The Female Author and Job Satisfaction | Sandy Rodriguez

   Today on the show we have Sandy Rodriguez.  Who is an author, former editor for the magazine Wine-making Enthusiasts and so much more.  We talk about the hardships and obstacles authors may face, contentment and job satisfaction. 

Find the book: https://www.amazon.com/Choose-Prevail-Unexpected-Insights-Challenges-ebook/dp/B08HVT5PPL

Get a signed copy: https://www.heartofhollywoodmagazine.com/product-page/choose-to-prevail-signed-copy-by-sandy-rodriguez-papeback

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/choosetoprevail/?hl=en

Transcript

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Hi, today we have a very special guest. Her name is Sandy Rodriguez. Pretty much right when we started recording me and Sandy just went right into it didn't even introduce ourselves. So yeah, here it is our wonderful guest, Sandy Rodriguez. Welcome to the Josh Bolton show where we die interesting and inspiring conversations. And now your host, Josh Bolton. Yes. Oh, good. So can you prove and get started? Can you tell? Tell me a little about yourself? Absolutely. Well, I think that I am very unique in that I walked away from a career that I really liked when I was at the height of that career, which is not something most people would think to do. But the reason I did this, Josh, is that I was working as a newspaper editor, it was something that I was very passionate about. I did that for many years. And then, due to personal situations, which we can get into later, I had to move from Mexico City to Los Angeles. And that meant I would have to start a new career from scratch. So basically, I went from being a newspaper editor to being something entirely different, which is, according to a butter, which is something very, very different. But making that making that shift allowed me to do a number of things, including writing, I wrote a book called choose to prevail. And I somehow became a micro entrepreneur as a consequence of having written the book, even though it was not my original idea. But it ended up taking on a life of its own. So now I'm doing those things. I'm working as a court interpreting interpreter, I'm promoting the book, I also found time to paint. So I became an artist as well. And I even got into amateur winemaking. So I'm doing a lot of things now, which I never would have been able to do. If I had remained working in my previous, let's say, career path. So I take it the court is understanding if let's say you have a big book event coming up, you just give him a heads up and be like, Hey, I have this event. I am an in house interpreter. It's a full time job. It's a very, very demanding job. But bear in mind, in my old job, I used to work 14 hour days, 16 hour days, right nowadays. So even though this is a full day activity, to me, it's a piece of cake, I think I think you can see that it would be very, very, very different. So to me, it's interesting, because many of my co workers say, Oh, I'm exhausted, I'm spent. I've been here for five hours already. And I'm about to pass out. And I'm like fresh as a daisy. So it's it's been? It's been an interesting thing. Yeah. Yeah, it ultimately is just mindset and really tired is you can actually trick your mind to think you're not tired anymore. Absolutely. And it also depends on what you like, if you're very passionate about something that's fine. Just flies by I feel. Oh, absolutely. I noticed that all the time. In general. That's where when I was the pandemic first hit, I decided instead of crying and hiding and drinking, like everyone else, I was like, I'm gonna read, I'm gonna look learn and all that. And I've come to find out a lot of the key successes is really just mindset, and just being consistent and persistent. So too, and you know, it's very interesting. I've listened to a number of your episodes, I really like them. Thank you. You're very welcome. I mean, they're very interesting. And something that I find interesting about you is that you do, actually, like you have like, several sites here. Personally, I know you're very interested in trading. So that's something that's very new. To me. Even though I'm not necessarily super familiar with the stock market myself, I have had the opportunity to work on, let's say, websites, and white papers and promotional materials for investment opportunities. I see in having done that, that being a book author and promoting a book has a lot in common, there's a lot of overlap with playing the stock market. It's very interesting. For instance, when you see major publishing houses, the way it works is that you don't get a book deal unless you're, you have a very, very proven track record. They're going to be Betting on you as a product. He was the author or their product. And the book is also their product. That would be what they do. They don't take risks. They don't gamble in any way. So it's quite interesting. So For many first time authors, such as myself, it is possible to get a book deal. But you need to have a very, very solid existing platform online and another ways so that the publishing house or the agent feels that you are assured bent. Now, if that is not the case, well, then you still need to, to do something that also has some overlap with the stock market, in the sense that if you choose to publish on your own, or if you choose to do what is known as hybrid publishing, in which publishing house more yourself, reaps all the rewards, but they also don't, you know, gamble on their own, even in that case, you still need to do a little bit of speculating, I think, because you're going to have to put some of your budget towards certain marketing efforts, and you really don't know what is going to pay off and what is not. And I was listening to one of your episodes, and you mentioned something that, to me was very interesting, which is that you might take a lot of risks or, you know, look into many opportunities, and not all of them are going to be successful, you might have a number of failures. But it only takes one right at the game changer, the one that really moves the needle. And that's been interesting to me, I may allocate a number of resources. And I mean, not only money, but also my time and my effort, right is specific activities. And some of them pay off, some of them don't. And that's something that every entrepreneur or author slash entrepreneur needs to be aware of. It really is. And it's, I actually interviewed a ghostwriter, lady. And literally, she's like, it's 5000, I'm sitting there going, for a normal person, that's a lot of money, but for the time, and whatever, it's so worth the$5,000 kind of thing. But then I like jokingly told her, I'm like, there's also no guarantee you're gonna make money either. So you can write this beautiful book, or you can market it. But if there's no one going to buy it, what's the point of doing it then? Absolutely. I think I'm lucky if regard that when I was writing the book, to be honest, making money was not really front and center. In my mind, it was something that I hadn't really thought of, but I just thought, Okay, put out some contents here. People like it, see if people can find it helpful. But fortunately, or unfortunately, whatever way you want to see it, it kind of did take on a life of its own. And people started responding. All of a sudden, I had like a lot of reviews on Amazon and just people commenting on it. And a lot of things that I thought, okay, it might be worth my while to try to market it a little bit more aggressively, or at all, because it hadn't been really my, my, my thought. Although I have to say, Josh, that I did do something that I think would be interesting to anybody that is marketing, not only books, but really any product, at this point in history when Yes, things are reopening. But virtual events are still a big thing. Let me tell you about this, because this was I think this was very unique. So I finished writing the book, let's say during the height of the pandemic, which was really not terrible in any way, I remember you discussing with our guests that you had that some people saw the pandemic as being a great opportunity to reset or a terrible, terrible time. To me, it was neither, because I was working normal. I mean, I was working on site, I was working full time. So to me, it really wasn't very disruptive in many ways. But still, that was the time when I completed the writing of the book. And of course, I suppose everybody that completes a project, such as a book dream. So having this wonderful launch party or media book signing or something fun for some family, but because of the nature of what was going on, but everything was closed down. And there were so many restrictions. I thought, well, it'll have to be virtual. And I did see a lot of authors, you know, hosting virtual book launches. But for the most part, even though they were very moving and very touching in many ways, most were very simple. It was just maybe them at their kitchen table or I mean it was something that was more akin to a normal zoom meeting more akin to what we wouldn't be doing normally with rice. And I thought I might want to do something a little bit more special because I had already allocated some money to a book launch. So I thought, well, let's put those resources towards something a little bit more special. So I got in touch with this company that I sometimes work with which is called heart of Hollywood and As it turns out, they were in the pre launch phase of a new streaming platform, which is going to be something big in the future. But right now it was in them. It still is in the pre launch phase. Yes, exactly. So they said, Okay, we're going to work with you, we're going to, let's say, shoot your launch as if it were a live TV show with an interactive component as well. So we went ahead, and we actually shot this in our green screen studio in Burbank, where, as your listeners know, many of the studios are located here in in the California and Southern California area. And it was wonderful. We had a few, let's say COVID, COVID, safe, a little bit of a COVID safe presence. We had a few people live in the studio. We also had remote guests from Canada, Mexico, New York. And that was wonderful. We also had live well not live. But original music composed for the event, which was something that is Yeah, I think that added something special, especially because, I mean, the people that wrote music for the event, wrote it inspired by the book. And how often is it that a motivational book inspires music? Never, ever, ever? Right? I've never heard of it. Right? I mean, oftentimes, literature does inspired music. But that tends to be, I don't know, literature, in the sense that it might inspire opera or some kind of very dramatic, you know, or even sometimes rock songs occasionally or pop songs. But that's not the norm. But in this case, it's a motivational book. And the music inspired was fantastic, because it's, it's rock, I like rock music. And it's very, you know, confidence boosting, which is very much in line with what what the book is meant to do. So that was very cool. We also had a very well known mixologist and some of the era designs, Zipit cocktails for the book launch. So people that are going to watch the launch, got the recipes in advance so that they could be drinking the official cocktails while we're watching the event. And it was just a lot of fun. We did giveaways, it was great. So I think that was something that was at least as exciting as an in person launch. And it worked out very well, very well, Josh, so well, that part of Hollywood firstly decided to give out a copy of my book to their future investors and future members. So that was wonderful. It's a tie in, it's a finger doing now jointly, they're also selling signed copies of my book on their website. So that was awesome. The book is, of course, available on normal platforms like Amazon, or Barnes and noble.com target.com, etc. But the signed copies are available through this one website. And also, apparently, they got such a good response, then we're about to launch a video series inspired by the book. So in a few weeks, I'm going to start shooting this the series, which will be done remotely, at least initially until things get fully back to normal. But I'll be interviewing people that have overcome challenges in their lives. And so that is how it turns out that I became kind of like a micro entrepreneur through the writing of the book, even though that was not my initial idea. And even though I do hold a full time job, so I think that for listeners out there, it's a I don't know like an interesting story, I believe it could be because a lot of people want to go into business by themselves for themselves, or they want to work on a side project, but they think I don't have time, or I don't want to lose the stability and safety net of my current job. I believe you can do both things at the same time. So that's something that I'd like to put out there. Absolutely. That's the biggest thing of my martial arts instructor. He tells me he's like keep your current job and he's like if you have to take a second but the seconds more like a project is so if is one of those have you exhausted from your first one? Don't even worry, just sleep the day kind of thing? Is it because it's not your income is not pendant? He's like if you quit, and you're you have nothing and he's like, especially in California, you'll be eaten up alive. Good luck kind of thing. Oh, absolutely. And especially us a person that enjoys the stock market and trading. I'm sure you would agree that making decisions based on fear and terror is never a good idea. And if you did not have that little safety net provided by doing what you and I do, which is we keep our jobs and we might still be doing things on the side. That way we can make decisions from a place of, well, maybe not certainty, because you can never have full certainty, but at least we can make informed decisions calmly. It I think we can make wiser choices because we're not terrified that we will, out on the streets and destitute of our new thing doesn't pan out. Right. So I think I think that's a good a very good and very wise opinion from your martial arts expert. Yeah, he he's been doing this for like, 30 years. And essentially, I told him, like, you've literally mastered everything, that when it comes to business marketing bookkeeping person, the key getting better retaining customers, he's, again, beginning to sell free for like 14 years, and well, I've technically been paying monthly, but okay, it's got a thing. Yeah. And that's where essentially, he was telling me something to the effect of like, yeah, even though you're like a previous equity, which considering my son, now, you've been with me long enough, like, you're the annoying kid in the corner, we can never get rid of now. And, but he said, I treat you like a son. So anything I teach you, it's like, I truly mean, I'm not saying it to make you feel good, go out and didn't go back my office and finish my paperwork kind of thing. That's wonderful. It's always fantastic to have supportive people around you. And that's also something that I cannot stress enough the importance of surrounding yourself with people that are supportive, and moving away from anybody that is cruel, anybody that is poking holes in your dreams. And that seems to be like quite obvious, like, Who would want to hang out with somebody that's super negative. But here's the thing, sometimes we have to, because they might be coworkers, or neighbors, or people we have, I think in those cases, I mean, of course, you can't literally cut them out of your life. But you can limit the interaction you have with them. Or you can kind of work around them. For example, if there's somebody that you need to see for some reason. And you know, that person is very negative, you might choose activities that involve very little conversation, maybe going to a movie, now the movie theaters reopen, or, you know, taking part in that 10k, where you will be too busy running to actually talk or things like those, right? Because you don't want anybody saying anything negative people, especially at the outset, can be very affected by the power of suggestion. And anybody that is saying that you cannot do something, or that is offering, you know, excessive criticism will not not be in any way useful in your life. But I you were, it sounds to me, like you consider him a mentor, this wonderful person. I think the the advice that he's given you in that regard is very wise. I also think that, on the other hand, there can be something as too much financial reality. And let me tell you why that, okay, can be a bad thing. So I was telling you that in the past, I used to work as an editorial coordinator or a newspaper editor. This was back when I lived in Mexico City, I lived there for many years. And I held this position for the longest, sometimes a little bit over 15 years. Now, I was very passionate about this line of work. It was very exciting. It was exhilarating. But I have to say, Josh, that it's all consuming, not only physically spend all of those hours that I was telling you about in the actual newsroom, 16 hours or more every day. But also you're never really off the clock, because let's say that it's your lunch hour or your lunch 20 minutes to be more precise. Or maybe it's your day off or whatever the case may be. If that day, a celebrity passes away or something happens or there's an earthquake or something very important or newsworthy happens. Well, you can say, Oh, that's interesting. I'll just think about that tomorrow. No, no, no, no, it's back to the office, or somehow, you know, working or assigning something to that effect. So it's, it's really all consuming, you're never really off the clock. Now the reason I remained in that situation for so long, was firstly, because I loved it. I loved the excitement and just the thrill of keeping up with the new cycle being very well informed. But also because I was making great money, I was making a lot of money. So that is also something that ends up being like golden handcuffs or a golden cage in the sense that I decided to give up that job and that very, very, very desirable very prestigious career path because Cuz I had experienced a number of personal situations that made me rethink that decision. My father passed at a very early age and a theory unexpected situation, my younger brother as well, he, he passed away. And that was, like, shocking to me, it was it shook me to the core, particularly because over the course of those 15 years, I had barely had enough time to, you know, be with them. And they were, we were extremely, extremely close, but I barely got the chance to, you know, be with them, spend quality time with them, because of the nature of my job, and then would also apply to, let's say, my very close friends, I would see my best friends who were in similar career situations, just a handful of times a year, if at all. And certainly during the whole time that I was working there, I will I barely ever, I mean, I didn't date at all, I never got married, for example. And that is something that many people would take for granted, at some point, establishing some kind of a serious relationship. And that was not my experience at all, and many other things of that nature. So I felt at some point that I really had given up my life for this career. Now, I'm not saying I was feeling like, Oh, that was a terrible choice. It wasn't because I also got a lot out of my job. It was something that was very personally fulfilling. But the reality is that I did that at the expense of everything else. Now, even though I had made that decision, and it was something that was on my mind, I didn't actually take action, even a long time after that had been my decision, because I was just making a lot of money, Josh, and I was thinking, Okay, if I were to walk away from this, and move somewhere else and start some somewhere else, it would be from scratch, it would be I mean, right now I'm, I'm an established professional. And this will be something like, I would be almost like somebody just fresh out of school, because I would know nobody in the industry, I would know. I mean, it would just be something difficult, maybe like an uphill climb. But I thought, well, it might be it might be for the best. So I decided to do that. And without burning any bridges, I was very careful to give enough advance notice, in fact, I stayed on for several months after because that was something that my employer wanted me to do. And I i mean, i doing everything in the most careful of ways, I moved to LA with plenty of savings, because I had just sold us an apartment that I used to have in Mexico City, so that I would have a little bit of, you know, safety net, a little safety net right there. And it took me a long time to find, you know, gainful employment. And I'm very happy I did that, because it took a very long time to find something that that was appealing. And that I could actually do, because again, it's interesting that when I moved here, this was the time when a lot of people were starting to create wonderful content for free, for example, bloggers and such. So there really was not much of a market for a journalist like myself at that particular point in time. And I was invited to take part in many projects, but mostly for the experience. And for the fun, I would not be able to say Oh, that was in any way. Anything like that would qualify as gainful employment that took a little bit longer. And I'm glad I had that safety net, which to be honest, was pretty much running out completely. When court interpreting came into my radar. This was something that I was not even aware of. I didn't know this career path even existed. And I can't say how lucky I was to find that not only because of financial reasons, I think that might have even been secondary, but mostly because it ended up being a career path. But I'm very well suited for it naturally, for whatever reason I know for many people is very difficult. And also there's a very high barrier to entry. It's a very interesting job. And I would encourage your listeners that are fully fully fully bilingual or trilingual to explore this line of work. The barrier to entry is great. I mean, there are a lot of certification exams and the pass rate is extremely low, at least like 3% but for me specifically, and I'm not saying this to brag, but just because everybody has their own skill set. For me, I think It's something that I can naturally do with relative ease. I mean, not with great ease, but with relative ease. And I think, Josh, that there's something that is very fascinating about this line of work, which is not the common situation, most of the time, no matter what it is that you're doing. Maybe if you're a researcher, you're doing a research now and the fruits of your labor will appear decades into the future. Or if you're a pastry chef, you might bake a pie now, and you'll be able to serve a difference two hours from now. Or if you're, you know, into the stock market, you're, you know, investing now in hopes of receiving a huge return on your investment in the future. But with interpreting the thing is that whatever it is that you're doing, you're doing in the now in the moment, the fruits of your labor are seen simultaneously. And the moment you're done, you're done. There's nothing to take home, there's nothing to keep pondering whatever you did, you did, it's done. It's over. And that's very unique. I think it's also something that, I don't know, I think it's in line with what many senate teachers teach, and so on to you know, focus on the time being, I think it's, it's, it's quite fascinating, I'm very happy that I that I found this line of work, which I like just as much as journalism. And also, the fact is, as I was mentioning that, although I do work full time, in what is one of the, I believe two largest courthouses in the US, and also one of the largest courthouses in the world. So I keep very busy, and it's a full time job, but compared to my previous job situation, well, I mean, it's quite relaxed now that it is, but I mean, if I were to compare and contrast, right, so right, so I still have when I get home, I still have the energy, and I still have the drive to do additional things. So I've been painting, I wrote the book, the book, by the way, I have it right here, it's called choose to prevail. Okay. And it's a book that is meant to provide the reader with much more self confidence, and a greater sense of peace. And I think that it succeeded, at least based off of the reviews. But I think that anybody can make time for what they like, for instance, in my in my case, I love writing, I love Well, I mean, that's quite obvious being that I used to be an editor. So now, in addition to my regular job, I also edit the magazine, I work on a lot of freelance writing projects. And I have time to engage in what I like to do in addition to my normal job, which I also enjoy. So that's something that I see you do as well. So you come home from work, and then you still engage in your passions, you're doing podcasting, which is clearly something that comes very natural to you. And it's just fascinating to me, I think that the most interesting people are people that like their job, and also find the time to engage in outside passions. I find it very sad. When I see people are describing their workday as Oh, it was horrifying. And it's only Monday, and I still have four days to go. And I'm counting down the days to retirement only 65 years to go over eight. And they're like writing down little lines. I said, we're a prison sentence. That's no way to live really. So. Right. And I think that in any in any line of work that you may have, it doesn't really matter what it is. It's as interesting as you make it out to be. I mean, even when I was working at the newspaper, which to me was fascinating. I also got to see a few people that to them, it was not fascinating to them, it was horrifying. And it really doesn't matter. A job can be as exciting or as mundane, or as I mean, it really doesn't matter. It's a lot. It has a lot to do with your mindset. And it's it's really interesting to me that even in the entrepreneurial world, oftentimes, the pitch is I'm going to teach you how to build wealth, so that you don't have to work a nine to five ever again. Okay, I mean, that does sound appealing to many. I'm short. Yeah, but here's the thing. What's so bad about a nine to five? Again, it you got to find the right one. Exactly. Different people have different tastes different people have different types of personality. But the reality is about a nine to five does not have to be horrible if you find the right one is as you're saying, Josh, it can be something that you adore. In fact, I think that if you find the right job or the right career path or something that's interesting to you Or you just have the right mindset, retirement. I mean, it would hold very little appeal, if at all, I mean, I think you might say, Oh, it's fun, because I'll get, you know, free money from the government or my company or my savings plan, or whatever the case may be. But I have no plans to stop working or doing things for engaging in activities. So I do think that it's very important to, to follow a path that you like, or to have the right mindset, like you're saying, and like we were discussing, it's also great to have that little safety net right there, in addition to doing whatever you want. That's a little bit more speculative. So that's interesting. Yeah. You know, there's something there's something that I decided to include in the book, which is about time management, because I see a lot of people struggle with that. And one of the things that I mentioned regarding time management, is that many of us, at some point have fallen into the trap of saving all of the fun stuff, all of the exciting stuff for weekends. So we're right, so we're having like, okay, we're looking forward to the weekend. But then again, Monday is awful Tuesday's even worse, Wednesday is horrifying, and so on. And that's also no way to live. I mean, you want to have a life that is full at all times. So it really behooves people to schedule at least a little bit of fun into their Mondays or Tuesdays. I mean, maybe you don't have a lot of free time. Surely not as much as during the weekend. But you do need to make a little time, even if it's 10 minutes to do something you're looking forward to doing. I even see. And this is maybe more stereotypically feminine, and I, I my parents are word gender expert. So believe me, I'm not into old fashioned stereotypes. But I see a lot of people and particularly women, saving their their beautiful clothing for the weekend doing their hair only on Saturday, you know, taking pains with their appearance only for going out at night on Friday night. And guys as well. I mean, they're saving their their nicest clothes or whatever, for that one specific moment during the weekend. So the rest of the week, they're looking like slobs they're looking. I mean, why? I mean, why would you save your best self for the weekend. I mean, you can have a lovely week, it can be exciting, you can try to look your best, you can try to be at your best you can try to be on. I mean, it doesn't make sense to save your fun self or your fun personality, or your jokes or your optimism or your happy mindset for the weekend. Why would you like to spend all week like just trudging along? And no, no, that is really no way to live in that that goes for everyone. It goes for, for younger people, older people, men, women, everybody, I mean, you really need to have a balance right there. And it can be something as minor as maybe scheduling a time when you'll have a phone call or a zoom call with a good friend or maybe scheduling a picnic or you know something that's fun, you know, for the week. It doesn't have to be like, like, crazy, like spending a lot of money or necessarily a lot of time but somebody something. Indeed, yeah, that's the biggest thing I've noticed who have just all the different jobs. I've taken everyone there for the weekend. And I'm like, Why? What's the point like you, you treat yourself like shit for five days, but you raise yourself like a god for two. Usually you're just drinking so you don't even notice the difference? Yes. And hence Monday's terrible because you drink Saturday and Sunday. And then everyone it's it's hysterical. They'll kind of be like, Oh, I have a hangover. Like why do you drink like 15 Bloody Marys? Just saying that's kind of stupid. That is a fantastic point you're making. And there's another side to that thing that you're mentioning. I think that I mean, of course nobody feels great after drinking 25 Bloody Marys? That's right. But exactly what here's the thing. I think that the effect of the hangover effect, or the exhaustion effect can be even more pronounced when you're drinking and partying to forgive your horrible life than when you're just out with friends to connect and to relax and to chill and to have a good time. And it's it's a real it's a real mindset thing as well. I mean, drinking or not drinking can be a personal choice, but I have regardless. Even if you're out all night, if you were out all night because you're just hanging out with friends and happy and meeting new people and engaging and exciting conversations and maybe you know getting why not Even new business ideas from an interesting conversation with people you met at a dinner party or whatever the case may be, you might wake up like, Oh, I'm kind of tired. What do you feel fine, kind of fine. Right? Whereas I'm sure that if you were, I don't know, I don't even know if you can call it party. And if you got home from work on Friday and said, I'm exhausted, I'm opening a bottle of vodka. I'm passing out I'm drinking it. I mean, that's, that's exactly that would be at Firstly, a sign of an addiction. Secondly, it would be a sign of being tremendously unhappy with your normal weekday life. And you would need to, to get help in many ways. I mean, not only not only for substance abuse, but also taking a long, hard look at your life. What is driving you to do this. So it's something to look into as well. Yeah, that's a very good point you're making? Well, the only reason I brought that up to them is because I told them, like, I was a good kid, during my teenage years, never smoked, we never drank kind of thing. So when 21 hit, I had about eight years worth of shit to make up for life. So I'm like, I indirectly kind of became an alcoholic, kind of thing. And I admit, it was like a solid year and a half, I could not function, I had to have a beer every morning, kind of thing. And it just got to the point, it wasn't even that I was getting myself, like pretty much poisoned every night. It was literally my parents attempt, or like, we thought you were gonna die. Like it was that bad. It was actually the bill. When I saw my bills, I'm like, wait, that's like $200 in one night? Well, I could have put that somewhere. That's literally I just quit right? There was a rough. Yes. I mean, I can certainly see why. I mean, the moment you saw that, it would be like a wake up call for everybody. Right? And, you know, sometimes it doesn't necessarily have to be alcohol, a lot of people are filling a void in their life with shopping, or overeating. Or it can be I mean, there are just so many things, right. But I think you make a fantastic point, if you see not only the toll it's taken on you. But the actual price tag, oh, my goodness, that is surely a wake up call. Shouldn't be a thing. That is definitely a thing. But that's the I do think that when you're falling into, into that, like any kind of an addiction mindset, I mean, I know sometimes it has to do with body chemistry or other things up. But in reality, in reality, oftentimes, people go down that dark and slippery slope, because there's something that they're not happy about in their regular life. I mean, often it seems that people might be feeling, you know, unhappy at work. And I'm sure work because work is such an important part of our, you know, experience, certainly, it's very important to know that we are not our job. And that's also very important to take into consideration because life takes many different terms. You might, you know, you might be CEO of a company today, and tomorrow, you might be unemployed, so or the other way around. Something that happened. So I mean, I think it's very important to be happy at work to find something you enjoy to, you know, to really relish what is good about your work life being be a commodity with your friends, or even the free coffee, whatever there is, there's always some something good. But you also cannot define yourself by your work. Because you're way more than that. And it's important to have outside interests that occupy your your time, so that you're not falling prey to to those darker things. I mean, that's also very important. Oftentimes, people that are falling into addictions of many kinds. Sometimes it is because well, not because but it's exacerbated because they have too much time on their hands, or not enough going on. So yes, it's very good to fill your time with things that are productive with things that you find exciting. And definitely that's, that's definitely a thing sports, friends, healthy relationships, there's just so much to to do that. I mean, it's good if you fill your time with things that are that are productive. Yes, and 100% agree. That's it, your comment of time having too much time, that was actually the main reason because it's like, I was 18 I was working at the martial art studio. Pretty much getting pennies, but I did what I love, but it nothing gives my father he was raised by an alcoholic. He's an alcoholic. So I was like, Oh, it's a chain, I gotta I gotta do it kind of thing. But I realized I'm making barely 100 bucks a week I'm leaving my parents so i can i can sustain kind of thing. But I'm drinking triple that. And it's like, plus I feel like shit and I can't give my clients what they need kind of thing. So essentially my instructor because I When I said I was underage, and I didn't do anything, so during that whole time, I was also smoking vaping other stuff, and it was just one of those I received a pill and I'm like, oh my god. Like, why? Like, there's no, there's no reason to this. That's where people think I don't have experiences like I just got this stuff done quicker than most. Well, it's good that it was contained within a one year period of that. Was that yummy? So that's, perhaps if we can see any silver lining that would be the silver lining. But yes, no, it's, it's true what you're saying. But sometimes these things also go hand in hand, we're mentioning the vaping. And the smoking. Sometimes these things do go Can that had, like, I, I've heard that a lot of people, while let's say drunk, they go on crazy internet shopping sprees. So all of a sudden, if there's like, two problems right there, not only that you spend on pretty much you, you know, emptied out the whole liquor store. But now you also, you know, ran up a crazy bill on Amazon and things like that. So it's, it's very, it's very important to see what's going on and really take action. I mean, some people can turn it around on their own, but most can't. So it's very reasonable to reach out to somebody you trust, it can be a, it can be pretty much anyone can be a mentor, it can be a therapist, it could be there are many institutions and many venues to get help. If you feel that you cannot control something on your own. And it's affecting your life in either your personal life or your professional life. And I can certainly see how Yes, realizing how much you're spending, I mean, like literally spending how much money is being spent on engaging in disruptive behaviors, that would certainly shake most people up enough that they would just quit cold turkey, I think it was a very traumatizing thing, because I was young, and no one explained what a credit card was, and whether you actually owed the money kind of thing. So I'd run that thing as high as I could pay it off running high as I could. And that was the part of the many gears clicking together. And it was just the Oh, okay, so I had to break the cycle now, kind of thing. I think that was that was wonderful, wonderful, that you made yourself aware of what was going on? And that that was something that stopped. But yes, definitely, the thing is that, regardless of how somebody is coping, even if they're coping with an unhappy work situation, even if they're coping with that in a healthy way, maybe they find a healthy outlet, such as I'm guessing, exercise, but if you don't really need to find any outlet for an unhappy work situation, it's better to address the unhappy words such as work situation in the first place, and just not be in that situation. If you're in a very toxic work environment that is causing you to do things that you don't want. If it's terrible, like truly, truly terrible, I mean, I do know that the job market is tight. But if it's something terrible, you can walk away, if it's something that is really, you know, crushing your soul or something like that. But most of the time, things are not that dire. I think most of the time, you can shift your mindset in many ways and just not focus on the negative. Right? Many, right? I mean, many jobs, regardless of how much you like them have a little bit of a downside, maybe there's a couple of people you don't care for, maybe there's a policy that you disagree with. But overall, it's something that is very, very manageable. So really, like in all situations in life, it's far better to focus on what you do like, or what you can change than what you don't like or can't change. And that makes a world of a difference. And really doing the the thing that I was mentioning, which is while having your job engaging also in additional passions, or interests or hobbies that you might have, it also makes a world of a difference, because now your outlook is much brighter, I think, in general. So that's something that's important. I can't say how happy I am with my current lifestyle, even if I did have to scale back on a number of things. I mean, certainly I have far less disposable income than I used to have, for example, or things like that. But I do have way more time. And that is also very, very valuable. And again, you never know. I mean, so far the book is doing well. At some point, you never know what the marketing effort that will really move the needle will be maybe someday it will be a big moneymaker. If it is that's fantastic. If it isn't that's also great, because that was not my chief aim when writing. So let's go into a couple of topics of your book. What are the different we've talked to about self motivation, self confidence, just give us a quick overview, and then we can go into that. Okay, that sounds wonderful. So the book is titled choose to prevail. And the, the, let's say the purpose of the book is to help the reader prevail over whatever it is that is causing them grief, whatever is causing you to feel less confident or less at peace. And these things can be addressed. Regardless of what they are, they can be something very dramatic, such as, for instance, the loss of a loved one, or they could be something minor, for example, being blocked by a friend on social media, or you know, being stuck in traffic. Or it could be something such as being afraid of public speaking or having concerns about your physical appearance, or perhaps feeling concerned about money. So there are many things that weigh heavily on people's minds. Some issues might be big, some issues might be small. But overall, I think that the one way that they can all be addressed with, of course, with subtle differences. But overall, it boils down to a shift in perception, to putting things into perspective. So certainly there, the book includes a few practical tips, I wouldn't necessarily want to call them hacks, because I think hats are the word hacks to me, seems to be like, perhaps like a little shortcut or cheating some Yeah, like the quick and dirty route. Exactly, exactly. And I do offer a little sprinkling of, let's say hack, like practical things that people might might try. But overall, it's more of a mindset thing. For example, all of us injure at some point, sadly, some form of tragedy, there is no life that does not include at least, something very, very sad, to some degree. In fact, I've always thought, Josh, that it's a very bad idea to be jealous of people. Because sometimes we see someone and we say, oh, that person has a Ferrari, I'm so jealous of that person, I would like to have that car, or Oh, that woman is a model, I would like to be a model myself, or the CEO of that company, he's so powerful, I'd love to be in his shoes, or that woman is a self made millionaire, oh, my goodness, I'm so jealous. But you know, that never really makes sense. Because we don't know the full story. Right? I mean, somebody might have something that we're jealous of. But they might also be struggling with something that we're not aware of. Like, for instance, somebody might have fabulous health, but also be deeply in depth. Or they might be doing very well financially, but they might be struggling with substance abuse, or they might have fabulous marriage, but they also are dealing with the death of a child, and so on. So you really don't don't know what's going on. So you know, so that's the thing, perspective is everything. So all of us at some point deal with some form of tragedy. And while that's something horrible, it does help us in, in the sense that it can help us put minor annoyances in perspective. For example, I personally, as I was mentioning, I, I, my father, and my, and my younger brother passed away in a very timely manner. Also, one of my best female friends was killed during a trip to Egypt. So I was also horrible, you can imagine. And another time I was a crime victim. So there were like several things that I mean, I'm not saying that to gain sympathy. But the thing is that a lot of people do experience something to some degree. Now, there's nothing good about these experiences, per se, they're horrible. They're terrible. They shouldn't have happened. However, the fact that they did allows us to look at minor annoyances, and really put them in perspective. For example, if I go to the store, and there's a long line at the checkout, or the self checkout, you know, area. I mean, I wouldn't say that. I'm thrilled. I wouldn't say that. Oh, I'm so sad that I really don't feel upset ever, ever, ever. Of course I do. But I mean, I can't say oh, this is devastating. Oh my goodness, my day is ruined. No, I would be very silly to say something of that sort. Because I've already experienced horrible things. And it really it's, it's interesting. Sometimes you see people that make a mountain out of a molehill, and I think But that happens to all of us at some point in time. So whenever I'm stressing out too much over something that in reality, isn't that big of a deal. I can just have a little flashback to something that really was very dire. And all of a sudden, I mean, I say, well, thank goodness, but it's just a lot of traffic. That's, that's, I mean, if that's my biggest concern today, I mean, I'm good, I'm happy. So that's, that's something that that really perspective is everything. Now. That's, let's say something very dramatic, but going to something that might be a little bit less jarring or shocking. A lot of people are very self conscious, maybe overly so. And I have to say that I was one of them. Just when I was younger, even up all the way up to college, I suppose. I wouldn't even I mean, thinking about speaking in public, I mean, it would send me into a full blown panic attack. I mean, I really, I mean, I wouldn't even be able to raise my hand in class. So I would stammer, and I would blush and I would sweat. And my heart would be pounding and it would be like terrible. Yeah. But now it's it's very strange, because I think that throughout most of my professional life, I have had to do a lot of public speaking at a certain point, I was a language tutor for people in finance, then well, well let the newspapers certainly I had to address. Well, people at work in meetings, often, of course, and now as an interpreter, but basically, I'm physically in the spotlight with a microphone and speaking. And right. I'm also a motivational speaker. Occasionally, I work professionally as a public speaker, I also host video series different video series as as, as an interviewer, so I do a lot of speaking these days. Now, that's like a huge shift. It's a complete 180 from my previous situation. And I think that's something that helped me and I think it can help readers and people in general, is understanding to understanding and having like, a very, very clear picture of this, people are not paying attention to us, they could care less. The truth I've ever learned, right? It's, it's very, it's a huge blow to the ego, but it's the reality. Let me tell you, I read about an experiment. And this is a real thing. People in the experiment volunteered to wear what was considered possibly the most embarrassing t shirt ever, which was a Barry Manilow concert t shirts. And they were supposed to wear this T shirt well out and about in social situations. Well, the volunteers were horrified. They were like, oh, my goodness, everybody's going to make fun of me. You know, nobody even noticed their t shirt at. All. Right? So here's the thing, I feel that sometimes when we're overly self conscious, or we think people are going to be massively critical. I think that is because we're not aware of that. We think. And I don't mean it in a narcissistic way. But I think we believe that the spotlight really is on us. And the people are noticing our shoes, or our hair, the way we're shaking the beads of sweat on our forehead. To be honest, they're not even remotely paying attention, when in fact, your listeners can, you know, try this little experiment. If you think about a person that you see regularly, maybe a co worker or a neighbor, or a friend, try to remember what this person was wearing the last two or three times you saw them. And I can guarantee that you have no recollection whatsoever. Even if you spent the entire day with them. At best, you might say, Well, yeah, they have this. I don't know purple jacket or something if they were wearing something very unusual. But even then you might be like, I'm not quite clear. It's it's things that you might assume people pay attention to. They really don't. And right. And even for example, when you go out to a sporting event, or a concert, even if you spent good money on tickets, and even if you're a fan, honestly, you're not focused on the quarterback or the batter or the singer or the drummer 100% of the time. Sounds like you're watching their every move. Why won't because your mind wanders or you're checking your phone or you're going to get a drink or a snack or, I mean, people are not that crazy focused on others. It's very interesting. And once you realize that, it becomes much easier to step in front of a crowd and just address them with that. I mean, they're not even looking. In fact, if you want people to pay attention to you, you actually have to go out of your way to get them to pay attention to. So yes, yes, there's biggest one I've noticed is in general people. Because I saw at work just because it's nighttime, we can be a little more playful. I realize unless you're pretty much yelling, no one cares. Exactly. kind of thing. And it's one of those is not we're not like sitting here screaming down at someone just because we use the intercom to call people. And we can say it, but it's a familiar sound. So I have a very loud voice. I used to play baseball as a catcher. So I would yell all across the whole workplace, and they just all sit there and they're like, Alright, Josh, we got to picture go up to the front. Oh, my that's Yeah, it's very, very, very interesting. I don't know, I don't know, I think that one of the ways that people can, let's say, be seen, in this situation where where people are normally not paying a lot of attention is and this might sound trite, but it really isn't, because it might sound trite, but it's difficult to implement. And once you do, what really works, is being authentic. A lot of people hide, you know, sides to their personality, because they want to fit in with a click or a group of people. And they feel if I show the real me, they won't like me, or they'll think I'm weird, or they'll will think that I'm you know, very, very strange. So sometimes you tone down sides of your personality, or you kind of hide aspects. But when you allow people to get to know you, you become much more memorable. I think, then if you're trying to be like everybody else, definitely. So actually, I wanted to ask you a question. But we went right on down this aisle, you were mentioning earlier, you noticed multiple personalities in me? What were some of them that you noticed, other than the trading and business one? I think that you are on the one hand, it seems to me that you're very playful. That's kind of like what you were expressing. But it also seems to me that you're a very driven individual, it seems to me that you're a person that I would not be surprised if within a few years, you are a millionaire, it seems to me that you're okay. So you're seeking out knowledge from people that are experienced in specific fields. Clearly as by when you were mentioning with your mentor, and and friend, the martial arts expert, you're also seeking, seeking out supportive people and people that might be considered wise. So that's also very important. And it seems to me that you're a person that's also interested in understanding how one can end up having different streams of income. But it doesn't appear to me like you're doing this, like random, but rather like doing a little bit of research. I don't know why, it seems to me like like, in some of your episodes, it sounds like you're like this very young man. But in other episodes, it sounds like you're a more experienced person that is taking very strategic steps toward a goal. That's that's how you come across, at least to me. Okay, I don't mind that. I don't mind a wedge that you're pinning. I can't change it. But yeah, in general. So it's a weird intuition i have i cater whatever I do to the person. So if it's a sharp businessman, CEO, might just let the other side just kind of disappear for the hour kind of thing. But then if someone like you, I know, I can actually, like openly talk about that when I talk about other aspects kind of thing. That sounds wonderful. Thank you, but oh, no, it was you see, well, you were saying about the different personalities for your book? Yes. So for example, um, let's say, um, let's say that you have a passion for, I don't know, death metal, or rockabilly, or some kind of unusual style of music. Maybe you say, Okay, I'm not going to let anybody know about this, because they won't think I'm cool. They'll think I'm weird. So you might hide that from your friends. So I mean, that's fine. But I mean, it's, it doesn't make you memorable in any way. I mean, people people respond to authenticity. So if you if you let people know, okay, I have this hobby. I'm very much into 50s, rockabilly music, and I like to go to, you know, concerts and events, and I like to find vinyl records and play those. That's interesting. That's a very interesting thing. And people might remember old Josh was the guy that like 50s music. So it's, it's, it's interesting, just even minor things like that make you more memorable in general. I think that's interesting. So about the book, are other chapters about things that are very, very different, including one about making the most of unfortunate situations? For example, um, I don't think anybody can say that there's anything appealing about sleep deprivation. But I think that's something that we all experienced at some point, right? As I was telling you, I was able to, you know, have a deep self concept shift, which took me from being a terrible public speaker to a very effective public speaker. That was something that took time, it took a lot of, you know, self reflection, but I do mention in the book that there was one time back in college, but I was able to give a very effective presentation in front of my class, even back then, even back then, when it was something still very terrifying for me. And I did that by tapping into the power of sleep deprivation, let me tell you what I mean about that. Okay, so there was a state that I was expected to give a talk in front of my classmates the following day. And I have to say, Josh, that I was not looking forward to this at all. I was having a panic attack, it was like, oh, my goodness, this is terrible. I'm going to pass out it will be horrifying, and people will be staring and they will be judging, and they will be criticizing. And you know, everything that goes through your mind, especially when you're younger, right? Well, as it turns out, that they I also the previous evening, I also had a lot of homework, I mean, a lot. It was something I don't remember if it was like a, like a very detailed essay or something that actually I ended up having to pull an all nighter, which is not ideal, at least according to what we heard, right? Because we all know that. The I mean, the normal advice is that when you need to do something important, it's very important to be well rested, of course, get your full eight hours of sleep. You know, that's something that we've been told again and again. And I can't say that that's wrong. I mean, absolutely. That's certainly very good advice in 99.9% of situations. But in this particular case, let me tell you what happened. Okay. Think back to a time when you were sleep deprived. I think your mindset or your attitude could probably be described as cranky. Yes. angry, right? irritable, but definitely not nervous. And most likely, it would be impossible to feel terrified, because you're just exhausted. You can either be, you know, like, exhausted. I mean, like, you're about to fall asleep, standing up, you're so tired. If you're like that, there's just no way you can feel terrified, because it's one or the other. So in reality, I stepped in front of the class, in that specific situation where your, if anything, easily annoyed, feeling very, very cranky, but not nervous at all. So how does that look on stage? It looks tremendously assertive, it looks tremendously relaxed. It looks like if anything, you might be yawning, like. So, so right, you know, so it's, it's quite interesting. So at least the visual effect was that of a person that was extraordinarily at home, and confident while on speech. Because imagine, what would your demeanor be like, you would be like, Ah, you would be like, well, so I mean, it's, it's very interesting, your attitude, your demeanor, and your, you know, your appearance would not be that of a person that is having a panic attack, but rather the appearance of somebody that's like, even, like, bored by the crowd. And like, yeah, like taking questions like get, let's get on with it, who has any questions? So it would be like a, like a very, very different mindset, very different attitude. I mean, of course, I would not recommend this. As you know, it's a go to strategy. Of course, that's not very healthy. But it was a way that I mean, it's just what happened to me. And I was able to turn up a bad situation, sleep deprivation into a good situation, tapping into the one upside of this very, very unhealthy situation. So yes. And like we were talking about earlier, how people don't perceive us the way we think they do. If you almost seem like you don't care about them, they want to figure out why. So if you're tired, he don't seem to like care about engaging the audience. Well, that's interesting, and you pique their interest now, they're gonna be like, Well, why why does he not like me kind of thing? or Why does she not like me? And this is the simplicity of ego. It's like oh, Apparently I'm not doing something right. So I need to cater to them. Exactly how interesting that you're mentioning that because I think it ties back in with what we were saying a while ago, about how it's good to have a steady job, in addition to doing things that are more based on speculation, because that way, you're not giving off an air of fear or desperation, because desperation really is what repels, people be it when you're acting as a speaker, or when you're seeking out a job. Or when you're seeking out friends or when you're seeking out romance, any situation in which you appear to be desperate, desperate for approval, is never going to have a good outcome. So it's far better to not only appear to not care. And truly, you don't want to truly not care, but just not care as much not be desperate. And you can care of me. And of course, certainly you need to there are things that are important to you, certainly. But if you look like you're desperate, that's that's going above and beyond what is necessary and what is reasonable. And actually, I think if you're up on stage, like being extra smiley and saying, Please, please like me, that will not go over well, and definitely being a little tired, was definitely very helpful. Yeah, it's, um, that's the biggest one I've learned when I was in college, we did it, I took a project management class for like, was for theater, but was really anything. And I the same thing, it was the the project we had to present was pretty much my grade. And if you messed up, you could have had a up until that day, and you failed everything else. So that sounds terrifying. You know, it was the best work I've ever done like you. It's like I was sleep deprived. When I went up, I kind of just was like, This is the facts. This is what I see. And I guess from my tired, fearful state, I picked out things even the mat, the teacher didn't pick out kind of thing. So she's like, You failed the presentation, because you were just beyond tired. But all your data, so you pass kind of thing. And I'm like, Oh, yay, I can now go back to sleep Goodbye, kind of thing. That's fantastic. That's a wonderful story. You know, it's, it's, it's true. The other thing is that appearing, confident, which is something that does happen when when you're sleep deprived, is always a bone. I mean, it definitely adds a lot to, to what you're saying. For instance, when I took the test, one of the two certification tests for becoming a court interpreter, unlike my peers, I had not specifically gone to school specifically for this test for even this field, because I had a different career background. However, people that specifically have gone into that field from the storms, were aware that the pass rate was extremely low. And perhaps their teachers had been telling them, oh, it's terribly difficult to you can't even expect to pass it will take several tries. So I think that they went into the testing experience, maybe fearfully or just with the expectation that they might not house and eventually, the test over again. So that's something that I think was helpful to me, because I didn't have that expectation or understanding. I really, I wasn't even aware that it was so difficult to pass. So certainly, I'm sure that my confidence level was far higher than other people's. So that was an advantage. In that case, ignorance truly was bliss. And I think it was very helpful not to know how how, how high the how improbable, the odds were. Yeah, that's actually the biggest one I've learned, actually, from martial arts, not like testing for a career is the teachers would intend to psych us out, be like, Oh, it's the hardest thing in the world, like, you'll never experiencing anything like this, you're probably going to fail. Well, I had the added benefit of being the teacher kind of things at that given time. So I knew it's like, we just say that to scare him. It's like, the only reason you're going to fail is if you don't try kind of thing. So when I went to the black belt, my instructor was trying to psych me out. And everyone there's just shedding bricks, they're scared. I'm like, guys just look at it as a really intense group class and you'll pass kind of thing of like just it's a really intense to our workout. You can make it and actually walk out of the building you passed. That's awesome. Interesting. And all of them the one of the few the five, I could talk to you before the whole thing started. All of them passed, we actually had to pass fail. Because they didn't see they didn't realize what they were doing kind of thing. And I'm like that was a $500 mistake. She She kept going kind of thing. So locally, and that ties in back to the situation that we were discussing about how important it is to hang out with people that are supportive. I mean, if you're, if your confidence is already rock solid, it doesn't matter what people say. But if you're still a little shaky, you need to, you know, stay away from from people's negative perceptions. I'm thinking like, if if you're on a cruise ship, and you're a passenger, and it's your first time on a cruise ship, and you're wondering if you're going to enjoy it or not, and somebody comes up to you and says, Oh, you know, you look a little queasy or looking a little greenish, you might be like, Oh, why, and then you'll all of a sudden start feeling not great. However, if you're the captain of the ship, and somebody comes up and says, you know, you look a little fuzzier. And you seasick, you would say what? I mean, that's just stupid, and it wouldn't really have any effect on you. So once you're like, convinced of your own abilities, people's comments will not be able to shake you. But if you're still struggling with something, I really do think that you should kind of steer clear of conversations or people's opinions that might bring you down, at least initially, then after you, after you start building more confidence, it really doesn't matter at all. Absolutely. Yeah. That's the biggest one. In just general. Sorry, I thought I muted my mic. Is it the dog? The, like the analogy of the cruise? We were I was going on like a two week three day weekend cruise to in sanada. And randomly, I found the captain himself talking to his second hand. And essentially, they were saying, oh, we're taking on water well, so when we get to the port, we need to, like send everyone out so we can repair it. as well. It was just one of those. It just so happened I was walking by and they saw me and they're like, Are you scared? I'm like, nope. Because the moment they say that we're going down. I'm jumping off the back of the ship. Just so you know, I'm not taking this lifeboat. Titanic shit. They all looked at me and they're like, well, we won't stop you. Good luck. That's funny. But yeah, it was just one of those. I guess he I found him later and he updated me because he remembered He's like, it was just like a hair Pantages. He has we're taking Dooley taking water on, but it would take in like six months to actually flood the whole place. I'm like, Okay, no problem. I'm still jumping off the back if it just happens. That's fascinating. But it's a tie into the whole perception. Like they were worried. A normal person would have freaked out and what are scared everyone because like We're sinking, I mean, it's just like, probably not that bad. Because they're not they're not in like the War Cabinet area was like, Okay, what the hell's going on kind of thing. Exactly. No, no, that's a very good, sorry. No, but really, everything really does boil down to perception. You know, I've been recently interested in following the career of this one wrestler, I'm not a wrestling fan, per se, or at all. But there is this one wrestler that I think has had a very fascinating life. his stage name is Ben Piero. This is a guy from Canada that used to wrestle in the mid 90s, in Mexico City. And he was hugely popular at the time, he had this very golf guy look, and he was, he was good looking. So he was also very popular with the ladies. And he was a night light fixture. And he kind of became like a mainstream celebrity almost even back before internet. So that was quite a feat back then. And now, I kind of found him on Instagram. And I started following him. And now he's doing interesting things. He's, he had a documentary made about his life, and he's doing a lot of media things. But I thought, okay, it's he has an interesting life. So I was scrolling down his Instagram. And then I came across this picture that I thought Josh was just extremely gory and kind of horrifying. He was like, covered in blood. I mean, I don't know if that's to stomach turning, but I was like, Oh, my, this is a horrible picture. I wonder why he posted this picture. But then I looked at the caption, and he said, Oh, this was the match that made my career. I'm so happy to have been in this match. The fact that I bled so much was really, you know, a game changer. So apparently, for him, that was such an extreme situation, that people just, you know, started paying way more attention to him because it was just something that was so shocking. Now, I think nobody would think that that was a desirable experience. But the way he framed it was that this was awesome. It was what moved the needle. It was what made people you know, pay attention to my wrestling character. So I thought that was quite fascinating. Surely I would not like to be in his shoes. But I mean, even even something that that is by most accounts are a really bad thing. can have an upside. Absolutely. And especially being in a type of fighting sport, there is a very high chance stuff can go bad really quick. And the fact that he took it so lightly, it's like, oh, this is just the name of the game. But actually now people see me you as the the character kind of thing is the hugest thing. expect anything wrestling, MMA boxing, there's a lot of things that can go wrong that no one person could control. Exactly. And it all boils down to mindset where you think, okay, that's the end of my career. I hate this or thinking, well, maybe I can even you know, use it to my advantage. Exactly. Actually, I have a guest coming on in like two weeks is Jeff Bearden. He would, he probably rustled him he was telling me to in his bio, he was telling me all these different people. He went against under the giant back then. Ah, oh, yes, I know that. Yes. I actually think I saw him on TV recently in a cameo in. I'm not sure what I'm pretty sure that I that I. I saw him recently on TV. That's fascinating that you're going to be speaking with this person. Yeah. It's his stage name back then from the different people. He was the giant warrior. This Tiger steel, the colossal Gladiator. super interesting. I mean, the rest of us might have crossed paths. Absolutely. It's definitely one of them. I'll ask him when I get him like two weeks. Yes. This one is called Ben Piero. And right now he is doing something interesting. His documentary is very fascinating. It's about his life as a wrestler, and how it ties in with his parenting time because he's a single dad. And he has to combine both things. And also the situation is that right now he's on his way to Mexico, where he's going to be promoting like new projects, music, something called slap strike, which is a form of wrestling, I guess you could say. And it just seems that he's a person that's doing a lot of really interesting stuff. Despite having had a lot of challenges to overcome. I think that's quite fascinating. I love these stories where people find a way out of whatever is causing them grief. And that's kind of the spirit of the book choosing to fail it is it does boil down to a choice in many cases. Yeah. Is there any book you could read as many times to don't say it a different way? Ultimately, it is just choice. You could be a terrible thing. But you could choose like, well, I'm still alive. So it's must be it. Yes, it's terrible. But it's a good thing that I'm here. Can you get to learn to add gratitude in the terrible situation? Exactly. I love it. Um, he definitely want to get you on in the future. This has just been too much fun. For me as well, I can talk with you for hours. I could do anything on the way Oh, you want your social media website? links to the book? Thank you. I mean, if anybody cares to follow me on Instagram, it's very easy. That's app choose to prevail. In fact, if they send me a direct message over there, and I can send them an audio file, to the original rock music that was composed to the book, I think that might be kind of super interesting. I might just be asked for that after totally No, no. And I love that because it was, I mean, I didn't commission it. I mean, per se. I mean, I just let the musicians read the book and said, Okay, let's see what what you can come up with. And they came up with something that's really exciting, I think. And the book itself is sold everywhere. It's called choose to prevail by Sandy Rodriguez, that's my name. And it is sold pretty much everywhere that you can buy books such as Amazon, you can get it at Barnes and noble.com target.com, Walmart, ebooks, and so on. But I suppose Amazon is the easiest place to to get it. Or if you wish to support independent stores, you can also get it through something called the book, baby book shop. Just throw that into Google and you'll find that bookshop and you can also find choose to prevail right there. Do they give you a better percentage to help you out kind of thing for commission? A little, a little, I think, and, but really what I want us to get the message out, in fact, let me tell you, people can also read the book for free if they have Kindle unlimited on it. And that's fine. And some libraries are also carrying it these days. So if people care to read it through their library, that's fantastic. And in fact, in our library that you go to doesn't have it just say hey, I want you to buy choose to prevail for me to borrow and they will. So that's that's another another option. It's really not something that I'm I'm, again, I didn't find it for the money but more to get the message out. And I think I think that that it's been doing well and I just love to connect with readers. Wonderful, then Yeah. I'll shoot you an email for the link so they can get in the description below. Thank you so much, Sandy. It's been a pleasure. Likewise. Thank you Josh. Stay safe and stay well.