. Like, I have to take care. Without our health, we can't enjoy the rest of the things. And I know that because my health has been taken away from me a couple of times when we're more than

a couple of times, right? When the thing that you take for granted that it just disappears and suddenly it's like, this is a priority again.

Well, I want to transition into something that I think so many of us deal with, which is fear. And I was sharing with you about, oh, I got some fear coming up because I'm about to launch this big event. I'm doing this in person event for my unstoppable life mastermind, and you're telling me, yeah, I'm taking my business to the next level and I have some fear. There' a lot of people out there that want to. And if y' all are seeing on YouTube, you will see Mark's beautiful studio. But if you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, he's got think big, be bold, say yes. So how do we, when we have a lot of fear and a lot of people have a lot of fear right now with everything that's going on in the world. But as an entrepreneur, how do we think big and be bold and say yes when we have fear, how do you get through that?

Well, I mean, the simplest answer is just to do it. And I know that doesn't really help you, but the reason why I have think big, be bold, say yes on the wall. That's why that's my tagline is maybe eight years ago now I was thinking about those words because by nature, I think small. We all think smaller than what we're capable of. If you closed your eyes right now and I asked you to think of next year, 2023, I want you to pick one thing that seems crazy on audacious for you that is not like, whatever you pick, no matter how big you go, is not as big as you could play over the next 10 or 20 years. You just, you can't even think as big as what could be over the next two decades, three decades of your life.

You know what? And sometimes I think it really helps to have somebody else. Like when you hire a business coach or you're in a mastermind and you have people that are, like, thinking bigger for you so you can see the big picture. Because I just, you know, I was telling you I Hired a business coach, which was scary to wire over a lot of money. But I was like, I'm ready to level up. I'm ready to do this and take my business to the next level. And I remember we were in his office. He's got a whiteboard. We're mapping everything out. And he's like, okay, so I want you to think about. And I don't know where he got the number 71, but I'll never forget that number. He said, I want you to think about 71 people in your mastermind. And I'm like, 71? What? That's crazy. I only have 15 people. Like, I don't know if I'm able to do more than 15 people in the maths. He goes, 71. He goes, yeah, 15. And then the next number 16, and then 17 and 18. But, yeah, we're gonna go for 71 people in your mastermind. And I was like, oh, but just for him to allow, like, allow me to expand my possibilities, I think sometimes that helps.

Well, and you need it. And so, like, you. If it's from someone else, a friend, someone in your life, someone who believes in you more than you believe in yourself, which is most of us, you got to think big. The be bold comes from. I was visiting my friend Evan Carmichael. We're good friends. We've known each other. Evan's amazing, and we've known each other a long time. And there was a time when I was doing this health transformation. I was really struggling, and I would go over and visit him, and we would talk about some of his work and my work. I'd go over to his condo and talk. And one time I walked in, and I was just like. I was like, I had enough of everything. And I said, you know what, Evan? If I was really bold. And he said, mark, stop. I said, no, I want to tell you this. If I was really bold. Mark, stop. I was like, what? Let me tell you this. He said, I don't want to hear what you're about to say, because if you're about to say, if I was really bold, I would. And then fill in the blank. I don't want to hear it. Just do it. Just do it already. I was like, well, here's all the reasons I can't do it. He's like, well, then I don't want to hear it. I just don't. And so it's like that idea. Like, if I was really bold, if I was really bold, I would lose ten pounds. We're talking about health. If I was really bold. I would set a target for 71 people. Okay, cool. So be that bold. Be bold, Right? Be bold and then say yes is the fact that I say no to everything. My first reaction is no to everything. My wife wants to really? No.

See, I'm the opposite. I say yes, and then I'm like, oh, God, what did I just say yes to? I say yes. And I have people in my life that are like, amberly, you got to stop saying yes to everything.

I mean, when it comes to work, I say yes to everything, failing to see the opportunity cost that comes with it. But when it's for me, when it's things for me, I will say yes to other people asking for stuff because I want to help them. And I want to be helpful. I want to be a good boy. I want to do all that stuff that comes from childhood. But when it comes to me, I say no. Here's another example. Evan was going to be speaking at an event for 5,000 people, and he realized it was a scheduling conflict and he couldn't make it. So he texts me one morning. I get up at like 4:30 in the morning, and I got these texts from him that say, hey, I can't make this event. Can I send you in my place? Because I know his content and I know his stuff. And I wrote back, but I didn't know anything about it. He says, I can't make this event. Can I send you my place? Okay, Mark, think big. Okay. Be bold. So I text him back, well, tell me about it. How would it work? He said, well, it's 5,000 people. It's this, it's this and this. And immediately when I see speak in front of 5,000 people, I've spoken in front of hundreds of people. I've not spoken in front of thousands of people. And immediately I'm like, oh, hell no. Like, first of all, they want you. They don't want me, right? You know, they like, I'm not like, my. My immediate reaction is like, how do I now? Politely like, oh, you know, I'm so busy. Or like, how do I come up with great excuses? And then I'm thinking, okay, I was thinking big. What would I do if I was acting bold? What would I do? I gotta just say yes to it. So I'm like, okay, I'm up for it now. Luckily, thank goodness, it did not go ahead. It fell apart. Like, I was like, but, you know, part of this mandate is because, again, I think small. So I have to think, like, I have to force Myself to think big. I have to force myself to be bolder than I naturally am. I have to force myself to say yes as opposed to allowing fear and doubt to stop me from doing things. And more. The more that I do this, the more happy I am with that version of Mark. Like, it doesn't feel like the true me feels like the true me is, is the kind of more fearful one that we all carry around inside the voice of doubt in our head.

Yes. And I think we all get, like, imposter syndrome.

Yeah.

You know what helps me with imposter syndrome? Because people ask me too, like, do you get nervous before you go speak on stage? I'm like, heck, yeah. I mean, but what helps me is when I think about when I'm all about me. Like, oh, my gosh, even if I'm doing a story on Instagram and I'm videoing myself, and I'm all like, oh, my gosh, this video. Oh, people are seeing me. It's all about me, me, me. I, I, I, I get nervous. I get imposter syndrome. But when I think, how can I add value? And this isn't about me. It's about the people I serve and how can I help that person, you know, one person or the many people that are out there in the audience, how can I help them? And it takes the focus off me. Then I'm like, it's always a yes. It's always a, like, heck, yeah, I'll be there. Let me see how I can serve, you know? But it's like, how can I provide value? It takes that imposter syndrome out, and it, it takes the fear out.

Well, and for me, it's realizing that, that everything, like, like, I'm a really smart guy, and I, I am very good at, at rationalizing why not to do the things that I'm afraid of. And we all are. Like, we see I'm not as smart as you. Okay, well, thank you.

But you're just as good as rationalizing ignorance list. And I'm just, I'm just like, yeah, I'll do that. I'll play celebrity softball. And I'm like, oh, yeah, but I don't know how to play that. That might be a problem. But you know what I mean. So, no, you are super smart. I'm just, I'm just not as smart.

That's not where I was going with that. But where I was. What I was saying was, like, we are very good at, like, we're very good at all the reasons why we need to Stay where we are, right? Like. Like, we're trained for it. We're amazing at it. We have all these stories, we have all these reasons, we have all these excuses, and that's all they really are. So the imposter syndrome and all of that stuff, like, you and I, we have a. We have a mutual friend, Tracy Lett. And Tracy was at this event and she has a great book that's out as well. And I was speaking to her one day because I was like, I got really raw and honest with her and I was like, when I'm feeling bold and ambitious, all of my plans make sense, all of my strategies make sense. The path forward seems clear, but there are these moments that creep up on me where I'm like, what if I'm, like, what if I'm the wrong type of crazy? Like, what if I'm really good at convincing people to believe me? What if I'm leading everyone down this wrong path? What if, like, I realize that I'm just kind of a bit delusional and hopeful and optimistic and I mess everything up for everyone? Like. Like, I have these moments of just, like, real. Like, what if I'm so good at convincing people of stuff that I've convinced myself that this is the right thing to do when it's, like, plainly not? And Tracy was like, congratulations, you have a well trained fear response. This is just your brain saying, whoa, hold on. We don't have any past experience with this. And our brain can only work off of the things it knows. Past experiences basically is what it is. And it's like, hold on, hold on, hold on. You've never done this before. You've never done anything like this. You have no idea how this is going to turn out. What if it turns out bad? And she's like, congratulations, you just have a very healthy fear response. And this is your brain just trying to keep you safe. And if you just said, hey, brain, I see what you're doing. Thank you so much for trying to keep me safe. I've got this. I'm just going to keep going and I'll circle around later. And that sounds so silly. It sounds like.

No, it doesn't, actually. I had Dave Hollis on the show with anxiety, right? Yeah. And he gives his anxiety a name and he checks in and like, hey, you know, I'm glad you're here to make sure. Sure I'm okay. But I've really got this and I'm going to go ahead and go forward and to really acknowledge it and to have somebody say Congratulations. I remember, you know, when I got my first. I don't even like to say the word haters, but they were people that weren't very happy with me. After I did an interview on the Doctors TV and my husband, I was like, oh my gosh, I'm just trying to help people and they don't like me and they're really coming after me. They don't like what I said. And my husband was like, like, congratulations. You're, like getting out there and maybe making a point that maybe people don't like, but that's okay. Congratulations.

Dogs don't bark at parked cars. I heard someone say that once and I loved it.

Oh, I love that.

Yeah, they don't. They do not park at parked cars. But, but Dave talks about this Julia Cameron, the author of the Artist's Way, the creator of this book that, like everyone in LA loves and I have got to read.

You know how many people have brought that book up to me?

So I've got to read that amazing with journaling. And she's. I got a chance to speak with her, she has, she has a critic in her head she calls Nigel. And when she's doing something in that little voice of doubt or that critic comes in, she goes, thanks, Nigel, I got this. It's okay. And so I've heard all these people say this and, you know, like, you just have to acknowledge it. And so the other day, my wife and I, we, we did the Spartan race. I did the Spartan race over the weekend in Michigan. So we're driving many hours and we're going to the race and we're driving home. And so as I'm driving, like, just time to think. I'm thinking of all the big moves I'm making and how uncomfortable I am. And then I'm remembering, you know, what Tracy said, what Dave Hollis talks about, what Julia Cameron talks about. And I went, hold on a second. If I'm having this, this really physical, fearful reaction to it, there must be some. Let me, let me dig into this. There must be something to this. Why? What. What is my body? What is my mind? What is my heart and soul? What are they trying to tell me? Like. Like, let me separate myself for a minute and just go. Like, I must be on the edge of something pretty significant if, if my, my everything in me is screaming at you to stop. Like you're standing on the edge of a, of a cliff or a bluff. At my cottage, growing up as a kid, we had this 30 foot cliff we used to throw ourselves off of and jump into the water and you're standing on the edge and, like, your brain's screaming at you to back off the edge because it's trying to keep you safe. So what is my body, my soul, my mind, my heart? What is it telling me right now? And it's telling me, this is what I was just thinking the other day. It's telling me that deep down you believe this is going to really work. You're going to help a lot of people. You're going to have an amazing product launch in the business. You're going to have to hire a whole new team, it's going to take you in a whole new direction, into a whole new market, a whole new network. And what you're really just afraid of is that one, it will be too successful and you're not sure what that's going to look like, or two, it's just so much work and effort, and there's going to be a lot of mistakes along the way. And you would rather be here, safe, small, without making any mistakes where you can feel good and you can look good and you can be in your comfort zone, or deep down you honestly believe this is going to be a really big deal and you're afraid of the success that's going to bring. It's just too much change. And so I went, okay, okay. Like, the louder my fear is screaming at me, the more doubt that I have. What I've. What I've started to try to do is realize that that means that I'm close to something really good. Like when you're. When you're working out with your biceps and your. Your arms are really hurting, and you're like, it hurts so much, I want to stop. And you're like, oh, I'm getting. I'm getting close to something good. If everyone else says, this is what you got to do, acknowledge it, be aware of it. Thank yourself for going, like, okay, cool. What could I do if something goes wrong? What plan B could I come up with? What next step do I need to take? How do I quiet this fear? But mostly realize you just gotta keep going. I don't know if it ever gets any easier. Does it get easier for you?

I think it gets different, you know, And I think it does get easier in ways, because I remember, just for an example, like on a health perspective, how hard it was for me to get back into doing any kind of cardio because the pain that it would cause in my leg and then because I had not worked out in that way, you Know, I'd done some weights and stuff, but not. Not cardio, like, you know, things I wasn't. I couldn't. When I. Just to give you an example, I would sit on the bike, and I remember being in physical therapy, and my leg was stuck straight. And so to finally get it to bend, I had a surgery where they would try to, like, loosen things up. But I would work every day in physical therapy to get my leg to bend. And what the physical therapist would do. What. He would put me in the leg extension chair, which it would go leg extension, or it would go into hamstring curls. And he would get it and he would crank it to where every day my leg would bend a little bit more. And every day I would go back and I went every single day, and he would crank it back, and he would hold my leg in a bent position, like, stuck in this machine. And I would have tears running down my face. And it was hard and it was painful, but I had a vision of. I wanted to. I could see that bicycle across the room, and I wanted to be able to get my leg to bend enough to ride the bike. So I did it. And I remember getting on the bicycle, and I was in the bicycle, and one day I finally got it to bend, to go up and over. But of course, my hip was having to come up every time. It wasn't very pretty. And I looked across the room and I said, so, Terri, look, I'm doing it. I got my leg around, and he goes, but it ain't pretty. It's like, well, thanks. But eventually it got easier and easier, and now I actually have a peloton upstairs, and I can do that. So, yes, I think it does get easier. It's not always pretty, it's not always fun, but it's worth it. But like you said so beautifully, like. Like, you just have to keep going. You just have to keep moving forward.

You just touched on what a beautiful story and a beautiful illustration of how it works, though. And so now if you were to go to your peloton and find yourself not giving it a hundred percent, you know, not. Not like hitting the. Whatever, the RPM or the speed or fully committed or the effort at this point, because right now, you're just so good at it and so used to it, you can always compare yourself to the woman who couldn't even bend her leg. Oh, the woman.

Thank you, Mark.

Always go back and say, wait a minute. Like, maybe I'm not as good as I was a month ago when I was training for whatever Because I've gotten worse, but I can still bend my leg. When I started working out, like, my running has dropped as I've bulked up and gotten heavier. With all my strength training, my running has gotten worse. And so I continually compare myself to when I was like, 20 pounds lighter, which is stupid, because I'm 20 pounds heavier. So I cannot run as fast. I can't run as fast. I can't run as far. But if I compare myself to strength wise, well, strength wise, I've got it. But if I compare my running to three years ago, when I first started going to the gym, I could only run, like, 5 miles per hour, which is a jog, and I could only do it for four or five minutes. And now, like, my base pace, like, I run 8 miles per hour, and I. I'll. I mean, I'll run that for a whole 10k without, like. So I'll run that for 50 minutes without any kind of issue or stopping. But if I compare myself to when I was running 9 miles an hour or 9.2 miles an hour and when I was doing this and when I was. And so the real, the last thing to do is to not only acknowledge the fear, not only acknowledge the pain, not only push through and do it, but just always remind yourself, this isn't a game of me against you. This isn't a game of me against my competition or anything else. This entire thing is. This entire game is this version of me versus the version of me from before. And you couldn't move your leg, and now you can. And anytime that you're like, I'm not sure, I'm not as good, you couldn't move your leg before, and now you can.

Thank you for reminding me of that. I need to go get on that bike after this.

Go knock out a ride and give

it 1% harder, 1% longer. Also, I can't tell you how many times I get to the gym and I sit in the parking lot and I might start scrolling on Instagram or something, and I'm like, amberly, get your butt in the gym and move your body. Because I will sit in the parking lot and I have to tell myself I get to work out. Like, I don't have the motivation to do it, but I've got the discipline. You know, I think the motivation is the spark, but it's the discipline that's the fire. It's the flame that keeps you going.

That's so interesting, because I've never considered my. Like, I got to be careful here with the Language. Because my brain is listening. But. But I don't consider myself a disciplined person. And oh my gosh, I feel like

you are so disciplined. Seriously, look at all that you do.

Okay. Your reaction is what? Everyone in my life is like, what? How could you say. Let me, let me quickly explain. And this is what we run into. Like, I see me. I see inside my head, I see inside my heart. I see every second of my day. And I go, I don't feel like a disciplined person. And everyone on the other. What are you talking about? Of course you're. I realized that I'm. That I. It's not that I'm not a disciplined person. I will give myself that I'm disciplined. I never saw myself that way. I am actually an inconsistent person. And I've confused consistency with discipline. To me, discipline is doing something whether you feel like it or not because you've made a commitment. But consistency is doing something over and over and over and over again regardless if you want it or like it or anything. It's just like consistency comes down to just like doing. Doing the same thing all the time. And so I am a disciplined person. When it matters enough for me, when there's enough focus, when there's enough drive, I mean, I will give myself that. I'm very disciplined. But my discipline is like whatever I'm obsessed with gets all of the discipline. But I'm. But I tend to be very inconsistent on things. And so I've structured. Like, I've learned that really it just comes down to just structuring habits, doing the same thing. Getting up at 4:30 for me is fairly easy because I was never a morning person. I read the Power of Habit. I was like, huh, I wonder if I can turn myself into a morning person. And I did. Over the course of like a year, turned myself into a morning person. Can easily be done.

Oh, yeah. I mean, I write things. I'm old school. I have this big planner. It's huge. It's.

I've been given so many of them. Like, I love it. Like I got given the Brendon Burchard, you know, the, like the, the really fancy yellow planner. Someone is a lovely gift. And it's such a lovely gift. I have it on my desk and I haven't cracked it open.

You haven't used. I love, I love my planner. And it's got errands, get it done. Calls, emails noted, focus on. I'm not advertising this planner. I don't even. I think I got it like Rite Aid or something. I Don't even remember where I got it, but it helps me because I am very. I've never been diagnosed with ADHD or anything like that, but was put into special needs class at school. So there's definitely something wrong, but I get a little scattered. So having discipline and consistency, for me, it takes writing it down on sticky notes, writing it down on a whiteboard over here, writing it down in a planner. Because I tend to be like, oh, look at that squirrel. Oh, look at that, you know? And so I'm like, I need to focus. It's harder.

Habits, habits and rules really help. Right? Like, like we are having smart feet.

For me, it's like that I don't even have to think about, like, I've got my workout clothes on, I'm going to work out.

Yep.

I put my clothes on because it reminds me. Oh yeah, don't forget to work out. If I've got a packed morning recently, I've changed it to where it's like, I have my morning. Like you. I don't get up at 4:30. I used to get up at 4:30.

You can get up at whatever time you want. I get up, there's five is great. But you, but like, let's say that you're someone who works late into the night and it's all your creative thinking. Creative from get up at 10, I don't really care. But, but, but what I've learned is get up at the same time every single day. Because even Saturday and Sunday get up at the same time every single day. Because it's like the issue comes in change. So if you decide you're not going to eat sugar, not a problem. You never have to think about it again. Does it have sugar in it? Oh, no, thank you. I don't eat sugar. It's just like super, super easy. You get up at the same time every day. You look at your watch, you go, oh, it's getting pretty late. I need to get to bed because I got to get up early tomorrow morning. And you get up and it's not a negotiation. I don't have to. I don't have to take time or energy to ask my wife if we're going for a walk this afternoon, are we going for a walk? Is it in, is it out? And so when there are habits and rules, like I go to bed at the same time every day doesn't mean I go to sleep at the same time every day. Sometimes it's like, like I want to be asleep by 9:30 because I get up early but sometimes it's like 11, last night it was 11 o' clock and I'm going, oh, I'm so tired tomorrow. But I go to a gym. I go to Orange Theory Fitness, which is like this group gym where you have an app and you have to schedule the classes. And So I go five times a week and I always go at 9:30 and I'm always booked in there. And my rule is like, you never miss a class.

That's awesome.

Now not only that, if I miss a class, if I skip, if I get whatever they charge me, like $15 for missing a class.

Well, that's why I still, I think, you know, saying I still have a handful of clients for fitness. And believe me, they've trained with me for 20, some a little longer than 20 years. They know how to work out. But guess what? They want me because it keeps them accountable. So whatever you have to do to keep those habits in place, sometimes it's book a time at Orange Theory, sometimes it's hiring a trainer, sometimes it's hiring a business coach. Sometimes like for me, being first, having a sponsor and going to meetings. You know what I mean?

Yeah, like so. So it hit me like we were going through this big pivot with the agency. We talked about how I have some fear around some of the new things we're doing. I realized I wasn't looking at the numbers enough. And so I asked myself if I thought about my peers in business, the people I look up to, the people I'm like, wow, they are really good operators. I bet you they look at their financials all the time.

Have you read the book Profit First?

No. I got so many books. But a great book is the Art of Profitability, which was written in 2001, that I've just gone through it, I keep coming back to it, but I'm like, you know what? People who are great operators look at their numbers. I'm ignoring my numbers because I know that they're not great and I don't want to look at them. So I'm feeling bold. I'm saying yes. I immediately text my controller and say, I need you to put together a report, an automated report. So every Monday morning I get emailed a financial statement. Guess what happens every Monday morning, 3:30 in the morning, it gets emailed to me. So it's sitting when I wake up. Not the greatest thing to wake up to. So I have my morning routine, but then I look at the financials and it's like it's about putting in rules in place. That align not with who you are today, not with what you like or don't like, but with the person that you want to become. And I want to become a great entrepreneur. So I have to start doing the things that great entrepreneurs do, whether I kind of want to like to or not, or I have to hire people who are willing to do it. I want to be an athlete. Like, I want to be an athlete. I want to be athletic. Everyone says, mark, you're very athletic. But to me, I realized about a month ago, I kept telling people I want to be athletic. They kept telling me I was, I kept saying I'm not. But I'd never taken the time to define what being an athlete means to me. And I realized it's because I don't do any competitions. Yes, I work out, but to me, an athlete is someone who competes, and I don't compete. Guess what? I was able to fix that. I now do Spartan races and I'm. I'm spending the year doing them. Like I've done two. There's. They're very costly to travel to. They're kind of complex. I'm spending the year. I'm going to do four of them. But I've. I've set a goal for myself. I'm going to get a top 10 finish.

That's incredible.

A top 10 finish is. I have no business right now declaring that I'm going to get a top 10 finish because I need to figure out a way to shave like 25 to 30 minutes off of my 10k time for these races.

How fast are you running a 10k? How fast would you have to do that?

What is that, about six miles at six point. At 6.2 miles. So a 10K? 6.2 miles. My first time I did this because keep in mind that you run these on ski hills and stuff. So it's not only 10k, it's 10k

with a up and down hills, which is a whole other level, and a

lot of like rope climbing and monkey bars and there's just like a lot of. It's an obstacle course, a lot of stuff. So my first race I did it, never done it before. I did an hour and 44 minutes. To get a top 10 finish. I would have to be sub. I think an hour and 10.

So I'd have to shave off that.

You totally got it this time. I did it in an hour 33. But I wasn't focused on my run. I only went there to practice the obstacles and not fail them. So I did an hour 33, kind of doing quite a bit of walking, but I would have to shave off again. 30 minutes.

Oh my gosh, you totally got it. So you've already, you know, you practiced, you know that you can get through the obstacles. Done. So all you have to do is work on.

Now I need to, now I need to lose, basically. Like I was thinking about on the weekend, I need to lose 10 pounds. 15 would be helpful, but lose 10 pounds, maintain some strength, strength and work on my running. Like it's this, this is now just an endurance game. This is just. But going back to it, it's like, I want to be an athlete, but I never defined what that meant. I never did. But, but I know I want to be an athlete and now I've defined it and now I've picked something and I know what I need to do. And the question just comes down to like, okay, Mark, like, are you going to put yourself on a meal plan and cut those 10 pounds? Are you going to continually work on your running and your cardio? I got the strength and I have the ability. Now it just comes down to a cardio endurance game. Like, can you go for one hour non stop, basically.

Look, Mark, let me give you something to shift your perspective a little bit. My friend Charlie Engel, he's celebrating his 30 year sobriety date by running for 30 hours straight. 30 hours straight, that means 30 hours of non stop running.

So you can do it run or he's going to literally jog 30 hours straight.

He's going to probably have to walk some, but probably jog, run, but it might walk a little bit. But 30 hours, you can do it in an hour. Same thing. I'm telling you because sometimes it helps shift your perspective. I remember I was about to go do this keynote in Denver and I had a 45 minute keynote and I was, was getting so nervous because it had been a while since I'd spoken in front of an audience like that. And I went to a Tony Robbins event and he spoke for three hours straight. He's incredible. And it shifted my perspective. I was like, he spoke for three hours, I can get up there and speak for 45 minutes. You know what I mean? Sometimes it just takes something to shift our perspective. But I love that, you know, you're really saying, okay, first decide what you want to do and who you want to become. Then really get a strategy around, develop those habits, the discipline, the consistency. Get really specific with your goals and then anything is possible, you can achieve it. You've done it in business you're doing it with, you know, your athleticism. I'm going to be cheering you on. I know you're going to do this. You're like, for real, like, ok, you. Yeah, you have a plan and you can totally do it. But before we go, because I know we got to jump off, I could talk to you all day. Seriously, I want people to find out more, like, about your. Your podcast is seriously one of the best podcasts I've ever heard. And it's because of you and the attention to detail and how you really look into your. Your guests and you ask them such incredible questions. So tell people where they can find your podcast, where they can find out more about your media company, because I want people to know about. About Phantom Media. And then also we got to connect afterwards because y', all, Mark is an incredible emcee. You really are such a great interviewer, like, on stage. And I was so happy I saw that you put my testimonial on your website, by the way. I was like, oh, my gosh, there I am.

Of course.

And. But you really are amazing. And I have somebody that is holding an event that I'm speaking at, and they're looking for an emcee, so we need to connect. Maybe that would be good and it'd be awesome for me because it's in Dallas and I'm one of the keynote speakers.

I love Dallas.

I would love to get to work with you again.

Richardson, right?

Yeah. It's the dang chips and queso that get me, man. The Tex Mex food here is insane. So just say no to that. Okay. But, yeah, so tell people where they can find you, how they can get. Like. Like, take. Because you're. I mean, your company helps coaches, entrepreneurs, authors, really level up their brand and their content and really get clarity on what their message is so they can level up. So I want people to know about that.

Well, yeah, all the stuff I talked about with my health, transformation. And when you walk into a room, you come with confidence and it changes you. I've honestly learned 15 years in creative, in branding, your brand does the exact same thing. And so once you show up looking the way that you need to show up, once you understand we have access to ridiculous amounts of information about our customers, our audiences, our targets. And once you realize who you need to be and how you need to look and what you need to say and how you need to make people feel, and you're really targeted with your customers, your audience, and you're doing it in a way that isn't like your competitors, because we've done a competitive analysis. Once you do those three things, you end up developing a brand, a personal brand for. For coaches and speakers and consultants and entrepreneurs where you just show up like you're 20 or 30 pounds lighter, like you're wearing that amazing outfit, like you just bought that new car. And it's crazy what it does for your business. So that's what we do on the day. On my day job over at Fanta Media, it's P H A n t a fanta.com you can learn about us. The podcast We Do Hard Things is a show about facing fears and taking big risks and chasing dreams. And so we talk to people from business and entertainers and the arts and anyone who has kind of a creator spirit, anyone who wants to do something bigger with their career, with their life, with their passions. We profile people and dig really deep to find out what they did to face those fears, take those risks, to chase down their dreams. Just to show you and me and everyone watching and listening that it's possible. And so if you head over to YouTube, you can find We Do Hard Things, or you can look me up, Mark Draeger. And if you want to connect, the best way is go over to Instagram and drop me a dm, let me know a takeaway from this conversation and we can keep talking over there.

Yeah, you guys, I mean, take a screenshot if you're watching on YouTube or if you're listening on your favorite podcast platform. Let's get this message out. Because I know that so many people struggle to fear. So many people want to improve their fitness. They want to be a better entrepreneur. Entrepreneur or become an athlete. And everything that Mark has shared, please take a screenshot, share it on your social media, and tag me at Amberly lagomotivation and Mark Draeger. And when I see that, I share it in my story. So that's how we grow. That's how we learn. That's how we can make some magic happen. So, yeah, show him some love. Reach out to him on Instagram, but definitely check out his podcast, but also definitely check out Fandom Media. And Mark, I would even like to have you, like, talk to you, you know, another time about maybe doing a little audit on my website because it's been a while. So I'm just saying I love it.

And I know that you're putting together this amazing group. I could come in and help speak to your group. I've got a great presentation I can give. Yeah.

Oh, my Gosh, that would be amazing. That would be amazing. Because that's part of the Mastermind is really helping women share their message in a meaningful and impactful way, expand their influence, really build their impact so they can make a bigger income. And I have guest experts that come in once a month and share how to do that. So I would love to have you come into the Unstoppable Life Mastermind. That would be amazing. And you know what? I think we'll have to even do another interview with you and dig deeper into the branding and stuff.

Let's do it.

Let's do that another time. So let's do a part two soon. Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you. Mark. I just adore you as you couldn't. As if you couldn't tell when I first met you and ran and screamed and. And hit you in the chest. I do. I adore you. You're amazing, y'. All. He is, like, in person, just as amazing as he is online. So thank you for being on the show.

Go listen to Amberly's episode on. We do hard things. Go over to YouTube or listen into it because she is so open. And it was. Thank you for having me. This has been the best catching up.

Oh, it's awesome. And we'll catch up more, everybody. Thank you for tuning in, and we will see you next week.

Sam,