Cut The Tie | Define Success on Your Own Terms
- Cut The Tie Podcast -
Define success on your terms — and "Cut The Tie" to whatever is holding you back.
Cut The Tie is not just a podcast; it's a movement. Hosted by Thomas Helfrich, this highly impactful show features short-form interviews with remarkable individuals who share how they redefined success by boldly cutting ties with fear, doubt, bad habits, toxic environments, and limiting beliefs. You'll hear exactly what they cut, how they did it, what it felt like, and how their lives — and the lives of those around them — changed forever.
Each episode is inspirational, motivational, and — most importantly — actionable. You'll gain real strategies and mindset shifts you can immediately apply to your own life and career.
Plus, every day, Thomas drops solo short-form episodes designed to fire you up, challenge your thinking, and remind you that the only thing standing between you and your potential... is the tie you need to cut.
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Cut The Tie | Define Success on Your Own Terms
“I Was Living in My Car”—How JC Misko Rebuilt Life Through Brisket and Sobriety
Cut The Tie Podcast with Thomas Helfrich
JC Misko, founder of Misko Mountain Flavor Company, shares how recovery, faith, and brisket tacos came together to form a life-changing mission. In this heartfelt episode, JC opens up about overcoming addiction, building a food business from nothing, and using his story to help others do the same.
About JC Misko:
JC is the founder of Misko Mountain Flavor Company, a brisket taco business built with a mission to support early recovery. Through his work and future foundation, Grant for Hope, JC is creating a new recovery system—one that offers real pathways to stability and ownership through food and entrepreneurship.
In this episode, Thomas and JC discuss:
- Cutting the Tie to Distractions
JC shares how staying sober gave him clarity to rebuild his business from the ground up—this time with purpose and boundaries. - How Brisket Tacos Became a Vehicle for Recovery
He explains how BBQ and business are a foundation for community, healing, and proving what's possible in early sobriety. - Building a Recovery System that Actually Works
JC breaks down the flaws in the current rehab cycle and outlines his vision for a program that helps people earn, save, and thrive. - Trusting God, Trusting the Process
From living in his car to dreaming of brick-and-mortar locations, JC reflects on how faith and service kept him moving forward.
Key Takeaways:
- Start Small, Grow Intentionally
JC opens only on Fridays and focuses on selling out—not burning out. - Business Should Uplift, Not Exploit
His model rewards progress, not relapse, flipping the script on the traditional recovery industry. - Teach What You Know
From cooking to budgeting, JC uses his past to build new futures for others. - Success is Measured in Impact
His dream isn’t just multiple locations—it’s helping hundreds of people restart their lives.
"I want to create a recovery model where doing better helps everyone, not just the system."— JC Misko
CONNECT WITH JC MISKO:
Website: https://mmflavor.com
Location: Fridays at Emilita Street & Van Nuys Boulevard, Sherman Oaks, CA
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Welcome to Cut the Tie. Hi, I'm your host, Thomas Helfrich, and I'm here to help you cut a tie to anything holding you back from success, from leashing that best version of yourself or that entrepreneur within you. And today I'm joined by JC Misko JC, how are you doing today?
Speaker 2:Oh, fantastic. It's the only way I know how to be.
Speaker 1:I like that. Jc, I want you to take a moment, introduce yourself and tell everyone a little about your business.
Speaker 2:So my name is JC Misko and I'm the owner of Misko Mountain Flavor Company. It's mmflavorcom, so it's mmflavor and we sell brisket tacos and we're also in the process of starting a foundation to help people in early recovery uh get stabilized and uh get out on their own again.
Speaker 1:That's I mean. I love that. So you have a, you have food, you have a passion, and then you have a little greater community, Good, Not a little, a lot of greater good and good community around it.
Speaker 2:Um, it's all right. Um, you know, I had my uh. I had a couple of locations before COVID I shut down, but one of the locations I was in was the Navy base in Washington. I was one of only two trucks allowed on base and so you get guys from coming from all over the country and the way I do it with my food is I take a little bit of like everything I like out of different styles and I kind of put them all into one so I get people at the Navy base that come from all over the country. You know, people in Texas are very specific over what they like. People in Tennessee, people in all over the country, have their specific thing that they like. The cool thing about it is they all like mine. I can't even count the amount of times.
Speaker 2:I've heard I haven't had good barbecue since.
Speaker 1:I've been home until I came here. I love that. That's great. Well, in building your business right, it hasn't been without, you know, challenge what's been the biggest kind of tie you've had to cut to build what you've to build your business, your, your barbecue business.
Speaker 2:The biggest tie I had to cut was just all the distractions this time around. You know, last time, last time I was doing well, and then we had COVID. This time I had just a bunch of things that were going to get in the way from starting, I literally have. Everything I do right now is to build this business up and to get stabilized. I am sober myself now. That's one of the reasons why I'm starting this foundation called Granted for Hope but yeah, it was it's. I can have enough time to do the things that keep me mentally, spiritually, physically and sober fit, but nothing else but the business. So, as I got my truck, I got my trailer. You know, I go to the gym in the morning, do my meditations and whatnot, and everything else is business. I don't have anything else in my life right now that's pulling me away.
Speaker 1:I mean it's crazy. Your biggest tie wasn't just getting sober Like that one. You kind of walked over no big deal, you know.
Speaker 2:Um, that is what brings the the mentally, spiritually and physically fit part of it. You know, because I could tell you before I, when I was doing this same thing, before I was working myself into the hospital, because having that sobriety and that's, you know, sobriety is an easy way to say mentally, physically and spiritually fit, because that's in order to stay sober, that's what you need to do.
Speaker 1:It's interesting too, once you do get sober right, you're it's not that it's not a big deal, but it's not something you make a big deal about. Like you're, it's just part of your life now, like it was just, it was like I don't know so, and I've seen it both ways. But I it sounds like I'm speaking out for everybody, but for you it seems like it's not that, it's not a big deal.
Speaker 2:you're just saying, no, that's what I do now. Yeah, I mean it, it is uh, it is my life now. You know, uh, between god and and aa, between church and aa, and just trying to help, trying to be of service. And you know, even when I wasn't sober it was more of a I would beat myself up so much before that I had to have the drugs or alcohol to quiet that thing in my brain that was telling me I wasn't doing enough. I was working 16 and a half hours a day Wow, and a half hours a day. Being more clear-headed now and having sobriety really helps. I have a plan put together that I'm going to be able to live life and have a business at the same time. I think it'll be much more successful than the business I had before.
Speaker 1:That's great, while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I'm going to work to live instead of live to work. Uh than the business I had before. That's great. Do you remember the moment?
Speaker 2:maintaining a healthy lifestyle, Like I'm going to work to live instead of live to work, while you know being more successful than I ever have before.
Speaker 1:Well before I ask. But actually do you ever find yourself slipping back into the uh overwork like the old ways?
Speaker 2:like the old ways. I, um, yeah, I, I.
Speaker 2:I kind of know what to look for, though you know, in my life I've worked myself into the hospital four times, Uh you know, I had when zip fizz first came out, I was working at a detail shop and I was drinking nothing but four zip fizz a day to try to keep up. I was working 12 to 16 hour days. The car dealership detailing cars um got dehydrated into the hospital. Uh, I was on the concrete floors at my restaurant 16 hours a day and ended up with arthritis in my toes, uh, from standing on those concrete floors for 16 hours a day. So yeah, having the, the, I guess the mental clarity from sobriety to be able to to sit down and plan it and use my downtime, um to just to just be able to be, uh, to just be actually, you know, learning, learning to be myself, without needing something to get me out of my shelf, it's really helpful.
Speaker 1:Do you, do you remember the moment when you knew you were going to, you were going to cut that tie.
Speaker 2:For the well. It depends on which time. I mean. I was a manager at a car dealership 14 years before I bought my first food truck. One of the final things that, one of the final things that got me to leave the car dealership and actually jump in that time, was my uncle died at a fairly young age and I remember thinking you know, we're not, I'm not going to live forever. I got to do something I love, and I love cooking.
Speaker 2:It makes a big difference with with having the food business, because people come wanting to have a good time. They come because they want to be there, not because they have to be there. It's not dealing with people with broken cars all day long. Which really helps this time around is I looked at what I had, the abilities that are God-given, I believe, and what good I can do, and I have processes that are very, make it very easy to make this food. And there's a, there's a missing piece in our, in our recovery process uh, between, uh, between going to a recovery center, uh, sober, livings are either very, very expensive or they expect you to already have a job, and so I can use this for good and use it to not only better my own sobriety, but better the lives of everybody around me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean that kind of leads. My next question, which is around the impact. Since you have a few ties you've cut, let's just bucket them together. Like you've made some great advancements in your life and you're continuing to do it, what's been the impact to your life, your friends, your relationship, business?
Speaker 2:Well, we're still in the beginning stages right now. You know I've actually so. I opened two weeks ago. I'm just doing Fridays right now and instead of trying to open seven days a week and kill myself working, I'm just trying to make that one day as busy as possible. But you know, everybody comes out, everybody's always smiling when they try it. Um, I've got a lot of people that are on board that um, that use me as an example of of what you can do. When you get sober, um, which makes me feel really really good. You get sober, which makes me feel really really good, and so, and the impact is just going to get bigger and bigger. I have I'm really good at projections numbers. You know that there's three things I'm good at numbers, driving and cooking, and I put them all together and we should be able to grow this to a level that can make just a huge change. You know, one of the problems with the current recovery system that we have right now is that they almost get rewarded for relapse.
Speaker 1:And my. Explain that a bit. How do you get rewarded for relapse? Um and my how. So explain that a bit. How, how do you get rewarded for relapse?
Speaker 2:Well, let's just take my, my insurance, for example. If I relapse, uh and I, I have to go into residential care, which means you have drugs in your system, they need to watch over your 24 hours a day. Um, and it's just the highest level of care in a in a uh recovery center. My insurance pays $160,000 a month for me to be in a in a recovery center under uh, under uh, under that level of care. And then there's another one that goes down and it's called PHP, which is partial hospital, partial hospitalization program, and that one, I think my insurance has paid $90,000 a month. And then it goes down and you know it goes down from there until um, you know you move on.
Speaker 2:But then sometimes people need you know that that boost to get their lives back in order. And you're looking at to get their lives back in order. And you're looking at I can go back and have everything taken care of. And you got people that are saying, oh yeah, come back, come back, because they're making all the money off of it and it's not. They care too. I mean, I don't want to just say it's like all horrible, but the way the system is set up it's it's financially better for them If you read it for recovery centers, if you relapse and if you don't, that's how they make. Their money is off the people that are needing a higher level of care, and you only need a higher level of care of drugs during your system.
Speaker 2:Um, so my goal is to my system that I set up is is complete opposite of that. If one person does good, everybody does good. The better somebody does, the better everybody does. I want to make sober livings. Some of the cheapest sober livings the one that actually, you know, have programming and it's not just a house is like $5,000 a month. So I'm looking at a certain one that's $1,200 a month that your salary will pay, that your salary working will also pay for, and set you up on a savings plan to have your own barbecue location, your own place and completely set up in life in a year.
Speaker 2:And it's something that I think is very much needed. And you know, if somebody were to relapse and go to recovery, there's every incentive for somebody to continue in that program because it's going to set them up for life when, if you were to relapse in that program, you're going to go back. You've got to start all over again. So it's yeah, I just think it's a, it's a better program, it's going to be better for everybody involved. Um, and the the other parts are they're still going to be needed. I mean because you know I I am in no position to do detox or anything like that.
Speaker 2:Right, but I can teach people how to cook, I can teach people how to run numbers and I can teach people. You know, I started off living in my car. In fact, I was living in my car two months ago. I just got this going again. But I started off when I was 19, living in my car and I got self-built to be almost a millionaire by the time I was 40. Pretty sure I can do it a lot faster this time, but I'm going to do it by teaching other people to do it. And the rising tide lifts all ships.
Speaker 1:There you go. You know, I heard your business. You're just going to start on Fridays. There's actually some technique to that, right, when I thought Sundays because more families go out for dinner for Sundays, so the tickets are bigger. Right, it's like more of a. I thought Sundays because more families go out for dinner for Sundays, so the tickets are bigger. Right, it's like more of a family thing. But you get the right barbecue and like, hey, listen, you got to get here early to get food on, because when it's gone, it's gone. All your products sold, pure profit. And it's like we're only open Sundays and get in line, kind of thing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I'm only I'm doing. I might do just around the neighborhood on Thursday nights now, but my my plan right now is to do Fridays until I can get to where I'm at capacity selling out for what I can do on my own. Then I'm going to hire somebody, train them how to work and then we'll we'll add an extra day from there when I can have people.
Speaker 1:I mean a weekends only business is great. It gives you the week they live.
Speaker 2:Well, you know it's not. I mean, I do my, I do all my advertising on Tuesday, I do all my shopping on Wednesday, I start cooking on Thursday at 7 am. I mean. So it's like Friday is not really just working Friday, Like a lot of people think.
Speaker 1:Once you get the processes in place, though, you'll be able to have multiple locations, because you'll centralize the cooking, which is where your core value is going to be is making sure it's great, and then people serving it is a trainable thing, and collecting money is a trainable thing, and word of mouth becomes marketing. After a while, you probably won't have to spend as much, because people just know that's where you go Right, that's. After a while, you probably won't have to spend as much, because people just know that's where you go Right and that's that's it. So, yeah, and you know what?
Speaker 2:I'm starting off down on Van Nuys Avenue, right in the middle of all the car dealerships, because I know car guys too and they they eat on Fridays especially so.
Speaker 1:I love it Great. Give a lesson to somebody who was in your spot, let's say a few years ago or just a few months ago, like give, give them the lesson for the, for the listener.
Speaker 2:Oh, I think the biggest lesson is is that I've learned is to trust God. Um, if you trust God, everything gets taken care of. You know, I've had, I've had times where I was I just thought everything was over and it. You know, when I look back it's like, oh, there's a lesson I was supposed to learn. That's what I was, you know, that's why I was in that, and you learn that lesson and you trust that God will take care of you, and he always does.
Speaker 1:You know, I think that's such an important piece is you know you have to have some faith. So I think it's such an important piece is you know you have to have some faith. So I think it's the last chapter of my book. I believe, and it's like having faith even when you don't even believe, let's say, on stuff like the Bible or whatever else or anything else you're used to. Having faith in, at least in yourself or there's something bigger or a friend, is a great place to start and I think that's an incredible level of advice. That's an incredible level of advice. I think the example you know I've said is you know, if you're in a rut and you look left, you look right and no one can pull you up, and if you maybe even kick you down and keep you in that rut sometimes you just got to look straight up and that's the way out.
Speaker 2:Yep, it's the. You know they call it that the gift of desperation. Well, that's an acronym. To me it's G-O-D. Once you think there's no way around it, that's when God can step in.
Speaker 1:That's fantastic. I love that.
Speaker 2:Tell me something who inspires you oh, I have, uh, I have a lot of people that help me. Um, you know, I have a friend of mine, uh, david. Right now that has been uh very uplifting. Um, he, uh he helps me out with a lot. He's been in business for a long time. Um, I learned a lot from you know. I have a sponsor that helps me out, um, the, the CEO of the uh of the recovery center that I went to. Uh, he has helped me with a lot of things. Uh, both my, uh, I've learned a lot of my work ethic Part of the reason why I worked myself in the hospital a few times because they were both workaholics but both my, my dad and my stepdad I've learned a lot from them. I mean, there's there's just so many people that it'd be really hard to to put just one.
Speaker 1:It's good. Sounds like you've you've pulled it from a several from it for inspiration. And that's just like with the cooking Sounds like you've pulled it from several for inspiration.
Speaker 2:Just like with the cooking, I'm very observant and I like to take the little bits that I like out of everything and then just kind of combine it.
Speaker 1:Look at that Represented in life, right there. Best business advice you've ever gotten.
Speaker 2:Oh, best business advice I've ever gotten. Oh, best business advice I've ever gotten. You know, I think that one probably came from my stepdad. So if you can't find time, if you can't find the time to do it right the first time, how are you going to find time to do it over again?
Speaker 1:That's really good advice. Actually, I like that'm gonna. I'm not gonna write that one down because the ai will transcribe it for us, but so that one's gonna be noted. Um, do you have any favorite books? Do you think are kind of must reads?
Speaker 2:must reads. Uh, I liked, uh, untethered soul. Well, of course, the bible. Um, untethered soul, uh, was really helpful in my early recovery when you got all these feelings flooding in that you've been self-medicating For years. Humilitas has been very good, because that's Ego is one of my Strengths and weaknesses. At the same time, that one really Helps, of course, the big book, and really, uh, really helps, uh, of course, the big book. Um and uh, I think that's off the top of my head those are the ones that that are the biggest influences of my life right now.
Speaker 1:Love it. Uh, if you had to go back to any period in your life, what period would that be? What would you do differently?
Speaker 2:Oh, um, you know I've thought about this and a lot of the therapy that I've done. You know I got to write a lot of letters to your previous self and there are certain points in time that you know. I think that I would do differently now, but I wouldn't have listened. I'm hard-headed. I wouldn't have listened at the time. All of those things that I had to learn the hard way have made me a person that I guess listens a little better now. So I don't think I would change anything. I think everything happens for a reason.
Speaker 1:I like that. That sets up the idea that things have happened for you and not to you. I think from a mindset standpoint, it's probably not where you were in previous parts of your life. Oh, that's a daily struggle.
Speaker 2:That's a daily struggle trying to remember that.
Speaker 1:It's happening for me right now, as I get this ticket or something right, or I've dropped this entire tray of beef on the floor. Do I clean it and serve it? I don't know, do I? What do I do with that? Do I just scrape off the bottom? I don't know.
Speaker 2:Maybe no one's gonna know yeah, well, you, you, uh say a couple swear words under your breath and say you know how can I do this better the next time I?
Speaker 2:I uh, when I first opened my food truck, I was still doing it part-time, I was still working in the car dealership and I tripped over some steps while carrying an entire pan of 205 degree brisket and the grease just went all the way down my leg and, yeah, that was quite painful. And yeah, that was quite painful. That wasn't a work of myself. In the hospital I bore through it, but I think I still tan a little differently in that section.
Speaker 1:That didn't tickle. People ask me how that feels. I'm like didn't tickle. I'll tell you that Tickling is torture? I don't really like it. If there was a question.
Speaker 2:I should have asked you today, and I didn't. What was that question and how would you have answered it?
Speaker 1:You know the question is where can you find the food that could be your?
Speaker 2:next question, but you can go with that one if you like. The answer is you know, check our website and post everything up there. It's going good, we've. You know. It's funny. Last Friday I had everybody. We've only been open two Fridays now, but last Friday I had every single person that came the Friday before came, every single one of the ones I didn't know. Of course I had a bunch of people that came out on the first day that were from far away, but every single person from in that neighborhood that came the Friday before came out again and most of them brought friends with them.
Speaker 1:That's a testimonial right there. Don't forget to capture those. That's a, you know, free small soda or something. If you do a video testimonial or something I don't know, you probably get a lot of testimonials really fast for a fountain soda, you know, just go with it, take a marketing idea there, so have the camera set up. Hey, do the testimonial and I'll give you a coupon for next week for a dollar off or something.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's a good idea.
Speaker 1:That way they have to show up and and and wait, and the testimonial can't suck. You can't be stupid either, right, do you? Um, do you, uh think you know? Fast forward five years, describe where you are and what's going on.
Speaker 2:Five years, um, five years, um, five years. I think uh should have a good three, four actual brick and mortar locations up by then. Um, we're going to do drive-thru barbecue drive-thrus, which there aren't any in this part of the country, yeah, um, and then each one's going to have the uh, the food trailer so that our growing for hope program can can set up people to manage their own food trailer, and you know that'll pay for somebody to have a family once you get one of those going, and so, you know, within five years I think we could be supporting at least minimum four or 500 employees that are. That you know. Each one of those five years, you know, if you think the year previously had nothing, you know, and to be able to set it up so that they have a stable life within a year is is unheard of in the current system.
Speaker 1:That would be amazing. It would see you five years as somebody who's rescued, you know, 500 families from god knows what right and so, uh that. That that sounds like a great goal. Brick and mortar, that's nice, that's money and everything. But you know the flip side is. But more importantly, you know if you've helped several hundred people get on their feet, learn something, get some purpose, that's a beautiful thing get on their feet.
Speaker 1:Learn something, get some purpose. That's a beautiful thing, jc. I appreciate you coming out today. Give me a. Tell people. Well, tell people where to come, find you, especially if they're in the area or are they going to be traveling, and where they. You know how they go do that.
Speaker 2:So we're out in Sherman Oaks every Friday right now, from 11 until we sell out, and it's on the corner of Amelita Street and Van Nuys Boulevard.
Speaker 1:Nice. That's good. If I don't live anywhere close there, I would be over there Friday to get some brisket. I love brisket. I can eat it.
Speaker 2:If you ever want to take a trip to Disneyland or whatnot, make sure you stop by it's a little ways away, but for me it's right down the street.
Speaker 1:I spent 2021 traveling and when you drive 50 000 miles in a year, things seem a lot closer right, um, you know, uh, I'd probably go to get your barbecue before I go to disneyland, to be fair, um, just, I mean, here's my final question. I think this is important how much brisket is an unhealthy amount in one setting?
Speaker 2:wait one more time. How much brisket is an unhealthy amount to have in one setting if you're just eating the brisket and you're not adding the tortillas or whatnot as much as you want until you are satisfiably full, I think is the right level. You know, I've lost a little over 200 pounds and I find that getting enough protein is my most important thing.
Speaker 1:Oh, 100% If you can do 90% of your calories with protein.
Speaker 2:Brisket's nothing but protein.
Speaker 1:I've just had enough brisket where I got done eating thinking I may have just clogged half of my heart on that one shot and I'm okay with it. I was fine with it. I was just like meh, it's worth it. It's so good Like it's one of those foods you eat and it never like you, never it, never like, never like releases that oh, that next bite's not as good, it's like just continues to be just as good in each bite. I'm like I just can't stop. I actually got to get the way for me to stop. This mirror may not make the podcast, but I will tell you. The way that I stop is by toward the end I get too fatty of a piece and I'm like, oh, that's it, that one did it yeah, I actually make mine a little bit different.
Speaker 2:Uh, because I I chop it and then I finish it off on the grill so it caramelizes it a little bit, so it's almost like every piece has a little bit of bark in it. Every bite has a little bit of bark in it, so you don't get that big old piece of fat because that if it doesn't render out in the smoker, it renders out in grill.
Speaker 1:So you get a perfect bite every time. Yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm sorry to break it to you, but if you had one, you'd just never be able to stop. Yeah, I would have problems. I will tell you the number for Chick-fil-A nuggets is 30 in a 1.5 mile drive. So no one knows I ate them 30. Then I'm like, oh'm gonna die. I probably won't air that that way. People are like, hmm, see you at chick-fil-a. All right, uh, jc, thank you so much. Uh, once again. So let's do, let's do your outro one more time, jc. Well, how should someone get a hold of you? Um, where do they go? Do that?
Speaker 2:uh, so you can hold me. You can uh go on mmflavorcom or we will be out every Friday at 11 until we sell out on the corner of Emelita Street and Van Nuys Boulevard in Sherman Oaks.
Speaker 1:Wonderful. Thank you so much for coming on today. I appreciate it, JC.
Speaker 2:Oh, I really appreciate you having me. It was a blast.
Speaker 1:And those who listen in, listen, get out there, go cut a tie to something holding you back, something that's keeping you from success. Let nothing stop you from being the person, the entrepreneur, whatever it is you want to be. Thanks for listening. One call to action follow on Apple or Spotify and, if you're a YouTuber, hit the subscribe. Thanks for listening to Cut the Tie broadcast.
