The Burn Podcast by Ben Newman
Join Ben Newman, highly regarded Performance Coach, International Keynote Speaker and 2x WSJ Best-Seller, as he takes you into the minds of some of the highest performers in sports and business to tell their full story. The "Burn" is something we all have, but rarely do people uncover and connect to it. Ben helps people from all walks of life reach their true maximum potential.
Ben has worked with coaches and players from the last 6 Super Bowl Champion teams and currently serves as the Performance Coach for the Big 12 Champion Kansas State football team in his 9th season (3 National Championships at North Dakota State) with Head Coach Chris Klieman. Ben served 5 years as the Mental Conditioning Coach for the 18x National Champion Alabama Crimson Tide football team. Lastly, Ben also has served at his alma mater as a Performance Coach for Michigan State University’s football and basketball programs.
For the last two decades, Ben has been serving as the Peak Performance Coach for the top 1% of financial advisors globally and for Fortune 500 business executives.
Ben’s clients have included: Microsoft, United States Army, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Quicken Loans, MARS Snackfoods, AstraZeneca, Northwestern Mutual, AFA Singapore, Mass Financial Group, Frontier Companies, Wells Fargo Advisors, Great West Life Canada, Boston Medical Center, Boys & Girls Club of America, New York Life as well as thousands of executives, entrepreneurs, athletes and sales teams from around the globe.
Millions of people and some of the top performers in the world have been empowered by Ben through his books, educational content, coaching programs, podcast, and live events.
The Burn Podcast by Ben Newman
Understanding Gratitude w/ Shannon and Matthew Missimer
On this weeks episode of the burn, I am extremely grateful to be sitting down with Shannon and Matthew Missimer. The founders of the Motion of Gratitude and friends for over 15 years. Two of the most genuine and intentional people you will ever meet living a life of significance and gratitude through their movement they call practicing “Gratosis.”
Shannon shares her insights on writing down thoughts of gratitude to shift perspectives instantly and Matthew emphasizes the significance of gratitude anchors, like his gratitude bracelet and what it stands for.
Together, they reveal how living out of one suitcase each for five months led them to realize just how little they need to thrive, fostering a new appreciation for life’s simple pleasures.
We also spotlight their company, Motion of Gratitude, which aims to bring the practice of gratitude into corporate settings and school systems. They’re on a mission to encourage people to slow down, practice gratitude, and put pen to paper.
Get Matthew's Book here- https://matthewwmissimer.com/the-paradox-of-having-your-sht-together/
Chapters:
01:15 - Introducing the Missimers
05:45 - Shannon on Writing Down Thoughts of Gratitude
12:30 - Matthew on Gratitude Anchors and His Bracelet
18:00 - Living Out of a Suitcase: A Lesson in Simplicity
25:10 - The Courageous Transition from Corporate to Purposeful Living
30:20 - The Birth of Motion of Gratitude
36:45 - Redefining Success through Parenthood
42:10 - Bringing Gratitude into Corporate and Educational Settings
49:00 - Matthew’s Book: "The Paradox of Having Your Sh*t Together"
55:30 - Creating Experiences and Being Intentional with Gratitude
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We went for five months and we lived out of one suitcase each. It just created this space where you realize how much you don't need in order to live and to thrive.
Speaker 2:For me personally. At that phase of my life, I almost felt like I had to back myself into corners and fight my way out.
Speaker 3:Welcome back to another episode of the Burn. I am Ben Newman and you've learned to understand how we do this. Every single week we're going to bring you a story of an athlete, an entertainer, a celebrity, individuals from the business world who prove for all of us that why and purpose is not enough. It's the underlying burn that ignites your why and purpose and causes you to show up on the days you don't feel like it, and especially after you win.
Speaker 3:Today is a very special opportunity for me to welcome two dear friends and long-term friends of mine, which we will get into Matthew and Shannon Missimer. They are two individuals who have been successful in both of their rights before they ever even met, and then now they have made courageous steps as parents, as business owners, to turn away from what's easy but, by staying connected to your burn, to chase the difficult, to make a bigger impact in a world where sometimes we're told it's not your time and you shouldn't do those courageous things and you should do the things that are easy and comfortable. So you're going to learn from this episode, all the years that we've known each other, how proud I am of everything that they're doing, how we've remained part of each other's lives for over 15 years now, and it's these types of relationships in my life that make life so meaningful. So, with no further ado, welcome Shannon and welcome Matthew to a long overdue opportunity for us to spend time together on the burn.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having us, Ben. It's so nice being here.
Speaker 3:We're excited, so I want to take you guys back to. Many have heard the story of, you know, boot camps and events that our company throws, and you know I've been doing this work in this space for almost 20 years and had the crazy idea to throw a boot camp back in 2019. So, yes, that means 15 years ago we started throwing events and throwing boot camps. The first ever boot camp was a very small boot camp. Thank goodness Amy my wife for those of you that don't know thank goodness Amy didn't ask me how profitable that first event was, because we did not make any money at an event that only had nine people, most people would have given up at their first event having nine people.
Speaker 3:The event was in St Louis, which is certainly not as beautiful as Puerto Rico, where we'll do this year, or the Virgin Islands or Vegas, where we've done some amazing boot camps, and Shannon and Matt have been part of many boot camps, but Matt was part of our first boot camp and, matt, what I would love for you to do is just take us back, because we're not here to talk about boot camps. We're here to talk about the two of you, but even before boot camp, and it's so meaningful to me that not only did you come to one boot camp, but I think.
Speaker 3:Puerto Rico will be like your 10th boot camp. He's the all-time record holder for attending the most boot camps ever.
Speaker 2:Do I get a trophy? We should get you a little trophy in Puerto Rico get a trophy.
Speaker 3:We should get you a little trophy in Puerto Rico. You know, you came to pick me up when I was giving a speech for the financial firm you were working for way back in the day, which is about a year before that boot camp. So you know, 16 years ago, what was it in you 16 years ago? Just getting your start showing courage back then. The way that you've now shown courage now to say, hey, I'll go pick up that guy at the airport. I didn't know you. You didn't know me Somewhere along the line. I don't know if you were forced to do it. I never asked you, but you did it, which I appreciated. You came to pick up the speaker for the event the next day, appreciated. You came to pick up the speaker for the event the next day, and little did I know 16 years later we would develop this amazing relationship. But take me. Take me back to the courage that it took starting a business then and those little decisions that you would make to do, the things that were uncomfortable, which led to us meeting.
Speaker 2:Well, in that moment you know I don't remember specifically why I went into my managing partner's office at the time and said, hey, can I go pick this guy up at the airport? You know, flying into the city of brotherly love is not that welcoming. So I always thought, well, if we're going to fly in these speakers, why wouldn't I go pick them up? And then I would get some one on one time and then I would always get invited to the events that were being hosted for that speaker.
Speaker 2:So the courage for me was more practical at that moment of, well, this is happening, why don't I take this opportunity to meet this guy? And I remember you getting in my car and instantly I knew I'm like, oh boy, this relationship is probably going to change my life. And you know, we shook hands that evening and we made a bet, watching a basketball game that night about MDRT. And it was so neat to follow through on that bet and fly to St Louis and take you and Amy out to dinner and follow through on that need, to follow through on that bed and fly to St Louis and take you and Amy out to dinner and follow through on that. So these were just moments in times where, for me personally, at that phase of my life, I almost felt like I had to back myself into corners and fight my way out to succeed, because fear was a big part of my life and I wanted to be so successful and overcome that fear.
Speaker 3:Which is, you know we hit it off right away. I know you and Shannon hit it off right away, and no surprise that you and I both being hard charging individuals and I've always loved that about you the fight, no fear. You know things that come from childhood, but deciding to persevere and just I'm going to fight and make it happen. Shannon, I've always seen the same in you, which probably explains why you guys now have a beautiful family and you've literally taken on the world together, which we'll get into even from a parenting standpoint. You guys have done the uncomfortable and been courageous and created amazing experiences for your family. But what has it been for you? Why have you been so courageous?
Speaker 1:What has caused you to do the things, or what was the burn for you that caused you to always do I would like I got to go make money. You know, there was just this belief of like I'll get to a point where I will, I will make it. You know, I'll get to this place where I will, I'll do the thing and I'll feel like I succeeded. You know, and it was this drive to like want to get to that point, and I think it was definitely the people I was hanging out with and seeing you know their drive and their motivation.
Speaker 1:But I don't know, I think there was something that shifted for me later in life and really becoming a mom that connected me to something that was actually more of a burn, and I think it was more depth to it of not just wanting to get to the thing but wanting to live a life that had meaning to it. You know that I could feel like there was purpose and I could feel like there was, you know, really intention in the work that I was doing. So I would say, you know, my early 20s, there was just this want to find success, want to be in the professional world, want to be taken seriously. You know like just want to thrive in business. But I would say becoming a mom shifted that and connected with me to a depth of my why that I didn't realize existed before that.
Speaker 3:So, so powerful and in your, in your parenting, before we get to the success that you guys now are having and the motion of gratitude and the movement and the purpose and the alignment you have together to change the world. And you're already doing so many significant things to change the world and how people show up. But let's talk about parenting, because you both had success. You chose the uncomfortable, which we'll get to, to step out of the normal success. Or you know, matthew, you similar to uncomfortable, which we'll get to, to step out of the normal success. Or you know, matthew, you similar to me, successful advisor, and neither of us are advisors anymore, right, and both of us having a level of success where you could have said, my goodness, why would you ever walk away Like you'd almost reached the point?
Speaker 3:It's kind of easy at that point. You just kind of show up and do what you're supposed to do. But you guys also haven't taken the easy path. As parents, you've provided experiences. You know, so oftentimes we as parents say, oh well, it's going to go so fast and we want to provide experiences. You guys have done that in multiple states, multiple countries RVs, planes, trains, automobiles. Tell us a little bit about your philosophy of I would almost call it you live once. You better do what you want to do and experience these experiences with your children before it's too late.
Speaker 3:Yeah you take that one.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think you know I had to redefine success when I became a stay at home mom. So for me, before becoming a mom and staying home with my kids, external success was my definition right. So that shift of really that external validation and being in the world to now I'm home, it's me, these kids. As we all know, parenting can be kind of a thankless experience. Those first couple years, you know you have to show up for yourself in a way to really redefine what you want those moments to look like. And for me, very early on in the parenting journey, I realized that this could be completely our journey. There's not a rule book, there's not a playbook, there's not one way in which this parenting journey has to be done. And it just felt like success to me was knowing my kids, being a family and choosing to live life as we define it. And I think you know the last couple of years for us became an opportunity to really figure out what's important, you know, and and.
Speaker 1:I think we were given a moment in time that we felt wasn't necessarily going to last forever. So it's like let's make the most of it. You know, this is a time where our kids are still young and we saw through their experience of life how much they were learning to say yeah, yeah, it's homeschool, yeah, it's world school. You know, like you, there's such an opportunity to see them thrive by being in the world. That, um, it was. It was easy for us to say this is an opportunity for us to, to go and experience life and allow life to unfold, rather than saying, you know, like, this is the path we have to take. So it's been a heck of a journey.
Speaker 2:Um comment on this is Shannon. Although I was driving the RV, she was driving the bus, so this was very much Shannon's idea and for me it was a little self-serving. So when COVID happened, if I were to get out of my bed, go to my desk and go to my Peloton and that was my rotation I would have lost my mind. So the idea of getting the RV and going out into the world and seeing how the world was responding and doing it as a family, it was incredible and it really opened up Pandora's box for us of how you could live differently. And I mean our company is the motion of gratitude. It is the opposite of going through the motions and that looks different for everyone, but for me that rhythm of that triangle would be very much just going through the motions and I couldn't do that. So what began as this is fun and a good idea turned into wow, I really have this opportunity to get to know my children and come together as a family unit, and home was wherever we were.
Speaker 3:And one of those homes was in Costa Rica, and I think it was the first time in the history of me being invited on to a podcast where I receive a text message. Electricity's out, we don't know what's going on. We're in Costa Rica, we got to reschedule and, uh, any anything for the two of you, so it was no big deal.
Speaker 1:I was like, are you serious? Like this is the day the pot, the, the electricity is going to go out the whole town.
Speaker 3:But so what was the what was the greatest lesson? Cause I think, once again, people take what's easy, they take what's normal, they just keep going through those proverbial motions of life. And what was the greatest lesson that you learned? Being in Costa Rica, literally taking your family to another country to spend time, and the schooling they received? It was just so different than what most people would ever even take a chance to do. What was the greatest lesson you learned as a family and life lesson?
Speaker 1:I think for me, one of the main things that I look back on is we went for five months and we lived out of one suitcase, each Like it's it.
Speaker 1:It just created this space where you realize how much you don't need in order to live and to thrive. And you go to these places where it's about being together and it's about being outside and it's about being a family, and for me it was just such a reminder that sometimes I think in the world we think we need all this stuff. You know, like we think we need all these things and our kids have to be like in all these sports or in all these organized things, which are wonderful. Yeah, and for this moment in time, for five months, for us to say we're going to disconnect from all of it. There's no Amazon, there's no packages getting delivered to you know wherever we are off the dirt roads in Costa Rica. But not only did we just survive the situation like it was. Such a beautiful experience for me is just the simplicity of all of it just to really let go of everything you think defines who you are and just be.
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Speaker 3:Now back to the show. I think as a total side note, I'm going to let the family know that we're going to temporary pretend like we're in Costa Rica. So there's no Amazon, because it is a problem at our houses. I think it is for most Americans, because everything is way too excited.
Speaker 3:I mean you need a toothbrush these days like ordered on Amazon and it shows up at your house in an hour. I mean the world is moving so fast, which brings up an interesting next point where I really want to spend a good amount of time and it's with your business. And you know, along the journey of you choosing to do things differently and your way and experiences and stepping into things that other people would never even have a chance because they weren't willing to get into an RV. They're not willing to do the things that are outside of the regular structures of the four walls of our home, the motion of gratitude that that seed was born through these amazing experiences and the two of you slowing down in life. I encourage everybody and we're going to make it so easy to follow the movement, the company, your opportunities where Motion of Gratitude is now being brought into corporate settings for corporate gratitude, into school systems, and so you guys will be able to follow Shannon and Matt and their business. We're going to make it super easy. But you guys have branded this thing. I mean you've got the motion of gratitude vehicle going down the street. I mean it's just been amazing. You guys have built it, you've owned it, you've leaned into it and I'm so proud of what you're now taking to the world.
Speaker 3:But tell us about the seed in your mind where you said okay, here's an idea where we could teach people to slow down. We could teach people to have gratitude, we could teach people to put pen to paper. Take us back to that moment where you looked at each other and said we're going for this. Where, matt, you said I'm out, we're retiring, shannon, I'm not going back to a corporate setting Because I know, shannon, you are so driven and you were successful in your own right and you could have gone back and taken a corporate job. And you guys said no, we're doing it our way again. Who wants to start with? How this plays out?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so this whole, everything about the business, everything about the motion of gratitude, was born out of personal need, Like it's all from personal experience. Uh, this started in 2018 with uh. At the time, I was home with we only had our two girls. At the time, we didn't have our son and you know I was just at a point in my life where our second she took a little bit of time to settle into the world. Um, she, she was had deep emotions and you know, mom was the only one that could comfort her. She didn't take a bottle, whatever she needed, anything, she needed me and, as a mom, it's one of the most special places to be and it can be one of the most intense places if you don't understand how to take care of yourself and for myself.
Speaker 1:At the time, I didn't understand the value of slowing down and I thought that this is something I could just run through, like I ran through everything else, you know, and it was really through that time with Quinn where, you know, matt came home from work one day and I was knee deep and everything that was going wrong. Right, it's like he had a long day and there was just this space of kind of dumping on him all the things that didn't go right. And you know, matt, with like his heart of gold, he looks at me and he's like Shannon, you're going to have to be a little bit more grateful. And it's like what, like, what are you talking about?
Speaker 2:I didn't sleep on the couch that night.
Speaker 3:For the record, you know, you were damn close though oh yeah, oh yeah it was like how, how is that the word you know?
Speaker 1:like why is that the word that matt chose? And you know it's, it's stuck with me and, as, as I worked through the anger and kind of the frustration of it all, it literally got to a point where I was like he is, he's right, like I have. I dreamed of this moment of being home with my babies. I dreamed of this, this, this house, this, us being married, the healthy kids, you know like. There's so many things that I dreamed of that I was missing. They were still happening all around me, but in that moment, the, the deep intensity was taking over Um, so it became very clear that I knew that I didn't want to go back to work at that time.
Speaker 1:I wanted to be home, I wanted to raise my kids, um, and through that, I knew that I didn't want to go back to work at that time. I wanted to be home, I wanted to raise my kids and through that, I knew that I had to do something different. And the choice that I made was I was going to get really intentional with my gratitude practice, and it was literally through the intentional practice of waking up and, you know, focusing on my gratitude. It was a matter of days, maybe weeks, where the things that were making me cry two weeks before were now making me laugh, because I was like, oh my gosh, like there's so much beauty still here.
Speaker 1:And just the shift in perspective. And, you know, it just became one of those things. The more that I got into the gratitude and the more I dove into being present and mindfulness and what that actually is. It made me realize that gratitude is talked about a lot but we're not encouraged how to feel it all of the time. So it was through my experience where I learned to feel it in a depth that I hadn't before, that it was like, yeah, there's something here, and so that kind of became the beginning of it. I kind of looked back at the experience and started to share it with Matt, started to share with other people and, you know, as Matt started to really come into the space, it's like we know that we can support people on this part of their journey. Right, there is such incredible resources in different areas that people can be supported. And it's how can we support them from this space and kind of meet them where they are?
Speaker 1:You know I was a stay-at-home mom who wasn't looking for a coach at the time, because what do you coach somebody towards, right? But there were things that we were able to explore and, you know, from there it just became a lifestyle. It became how we raise our kids, how we show up in the world. You know the RV life, the Costa Rica it just literally brought us to this place of. This is how we want to live every day, and it's not that every day is filled with sunshine and happy things, but it's choosing to intentionally focus on what is continuing to go right, even when there's some big parts of life that might not be going the way that we want them to.
Speaker 3:You know, one of my favorite words is intentional, and you've used it a few times in your answer. Matt, if you could help us better understand just some of the intentional components when people step into the concept of gratitude with you from the beautiful gift boxes that you'll send to the matching bracelets that you both have on your wrist, to the journaling of the motion of gratitude Help us understand why you've been so intentional in helping people connect to the importance of gratitude and how you go about doing that through the process of you know what you've coined as the term gritosis.
Speaker 2:Well, and I wanted to kind of take a step back also in the history here. So, like, the firm that we were working at when this was all happening was investing so much money into me on a day-to-day basis? Right, we were. I was being groomed to be in this leadership role and I think we take that for granted when we're working for these big corporations. So what I was, as I was evolving and seeing what Shannon was not receiving, that was teaching me what I needed to do and it inspired me to share with others who don't have all of those resources breathed into them on a daily basis, and the evolution of getting to this point, of this intentionality around gratitude and like, our tagline is feel the impact and feel the impact of an intentional gratitude practice. That, to your point that word is critical of me leaving the financial services business and getting to this moment was I was obsessing on a daily basis around the paradoxes of life, of watching clients sacrificing their lives in the pursuit of capital. I would help them retire and inevitably something would happen where they wouldn't be happy and that paradox started to drive me insane.
Speaker 2:So, transitioning to this world where every day, you feel the impact of intentional gratitude, and everything that you do is a trigger or an anchor. So, like the bracelets, it's an anchor. It anchors me into a moment where, if my son or daughter is doing something that is triggering me, I remember. It's all about remembering that I get to be a father in this moment. And, yes, this moment right here is hard, but so many men around the world would either one crave to have a relationship with their father or two to be a father in the first place. So the intensity of that and I'm an intense person, that's who I've always been so, as Shannon was building out these products and the box and the color schemes and the logo, everything behind the brand of the Motion of Gratitude is designed to help you remember that this is all a miracle like this, this whole thing, um, and and that's where, every morning, I wake up, I wish myself happy birthday, I meditate, I journal and I read my vision.
Speaker 3:It has to happen. I love it. Tell us a little bit more the color scheme, the boxes, the intentionality, why that word is so important to you when it comes to your mission.
Speaker 1:So the word actually didn't fully sink in for me of what intention was until I really started this practice. And I think you know, as I shared before, there's a lot of talk about gratitude. I think you know, as I shared before, there's a lot of talk about gratitude but the if it's not something that we're doing intentionally, consciously, you know, whatever that means, we kind of miss the, the beauty of what it creates. And for me, I felt like if somebody was going to go through something like this experience, I want them to feel like it's more than just a program, like I want it to feel like it's something. That's why we called it the experience. It's meant to be an experience for you to fully allow yourself to feel the impact of what gratitude can do in your life. And you know, as I was building it out, I wanted to feel proud of what we've created.
Speaker 1:You know the products are made here in the US. They're eco-conscious, it's FSC certified. I searched out a publisher in Arizona to have everything made here. The books are stamped with iron stamps because I wanted it to still have meaning, like sometimes I think that that gets missed in the pieces. And you know the color, the chartreuse color is so meaningful and there's a whole nother story behind how we got to that color, but I think you know it being something that's bright, that you see, and I think symbols sometimes can pull us in different directions, but when it's a color, there's just something really special about that. You know, like now, not only when I see chartreuse on my wrist do I think about it, but now when I see it on people's clothing, I you know, I think about it it's now this color, that that it becomes a visual cue in my life to kind of bring me back into it, the intentional presence.
Speaker 1:So, um, yeah, there was just. It felt like if we were going to do this, we were going to put our heart on it and it was going to be felt by the people that are actually experiencing it. So that's, that was really. You know, that was what was on my heart through through the building of the physical product.
Speaker 3:Well, for, for anybody who's listening, who has maybe listened too much to their self-talk. They've had self-doubt. Maybe they've heard from friends, family, loved ones oh, you know, are you sure you want to take these courageous steps? You know, I'm so proud of all of you because you put your heart into it. You leaned into it with your heart, you leaned into it with your belief, and I think people feel that when they speak to you, when it comes to opportunity, whether you're being brought in in a corporate setting for trainings and presentations and opportunities to teach and help people slow down, whether it is in school systems, whether it is through coaching, whether it is through your podcast, all the different platforms in which you're growing the brand but where I was so proud and it's like I had to wait all these years to finally get in at Alabama, which was like the pinnacle, right, you know, I have North Dakota State, Alabama, kansas State, all these big football programs and you guys, just you just started IMG. So you know, all of a sudden Matt calls me and he's like hey, we've got this. You know, just real nonchalant. You know we've got this opportunity at IMG to go do a presentation. I'm like Matt, like, do you know what you're saying and you know I waited all these years and I think there's just something special. I think you're rewarded in life when you believe and you're courageous and you take action. And you guys skipped all the steps that I skipped and you went right for the pinnacle.
Speaker 3:But you know, img is the pinnacle of high school athletics. It's where parents are sending their kids to you know, who have been blessed with talent to almost like guaranteed you're going to become a professional athlete, for sure, a collegiate athlete, and you all have had the opportunity to now begin the process initial presentations, work at img. What was that experience? After matt, I helped you realize what that was. You were walking in. I think shannon knew, but like I don't know if you quite knew having that experience on such a big stage, um, so early, in wanting to bring this into the sports world, which was another courageous step, like, can we do this in sports? Tell us a little bit about that experience and what causes you guys to continue to just go for it in a world where most people seek comfort and waiting on the sidelines just to kind of see how it plays out world where most people seek comfort, and waiting on the sidelines just to kind of see how it plays out.
Speaker 2:So going flying down to IMG and getting the tour of the campus and meeting the mental toughness coaches, and it was so rewarding because you got to see the best of the best and how they approach the holistic well-being of the child, of the athlete, and it was very rewarding for me. Regardless to what happens there, it inspires me to bring any aspect of that to my local high schools. If I can help the local high schools adopt 10% of the gift that these children are receiving at the most elite institution for high school in the United States, that inspires me and I love breathing into people that don't have that opportunity because of my upbringing. And helping athletes is so inspiring for me because they are the leaders of this country Not all of them, but these people. One day they will no longer be able to play on that field, but they're going to play on the field of life and they're going to win.
Speaker 2:So if we can be a part of that equation and I can see professional athletes wearing this bracelet and adopting gratitude into the local sports programs that they're hosting, that just lights me up. So that's how I saw that opportunity, with so many win-win-wins, and you know, you've taught me Milo, particularly over the last five years. Seduction of success so I might skip over it because it's just the beginning. Success so I might skip over it because it's just the beginning. It is literally, it is valuable and it's just another day for me to be out there spreading the message.
Speaker 1:Shannon, yeah, I have some. I think what was really exciting for me because I think a lot of people throw gratitude to the side as a tool, right. So like people are like, what are you doing, talking about gratitude in a sports setting, you know, like that's a lot of the thought process that comes up and I think for me, what was so impactful about it and what's beautiful about what IMG does, where Matt was talking about, is the fact that they take this holistic approach to their student athletes and they have a whole department focused on the mental well-being of the athletes. So there was I believe there's about 33 staff that focus solely on the mental support of the athletes, which, in the world that we live in right now, is monumental. And to be able to be in that setting we had the opportunity to present to that mental health staff and share about the research, the science of gratitude, how the impact of the support that it provides, whether it be on the field, in the classroom.
Speaker 1:To really dive into the science of gratitude and talk about it in that setting to me was so exciting that it's really bringing the science and the story together, which I think we are at that place in our world where there's so much opportunity for that, that mental support, and I and I think one of the most impactful things for me was at the end, the um, the head of their leadership department, stood up and raised his hand and he said you know, I just want you to know, like, keep going. He's like this is one of the pillars of the work that I do and it is so important and gratitude needs to be talked about and it is something that we need to develop more. You know resources around, so to me that was, whatever happens here, like I'm going full force because it's it's. It's such a beautiful way to speak into that space and I think to see that people are really starting to see that connection and realize that.
Speaker 1:You know it, the mental well-being of an athlete defines a lot of athletes. If that mental piece isn't there, you can have an incredible physical human, but if that mental piece isn't in connection, there's a lot that can go in different directions and there's such an opportunity to support people from that mental space and I think the fact that IMG sees it and there's so much development there. It just speaks to opportunities, of ways to support kids and students all over the world. So I think that was what was so inspirational to us. It's like if an institution where people are working really hard to put their kids in these spaces, to receive these educations, to know that we can bring that to other spaces. I think was really powerful for us.
Speaker 3:I'm just so incredibly proud of the work that you're doing and you know, one of the things that I love all these years of working together, it's you know you guys don't choose to come to a boot camp for entertainment. You know, yes, we do create some amazing experiences at our boot camps.
Speaker 3:But you know it's when you say little things, matt, like you know, five years ago, seduction of success, and then you take it to IMG. It was the same thing for me with Alabama, when coach Saban, you know, hired me, when you know coach Kleiman, you know, made sure that like hey, if I'm taking this job at Kansas State, I'm only taking it if you're coming with me. You know things like that that you know, just, there are these huge victories of life, but life is about relationships, slowing down and having that gratitude. And so I just, I'm just so appreciative that you take those lessons because I don't get seduced by success. And you know, I think for us, you know, the two of you as leaders and coaches in this world, you know, I've said it so many times we can only lead people to the level of discipline in which you live. And you guys don't just teach the motion of gratitude, you live it, you own it. That discipline is how you live, it's how you teach, it's how you raise your children, it's what you've leaned into and it's just why I encourage everybody to do your research, to learn more. We're going to make it so easy for you to stay connected with Shannon and Matt, but I just I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of the two of you. Before I, I talked about one last thing, which is Matt becoming an author, which was just absolutely awesome as well. Little side note, because there's going to be a special moment. There are no coincidences, but as I asked this question about the paradox of having your shit together and the journey of awakening your mind, how fitting that it just turned 4.44 pm.
Speaker 3:Mr Matt Missimer, while we are recording this, it's almost going to bring tears to my eyes, because the number 44 has always been my number since I was a little kid. Those of you that have done my crazy workout know that there's 444 throughout it, and you know I get to learn in these relationships. You know it's not just me being the teacher. I get to learn from Shannon, I get to learn from Matt, and Matt you came up to me in Vegas. I mean, it's just last year and I didn't know all these years.
Speaker 3:Literally, 44 for me started out as Anthony Peeler, an old lefty jump shooter from University of Missouri, and that's why my kids wear 44. It's why I wore 44. Like, people want to know the significance, but I didn't know all these years. 444 throughout my workout passwords, everything that I have done, that you shared with me that that's really the number of the angels, which made me realize that number was probably brought into my heart because of my mom being with me and you know it's kind of fun. Now you'll text me screenshots of 444 sometimes literally I cannot believe we're recording and we cross over 444.
Speaker 3:I'd like how fitting, um, but I just I had to share that. If you want to know more about 444, come see us in puerto rico and work out with us.
Speaker 3:there you go, but you have a book that's up on your bookshelf. There's multiple copies, but I want everybody to be able to see the book the Paradox of Having your Shit Together. Why was this so important? As if you weren't busy enough three beautiful children really getting out of the gates as fast as could be. I wouldn't even call it a startup, because you guys are just running at opportunity at such a fast level, making a difference. What made you decide to also write a book? And you know we've been able to help I think it's over 30 individuals become authors through our relationship with Game Changer Publishing and Chris Cawley, who I know is, you know, now become a friend of yours and she's a dear friend of mine and the publisher that we use. Why was it so important for you to slow down and get this message out and to get the book out and to get your story out?
Speaker 2:That's a big question. Well before I start there, one I know how to get the money out of your ATM because your password is probably 444. To get the money out of your ATM because your password is probably 444.
Speaker 3:But come and try to get that card from me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm not messing with that.
Speaker 2:I did wake up at 444 to go to my hot yoga today.
Speaker 2:So the book, you know, I grew up in a certain setting and I didn't have access to a lot, so what motivated me primarily as a young professional was things, materialism, and at the time I didn't call it that, I called it a reward system the nice watches, the nice cars, the beautiful house. So the beginning of that book is all of the paradoxes that I had to explore in my 20s and early 30s and fortunately I had an event in my life that allowed us to really take a step back and breathe financially. And in that moment, probably about three months after that transition happened in my life, everything felt backwards. I didn't want to put the nice suits on because I didn't care anymore. I didn't put the nice watch on because I didn't. I was doing that for other people, to impress them or to press upon them that I had earned the right to manage their money, to impress them or to press upon them that I had earned the right to manage their money. So the first part of that book is all the things.
Speaker 2:That I hope is maybe a shortcut for people to not say it's great to have nice things, but that I had taken it to a different level. Those nice things is all I thought about. And then I went through the journey of being a father and I thought, now I have all these nice things is all I thought about. And then I went through the journey of being a father and I thought, now I have all these nice things, but no matter how nice of a thing I have, if I don't learn to level up as a human, I'm not going to be able to hold space for my kids. So that was eye opening. And ultimately this led to the middle of the book, which is a journey that I took in Costa Rica, which Aaron Rodgers has taken, which many professional people have taken.
Speaker 2:And I went on that journey in Costa Rica and most people do not publish their notes, but I wanted to. I wanted to share my heart with people, to understand the complexity of the human psyche and the beauty. It's amazing. And then the end of the book, I felt I need to teach, in a way of like, how to integrate all this new information into your life and do it in a practical way.
Speaker 2:And so many people go on the spiritual journey and end up broke and single, and I don't like it. I wanted to change the paradigm, so I wanted to go on the spiritual journey and end up married and living in abundance, and I felt compelled to write the book as part of my healing journey. To be honest, when we were in Costa Rica I mean, yes, it was a beautiful place to live, but in the same way that a caterpillar turns to mush before it turns to a butterfly, part of writing that book was my mush and putting it on that paper cleared it, and I get text messages once a week of someone, multiple times a week, of just like thank you for writing that.
Speaker 2:I wish I would have read that 20 years ago. And that little nod allows me to keep going. So the book is a self-fulfilling positive loop to help me to stay on track.
Speaker 3:I love it. It is to see you say you wanted to become an author and then to watch you become an author and then to hear you having that impact and the impact of your business and the courage you both continue to show up with is just absolutely incredible and I just I can't say it enough how just blessed I feel, how grateful I am to be part of this journey with you, and we've now been recording for 44 minutes and 44 seconds, so I'm just I'm going to let people know we're going to have fun with this, because this is this is what we do now.
Speaker 3:If that's the number of the angels.
Speaker 3:We see it all the time in our house it's 444 and everybody yells it and screams it. It's, it's amazing, but I'd love to leave everybody with this Once again. We're going to make it so easy for everybody to pick up a copy of the book and to be able to follow and to better understand, to become part of the motion of gratitude that would immediately allow somebody, through your work, through your coaching, through your teaching, what's an immediate action step that somebody can take to help them just slow down and bring more gratitude into their lives. I'd love to finish that way, with hearing from both of you.
Speaker 2:You go first.
Speaker 1:Okay, I think what comes up for me is there's so much power in writing something down, and I think we can very much take that for granted, and I think a lot of times when we think about gratitude, it's like, well, I thought about something that I was grateful for, and that's a great starting point truly getting your thoughts of gratitude and get them on paper. It will allow you to deeper experience the gratitude and feel it almost a second time, and I think that's what's so powerful about it, and that's something that can instantly begin the shift of the perspective. I think one of the most important things that I learned through all of this is I didn't need to shift my external world. I needed to shift my perspective. So I think that's a beautiful way in which that process can be started instantly.
Speaker 2:Mine is an anchor, this bracelet. Although it may seem silly to some, it gets me out of a lot of squirrely situations mentally and my phone, my notebooks, everything is a gratitude anchor in my life and that's because I battle my mind a lot. So this bracelet means so much to me and it's why I want to create a social movement around gratitude. Because when I go out into the community, the places we go to eat, the restaurants that we love, the owners are wearing this bracelet it. It makes me so happy going out into the world and seeing people wearing this bracelet because I know they're thinking differently.
Speaker 3:People wearing this bracelet, because I know they're thinking differently. I just intentional. I'll leave everybody with intentional. You know this. I made an intentional choice that this was going to be a longer episode, when you have two amazing friends on one screen rather than rather than one. Even though we teased, didn't we, Shannon, that we're going to leave that off, maybe just have a little bubble head or a pop up.
Speaker 3:It was just going to be the two of us on the screen, but this has been this has been so fun, and you know, for, for those of you listening, I want to share something else with you which makes me emotional. I've done what I've done for a long time and I always try to show up and do it as best as I possibly can and as intentional as I can. And, matt, for you and I to have been on this ride together for 16 years, it's these types of relationships that just that make me emotional, because this is what life's all about. You know, you picked me up 16 years ago and it wasn't just a ride. It was the beginning of a journey we would take for the rest of our lives, and we didn't know it then. But we've. We've remained close and we keep getting closer.
Speaker 3:There have been gaps, but never very far. You know, we're always a message away or a voice note away or a question away, but I just I really appreciate how you show up in life. I appreciate the continued opportunity to be a part of your life and Shannon, the same for you, and I just I'm grateful for both of you. I'll continue to be the greatest support I possibly can to push your mission forward, because the work that you're doing is going to change the world, and I think it's the individuals who choose to be courageous, like the two of you had, who choose to seek the uncomfortable, are the ones who will really make a profound impact and leave a legacy. So I just I'm so very proud of the motion of gratitude, proud of you and I love you both, and just grateful that we were able to spend this time together on the burn.
Speaker 2:We love you too.
Speaker 3:I don't always do this. I do it from time to time, but I'm going to ask everybody to make sure that maybe listen twice. These are longer. It's a longer episode than normal. Listen to it twice, maybe listen to parts of it. You say I need to go back and listen to that again.
Speaker 3:I want you to choose to be intentional, because I think I could have more gratitude, I think I could slow down a little bit more, so I'm going to enjoy going back and listening to this again. So I'm going to enjoy going back and listening to this again. My pen, starting tomorrow, is going to hit my burn journal differently, with a little more gratitude, and I'm grateful for the impact you had on me through our time together. And I want to make sure every listener makes sure that they share this with somebody that where it can make a difference in their life. So please share this episode. Thank you so much for the opportunity to be with you for the burn and remember it's that underlying burn that ignites your why and purpose and causes you to show up on the days you don't feel like it, and especially after you win. Matt Shannon, thank you again.
