AI, Sobriety, and Leadership: Justin Walker UNLEASHED!

Overcoming Addiction and Leading with Purpose: Justin Walker's Journey

In this episode of the Samantha Parker Show, Samantha sits down with Justin Walker, founder and CEO of ITECMD and host of the Multiverse Leadership and Technology Podcast. Justin shares his inspiring story of overcoming addiction, including a near-death experience, and transforming his life to help others. He discusses the importance of self-leadership, building systems, and finding purpose. The conversation also delves into his views on AI and cybersecurity, and how sobriety has impacted his business and personal growth. Throughout, Justin emphasizes the importance of grace, growth, and taking small, actionable steps.

00:00 Welcome to the Samantha Parker Show

00:13 Introducing Justin Walker

01:12 The Multiverse Leadership and Technology Podcast

01:42 Embracing AI in Everyday Life

02:50 Justin's Overdose and Recovery Journey

05:30 The Path to Sobriety

08:49 Moments of Clarity and Purpose

10:30 The Journey of Self-Leadership

15:45 Milestones in Sobriety

16:48 Cybersecurity and Healthcare

17:01 Introduction to the Guest's Business Ventures

17:24 Impact of Sobriety on Business Ownership

18:07 Challenges and Realizations in Sobriety

20:49 Cybersecurity and AI Concerns

24:24 AI in Everyday Life

27:54 Fitness and Sobriety Journey

31:21 Final Thoughts and Future Plans

Justin Walker ITeeCMD: https://iteecmd.net/

Step into Your Sober Era! Are you ready to embrace a life of clarity and empowerment? ✨ Check out Sam’s Sober Club on Substack for journals, tips, community and more [Subscribe Now ➔] Sam's Sober CLUB | Samantha Parker | Substack

Want to Work with The Samantha Parker for Content Management CLICK HERE

Follow me on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@samanthaparkershow

YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@thesamanthaparker

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thesamanthaparker/

Transcript

 Hey guys, welcome back to the Samantha Parker show. Today I'm sitting down with someone. This is how we described you. Okay? You ready for this? It's pretty good Justin. You've walked through fire and come out leading with purpose. Justin Walker is the founder and CEO, is it I-T-C-M-D or is it like.

T-E-E-C-M-D.

I-T-E-C-M-D. That's cool.

Yeah, that works.

What does it stand for?

So as it can, people always are like we need you. We need to help us. So I use that. And then the CMD is command. So IT command,

Oh,

for

rad.

it'd be the IT commander.

Okay. That's pretty badass. I just use my name for everything. Which I think it works okay, but you're the host of the Multiverse Leadership and Technology podcast, and you have over two decades of it and cybersecurity experience, but you also have your own story of overcoming addiction. You survived an overdose and then you've really built an amazing life, from that.

Yes, that is correct. They brought me to find my purpose.

Rad. Okay, we're gonna get into that, but what is the Multiverse Leadership and Technology podcast?

So because people and human beings are so multidimensional and multifaceted, I decide to create the Multiverse Leadership Podcast to dive deep into the understanding of human beings and have tough conversations around leadership and technology that we're not having and including the human element because we're so surrounded by technology, we forget that we're human beings also.

Are you kind of excited about AI or are you like, what's happening?

Well, whenever I can get the full cyborg suit, I'm gonna be counted in for that one, that's for sure.

That could be,

excited for ai.

Do you.

lot in my everyday life.

I tell people, like when they ask me my thoughts in ai, I am like, well, I kind of think of it like my Apple watch. It's just like my little helper, you know?

It's a tool. People shouldn't be afraid of it. It's a tool that you can use, but a lot of us don't use it as best as we actually could it takes training and time to learn how to understand and use it correctly.

I feel like I'm just like kind of just scratching around with it, you know?

I think we all are.

Yeah, I've started,

to come of it.

I've started using it. Kind of like Google. I like it better than Google, because instead of having to click through a website and dig for answers, my husband and I, you know how like you debate on things and you're like, well, let's Google this.

Well now I'm like, let me ask Chad. GBT.

Oh, I do that all the time. I feel like I'm cheating on Google.

Yeah.

like Google's in the doghouse now. Sorry buddy, but we had to put you down.

I am like, you're worthless.

Whoa, wait. She didn't mean that Google. Oh,

Okay. So let's just kind of get right into it. So can you walk me through your moment of clarity, after your overdose and what exactly did you overdose on?

Yes. It was 2023. A cold, dark night in December. No, it was in January, new Year's Eve. Or New Year's day actually, I should say. And I just got back from partying. I was doing cocaine drinking I pretty much was drink. When you drink, you do a lot of coke. I did too much of it I had this moment where I was like, oh shoot. I think I did too much. Everything all cloudy. It was this really strange, calm scenario. I was really calm, it got to the point where I had to get myself out my door and go knock on the neighbor's door to help me. I couldn't dial nine one one on my phone. Everything else went black and it was just really cloudy. And from that, I believe the neighbor helped me call nine one one. They're on the phone with them. But from that, I think I blacked out some point right there. And I remember waking up at the bottom of the stairs kind of twitching and moving, it looked like had fallen down the stairs and gotten the brain bleed from that. And from there they, they were able to get me to the ambulance. I overdosed in the ambulance, or I might have overdosed before then too, but there's a lot that's a little blurry.

Yeah.

I know what they told me that it was happening,

how did you lead up to that point? I go to aa. Do you work a program?

I do not, I have a lot of things about AA and that whole fear-based thing, but that's a different story.

Yeah, no, I'm like, everyone can do whatever, like, however you get sober.

Works for you.

yeah, that's why I'm, I'm like, I go to aa, but I don't really care what you do. You know what I mean? I'm a big fan of it. It's because it's worked for me. But you know, I heard funny things in aa, so people always say, I like to go from the wet goods straight to the dry goods.

What does that, wait, what does that even mean? Tell me everything.

But it makes me laugh. I've never thought of calling cocaine. The dry goods.

I never heard that one either before.

they say it

is a hell of a drug.

they say it a lot in there. I never really got into cocaine. I just think 'cause it wasn't presented. I know that when I've been drinking, I've done it a couple times, but it wasn't something I was ever actively seeking. I really like my downers. I was like, let's get super drunk and depressed.

I was like, just get drunk and woo. Have a party.

Yeah, I don't, I know, I think I missed out on some of the best parts, so,

I mean, I look back on it, I'm like, I didn't miss out on anything.

So what do you think kind of like led you to the point where you were like, oh, I'm overdosing. You know what, what? Why do you think you were at such an extreme level of use?

So before that happened, I was cleaning for about two years. so I was not doing drugs or drinking for those two years, but at the same time, I didn't do my healing process that I needed to do. I was still that dry drunk, as they

Mm-hmm.

They're the ones that smoke cigarettes, eat donuts, but they're still in that mindset.

They just haven't shifted over to that next stage or level of identity yet. And I didn't do that. I was still going through a lot of trauma, a lot of things that happened during my childhood, things I went through. I never really. Completely associate those with what was actually going on in my life. just kept drinking and partying and it's not really thinking about it, but there's a lot of story that led up to that. That was one of them though.

So you had been sober for two years. What made you get sober the first time?

So before those two years was living with a bunch of roommates. For about four years or so, and it was just like an everyday party. I was always high on coke and drinking. It was, everyone else was always on something, it was just that environment we were in. And it gotten to a point where someone mentioned to me, so I think one day I was on my computer doing some kind of cryptography or something and they're like, wait, you understand this?

You know how to do this stuff. I'm like, yeah, I learned that that's what I'm doing. And they're like, why are you here right now doing this? And you could be doing that. I didn't understand what they were saying, but he explained later, he was talking about, he noticed something in me that was so smart that why am I still doing drugs and drinking going down this path? And that always kinda stuck with me too. After that guy said that, it was still a slow process this kind of really pushed me in the direction of why the hell am I still doing this? What am I doing? Kinda like a wake up call, one of the first ones I had, you know, someone else to say something like that to you.



Yeah, I know the first time I got sober was in 2020 because, I was drinking like outta the coffee cup in the mornings. It was kind of naturally adapted by the world.

because somebody thermostat, we talking about.

Yeah. But that's when, I already had a drinking problem, so to throw all that on top of it and I was like, I really have a big problem. I went to AA for like two weeks and then they decided to close because someone got COVID in aa. I was like, I'm not gonna get online.

So it, you know, and I had been telling everyone, I was just redefining my relationship with drinking.

That.

yeah, I was like, I love that for myself. Which didn't go well. And you know, it's like you just slip right back in. So how did you slip back into that?

So 2020 was the self-destruction and the end to end all to be all of everything. We were all stuck inside. We couldn't go anywhere. So what did we end up doing? Getting a bunch of coke drinking 24 7 basically. And that just led me down to like being pretty much destroying all the relationships, the people I lived with. Me doing coke by myself sometimes. Not even going out to me, getting kicked outta the place that I was living at at that time. I had to find my own place and that's why I came to Newport. I started getting clean and sober. We thinking everything, but it was just the 2020 was a downhill for everything.

Yeah.

It was a bad, it was a bad year, but it also was a good year because I learned a lot from that. Reflecting back on it.

So you described when, you sent over your, I think it was like a bio or just like a little, when you pitched to be on the show. You said you had a moment of clarity after your overdose. What was that?

yes,

i.

So I don't remember exactly where it was. I think I was in the ambulance when I OD'ed, my heart stopped. But at that point, it's like there was a voice speaking to me. I don't know if I was in the afterlife or an in between, but there was someone tell me that, your journey is not over yet.

This is not the end for you, that you're here, we're gonna send you back to actually help people, help them on their journey, help them find their purpose. And when I woke up in the hospital, they were just the nicest, sweetest nurses. It was just so kind. I wasn't expecting that.

I'm like, I just OD'ed. I'm on drugs. Why are you being nice to me? But it just really clarified so much for me that, I need to be working in healthcare to help other people. That's why I have my moment of clarity. I have a purpose, I have a gift. I need to use it now. focus that energy.

I was focusing so much on partying and drinking over here to help people understand their gifts, their purpose, and help them on their journey as well. My whole purpose is to help them get from their old mindset to shifting to a new identity that they could actually be worthy of their dreams that they want to live out.

How are you doing that? 'cause I know for me, I just have to keep talking. And that's always the message I get. Every time I wanna be like, well no, I just need to focus on my job. Do you feel this way? And then I'm like, no, I have to keep talking.

So it's a matter of focusing on things that are important that are gonna move the needle. And what I had to do first, I had to find self-leadership. Figure out how to lead myself, how to build systems in myself and my life so that I could help others do the same.

I started the podcast not knowing what it was gonna turn into and not knowing it was such deep therapy for me. The conversation that I was having with other people are so profound, so important. 'cause everyone has a story to tell. A podcast really opened my mind. And there's other things involved too, like fitness and just really, I had to go through some therapy, anxiety coaching. Different therapists to really get my mind in the right state so that I could help myself and then help other people.

A lot.

love,

Mm-hmm.

just a person therapy, but maybe fitness is part of that therapy. My problem of God is part of that therapy. Me creating my vision of where I saw myself as part of that therapy and reading a lot of books, having conversation, just trying to figure things out to really lead myself in the right direction.

I love that. So you really kind of worked on your own self-leadership.

Yes.

Do you have any favorite books?

Yes. I actually, I have one I'm for the second time right now by a guy I have on my show. His name is Matt Geronimo, and the book is, oh shoot, I can't remember the name of it right now. It just slipped my mind. it's about being the person who's worthy of your dreams and talks about like the identity and actually not just mindset, but things you have to do. The way that other people are not doing them. So everything people have taught you, everything you've been raised on, don't pay attention to any of that, but you have to find your own way to get there.

Did you have like a, did you have to go through recovery? 'cause you said you had a brain bleed.

Yes. I was in physical therapy and did some rehab, the recovery is probably like six months to a year. And I couldn't walk straight. I had to use a walker for a while. had such bad brain fog, like I couldn't even lift or rape, barely. Like it was so bad. I thought it was gonna always be like this, and it was over. I'm, I did this for myself, I'm screwed. But luckily that's the case.

I know you look great.

God I know. Lots of therapy, lots of work. Getting yourself to get here.

I know there's so many times where I'm like, oh, I'm perfectly fine. And then, you know, I'll go do crazy things too. Like I'll do stuff that was really hard for me a year ago. Like I'll, sit in an airport lounge that almost took me down a year ago, or I'll go to an all-inclusive resort.

But then just random things, like one day I found myself sitting outside of a gas station and I'm like, I'm just gonna go in and buy two. Tall boys, which I would never drink. I never drink that way, you know? And I'm like, it'll be fine. No one will even know, and I'll just drink 'em in my car, which is the alcoholic thought, you know, I'll drink 'em in my car and I'll be fine.

So the thing for me, I have had dreams about drinking and doing coke 'cause it's some of those things that get better in your mind because of the chemical change.

Mm-hmm.

I've had no urge to wanna go out and party to wanna go drink in the beginning I had a lot of urges. it took probably about a year and a half for a lot of that to go away, but I had to really work on it.

I had to be fully aware and self aware to realize that I don't wanna fucking die again. It might be the end, might be the last time. Like it's just, it's nuts sometimes where our minds stink and how we think about things.

It is, it's almost like there's someone else in there is how I feel. You know? I'm like, what? In the what?

passenger.

It feels like that, like with alcohol, this is actually a topic that has come up a lot on my TikTok people are talking about do you have dreams where you wake up and think you're hungover?

And I'm like, occasionally I do.

I had dreams where I wake up. I thought I did a bunch of cocaine, but I realized it was a dream. it felt so intense, so real. I'm like, oh, thank God. was just a dream. Woo. Like I freak out, and that has happened several times. It's weird. Your brain just like, I want more. No. Get away from me.

Yeah, and I'll wake up and if I have a little headache or something, 'cause what I used to do is I would wake up and I would lay there and evaluate how hungover I was. It was something I would do almost every morning. I'm like, how hungover am I and how am I gonna proceed with the day?

Oh man, it gets weird sometimes when I was really active in my drugs and everything. It got to the point where it made me very depressed. I'd be thinking very suicidal thoughts and I had to realize that this wasn't me thinking that it was what my body commission and the drugs were doing to me. I had to realize, that's why I be like, I had to get away from that and try and start working on those steps to get sober.

Yeah.

But it's definitely a journey, not something that happens overnight. You can't just say, I'm done. It doesn't work. Trust me. I tried it.

I know I'm

trying literally.

you literally, yeah, you literally did. I've been kind of just enjoying the journey, especially, there was something about when I crossed the year mark, I was like, oh wow, I'm actually doing this.

Have you had any milestones for you that you were like, holy shit, this is actually happening.

Yeah, so the first time I tried getting my, well, the first time I tried getting sober, I was counting the days, the months. I was still stuck in that mindset I was still drinking and there was a little bit of clarity, but not quite much. I was so frustrated. I was so upset, like, why can't I get this?

Why isn't it working? I literally had to die to finally get the clarity I needed to pass. When I got to those milestones, I was like. I have this now I understand. So when it got to a year, I really stopped thinking about it. But I still think about it now. Time to time. It's not as much as before because I've really shifted from being active and that getting sober part to over here, to building, create a new identity so that I can thrive in my life better.

Yeah. So do you own your own cybersecurity? You do cybersecurity and healthcare? Did you build.

What's that? Oh yeah, cybersecurity. Yeah, I got some of those. No, I'm kidding. Yes, I do.

Is it your own company,

yeah, so E-E-C-M-D is my managed service provider and a very human-centric, human-focused, cybersecurity and technology company. And I also work for a large healthcare organization right now too.

Oh, rad.

I'm working on building that business.

Oh, that's way cool. So I own my own business too, which we do talk about in the podcast from time to time. But how do you feel like, sobriety has changed you as a business owner?

So that is a great question. There's so much I didn't know, and you don't know what you don't know until you know it, but I started building a business.

I.

Understanding the steps and the things I needed to take on that journey and the systems I had to build into that business to make it work, made me really realize and understand the systems I had to build into my life.

Also, to make it work and building a business. And my sobriety really go hand in hand because it has helped me learn that there's a lot that I don't know, but I need to start knowing it now to start building and creating what I want. the business was a lifesaver for me.

I know that my business has changed a lot since sobriety, right? I did go into a little hole. I had this eight week hole where I didn't talk to anyone. I was making sure my clients had what they needed because I was so mortified to come out and be like, look, I'm an alcoholic.

I've been, working this program and I cannot go do these things and drink. When I did come out, it literally felt like I was coming out so of course I post it on social media and I'm like, oh my God, I'm gonna lose clients. People are, you know, I live in Utah too, so I'm like, people are gonna think the worst of me.

And it was actually, the complete opposite. I have clients that I see in person and they were like, dude, that's so cool what you posted online that's just like, so cool. And I was like, oh my God, I had no idea. You know? I thought people, yeah, I thought for sure my business was ruined and I was gonna flush it down the toilet.

People want authenticity. They wanna connect with you know who you are, and they surprise you.

I think,

the right people.

yeah, and I think it did surprise some people, that hadn't seen that side of me. But overall, I think it's been really good. The thing that I've noticed is when I set goals, I can actually see them through, it was always very goal driven and I would say all these things, but I never would see it through.

Oh, I feel that. I feel that really hard. That was that same way, and I've been learning on this journey that I'm actually showing up for myself, showing up for my business, showing up for other people. And after that self district part came in for me, I didn't do that before, I just kind of like, eh, yeah, I'll do that eventually.

Or I won't do that today. You know, because just the systems were in place for me at that time.

Well, yeah, and I would, be like, oh yeah, you wanna meet for drinks? And it was like anything I needed to do went out the window.

What was I doing again? Does it matter? Let's go. Woo.

I would find myself repeating the same depression cycle over and over. I can't get there. It's not working, you know.

Yeah. How long did it take you to get out of that cycle? Realize that we were in the cycle in the first place.

I think I began to realize a few years ago what was happening, but I was in a really big space of denial,

Yeah, the

yeah.

a huge river you can drown in that place. I'm telling you.

You know what's hard though is now you probably know this, now that you're sober, you're like looking around at people and you're like, huh? Like we we're all playing that game.

Well, and you do, you see people and everything in a different light and you're kinda like, how was I there for so long? You really wake up and it's just like you're woke. You're like, whoa. You see and feel and taste life so differently.

Yeah.

It feels so different. It hits so differently.

You have more love for yourself and the people around you. You have more compassion understanding as well that you didn't have for yourself for the longest time.

Okay. I do have a question that's like not really related to cyber.

Go.

yeah, sobriety.

get Chad up. 

So hold on. No, this is about chat, GPT. You're in cybersecurity, right? Do you think that like can chat GPT just like hack everything? This is something I was thinking about the other day.

When you say, can chat GBT hack everything? What do you mean exactly? Or what do you Yeah, what are you trying to say?

Okay, so you work in cybersecurity, in healthcare, right? So you're making sure that personal information doesn't get leaked,

yes. So there are AI initiatives

yeah, that's what I'm saying. So can AI essentially just be like.

So I think I understand what you're saying. There's a lot of AI initiatives for, organizations, and some of them have not adopted them yet, but there's a huge concern

Okay.

just putting all kinds of private information in there and thinking it's secure and safe. of times it's not because a, all, any of the AI chat bot and stuff they're using. They're open to the internet. They don't guarantee the safety of your information,

Yeah.

in healthcare, it's such a huge risk. So there's a lot of stuff that's up to debate right now. So what you said, yes and no. It's not. You have to be careful what you feed it and what you tell it and realizing at the same time.

If you put into it, you just gotta be like, oh, it's out there.

Yeah.

of the time it is out there, you know, so you do wanna be careful because people can get a hold of that information or find out about breaches and find your information and track, it back to those chat bots and use that against you. You do have to be careful.

Okay. So I was.

to have policies around it.

Yeah, I was listening to a podcast last night with Theo Vaughn, and then it's Sam, he's like the CEO of chat. GPT. So he was, they were talk, like they were going back and forth about this and I guess, there's no laws like protecting your privacy to what you put into chat, GPT. And so basically like if you committed a crime or something happened in your life, they could subpoena all of your chats and have access to everything.

percent

So they're trying to, like, the law's trying to catch up because what Sam was saying was that it should be almost like confidentiality, between you and your lawyer. Like these should be confidential conversations, but there's no laws about that.

Well, it's kinda like when the internet came out, it was an open space where you can share anything and look up anything. Like even though we have laws and regulations in place, things still leak out all the time. We have to look at it as privacy as there's no guarantee on privacy. No matter what you're doing.

You just have to be conscious of what you're putting into it. But most people don't do that because it's like, oh, yay, female.

Yeah.

that's why a lot of companies, have to create policies community and culture around these things and have the conversations because nothing's 100% protected.

Nothing but just having the conversation.

Yeah. Just, an awareness of what you're saying or what you're doing, maybe don't film it.

I mean, we are both online now, so our voices, our pictures, everything is almost up for grabs,

Mm-hmm.

I'm just waiting for someone to come out with an AI on my voice and a YouTube channel is not me.

Well, they

a second.

keep it. If that happens, you know, you've made it, man.

Right. That is so adorable. My goodness. Thank you.

Yeah, I've been listening to a lot of different conversations. AI is such a hot topic right now, so I feel like it's kind of making all the podcast circuits, you know, and it kind of makes you think. Another cool thing they mentioned last night is pretty soon and it's moving really fast, like just the technology because AI is moving it along, but they're saying that pretty soon you'll be able to have an idea for an app and AI will build it for you.

They do have some of that right now. Yeah, because they're getting rid of a lot of programmers and stuff like that. AI is pretty powerful. You can build programs really easily with it.

Yeah, and I think it's cool 'cause it's kind of taking away the block of like, oh, I wanna create something, but I can't do that. Or I have to pay, $10,000 to this designer. You know what I'm saying? I think it's kind of cool.

I use mine as a strategic business partner and coach sometimes, because you talk, you banter back and forth and you can tell it how to talk to you. You can write a book with it,

Yeah.

And it's pretty good with the information it gives you, but figuring out what it means or how to implement it, that's kind of a different level,

yes. So I just got back from LA and we got an Uber, right? So the Uber pulls up. I was at this big event. It was a small street, but they were directing traffic one way. So the Uber pulls up, we get in and all of a sudden our driver starts screaming, no Waymo, no, no Waymo, no.

And we're like, what? And this Waymo, 'cause it's normally a two-way street, you know this Waymo's just coming head on for him. And the Waymo like stops. These girls are trying to get out because they're stuck. But it wouldn't let them get out. Basically the Waymo just, stopped and didn't move.

It is like black Mirror. We have your souls now.

Yes, and it would inch forward towards our Uber. We were in a big suburban and the guy kept being like, no, Waymo, no. It was funny. He ended up having to get out and move all the barriers because the Waymo like, it couldn't critically think like, I should back up and get out of here.

It just stopped.

Yeah, are those issues that they're still trying to work out

Mm-hmm.

and it's unfortunate. Definitely. They definitely have a lot of data, but that's just so funny. It's like, what do you do in that situation?

Yeah,

I mean.

It's like the Waymo can't get out and move the barrier over so he can go, you know?

I feel like someone should be monitoring and should be able to take over you know?

Yeah.

I think those are still in beta, the Waymo.

Well, they have them, fully running. I have a law firm that I work with and I help produce their podcast as well. And we've done podcasts on this. They have 'em running in Scottsdale, and then they have quite a few of them in la, but they're fully out running,

i've heard about that in Arizona.

Yeah.

I have to research that more. That's awesome. And scary at the same

We were looking up different lawsuits around him because it's interesting.

There's no laws yet with like, okay, if you hit someone, whose fault is it? There's no one in the car. That's kind of like those things they're trying to figure out still.

Someone's gonna end up suing Waymo for a lot of money.

Yeah, they're gonna be unprotected, right now.

It is weird though. I don't know if I could get in a car without a driver. I'm sure I could.

Well, it's weird right now, but it's kind of like everything else in technology though. Eventually it becomes normal and part of the culture and you're like, oh yeah, I remember back in my day. We had, Woodby phones, you know, like, what's the Woodby phone? We have cell phones now. So it's like become part of the culture, you know,

I know the other night with dinner, my kids are 20 and 14. My husband and I are sitting there and explaining how you used to have a house phone. Both the kids were like, what? I'm like, come on. It hasn't been that long.

it's only back in the nineties, you know, man.

It was it that long ago. My grandma had a rotary that you had to like, and if you missed a number, you had to start all the way over.

Yes, back in my day,

Okay, so I'm all back to sobriety.

Yes.

What do you feel like was the biggest catalyst for you, along your sobriety journey or, I know there's so much that goes into that question though, but what do you think was just one really big thing that helped you, stay on track?

There are actually two things I was working on my fitness and then doing K maga.

Oh, cool.

martial arts helped me with my aggression, my anger, and then the fitness helped me build systems into my business and my life because the fitness over time. I was going two days a week, three days a week. Now I'm going five days a week. It helped me understand that things take time to build into your life because fitness, like the fitness journey, things don't happen right away. You have to build it up, get the food right, continuously working out. So all that just really was so viable in my life to really understand and help me figure out who I am now how I can show up for myself that I have to show up so I can show up for others also in that way.

Yeah, I love that. I know fitness helped me with, replacing a lot of habits, I love to drink On Thursdays I talk about this a ton. Thursday night I was like Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday I was good. But usually 'cause I was nursing a three day weekend hangover.

it comes Friday.

Thursday night was just like, screw it, we'll get the wine out.

So I started going to a hot yoga class, which I hate but it was replacing that activity for me. Then I took up running. So I would get up in the mornings I live in the desert, you know, I was having to get up at 5:00 AM before the sun came up, and it was keeping me so on track.

Oh, I feel that I was getting up about 4:00 AM every morning. Now I get up at five because I found out the extra. So sleep is a very important part of my life now. didn't realize how important sleep was. When you get sober, you're like, wow, sleep is amazing. How did I stay up for all those nights? And you realize how I felt emotionally and physically have lack of sleep and the drugs involved.

Oh my goodness. Catastrophe.

Absolutely. Okay, so kind of a cheesy question for you, but if someone listening today feels like they've lost their power, what's one action they can take to get it back?

Power, you never lost it. It's always inside you. You just have to find a way to communicate with it. can look different for every person. Like for me, I had to find fitness, but actually before that I started walking. Find something small that you can take action on now, like going outside for a walk. outside, not really inside. When you're inside it, almost like the walls are closing in on you or you're too comfortable. Take a walk to the beach. Do it once a day, once a twice a week, and just kind of add onto it slowly, over time. Build that habit and then do that with other things in your life

but over time, we want things too fast. We want this pain to end. We want the end, all the be all, but we just have to. Give ourselves grace and work on those things one step at a time. I mean that by step one, step two, not step one, step 10, step 15.

I love.

I still do it sometimes,

No. I mean, yeah.

gonna go to the mountain.

Right now. It's no big deal.

Yeah. I, I mean, I do it every morning.

We're humans.

Mm-hmm.

to give ourselves grace. It's gonna happen. Not every day is gonna be perfect. It's okay.

Great advice. So what's coming up next for you?

growing this podcast more, having a lot more conversations with people and hopefully eventually doing it full time. Because like I said earlier, I work for an organization. I have my business and I have the podcast. I'm working on growing that, and then I'm gonna be working on figuring out how to not only grow my cyber business, but also grow my relationships and build a community with other people. Being on the spectrum is really hard for me sometimes to connect with people. So I'm trying to work on that more. 'cause it's hard for me. I don't like it. Sometimes that means I need to keep doing it. So that is my goal for this year.

I love that. That's a really good goal. I spent some time, cocooning and not talking to anyone, just getting sober, doing the bare minimum. I had an office in downtown St. George and I was in my little hole, I just moved over to like a big, a big space.

Like there's lots of people here and it has like pushed me outta my comfort zone so much. But it's been so good for me.

I know that comfort zone can be deadly because that's where dreams go and die.

Yeah.

Really unfortunate.

We're gonna put that on the t-shirt. So where can we find your podcast?

Yes, you can find it. Multiverse leadership podcast.net.

We'll make sure we have it linked up in our show notes. Is there anything else you wanna add today?

Yes, I'd like everyone to have grace for yourself.

I.

If you're going through a hard time, struggling with sobriety, you have to learn and build. You have to learn that how you feel and where you are right now is not who you are. It does not find who you're gonna become, but it's only something that's happening to you right now. Over time, that's gonna change. As you grow, you change and you move along where you are is not where you're gonna always be. People kind of forget that. They get stuck in, this is how I am, this is who I am, but it's not. Give yourself grace, have a growth mindset and realize you have more days ahead of you if you allow them to come.

That's very well said. Well, thank you so much for your time today, Justin, and thank you for being on the Samantha Parker show,

Thank you very much.