Ep. 62 “All the stuff from my past became my biggest asset — not my biggest enemy — and that really empowered me to keep moving forward.”
Mike Kemski wasn’t raised with a lot of love as a child. Instead, he was repeatedly told that he was worthless and would amount to anything. Thanks to these repeated messages, which were reinforced by his home environment, he began to believe those words were true.
As a result, Mike got into all sorts of trouble as a kid. He turned to violence, alcohol, and drugs to escape the pain until, aged 16, he was full of anger and consumed with low self-esteem and self image.
Eventually, he checked himself into rehab and things started to change.
But that wasn’t yet the final turning point.
After cleaning up and getting sober, Mike still didn’t feel happy. Instead, he felt an empty void inside. He just couldn’t figure out how to make life work for him. Instead, every day was painful, meaningless, and difficult.
So he put a loaded gun into his mouth.
But instead of ending it all, the gun misfired giving Mike a fresh chance at life.
Which he’s now turned around into his own version of extraordinary.

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If you feel it in your heart, that’s the thing to follow. Always. Not what everyone else says you should and shouldn’t want. That’s ridiculous.
Mike Kemski is a bit of an enigma! You won’t find much about him online, but that’s by design.
Mike is a ninja who teaches what he himself has figured out through living life.
-At the age of 17, he realized you could change the way you feel simply by changing your facial expression or body language
-He’s developed insane levels of self awareness by spending years analyzing every thought and feeling – so he could understand the messages from his body
-He discovered that amplifying pain is a fast-track to success because it increases your desire for change
-And he figured out how to use energy and attention to change your thinking and transform the way you feel about yourself
Mike is a legend and this is one episode you do NOT want to miss.
As well as the full story of Mike’s dance with death, you’ll also discover three powerful analogies that are going to help you win in life.
1. What’s really in the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow
2. The marathon example that explains the three phases of success
3. Why we retreat to ‘dark caves’ – and how you can bring yourself back to the light
This episode is a doozy. It’s inspiring as well as informative and there’s a good chance that after listening, your life won’t be the same again.
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Things need to go wrong. That’s what gives us the engagement to solve puzzles and stay engaged with life.
Time Stamped Show Notes
[5:23] We jump right into it. I was most drawn into Mike during our first conversation, we talked about energy and using our body as a vehicle. That’s a lesson that I believe is guided from an expericial place. I wanted to know when he first realized that his body was a vehicle for his life’s experience and if there was a moment in time that allowed him to see the light the way it is? Mike first grasped the simplicity and power of our body being an energy amplifier when he was 17, during a Dairy Queen job interview. He grew up hearing some of the worst things about himself from his father and, as a result, had no self esteem, zero confidence and lacked self worth. Those limiting beliefs and thoughts were triggering a lot of anxiety and nerves about the interview. He had picked up the habit of working out on a punching bag to channel his anger and pain. While pacing back and forth during the interview, filled with frustration, worry, anger and hurt – he hit a boxer stance. With his fists up, he immediately noticed that he felt more confident, that the noise in his head quieted, and that he felt better and more powerful.
[12:26 ] We talked about how that experience led into some of the lows he experienced as a kid. Mike says “I learned this stuff in the trenches of life. I learned it through living and doing, and being my own lab rat, my own experiment and science project.” He didn’t know about the spiritual laws and new thought/spiritual leaders that taught these lessons. For him, that was better and it validates the work. The simplicity of it resonated with where he was in his life both mentally and emotionally.
[20:01] Mike talks about the major turning point in his life. He was at his lowest, feeling as if there wasn’t any hope, clinging for a sign to go on and unable to tap into a feeling that it was going to be ok. It’s nothing short of a miracle what happened next. It was the wake up call that Mike needed, and he came to the realization that everything that he wanted in life was available for him. He just had to figure out how to live in his power and there his journey began.
[32:03] Mike says we gotta follow our hearts, that’s the thing to follow always. I asked how do we get better at knowing what our hearts want? Vulnerability is at the root of it. As simple as it seems, it’s really difficult to do. We have to become very aware of the smallest spark of happiness and light when it arises in our lives. Highest energy wins and the more we pay attention to the light, the more that light will grow and expand.
[42:11] We talked about kicking off the journey of transformation. I wanted to get Mike’s perspective on navigating those early stages, when you’re still very vulnerable and susceptible to triggering feedback. How can you take a practical approach to both protecting yourself and throwing yourself into the area? Mike says there are 3 phases to transformation and success:
1. High Energy, High Motivation, Pumped – “I’m doing this!”
-Getting into action
2. Panic, Regret, Fear – “What am doing?”, “Why am I doing this?” , “What did I get myself into?”
-This is the most success killing phase. Support is crucial during this time; having someone to encourage you to keep on trekking!
3. Second Wind, Resilience, Power, Faith – “I did it!”
-Creating a result
[50:50] Mike defines being grounded as staying connected to nature, the natural flow of life and his own frequency and energy. He doesn’t know how to not stay grounded because he says the greatest gift that we have in life is each other. Relationships are the foundation of his life and his relationships translate to family; he stays grounded by staying focused on his family.
Mike Kemski