The Hard Way With Joe De Sena

Latest Episodes:

128: Daniel Gluck | Health Warrior Jan 31, 2017

Show notes

Starting Health Warrior, a business borne out of a passion for health and fitness, moved Daniel Gluck away from Wall Street. He seized the opportunity to fill a niche in a food industry dominated by overly processed and high sugar offerings with healthful chia based alternatives. He was inspired by the legendary Tarahumara Indians who, fueled with chia seeds, are the ultra endurance runners described in the book "Born To Run." Gluck talks about what it takes to build something from scratch and how building this business changed his life for the better. Lessons: 1. Follow your passion even if it means struggling through hardship to find it. 2. Celebrate the wins; don't dwell on the losses. 3. Focus on the big picture of how it's going to work without getting mired in the day to day problems. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2017 Spartan

127: Brigadier General Thomas Solhjem | Hard Learned Secrets of Resilience Jan 24, 2017

Show notes

Battling addiction late in the Vietnam era, the US Army's Deputy Chief of Chaplains Brigadier General Thomas Solhjem found redemption through his faith and other's mentorship. As he realizes now, isolation, though a common strategy, is the worst way to deal with adversity. Reaching out to others and sharing your experiences is an admission of strength. He has spent an extremely long time in the military, forty years with thirty of those as a chaplain, helping others cope with the rigors of battle and drawing strength from trying circumstances. Solhjem sources his vast experiences to tell us how to be better people. Lessons: 1. The person who overcomes adversity is the person who is able to channel strength from outside theirself. 2. Post traumatic order is finding a positive context for hardship and becoming stronger as a result. 3. Resilience is the integration of elements into your life that enable you to be flexible. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2017 Spartan

126: Charlie Engle | Runs for his Life Jan 17, 2017

Show notes

Running across the Sahara, all 4600 miles, 50 miles a day for 111 consecutive days. That's what Ultrarunner Charlie Engle did to raise 6 million dollars for H20 Africa (now Water.org). In doing so he took his passion and did good with it. Engle overcame addiction and an unexpected jail sentence, but instead of running away from adversity, he embraced it. He started running marathons which turned into a gateway for more daunting races like ecochallenges. All told he's been racing for 30 years. His top piece of advice: attempting to make your life easier is a mistake. Lessons: 1. Welcome some suffering when it enters your life, some of the greatest lessons are from hardship. 2. Keep forward momentum going. 3. Find a way to use what you love to improve the world. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2017 Spartan

125: Jon Levy | How to Live a More Adventurous Life Jan 10, 2017

Show notes

Behavioral scientist & expert on adventure, Jon Levy knows what makes Spartans tick. He wrote a book about it, The 2AM Principle: Discover the Science of Adventure. A big reason why people undertake challenges outside their comfort zone is to reach flow state, a zen like sense of timelessness, total absorption in an activity, and sense of mastery. The IKEA effect, loving an activity according to the amount of effort you invested in it, also explains how Spartans are made. But the real gift of adventure, Levy explains, is it's transformative power. In this episode, Levy explains how to live a fun and exciting life and gain success in the process. Lessons: 1. Say yes to experiences. 2. Do something a little outside your comfort zone to help induce a state of flow. 3. Take advantage of the winner effect by getting some easy victories and building momentum for larger challenges. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2017 Spartan

124: Pete Cossaboon and Nelson Diaz | The Dash Between Birth and Death Dates Jan 03, 2017

Show notes

Not wanting to spend his life on the sidelines, blind athlete Pete Cossaboon started participating in Spartan events. He sought out and found a way to achieve this seemingly impossible goal. Nelson Diaz has dedicated himself to facilitating the implausible achievements of adaptive athletes through compassion and action. The events only have meaning and purpose to the degree that they can be applied to life at large and to what extent the athletes can use them to tell their unique story to the world. Lessons: - Any new situation, when confronted, evolves from fear to adaptation. - If life is a dash between you birthday and your death day, measure your value by the lives you have you changed in the interim. - Avoid distractions to the degree that they are diverting you from the main purpose of your life. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2016 Spartan

123: Dr. Jeffrey Upperman | Best Training for Emergencies Dec 27, 2016

Show notes

Trauma care is a creative process for Dr, Jeffrey Upperman. He mentors young surgeons by throwing them in a room together with very little to work with and let their ingenuity and communication skills come to the fore to solve a problem under duress. He points out that these skills are becoming a lost art in the age of texting and tweeting but they are no less vital in forming a successful person. Upperman in his years as a general surgeon took cues from his father, a man who prided himself in working with his hands, and stresses the importance of upbringing, yet acknowledges that the whole community bears responsibility for nurturing a success. Lessons: 1. Creativity is key in emergencies, and it can be learned. 2. We are all responsible to hold each other accountable. 3. We need rites of passage to learn to cope under duress.

122: Cal Fussman | How to Ask the Right Question Dec 20, 2016

Show notes

Cal Fussman, author as well as a writer for Esquire, went on a ten year worldwide journey with little money to his name. He subsisted on the good will of others, most often on those he met on the bus ride to his next destination. It was the perfect way to satisfy his insatiable curiosity and hone his interviewing skills. In this episode Fussman will talk about how to make everyday an opportunity for adventure and connection. Lessons: 1. Ask a canned question and you'll get a canned answer. Talk to people with authenticity. 2. When starting a big project don't reflect long enough to talk yourself out of it; just keep going forward. 3. Treat each day like a unique experience. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz © 2016 Spartan

121: Tim Gentry | Focus on People Dec 13, 2016

Show notes

When your business is in trouble, this is the guy you need. Tim Gentry develops people to motivate his own success. As an Ironman competitor he exemplifies strengthening the body as a way to maintain a powerful mind, something he believes many business people neglect to their detriment. His suggestion: keep it simple and do just one thing every day. Listen for more tried and true methods to persevere and thrive. Gentry shares some gems on this week's podcast. Lessons: 1. Focused on the people in your business,and let hurdles dissolve to white noise. 2. To revive someone who is lagging, put them in charge of others. 3. Write down all the great things that are happening in your life and read them when you need inspiration.

120: Ray Morvan | There's Always a Way Dec 06, 2016

Show notes

Mortgage officer and part of a Vermont family maple sugaring business, Ray Morvan found extreme multi day racing at random, after a battle with alcohol and opiate addiction. By helping him find community and a way to exert and build mental resilience it's exactly what the doctor ordered . He went on to compete in nine Peak Death Races which is almost certainly a record. We spoke with him at the Spartan Winter Agoge. Morvan credits stoicism for getting through life challenges that would break a lesser man. He is now championing the issue of addiction by assisting anyone who is willing to reach out to him. Morvan's phone line is open. Lessons: 1. Figure it out. There's always a way. 2. Simply put yourself out there, everyday, and have faith that it will get better. 3. In addition to PTSD think about PTSG - Post Traumatic Growth. CREDITS Producer – Marion Abrams, Madmotion, llc. Hosts: Joe De Sena with Johnny Waite, Sefra Alexandra, Col. Tim Nye, Dr. Delle & David Deluca Synopsis – Matt Baatz Copyright - 2016 Spartan

119: Damion Hahn | Why You Need to do What You Hate Nov 29, 2016

Show notes

Damion Hahn came a hair's breadth away from making the Olympics and advises those not achieving there goals "be mad about it, then turn your attention to tomorrow." He channels that drive training a team that has been near dynasty for the last quarter century of Ivy League wrestling. They got there by honing raw talent. The best persist, the rest need to find their niche elsewhere. Hahn has seen this success translate into the wrestler's everyday lives and he shares the methods that have built such consistent winners. Lessons: 1. Everybody's motivated differently; adjust your approach accordingly. 2. Enter each day with a purpose! 3. Be part of a community that motivates you achieve.

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