The Determined Society with Shawn French | Adversity & Mindset

Latest Episodes:

Mark Sisson on Risk, Resilience and Redefining Health at 73 Oct 19, 2026

Show notes

What does it take to challenge conventional wisdom, risk everything, build a $200 million company, and still have the determination to start over at 73?

In this episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Mark Sisson, founder of Primal Kitchen and Mark’s Daily Apple, bestselling author of The Primal Blueprint and Born to Walk, and co-founder of Peluva, for a conversation on entrepreneurship, health, longevity, failure, discipline, and the courage to trust your convictions.

Mark shares how his pursuit of elite athletic performance compromised his health, leading him to question conventional nutrition and exercise advice. From failed businesses and public criticism to risking his home on Primal Kitchen and eventually selling the company to Kraft Heinz for $200 million, his journey was built through years of setbacks, reinvention, and determination.

The episode dives into:
Why being extremely fit doesn't always mean being healthy
Challenging conventional nutrition advice, including paleo, keto, and the Primal Blueprint
The failures, financial risks, and decisions behind Primal Kitchen’s $200M sale
Why Mark believes walking, foot strength, and proper footwear are essential to longevity
Starting Peluva with his son and learning to lead by letting go
Overcoming fear of failure, embracing discomfort, and finding purpose at 73
Why determination matters more than motivation

This episode is for entrepreneurs, athletes, health enthusiasts, and anyone afraid to pursue an idea because others think it's crazy. Mark's story is a reminder that failure doesn't have to be the end of your journey. Sometimes it's the beginning of everything that comes next.

Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society.

Connect with Shawn

pillar.io/theshawnfrench

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The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.

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Nick Ayala on Capital, Character and Building Under Pressure Oct 12, 2026

Show notes

In this episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Nick Ayala, entrepreneur, co-founder of Platform One, and author of Capital Is the Game, for a raw conversation on business, discipline, fatherhood, integrity, raising capital, and what it really means to stay solid when life tests you.

Nick shares how growing up in Boca Raton showed him both sides of life: sleeping on a mattress in a one-bedroom apartment with his father while living across the street from extreme wealth. That contrast shaped the way he studied people, money, opportunity, and success.

The episode dives into:

• Growing up with financial struggle while being surrounded by wealth
• Learning how to study successful people from a young age
• Why Nick refuses to live with a victim mentality
• The golf injury that forced him to face a new identity
• Transitioning from sports into business
• Building and selling companies
• Doing nearly $100 million a year on the insurance side
• The truth about insurance, leads, chargebacks, and ego in the industry
• Walking away from a business situation he says he could not support morally
• Facing lawsuits, sleepless nights, and pressure without compromising integrity
• Why most founders are not ready to raise money
• What it means to be a steward of someone else’s capital
• How private equity, family offices, and high-net-worth investors think
• Why relationships matter more than transactions in business
• Lessons from doing business in Dubai and the UAE
• Fatherhood, discipline, marriage, and raising mentally strong kids
• Protecting your energy and choosing who gets access to your mind
• Why waking up early creates an advantage most people never use
• What determination really means in business, family, and life

This conversation goes beyond business and capital. It is about becoming mentally strong, building discipline, choosing responsibility over excuses, protecting your name, leading your family, and learning how to operate in rooms where the biggest deals are built on trust.

Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society.
Connect with Nick Ayala
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NickJamesAyala/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickjayala
Website: https://nickjayala.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN5GSbKmGzZJZKNYe9vLnJQ

Connect with Shawn

pillar.io/theshawnfrench

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:

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Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

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Yosef Martin on Building BoxyCharm, Selling for $500M, and Starting Over Oct 05, 2026

Show notes

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Yosef Martin, founder of BoxyCharm, entrepreneur, operator, investor, and founder of PepNow, for a high-level conversation on business, SEO, community, viral growth, peptides, biohacking, longevity, and what happens after you achieve the exit everyone else is chasing.

Yosef came to America as an immigrant student and started his first business because he needed to pay tuition. With no experience, no ad budget, and only $375 to start, he learned SEO, built Merchandise Liquidators, and later created BoxyCharm, one of the most influential beauty subscription brands in the world. The company scaled to over 1 million active members, generated massive revenue, and eventually became part of a major beauty industry deal. But when the wire hit, Yosef says he didn’t feel what people think he should have felt.

The episode dives into different chapters of Yosef’s life, including:

• Coming to America as an immigrant student
• Starting a business to pay out-of-state tuition
• Learning SEO before he knew what business would become
• Building Merchandise Liquidators from $375
• Going from liquidation to beauty subscription boxes
• Creating BoxyCharm with no traditional beauty background
• Building a cult-like community around the brand
• Using Facebook groups, sneak peeks, surveys, influencers, and customer obsession to fuel growth
• Why the right product and the right community can create a viral growth loop
• Scaling BoxyCharm to over 1 million active members
• Why the exit didn’t feel the way people expect
• Coming back into the arena with PepNow
• Peptides, GLP-1s, biohacking, sleep, visceral fat, metabolic health, and longevity
• Why the future of health may be built around education, community, and better products
• What determination really means when the climb starts to feel rewarding instead of painful

This conversation goes far beyond business success. It is about obsession, product-market fit, community, health, reinvention, and the mindset required to build again after achieving the kind of exit most entrepreneurs dream about.

Connect with Yosef Martin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yflmartin/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yosefmartin/
PepNow: https://pepnow.com/

Connect with Shawn

pillar.io/theshawnfrench

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:

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Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

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He Got Everything He Wanted. Then Realized He Wasn’t Free. | Garrett White Sep 28, 2026

Show notes

In this deeply vulnerable episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Garrett White for a conversation about identity, success, marriage, fatherhood, faith, surrender, ego, and what happens when the life you built no longer fits the person you're becoming.
By the time Garrett White was 30, he had built a fortune in mortgages and real estate, competed in Ironman races and ultramarathons, and created a life that looked like success from the outside.
Then it all came crashing down.
In 2008, his money, businesses, marriage, and identity were underwater at the same time. Instead of asking how to become more comfortable, Garrett began asking a much harder question:
How do I become the strongest possible human being in every area of my life?
That question eventually led to the creation of Wake Up Warrior, a system that has trained tens of thousands of men.
But years later, Garrett found himself confronting an uncomfortable truth: he had spent years teaching men how to “have it all,” while realizing that having it all did not necessarily mean being free.
Together, they explore:
• Losing his identity after sports and searching for a new purpose
• The 2008 collapse that changed everything
• How money, success, and achievement became Garrett’s identity
• The “never enough” mindset and the illusion that more will finally bring fulfillment
• Moving from motivation to discipline, process, and doing the simple work every day
• How marriage and communication forced Garrett to confront the man he had become
• Building a life of prosperity that somehow still felt like a prison
• The difference between having it all and actually being free
• Why Garrett began pursuing peace instead of constantly fighting for more
• Surrendering control and dismantling the identity of “Garrett White” piece by piece
• Contraction vs. collapse, and recognizing the warnings before everything falls apart
• Faith, God, surrender, and discovering what was underneath the pursuit of success
• Why Wake Up Warrior may have been built to wake Garrett up
• Letting go of an old identity to create something new
• Garrett’s powerful definition of determination: “Nothing and everything.”
This episode is about what happens when success stops being enough.
It’s about the courage to question the identity you've spent years building, the willingness to surrender what no longer serves you, and the determination to keep moving when you don't even know what the destination looks like.
Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society.
Connect with Shawn French
https://pillar.io/theshawnfrench

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:
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Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:
Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064
Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53
Connect with Garrett J. White

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garrettjwhite/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@garrett.j.white
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrett-j-white-0b8768313/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/GarrettJWhite
Website: https://wakeupwarrior.com/

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How Anthony Perera Built a $200M Company, Lost It and Bought It Back Sep 21, 2026

Show notes

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Anthony Perera, founder of Air Pros USA and Exuma Capital Partners, for a powerful conversation on entrepreneurship, brand building, risk, loss, loyalty, fatherhood, mindset, and what it really takes to rebuild after watching something you built fall apart.

The episode dives into different chapters of Anthony’s life, including:

• Starting his first magazine business with a $10,000 loan meant for tuition
• Selling magazines at events with no experience and no safety net
• Learning that perception becomes reality in business
• Taking risks before the money was there
• Building brands across media, hospitality, HVAC, technology, and capital
• Launching Air Pros USA with one truck and his father
• Using bold branding to stand out in a crowded home services market
• Scaling Air Pros into a $200M+ company
• Stepping down as CEO and watching the company be dismantled
• Losing massive paper net worth and facing public criticism
• Learning who was loyal when things got hard
• Buying back the Florida legacy operations through Exuma Capital
• Why mindset, positive energy, and family matter during pressure
• Building companies that create real impact for employees and operators

This conversation goes beyond business success. It is about risk, resilience, loyalty, fatherhood, reputation, and the determination to keep building even after the company you created is taken apart piece by piece.

Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society.

Connect with Shawn

https://pillar.io/theshawnfrench

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:

https://thedeterminedsociety.com

Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Connect with Anthony Perera
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyperera
Website: https://exumafunds.com/

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dose of Determination- The Promise Sep 18, 2026

Show notes

What happens when you stop negotiating with yourself and start doing what you said you were going to do?

In the first-ever Dose of Determination, Shawn French breaks down a simple but powerful truth: real change starts by keeping the promises you make to yourself.

Determination is not about waiting for motivation. It is about showing up when you are tired, frustrated, overwhelmed, or simply do not feel like doing the work.

Whether your promise is getting to the gym, starting the business, making the extra sales calls, improving your health, or being more present with your family, every promise you keep builds confidence, discipline, and self-trust.

In this episode, Shawn shares why discipline matters more than motivation, why self-shame does not create growth, and why becoming the person capable of achieving your goals starts with what you do today.

Ask yourself:

What is the one thing I keep telling myself I am going to do but continue putting off?

Make the promise. Keep the promise.

Visit TheDeterminedSociety.com to join the community and stay connected with everything happening inside The Determined Society.

If this episode hits home, share it with someone who needs their own Dose of Determination.

Stay Determined.

Join The Determined Society- https://thedeterminedsociety.com/

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How Justin Colby Built a Real Estate Empire From Rock Bottom Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Justin Colby, real estate investor, entrepreneur, coach, speaker, and podcast host, for a powerful conversation on failure, discipline, fatherhood, wealth, health, ego, and what it really takes to keep going when life knocks everything out from under you.

The episode dives into different chapters of Justin’s life, including:

• Losing everything during the market crash
• Sleeping on a friend’s couch with no car, no money, and no place to live
• Making 100 phone calls a day for months with almost no results
• Growing up with alcoholic parents and building a “so what, now what?” mentality
• The five laws of success
• Removing time expectations from your goals
• Why most people quit too soon
• Fatherhood, marriage, pressure, and the weight men carry
• Building businesses through KPIs, sales, and relentless execution
• The hardest financial year of his life in 2024
• Ego, humility, and rebuilding with clarity
• Health, longevity, wealth, and planning for the long game
• Why happiness, family, and freedom matter more than chasing more

This conversation goes beyond real estate and entrepreneurship. It is about scars, resilience, discipline, clarity, and the kind of determination it takes to keep moving forward when there is no easy way out.

Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society.

Connect with Shawn

https://link.me/shawnmf32

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:

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Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Connect with Justin Colby
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thejustincolby/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejustincolby/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thejustincolby
Website: https://justincolby.tv/

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

WWE Loss Into Reinvention | Daria Berenato on Breaking Norms & Overcoming Adversity Sep 07, 2026

Show notes

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Daria Berenato for a powerful conversation on reinvention, identity, WWE, entrepreneurship, authenticity, trauma, healing, and building life without permission.

The episode dives into different chapters of Daria’s life, including:

• Growing up with a drive for independence
• The South Jersey “shut up and do it” mentality
• Launching Demon and the meaning behind Built Without Permission
• Being doubted and still choosing to show up
• Walking into an MMA gym as a teenage girl
• Becoming the first female WWE talent with an MMA background
• Coming out on national television
• Living authentically and helping others feel seen
• Losing her WWE identity after ten years
• Winning a championship, tearing her ACL, and not getting renewed
• Healing, ayahuasca, and learning to let things flow
• Surviving a terrifying home invasion and stalking incident
• PTSD, safety, and the deeper story behind Demon
• Reinvention, purpose, and finding her fire again

This conversation goes beyond wrestling and entertainment. It is about identity, courage, heartbreak, authenticity, healing, and the determination to keep building even when life strips away the version of you that everyone knew.

Listen to the full episode now on The Determined Society.
Connect with Shawn
https://link.me/shawnmf32
Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:
https://thedeterminedsociety.com
Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:
Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064
Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53
Connect with Daria Berenato
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedariaraeberenato/
Website: https://www.thedariarae.com/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thedariarae

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From Wall Street to Breaking Norms | Adversity & Rebuilding Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Jay Roberts for a powerful conversation on adoption, ambition, Wall Street, failure, rebuilding, real estate, health, family, and what it really means to play the long game.

The episode dives into different chapters of Jay’s life, including:

• Being adopted from Korea and raised in America
• Growing up with a single mother and no safety net
• Turning insecurity into drive
• Losing family during the financial crisis
• Why success is built through process, not shortcuts
• The power of writing goals down
• Building a vision for your life, family, and business
• Wall Street, investment banking, and extreme work ethic
• Public failure and starting over in Miami
• Real estate, big deals, and thinking bigger
• Health, longevity, and quality of life
• Family, presence, freedom, and what really matters

This conversation goes beyond money and business. It is about process, resilience, ownership, health, family, and building a life that is not just successful on paper, but meaningful in real life.
Connect with Shawn
https://link.me/shawnmf32
Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION: https://thedeterminedsociety.com
Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:
Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064
Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53
Connect with Jay Roberts
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jayroberts/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayroberts
Website: https://www.jayroberts.com/

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ulysses Diaz: Breaking Norms From Prison to Knockout Power | Adversity & Discipline Aug 24, 2026

Show notes

Ulysses "Uly Monster" Diaz broke cycles of adversity, prison, and street life by walking into a boxing gym at 35. In this raw conversation, he opens up about breaking norms, fatherhood, faith, and the discipline that transformed his identity. One of combat sports' fastest knockout artists shares how accountability and daily discipline changed everything.

Together, we dive into:

• Growing up in Miami with no male role models

• Learning to fight at six years old

• Street life, prison, and the consequences of bad choices

• Touring with Pitbull and still trying to find his path

• The moment he asked God to pull him out

• Starting his fight career at 35

• The discipline and accountability of the boxing gym

• One of the fastest knockouts in combat sports history

• Fatherhood, marriage, faith, and family

• His son’s cancer battle and what it taught him

• Why consistency is the key to changing your life

• Letting go of people who cannot grow with you

This episode is about redemption, faith, fatherhood, consequences, discipline, and the determination to stop repeating the past and become the man your family needs you to be. Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society

#thedeterminedsociety #shawnfrench #ulyssesdiaz #ulymonster #bareknuckleboxing #bkfc #boxing #combatsports #fightermindset #faith #fatherhood #redemption #resilience #comebackstory #inspiration

Connect with Ulysses Diaz

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

X: https://x.com/Uly_MONSTER

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Ulysses-Diaz-100063488343637/

Connect with Shawn

https://link.me/shawnmf32

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION: https://thedeterminedsociety.com

Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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