EP53: A Life That Changed Thousands (A Tribute to Dr. Guy Riekeman)

His grandson said something I can't stop thinking about. We all die twice. Once when we take our last breath and again the last time someone says our name. This week I'm paying tribute to Dr. Guy Riekeman, a man who shaped my life, my practice, and my philosophy on health in ways I'm still discovering. I share the story of bribing a PF Chang's server to stretch a lunch to two hours so my buddy and I could ask him a hundred questions, the words he said to my dad on graduation day, and the three-hour class that changed everything I believed about health. If you're in this profession, you owe something to people like Guy whether you know it or not. This one is personal.

📩 Join the newsletter for weekly business & leadership insights:
http://eepurl.com/jghu5I

📸 Follow Austin on Instagram:
 @draustincohen

🌐 Explore events + resources:
 www.austincohen.com

Transcript

0:00

This is the Austin Cohen Podcast where we talk real strategies for chiropractors ready to grow beyond the adjustment. If you're building a business, developing your leadership, and trying to build wealth without burning out, you are in the right place. Let's get to work Don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode. What is up everybody? Man. Welcome back. We are at episode 53. Pretty crazy to think about. This podcast hasn't even been around for a year. You know, I sometimes I'll do two a week episodes. And it's been fascinating to see just how many people have been using this not only to grow you. But also listen to this podcast with your teams. Obviously they're only 15 minutes and many of you guys will listen to this. Then you'll review this as like your staff meetings or whichever they are. So or whatever other meeting structure you have built out. But I think it's cool to hear how many of you are so focused on leadership right now and that next level of growth that you're willing to take this and also dissect it with your team. And that to me is like. High level leadership or even your team would want to listen and grow to as well at a personal to professional level. So kudos to all of you and everyone who's just really taken this to the next level. And then one, a couple other housekeeping things. One is I have six costs left for Growth Summit next year. I know this may sound crazy to hear me talk about this, which is like 10 and a half months away. Yeah. So if you wanna come, go to.com, click attend Growth Summit. Use code podcasts and that'll save you 50 bucks. It's a Hallmark event. I mean, the fact that we already have six spots left and 11 months out for a room of almost a hundred people is pretty cool. And you know, for those that have been there before, you know, we are capped at space. The second thing is I do have one spot left for Adventure Summits. And I'll say this until I'm blue in the face, but I cannot teach you the things that you will learn at Adventure Summit when you're at mile 26 to 30 and you're determined to dig within and get yourself to that next level. And that shows up in every area of your life. And the same sometimes stories that those who want to come who are making stories while you're not coming. Those also stories do show up in your life too as well. So make it the good story about how you get to the next level. Of your personal and your professional life and you know, something I talked about at growth. I'm gonna just tell you, your family, your friends, your team, they're always watching. And I, you know, you got to hear from my daughter and my son about how they're always watching and the decisions that they make and the behaviors that they have are built on the behaviors and the things that I've done. Not from things of me telling them what to do, but the things that they've seen. So, you know, if you're somebody really looking to take your life to the next level, personally and professionally. Highly recommend taking that la last slot for Adventure Summit. Today's podcast, and I'll be upfront with everyone a little bit different. There really is no framework today. There's no business lesson that we're gonna be specifically tackling, which is usually what the concept is. I wanna talk to you today about someone who changed my life, and honestly, it's someone who changed the lives of thousands of people in chiropractic. Who you may not even realize that yet, but many of you guys know. Dr. Guy Reikman passed away recently and this past Sunday on March 15th, I took my son, my 8-year-old son Brody, to celebration of life at Life University. And I just, the reason why I brought Brody is'cause I wanted I, I want him to see how important it is and what it looks like when a life is lived with that kind of impact. And, you know, people were like, oh, why are you bringing your son? We're like, dude, I want him to witness what happens when someone pours into other people for decades and decades, not once, not twice consistent decades and decades. That to me, is a Hall of Famer. Like guy could have done one program, he could have done his clinic, he could have been president, he could have just done his Renaissance programs. He could have done his Colorado prog, like he could have done just one or two. No, he did it all. And that consistency showed up as compound growth. But it was cool'cause like Brody got to see what does a room look like when you have that kind of impact, what he got to listen to, the stories from the grandkids, from the children and then also like that legacy, like when you're standing in it too as well. And I'll tell you what, like he felt it. You know, they were giving out the power of one they were giving out. Make Your Life extraordinary book. And it was cool to see my son take that and look at it, be like, he wrote this. I'm like, yeah, he wrote that. And that book had a huge trajectory on my career. And there were a lot of great people, by the way, who stood up and shared stories. And by the way, if you wanna watch it, there is a recording on YouTube about Guy Reikman Celebration of Life, which I highly recommend watching. But there was one thing that hit me harder than anything else, and it came from his grandson and his grandson got up and said something that I haven't been able to stop thinking about for the last 48 hours. And he said, we all die twice. The first time is the day we take our last breath, and the second time is the last time someone says our name. We all die twice the day our body gives out. The day we're truly gone when not one person on earth will remember us anymore. And that to me, hit me right between the eyes. And I stood there and I was, when I was in that room, and I mean like by the, there was hundreds of people in this room, by the way. Very impressive to see the impact this person has had. But, and Guy may died once, but the second time, the second death, it's not coming for guy, not for a very, very long time. Like his name will carry in this profession for generations. The students he taught, the doctors he mentored the lives that were changed because of the ripple effects of his work. Like Guy Reikman was as close to his immortal for a second life as a human being can get, and that really made me ask myself. Like, am I living in a way where my name can carry on? Not for ego or fame, but because we actually made a difference and I actually made a difference in the lives of the people I touched. And that was the question his grandson's words left me with. And the other thing that stood out to me at the celebration, and this one's so important, where the stories about why Guy did, when nobody was watching. We live in a world, as you all know, and social media is very guilty of this, where everyone's performing, right? Like it's, it's almost like a Broadway show. Everyone's curating a version of themselves for social media or for their peers, the highlight reels. But the stories that really hit were the quiet ones that were shared on stage by the guest speakers, what they called them, and the ones that showed up for Guy in the moments that. Wouldn't even show up on a social media or a different platform. It was the story about how he stood up, like for a friend of his, when somebody mispronounced his name. Very simple. That's it. Nobody was watching, not going on social media, but standing up for someone mispronouncing a name, like he corrected someone on behalf of his friend. And listen, you may hear them think small thing, but it wasn't small to the person who he stood up for. It was everything. It was a moment of, Hey man, listen, I see you. I respect you and your name matters enough for me to say something. And there were stories like that all afternoon. Little details like things that seemed insignificant to Guy in the moment, but very impressive to the people who were on the receiving end. And that to me is the exact kind of leadership I aspire to be right there. It's like, what do you do when nobody is watching? That shows me who your true character is. Like I was at a gym the other day and we got done with the gym and this guy gets done working out and he gets a spray bottle and he sprays down his chair. He sprays down his handlebars, he sprays down the floor around him entire area. Then he goes around and starts spraying down some other people's things, like no one's watching him. A lot of half the people have already left the gym by now, but he took it upon himself to leave the world better than he found it. And. To me that little detail went so far when, and I'll tell you a story of a, a guy story from mine, by the way. And this one's a personal one like that I went through when I was in, I believe I was in sixth or seventh quarter when I was in chiropractic school. At life. My buddy and I, we were upset. We, we were like leeches what people called us. Like the coaches were saying, oh no, these guys again because we were obsessed with learning. And what we wanted to do is pick the brains of all the people who've done at the highest level, and Guy was the president of Life University at the time that we were there. The guy had millions of things that he could have done. Every single day that probably were pulling his attention. But we got him to agree to have lunch with us. And what he chose was he wanted us to take him to PF Chang's. And here's where it got good, by the way, because my buddy and I had a plan before we took him to lunch. The, our lunch breaks in chiropractic school was between 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM and we knew that once was lunch was over, it was like access to him was gonna be very difficult to get again. So our operation was to stretch this thing out as long as possible. We pulled our server aside, I went to the bathroom and I found our server and I said, Hey if you get us out of here in under an hour, you're gonna get your normal 20% tip. But if you can drag this out for two hours, we're gonna give you an extra a hundred dollars bonus on top of it. And so the server was completely in on this whole scheme too, as well, by the way. And what happened? It happened was like the drinks to get our drinks took forever. Just our waters. The appetizers took forever. The lunch took forever. We ordered dessert that we didn't even need. Just so we could elaborate on time took forever. And I remember a guy sitting there thinking like, what is going on with this place guys? It usually doesn't take this long to make orange chicken. And my buddy and I was looking at each other trying not to crack up'cause we know exactly why the food has taken so long. But here's the thing, and here's the part that actually matters. In the two hours that we spent there with Guy, my buddy and I must have asked, guy, I'm not exaggerating, close to a hundred questions. About chiropractic leadership, philosophy, building something more than just yourself. And he answered every single one of these questions. What he didn't do was, and you all know this too as well, when people are present, but he didn't check his phone, he didn't rush us at all. By the way, he, bless me, excuse me. He didn't act like he had somewhere better to be. This is the President of Life University. Two random students complete. Undivided attention for two hours over a PF Chang's lettuce wraps, huh? And I think about that a lot now. Now, like especially as someone who mentors and coaches, chiropractors, like I'm giving people my full presence. When someone is sitting across from me asking questions, am I really there? Or am I halfway somewhere else? Guy, 100% taught me what it looks like to be fully present with the people in front of you. Hey. Even if the food is taken two hours, you fast forward to graduation day. I remember I was walking across the stage at Life University. My dad, who was there, family's there too as well. My grandmother was there and my mom was there. Anything can happen that day. And after the ceremony, a guy actually found my dad and he walked up to him and said, Bruce, your son has something special and is gonna do very well in practice. That was it. And my dad's probably told me that story about a dozen times since that day. And every time he tells it, I can see in his eyes what it meant for him, right? For the president of the school to seek out a parent and say that about their kid. Not an obligation. I was already graduating. Not part of like, that wasn't part of guy's job description to go around and tell parents like how great their kids are gonna do. He cared enough to tell the people who mattered the most. And you know, I won that clinic excellence award that year in my graduating class just based on the amount of people that I served in outpatient clinic. But, you know, I'm 44 years old now and I've started over 20 clinics in my career with 13 active clinics, and I've helped hundreds of chiropractors and I still hold onto that moment like it happened yesterday because when someone that caliber speaks belief into you. That never disappears. I mean, I can remember seeing it happen, the conversation happening over by the stands to the right side underneath the basketball hoop at the Life University gym. I mean, it was amazing. Right? On, on how, on how to, to witness all of this, I wanna talk about Guy too, as well as a teacher, by the way. And I wanted to do this and really just pay this respect for him and just who he was, man, and the mentorship that he had on me before he was a mentor to me and Chang's Lunch and Graduation day. He was my teacher. My first quarter at Life University. I had to take a class. It was all about what is health Mandatory, by the way, for every student is a three hour course. Every student took it and I mean, I walked into thinking it was gonna be one of those required courses. You just get through and you move on. It's three hours, like that's a long time to sit through a course. Those three hours in 2006 changed the entire trajectory of my life. Guy didn't just stand up there and lecture, by the way, he challenged every single thing I knew about healthcare systems and the body. What it means to take care of yourself and my belief systems in the paradigm that I was raised on healthcare looks like, and he replaced it with a philosophy that was deeper, more intentional, and much more powerful than anything I'd ever encountered before. That class is the reason I practice the way I practice today. That class is the reason why I'm signed up for function health, why I wear my whoop every day, why I've been doing CrossFit for 17 years, why I've been mostly paleo for the last 20 years. It's why I care so deeply about changing the public recession, about chiropractic, and I built chiropractic in a way to do that. But the three hours with the right teacher at the right time can change everything. And Guy for me was that teacher and for thousands of other students who sat in that room over the years. One thing that guys say all the time, and I'm telling you this one will get you, he say that, and this was during that talk, was your true philosophy will be challenge the day your kid gets sick. He definitely wasn't wrong about that one, and I have two kids right now, so I've gotten to experience this because it's easy to believe in something when everything is going well. Like everything's easy in life, kids are healthy. It's easy to say, oh yeah, I wouldn't do this. I wouldn't do that with them. It's easy to stay on the principle when it's theoretical, but when your child is running a fever at two in the morning and you're exhausted, you don't know what to do, that's when you find out what you actually believe. That's when your philosophy. We'll be pressure tested and as a father to my two kids, I've been in those moments. We all have, and I can tell you that the foundation guy laid in that classroom has been the one thing I've leaned on in those late night moments, more times than I can count. His teachings did not just make me better chiropractor, but it made me better father and way more grounded for sure, listening to that transformation of the philosophy that he gave to me. And I know I'm not the only one that can say that about what he's taught us all. And I remember we were in Mexico one time and my daughter was getting sick. So we go the doctor and they wanted to give her antibiotics and I said, question, how do you know it's a bacterial infection if it's, you haven't done any tests on her? How do we know it's not viral? And the doctor said, well, you're probably right. I actually do think it is more viral, but we could just take the antibiotics to be safe. Like, but if it's not a bacterial infection, I don't get why we would take antibiotics. Like wouldn't we just. Let the virus run its course and the doctor's like, yeah, I mean, you don't need to take the antibiotics by the way. Like, I don't need to write all this prescription, but I'll write. If you guys wanna go pick it up, go pick it up. But if it wasn't for me like asking those questions, I would've just picked up the antibiotic and just given it to my daughter. Not thinking it's a big deal. But that's a big deal impacting her gut lining, gut health, everything else too as well, that that is going, can impact on her body. But. Not having that training from Dr. Guy maybe wouldn't have had me be more proactive and ask those questions. You know, listen, like where does that put me at now? I mean, like I said a second ago, I said I'm 44 now. Been in this profession for almost 20 years. We've 16 chiropractors on our team, conserving the communities in the Southeast. And I can personally say right now. I feel very honored right now to be the position I'm in. And for a long time my mission was to change the public perception of chiropractic in my communities, and I believe we've done a really good job of that for those 16 chiropractors and for our communities and our team. 100%. Without a doubt, a corrective chiropractic shows up in your community. Things will be different. Like people don't see chiropractic as a sub, as a alternative thing. You try when nothing else works. I believe that in our communities, they see as a foundational part of their health. But that helped because of great people who poured into me along the way. And those were people like Guy. And now what's great is I could do something that lights me up, right? Like even more. And I don't know if I should say more is just lights me up just as much. I mean, dude been doing now for the last couple years. And this year I started my coaching program too as well, which by the way, for those that are interested in working with me in April, I'll be opening up a cohort for May. That will be an insane program that I have built out. This podcast has been transformational. You know, I get to help chiropractors do the same thing in their communities, not just locally anymore. Now we get to do it at a national level. And I mean, one of our, one of my clients who I love is over in Hawaii. She's doing amazing things like just already had a record month this year. And I can take things from people like Guy and pass them forward to the next generation of doctors who are gonna carry this profession into the future. And that is the ripple effect. A guy poured into me, I poured into others, they pour into their communities and on and on and on it goes. And that's how a name never dies. I do wish I spent more time with Guy in recent years. Unfortunately I use the busy excuse not to spend more time with him. The clinics, the coaching, the family stuff. I mean like always reasons to put things to push you off, right? And I let too much time go by without picking up that phone. We're scheduling a visit. And I'm not saying that as like beating myself up. I'm just saying that because I wanna be a lesson for all of us. Like there are giants still walking among us in this profession. People who have built things, people who have fought battles so that we could stand where we stand today. And there's a lot of people whose wisdom is sitting there waiting for someone to ask the right questions over a plate of lettuce wraps, orange chicken that takes suspiciously super long to arrive. But listen, here's the deal. Don't wait. Go find those people. Put yourself in their circles, take them out to lunch, ask a hundred questions, and then take what they give you and pour into the people that are coming after you in the next le next generation. Like that is how legacies are built. They're not built in single moments, but there's a chain of people who refuse to let the teaching stop. Dr. Guyman, thank you. Thank you for the class. Thank you for the lunch. Thank you for those words. To my dad, thank you for things you did when nobody was watching that I'm now hearing about. Thank you for being the kind of leader who showed the rest of us, what it looks like to truly show up for people. Your name will be spoken as profession for a very long time, and to everyone listening. Be where your feet are. Give the people in front of you your full presence, and live in a way that earns you a second life through the stories people tell about you. Talk to you all next week. Rest in peace, guy. Reek man. Take care. Bye. To learn more about building your business, leadership, and life on purpose, visit chiro one eighty.com or follow Austin on Instagram at Dr. Austin Cohen.