The Unbeatable Mind Podcast With Mark Divine

Today, Commander Divine speaks with Max Lugavere, NYT best-selling author and health journalist. His latest book, Genius Kitchen, delivers nutritious recipes to help keep a sharp brain and strong body. In this episode, Max debunks common food myths, discusses the best diet for brain and metabolic health, how much protein you really need, and more. Key Takeaways: Meat is the most bioavailable protein found in nature. Animal proteins are building blocks that are ready to easily plug and play in our bodies. Omega-3s derived from plants, on the other hand (walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, etc.) have to undergo a complex biological transformation before they can be used in the body. The efficacy of those processes differ from person to person. Prevention is the cure. 60% of deaths worldwide occur due to noncommunicable, preventable conditions… and most of them start brewing well before the first symptoms occur. However, there is good research linked to certain diets (like the ketogenic diet) and their ability to p

Today, Commander Divine does a Q&A with his producer, Amy Jurkowitz. They discuss the future of leadership, the importance of cultivating a positive mindset amidst fear, how to handle stressful situations, and more. Key Takeaways: The future of leadership is world centric. The only way we can hope for a more peaceful world is to get all leaders to move beyond merely an egocentric view (“I matter”) or an ethnocentric view (“my tribe matters”) and into a world centric view (“everyone and everything matters”). Negative thinking = negative action. The reason we have such violence on this planet is the collective negative mindset that has accrued and been projected out into the world over thousands of years. If we can change that collective mindset to one that’s positive and inclusive, then we’ll start to see the outer environment change really quickly. Try pattern interrupts for more productive conversations. The next time someone you’re working with becomes reactive instead of constructive, try a pattern int

Today, Commander Divine speaks with Dylan Beynon, founder and CEO of Mindbloom, a new telemedicine company for clinician-prescribed psychedelic therapy. Dylan has been named a Top 25 Consumer Health Tech Executive, and is one of the top 100 Most Influential People in Psychedelics. Dylan shares his thoughts on the future of psychedelics, how his upbringing inspired him to found Mindbloom, the benefits of ketamine therapy vs. mainstream therapies, and more. Key Takeaways: Why psychedelic therapy? Mental healthcare is the #1 public health crisis in the United States. Yet when you dig into the clinical research around existing treatment options, they just aren’t good enough. SSRIs only work 40-47% of the time, and over 50% of people have severe side effects. Plus, it takes 6-8 weeks to work, if it works at all. At-home ketamine therapy gets immediate results 80% of the time, with less than 5% of clients having mild side effects like nausea. How does ketamine therapy work? Patients are sent a flavored ketamine tab

Today, Commander Divine speaks with Dre Baldwin, who helps entrepreneurs and athletes dominate their “game” from the inside out through his business and podcast, Work on Your Game. Dre shares his incredible journey from being benched on his high school basketball team to becoming a professional basketball player, plus his best advice on personal development, the power of discipline, and more.  Key Takeaways: Borrow your confidence. When you fake it til you make it, you allow your confidence to come and go. Think of someone whose confidence you admire, and assume their internal, emotional, energetic posture. You’ll eventually build up your own confidence based on what you’ve already done from that borrowed posture. Discipline is everything. Showing up every day can easily separate you from everyone else when skill level is equal. At the pro level, everyone has talent. It’s not a talent to show up every day; it’s a choice. Discipline gives you a leg-up. Don’t be a PIG. More and more people are becoming “PIGs” –

Today, Commander Divine speaks with James Clear, the best-selling author of Atomic Habits (which has sold over 5 million copies). James discusses his process for writing and content creation, the joys and pitfalls of notoriety, how to position yourself for success, and a behind-the-scenes look of how he’s built his audience of over 1 million subscribers. Key Takeaways: When you’re struggling creatively, don’t write more – read more. Writing is like driving a car; reading is like filling your car up with gas. You need both to get anywhere on your journey. Be careful who you follow. When you choose who to follow online, you’re choosing your future thoughts – choose wisely. Consistency is the most important practice for better writing. James prefers to not be dependent on a single circumstance to be able to write. As long as you’re doing the work, you don’t have to get hung up on having a specific routine. Ask yourself: How can you give people the highest value in the easiest way possible? When you apply this ph

Today, Commander Divine speaks with humanitarian, leadership expert, and best-selling author Robin Sharma. Robin’s father was a rotarian and brought his children up with strong values of humility and service to others. These core values have inspired Robin’s career. Today, he discusses his new book, The Everyday Hero Manifesto, and the practices he uses to gain perspective, process trauma, and live a life of courage and service to others. Key Takeaways: We are all capable of great success. We don’t need to be billionaires, politicians, poets, or spiritual leaders to lead meaningful, productive lives. However, we must determine what success means to us personally. Prayer is a powerful tool. Robin shares how we can pray, even if we are not religious. We all experience trauma, and we must all learn to uncover and process our trauma; only then can we be who we are meant to be. Robin is a big fan of journaling to explore and uncover hidden emotions and unpack trauma. There isn’t a linear path to winning at life. T

Mark speaks with Nate Zinsser about his career at West Point and work training elite athletes. Today, Commander Divine speaks with psychologist and human performance expert, Dr. Nate Zinsser. Dr. Zinsser has coached cadets at West Point for the past 30 years. He’s also worked with several high profile athletes, including professional football player Eli Manning. Dr. Zinsser shares how he became interested in the psychology of human performance in high school by noticing the connection between expectations and outcome in team sports. Today, he discusses his new book, The Confident Mind, and shares many different ways we can leverage our minds to increase performance in everything from business to athletics. "When you affirm something in the present tense. It just becomes more immediate.. It just becomes more palpable.” "Being able to say to yourself I am enough for this moment." "Our human nervous system in so many important ways does not distinguish between something that we actually experience and something

Today, Commander Divine is joined by his friend, Amy Jurkowitz, to answer questions from his followers on Facebook Live, as well as questions submitted prior to the livestream. Mark shares interesting insights on what it takes to be a great leader, how to cultivate compassion, how to start a mindfulness practice, and other suggestions on improving our mind, body, and spirit.  Key Takeaways: There were several questions about leadership including the following: @drpedre: What do you think it takes to really be a leader? What characteristics?  @pthompson34: What qualities and characteristics do you feel a strong leader obtains?  Mark broke down the top 4 characteristics needed in a great leader. Self-Awareness: Great leaders need to understand their strengths and weaknesses, as well as a general understanding of human nature and how we show up in the world. Self-Control: The next step after becoming aware is using that awareness to guide in self control. A great leader is able to show restraint and remain calm

Mark Divine speaks with Jimmy, Jake, and Jordan DeCicco, founders of Super Coffee. Today, Mark Divine speaks with Jimmy, Jake, and Jordan DeCicco, founders of the healthy coffee brand, Super Coffee. All under the age of 30, these young entrepreneurs began their business in a dorm room, and now lead a company valued at over $500 million. The DeCicco brothers share how their fiercely competitive upbringing instilled in them drive, passion, and grit that first helped them succeed in football and basketball, then carried over into the world of entrepreneurship. “The lessons learned as athletes empower us to do what we do on a daily basis in terms of overcoming obstacles.” Key Takeaways: Surround yourself with the best possible people who have experience and knowledge. The strength of a team is only as good as its people and the brothers never were shy about reaching out to the best of the best. They took this philosophy to finding the best mentors as well. Seth Goldman, the founder of Honest Tea, had a similar mi

Today, Mark Divine speaks with his friend Tom McCarthy and uncovers how Tom helps people overcome their perceived limits to push through to greatness. Tom shares his own transformation from an introverted, shy kid to a student of Tony Robbins, and eventually a masterful public speaker for audiences of thousands. Tom’s vision for the world is one of abundance, health, and prosperity. He believes empowered individuals can push all limits and do the impossible, even reverse pollution and restore the health of the entire planet. His new book, The Breakthrough Code: A Story About Living A Life Without Limits, comes out this month. Tom McCarthy is a father of two, husband of 30 years, CEO/Board Member of eight companies, early stage investor in 40+ companies and a worldwide philanthropist.  After a successful career on Wall Street, Tom found his true passion…helping people in business, athletics and life break through their limitations and step into their full potential. Tom has been the peak performance coach for

Today, Mark Divine speaks with endurance athlete and co-founder of Rewire Fitness, Sun Sachs, about overcoming childhood trauma through physical training in extreme sports, and the lessons he learned along the way that led him to co-founding Rewire Fitness. Rewire Fitness is a unique app that provides assessments and prescriptions for holistic resilience focusing on emotional and cognitive areas, as well as physical. Key Takeaways: Work smarter, and harder. Tough workouts can make you more resilient, but toughness is not the only thing that matters. Cultivating self-awareness allows you to be more in touch with what your body needs. Having a calm mind gives you an edge on the competition. Whether you are trying to win a race, or lead a seminar, having a calm mind allows you to enter a flow state and operate at a new level of peak performance. It’s important to assess your frustration levels. If you are edgy and easily frustrated, you are experiencing cognitive fatigue. When you identify this, use your favorit

First Call Out: Mark speaks with social psychologist, Aylet Fishbach about the science of motivation and how to set better goals. Ayelet Fishbach, PhD, is the Jeffrey Breakenridge Keller Professor of Behavioral Science and Marketing at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and the past president of the Society for the Study of Motivation and the International Social Cognition Network (ISCON). She is an expert on motivation and decision making and the author of Get it Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation. Ayelet’s groundbreaking research on human motivation has won her several international awards, including the Society of Experimental Social Psychology’s Best Dissertation Award and Career Trajectory Award, and the Fulbright Educational Foundation Award. Her new book Get it Done: Surprising Lessons From the Science of Motivation is coming out in January of 2022. Today, Commander Divine speaks with Ayelet Fishbach, a social psychologist who focuses on the science of motivation.

Fleet Maull, PhD, CMT-P, is an author, meditation teacher, management consultant, trainer and executive coach who facilitates deep transformation for individuals and organizations through his philosophy and program of Radical Responsibility©. He is a tireless and dedicated peacemaker and servant leader working for positive social transformation and a more just and sustainable global society.    He is the founder of Prison Dharma Network, Prison Mindfulness Institute, Center for Mindfulness in Public Safety, National Prison Hospice Association, and Windhorse Seminars. He is also the co-founder of Engaged Mindfulness Institute, Transforming Justice Initiative, Upaya’s Institute’s Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program, the Rwanda Bearing Witness Retreat & Peace Initiative, and the Center for Contemplative End-of-Life Care at Naropa University. He currently serves as the CEO and Director of Training, Research & Development for Prison Mindfulness Institute, Center for Mindfulness in Public Safety and the En

Fleet Maull, PhD, CMT-P, is an author, meditation teacher, management consultant, trainer and executive coach who facilitates deep transformation for individuals and organizations through his philosophy and program of Radical Responsibility©. He is a tireless and dedicated peacemaker and servant leader working for positive social transformation and a more just and sustainable global society. He is the founder of Prison Dharma Network, Prison Mindfulness Institute, Center for Mindfulness in Public Safety, National Prison Hospice Association, and Windhorse Seminars. He is also the co-founder of Engaged Mindfulness Institute, Transforming Justice Initiative, Upaya’s Institute’s Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program, the Rwanda Bearing Witness Retreat & Peace Initiative, and the Center for Contemplative End-of-Life Care at Naropa University. He currently serves as the CEO and Director of Training, Research & Development for Prison Mindfulness Institute, Center for Mindfulness in Public Safety and the Engag

Today, Commander Divine speaks with Eric Rogers about how he learned to face the pain of his childhood trauma and overcome his self-destructive habits. Eric shares that drugs kept him alive, by numbing what he was unable to face, and how hitting rock bottom gave him the reason he needed to change, find a higher purpose, and face all that he had been running from.    Key Takeaways:   Adverse Childhood Experiences are linked with increased risk for many types of illnesses: both physical and mental, as well as addiction. The stigma and silence around sexual abuse prevents many children from ever speaking up and getting the help they need.    Nature is a powerful tool. When we spend time in nature, we are reminded that we are part of nature. We are part of something bigger, and simply being away from all of the distractions of modern life allows us the space to go deeper into self reflection.    Running from pain doesn't work. It eventually catches up with you. Instead of running from pain, sit with it, embrace i

Today, Commander Divine reflects on 2021, and speaks about the problems many have faced with mental and physical health, being derailed from goals, and feeling stuck. He shares how we can step into 2022 with intention and integrity to face this complex, rapidly evolving world by going inward and finding our 'why", so that we can create habits, practices, and rituals that move us towards our goals and values.   Key Takeaways: Change is inevitable. We must learn to roll with the punches and focus on the one area we have control over, ourselves.  Integrity means to be integrated or in alignment with. Each person's integrity looks different. We must ask, what does integrity mean to me, and how can I do the work to be in alignment? The first step to becoming integrated is determining your core values through the practice of sitting in contemplative meditation. You must ask yourself, who am I?  Through our practice of self discovery, we must find 4-6 core values. We will form our habits, rituals, and practices to b

Today, Mark Divine speaks with Dr. Gabrielle Lyon about her muscle-centric approach to medicine, why obesity is a secondary problem, and how resistance training, high quality protein, and sleep are crucial to health and longevity.   Key Takeaways:   Dr. Lyon's muscle-centric medicine focuses on the root cause of obesity, loss or defect of skeletal-muscle-skeletal-muscle is not only important for the well-known reasons of strength and increased metabolism. It is an endocrine organ. Every time skeletal-muscle contracts it excretes myokines. Myokines affect immunity, brain health, and the way we use nutrients.    There are two ways to drive skeletal muscle, resistance training, and dietary protein. Resistance training looks different for everyone, but it is important to train to the point of muscle failure. Protein should be high quality, animal protein.  Worldwide, over 100 million people suffer from sleep apnea.  Some of the risk factors for sleep apnea are: environmental exposure, inability to lose weight, an

Today, Commander Mark Divine speaks with Tim Grover about his drive for success as a first generation American, his career training elite athletes, and how we can all develop a winning attitude.   Tim S. Grover is the CEO of ATTACK Athletics, Inc., founded in 1989. World-renowned for his legendary work with elite champions and Hall of Famers, including Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, and hundreds other NFL, MLB, NBA, and Olympic athletes, he is the preeminent authority on the science and art of physical and mental dominance and achieving excellence.   Author of the national bestseller RELENTLESS: From Good to Great to Unstoppable and his latest book, Winning: The Unforgiving Race to Greatness, creator of digital training platform The Relentless System, Tim appears around the world as a keynote speaker and consultant. He is a featured columnist at SI.com and Yahoo.com; he also appears on ESPN, FoxSports, and other media outlets.      Key Takeaways: Greatness is not an end goal. It is something to str

Today, Commander Divine is joined by his friend Amy Jurkowitz, who reads listener questions posted to the @realmarkdivine Instagram account. Mark shares his perspective on important issues from breathwork and self-awareness, to dealing with toxic teammates and bullies.      Key Takeaways:   Q: How do you turn the volume down on the demotivating voice in your head? @summa_der_hamma   A: Our thoughts do not define who we are-Mark explains how to observe our thoughts without judgment, allowing us to eventually disidentify from these thoughts. We become empowered when we realize that we are not our thoughts, just the person thinking them.    Q: What training is most effective for crucible events?  @be_unbeatable_   A: Training for crucible events starts with the why-you must first have a clear vision of why you are undertaking this challenge. You will need to draw on that vision to keep going. Training itself involves doing work that is extremely uncomfortable. Run with a weighted vest. Drag things. Push things.

Today, Commander Divine talks to Brian Johnson about creating heroic technology to build a more virtuous world.  Brian Johnson is the creator of Optimize and the Founder + CE? of Heroic. He's spent half of the last twenty-five years as a Founder/CEO and the other half as a Philosopher. As a Founder/CEO, he's raised $20M+ and built and sold two market-leading social platforms.  Key Takeaways: Our paths are not always obvious, but they can be found by following our bliss--however bliss is not to be confused with hedonism. If the path is too comfortable, you're not on your path; you're following someone else's.  Hero means protector in ancient Greek. Heroes are not born--they are created from the practice of showing up and choosing to act from a place of love and courage.  The challenge we face today between hedonistic happiness and a true fulfilling journey is not a new challenge. Humans have faced these same struggles for thousands of years. The addition of technology has only amplified this battle, as well as