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Episode 60 – Kelley Gunter

In this week’s podcast I had the incredible opportunity to sit down with such an inspiring resilient woman, Kelley Gunter: Supervisor for the National Suicide Hotline, a sexual abuse survivor, emotional warrior, public speaker, life coach, and the author of You Have Such a Pretty Face.

Kelley speaks candidly about the numerous addictions she developed as a result of the unhealed trauma she suffered from a childhood riddled with sexual abuse. Kelley’s painful journey to find peace and self-worth began with a 243-pound weight loss, and included many dark moments of despair that eventually brought her to her knees. Those feelings of shame and powerlessness contributed to not only Kelley’s initial weight gain, but the cross addictions she developed following her initial weight loss and the 20-year successful maintenance of that loss. Broken and devastated in the aftermath of her own self-destruction, Kelley’s fractured faith screamed out that somehow, her faint pulse and shattered heart was, in fact, still beating.

Kelley applies her vast therapeutic knowledge to the painful reality that weight loss doesn’t heal the trauma that contributed to the initial weight gain, nor does it systematically prevent the high likelihood that cross addictions can and may develop in people who don’t acknowledge that trauma.

Shame is the core of all addictions and Kelley addressed that shame and the addictions she suffered. Kelley provides not only professional insight into how crucial it is that we begin to address our inner pain, but also provides the compassion that can only be given from one who has walked the path and experienced the darkness herself.

Learn more at https://kelleygunter.com/

Connect on Instagram @gunterkelley

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Episode 59 – Ryan Leaf

I had the incredible opportunity to sit down in the studio with Retired NFL QB, and ESPN Analyst, Ryan Leaf.

Ryan Leaf spent his college career with the Washington State Cougars, where he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy after his junior year. He was selected as the second overall pick by the San Diego Chargers in the 1998 NFL Draft behind Peyton Manning, he played for the San Diego Chargers and the Dallas Cowboys between 1998 and 2001, and also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Seattle Seahawks. Ryan’s career took a turn when a video went viral of him arguing with a reporter in the locker room but this was just the beginning. Ryan shares so openly how this one event, altered the course of not just his career but his life. Ryan is remarkably self reflective and insightful. He talks about his challenges on and off the football field from battling addiction, going to rehab to serving time in prison, and how being of service to other inmates created a turning point in his life. He is vulnerable and courageous as he holds nothing back. His story of redemption and commitment to a life lived well is something all of us will learn from.

Follow on Instagram @RyanDLeaf

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Episode 58 – Ricky Mendez

I had the awesome opportunity to sit down with motivational speaker and gratitude enthusiast, Ricky Mendez. He shares how helping one person changed his life and propelled him into quitting his job and helping people and businesses change their company culture and personal lives.

He believes in a systematic process that attacks the issues of procrastination, mediocre sales, and an undefined culture in an organization as well as in life. He is able to shift paradigms and change the way people think; therefore changing what is thought to be impossible to probable. Many businesses either suffer from stagnant revenues and lack of growth or struggle to maintain their foundational culture during times of expansion. Organizations who adopt Ricky’s process change behavior, make better decisions and create action habits that exponentially increase revenues and profitability while maintaining a superior culture.

The techniques that Ricky applies to the corporate world can seamlessly be transferred to personal struggles and adversity. Listen as he shares his secret to happiness and getting to where you want to be.

Learn more at https://rickymendez.com/ Connect on IG @RickyMendezSpeaks

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Episode 57 – David Smith

I had the incredible opportunity to sit down and talk to David Smith, a Nike Athlete, Speaker, Writer and Coach. He was born with a club foot and underwent repeated medical surgeries to break and reset the foot. David’s doctors even considered full amputation.

In 2010 he was taken into emergency surgery when a cervical tumor was discovered. The surgery caused temporary paralysis and involved the removal of three vertebrae and rebuilding the spine.

David has competed internationally in several sports including GB Rowing, and British Cycling. He has over come tremendous adversity. Listen as David shares his journey through multiple cancer reoccurrences and life saving surgeries, radiation treatment and rehabilitation therapy. He shares both his experience in high performance sports and his first hand experience of fighting for his life and living with paralysis.

You can work with David as he pursues life as an athlete whilst living with a spinal cord injury. Pushing both mental and physical boundaries in the hope to inspire others to live a flourishing life.

Learn more at https://davidsmithathlete.com/

Connect on Instagram @DavidSmithMBE

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Episode 56 – Mike Conklin

I had the opportunity to sit down with Michael Conklin, a Certified Addiction Recovery Coach, and a Life Coach trained at the Jay Shetty Certification School for Coaching. Michael started drinking alcohol at the early age of nine years old. He shares his story from addiction, waking up handcuffed in hospitals and sleeping off hangovers in the drunk tank to finding recovery through treatment, getting honest, and putting in the work everyday so that he can help others heal and recover as well.

Micheal knows recovery is possible, and people are capable of achieving far greater things than they ever imagined. Realizing that a change as incredible as recovery was possible, he wanted to see if those sort of dramatic changes could be accomplished in all areas of his life. And they can! Michael founded Better Beginning Now, an organization that guides their clients to becoming aware of their passion and purpose by taking actions that are in alignment with core values to lead a life of abundance and fulfillment in mind, body & spirit. ​

Better Beginning Now believes that it’s the interconnectedness with others that makes this life truly worth living. They strive to build strong, trusting, caring and loving relationships with others. They help their clients, and guide them to acquire the skills necessary to build these same types of relationships with those already in their lives, and with the new people they connect with.

Learn more at Website: https://www.betterbeginningnow.com/

Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bette…

Instagram: @betterbeginningnow

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Episode 54 – Dr. Hank Seitz PhD.

I had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Hank Seitz, PhD. Many years ago, Dr. Hank was involved in a car accident that totaled his car and totaled his body. He is a Vietnam Veteran and the VA proclaimed Dr. Hank to be permanently home-bound and permanently disabled.

He was paralyzed from my waist down. Dr. Hank decided to not believe in the good doctors, but instead, to put his belief and faith in God and himself!

Whatever you focus your attention on expands, so Dr. Hank focused his attention on walking and eventually felt movement in his little toe and then moved that energy throughout his legs. He can walk now and they call him a walking miracle… but Dr. Hank believes we are all walking miracles and he can show you how.

Dr. Hank has a Bachelor Degree in Business, Master’s Degree in Psychology and PhD in Mental Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This is why he’s nicknamed Dr. Hank!

Dr. Hank is also an author of 15 books that you can purchase at Amazon.com. You might want to start with “Your Royal Path To Riches” as this will help you to tap into your subconscious mind, the Kingdom with YOU!

Learn more at https://drhankseitz.com/

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Episode 53 – Barak Swarttz

Barak Swarttz is a leading strength and conditioning coach and former college basketball player. As an athlete, he leverages his experience and adversity to help others reach their full potential. As a trainer, Barak’s goal is to inspire everyone that he works with to find their own GRIT (gain, resilience in Time.) He also uses fitness as a vehicle for enhancing and improving every aspect of his clients’ lives. Barak Swarttz trains NBA, WNBA, and Euroleague basketball players, as well as anyone who wants to reach their fitness goals!

His family moved to Israel when he was six; that was when he first picked up a basketball. Shortly after Barak returned to the states and basketball became his life. Training, playing, and competing were the only things he cared about.

At 16 years-old, Barak was diagnosed with 2 hairline fractures and Spondylolisthesis in his back. He was put in a back brace and shut down from activity for 6 months. He pushed through his pain and continued to play eventually playing college ball at Elmira College and then transferred for his last two years at Curry College.

Barak spent countless time in surgery and rehab. He knew he wasn’t on his way to the NBA, but he never allowed his work ethic be the reason he wasn’t getting better. Barak thought that being injured and never reaching his potential was one of his life’s biggest failures, but now realizes that it’s actually his life’s biggest asset.

Barak’s experience of being an injured athlete gave him a window of opportunity to help athletes become so healthy, fit, elite and strong that they don’t have to endure what he did.

Follow on social media @otherbarak Learn more at https://www.barakswarttz.com/

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Episode 52 – Lt. Jason Redman

In our first episode of Season 2 I had the incredible opportunity to speak with retired Navy SEAL Lieutenant Jason Redman.

During his 21-year Navy career, Jason spent 11 years as an enlisted SEAL and 10 years as a SEAL officer leading teams in combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today he puts his vast experience and expertise to work as speaker, coach, author and trainer, helping individuals, teams and organizations of all types and sizes to define and implement lasting change, even in the wake or face of failure, crisis and adversity.

He’s lived through it all at the highest level in his Navy SEAL career: From failures as a young leader that resulted in him almost being kicked out of the SEAL teams, to redemption and leading teams in intense combat operations in Iraq, to being shot eight times, including a round to the face, and nearly dying during an enemy ambush, Jason has lived the OVERCOME Mindset he now teaches others. He has done an incredible job of taking these lessons learned and making them relatable to teams, businesses and organizations around the world. Jason teaches individuals, companies and teams how to overcome failure, setbacks and catastrophic crisis through his incredible presentations on life ambushes and his proven “Get off the X” methodology to not only survive the crisis but thrive and launch from it!

Learn more at https://jasonredman.com

Connect with him on social media @jasonredmanww