Good as Gold's
Good as Gold's
Take care of your mental health with Pro Surfer & Good Human Factory Founder Cooper Chapman
Good Human Factory founder and Pro Surfer Cooper Chapman joins us on the Good as Gold's health and wellness podcast.
Cooper is a kind and caring person trying to live a positive life while trying to help others lead one too. He founded the Good Human Factory aiming to inspire his community to think about mental health a little differently. Their message is that mental health is not an illness and that it's something we all need to become aware of; and take care of.
Here's what we had the pleasure of chatting to Cooper about:
- How to practice mindfulness, gratitude, kindness, empathy and taking responsibility
- Wholistic well-being and where to start/take ownership
- Breaking the stigma on mental health vs mental illness
- How to create a maintenance plan
- Importance of developing strong values
- Where do you base your self-worth?
- The 1% GOOD Club: Daily practices to incorporate into your routine
If you'd like to find out more about the Good Human Factory or join the 1% GOOD Club check them out on socials: @thegoodhumanfactory
Want to get in touch? Reach out to the Gold's Gym Australia team on socials @goldsgymau or via email: feedback@goldsgym.com.au
00:06:15:06 - 00:06:18:19
Emily
Welcome in Cooper. Thank you so much for joining us today.
00:06:19:17 - 00:06:25:06
Cooper
Thanks so much for having me. I'm excited to have a chat and get to know you guys a bit better and hopefully learn. I started doing better today.
00:06:25:16 - 00:06:35:01
Emily
Absolutely. Well, before we kind of dig into the nitty gritty, tell tell us exactly in a quick little snapshot, who you are.
00:06:37:03 - 00:06:48:07
Cooper
Oh, has a job and I'm a kind and caring person trying to live a positive life and make as many people around me have a positive to life as well.
00:06:48:20 - 00:06:52:10
Callum
That's a epic answer. So, you.
00:06:52:10 - 00:07:00:13
Cooper
Know, probably expecting an approach that runs a mental health organization. I learn how to learn how to answer that question a lot better in the last couple of years, which I have because.
00:07:00:13 - 00:07:02:00
Callum
I write that answer that, you know.
00:07:02:06 - 00:07:09:20
Emily
Yeah, it's like I like that. That's the answer first. Rather than being like, well, I'm this, I'm this, I'm this. You like, actually, I'm a really bloody con person.
00:07:09:22 - 00:07:27:03
Callum
Because, like, beyond being a person, if you're much more than that, and I think a lot of people are more than what their titles are. Yeah. So it goes deeper. Yeah. Well, let's quickly touch on the processing side of things. Let's get that completely out of the way because I know there's the good nitty gritty stuff we both want to kind of get into.
00:07:28:11 - 00:07:34:23
Callum
Summarize your, your surfing career. Are you still surfing? Where did it start? Where did you get to and what's in the future?
00:07:36:01 - 00:07:55:00
Cooper
Yeah, I still surf. Not as much as I used to. I mean, I still competed a few months ago on the World Qualifying Series, like the regional tour. But I mean, I've been a professional surfer tells the 13 years. I got my first sponsor when I was ten years old. So I've been surfing for a very long time, almost 20 years now.
00:07:55:11 - 00:08:12:18
Cooper
And yeah, I've loved every moment of it. I've got to travel the world. I've represented Australia. I won an Australian title when I was 14 years old. I wrote Margaret River in Western Australia, which allowed me to compete at World Games when I was 14 years old in Ecuador and where the grand and go ahead of me, which was pretty exciting.
00:08:12:18 - 00:08:45:05
Cooper
And then, then through high school, got to represent Australia three more times in Peru, Panama and New Zealand. So I have quite a successful junior career and was ranking in that sort of top one, the three Australian Sevens until I was about 21 and then yeah, it progressed onto what we call the World Qualifying Series and yeah, for the last eight years I've traveled the world chasing the dream of qualifying for the World Tour, which is the top 30 in the world, and I haven't quite got to that level, which for a while I was quite disappointed and felt like I'd underachieved.
00:08:45:05 - 00:09:07:10
Cooper
But I really started to reflect the last two years and be like, I've traveled the world surfing for ten years, I've won a bit and I got close to qualifying for the world. Two of my highest ranking on that qualifying tour with 23rd I think and the top, top 12 end up getting on. So technically that means I was right about 50th in the world.
00:09:07:10 - 00:09:27:01
Cooper
So yeah, probably my highest ranking, but I've been right within sort of the top 150 on the planet for the last ten to 12 years. So my stuff career has been amazing to travel the world experience, amazing cultures, amazing places, and the best thing is just create such a deep network of amazing people from all different parts of the world, which I'm so grateful for.
00:09:27:09 - 00:09:41:06
Emily
Absolutely. And I, I love that and I just like being ten years old, getting your first sponsorship, what was going through your mind? Because at ten years old I yeah, I can't imagine it. What was it like?
00:09:42:20 - 00:09:58:08
Cooper
I mean, it was pretty cool. I had like a we'd like to sponsor had like a sponsor that was like a family friend who I think what Planet X is company years ago and I think it kind of gave me some stickers and let me get some clothes from them. But then when I was, I think I was 11, I got a sponsor.
00:09:58:08 - 00:10:17:22
Cooper
But I recall because I started having quite a bit of success in the ground compromising. So I think we call them rom com. So we have up to 1214 and six games and otherwise a very athletic kid. I played a lot of rugby and did nippers and spent a lot of time in the ocean and yeah, I took surfing quite quickly and had quite a lot of success in that 12 sport division.
00:10:17:22 - 00:10:41:21
Cooper
So yeah, I get SpongeBob Rip Curl I think when I was 11 and I sponsored by them until I was 16. And then once I won my Australian title I went across and rode for Hurley for seven, eight years I think all's and then yeah, for the last three or four years of my career I didn't have a major sponsor because the surf industry is getting pretty difficult but yeah, super excited to chat about the rest of my story.
00:10:42:02 - 00:10:46:14
Cooper
Everyone usually talks about the surfing but like I said at the start, there's a lot more to me than myself.
00:10:46:16 - 00:10:56:07
Emily
Yeah, exactly, exactly. Well, let's like jump forward into your company that you have found it, which is the good human factory.
00:10:57:24 - 00:10:58:11
Cooper
Yeah.
00:10:58:13 - 00:10:59:06
Emily
What is that?
00:11:00:24 - 00:11:24:10
Cooper
Yeah. So The Good Human Factory is my mental health organization. And I run mental health workshops and keynote speaking for high schools, corporate groups, conferences, sporting clubs, and just trying to change the way we think about mental health. And I'll explain why mental health so important to me. So when I was quite young, I lost an uncle to suicide, and then I'd watch my dad suffer from mental illness.
00:11:24:17 - 00:12:01:16
Cooper
A bit of depression and anxiety throughout my teen years and always kind of had this thought and this idea that mental health might something might be something that I need to. Yeah. Put is something that's very important to me because it might be something that comes up in my life. And I was always very acutely aware that I needed to take care of my mental health and began to develop skills from sort of my late teens early 20 years, purely because I thought I of a date and throughout my life I then when my youngest sister about three years ago now in 2019 I think it was was you know last year of high school she
00:12:01:16 - 00:12:17:21
Cooper
came home and she said she lost a friend to suicide which nobody likes to hear and hear all too often nowadays. And that was hard for me to hear and I was like we all do what can I do about this. And like most of us do, I was like, there's not much I can do about it that two weeks went by.
00:12:17:23 - 00:12:36:07
Cooper
She said another friend. And then two weeks went by and she came home and another friend had taken his life and that was kind of just a pin drop for me. And I was like, You know what? I need to do something about this. And I started to look into the statistics behind mental health here in Australia. And understood the problem that we do have and was like, You know what?
00:12:36:07 - 00:12:56:15
Cooper
Maybe I can make a difference to one of two or ten people's lives, developed a bit of a workshop and tied together all the skills and the learnings that I'd had through my career, my research and a few little courses I'd done over the years and developed a workshop and took it to my high school that I went to and spoke to a little group of kids.
00:12:56:15 - 00:13:17:15
Cooper
And then looking back, it was terrible that I did, but we all have to start somewhere. In the last two and half the last two years, I've kind of really been doing it a bit more full time. The first year I was working 50 hours a week as it tried to fund my next set of call and get around the world and then trying to build the good human factors.
00:13:17:15 - 00:13:41:18
Cooper
So it was just like a little side project. But then when COVID hit, I really push a bit harder with it all. My set of comments got canceled because of it, and it allowed me to focus a lot more energy on it. And yeah, over the last two years it's definitely grown quite a bit. The last three to six months has definitely taken off quite a lot more than, yeah, otherwise expected it to I'm very passionate about it.
00:13:41:18 - 00:14:02:08
Cooper
The workshop is getting amazing response. My podcast is beginning to do some really cool numbers and get some great feedback that the way that I communicate mental health is yeah, having an effect on people. And my main messaging is that mental health is not mental illness. So often we hear about mental health and straight away and we go anxiety, depression, suicide.
00:14:02:08 - 00:14:22:22
Cooper
Yeah. Which I believe is completely wrong. Mental illness is something that 20% of people in Australia statistically that going to be diagnosed so it's obviously a very important topic. But mental health is something that 100% of us have. Yeah, and it's something that even if you don't have any mental health issues or mental illness issues, we should also be doing different things and having different skills in place.
00:14:22:22 - 00:14:26:14
Cooper
And that's what I try and teach in my workshop and with the content I put out too.
00:14:27:04 - 00:14:42:17
Callum
That's incredible. So where do you want to see the good human factory go to and what? Like do you think Australia needs to take more of a step into mental health awareness? You know, all of that side of things. Where do you think we need to shift to?
00:14:44:08 - 00:15:07:19
Cooper
I mean, I think we are definitely this an interesting one because this whole like raising awareness is so important and there's so many great organizations that out there focusing on the mental illness side of it. That's why I'm so passionate about just trying to challenge the way people think about mental health. I think the way that we speak about it in the media, the way that we're so often talked about it, is a negative.
00:15:07:24 - 00:15:27:05
Cooper
But mental health is no different. If you say physical health, people think positive someone's feet. And if you say financial health, people go, Oh, that means that person's got money. But if you say mental health, I mean, somebody has a problem. Yeah. So I'm just trying to really make people realize, hey, mental health is something we all have and we should be empowered to take care of it.
00:15:27:05 - 00:15:46:11
Cooper
If we have good mental health illness better. We all know that if we have a great relationship with our thoughts and what's going to open up in our mind, then laughs. Pretty happy. So I'm just trying to encourage people to develop these really small skills. But yeah, there's a lot of, a lot of work to be done. I think there's yeah, a lot of great work being done.
00:15:46:22 - 00:15:57:04
Cooper
But the way I see it is 95% of the industry is focused on mental illness. I'm just trying to push on that bit of a niche market that is. Yeah, the sort of holistic wellbeing side of it.
00:15:57:05 - 00:16:27:23
Emily
Yeah. I love that. And Callum and I, we both run like group programs with let's called Steps and it's like a community group program that in our specific like what we actually work with is people with mental health struggles and mental health problems. So like we yeah, we can definitely relate with everything you're saying. What exactly where should every Australian start when it comes to how to kind of like work with their mental health and, and just actually be.
00:16:28:06 - 00:16:29:13
Callum
Like take ownership. Yeah.
00:16:29:14 - 00:16:32:11
Emily
Like even just day to day. Like what do you suggest?
00:16:33:18 - 00:16:50:16
Cooper
I think it starts with curiosity. For me, the idea of having an open mind and realizing that life is about continually growing. Yeah. If we're stagnating in one place and we think we know everything already and we think we're at the happiest we can ever be, then it's going to be pretty boring. So for me, it starts with curiosity.
00:16:50:16 - 00:17:26:05
Cooper
If you're in a place right now where you're not completely happy and satisfied, look for some resources at my Improve Your Life, whether it be writing self-development books and trying to find little tricks and tips, or reading autobiographies and documentaries and watching how people have found kind of their why and found their way to live a happy Sheffield life and just be yeah, always on that open minded growth journey of trying to be better and yes, for me, that's like like my podcast is for me, that's my biggest asset is having conversations with really smart people smarter than me.
00:17:26:18 - 00:17:45:04
Cooper
Or people who have just got really incredible stories and learning from them. I feel like we can, yeah, always be getting better and always learning. But I mean, there's a lot of great places you can start. Like I said, reading books, looking up content that's positive or I mean, yeah, checking out what I did with the Good Human Factory, the Resilience Project.
00:17:45:04 - 00:17:51:07
Cooper
There's so many great resources out there, but it takes curiosity and it takes a bit of responsibility looking for what's out there.
00:17:51:19 - 00:18:17:05
Emily
Yeah. So you interviewed Hugh from the Resilience Project that would've been so cool. And it's like that there is this part like, do you, do you think the stigma behind like, you know, like having a mental health issue or or even like you said, we all have mental health that we need to look after. So do you think that there's like a stigma behind if you had a mental health illness or even just like have mental health like issues or problems?
00:18:18:22 - 00:18:28:11
Cooper
I mean, there's definitely it's the stigma. So like we would it's like this yeah. As soon as anyone brings it up, it's like this taboo topic.
00:18:28:12 - 00:18:28:21
Emily
It is.
00:18:28:21 - 00:18:38:03
Cooper
Hey, that's why I think yeah. It's just like the language I think needs to be changed. I think we need to have a mental illness and industry and a mental health industry.
00:18:38:08 - 00:18:42:17
Emily
What are you sorry? What determines the difference? Like, what do you believe determines the difference?
00:18:43:24 - 00:19:03:17
Cooper
Well, mental illness is just once you've been diagnosed with something. And the thing is, we're all on a spectrum for mental health of mental illness. We're all in a spectrum and we all fluctuate every single day. Yeah. And for me, the definition of good mental health is your ability to move yourself back up that scale, to move yourself back up the spectrum when life inevitably throws a difficult situation at you.
00:19:03:23 - 00:19:27:13
Cooper
Whether it be a family member passing away, whether it be a relationship breakup, whether it be a financial struggle, good mental health is the ability to bounce back. And we do that through leaning on resources, like talking to friends, like using great mental illness organizations. But what I try to encourage people to do is develop daily habits to have a maintenance plan in place, to not wait until you get to that poor end of the spectrum.
00:19:27:24 - 00:19:59:20
Cooper
And then like the way I look at it, it's like if you're out in the ocean, instead of just throwing someone of the life raft to save them, like, let's teach people how to swim. Yeah. Let's teach people how to build the skills so that they're not waiting until they get to that poor end of the spectrum. And like the things I talk about in my workshop, and in my offerings is developing strong values because and I'll give you this story that will make a lot of sense why I answered the first question like I did so when I was in my junior career, my surfing, I used to base my whole identity and my self-worth
00:20:00:00 - 00:20:22:10
Cooper
on my surfing. I was could be trapped in the process so when I was successful in my junior career, as we kind of live on this rollercoaster of wellbeing, we have good days and bad days almost kind of only feeling these real happy days in a field when I was winning. So of course, yeah, because I'd go to my local beach and I'd be chatting to all the old boys down there and I'd be like, Oh, a tattoo on the back.
00:20:22:10 - 00:20:43:18
Cooper
Well, down my line on that comp. So my whole identity was wrapped around this. And then I got into my early twenties and I went from the junior to, to the international to opens and I wasn't having as much success and I was really struggling. I was not aligning with my hopes and dreams of success. So I was really struggling.
00:20:43:18 - 00:21:04:10
Cooper
I felt like because my identity was so wrapped in my pride. South Korea, if I wasn't successful, I was really struggling. I then went on to speak to my sports psychologist and told him how I was feeling. I was like, I'm really struggling. And he's like, Mate, it's so common to most people based self-worth and their identity around their career, their achievements.
00:21:04:10 - 00:21:19:12
Cooper
If they get promotion, get a winning spot. But he said it's a very unhealthy way to leave because we're going to come up short all the time. Yeah, we're not going to always achieve our goals. So he said, I want you to start trying to base your self-worth and your identity on how well you can live your values.
00:21:19:13 - 00:21:47:08
Cooper
Yeah. So that's why I answered the first question. Like I did, because now I just try and leave to my values. And that way, if I fail at something and I know I've given it 100%, okay? So the five values that I go on to talk about and now that I try and encourage people to either pick up mine or at least be open minded to find their own values and leave to them to the five I talk about, a responsibility is the first one and obviously taking responsibility is the first that 70 people are in this victim mindset.
00:21:47:08 - 00:22:01:06
Cooper
It's not my fault, it's somebody else's fault. While I'm not succeeding and quite often it is somebody else's fault or there is circumstances that are out of that control. But once we can try that with our mindset to being the hero of our story, like, do you want to, do you want to write the movie or you want to watch the movie?
00:22:01:06 - 00:22:24:01
Cooper
It's like trying to make sure that we have that awareness that if we can take responsibility for our mental health, it's going to be in a better place if we just let our circumstance dictate that. So I start with the responsibility and then I talk about gratitude. Gratitude, something that for me is so important. I know if I'm practicing gratitude every day and focusing on the good things in my life, then the chemicals in my brain are changing.
00:22:24:01 - 00:22:42:16
Cooper
There's so much great science out there showing that gratitude releases serotonin, oxytocin in our brain, which you're about modulators to make us happy. And it also helps with neuroplasticity and quite literally is making our brain happier. There's so much great science out there that shows this. Yeah, we're not getting taught this at school. It's because it's free. Nobody making money and out of gratitude.
00:22:43:07 - 00:23:00:22
Cooper
So it's it's a it's an interesting one. So I encourage people to try and practice gratitude every day. It doesn't need to be right singing at night. Look, what I say to people is when you brush your teeth every single night because it's a habit that we all do. Think about what you grateful for that day? What went well, you might have had a meal that you really enjoyed.
00:23:00:22 - 00:23:07:18
Cooper
You might have had a conversation with someone. The shower pressure in your shower might have been good. It doesn't have to be anything massive. It's just about trying to find the little things that.
00:23:07:24 - 00:23:08:02
Callum
Love.
00:23:08:04 - 00:23:37:17
Cooper
You die. Yeah. Yeah. And then the third thing I talk about is empathy and the importance of realizing we're also different. We can build empathy is the really important value. It gives us perspective that when we're going through a hard time not to compare it going like all other people have got a really difficult two and realizing that we're all different, we've all grown up differently, we've all gone through a completely different journey to get to the present moment, and we need to be accepting of that of other people if we want them to be accepting of us when we have our flaws.
00:23:37:18 - 00:24:01:17
Cooper
Yeah, then talk about mindfulness. And meditation is obviously meditation as the practice is so powerful for anyone who doesn't do it, please go and check it out. It's the same thing. The amount of data and science that shows people who are happy, people who are calm, people who are in good mental health meditate, is astounding. Yeah. So I really practice out and just encourage people.
00:24:01:17 - 00:24:19:01
Cooper
We need to take time every day to be mindful. Yeah. If we're not taking time to check in with ourself and work out what's going on up here, we're slowly slipping down that mental health spectrum without us realizing until it's too late. When we do these AIS great resources, I encourage people they curious, try and find about that mindfulness.
00:24:19:01 - 00:24:38:10
Cooper
And then the face value that I talk about is kindness and kindness, and then we all know what kind of fears. But I never got taught about the science behind it until I started to research it myself. I took some responsibility to find it. And like this, so many great data studies that show people who are willing to give due access service be nice.
00:24:38:10 - 00:24:59:05
Cooper
The people write higher on happiness tests. So I just think, yeah, just try and share with people, hey, if you're living to these sort of values, and they don't have to be specifically those five living to values, and you can find purpose in every single day rather than just being wrapped around your achievements in your successes at work or your career, anything.
00:24:59:05 - 00:25:03:13
Cooper
So that's a bit of a, it's the sort of angle that I talk about all my stuff.
00:25:03:19 - 00:25:24:10
Callum
I love that last one that you said because I listen to your podcast and you mentioned on, I think it was like on gratitude and, and paying someone a compliment and it makes the person like it makes the person feel good, but it makes you feel good too. Like you're offering that compliment, you feel good talking about like your five steps, like, I know what our mental health exercises look like per se.
00:25:24:11 - 00:25:41:11
Callum
Like we both do meditation yeah. I know my journals. I go to the gym and workout and I do sit down for 2 minutes and I listen to this song and I just breathe and do like box breathing. Honestly, what is what are your mental health exercises look like? What do you do daily? That's like, yeah, I would love to know that.
00:25:43:06 - 00:26:04:01
Cooper
You've lined me up perfectly for this business, though. So what I did, what I've kind of got in my head now is like, I want to give at least 1% of my day to my mental health. 1% of your day is 14 minutes. Pretty simple. Everyone listening right now hopefully can agree. You know what? Mental health is the biggest killer for people aged 40 to 44.
00:26:04:01 - 00:26:27:16
Cooper
And it's clear it's pretty important. Yeah. That we should be able to give 1% of our data just like we get told you should do 30 minutes of exercise that you should eat healthy one best of for your mental health. So the way I break it down for me and my community that I've built now is 10 minutes of meditation in the morning to calm myself, to give myself that gap from reacting to situations that happen in my day and then 4 minutes of gratitude at night.
00:26:27:21 - 00:26:47:05
Cooper
So I start at the 1% good club with the good human factory where every single morning on Instagram I have these accountability groups where in the morning I send a a ten minute meditation to everyone. I think there's like 29, 28 groups now like over 900 members, and it's completely free. I just do it every morning. I do it to keep myself accountable.
00:26:47:05 - 00:27:04:13
Cooper
Yes. I was like on this, on this mental health, like meditation and gratitude guy. And I knew I wasn't doing it every day. Yeah. So I was like, I knew I'd done some sound like group work and learned that sort of data behind that. You feel like 90% more likely to stick to a new habit if you have an accountability group.
00:27:04:14 - 00:27:04:19
Emily
Yeah.
00:27:05:04 - 00:27:21:23
Cooper
So I was like, All right, let's make an accountability group that I can do it got a meditation in the morning. That way I had to do it because I've got to send it to everyone else. Yeah. Then also do the three things. I'm grateful for it not and then I send it to everyone and then they write their three things that startup 100 and 423 days ago.
00:27:22:24 - 00:27:44:23
Cooper
And yeah, it grew from like 30 members the first day when I just put it on my Instagram story and now there's over 900 people every day every week there's like close to 3000 gratitude by the members and it's just like helping it's assisting people create that just 1% of the day. Yeah. So simple. But we all get so distracted and get so consumed in what's happening in life, which is yeah.
00:27:44:23 - 00:27:47:09
Cooper
So it's like just try and give yourself that 1%.
00:27:47:14 - 00:27:49:13
Emily
You're literally changing people's lives. Yeah.
00:27:49:13 - 00:27:50:01
Callum
Honestly.
00:27:50:20 - 00:27:53:07
Emily
It's things literally that get so cool.
00:27:54:06 - 00:27:55:09
Cooper
It's changed my life.
00:27:55:17 - 00:27:56:07
Emily
Yeah. I've.
00:27:56:24 - 00:28:18:06
Cooper
I have these weird feelings every day where I'm like, Well, I feel guilty that I'm in such a happy mindset that I've got a business that is becoming very profitable by just helping people. Yeah. And it's like everywhere else you look, it's like people trying to cut corners or people are just trying to work for tried time for money.
00:28:18:06 - 00:28:33:17
Cooper
And I'm like, I don't know. I just feel like I'm, like, escaping the matrix and do it in a way that I can really benefit out of the people and just, yeah, my whole thing is if I just continue to learn and I continue to find new things that help me, then I can just communicate it with people who might not have that dedication to find stuff.
00:28:33:17 - 00:28:41:14
Cooper
I just want to be kind of the middleman. Yeah. Good information through conversations on my podcast, or reading multiple books. Yeah, that's kind of where I'm at.
00:28:41:14 - 00:29:00:00
Emily
Yeah. Well, speaking of podcasts, let's like let's chat about your podcast that you talk about. So you have a podcast that's 28 and sober. Yep. You speak about your sobriety journey. Can you give us a little insight as to kind of like how your sobriety journey kind of began.
00:29:01:21 - 00:29:25:23
Cooper
Yeah, so it actually started from another podcast. I had a lady they call the caller on my podcast who's a neuroscientist from over in the UK I think she was episode 44 for me back in April and my birthday I was turning 28 in May and I was chatting to her about the effects of everything on the brain from drugs, alcohol, exercise, nutrition.
00:29:25:23 - 00:30:03:07
Cooper
And one of the topics that I was interested in was what's happening in our brain when we drink alcohol. And she went on to explain to me that there is a lot of science coming out now and Andrew, she has a podcast that came out recently that's incredible and very confronting and eye opening, but pretty much shows that if you're like a chronic alcohol drinker, someone who has a minimum of seven drinks a week, which is something that I was doing every single week, whether it be like three peas on a Friday and three or four on a Saturday, like I think most Australians like, yeah, have most people I know have pretty popular drinks, have
00:30:03:07 - 00:30:31:03
Cooper
they have a chronic drinking problem, no problem. But anyway, so there's a lot of signs that they're now showing that neurodegeneration can happen if what does happen if you're having that bad, say our long term brain, how brain health is being affected by drinking and so alcohol is basically a poison. And I spoke to another neuroscientist on my podcast and he's like if alcohol was discovered to die, it would be kept in a toxins covered like.
00:30:31:03 - 00:30:31:14
Emily
A legal.
00:30:31:16 - 00:30:35:09
Cooper
Lab somewhere. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, it's the most marketed product on the planet.
00:30:35:09 - 00:30:35:16
Emily
Yeah.
00:30:35:23 - 00:30:52:06
Cooper
So basically I have to say, continue to call them learning about it. Some of the science I was just like, you know what I'm trying to I mean, I mean drinking from 1815 as a said 18. But drinking for a long time was like ten years of drinking going to be doing.
00:30:52:06 - 00:30:52:19
Emily
Something you're.
00:30:52:19 - 00:31:15:09
Cooper
All. Yeah. If, if I, if I can't take a year off then I don't have the discipline but for too it means alcohol's in control yeah. I don't have control. Like I love this quote from Jack I'm willing to maybe steal from the states that says discipline equals freedom. Yeah. And, and the way when you break that down and really think about it, it's like if you don't have the discipline to say no to something, you're not free.
00:31:15:10 - 00:31:28:05
Cooper
You're at the mercy of want that whatever substances use, whatever it is, whether it be on your phone, whether it be anything. If you don't have the discipline to say no to something that's just as important as the discipline to go and do something.
00:31:29:17 - 00:31:32:11
Callum
Like drinking is, is like just.
00:31:32:18 - 00:31:33:08
Emily
Massive.
00:31:33:10 - 00:31:51:24
Callum
Massive in a culture and society, it's ridiculous. But the thing that irks me is like if you were to be in a setting and you would offer me a beer and I was to say no, you'd probably be like, that's cool. So many people would be like, What are you drinking? Yeah, you've got a problem. But if you were to be like a man, can I talk to you about my mental health?
00:31:51:24 - 00:31:54:07
Callum
Be like, What are you like depressed or something? It's just like.
00:31:54:22 - 00:31:57:22
Emily
It's so backwards, I think. And I think it's like, I do believe.
00:31:57:22 - 00:31:59:11
Callum
Because we're just not educated.
00:31:59:11 - 00:32:14:03
Emily
But I think it's changing as well. I do like I truly do believe that it's starting, like things are starting to change for us. But like growing up, like, we're all roughly the same age and it's like when we were 18, like the thing that we did on our 18th birthday was go to the club and drink.
00:32:14:04 - 00:32:16:12
Callum
Go, go, go. Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
00:32:17:15 - 00:32:22:09
Cooper
Yeah. But we don't ever get taught like at school. I can't even remember.
00:32:22:17 - 00:32:24:21
Emily
But even did we. Yeah, exactly.
00:32:25:13 - 00:32:37:07
Cooper
Like you guys have to go and listen to this podcast with Andrew Shubham and I think came out like a week or two ago. It's around alcohol and the effects of it, and he just goes into like really depth, like what's happening when we drink like.
00:32:37:08 - 00:32:37:21
Emily
Jaco.
00:32:37:22 - 00:32:59:18
Cooper
Basically it says how bad it is. And yeah, it's like, how can we escape? That is just like yet being confident enough in yourself and like you said, like, I still go out all the time and just don't drink. I have a Red Bull, which is probably just as bad, but I, I'm like learning that yet whenever anyone goes to me, like, Oh, come on, mate, have a drink.
00:32:59:18 - 00:33:03:04
Cooper
It's like such a reflection on themselves knowing that they can't not have a drink.
00:33:03:06 - 00:33:04:03
Emily
Exactly.
00:33:04:10 - 00:33:20:12
Cooper
I'm happy and anyone who doesn't support it isn't a good friend because you're making a positive decision for your health. Yeah. If somebody tries to pressure you into having a drink, then that's them discounting your health for their social enjoyment.
00:33:20:16 - 00:33:34:11
Emily
Yes, exactly. And I think, like, what a some tips for anyone because like, I've heard this term, right? It's like sober curious where they're like curious about becoming sorry about all this, starting to, like, slow up on their drinking or.
00:33:34:14 - 00:33:36:13
Callum
Or they know what's wrong, but they just like but it's like it's.
00:33:36:23 - 00:33:37:03
Emily
Like.
00:33:37:20 - 00:33:40:16
Callum
Hippie and the boys, we we hit a slab every Friday.
00:33:40:16 - 00:33:48:07
Emily
Yeah, but, like, hurts them. What what advice would you give for anyone that's either looking to start to kind of, like, get curious about becoming sober.
00:33:49:20 - 00:34:10:21
Cooper
I think just get educated. Yeah. Like, ignorance is bliss for most people. When it comes to alcohol. Yes. Really? No. Then it's okay, but just looking to it like I'm definitely going to drink again. Don't get me wrong, I'm a part owner of an alcohol company on the part of Gravity Seltzer, and we do do a non alka seltzer as well, which is great, but just trying to just make healthier options.
00:34:10:22 - 00:34:27:03
Cooper
Yeah, like with drinking seltzer, for instance, is like like calories not as high alcohol content is just one standard drink rather than you like 1.4 and a B and just try to be conscious of how you how many days like I was like how many years have I woken up on a Sunday.
00:34:27:06 - 00:34:28:11
Emily
Hangover as shit.
00:34:28:19 - 00:34:32:12
Cooper
All over the place in the sun and then Monday still not being.
00:34:32:13 - 00:34:33:07
Emily
Exactly.
00:34:33:07 - 00:34:50:01
Cooper
That and you just get caught in a spiral. And I'm just like, if that happens the two days of your life for 15 years, your wife's thing like years of your life. Yeah. On not wasting because like I'm just trying to find the balance.
00:34:50:02 - 00:34:52:08
Emily
Yeah, exactly, exactly.
00:34:52:08 - 00:35:13:14
Cooper
But I think the main thing is just like if you're going out every weekend, just try and alternate. You know, at one weekend I'm going to focus on catching up with friends and doing stuff that's a bit healthier whether it be taking up a new hobby or going out and, you know, doing something that night that doesn't involve drinking because almost everything we do involves drinking that very quickly.
00:35:13:14 - 00:35:26:07
Cooper
But it's been cool. I've got a great group of friends around me who are super supportive of it, and like a lot of my friends are big deejays and I still go on like watch them and stay out at night. And have a good time. But I drive home and I get to wake up and feel with the next day, and I.
00:35:26:07 - 00:35:37:20
Emily
Think that's it, like with alcohol or like drinking in general, you know, it's not to say like you can't still go out. It's not to say you can't hang out with your mates until 2 a.m.. If you really want like.
00:35:37:22 - 00:35:39:18
Callum
Or have a wine for dinner or something like.
00:35:40:00 - 00:35:40:19
Emily
Yeah, yeah.
00:35:40:21 - 00:35:41:03
Cooper
Yeah.
00:35:41:09 - 00:35:41:17
Emily
Yeah.
00:35:41:17 - 00:35:44:19
Cooper
Like that's what I mean. It's, that's what I mean. It's just having a wine for dinner. Yeah.
00:35:45:13 - 00:35:47:04
Emily
But having one drinking going challenge.
00:35:47:10 - 00:36:07:03
Cooper
Yeah. That's what I'm just doing for myself. I'm just try to challenge myself because yeah, I think it's mentally cool journey and I guess if anyone wants to learn more about it, go back to this first podcast episode. I do an episode 28 sober every Monday, and I just chat about what experiences I had that way. Yeah, I felt like I missed out.
00:36:07:05 - 00:36:21:21
Cooper
Yes. But everything else around my life has benefited from it. Not to say it's directly from it, but ever since my, my business has like month in, month out, like to extend like the last two months have just been like gone crazy.
00:36:21:22 - 00:36:22:21
Emily
Yeah. I honestly.
00:36:23:00 - 00:36:37:14
Cooper
Everything else throughout my life since that has gotten so much better. But I don't want to say it's directly because of that because I, I could have still been, but I mean, I definitely think just even that extra day of being, I wouldn't exactly. Yeah. Valuable done is yes. It helpful.
00:36:37:14 - 00:36:46:18
Emily
And I think even like on that as well like the whole anxiety kind of thing you know it does directly correlate with our with our mental health so it's like you know I mean that.
00:36:47:03 - 00:36:51:10
Callum
It doesn't just end like you hung over say Saturday or Sunday it goes through to like.
00:36:51:10 - 00:36:55:03
Emily
Wednesday. And the older you get it's what that's exactly what it feels like. Yeah.
00:36:55:03 - 00:36:58:14
Cooper
Then you check your bank account on a Sunday morning. Gosh, you know what.
00:36:59:15 - 00:37:00:22
Emily
I talk to lots of 20.
00:37:00:22 - 00:37:03:23
Callum
In the pokies then get again the read back. Yeah, yeah.
00:37:04:05 - 00:37:23:12
Cooper
Yeah. It's just I don't think it's like demonizing alcohol. Yeah. I think it's building better habits around it, going like, you know what, instead of having a bender every weekend, maybe I'll just do one a month. Yeah. Starting to slowly become healthier like we all should be. Like I said at the start, I'm just about trying to always get better.
00:37:23:12 - 00:37:43:13
Callum
Yeah, yeah. And I think like, what you said, like, it's a habit to drink and it's like, habitual, just like it's Saturday. I guess I drink. Like, do you think even, even people that masking it, you know, have people, like, they have an issue, but, like, alcohol's that deregulate the stressed out after big day and what I'm just going to stop by the bottle and get a six pack.
00:37:43:22 - 00:37:59:21
Callum
Like, if they for example, what you were saying before, they had like some sort of you know, meditation or like the like maybe I'll breathe like maybe simply doing like a box breathing or like dramatic breathing for 2 minutes. I like flatten out. I feel like I'm floating on water. Yeah. Oh, I can.
00:37:59:21 - 00:38:00:19
Emily
Breathe again. I can see.
00:38:00:24 - 00:38:14:18
Callum
I'm on earth. I'm back down. And even like if I just bring like, I love what you say with that spectrum, you bringing yourself back to like baseline to a point, right? Like you're leveling yourself out. I think a lot of people could probably, like, check themselves, so they wreck themselves.
00:38:14:18 - 00:38:15:11
Emily
Oh, well.
00:38:15:14 - 00:38:21:20
Cooper
Well, that's a thing for most people. It's an escape, which is really sad that people trying to escape their reality.
00:38:21:20 - 00:38:22:05
Emily
Yes.
00:38:23:00 - 00:38:38:11
Cooper
And it takes time to get your mind and your body healthy, like you guys train trainers. Like you're not going to just go to the gym and do one, sit up and get a six pack. Yeah. Yeah. It's like the whole thing's going to just go really good because you do one meditation because you have one night off.
00:38:38:11 - 00:38:47:05
Cooper
It's about changing your lifestyle and changing the values that you live. But to start like steering the ship in a little bit of a different direction.
00:38:47:07 - 00:38:56:15
Emily
Yeah, yeah. And so you're interview guests on your podcast as well. Who would be your Dream podcast guest if you could have anyone on.
00:38:59:00 - 00:39:18:18
Cooper
Asked this question the other day? To be honest, I actually don't have like, Oh my God, I really want that person like people. I just it's it's starting to happen so naturally that I'm just like excited to, like, continually grow. But actually at this, I'll say this person. But my favorite book is this book called Lost Connections by a guy called Jahan Hari.
00:39:20:08 - 00:39:38:06
Cooper
And it's just all about mental health and have fun. I don't I don't want to go into pharmaceutical chat. But anyway, just about how is it the tagline? The tagline is like, why are you depressed and how to find hope? And it goes on to show that there's so much more than the serotonin imbalance set to be marketed from the media and the pharmacy.
00:39:38:06 - 00:39:58:20
Cooper
To companies, which is now being proven wrong, which is ridiculous. But he goes on to talk about you can't expect your mental health to be good if you go in if you go to a doctor and say, Hey, I'm really struggling with my mental health and he go take this pill and fix it. Yeah, if you're like physical health, you're not taking care of.
00:39:58:20 - 00:40:09:14
Cooper
If you're not eating right, if you're not sleeping, what is your relationship in order? Is the finances in order? Yeah. If you don't take those five boxes first then your mental health is going to be shit no matter what.
00:40:09:14 - 00:40:10:06
Emily
Yeah, exactly.
00:40:10:13 - 00:40:34:07
Cooper
Like so many people think it's like because if yeah, like I've got something wrong with me, it's like, well, but develop habits and I don't want a discount because there definitely is some people that have, of course, health issues that are in that spectrum that I talk about this sort of 80%. But I feel like so many people make excuses before they try and actually get anything brought in their life.
00:40:34:08 - 00:40:36:10
Emily
Yes. Yeah, exactly.
00:40:37:03 - 00:40:51:17
Cooper
You and so say I forgot why that I remember where that question came from. So yeah, I'd love to check this right here. He's a he's been on tour event. Well, my dream guest was you then call him but I had on a few ways guy who I've never become good friends with, which is awesome. But yeah, yeah.
00:40:51:17 - 00:41:08:23
Cooper
As I continue to grow, I just continue to get more people I really like speaking to like doctors and scientists. Like I love how like Joe Rogan does he's he's yeah. What I love just talking to people with different views, different opinions and just learning from people. Like, I'm just fascinated getting to know people's stories and why they think the way they do.
00:41:08:23 - 00:41:17:05
Cooper
And then if there's value in something that I can take from it, it's amazing. And then it's awesome that I recorded it and other people listen to it. Exactly.
00:41:17:14 - 00:41:19:17
Emily
Exactly. It's like the best of both worlds.
00:41:20:12 - 00:41:21:01
Cooper
Absolutely.
00:41:21:03 - 00:41:28:05
Callum
Like a gold mine. I just dig in for gold from every other person. Every gets you. And so you taking little pockets and then you're sharing that there. I think that's I think.
00:41:28:10 - 00:41:29:17
Emily
Yeah, no gatekeeping here.
00:41:30:15 - 00:41:46:09
Cooper
Yeah. I'm just like, that's what I like. I feel like having an open mindedness. If seven people hear a bit of information that they're skeptical on and just say like, oh, nah, nah, nah. Where it's like, I'll look into it a bit more curious what might happen if you take on that mindset a little bit. Try it for a week.
00:41:46:17 - 00:41:51:11
Cooper
Exactly like the alcohol thing. What might happen if you take a month off alcohol? Yeah, you never know if you.
00:41:51:11 - 00:41:52:14
Emily
Don't find out. Yeah.
00:41:52:15 - 00:42:04:13
Cooper
But so many people aren't willing to try it because they're like, Oh, no, I got to catch up with like the biggest thing I hear about people, I try to a month sober, but I've got a waiting list month. I'll do it next month. It's like you're always going to have stuff.
00:42:04:16 - 00:42:06:07
Emily
There's never going to be a perfect time.
00:42:07:03 - 00:42:07:19
Cooper
Exactly.
00:42:08:09 - 00:42:25:24
Callum
And I think it's cool because like you like even with podcasts, it's so good because the fact that you can talk to different people that other people can relate to, like, you know, for example, you get maybe the surf crew listening to you because they can relate to you, but you had like Jackson tip it on and like a big tattooed bodybuilder bro's listening to him, they're like, Oh yeah.
00:42:25:24 - 00:42:38:10
Callum
And then they listen to you and then this guy's got some knowledge, like, let's implement that. That's why I think it's his job. Well, full of knowledge on that. If you could tell the world anything. The world is listening right now, like everyone in the world. What is it that you would say?
00:42:39:15 - 00:42:56:15
Cooper
Be kind? Yeah, it's so simple if you have lost it like a big without expecting something, right? Yeah. So often people do something nice for someone and then they don't get something in return and then that makes it go well. I'm not gonna do something nice for anyone else. It's like there's nothing kind because it makes you feel good.
00:42:57:00 - 00:43:03:05
Cooper
Get something inside. Yeah. Realize that kindness isn't a transaction. Kindness is a value that you should try there for them.
00:43:03:16 - 00:43:09:07
Emily
He's got some juice. This guy's good. This guy's good. This guy knows what he's talking about. God, I can only.
00:43:09:07 - 00:43:11:22
Callum
Go goose bumps. I was like, it isn't transactional.
00:43:12:13 - 00:43:20:02
Emily
Seriously. Okay, well, before we wrap everything we've got, do we have to go? I know. It's like, can we keep going? Please.
00:43:20:23 - 00:43:26:00
Cooper
God, as long as he lay out just to get yeah.
00:43:26:00 - 00:43:37:00
Emily
Normally what we do is we play a little fast five at the very end. So whatever comes to mind just blurted out. Yeah, exactly. That first one. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
00:43:38:12 - 00:43:38:22
Cooper
Okay.
00:43:38:23 - 00:43:43:08
Emily
I knew you were going to say that. I actually knew you were going to say that. I knew it. I was like.
00:43:43:17 - 00:43:53:06
Cooper
People always saying to me, would you ever say, I can't see myself living overseas stage to the, the logistics and the admin and it's just seems.
00:43:53:22 - 00:43:55:02
Emily
Too hard too hard.
00:43:55:09 - 00:43:59:07
Callum
Basket. Who is a hero? Who's someone you look up to? Who's here?
00:44:00:07 - 00:44:03:07
Emily
But that was a good answer.
00:44:03:08 - 00:44:09:22
Cooper
I learned a lot from him. I used my dad's analogies in quotes and story throughout my whole business. Then, yeah, he's my hair.
00:44:09:22 - 00:44:12:19
Emily
I love it. What's your karaoke song?
00:44:16:10 - 00:44:18:07
Cooper
Or Bohemian Rhapsody?
00:44:18:17 - 00:44:22:01
Emily
Oh, have you got a little have you got a little bit for us?
00:44:22:15 - 00:44:23:11
Callum
That's a long.
00:44:23:11 - 00:44:33:08
Cooper
So I'm not I'm not a I'm not a singer. I'm definitely not. I'm like, I'm not an artist in that way. I'll leave the music.
00:44:33:08 - 00:44:35:12
Emily
Like I will let you go with that.
00:44:36:01 - 00:44:37:03
Callum
What's a guilty pleasure.
00:44:39:06 - 00:44:46:17
Cooper
Oh, my guilty pleasure. Um, I do eat a lot of chocolate. I.
00:44:47:14 - 00:44:51:01
Emily
I knew it. I literally had it in my head that you were going to say chocolate.
00:44:51:01 - 00:44:53:15
Callum
What's his favorite chocolate? Three to one.
00:44:54:03 - 00:45:00:07
Emily
Cadbury. Okay, if I can, we talk Cadbury block a whole block. A choc is hazelnut for sure.
00:45:02:10 - 00:45:05:09
Cooper
Close the marble, like the Galliano. Oh.
00:45:05:23 - 00:45:06:10
Emily
Damn.
00:45:06:11 - 00:45:06:24
Cooper
Wow.
00:45:07:05 - 00:45:15:13
Emily
I know. We're quite in tune. Thank you. We've just got something last one is first Celebrity Crush.
00:45:17:11 - 00:45:18:20
Cooper
First Celebrity Crush.
00:45:20:17 - 00:45:23:03
Emily
Surely it was Whatsername from Blue Crush. You know the Blondie?
00:45:23:03 - 00:45:25:13
Cooper
Yes. No, no, no.
00:45:25:13 - 00:45:26:09
Emily
What was her name?
00:45:27:16 - 00:45:28:23
Callum
I'm looking at my producer right now.
00:45:28:24 - 00:45:33:04
Emily
Yeah, and he's not got anything. Kate Bosworth? No. Kate, was it Kate.
00:45:33:04 - 00:45:34:18
Callum
Bosworth? Kate Bosworth.
00:45:34:18 - 00:45:40:18
Cooper
First celebrity crush. Oh, I don't know. Or current.
00:45:40:24 - 00:45:42:06
Callum
Meet the current celebrity crush.
00:45:45:04 - 00:45:47:14
Cooper
I don't know. I usually don't get stumped that this is really stuff.
00:45:49:01 - 00:45:51:04
Emily
You're going to be thinking about this all day now.
00:45:51:08 - 00:45:53:06
Cooper
Maybe, like, May, like June is back in the day.
00:45:53:06 - 00:45:54:06
Callum
Oh, yeah, yeah.
00:45:54:06 - 00:45:55:04
Emily
Good choice. Yeah.
00:45:55:09 - 00:45:57:13
Callum
Chose my my celebrity crush.
00:45:57:18 - 00:45:59:06
Emily
Well, first celebrity crush.
00:45:59:06 - 00:46:02:01
Callum
My first celebrity crush. Oh.
00:46:02:23 - 00:46:03:20
Cooper
It's a hot question.
00:46:04:00 - 00:46:05:02
Emily
This is why.
00:46:05:09 - 00:46:08:12
Cooper
I'm trying to think back to young Cooper, because young Cooper is so different to.
00:46:08:12 - 00:46:08:21
Emily
Now.
00:46:08:21 - 00:46:13:13
Callum
Yeah, I think I was so immature the like, it would have just been b, like, because she's, like, blond and.
00:46:14:08 - 00:46:15:04
Cooper
Yeah, exactly.
00:46:15:04 - 00:46:15:23
Emily
Tanned or something.
00:46:15:23 - 00:46:19:10
Callum
So, like, oh, yeah. The classic. Yeah, I think like a more sophisticated.
00:46:19:10 - 00:46:22:19
Emily
Mum would have been like Chad Michael Marry or something, you know, back in the day.
00:46:23:05 - 00:46:29:04
Callum
Or I love the Catherine Zeta Jones at one point. I like just classic Constance is interesting.
00:46:29:14 - 00:46:32:20
Emily
Anyway, anyway, who knew going to finish on Celebrity Crush don't know.
00:46:32:20 - 00:46:44:24
Callum
That but Cooper, thank you so much for being on. That was like I said, we could be chatting forever. Direct us to where we can find you on the Graham's the socials the all.
00:46:44:24 - 00:46:45:13
Emily
The things the.
00:46:45:13 - 00:46:47:08
Callum
Plugs. Tell us where to find you.
00:46:49:03 - 00:47:20:01
Cooper
Yeah, I guess you can find me on Instagram just at Cooper Chapman and Sam on cheek talk my tux kinda blown up that's right share a lot of my podcast little excess video as well. And then if you want to find the good human in factory, it's literally just at the human factory on Instagram. If you want to join that 1% accountability group and yet get a free meditation and gratitude little group of people around you, just send out the good human factory direct message on Instagram and all I do and it's completely free, always will be the good GM of factory icons.
00:47:20:01 - 00:47:41:04
Cooper
The website. If you want to learn more about my workshops that I do for yes. School support clubs, corporate groups. Yeah. Also we have lots on the website, which is really cool. Just try to use positive messaging to spread awareness yeah. Just good humans could be champion podcast on all the podcast platforms is. Yeah, well you can find the podcast, but thanks so much for me.
00:47:41:04 - 00:47:42:03
Cooper
God, it's been really fun chat.
00:47:42:07 - 00:47:44:03
Emily
Thank you. I'm going to join that 1% club.
00:47:44:04 - 00:47:45:14
Callum
Yeah, yeah. I'm doing it after.
00:47:45:19 - 00:47:48:20
Emily
I say I'm I'm messaging. So you'll be getting a message from both of us.
00:47:49:19 - 00:47:50:01
Cooper
All right.
00:47:50:02 - 00:47:51:20
Emily
Awesome. Thank you. So might.
00:47:51:20 - 00:47:52:14
Callum
Have the best day.
00:47:53:18 - 00:47:54:08
Cooper
Thank you so much.
00:47:54:08 - 00:47:55:01
Callum
Guys. You can't.