The Strategic Life Podcast
JW joins The Strategic Life Podcast to talk about trying to find a solution that would help him feel fully free after giving up alcohol and being sober for 7 years, JW Ross created an amazing product that is now selling millions of bottles every month.
Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:00 I'll never forget when I had that first experience with it, it reminded me exactly of the first time that I had alcohol. I felt, I felt free. I felt, you know, comfortable and even better. I felt I, I wasn't inebriated. I felt good, but I felt like going and doing something, and I felt enhanced to go do something
Speaker 1 00:00:26 In a world where there's so much noise and information. One podcast is on a mission to cut the fluff and get strategic. A place where you receive the latest tips to expand in your leadership, optimizing your business, and ways to become a truly peak performance human. Now, get ready. As your host, Jake Aron is here to help you live the strategic life.
Speaker 2 00:01:00 Welcome back to the Strategic Life Podcast. And we're here in this beautiful, beautiful scenery. It's quiet, it's quaint, and if you're wa if you're listening to this, then maybe you gotta go check out the YouTube just to see this beautiful scenery. And we're at, uh, this special guest house and he opened this up. And I'm so grateful for that. And the reason why I'm here with this guest today is because the product he created with an amazing, beautiful story behind it is something that I've never experienced in focus, clarity, just the way I feel. And I've taken a lot of stuff, natural stuff, all right. And I wanted to be here. And he made it happen. And he invited me over. And now we're here today. So I just gotta just introduce everyone listening right now to Mr. JW Ross. Jw. It's great to have you
Speaker 0 00:01:49 Here. Well, thank you. Thanks for having me. Well,
Speaker 2 00:01:50 It's great to have you, I guess. Yeah. Great to have you here. Great to have you inviting me over here. Yeah. Yeah. It's, um, my, my friend. I mean, there's so much to unpack about you and I. The way I love doing this is just like getting right into it. You have this incredible product called Feel Free. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. It's a botanic tonic. We could get into the details, the science and all that as we flow into this podcast. But what I love about your story that I would love for people to hear is why was it called, why is it called Feel Free? Where did that come from?
Speaker 0 00:02:20 Um, you know, I created this not for commercial purposes. Uh, originally I created it for something for myself. And, um, and I stopped drinking 12 years ago, um, because it was starting to really create some, you know, major issues in my life. Um, but, you know, after about six or seven years of, you know, being, uh, dry drunk or whatever you want to call it mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you know, I, I felt my life was a lot better. I felt a lot better, but I still didn't feel the way that I really wanted to. Um, so I started, you know, experimenting with, you know, all the feel good things I could find that were, you know, uh, in the market, both legal and illegal. And consistently what I found was that the legal stuff, um, you know, most of it really didn't do anything. Um, some of it, you know, uh, you get energy out of it and it, you know, but it's kind of a jittery energy. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, but most of it didn't give me the feeling that I was looking for, uh, that I
Speaker 2 00:03:38 What, at that time, what were you looking for? Like what, how would you
Speaker 0 00:03:41 Have described that? Well, you know, I've, I've always been, um, uh, I guess had social anxiety. Um, I've always, I've never really felt comfortable in, in, in situations, especially with larger groups of people. And, um, that's the thing that, that I fell in love with alcohol because I went from not even being comfortable going to a party, to feeling like I was the life of the party. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Uh, so it's like, almost like I, it's quite an identity, a jekyll and hide, you know, change. Yeah. Uh, especially towards the end. It definitely was a Jekyll and hide change. Uh, but, um, you know, I was looking for something that made me feel comfortable in my own skin. Mm. And, and I didn't, you know, I didn't feel that way pretty much all the time. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:04:39 And, uh, what were like the, just so people can an idea, cuz there's definitely gonna be people resonating with this, and it doesn't mean that you have to be fully down the drain with alcoholism or just drinking every day. It could be just even slight addictions or maybe even just the, the, the social anxiety mm-hmm. <affirmative>. But what were some of the things that you did try that? Uh, both, I mean, I, whatever you want to share on the, the podcast, but, uh, so people could understand that like, oh, I've been doing that. I thought it was supposed to work, but I guess this is better. Like, what were those things?
Speaker 0 00:05:08 You know, there's, there's a number of things out there that, you know, uh, are supposedly, um, social lubrications. Um, none of the legal ones seem to do anything for me. Um, and then you have this realm of, of, of drinks that, uh, are mixes that are, you know, mocktails mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I, I think that's funny because it's, you know, people aren't looking for something just to look like they're having, you know, fun. They're, they want to have fun mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, and I just couldn't find anything. And then, you know, like I said, I tried a number of illegal things and most of that, you know, would, uh, it definitely changed your mood. Um, but it did it to the point that you didn't feel comfortable getting in a car. You sure wouldn't do it, you know, earlier in the day to go to work, you know, it limited you. Mm-hmm. You felt good, but it limited what you could do. And I was looking for something that I could do that not only did I feel good, but that, you know, it allowed me to do whatever I wanted to do. And even better is if it could enhance what I was doing. Wow. Um, and I didn't really, that last part wasn't really what I was just looking at something to, to, to feel better. Uh, but in the process of doing this, I've, I've figured out a way to actually get that also.
Speaker 2 00:06:45 And then, so what made you come to create this product? Like how did it get to the point where, cuz you don't have a business background, you don't, do you even have a nutrition background of any sense? No, no. You were in the oil fields, right?
Speaker 0 00:06:58 I was in the, in the oil and gas business for years, and then I got into financial technology.
Speaker 2 00:07:03 Okay.
Speaker 0 00:07:04 And when I was in financial, financial technology, we actually launched the business in Southeast Asia. I had always been interested in, you know, plants and mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, kind of dabbled in, you know,
Speaker 2 00:07:16 By the way, for everyone listening <laugh> when I first showed up here. Yeah. You know, we were trying to find a spot in this beautiful house here, and he was showing me all the plants and pointing out things. I didn't even look. There's a plant that looked like it. It had like a tor de shell and it grows like every couple years a little sprout. So like, this man definitely loves his, uh, botanicals. Yeah. So,
Speaker 0 00:07:36 So, um, I, you know, started experimenting on, uh, you know, basically I'm a, I'm a research fanatic when I get on something mm-hmm. <affirmative>, so I couldn't find anything that would do what I wanted. So I, I started, you know, down the path of trying to figure out how to make it myself. And I started doing research and I researched basically the plants that people have used over centuries in other, you know, areas of the world similar to what we used, you know, alcohol here mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And what I found was that there's a handful of plants from different places around the world that are used for social lubrication. Um, and uh, so I started sourcing those and it's very similar to like cannabis or something where there's, you know, hundreds of different strains of Mm
Speaker 2 00:08:32 Okay. So
Speaker 0 00:08:34 I tried each one of 'em separately. Uh, then I started, you know, trying and that didn't work. So I tried, started trying to mix them together, which, you know, some of these things no one had ever tried to mix together before. And I, you know, basically did it. I set up a, a lab and, you know, kind of a informal lab in the kitchen in my house, <laugh>, my, my
Speaker 2 00:08:57 Wife, the kitchen lab, the infamous kitchen lab.
Speaker 0 00:08:59 Yeah. My wife thought I had, uh, lost my mind and I just, I kept, you know, tinkering with it and Mm. It, uh, I finally found the right two plants. Right. Strains, right percentages. And, um, I, you know, I'll never forget when I had that first experience with it, it reminded me exactly of the first time that I had alcohol.
Speaker 2 00:09:25 And now is that where you felt
Speaker 0 00:09:27 Free? I felt, I felt free. I felt, you know, comfortable. Um, and even better. I felt I, I wasn't inebriated. I felt, um, I felt good, but I felt like going and doing something and I felt enhanced to go do something.
Speaker 2 00:09:49 Wow. So were you the Guinea pig before all the other ones? Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:09:53 Yeah. And then, you know, in the process of doing this, I, I met other people that also, you know, dabble in this and we started sharing things and uh, cuz at this point I had no plans on selling it. I was just doing it for myself. And several of 'em said, you know, when they tried it, they're like, oh my gosh, and you need to try to, you know, you need to sell this stuff.
Speaker 2 00:10:20 That was just a few years ago,
Speaker 0 00:10:22 Right? Yeah, that was, uh, we launched, uh, the process of the formulation took about two, two and a half years. Okay. And then we launched it in May of 2020. So the, as far as to the public, it's a little over two years
Speaker 2 00:10:38 Old. And how was that launching in May of 20, 23 months, two months after everything shut down? Like, was there any, I mean, skeptic, like, were you supported to do that? Were, was there a lot of skepticism of like, is this gonna even make sense? Yeah,
Speaker 0 00:10:53 I think because I didn't really, you know, know that much about what I was doing, I just kind of took off into it. Ignorance
Speaker 2 00:11:00 Is bliss. Right.
Speaker 0 00:11:01 It was very, you know, uh, manual. I mean, we were filling the bottles Yeah. You know, by hand. And
Speaker 2 00:11:08 Did it still look like this at the time or
Speaker 0 00:11:10 The, uh, they actually, it was the same bottle, but it had a, uh, paper label around it. Okay. Uh, it's before we got big enough to get printed bottles and um, you know, it just took off immediately.
Speaker 2 00:11:24 Wow. And I wanna, I want to dive into, and we're gonna go more detail the business side of that mm-hmm. <affirmative> and you guys are in over 5,000 locations and growing. Like, it's absolutely amazing. Like, I just wanna make this very clear, like you're listening right now. Like, this man launched his company in the beginning of the quarantine when there was the most amount of uncertainty. Like that is just a true testament and you're not stopping. And it was just, and it was just one product too. Yeah. Yeah. Some people think they need to have a whole product suite or multiple services or things like that. You just had one grand slam product Yeah. That then now is gonna allow for the other ones you, you launched to have even more momentum.
Speaker 0 00:11:58 Yeah. You know, early on. I mean, I actually do have some other formulations that I, that I came up with in the process of doing all that and some since then too. But I'm reminded that, you know, if you look at, uh, five Hour Energy or Red Bull or those companies, I mean, they went for a long time with just a single product before they introduced the other products. Um, and because this product, people are using this product for two main things. They're using it for an alcohol replacement, but they're also using it for a caffeine replacement. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So it does, and I know that sounds like two totally separate things. Yeah. But it actually is
Speaker 2 00:12:41 <laugh>, I wouldn't believe if I didn't try it. Yeah. I like, seriously, I wouldn't believe if I didn't try it. Is there any caffeine in
Speaker 0 00:12:46 Here? There's no caffeine.
Speaker 2 00:12:47 That's the crazy thing.
Speaker 0 00:12:48 Yeah. So people are using it, you know, earlier in the day to enhance productivity. Yes. Um, and then they're using it later in the day to, for the social lubrication.
Speaker 2 00:12:59 Yeah. I use it like every three hours. <laugh>,
Speaker 0 00:13:03 <laugh>
Speaker 2 00:13:03 I will say this though, is, so I use this definitely at least twice a day. Most times, three times. I did try it for like, I was like, Hey, you know, social lubrication later at night, like eight or nine, dude, I was wired till two in the morning. And that's the craziest thing. There's no caffeine, no stimulants in it. I just want it to work.
Speaker 0 00:13:20 I've learned that, uh, myself. I don't take it any closer than three hours to bedtime. Yeah. Good, good. Move on that because it will, you're, you'll be laying there just, you know,
Speaker 2 00:13:32 And it's not as stimulation. It's not like you're like buzzing or you are
Speaker 0 00:13:35 Happening. It's not, it's not a jittery feeling, but you're, you're very alive and focused.
Speaker 2 00:13:42 Alive and focused. Yeah. Seriously. That's like, that's, that's how I would describe it. I want to go back to your story, which I, I, I love how a product like this has a story like yours. Yeah. It's not like you were in the area and this was the, the 500th product of, you know, all the other failures and he finally found a home run cuz you were a nutritionist or you're this, like, you did this because it was to ultimately serve yourself Right. In the sense of you wanted this thing. And and I think a lot of people get hung up on that where they are trying to find things that are going to maybe help this area or that area and then they don't stay aligned with it. And you're on these podcasts and you share your message. That's why people love the product is cuz like, man, if this helped this guy and this is how he did it, I think I'd be worth, it'd be worth trying.
Speaker 0 00:14:29 Yeah. You know, what's the, the wonderful part about this is, is, is I did something that, you know, all the consumer package goods gurus said not to do. And I put my number on all the, the packaging and everything. Actually, my, my cell number
Speaker 2 00:14:44 Is this still on here?
Speaker 0 00:14:45 Uh, it's on the box. Uh, and, um, you know, I did that because I wanted to hear directly from people and I did, I mean, I started getting, you know, hundreds and hundreds of calls and still do, I mean, I'm answering 'em all day to day. Wow. Um, but I started hearing, you know, from people, and that's what they're saying is, you know, I listened to what you had to say. And they're going, I've, I have that same issue, or I have, you know, I'm looking for that same thing. Mm-hmm. And you know, they're just like me. They said, I've tried everything and it, you know, doesn't do anything or it does too much. And they, you know, just the stories from people about how it's, you know, made their life better mm-hmm. <affirmative> and, and that part of it to me is just, that's just gold.
Speaker 2 00:15:35 Yeah. How, how does that, what does that like, do for you? What, how do you, how does that make you feel? Just hearing those things?
Speaker 0 00:15:40 Like, you know, I know myself, what a, you know, what a struggle that is. Yeah. When you don't feel, you know, like you're connected. Uh, and, uh, I know you know what it's what that's like. And then to hear, you know, other people say that, you know, I, I've felt the same thing and now I don't have that problem. Mm. I don't have to go out and get blasted when my friends go out. I can drink, you know, half of one of these and go out and have a great time and wake up the next day and remember everything that I did not have a hangover and, you know, have another half in the morning, go to work, you know, crush it. Yeah. And to me that's, that's just a, you know, it's a wonderful thing.
Speaker 2 00:16:28 That's beautiful. Do you think JW even a couple years before, like maybe even after, let's say even let's say right before you, um, you know, you cut alcohol outta your life mm-hmm. <affirmative> and you're trying to find a new solution. Like, did you ever feel like you could feel that type of gratitude or type of, uh, contribution with hearing these types of messages and people telling you those things?
Speaker 0 00:16:53 Um, you're talking about before I stopped or
Speaker 2 00:16:56 Before you stopped?
Speaker 0 00:16:58 No, <laugh>. I mean, be before I quit, I, it was alcohol, you know, I liked the feeling of it to a certain point, but I got to the point where I was, you know, drinking so much that it really just turned me into a pretty bad person. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, very self-centered, very grandiose, um, you know, just not a good person. And I don't think that I really, you know, I didn't really care that much about anybody else. Yeah. In hindsight,
Speaker 2 00:17:34 What would you say, like, let's say there's a person that you just described like that right now, self-centered, consumed in alcohol and they weren't able to get the product Yeah. Let's say for whatever reason, but they don't want to order it, they're still in their head. What would you say to that person to just maybe hopefully bring a little bit of liberation or possibility of freedom that they could start doing or start thinking?
Speaker 0 00:17:56 Yeah, I mean, what I tried to, before I found this was, you know, meditation and I started, you know, really getting into my yoga and, and just, you know, um, health and wellness overall and that, that helped a lot mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Um, but nothing like, you know what this does
Speaker 2 00:18:19 <laugh>
Speaker 0 00:18:19 Yeah. I mean, it's early on. I, uh, back the very first podcast that I did, I did it with a guy named Paul Check, uh, who's a health and wellness guru, uh, down by San Diego. Okay. Uh, been around forever,
Speaker 2 00:18:35 But is that the one you said it was like three and a half, three
Speaker 0 00:18:38 Hours and 15 <laugh>. Yeah. It was a very long podcast, but
Speaker 2 00:18:40 Welcome to Podcast world. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:18:42 Yeah. <laugh>, it's like, oh my gosh. <laugh>. But I shared it with him and, and he tried it and um, I'll never forget, I said, well, what do you think after about 30 minutes mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I said, what do you think? Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And he looked at me and he goes, well, it's a heart opener. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I kind of cringed cuz I'm like, that's kind of a hippie-dippy term. I'm like, and I just kind of blew it off. But now I, I think that that's actually a great description and, and I think actually from a more biological or scientific standpoint, what it's doing is it's turning off the noise. Yeah. That we hear a lot of this
Speaker 2 00:19:25 Dude, that's exactly what I tell people.
Speaker 0 00:19:28 Continue. And when it does that you're able then to focus more on the person that you're with Yes. Or the project that you're working on or whatever. And when you do that, it's, it's the same thing as opening up to that person or opening your heart. Yes. You know, as he would say your heart. Um, and you, you have a, you know, a deeper, uh, experience. Oh dude. And, and so I actually think now that his description was, was, was spot on, dead on.
Speaker 2 00:20:02 Just at that time you weren't as ready to receive it cuz you weren't in the position or the, the growth that you are now.
Speaker 0 00:20:08 Yeah. I just, you know, that, that term just kind of seemed kind of out there to me.
Speaker 2 00:20:13 <laugh> It's so funny that you say that because you know, I'm, uh, when when I, when I talk or I train or speak on stages, it's like if I'm gonna share something that's like, kind of like, whoa. Even as simple as visualization. Yeah. Now everyone knows that, but I always back it up with the science because I know who's in the audience. It could be a JW from a few years ago where they say visualize or like breath work. You know, like, no, no, no. There's science. And I, and I provide that because I believe when you bring the spiritual side with the science side and you put those together Yeah. That's like unstoppable. And for you, you just maybe needed to hear a little more of the science side, which now, now you
Speaker 0 00:20:47 Described it. I mean, that, that was one of the things when, when my alcohol consumption, uh, climaxed or ended, however you wanna say that with treatment, inpatient treatment for 90 days. Mm. And you know, one of the things that I learned in treatment was that you have all these, these thoughts and this stuff going on in your head all but, but most of it's really not real. Or you don't have to act on that. Um, and I had lived my entire life prior to that thinking that all that stuff was real. Hmm. And I'd always prided myself on making, you know, fast decisions and I was just running around, you know, uh, basically fight or flight <laugh> for the, you know, for the first part of my life. And no, no wonder I made some of the bad decisions that I made bec because of that. And I'll never forget, we were, uh, the, the treatment center I went to specializes in airplane pilots and doctors.
Speaker 2 00:21:55 Okay.
Speaker 0 00:21:56 Uh, and I was living, you know, there in a condo with three other doctors and it's probably the most important point of the whole treatment experience. We were sitting there at night and we're watching this movie, A Beautiful Mind with Russell Crow. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, and where he's, uh, Robert Nash, the, the mathematician, uh, genius. And, but he's schizophrenic and at the end of that movie, he's w walking along on the campus with his arch nemesis and the guy goes, do you still see them? And he looks over and, you know, they're, they're walking along beside him, you know, waving and what have you. You know, his imagine, you know, in his mind. And he looks back at him and he says, yes, I still see them, but I've learned how to not to engage with them.
Speaker 2 00:22:47 Oh, that's beautiful.
Speaker 0 00:22:48 And it, and it just dawned on me that I'm just like him. Yeah. I don't see these things, but I hear them Yes. And I'm acting on them. And specifically one of 'em is saying is keeps telling me over and over that I can control alcohol. And I clearly, I clearly can't because I'm here
Speaker 2 00:23:12 <laugh>
Speaker 0 00:23:12 Yeah. But my mind keeps telling me that I can, and it's no different than him having, you know, someone that he sees telling him to do things. Mm-hmm. And it was just kind of a light bulb moment for me. Yeah. Realizing that I don't, I don't have to listen to that.
Speaker 2 00:23:35 That's beautiful man. I know that right there just really reson that resonates with me. That's, it's such a beautiful description of how the most random things, it's a, it's a movie and you see this moment, but it's because you were in, in a proper time to receive that.
Speaker 0 00:23:50 I was in a proper time in the proper environment, you know, I, yes. I was doing, you know, uh, counseling all day long and, you know, group sessions and individual lessons. So I was, and I was taken out of my environment to where I could focus on Yes. My, you know, myself and trying to, to deal with, with the issue. And, um, the timing was
Speaker 2 00:24:13 Right. I love that. You know, I had a, a guest just recently, um, before, his name is Rob Mack and he's, uh, he's a happiness expert. He's actually one of very few that went to University of Pennsylvania and Ivy League and got a master's in applied positive Psychology. And it's like a full, I
Speaker 0 00:24:30 Didn't know west such
Speaker 2 00:24:31 Thing. I know, right. <laugh>, he did that 10 years ago and even 10 years later, there's only like around a hundred or so people. But it's an Ivy League school teaching this. Yeah. And he made a very, very good thing that I love this and I want to really tie this together, is he said one of the ways to to create change or to find more happiness or to maybe have an aha moment, is to have a loneliness. A loneliness. Yeah. Not loneliness. He said, have you ever had it where you could be alone, where you're the happiest you've ever been and there's no one around you. Right. But you could also be around many people, but you could feel extremely lonely. So this idea of people thinking that, you know, like they need to always be stimulated around people. That's because the society is like that.
Speaker 2 00:25:15 Right. But what I love about what you described there, and I think people could really practice, whether it's the meditation, the prayer, you know, taking a Sunday afternoon off or something that you just depl is when you created your aloneness, which means that you were in your space, you weren't lonely. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> cuz you're with people and you're having a good experience. You opened up that schism to allow for a transformation. And that would've never happened if you didn't go and spend that money that you probably had to spend. And it's probably a good investment to go there, to be open to something that you probably maybe had second opinions cuz you had all those thoughts racing. Yeah. And that's what completely changed your life.
Speaker 0 00:25:52 I think the other thing was, you know, it was because I was successful in the other parts of my life. Um, you know, it was just really hard and, and I was, um, a binge drinker. So I was, I was capable of, of, you know, functioning, but I just go off the rails every once in a while. And, um, I think what helped me too was the fact that it was the people that were there were also very successful. And I got to see, you know, that I'm not, you know, what I'm experiencing is not unusual.
Speaker 2 00:26:28 Ah, yes. Yes.
Speaker 0 00:26:30 And I could relate to, you know, uh, in incredible stories of, of pilots and doctors and some of the things going on. It just stuff that I'll never forget. <laugh>,
Speaker 2 00:26:43 Is there one that comes to mind?
Speaker 0 00:26:46 Um, an example would be an, an anesthesiologist. Yeah. That, uh, was, um, fentanyl. He was doing fentanyl. I mean, he, he got the point where he had a stent installed in his leg. Mm. But he was actually, um, stealing, uh, so when, when he put somebody under, he would do a little bit less of it because it's all, you know, it's all monitored. So they, they're, they're, they check inventory, but he figured out a way to decrease it by 10% or 20% or whatever. But the end result of that is, is the person was, couldn't move or anything, but actually was experiencing pain.
Speaker 2 00:27:32 Mm.
Speaker 0 00:27:34 They weren't, they weren't totally out. They appeared to be totally out.
Speaker 2 00:27:38 Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:27:39 But they were, you know,
Speaker 2 00:27:41 Like a silent pain,
Speaker 0 00:27:42 Feeling it.
Speaker 0 00:27:44 And he did that for years before he finally got caught. And, and the way he got caught is he was Dr he was driving home and, um, he was sh you know, shooting summon into his leg and he hit a bump and he shot in the shot too much. No. And he immediately went out and he crashed into these people's front yard. Oh. And the thing about, I don't, I've never taken fentanyl, but what he said is, you know, you very quickly recover. So when the, the ambulance and paramedic got got there, he was up walking around and, but one of 'em noticed that his bag was open in the back and he had syringes in there, and they're like, there's no reason why you should be having syringes outside the hospital. And they reported him and the, the board, you know, did an investigation and found out and they sent him off to, to treatment.
Speaker 2 00:28:38 So then, okay, so you went to treatment and, and I mean, gosh, did he have to face any criminal charges? Like, not to get, he
Speaker 0 00:28:45 Lost his, he lost his license. Oh. Um, I think he actually eventually got it back. Um, um, last, I, I haven't talked to him in a, in a bit, but last time I talked to him he was still sober.
Speaker 2 00:28:57 Yeah. Yeah. So what about that story that made you think of it? Or what was like the thing that resonated with you?
Speaker 0 00:29:04 Just the extreme of the craziness of that. I mean, another one was a, was a, actually a very well known cardiologist. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> that was an alcoholic. And he described, you know, doing surgery, heart surgery on people and, and actually closing people up early. Like instead of doing three, you know, only doing two so that he could go out and
Speaker 2 00:29:31 Drink. No. Uh,
Speaker 0 00:29:32 Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:29:34 Oh my gosh. What
Speaker 0 00:29:36 Would you say going away And that, that just, you know, that's how crazy it gets.
Speaker 2 00:29:42 Wow. So did that make you feel like you weren't as crazy when you heard those things?
Speaker 0 00:29:46 Well, it made me realize that, you know, it's okay to admit you can't control this <laugh> mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I mean it, the thing that I, you know, when I did this research phase that I found interesting is that, again, there's four or five different plants around the world that are used, have been used for the last 3000 years for social lubrication, alcohol being one of them. Mm. Alcohol originated in China and in, uh, Europe. And of all of them, alcohol is the only one as far as the way the native society is, that's highly processed, all the rest of 'em are in natural form. Wow. Um, and, you know, alcohol is a, it's a physically is is very hard on your system. Yeah. Because of all that processing. I find it, I find it interesting because I'll, I'll meet people that are talk about, you know, how strict they are in their diet, their health and wellness and all that.
30 Minute Mark
Speaker 0 00:30:50 And they've got a drink in front of them. I'm like, you know, you say you don't eat junk food <laugh>, but you're, you're consuming one of the most highly processed things that you could, you could Wow. What a perspective chef, the amount of sugar that's in it, you know, alone. You wouldn't, you wouldn't grab a Snickers bar. You wouldn't, you know, but you're drink two or three of those and that's Yeah. That's even worse. And that they don't, you know, alcohol is so ingrained into our society. Oh, absolutely. So it's like, you know, celebrations, weddings, uh, holidays, whatever. It just, when
Speaker 2 00:31:26 You feel good, when you feel bad, when you feel angry, when you feel sad, everything, it's just, you know,
Speaker 0 00:31:31 It's kinda like smoking used to be. Yes. Uh, it's just part of the fabric of our society. What's interesting is, is that there's com, there's societies around the world that up until very recently didn't have alcohol. Hmm. And they used other plants like we're using here to, to do the same thing. And they had none of the social and health issues.
Speaker 2 00:31:57 Wow. So you said there was four that are like the main social lubricants?
Speaker 0 00:32:02 Pretty much. So, yeah.
Speaker 2 00:32:03 And what, what would the other three be?
Speaker 0 00:32:05 Um, so there's Kana. Okay. Kanas, uh, from, from South Africa. Uh, there's Kava, uh, which is from the Pacific,
Speaker 2 00:32:14 Which is
Speaker 0 00:32:15 What's in here, which is the main ingredient. This from the Pacific Islands. There's c Prum, uh, which is from Southeast Asia. Uh, those are really, and then, and then there's to some degree, there's coa, the coca leaves from Central and South America. Um, those are the main ones that, um,
Speaker 2 00:32:34 And we're talking not caca no. Cora.
Speaker 0 00:32:38 And Yeah. As co coca leaves, uh, Coca leaves actually is an incredibly wonderful, uh, plant. Um, the problem of it is, is that coca leaves themselves with a 52, 53 alkaloids. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you can't get high. Like you get high on cocaine. Mm. Um, what happens with cocaine is they take solvents usually gasoline and extract two of those alkaloids out, and you're getting thousands of times more of it in your body. Mm. It's, it's really exactly like alcohol. I mean, that's what's happening with alcohol is you're, you're chemically turning it into something else than what it, you know, the base, uh, ingredients are. And you're, and you're able to then get much more of it into your body and your body's
Speaker 2 00:33:32 Like Yeah. Higher concentration. Yeah. And
Speaker 0 00:33:34 It's not, your body's like, oh, you know, what
Speaker 2 00:33:36 Is alcohol? Is it like, it depends on obviously the source, but like a alcohol could come from, uh,
Speaker 0 00:33:41 You can potatoes. Yeah. Yeah. I mean very, you know, benign things.
Speaker 2 00:33:45 It's just crazy to think about.
Speaker 0 00:33:47 Yeah. Yeah. Wow. So, you know, you have people in Central and South America that start consuming, um, chewing, you know, COEs and their teens and chew 'em in their eighties and never have,
Speaker 2 00:33:59 Never have
Speaker 0 00:34:00 A problem, any issues. And it's, it's a, it's actually, um, a better stimulant than caffeine is. It doesn't have a lot of the, the issues that caffeine is. Most people don't realize it. But, uh, I was actually looking the other day, the FDA keeps stats on different things and there was 434 people that died last year from caffeine.
Speaker 2 00:34:24 Yes. I, I remember learning that, that you could overdose on caffeine. Yeah. It's, I mean, that's all, it's a high amount, but still there's some crazy people out there from the, the sodas to the coffees. Like there's some binges in that sense.
Speaker 0 00:34:36 It's, you know, it's fine at at lower concentrations. Yeah. But at higher concentrations it's pretty hard
Speaker 2 00:34:42 On you. Yeah. Wow. For everyone that's been eating potatoes, um, <laugh>, I don't think you're gonna get a buzz from it <laugh>. Unless if you're, you know, a good Midwesterner and you love your steak and potatoes. But even then,
Speaker 0 00:34:56 You know, I think it's, it, it's really about, in my mind, it's not about getting a buzz. Um, because to me that's, that's talking about being inebriated and that's limiting and all that. It's, it's what I think people really want is just to feel good.
Speaker 2 00:35:13 Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:35:14 They want, they want to feel comfortable, they want to feel good. They want to, you know, they want to be relaxed. They want, you know, that's what they're really looking
Speaker 2 00:35:22 For. That's what they really want.
Speaker 0 00:35:23 And, and go ahead and some of these things like alcohol can do that, but it's, it's really hard to dose it <laugh>. Yes. It's easy to step over that line and it, and it has a short duration. Yeah. That's the thing that I've noticed about the more you process something, the shorter the duration is mm-hmm. <affirmative>.
Speaker 2 00:35:44 So
Speaker 0 00:35:45 Interesting. A good example of that would be cocaine. I mean, you do a lot of cocaine, you want another one. Yeah. You want another one. You're chasing that feeling because it's so amplified. Whereas the coca leaves, you do that and it's just, you kind of glide, you know, for, for hours and feel and feel great. Wow.
Speaker 2 00:36:05 That's, uh, man, that's, that's really cool to hear about that. Before we talk about the product here, I do want to dive in a little deeper, cuz I really feel this, this stirring that I know your, your discussion, even though you just, you know, you're, you're a guy that worked in a oil field and you had no background, and now you have this product and it's, it turned from a passion to something very successful. It's like, but the beautiful thing about this is like, you have a message that transforms people because there is, I don't know if you, you probably maybe know the statistic, but like, I'm sure there's millions of people that deal with alcoholism and, you know, and, and maybe even addiction, right? Yeah. Addiction doesn't have to always be, can you speak on just
Speaker 0 00:36:47 Yeah. You know, what I've discovered is, I mean, you know, we're selling a lot of this and we're selling close to, you know, a million bottles a, a month now.
Speaker 2 00:36:56 A million bottles a month. Yeah. It's, and and there's 10 in a box. There's
Speaker 0 00:36:59 12 in
Speaker 2 00:37:00 A box. 12 in a box. Yeah. You're selling just under, so like 87,000 Yeah. Bottles per boxes.
Speaker 0 00:37:05 So it, um, wow.
Speaker 2 00:37:07 Two years ago
Speaker 0 00:37:08 You started Yeah. It's, it's pretty, but, but what I've, what I've come to understand is there's that segment like me that's g you know, got to the point where it's, the wheels are coming off, major bad things are happening in life mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And then there's this bigger wedge of people that, um, they're not crashing cars, they're not losing their jobs or any of that, but they've got to the point where they're starting to notice these little things, <laugh>. Mm-hmm. You know, they went out last night and God, I wish I had said that. Or, you know, or, you know, I don't feel great this morning, so, you know, I was gonna go out and do a jog, but I'm not gonna do that now. Um, you know, I'm eating, uh, you know, junk mm-hmm. <affirmative> that I wish I wasn't eating, uh, because of the cravings that that sets up. And so they know that their life is, is just a little bit outta balance. And they're like, you know, I see this, but I still want to feel good <laugh>. Yes. And they just keep repeating that pattern over and over again. And eventually some of those people fall off the cliff. But a lot of 'em will go for
Speaker 2 00:38:20 Just stay in the status quo,
Speaker 0 00:38:21 Just stay in status quo. And that just becomes life. Yeah. Uh, they, they, they're willing to take the trade
Speaker 2 00:38:26 Off. Amen. To that.
Speaker 0 00:38:27 And that wedge of society I'm beginning to understand is huge. I mean, that's, that's really the people that are contacting me, the majority of 'em are in that camp. Yes. And they're like, you know, this is unbelievable. You know, I have my cake and, you know, and get to eat it too. And it's like, you know, I couldn't, you know, I don't, now I wake up the next morning, you know, I feel great. I had a great time last night. I remember exactly everything that I said. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you know, and it just, you know, it's, it's a whole different life.
Speaker 2 00:39:07 It's so good you hit on that because people get stuck because we look at extremes. Mm-hmm. Right? We say, well, I'm not like, what you describing where I'm crashing a car getting drunk. Yeah. But, um, I guess I'm also not perfect, so I feel like I'm good. And that's, that's the status quo. And, and a lot of our listeners, they're, they're, they want the edge. They're, they're very ma uh, driven, maybe business wise, relationship wise. They're nonstop. Like, we, like these people are listening to personal development. But the thing I want you to just go a little deeper in is this side of their personal, their personal self worth. Or, you know, maybe they are struggling with those things that are easy to hide from others. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you know, like, they are still having the drinks. They shouldn't, that lead to the extra junk food, which makes 'em feel bad and now they're overweight couple pounds. And like, what would you say to someone that is kind of in that status quo area that can maybe help, you know, give 'em a shift in, in thinking that I do need to make a change to this. Because if I don't, it will, like you said, take, take me off the cliff.
Speaker 0 00:40:08 Well, I think, you know, the thing is, is, uh, as Mrs maybe the extreme, but, but the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And I think that's what a lot of people get into the groove of doing is just, this is life and this is, you know, this is as good as it gets. And you know, my thought now is that, and I, I live that for a long time. My thought now is that, you know, it can get better. Yeah. You know, but, but you have to, you have to go out and do some things. Try some things in order to find what's right for you. Um, you know, one of the big things that I found for me that made a big difference in my life was, was yoga. Hmm. And it, it's, it's more so the, the mental side of it than it is the, the physical side. Yeah. But it just, I don't know, it just really, it makes me feel like a different person. Hmm. I mean, I, I also, you know, do a lot of CrossFit and other kinds of things too. But, and that's, that gives me a great feeling. But the yoga for some reason, really,
Speaker 2 00:41:17 Uh, I, it's part of that mental aspect. Huh.
Speaker 0 00:41:19 But that doesn't mean that's what is for everyone. It's, that's what, you know, find what I found. I found what worked for me. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:41:28 Do you ever wish that, you said that you've been in the status quo in a while and you've, uh, you've been been drinking. How long have you been drinking before you stopped?
Speaker 0 00:41:35 Oh, I started drinking when I was 14, 15 years old.
Speaker 2 00:41:38 And then 12 years ago is when you stopped. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:41:41 And yeah, so I hadn't, I had a good long run. <laugh>.
Speaker 2 00:41:44 Yeah. Sober. Been sober since, huh? Yeah. Wow. Yeah. Do you ever feel like, do you ever have the regret or not? I wouldn't even say regret cuz this is where you say, well, it's not fully regret, but do you ever have the feelings of like, gosh, I wish I would've fixed this earlier. Does that ever simmer with you?
Speaker 0 00:42:00 Um, I have, but I think now I realize one of the other things I did when I was in my sabbatical period there is I, I read a, you know, a bunch of books. One of 'em I read was Siddhartha by Herman Hass.
Speaker 2 00:42:15 Sadie and Sidart
Speaker 0 00:42:16 Siddhartha. Okay. And it's about, um, you know, the real life Buddha, one of the things, you know, that in that book, he goes through these different periods in life. And one of 'em being just kind of a wild man mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, doing some pretty crazy stuff. And he's, he's at the end, you know, and he's, he's reached enlightenment and he's looking back and thinking about those things and he's like, you know, I don't really regret any of them because without each of 'em happening, yes. I wouldn't have gotten here. I needed that spot on to, and the other thing that he, that he said that that really resonated with me was that, you know, at that Buddhist says attachment is, is the, uh, root of all suffering. But I hadn't thought I, I was thinking about, um, just physical things. Yes. Or people, um, what he was talking about was, he was talking about that people want to stay in one. They get comfortable in one segment of life or one chapter of life, and they wanna stay there. <laugh>, they're afraid to go to the next one when, and, and if they don't change when they're supposed to change, it creates a lot of friction and suffering. Mm-hmm. Not just for them, but for the people around them. And they need to learn to let go and morph into the next chapter of their life that sometimes can be to, it's almost like a totally different person.
Speaker 2 00:43:54 Yes.
Speaker 0 00:43:56 But it's, but that's meant to be <laugh>. That's meant we're not meant to be the same person our entire life or live the same type of life our entire
Speaker 2 00:44:07 Life. So would you say when you took that step to completely cut it out, that was that scary chapter of maybe you completely blank pages that
Speaker 0 00:44:15 Yeah, because I, you know, I was, I was frightened to, to live without alcohol.
Speaker 2 00:44:25 What put you over the edge?
Speaker 0 00:44:27 Well, I mean, uh, it, I got, got to the point where there was so much bad stuff going on, and fortunately I had a good group of people around me, uh, you know, basically an intervention. Yeah. And said, you know, you're gonna kill yourself and or somebody else if you keep doing what you're doing.
Speaker 2 00:44:46 And for 10 years before you found the feel free product, what made you commit to not taking another drink?
Speaker 0 00:44:53 Um, the yoga, uh, meditation breath work like you talked about. I mean, I was just, you know, but I, I was, that whole time I was hanging on by a thread. Mm. You know, I can remember, you know, time and again, traveling or something and going to an airport and sitting down and, and you know, seeing somebody having a drink and just fantasizing on, you know, how wonderful that would feel. And, and I didn't act on it, but I, I thought about it every day.
Speaker 2 00:45:29 What kept you from acting on it? Like in that moment? What, for 10 years? Like, let's be real. If you're fantasizing about that and feeling that, like, what was it? Because there's not no coincidence. I,
Speaker 0 00:45:41 I remembered this, the stories about, you know, the craziness mm-hmm. <affirmative> of these doctors and these pilots and stuff and what, you know, and I'm, I'm like, if I do that, I'm gonna go right back to where Right. You know, left off. And they, and they say something in treatment that, I don't know if it's real or not, but they say that you not only don't, you, you, you not only, you don't just go back to where you were. You go back to a, you go to a point as if you had been drinking that whole time. Oh. You accelerate.
Speaker 2 00:46:16 Like it just unleashes the gates and you're just right back in there where you're just like, almost in binge mode
Speaker 0 00:46:21 Again. Well it's, it's almost, it's almost as if you never stopped. And you're, a lot of people that wind up relapsing don't make it very long after they do. Mm-hmm. Cuz they just go crazy. I mean, the, the consumption ex is like, it's been accelerating the whole time even though you weren't doing it.
Speaker 2 00:46:41 Yeah. Thank you for sharing that. Do you crave it or fantasize about it after even having the
Speaker 0 00:46:48 Not at all Feel free. Yeah. I've not, I don't feel free. Don't even think about it. Solution. It's, this is, for me, this is so much better.
Speaker 2 00:46:56 Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:46:58 I mean, cuz I, I now, I don't have to, I'm not worried about if I get in a car, you know, I could, I can actually work out harder. I can crush, you know, a longer day at work. Yeah. You know, some, some type of a assignment or whatever. And there's, you know, alcohol didn't give that to me. Yeah. And I feel good.
Speaker 2 00:47:19 I thank you for sharing that story. I really do appreciate that. And I know that part you just shared with the temptations and the fantasizing of it and, and, and what made you still move forward. It's gonna be liberating a lot of people. It really will
Speaker 0 00:47:33 Be. Yeah. You, you know, I thought after I got through all that, that, you know, all that would go away. But it, you know, and I think the other thing that I, you know, I thought about too is that the, the concept of, just because I'm thinking this <laugh> doesn't mean that it's, it's real and the right thing. It's that, you know, it's that voice Yes. In my head that's telling me this stuff. That it's, it's not real.
Speaker 2 00:48:00 Would you say that, is that voice quieter today? Is it louder? Is it the same but maybe different negative thoughts comparatively to before? Where,
Speaker 0 00:48:08 Where is it at now? You know, I, I still have a lot of crazy thoughts every day. Yeah. But, um, what I can say is that, you know, when I'm consuming, feel free that it quietens that stuff down almost completely. Wow. And, and I think, again, I
Speaker 2 00:48:26 Can attest
Speaker 0 00:48:27 To that. Yeah. I think again, that's what then allows me to really, you know, focus on what I'm doing. Um, because all that noise is gone.
Speaker 2 00:48:37 Yeah. You know, I just wanna, I, I know that people love hearing this and, and I, you know, I study human psychology. I, I work with people on interventions and transformations in their life, their business, all these things. And I like to really break down what you just expressed mm-hmm. <affirmative> for people to understand this fully. So JW a point, you know, and everyone has a different perspective and that's why when you're in sales or you're in leadership, you gotta understand what moves and, and disturbs other people is different than what disturbs you. Your lifestyle may be right from the get-go could have been disturbing to other people, but it wasn't disturbing you. The thing that put you over the edge is that when you saw this current life, aka a product, aka a package or whatever that is, but it's your life, you look at it, there was so much finally disturbance and pain that stacked up.
Speaker 2 00:49:25 And I look at it like as a, as a, a teeter totter. And one side is, you know, the, the benefits and the, and the pleasures and the other is the pain. Yeah. You stacked up so much pain that had finally put you over the edge, but your pain that stacked up wasn't the pain that other people would experience or, or were experiencing. They're like seeing your lifestyle and they're like, dude, like stop. Or what are you doing? And you're like, no, no, no, you were, you were making compromise. You're saying No, I'm fine or this, or maybe you're ignoring it. But until you saw that it was causing so much problems, maybe to a personal friend, a loved one or something, that's what put you over the edge. Now what happened though is, and then you, you, you opened up and you went for a transformation.
Speaker 2 00:50:06 But this is the powerful thing is until you found something that brought more pleasure than, than the wants and desires of this thing that was doing before you were struggling, before you found, feel free mm-hmm. <affirmative>, which is the solution. And I have a lot of business people, so I know this is completely separated, but until you provide your product or service or your opportunity is something that brings more pleasure than the pain they'll experience, they'll actually experience more pain if they don't buy it. Once you tried this product, you're like, I'm gonna feel more terrible if I don't keep taking this and if I go to alcohol, cuz you were linked with alcohol, you're like, well I wouldn't be able to drive, I wouldn't be able to like, you know, I could, I could relapse. Right? But you got so much pleasure from this. And so I just wanna really recommend to people that like not only obviously this product, you should be taking it And, and I'm so excited we're gonna be talking about that here.
Speaker 2 00:50:56 But in life you have to find something that can be that new replacement. Exactly. Something that's better, that brings more pleasure. And it's that wiring of that. And if you're in a situation where you're helping other people, help them wire that when you're trying to sell feel free, which I don't even have to sell cause it's so easy. I'm gonna say, you know, think of the things you're doing in the past, how painful that was. Now imagine if you are able to experience where you could drive around, you can work with your family, all these things. And then they're like, oh, it makes sense. Exactly. I I just wanted to break that down because that, that, that was ex that's like textbook of how you lived your life right there. And man, that's just so good what you just shared though. So I just, I I definitely wanted to just really wrap that up so people could understand really what happens in people's lives.
Speaker 2 00:51:44 Cuz you are an example. And imagine this was your product, you know, is you listening right now? This was your product and you were able to best express these things to a man like jw and now here's JW Today, a raving fan sharing with all his people because you understood what was going to move him, which was understanding what the pains were and what the pleasures were. And, uh, you gave it to that gave that to us. So my dude, let's, let's talk about the product. Can we fast forward into the, the part about the product? I mean, I know I want this to be about you, but I wanna share why, like, we're here today mm-hmm. <affirmative>, like, the only reason I'm here and why I was like a raving fan of this product is I saw this in, it was in, is it Sunlight Organics?
Speaker 2 00:52:28 Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, is that, yeah. Yeah. So here in California there's a place called Sun Life Organics. You know, all these other places have it. But I remember seeing in there and I finally just got it just because I heard, heard you on the skinny confidential with Michael and, and Lauren. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> Bostick. And I was like, okay, this is cool. I was like, he has an incredible story. I was like, I don't know, like I'm not much of a drinker and, but I heard there's peak performance. And I was like, I've heard that from every other product. They always say that if it has any little thing that says that it helps with the brain, they'll say it's peak performance. Right. And I'm like, trust me, I've tried a lot of new tropics and things. And so somehow I just got it just because I thought I would want it. And I actually sat on the shelf for like two weeks and then one day I just, I felt a little sluggish and I was like, I remember hearing it's good for peak performance, why not? Right? Mm-hmm. <affirmative> and I took a sip. And so each bottle has two servings. So I, I followed in, I did one serving, which is half the bottle. And everything you described is exactly what I felt.
Speaker 0 00:53:27 Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:53:28 And I just wanna make this really clear. I've tried a lot of things for the brain and focus and it's like, I feel like a lot of it was like placebo, even though the products work. But what happened is, for me, when I get a little sluggish, not only does is there noise, but I'm getting pulled in multiple directions. I have multiple businesses, I have clients, I have family, I have life, I have all these things. And so what happens is I actually almost get paralysis by analysis. And I, and I distract myself on social media. I check some emails and I try to act like I'm productive, but I'm not. Yeah. And at the end of the night, then I go to bed and I literally like, ah, I didn't do that, didn't do that. And now my confidence drops. Yeah. And it's a very real thing when I drink this.
Speaker 2 00:54:10 I literally kid you now I've, I've described exactly how you did it. I said, the noise dampens, it actually silences and I'm locked in, laser focused. And so then I was like, all right, well let me try this one time. Okay, let me try it again. So I tried it again. It works. Try it again. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I'm like over a month into it. And every single time it's the same exact feeling. And that's what I love about it. J and I'd love for you to touch up on that is four plus weeks in taking this <laugh> multiple times every day. I still feel the exact same. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:54:40 Why is that? I've been taking it now for years and it's still, it's, I still get
Speaker 2 00:54:44 The same thing. It's incredible. So there's no, there's no tolerance. There's no,
Speaker 0 00:54:47 You know, it, it's interesting because, um, uh, the two main plants, um, I tell people that, you know, anything that makes you feel good, you know, you can become dependent on, uh, anything that makes you feel good. You, you can, you know, develop a tolerance to it. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, and, you know, especially if you start abusing it, uh, you know, you just need to use moderation. But kava, uh, there's actually some research out there that kava has a reverse tolerance. Like what? And I don't know of any other substance that's there. I've
Speaker 2 00:55:23 Never heard of that before.
Speaker 0 00:55:24 So that the more you take it or the longer you take it, the better your body becomes, it processing it, and you need less and less. And I think, actually, I'm experiencing this because when I first started taking it, I always took a full bottle.
Speaker 2 00:55:44 Okay.
Speaker 0 00:55:44 That's why I originally, the serving size was a bottle <laugh>. And, uh, we started having a lot of people got, you know, that's, you know, too much. And, but for the first year or so, that's, you know, I wouldn't do any less than a bottle at a time. And then I went to a half a bottle, and now I'm down to doing like a third of a bottle.
Speaker 2 00:56:06 Now you do a third now? Yeah,
Speaker 0 00:56:08 I do. I talk a third of a bottle at a time. Um,
Speaker 2 00:56:11 And tr this guy has probably hundreds of bottles in his belt. Yeah. He does not need it.
Speaker 0 00:56:15 It's because I think it's a couple things. One is, is that I'm actually using it more now for, um, the productivity enhancement that I am, the social lubrication, uh, because I've found that's the most value to me. Um, it, um, it's just in, it's just as incredible how it enhances your productivity during
Speaker 2 00:56:42 It's
Speaker 0 00:56:42 Incredible, dude. I mean, I start out in the morning doing it. I go crush a, you know, workout or I get into really even
Speaker 2 00:56:48 Gives you a
Speaker 0 00:56:48 Better workout. I really get into the yoga and then, you know, if I've got, you know, something that's, that's jamming, gotta get out, I'll a little bit more and I'll just, you know, hammer it out. And then in the evening, you know, if I want to, you know, I feel a little better, I'll have a little bit then. But it's the, you know, and it's interesting to me because that's not what I designed it for. Right, yeah. Is what I was looking for. Yep. But it's, you know, and I, and I think for most people that's what they're discovering too. Most people are using it for both.
Speaker 2 00:57:19 Yeah. Well, I, I, I took it or I kept taking it cuz of the performance, but I like it too because of the euphoric effect. Yeah. I, I like that make, I've had, I had a time where I was, you know, you know, I'm not, I I'm a peak performer in some sense, but peak performers aren't always in peak state. Right. So you have to find ways to do that, whether it's a product like this or you're you, your physical change. But I mean, I remember taking it, there was just one specific day where I was just kind of just like, you know, work, work, work, work. And I remember taking it and, and 10 minutes later I just was like, I was kind of giggling about some things in my head. Yeah. And I was <laugh> and I was like, why am I laughing right now? I was like, ah man, it's just cuz I took the product. Yeah. It's like, it really makes you feel good.
Speaker 0 00:57:59 One of the, one of the girls in our office early on, and this is where I really first started, you know, catching on to the productivity enhancement was she's, um, you know, has a problem with, you know, attention, uh, time Spann. And she's was, was taking Adderall and, you know, several other things. And she's a, you know, creative a writer. And she said, you know, I found myself, what you described earlier is she said, I was picking my phone up every Yes. 30 seconds or so. And you know, and you know, and she said, it's hard to get into a flow to write when you're doing that. And she said, the first time I took it, she said, I realized that it had been 30 minutes. I hadn't looked at my phone and I was in a flow I was writing. And she said it was just, she goes, it was just unbelievable.
Speaker 2 00:58:48 So you would say for people that even they don't even have to have a d d even though everyone in some sense could be like that cuz if we have so much distractions. But you would say that would be something really good for that with the tension span.
Speaker 0 00:58:59 Exactly.
Speaker 2 00:58:59 What about an, what about like, people that deal with like, anxiety.
Speaker 0 00:59:03 Anxiety also, and I, I think, you know, to me the anxiety is, is the root of that I think in some cases is what you described earlier, is that, you know, we've got all these things going on and all this noise and you know, we're trying to do this and that and you know, and what happens is, is we just kind of dance around and we don't really get anything done. Yes.
Speaker 2 00:59:27 <laugh> Yeah. We're busy, not productive.
Speaker 0 00:59:29 And then at the end of the day we're like, oh my gosh, you know, now I'm farther behind and and you're, it's like, it's feeding on itself. Yes. You know, it's like a snowball going down the heel and you know, it again, what this, you know, allows me to do is to get stuff done
Speaker 2 00:59:50 <laugh>. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:59:50 You know,
Speaker 2 00:59:51 Which every person listening to us wants that
Speaker 0 00:59:53 And <laugh> and not only get stuff done, but like you said, also to actually have fun doing
1 Hour Mark
Speaker 2 01:00:00 It. Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:00:01 I mean that's the, the, the interesting part about the theum, which Crao gets a, a bad rap. Uh, but, you know, cratos been used in Southeast Asia for over 3000 years mm-hmm. <affirmative> and the main use of it is, uh, they serve it as a t is, uh, for workers in the field. You know, they're working 12, 14 hours a day, seven days a week. Uh, not only to to endure that, but actually have fun doing it. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Wow. I mean I've, I've in Southeast Asia for a couple years, two and a half years, and you could go out and see 'em. I mean, they're not, they're not only, you know, they're laughing and singing and, you know, having a good time. Wow. And they're, they're consuming their, their prum. Um, unfortunately
Speaker 2 01:00:49 Over here,
Speaker 0 01:00:50 What we did here is we took, you know, that wonderful plant and bastardized it, you know, where we did the same thing that we did with Coca
Speaker 2 01:01:03 Leaves. You mean like in America? Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:01:05 Yeah. We, we use solvents or CO2 and extract again, a couple of the alkaloids out of the 50 some that are in the cradle leave and we create high concentration extracts and synthetics and 99% of the stuff that's on the market, that's what it is. Mm-hmm. And, and that stuff is, um, is what's causing the, the bad
Speaker 2 01:01:28 Rap. Yeah. Cuz and it's really good that you say that's in, so for everyone understanding that doesn't know this product yet, there's basically two ingredients, right? Kava root extract and c cram leaf.
Speaker 0 01:01:38 Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:01:39 And then it's just in, and it's in pineapple juices. Right. And it's got Stevia. Right. That's what I love about it. It's, it's so simple. There's literally,
Speaker 0 01:01:44 And it's, yeah. It's really, it, it's mainly cva. It's 10 to one cva. It's
Speaker 2 01:01:49 10 to one. Yeah. Oh, shoot, were you supposed to say it on camera? Yeah,
Speaker 0 01:01:53 It's fine. <laugh>.
Speaker 2 01:01:54 Yeah. It's, it's literally, so it's CVA C Crao, pineapple juice, Stevia leaf and natural flavors. And you know, I like, I just wanna make this very, very clear. I'm talking about this product because you've turned me into a raving fan <laugh>. And that's, that's why I was like, I gotta reach out to this guy. It's not because I was like, oh, this is a good business opportunity or things. It's like, it's like, no, I was a raving fan and I was like, and, and I've told friends and they've taken it, entrepreneurs have taken so much and they're like, dude, this is next level. So I talk on this because I to this day feel the same effect. And I've never felt that with any other peak performance supplement, neutropic,
Speaker 0 01:02:33 Neba,
Speaker 2 01:02:34 Alpha brain, you know, all these different things with, uh, uh, you know, coal. And this is the only thing that's
Speaker 0 01:02:40 Gone out. I mean, I have people now especially that are shipping me, you know, pretty much every week, all kinds of stuff, you know, and it's like, <laugh> just doesn't, and I try it and I'm like, you know, do I feel different? Maybe, maybe not. You know, and, and I'll, I'll never forget, uh, one of our, uh, one of my investors, uh, a friend of mine in Austin, you know, called me and said, you got, you know, you gotta meet this guy. And this guy had just sold a medical company for 500 million. And, and um, I went and met him for breakfast and I had my, you know, pitch book and I went through all of it and I couldn't really read him cuz he never said anything through the entire presentation. And I got done and I said, well, you know, what do you think <laugh>? Because he hadn't said anything. Yeah. And he goes, well, he goes, I've been sitting here thinking while you were talking. He goes, I can't think of a single thing that really changes somebody's mood in 30 minutes or less. That hasn't become huge. And he said, whether that be five hour Red Bull,
Speaker 2 01:03:47 Yes.
Speaker 0 01:03:49 Aspirin, alcohol, whatever he said, and he said, there's not a whole lot of 'em that I can think of. But he said, there's not a single one of 'em that will actually do that, that have not become just monstrous because Oh my gosh. And he said, the reason is he goes, is that's what people really want. Yes. They want a solution.
Speaker 2 01:04:10 They want a state change. They want a solution. Yeah. And how long ago was that?
Speaker 0 01:04:15 It was, uh, that was about a year, year and a half ago. And, and I just, I remember cuz I'd never thought about it that way. And I, and that's all he said. He goes, I'm in. Wow. I mean, that, that was it. He, and I'm
Speaker 2 01:04:28 Like, was that part of the process of blowing up or getting to the, the size you've already been?
Speaker 0 01:04:33 Yeah. Yeah. And it's just, it was, it was, you know, very intelligent guy. Just fascinating for me. It was someone that, you know, had no idea about this business. And it boiled down to just that. And, and, but that I walked out of there, I got on the plane and was on the way back and I was, I was thinking to myself, he nailed it. Yeah. I mean, that, that's what, you know, there's that old saying that people aren't looking for a drill. They're looking for a hole. You know, and it's true. I mean, they're, they want something that, you know, will change their mood or make them feel differently in a short amount of
Speaker 2 01:05:11 Time. Really? They want a state change. Yeah. One of my greatest mentors is Tony Robbins. Yeah. And he's like, like we talk, talked about earlier, alcohol, cigarettes. You know, you want to go from this tight chest feeling to take a puffin and instantly Ah, yep. But it, a lot of these things have side effects.
Speaker 0 01:05:26 That's, that's the problem. And you know, and, and what I, what I believe that the root of that is, is that you have to leave it in the natural form. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you start messing with it, messing with mother nature, and you create, you create all these health and social issues. If you leave it the way it's been used for thousands of years, you don't have that problem.
Speaker 2 01:05:51 Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Wow. So you got kava and cra mm-hmm. <affirmative> is there because Yes. You said there's some, there's definitely some controversy, but it's not because, so let's just debunk that really quick. I've had a friend that messaged me and, and heard about Crao and heard bad things about it. Heard that a person is overdosed and it's terrible to hear that. And I was like, so wait, wait. I was like, hold on you are you sure it's not like, you know, ketamine or things like that. Yeah. And, but she was like, no, no, it's c crao. And so can you just answer to that, like on how, like, is that possible to overdose on this? Is that a
Speaker 0 01:06:26 A It's, it's physically impossible to overdose on fully crao. You can't
Speaker 2 01:06:31 Fully
Speaker 0 01:06:31 Crao fully c crad can, which is what's in there. Which is what's in this, you can't get enough of it in your system because of all the fiber and everything else that's in it. It just, you know, and there's no, the thing that, uh, um, really gets people is the respiratory suppressant, uh, and fully cra is, is doesn't have that,
Speaker 2 01:06:53 It doesn't affect your respiratory. Respiratory. And
Speaker 0 01:06:55 That's when people overdose most of the time they, they two ways. They either amp themself up so much that, you know, they have a heart attack or something, or they stop breathing, uh, because of the respiratory suppressant. And it doesn't have that. And it also doesn't have that application that you're gonna see with overdose of caffeine. So, so you can't overdose on it Now when you turn it into something else, which is what they do when they create the extracts and synthetics.
Speaker 2 01:07:27 Okay.
Speaker 0 01:07:28 It's very similar to the COEs and cocaine. It's ex exactly the same. You now can get a thousand times more into your system faster. Plus it doesn't have all the other stuff that's balancing it. So your body can process it and that can create problems.
Speaker 2 01:07:46 Okay. So when you hear about the overdosing and things like that, that's because it's a synthetic Yeah. Or it's a, a derivative that they've Yeah. Uh, artificially made. Yeah. But the full c cram leave, which is in the product that you, that's basically impossible. And I, and I agree with you on that. It makes sense how you even described that with, uh, like the, the coco leaf. Now what about kava Talk, talk a little bit more about Kava
Speaker 0 01:08:09 Kavas. Um, you know, never really had, um, there's nobody, I mean mean kavas, it's, it's totally non-addictive and it's just kava is a, is a really wonderful plant, other than the fact that it just tastes like hell. I mean, it's <laugh>. It's,
Speaker 2 01:08:25 It's a unique taste. It's,
Speaker 0 01:08:26 It's, you know, kava by itself. Most people would throw up if they, you know, try it because it's without any flavoring. Uh, it's the most bitter thing probably that you'll, you'll ever find. Okay. By far.
Speaker 2 01:08:40 Wow.
Speaker 0 01:08:41 Um, you know, the natives have gotten used to it and, and can consume it, you know, naturally, but it's, um, it's very, very hard to take the first time.
Speaker 2 01:08:52 Yeah. But no, uh, there's no worries about, like you said, getting addicted to this. No,
Speaker 0 01:08:58 No. It's, you, I've never seen or read or heard anything about anybody having any issues and there's no, there's no physical issues. There's, there's nothing. The, the one thing that, um, you know, you'll, you'll see around kava is, um, there's been a couple cases where it was contaminated with like salmonella or something, Uhhuh <affirmative>. And it created, you know, um, some issues. But that's, you know, around not the kabb itself that was, it was contaminated with something else.
Speaker 2 01:09:31 Okay. Is there any contradictions for people that should avoid this, that for whatever reason, if they have a certain condition or like,
Speaker 0 01:09:39 Well, we, we tell people that, you know, if, if you're taking, you know, medications, um, you need to be careful. Um, and especially, you know, antidepressants. Yeah. Uh, but I would say that with anything, right, any type of supplements, if you're on, you know, some, like some people are a plethora of different medications, you need to be careful what you're doing because, uh, there's not been research in mixing
Speaker 2 01:10:07 With 20 different medications beyond the counter. Yeah. <laugh>.
Speaker 0 01:10:09 Um, you know, my personal opinion is, is that you need to get off of all this
Speaker 2 01:10:15 Stuff. I
Speaker 0 01:10:15 Agree. And start doing something that's, that's natural, that's gonna be a much better long-term fix for you.
Speaker 2 01:10:21 And with something like this, that's such a solution-oriented product that gives a real result. People love putting the magnifying glass on us and trying to find every single thing. Oh yeah. Well I found this, it said that about, you know, the liver or the kidneys or like, you know, so that's, that's, I just wanna make that very clear for people. When you are so powerful in the sense of what your product, your service is, and you are getting results just as much as people are loving you, there will be people that are trying to put a magnifying glass on you. Definitely.
Speaker 0 01:10:47 So,
Speaker 2 01:10:48 So there's nothing that comes up any, I mean, uh, I think I did see something about like an article or research paper just about like how, uh, the effect with this and like the livering kidneys, is there anything to be concerned about with that? If you have a healthy kidney?
Speaker 0 01:11:04 You know what, what I can tell you is that, you know, like I said before, there's, you know, millions of bottles of it being consumed now. And we have, we have a lot of, uh, professional athletes, uh, very high level businessmen mm-hmm. <affirmative>, you know, that are, you know, we have a lot of doctors and airplane pilots and, you know, police and, and a lot of these people are tested, uh, um, especially the athletes are tested, you know, uh, very extensively all the time. Yeah. And we've not seen any, uh, indication of any change, negative changes in blood chemistry, even myself, you know, because when I started mixing these things together early on, I'm like, you know, I wanna make sure I'm not, you know, you know, shorten my life, put myself in the hospital and I tested fairly often my blood chemistry against my annual blood chemistry that I have. Okay. Checked every year. And I didn't see any elevation in liver enzymes or
Speaker 2 01:12:04 Anything. Nothing at all. No. But didn't you do a little bit of a Guinea pig effect? Like didn't you like do something that, like where you so took
Speaker 0 01:12:11 I also, uh, did some, um, I did some of the, the high concentration extracts and synthetics and I've, within 30, 45 days I started seeing elevation liver enzymes. And I see I also saw elevation in blood sugar.
Speaker 2 01:12:30 Okay. So you did that when you did the high concentration of things that were not in the feel free, the actual derivatives or the, the synthetics. Yeah. You saw a difference. But when you were doing the blood test with the, um, the feel free, like how many feel frees were you taking a day to
Speaker 0 01:12:48 <laugh>? That's the other thing. You know, I knew that some people would abuse this uhhuh <affirmative>, uh, just like they will, anything that makes you feel good, <laugh>. So I went through a period and I did, uh, six bottles a day, uh, for a period of about three months, three and a half months. And I still didn't see any, um, elevation in liver enzymes or anything. I didn't, I didn't like the way I felt. Yeah. I felt just a little bit toxic. Um, but, uh, it wasn't, it didn't seem to be doing anything, you know, uh, major physically, you know, harmed. Okay. It just, you know, I felt more like, um, it was, that was more about almost like the buzz. Yeah. You know?
Speaker 2 01:13:36 Okay. So felt like I
Speaker 0 01:13:37 Felt like I was getting high
Speaker 2 01:13:39 With the six. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But it didn't feel like anything that was like, uh, worthwhile or you just, you were just doing it to test it.
Speaker 0 01:13:47 I was doing it be begin because I wanted to be sure that, you know, uh, cuz I knew there'd be some people out there that would do that. Of course. And there are. Yeah. Uh, and I wanted to make sure that, you know, it wasn't gonna create a problem.
Speaker 2 01:14:02 Okay. So you went through extreme, noticed that you felt a little off in the sense of physically, but you even your enzymes and your blood tests was still the same. Yeah. It only changed when you actually were taking the synthetics, like how this woman shared that one guy overdosed. That's when you star saw
Speaker 0 01:14:18 The cause problems. It was very dramatic how quickly it changed. Wow. And that really, that's when I've even more so, you know, develop the thought that, you know, it's, it's the processing of these things that's mm-hmm. <affirmative> that's getting us not not just this, you know, not just cra or, but it's the processing of anything. And you know, I try now not to, you know, consume anything that's, that's been processed.
Speaker 2 01:14:48 So that made you even more, uh, regimented on your lifestyle, I'm assuming with the foods and
Speaker 0 01:14:53 Def Definitely. So,
Speaker 2 01:14:54 Yeah. Is there, so there's no alcohol in here. I just wanna make this really clear. No, no alcohol, nothing that's going to make you blow a 0.08 or more on the breathalyzer.
Speaker 0 01:15:07 No, I mean, one other thing. We, I get a lot of people, you know, like, again, doctors, police, airplane pilots, what have you, professional athletes cuz they're drug tested. Yeah. And that's usually one of the first things that they'll ask is that cuz a lot of these people, it's not a three strike policy, it's, it's a one strike <laugh>, you know? And, and rightfully so. Of course. Um, I mean the first thing they'll do is they've have heard about this and it sounds wonderful and God, I'd like to have something cuz I can't have anything. Yeah. But I can't afford to, you know, you don't wanna risk fail a test. And they're like, you know, and but the answer is, is that you won't fail a test cuz and you've had
Speaker 2 01:15:49 Millions of bottles
Speaker 0 01:15:50 Sold. They don't test for
Speaker 2 01:15:51 It. Yeah. Yeah. I do have to show Id when I order it. Why, how, what's the reason for that?
Speaker 0 01:15:57 You know, we, um, and you'll see it on the bottle. We put 18 plus on the bottle. Yeah. Um, there's not a legal requirement for that, but I just felt that that was the right thing to do. I don't think we want, you know, I mean it's, these are strong. I mean, it's, it's, yeah. It's not like a, you know, <laugh> a lot of things that we talked about before. So I don't want, I don't think it's right to have, I mean, if, if a parent thinks it's okay for their child and that's, that's their deal. Yes. But I, you know, I think that, um, we're, we're better off, you know, not doing
Speaker 2 01:16:36 That. That's really cool that you did that. And so you would say that if the parent felt like their child could handle it and they would like, that's up to them to figure that out. But obviously that's Yeah. Be, be smart with that. But if it's a 16 year old, or maybe even it's a, you know, 18 year old, cause I've actually had some parents say they want to give it to their, or try to give it to their kids that, um, uh, that are struggling with focus. Yeah. And maybe, and they also are an athlete, so it's like they can help with the best of both. So that's up to their discretion.
Speaker 0 01:17:02 That's, you know, there, there's no legal, uh, law that says they can't do that. Okay. Uh, again, we just did it because we felt it was the right thing to do.
Speaker 2 01:17:11 Yeah. And you know, <laugh>, you're gonna blow up that fast. Like you gotta put a little crowd control out there. Yeah. So there's no crazy thing to Yeah. Giving it to a two
Speaker 0 01:17:19 Year old, I, yeah. I didn't want, you know, um, 13, 14 year old kid hammering six of 'em. Yeah. And, you know, and then doing something silly.
Speaker 2 01:17:28 Wow. I, I just gotta say once again, like you hit on the head with that investor that mentioned about the, the way that it's, it changes a state, like literally that is how you, that's how you, you, you basically sell something. What if you could properly change a state, make way? They make a field the way they look, whatever it is that they get out of something they don't want and being the way they want. Yeah. Like, I just want to test one more time to this <laugh>. I'm just a, I'm a raving fan. I am not <laugh> trying to be a salesperson or whatnot. It's a multitude of dimensions of the state change. It's the focus. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, it's the calmness, but it's not like you're getting drowsy. That's none of that. It's that euphoric where I was just randomly like laughing.
Speaker 0 01:18:12 For me, it's just, I just generally feel better. <laugh>. Yeah. <laugh>. And, and I think, you know, maybe like when I work out, I'm able to push myself farther because, you know, I don't, you know, I don't feel that stress as much mm-hmm. <affirmative>, um, I mean it's cram itself is, is really big in the, you know, the weightlifting, body building. Is it community? Yes.
Speaker 2 01:18:37 I didn't even know that
Speaker 0 01:18:38 Because it, it provides energy at the same time. It, it, you know, it allows you to push through Oh. Uh, farther, farther. So you, you know, you can, you know, you basically can, can push your body further than you normally would.
Speaker 2 01:18:54 It's pretty cool. So isum, the, from what I think I saw in the, um, your email, so Crao is like the focus and the energy and is kava the euphoria? Or
Speaker 0 01:19:04 How does that Yes. Yeah. Okay. Kava is the uhum is is the, is the stamina, you know, uh, that part of it. And, and kava is the social
Speaker 2 01:19:15 Lubrication. Okay. And now do you have to, uh, eat food before this? Is it the
Speaker 0 01:19:21 Person? Yeah. Most people, most people like to have a little something before they consume it, but, you know, there's a lot of people like myself that are doing it, you know, with, without.
Speaker 2 01:19:30 And is there any like, adverse reactions where someone maybe feels like lightheaded or Like, I, I had one friend at one time and it wasn't, I don't know if it was just the wrong thing in her stomach or whatnot, but like, she did feel a little, like, nauseous, but then she took it again after a couple days and felt good. Like, is there any
Speaker 0 01:19:46 Yeah. You know, we've had a few people report, you know, that, um, you know, empty stomach and, you know, took too much of it, um, the first time. And, you know, they get a little nauseous. Um, that's, you know, and there, there probably are, you know, just like peanut allergies or lactose or gluten or what, there's a small percentage of people that you know, are, are allergic
Speaker 2 01:20:11 To it.
Speaker 0 01:20:12 Yeah. One or two of the active ingredients,
Speaker 2 01:20:14 You won't know. And so I guess you try it and maybe even try a little
Speaker 0 01:20:17 Yeah. What I can say is that it's not gonna, you know, it's not gonna put you in the hospital or anything else, it's, you're gonna, you, me now, your body will purge it and you know, after that you're, you're
Speaker 2 01:20:30 Fine. Okay. That's good to know.
Speaker 0 01:20:32 And, and what I tell people is it's, it's, it's best to start out with as small dose as
Speaker 2 01:20:39 Possible. Okay.
Speaker 0 01:20:39 So like a, you know, a third of a bottle or quarter of a bottle or whatever, and see how you feel. Yeah. And then decide from there if you wanna step it up or
Speaker 2 01:20:49 Not. I am. Trust me, you're gonna feel it. Even with the one third of a bottle, especially, I'm, I'm six six, right. So most people are probably gonna be a couple inches or little slightly smaller, so I'm sure it will hit the, the system different. What's the vision for the company? Where do you see this going, um, business wise? You know, where do you see this?
Speaker 0 01:21:07 You know, it's, I think, you know, at one point in time I, uh, thought about, you know, building it to a certain size and selling it. But now I, I think we just keep running it
Speaker 2 01:21:20 Yeah. As CEO and, and, uh,
Speaker 0 01:21:22 For now. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:21:24 You eventually see yourself where you would, so you'd still keep it, but you're stepping out maybe as Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:21:29 Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:21:30 It's a visionary. Yeah. Okay. Um, quick question too. So 40% off have that code. I remember hearing this and I don't think Megan, uh, I didn't get a clear answer. So on the skinny confidential, I remember a big thing, uh, Michael said is that if you apply the code, or you may have mentioned this and you do the subscription, the code stays with the subscription. So like,
Speaker 0 01:21:52 It's actually just for the first order.
Speaker 2 01:21:55 Just for the first order. Right. Okay. So yeah, they'll be able to get the 40% off on subscription mm-hmm. <affirmative>, and then you could get another 40% off for your first order using this code. And then after that, if you get your second month or third month, it's gonna be just, um, whatever the, the price is of the
Speaker 0 01:22:12 Correct original 40. Correct. Yeah. Which is the best price that we offer.
Speaker 2 01:22:16 Yeah. Okay. Just wanna make it get that clear. Yeah. Gotcha. So you, you guys, what you were saying, so you're selling, what is it, a million bottles a month?
Speaker 0 01:22:24 Yeah. We're, we're, you know, we originally thought we would, we would, uh, we projected to do like 12 million this year. And then, then we, then we brought that up to 18 and then 20. And now it looks like it's gonna be, you know, 24 or 25. And I mean, it's, it's truly a hockey stick looking, uh, curve. And, um, you know, we're adding about 500 stores a month now. Oh my
Speaker 2 01:22:56 Gosh.
Speaker 0 01:22:57 So we've, we're now projecting, you know, that there's a, you know, there's a case that we can do, you know, know probably close to a hundred million in revenue next
Speaker 2 01:23:07 Year. So you're doing, you meant 24 to 25 million Yeah. <laugh> in two years. Yeah. From having no businesses from
Speaker 0 01:23:16 Zero. No.
Speaker 2 01:23:19 Just let that sink in real quick. And you're gonna project a hundred million when
Speaker 0 01:23:24 Next year.
Speaker 2 01:23:26 <laugh> growing at 500 stores a month or a year.
Speaker 0 01:23:29 500 stores a month.
Speaker 2 01:23:31 What is, what's like the size of your team right now?
Speaker 0 01:23:35 Um, it's interesting because we, we've, we had, we still don't really have an office. We're all virtual <laugh>. Uh, we built our own production plant in Tulsa. Uh, and then we have our own national distribution team that we built out. So there's probably now about, um, there's probably a little over a hundred of
Speaker 2 01:24:01 Us. A hundred. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. What leadership wise or executives, like, do you have the full spectrum? Is it, yeah. Yeah. So, so you have a cmo, do you have a cfo? Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:24:11 Okay.
Speaker 2 01:24:11 Yeah. Who was your first big hire when you were, because this is all in such a condensed time, and to go from one person to a hundred, who was like the first big significant hire you made?
Speaker 0 01:24:23 Um, probably the first person was, um, the on financial
Speaker 2 01:24:31 Financial guy.
Speaker 0 01:24:32 Yeah. Financial. And then it was
Speaker 2 01:24:34 Why, why that instead of, uh, a CMO or, you know, uh, ceo.
Speaker 0 01:24:40 Um, I was doing that part myself. I mean, you know, in the beginning I was doing everything myself, but, um, I really felt, um, felt I needed to do that for a longer period of time to really es establish the identity of the brand. And then, you know, finally it got to a point where it just was too much for me to do. Mm. Along with everything else.
Speaker 2 01:25:12 Well, it's interesting that you brought a CFO in when like, you were doing everything else, but you are a financial guy. So I would've, I would've assumed if I saw from outside perspective be like, this guy would definitely,
Speaker 0 01:25:23 I'm, I'm a financial guy when it comes to, you know, kind of the high level. Okay. You know,
Speaker 2 01:25:29 <laugh> seeing. I see, I see.
Speaker 0 01:25:31 Yeah. But the day-to-day you, the bookkeeping part of and all that, I just, that's, that's not me.
Speaker 2 01:25:37 So you brought the CFO in, how far into, from day one?
Speaker 0 01:25:42 Um, probably within six
Speaker 2 01:25:44 Months. Six months? Yeah. Full-time. Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:25:47 Wow.
Speaker 2 01:25:48 Was that a,
Speaker 0 01:25:49 Well, he wasn't, no, he wasn't full-time. He had a couple other things going on. Um, you know, it was within six months or so, it became pretty apparent that this thing was, was gonna take off like a rocket.
Speaker 2 01:26:02 Where were you at size-wise? Six months in,
Speaker 0 01:26:05 Um, you know, we were probably, I think the first year we did like, um, two and a half, 3 million, something like
Speaker 2 01:26:14 That. Oh, way. Oh my gosh. Yeah. So that means the second year did 12 million if you're, well,
Speaker 0 01:26:20 This, this year is the second year, so we're gonna do, you know, 22, 23 this
Speaker 2 01:26:26 Year. Oh. Oh my gosh. So you did 3 million the first year. Yeah. Now you're on projection around 22 million. Yeah. Brought in your cfo. It's right at around six months. What, I mean, what's going through your mind for someone that you just thought this was a passion project? You're like, how is I, how am I gonna scale this? Like, especially the first year?
Speaker 0 01:26:46 Well, it's, it's very quickly I realized that, you know, I've gotta get some good people in the right places. I've gotta get the right, you know, systems, it systems and stuff in place. So this thing is gonna, you know, blow up on me. And I also realize that, you know, I can't count on co-packers to produce this mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So I put my own plan in. I can't, you know, I need to, because of, as you mentioned earlier, this is right in the middle of covid, supply chains are all screwed up. I've gotta figure out how to get, you know, uh, massive amounts of ingredients and packaging. All this stuff's coming from overseas. Right. So I've gotta find the right vendors to work with and, you know, all of that. And, you know, if, if I don't, I'm gonna have a, you know, a deal like the oat milk oly. Yeah. Where, you know, you got all these people wanting it, but you can't, you can't, you know,
Speaker 2 01:27:41 And
Speaker 0 01:27:42 That's one of, to produce it.
Speaker 2 01:27:43 So the worst things for a brand is when
Speaker 0 01:27:45 You get into that, it, you know, I had to take the leap of faith and do some things that, you know, if it hadn't have worked, you'd been in, you know, you'd been in <laugh> upside down. But, you know, like you said, the alternative is, is that you, you can't, you know, you can't starve the business either. So, yeah. I mean, an example would be we had a line production line built, uh, that, you know, has a capacity of what we'll be doing next year. But we built that, you know, about a year prior, uh, because it took that long to build it. And it, it's just now getting
Speaker 2 01:28:27 It. Oh, so you had a bank on your success? Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:28:29 Yeah. And if we hadn't, we would've been, we'd been in trouble.
Speaker 2 01:28:33 Was your CFO getting at your tail on that one?
Speaker 0 01:28:36 You know, I think because he really wasn't, um, that attuned to this industry. He just didn't really, didn't really know
Speaker 2 01:28:47 <laugh>. Okay. <laugh>, which is probably a good thing.
Speaker 0 01:28:49 It's like, you know this, he's like,
Speaker 2 01:28:51 You're in a pandemic. You're building a, a, uh, an assembly or a, uh, a line that's basically gonna be for the production of probably what did you even, could you even even imagine the production if you're gonna say next to your a hundred mil? Like at that time, no. No. So you're building this thing <laugh> in that expectations in one of the craziest economic times. Yeah. Did, uh, did the finances, was that through the, the profits coming through? Did you have to get creative with it?
Speaker 0 01:29:19 Um, you know, it was, uh, just a small group of investors, uh, angel investors. So
Speaker 2 01:29:25 You went around and did your
Speaker 0 01:29:26 Pitches and Yeah, I did the pitches. Wow. And it was interesting though because, um, I did very few of them. Um, it was mainly around, uh, people that, um, you know, it got, there's a core little core group of guys that got in early and they started sharing it with their friends when they saw that it was, you know, hockey stick taken off, they started sharing it with their friends. And then it was like, you know, we just had to say no more.
Speaker 2 01:29:53 Wow. What would you say for someone that, cuz you are the epitome, and I don't, I don't know if many on, on many podcasts, people dive into this side mm-hmm. <affirmative>, and I'm so grateful that you're taking some extra time here to share this. You are the epitome of like the entrepreneurial dream, taking a passion, something that you had no background skills. Was this your first like, official like business besides obviously the finances and stuff? Like, like a, almost like a product business first.
1 Hour and 30 Minutes Mark
Speaker 0 01:30:22 Yeah. First real consumer package goods. Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:30:25 You're the epitome of showing that this, these things could happen and that it, that it doesn't have to be the perfect thing that you had to go and learn from other people. It's like, no, no, you did your due diligence to find out what's going to bring a solution. And then, but you also step through probably so many barriers and, and limitations of like thinking going, I mean, going from zero to a hundred employees or people working with you, I would say coworkers. Um, I just gotta really just give you props for that. I, I'm inspired by that. It, it makes me get it excited right now thinking, man, I'm just, I want to go make sure that something, if I do it and it's, it's enough belief and enough, you know, like it, it speaks to the right people. Like I, I could hockey stick too. Right. Whether that is true or
Speaker 0 01:31:10 Not. Yeah. It, it, um, if you have the right product, it makes it a lot easier. <laugh>. That's right.
Speaker 2 01:31:18 It does help out a
Speaker 0 01:31:19 Lot. You're, you're, you're able to, uh, navigate through things a lot easier than, you know, it's, it's, it's, a guy described it to me the other day. He's a, a financial guy that called me and he's like, he goes, you're in that pull mode. He goes, and that's so much easier mode to be in than the push mode, you know, or you're having to push a product. He goes, you're, you're being, you're a
Speaker 2 01:31:45 Total
Speaker 0 01:31:45 Right now. And he said, you know, the the things that you have to be careful about is that you know the quality of the product and make sure you have enough of it and all that. He goes, that's a much different animal than Yes. When you get to the point where you're having to, you know, push it into the market.
Speaker 2 01:32:03 Yes, totally. When you said that six months, you were like, that's when you brought in the CFO business was booming mm-hmm. <affirmative> by then. And it's obviously even bigger. What caused, if you were to think tactically or strategically, was it partnerships? Was the marketing, was it something, what, what caused you go from zero to there?
Speaker 0 01:32:23 You know, we, we put it in, um, uh, a small group of seven elevens and, uh, with no marketing, nothing. And it took off. Uh, and, and I was talking to the store owners or managers and, and, uh, they were telling me that, you know, it's selling faster than anything we've ever seen.
Speaker 2 01:32:43 How is it selling if there's just a random bottle sitting out there?
Speaker 0 01:32:46 That's what's interesting. Um, you know, I, I thought about that and I thought, well, even if somebody, you know, picked the bottle up and, and looked at the back of it, most people don't even know what this stuff is. No. So the only reason that they would've picked it up is because they liked the way that it looked and the word feel free. Uh, I remember reading, um, I can't remember the guy's name. I think it's Ron per Ron Pearlman or something like that. He was like one of the, the original, uh, infomercial, uh, marketers. And in his book, I remember reading that he did like ve and all those things that in marketing, the word free is the most powerful word that there is. Mm. He goes, that's the one word that people will stop and look to see what it is. Right. Because we just we're wired that way. If we can, you know, if we can get something for free Yeah. We're gonna, you
Speaker 2 01:33:50 Know, and it's not, and it's, it's even cooler. Cause it's not, it's not free as in the product's free. It's like an it's an emotion or it's a, it's a, an emotional state that's tied to the free. So they're probably like, what does this mean?
Speaker 0 01:34:01 And then the other part of it was he talked about, you know, you need to dwell in, in feelings. Yes. And that's really where, you know, I, the combination of what I felt and that marketing stuff that I'd read years and years ago is where the name came from.
Speaker 2 01:34:23 So you don't have a, you don't have a full understanding though of how, like, besides maybe this, they saw those things on how that blew up.
Speaker 0 01:34:30 The only thing that it
Speaker 2 01:34:31 Could be, there was no other marketing social media. No. You had no social media, no. Like ads going
Speaker 0 01:34:37 Out. People, you know, the bottle is, is, uh, you know, it's, it's blue. There's not many blue things. It does stand out like that. It's glass, it's not plastic. Um, you know, we're able to get convinced the stores to put us, you know, right by the register, the impulse section.
Speaker 2 01:34:54 How'd you, how'd you convince 'em at a stage where you'd literally had know
Speaker 0 01:34:57 Background? Just went in and talked to 'em, you know, one-on-one.
Speaker 2 01:35:00 So, so you went in and so, okay, so that's how you got into the 7-eleven s. You went in there, brought 'em the products, did you let 'em try it?
Speaker 0 01:35:06 Yeah. And you know, to begin with, we put it in for free.
Speaker 2 01:35:09 Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:35:10 Said, look, stick it in here. If it doesn't sell, you hadn't lost anything. If it does, you know,
Speaker 2 01:35:15 What's the splits look like for that, for being in a station GA or a 7-Eleven like that?
Speaker 0 01:35:20 Uh, the margin for the stores is 46%. 46. Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:35:25 Wow.
Speaker 0 01:35:26 And we're now in 1,107 elevens, and we're outselling Red Bull and five Air combined in those 1100 stores.
Speaker 2 01:35:37 No way. That's just, that right there is, once again, I just want to just acknowledge you, you had no social media, no ads, no background or credibility of proof of like, Hey, I've done this with this company or I've done this. It's just you went in there literally and, and basically door knocked on them. Yeah. You know, you're doing sales and you,
Speaker 0 01:35:58 And one of the big things we did is, is we always sampled. Mm. In other words, when we walked in there, you know, we said, try this and we'll stick around for 15, 20 minutes <laugh>, and nine times outta 10, they're like, oh my gosh. And then the beauty of that is, is that they become the marketer for you. Oh. So that when they're, and, and most of these, you know, these smaller convenience stores, they know their customers Yeah. Or they know their regulars anyway. Oh, I see. So when their regulars come in, they're like, you know, you need to try this <laugh>. And we would always also are, um, Salesforce, we would, you know, tell them anytime you're in a store and somebody's standing around, give 'em a bottle.
Speaker 2 01:36:48 You know, you weren't concerned in the back of your head about like, oh man, the crao could, or the kava could set 'em off with the flavor. Like you knew that the outcome of the feeling would be better than
Speaker 0 01:36:58 We always, you know, always tell 'em up front. You know, that it, you know, it has a strong taste <laugh>. Yeah. And usually when you do that, people are like, well, it's, you know, it's not that bad
Speaker 2 01:37:09 <laugh>. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You gotta set
Speaker 0 01:37:10 The expectation. It's really bad. It's when you don't tell 'em that and they try it, they're like, oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 01:37:14 Oh dude. That's that's so true. You gotta, you gotta preframe them, right? Yeah.
Speaker 0 01:37:18 Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:37:19 Was there any funny stories that happened with, with those early days?
Speaker 0 01:37:23 Um, you know, just a lot of people that, you know, the faces when they first try, you know, but it's, and to me it's no different than, you know, a wheat grass shot or a, you know mm-hmm. <affirmative>, a turmeric or something like that. Mean, it seems like most of this stuff, it's really good for you is pretty pungent.
Speaker 2 01:37:44 Yeah. Wow. Last question on the business here. You're going to a hundred million, you right around 22 projected. What do you think is gonna be the between 22 and a hundred million within probably a 12 month span of some sort mm-hmm. <affirmative>, what's gonna be the biggest bottleneck that you feel like is going to be something that's gonna come up and it's gonna take time? You gotta, you already gotta plan for it. What's, what's that bottleneck or the, the, the bear you gotta break
Speaker 0 01:38:12 Through know, you know, again, we were very proactive. Took the leap of faith on, you know, building the plan out and all that. Uh, so all that's in the supply chains. We've got those set up, uh, to where they're humming. Um, probably the people, uh, is the, is the biggest thing now, team wise. Yeah. And to keep people. Yeah. And I've recently brought in a ahead of people, uh, and she's helping me with that because it's, there's a, there's a difference between the people that you have when you're at, you know, oh, 10 million versus the people you have when you're at a hundred million or 200 million as far as, you know, um, their understanding of how to run the business. Yes. So we're looking now to, you know, um, uh, make sure that we have the right people in the right places.
Speaker 2 01:39:11 Are you thinking more higher up, like leader leadership wise, or even just the people that are just, you know, out there, um, you know, running, running
Speaker 0 01:39:20 Business mainly in the man, in the management
Speaker 2 01:39:21 Side. Management, yeah. And then, so your, your solution for that, or the thing that you're working on is bringing in a person specific for
Speaker 0 01:39:28 The well, people that have done it. You know, people that have built, you know, um, very fast moving large organizations before. Yeah. Because it's, it's a whole nother beast.
Speaker 2 01:39:42 Hmm.
Speaker 0 01:39:44 And we're looking at, you know, hiring another 150, 160 people in the next year.
Speaker 2 01:39:50 Oh my gosh. So they have to be local. Is it, is it, they're
Speaker 0 01:39:53 All all over the country. All
Speaker 2 01:39:54 Right. If you're listening in, you wanna work with this man, find some way to support this mission.
Speaker 0 01:39:59 Yeah. We're, we're, you know, so I mean, that's a whole, that's a big deal just in itself. Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:40:07 You got a moonshot for the company. Like, is there like a certain place you want to be in a certain partnership that's like,
Speaker 0 01:40:15 Um, I mean we're, we're pretty much, um, and we're, we're in chiropractic offices, we're in dental offices, we're in convenience stores, we're in liquor, liquor stores, we're, you know, grocery stores. Um, pretty much, you know, everything up and down the street. So, um, I think for this type of product, and just because of the, it's a such a huge channel. I mean, there's 154,000 convenience stores in the us Wow. That's gonna be our, our largest channel.
Speaker 2 01:40:49 Yeah. That's the big goal for you. Yeah, my friend. I just gotta say, dude, you are, you're so poised, you're so calm. I mean, I'm sure you guys
Speaker 0 01:41:00 Can tell this, it's because it's because they so brave. <laugh> <laugh>.
Speaker 2 01:41:04 It's, you know, people are going, are feeling this energy you're giving off and you are over here like so poised, yet you're running a soon to be a hundred million dollar company. But currently, uh, you know, 25 million like out of something. I just want to drill this in one more time for people listening like that two years ago it was, it was just a thought. It was a passion. And I don't know if you're, you're, I mean, obviously you're so focused in on the business and obviously, you know, you have a family and I think you, I saw that you had two successful kids that are also in the finance and, and living their amazing life. Is that correct? Yeah. You got a little, little, little, uh, is it a frenchie? Yeah. Yeah. You got a Frenchie named Bowie a little cute dog. Um, I know you got so much, but like, have you ever thought about like, speaking and sharing your story outside of the, I mean, you're on these podcasts, but there's so many places that can choose.
Speaker 0 01:41:54 You know, I've, I've enjoyed doing the pod. I didn't, you know, two years ago I didn't even know what a podcast was. <laugh>. I've enjoyed doing this. Uh, I found it almost therapeutic. It's, it's interesting. Um, but the reality is with what's going on right now, there's not enough hours in the day. Yes. I mean, I'm literally, I get up, I go do my exercise, and then the rest of the day, you know Yeah. Is just focused on building this. And that's seven days a week.
Speaker 2 01:42:27 Yeah. So, which I acknowledge you so much for opening up your house, for opening up your time. Like honestly, I know how productive you are and for you to share this, my, my goal is the people listening right now will have an impact that I believe your contribution in your heart really wants. And they're gonna have that because you've gone into depths that I've, I've done research on you and I've never heard certain things you just shared today. And I really, really hope that, that, uh, brings joy to your
Speaker 0 01:42:54 Soul. No, this has, this has been fun. I hope, you know, hope somebody gets some good out of
Speaker 2 01:42:58 It. Oh, they will. How, how can they reach you? Like, if they want to send a message to you, do they need to get the box to, to text you? How can they tell you what they've like
Speaker 0 01:43:06 It's, it's, it's on the box. Um, I think it's actually, uh, on the, our Google on, on the page, on the company page.
Speaker 2 01:43:14 And that's going to you,
Speaker 0 01:43:15 It's going to me <laugh>.
Speaker 2 01:43:16 No way. Oh my gosh. Well, that's gonna be the call to action cuz they have an, they have an Instagram, uh, botanic tonics. That's where you're gonna find out more info. You guys got very good branding by the way. That's one of the things I told about your, uh, told Megan the one that was helping me. I was like, your guys' branding is on point. I'm very impressed. I've seen products that are big, but their branding is tacky. Um, but that's the call to action is go get a box or go on the website, but go get a box and shoot this man a message I want you to send. They could text you.
Speaker 0 01:43:47 Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:43:48 Text, text this man, get his number and just share what was the thing that best stood out to you And, and sh and share that in, you know, your personal story. Share that. What was the takeaways? Because I'm sure you could agree. We still love hearing that. You loved hearing that from
Speaker 0 01:44:03 Day one. That's, that's the, the best part of the, of all of us. That's the best part. Yeah.
Speaker 2 01:44:07 So send him a message and definitely, um, tag us on Instagram. So at botanic tonics at j Karon, screenshot this podcast, YouTube, whatever it is, and let this message be heard, because I feel like you're gonna be one of the first, but only few that really dive into what you talked about with addiction. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> with alcoholism. And that's gonna be liberating. So there's gonna be people that are listening that maybe you're not dealing with that, but you might have a loved one, a friend, maybe a follower that just comes and randomly hears this and you've changed your life. And that's the beautiful thing about that. So tag tag us in there. My last question for you here, JW is we wrap up this beautiful evening, is what does it mean to live a strategic life? When you hear that, what does it mean to live or create a strategic life?
Speaker 0 01:44:59 Uh, I don't know that I really know <laugh> because, you know, my life has been extremely organic. Um, you know what, what I can say is that, you know, I, I have a clear vision now of, of where this needs to go. Yes. And it's, it's about focusing on putting the pieces together, the right team together to get to that point. And, and for me, a routine is, is important. Um, I pretty much, I'm probably overboard on that cuz I get up every morning, I work out at the same time I go to the same place to eat. I, you know, I, I'm, you know, very methodical and I go to the bed, you know, pretty much at the same time every night. Yeah. And, you know, that works for me. That may not be for everybody, but that's, that's what works
Speaker 2 01:45:57 For me. I love that. Have you read The Surrender Experiment?
Speaker 0 01:46:00 I haven't.
Speaker 2 01:46:01 Have you heard of Michael Singer, the author?
Speaker 0 01:46:03 No, I haven't.
Speaker 2 01:46:05 That might be a book that he'd have to dive into. He became a, he is just, he was like you, he is organic in the flow. He's very in his own spiritual, uh, life. But he built a billion dollar company by being in the flow. Yeah. And he very world renowned book. You remind me of that. Let's check it out. Yeah. The surrender experiment. Yeah. Jw I just gotta acknowledge you one more time, my friend. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for the words of wisdom. Thank you for this amazing product that I, if you're not, if you're not watching this, I'm holding, taking sips throughout. Yeah. The show and Oh, last thing too guys, I do have a code. This everything will be in the show notes. JW is so grateful to set us up with a 40% off discount. Correct. Most times you hear 15%, 17%, this is 40%.
Speaker 2 01:46:51 And on their site they have, uh, it's a subscription. You can cancel only time. Don't worry, you're not gonna get into any crazy thing. But it's a subscription where you get 40% off of the, the retail price. And then you can use my code. It's have Ron 40 h a v as in vitality, r o n 40, and you'll get 40% off on top of that. So it's an incredible deal. Go get that. Everything will be in the show notes. But until then, jw thank you for Thank you. This amazing interview for your wisdom. It it was, it was fun. Thank you. Thank you. All right guys. You go create your strategic life. Share this episode with your loved ones and until then, I'll see you in the next episode.
