Have you ever considered the weight of your legacy and the power you hold to shape it? My Uncle Mark's life story unfolds like a modern-day odyssey, where breaking free from a legacy of crime and hardship becomes the cornerstone of a new, hope-filled lineage. His transformation from a life once entangled with the 'Crane curse' to becoming a beacon of possibility is not just a tale of personal triumph; it's a resonant example for us all. As we share his journey, you'll see how one person's unwavering commitment to change can light the way for generations to come.
Our guest, a once-incarcerated man who reshaped his destiny within prison walls by mentoring others, casts a long shadow over the notion of what it means to influence and inspire. His story, much like Uncle Mark's, is a testament to the profound impact our decisions and attitudes have on our legacy, echoing the sentiment that our past does not dictate the future we can build. Join us for a conversation that goes further than just recounting past struggles—it's about seizing the mantle of change, finding purpose, and profoundly affecting the lives we touch. This episode is an invitation to embrace the potential each of us has to craft a meaningful legacy, one intentional step at a time.
Have you ever considered the weight of your legacy and the power you hold to shape it? My Uncle Mark's life story unfolds like a modern-day odyssey, where breaking free from a legacy of crime and hardship becomes the cornerstone of a new, hope-filled lineage. His transformation from a life once entangled with the 'Crane curse' to becoming a beacon of possibility is not just a tale of personal triumph; it's a resonant example for us all. As we share his journey, you'll see how one person's unwavering commitment to change can light the way for generations to come.
Our guest, a once-incarcerated man who reshaped his destiny within prison walls by mentoring others, casts a long shadow over the notion of what it means to influence and inspire. His story, much like Uncle Mark's, is a testament to the profound impact our decisions and attitudes have on our legacy, echoing the sentiment that our past does not dictate the future we can build. Join us for a conversation that goes further than just recounting past struggles—it's about seizing the mantle of change, finding purpose, and profoundly affecting the lives we touch. This episode is an invitation to embrace the potential each of us has to craft a meaningful legacy, one intentional step at a time.
Welcome to another episode of the Unstoppable Mindset Podcast. I'm your host, shawn Michael Crane, let's get into it. So I want to ask you a question. You've probably all heard of Ed Milet. Ed Milet is one of the goats Amazing speaker, incredible entrepreneur, family man. He just epitomizes what a lot of us aspire to be in this space.
Speaker 1:Ed Milet always asks and he talks about are you the one, are you the person that's going to change your family's trajectory forever? Are you the person that they're going to talk about and remember, when you're dead and gone, your great, great, great, great great grandchildren? Are they going to look back and say, man, he was the one. Yeah, uncle Joe, grandpa Joe, right, grandpa Steve, whoever it was, he was the one. You know what they're going to say about me. They're going to say Sean was the one, sean was the one that changed the crane name forever. Here's the thing my last name was synonymous with organized crime, prison violence.
Speaker 1:My uncles and my family members were famous for all the wrong reasons. They were infamous. So I grew up seeing this, hearing about these war stories, these glory days. I grew up watching Goodfellas, and you know all these movies, and we glorified that lifestyle. There was one person, though, in my family who didn't, one person that stood out there was a couple, actually but one that I want to share with you right now, about my Uncle Mark, and the reason this is on my heart is because it was just his birthday and he's in his 60s now and he's getting older, and I just think about the example that he's been for me my entire life and we could be brought up in an environment that's not conducive to who we want to be. We could be brought up in an environment that causes us harm, that sends us down the wrong path, that teaches us the wrong things. We could have nine out of ten people in our lives be people that we look back on and say, damn, that person was a bad example for me, but it only takes one, one person doing the right thing to plant that seed and to be that representation of what a good life looks like, of what a good man looks like, that representation and that symbol that we need to see, that plants a seed and shows us that life can be different, that we can be different.
Speaker 1:But here's the thing From Uncle Mark he needed to be different to the point where he got ridiculed by his brothers. You know he was the black sheep of the family. He didn't always get along with everyone. He forged his own path and I remember early on, recognizing this as a kid, that my Uncle Mark was different, that he didn't always hang out and socialize with my dad and my uncles, that he didn't talk the same, that he had a different demeanor about him. And so if you're somebody, that's gonna be the one right. What you have to understand is you're gonna be different. You're going to be misunderstood. People aren't always going to believe in you. They're going to ridicule you. They're going to make fun of you because you're doing something that makes them uncomfortable. You're not fitting in with what they're doing, and so that's what I remember from Uncle Mark early on.
Speaker 1:He started his own business, he put his head down, he got sober, he grinded away, and now he's gotten himself to a point in life where he has it all, to a point in life where he has it all and he has a beautiful family. And he's really changed the trajectory of my family, because I grew up coming from a background where drugs were abused, violence was glorified, my dad went to prison. All my uncles were either in prison or in and out of prison. I saw this growing up. I saw this and this was the life that I was brought into, and if it wasn't for people like my Uncle Mike and my Uncle Mark, I never would have seen a different route for myself. I never would have known that I could be different, that I could be a good person, that I could get sober, that I could own a business, that I could be a good family man, that I could be a good husband and father Like.
Speaker 1:I saw that in them, you know, especially my Uncle Mark, because he has two children. He's been married, I don't know, 25 plus years. He has his own business with, you know, a dozen employees, or half a dozen employees, depending on the season, and so in him I saw that it was possible to break away from what they had called the crane curse Growing up. All my uncles talked about it. My dad talked about it, and it was a limiting belief, you know. They all believed that they were cursed. They were cursed to go to prison or die, and it's because they went through some horrible shit growing up that scarred them, you know. And so I kept hearing about the crane curse, the crane curse, and my uncle Mark was the first person that started to break that curse.
Speaker 1:He chose to go his own path. He chose to be his own man and not just fit in to be liked. He chose to get sober, he chose to start his own business and because of that he showed me and my cousins and my siblings what was possible in life. And now, like once you see that you know that man, if he could do it, I could do it, like that's my family. If he could do it, maybe somehow, some way, I could do it. And it's just those initial thoughts and seeds of belief that are planted in us early on in life that over time, you know, if we water them with the right actions and the right decisions, that over time they can grow and blossom into something beautiful in our own lives. And that's what's happening to me now. And I look back on, like my Uncle Mark's actions and his ability to be a good role model for me, and I'm forever grateful, like there's no amount of words or nothing I could do or say to show my gratitude. And so I want to be that way for other people.
Speaker 1:Here's the thing you never know who's watching you. You never know who in your life right now is observing you and watching you. And even if they don't tell you, they're proud of you, even if they don't say, hey, I'm inspired by your actions, right? Even if they don't comment on your posts or share your videos online, like it doesn't mean that people aren't always watching. In fact, share your videos online, like it doesn't mean that people aren't always watching. In fact, they always are. And if you're doing something different, chances are you're standing out, and you're standing out for the right reasons. And just because they don't believe in you right away or tell you doesn't mean that they're not paying attention.
Speaker 1:Now, I remember the day I got out of prison. I realized this. I was stuck on the yard, right? They were supposed to let me out at 6 am to go up to the front, get my dress outs and be released. I'd been down five and a half years. I wait for this day. I thought about this day every freaking day for my entire time of being incarcerated, and the day finally came and they were late to get me. So I remember I was sitting there on the yard and they started releasing all the buildings for chow. I'm like damn, like I don't want to be here in front of all the buildings, like leaving in front of these guys. They're going to eat some sloppy breakfast and I'm getting ready to leave. It's just not something that you want to happen because, you understand, some of these guys are never getting out. Some of them have 20, 30, 40 years left to go in prison. And here I am leaving prison, right? And so I remember they finally let me out, or they're about to let me out, to go to the front, to get my dress outs and go home.
Speaker 1:And before the officer came down to open up the gate, all the guys started walking around the track towards the chow hall and, one by one, they started getting closer and closer and closer. And I remember thinking, oh man, like I wonder how these guys are gonna react to me. You never know, someone might say some stupid remark, or people hate on you, right? This is life. When someone's getting an opportunity or getting something that you want that you don't have, human beings' natural tendency is to hate on them or to project, and so these guys started getting closer and closer and closer. And then, all of a sudden, off in the distance, I heard someone yell, and they yelled Captain America, go get him, brother.
Speaker 1:And in prison a lot of the guys used to call me Captain America because I had long blonde hair, no tattoos, and I was in really good shape physically. And a lot of the Mexican guys, like all different races, they'd call me Captain America. Hey, what's up, captain America, let's go crush a workout, or something like that. Right, they'd make small talk and so as these guys started walking by me to the chow hall, I heard dozens of positive remarks Crane, go get him. We know you're going to change the world. Hey, crane, stay focused, man, we know you're on a mission. Like, hey, sean, thanks man for everything you did. Like we'll stay in touch. Because a lot of those guys wrote me letters and stuff when I got out and I couldn't believe how many guys that I didn't even know. I didn't know them by first name, I had never interacted with me.
Speaker 1:You see, in prison I also worked in a drug program and I became, like you know, a facilitator they called it, which is an inmate counselor and I would give speeches. I would like, you know, do group-type coaching or like lecturing, teach lessons? I really used that as an opportunity to prepare for what I was going to do out here and I knew what I was doing and I treated it seriously and I was focused and I was better than all the hired counselors that they brought in from the streets, all the people with degrees. I was better than all of them because I had real-life experience and I really cared and I was passionate about helping people and changing lives way back then. And so all the guys recognized that no-transcript home.
Speaker 1:You know, it was such a special moment because God was talking to me. In that moment. God was telling me look, sean, you're on the right path. You did everything I said that you should do. You trusted in your intuition, you listened to your conscience, and it was like a little moment in time that I'll never forget where I was acknowledged for all the things I did, that no one saw All the work that I put in, like the work that I put in in the dark. It allowed me to shine in the light that moment, and I had all these guys from different backgrounds, different races, different cities in California acknowledging me, and I couldn't believe how many guys called over to me in that moment, and so it taught me such an invaluable lesson. It taught me that people are always watching you, they're always paying attention and the thing that stands out the most is your attitude and your effort and that's what people are going to recognize and remember you for and that's what I remember my uncle Mark for right.
Speaker 1:He's 62, 63. He still rides his bike, you know, up in the mountains he's still working his butt off every day. He and I have really great conversations about life, one of the few people that I could sit down with and just have a real good intellectual conversation, and that was something I craved when I was in prison. So every moment that I have with him is invaluable to me. It's like gold and I cherish them and I cherish all the hard work that he put in.
Speaker 1:I cherish the fact that he was the black sheep of the family and he chose his own path because he showed me and everyone else what was possible and because of that he changed our family's trajectory forever and I'm gonna be the one that continues to carry the torch right when he's gone. I'm gonna honor him every day in the way I live and the man that I become, just like I'm doing for my Uncle Mike, just like all the people that didn't make it, all the people, all the casualties on this journey right, all the people that were subjected to all the trauma, all the pain, all the stuff that my family endured right Before my time. I'm gonna make it all right for them. That's my mission, that's my purpose, and I hope that you find something that special and meaningful in your life, because your life has meaning. Everything that you go through is for a reason. You have to believe that and you have to see the bigger picture and every day you have to live with that focus, that intensity and that purpose.