Up and Down the Mountain: Riding Life's Path with Chris Waddell

John: 00:00:04

Hello, hello, hello.

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Brian: Hey, John,

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John: How you doing, Brian?

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Brian: good, good.

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I got a question to start us off.

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John: Ooh, what do you got?

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Brian: What'd you want to be when

you grew up, when you were a kid,

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John: Oh God.

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what, what day of the week?

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When?

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How old?

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Uh, no, no idea.

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Brian: kindergarten, first grade,

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John: Uh, okay.

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Probably I wanted to be

something like podcast host,

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Brian: I thought you were going to

say the Wright brothers or something.

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John: Oh no.

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Oh, I know.

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I know what it was.

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I know exactly what it was.

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Evil Knievel.

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I wanted to be Evil Knievel.

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Brian: Oh my God.

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Forgot about him.

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Yeah.

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He was awesome.

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John: And for anybody out there

who doesn't know who Evil Knievel

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is, he jumped motorcycles over

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Brian: Everything.

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John: and everything.

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Brian: Canyons.

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John: Broke most of bones.

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What a character.

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So that.

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Brian: That's a good one.

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That's good one.

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I'd like to say that I was a little

bit less of a risk taker than that.

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Although I did want to be an astronaut.

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John: Oh, that's a good one.

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Brian: that kind of abruptly

ended during the challenger,

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but, I did want to go in space.

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John: It's not too late.

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Brian: I'm pretty happy

on earth now though.

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John: All right.

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Well, Brian, uh, can I get us

started with a conversation that

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kind of leads into our guest?

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Brian: Go for it.

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John: Fantastic, okay., December 3rd

is the International Day of Persons

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with Disabilities, which was named

by, I believe, the United Nations.

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And this is a topic that has

me interested, because according

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to the World Bank, people with

disabilities are far more likely to

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experience lower levels of education.

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worse health, lower levels of

employment and higher poverty, which

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is, which is kind of surprising,

in some way when you consider just

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how large that group of people is.

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It's a huge, and as a, as a marketer,

I refer to it as a marketplace.

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according to, the CDC,

26 percent of the U.

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S.

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population has a disability.

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Isn't that amazing?

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Brian: That's that's fascinating.

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John: Yeah.

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Now, now, 26 percent to 25.

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5 percent includes people with cognitive

disabilities, so I'm sure that has

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a pretty big impact on that number.

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I don't know to what extent, but,

that's a quarter of the population.

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And, and that group represents

nearly half a trillion dollars in

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disposable income, according to the

American Institutes for Research.

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Okay, so that's a lot

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Brian: yeah.

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John: so, big population.

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big spending capability.

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as marketers, I was hoping to talk to

you today about some of the ways brands

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present the concept of disability.

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sound good to you?

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Brian: Yeah.

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Let's do it.

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John: All right, cool.

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All right.

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So I automatically go to

two ways that can happen.

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The most visible representation

is via advertising.

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and we'll come back to that.

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the second is, As a marketer, you're

aware, I'm not sure if everybody

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is, that some of the most successful

companies integrate marketing right

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into how they design products and

services in the first place, right?

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So, in fact, many of our favorite features

started as something called inclusive

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design, which is, in other words, a

way to provide more accessibility.

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In products, so the classic example

of inclusive design that people

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talk about is curb cuts, right?

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So you get to an intersection

instead of stepping down off a curb,

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there's now this little tiny kind

of ramp that cuts into the curb.

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built as an accessibility feature to

enable folks who, you know, have mobility

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issues to make it safer and easier for

them to get, from the street to the curb.

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If you watch an intersection,

everybody uses those.

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People with strollers, right?

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People with dogs.

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Everyone's using those curb cuts.

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Other examples are, like

voice remotes for our TVs.

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and then there are great examples for

the devices we use every single day.

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Um, I'm always amazed at what Apple does,

what Google's doing, even Microsoft.

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So, Brian, what are some of your, what

are some of the tech features that

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you use day in, day out that, if you

think about it, probably started as

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some sort of inclusive design feature?

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Brian: Well, the one I go to all the

time is, is dark mode on my phone.

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Um, and even my monitors and

computer screens and, you know, I.

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There was a lot of wear and tear

on, um, screens, especially as the

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pandemic hit and you started working

at home with your thousand monitors.

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And, uh, and so that was

kind of my go to thing.

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That's just kind of made

it a lot easier to do work.

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I felt like a lot less strain, um,

and that's kind of been something

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that's been in devices for a while,

uh, clearly for accessibility reasons.

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But, you know, it's also a feature that

people just like to use because they like.

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To, you know, manage information that way.

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So,

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John: I suspect you're right.

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That probably was something that

was originally designed to help

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folks with vision impairment.

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So great example.

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I did a little bit of digging around

and looked at some recent examples

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for, brands that were doing really

cool things to make their products

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and services more accessible.

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One that jumped out to

me recently is Walmart.

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Which, lot of, a lot of people

love Walmart, a lot of detractors,

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but you got to give them credit

for this back to school season.

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They started making shopping in their

stores, more inclusive for people

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who have sensory disabilities, which

apparently is a large group of people.

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So they created a, a less

stimulating shopping environment

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for a couple hours each Saturday.

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And that means, they turned the TV walls.

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to static image, they turned

off the radio and they lowered

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the lights wherever they could.

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So, now, they're bringing back

sensory friendly hours from 8 to 10,

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not just on Saturdays, but every day

at all Walmart, , stores in the U.

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S.

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and Puerto Rico.

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And I just, you know, right?

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Round of applause.

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Brian: yeah,

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John: Yeah.

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So those sensory disabilities must be

pretty pervasive and it's neat to see

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brands stepping up to that challenge.

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Another one, I know GM.

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has an accessibility center of excellence,

and they're developing active safety

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features that help drivers who have

low vision or cognitive decline.

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Put aside whatever your fears are about

people with low vision and cognitive

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decline driving are, but they have a

real time text tech for hearing impaired.

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they're developing seats that have

haptic feedback, so if you're not

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able to hear the audio warning, you

still benefit from safety features.

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and the list.

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Is kind of going on and on, but those are

a couple that kind of just recently, uh,

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in the news that sparked my attention.

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Brian: love, I love hearing about

this kind of innovation where, there

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might be, drawing it up for one

reason, and then you kind of build

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off of that and it kind of leads you

in a lot of different directions.

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John: Mm hmm.

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Brian: I think one of the greatest

traits you can have as a marketer

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or communicator is, you know, being

able to think outside yourself

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and who you are and what you need.

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It's so hard to do that.

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Um, and you know, I think, a

lot of companies and brands have

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a really difficult time seeing

outside of themselves and not

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everybody is the way that you are.

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And, the people that take more

chances and going outside of that,

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I think are going to be successful.

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the other thing to me is, you're talking

about a marketplace, but, you know, You

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think about like when you're running

an advertisement and you're trying

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to reach as many people as possible.

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usually you speak much more broadly

and you do things in much more of a

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broad way, like what is the, what's the

message that could, reach every single

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person instead of, you know, being

very segmented with what that means to

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each individual group inside of that.

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And so.

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It's easy for, I guess people

with accessibility issues to be

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overlooked in, in things like that.

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So it's good to see some people

really step into the table and

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doing some different things.

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John: Yeah.

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I kind of like this softer,

gentler side of Brian.

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This is, good insights there, pal.

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Brian: Great.

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Great.

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John: Um, so, hey, I would love to

transition now to, um, our guest who

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is, uh, truly is an inspiration and

I don't think he minds being that.

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Brian: No, no, he certainly is.

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John: Before we actually talk to our

guest, Brian, I have a question for you.

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are you a skier?

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Brian: I am not.

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John: Have you skied?

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Brian: I've seen people ski on TV.

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John: Okay, well that's relevant

to this next conversation.

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, , imagine, strapping yourself, uh,

to a little plastic chair and then

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having that chair mounted on top of

what is basically like a truck shock

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absorber spring that's mounted on

top of a single ski and then going to

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the top of a mountain and going down.

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That's basically the

experience of monoskiing.

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Brian: I can't imagine, I can't

imagine being able to do that.

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John: No.

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It is hard to imagine.

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It's hard to imagine if you are a skier.

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It's hard to imagine if, uh, if you've

been doing it for a long time, but

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when you first see someone do it, it

is kind of, it is kind of breathtaking.

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And, very relevant to our guest,

Chris Waldo, who I met back in, I,

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Chris, I think it was 2001, when he

was already larger than life to me.

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, he was a legendary wheelchair athlete,

the greatest male Paralympic skier in U.

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S.

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ski team history then, and I think

now still, uh, and had recently been

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named one of People Magazine's 50

most beautiful people in the world.

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, since then, his legend's only grown

kind of larger in my eyes and in

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the eyes of millions of people.

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He first made his mark in skiing

with 13 Paralympic medals.

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, more than any male monoskier

in Paralympic history.

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, he was named to the U.

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S.

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Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame,

to the Paralympic Hall of Fame,

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and was named Skiing Magazine's,

one of Skiing Magazine's 25

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greatest skiers in North America.

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But he went on to accomplish

a whole lot more than that.

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He is, , an unsung hero of compassion,

named by the Dalai Lama himself.

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He's a broadcast commentator,

providing color commentary for

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NBC's coverage of the Paralympics.

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He founded the One Revolution Foundation.

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through which he teaches students

of all ages lessons in resilience

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and self awareness and inclusion.

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He's a keynote speaker to companies

that range from smaller non

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profits to fortune 500 companies.

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he was named as giving one of the best

graduation speeches, comma, ever by

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NPR, uh, for his commencement address

at his alma mater Middlebury College.

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And oh yeah, he climbed Mount

Kilimanjaro in a hand cycle.

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, I am real honored to welcome, , him to

Snap Decisions and even more honored

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to be able to call him a friend.

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Hello, Chris Waddell.

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Chris: Hello, John.

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Well done on that.

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Thank you.

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I appreciate it.

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And, uh, yeah, Dalai Lama.

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He was a pretty cool man.

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That was, uh, to be in his presence.

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That was, that was one of the moments

of my life where I was like, Oh, this

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is what peace and happiness is like.

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All right.

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It's cool.

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Brian: It's a different vibe.

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Chris: were in like a Corona

when you were near him.

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It was just sort of this, this

warm, like circle of light.

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You're like, wow, good job, man.

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John: Wow.

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Have you been able to hold on to that,

uh, that circle of light ever since?

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Chris: You know, I mean, once, once you,

you kind of feel it once and you kind

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of, you, you at least have been there.

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Right.

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And so it's like, I know when I'm

there and I know when I'm not there.

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Brian: And what year were you

able to grace his presence?

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Chris: was so, so funny enough,

he actually came to my college.

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He came to Middlebury college when

I was a student and came into, I

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remember coming into the dining

hall and the Dalai Lama was there.

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His holiness was there getting

orange juice out of the dispenser.

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Brian: Why not?

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Right?

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Chris: Lama drinks orange juice.

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just like the rest of us, but he

actually did a bunch of things.

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And I went to a meditation that he did

on the Sunday morning, which is, which is

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not necessarily what most college students

are doing, but to me, so that's, I didn't

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meet him there, but then it was 2005

that we did the unsung hero of compassion

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award, and it was, uh, that was, it was

just, it was just sort of mind boggling.

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I mean, it really was.

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He said that everything in the world has

compassion, except for maybe the mosquito.

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Uh, so, so I took that to heart

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Brian: Nice.

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John: So you and the

Dalai Lama go way back.

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Chris: way back.

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Exactly.

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Yes.

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Yeah.

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Brian: we're real excited to

have you on the podcast today.

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And, , you know, I, I spent the last,

last few days kind of catching up on some

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of your work and, and your documentary.

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I read your book.

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I saw some videos, , and,

and your podcast.

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I'm excited to hopefully learn a little

bit from you on what we should be doing.

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,

John: Teach us.

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Brian: yes, but,

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John: Teach us.

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Teach us enlightenment and

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Chris: You're not asking for much there.

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Are you?

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John: Not in that order.

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Brian: Um, but, you know, we want to

start off just getting a little bit

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of background into, you know, your

story and your timeline and, um, would

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love for our listeners to you know,

just kind of hear how you got here

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and, and what you're up to today.

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Chris: Wow.

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Um, so yeah, I mean, it's,

it's, that's always a question.

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I had a skiing accident

when I was in college.

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And I had taken off the first

semester of school and actually

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worked at a law firm in New York and

thought that, you know, that might

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be the direction that I was going.

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I had my accident and suddenly

I had a different platform.

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I actually, the year before my

accident, I was at a ski race.

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At Burke Mountain and I saw

this woman, Diana Golden, who

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is what we call a three tracker.

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So she is an above the knee

amputee, uses two outriggers.

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And actually at that time, she was using

regular ski poles, but I watched her

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ski and she was the best representation

of what it meant to be an athlete and

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what it meant to be a human being.

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And I think she planted a seed

for me really, in terms of.

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There were some great racers at that

race, but she was the most memorable one.

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And I think it was more so about the

human journey than it was necessarily

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about what she was doing, skiing,

where she was a great skier too.

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And, I think I saw an opportunity.

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I mean, where, where you have an

accident where you're lying in the

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hospital, where you basically snapped

yourself in half kind of thing.

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And you think, okay, there's, there

are no opportunities having seen her.

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There really was an opportunity.

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And, and so instead of going sort

of the traditional, you know,

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professional path, I ended up going

in an entirely different direction.

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Didn't really go to the college counselor

or the, uh, the, the, the career

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counselor, I didn't do any interviews.

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I was like, no, I'm going to be.

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A disabled skier was the

U S disabled ski ski team.

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At that time, I'm going to be

on the U S disabled ski team.

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. And I think the path was the

path was that human path.

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I think that it was recognizing that when

I came back to school, it was incumbent

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upon me to educate everyone around me.

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They they hadn't interacted

with somebody in a wheelchair.

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You know, do you need

me to push up the hill?

327

: 00:13:14

Do you need to need me to open the door?

328

: 00:13:16

Do you need, you know, whatever it is

and and everybody was super supportive.

329

: 00:13:19

But this was a different kind of education

that I was allowed to do as an athlete

330

: 00:13:24

and to make a far greater statement.

331

: 00:13:26

And in some ways, I feel like.

332

: 00:13:27

I feel like in some ways I wanted people

to see me and to see people like me for

333

: 00:13:31

the first time and not come in with the

same expectation that they had of like,

334

: 00:13:35

Oh, okay, well, it's, that's too bad.

335

: 00:13:37

Cause I mean, that to me, our

model with one revolution is

336

: 00:13:40

it's not what happens to you.

337

: 00:13:41

It's what you do with what happens to you.

338

: 00:13:42

And it's as appropriate for

me as it is for you guys.

339

: 00:13:46

And, and I think I wanted to.

340

: 00:13:48

Remember that, that things

happen and people surprise you.

341

: 00:13:51

And when they surprise you,

that's the coolest part.

342

: 00:13:53

I wanted to surprise people.

343

: 00:13:55

So yeah, so that's where I

started competing, Alpine skiing,

344

: 00:13:57

started wheelchair racing.

345

: 00:13:59

I started doing that as off season

training and it became a second sport.

346

: 00:14:02

So how did I end up here?

347

: 00:14:04

That is that is always the

question that I'm asking, Brian.

348

: 00:14:06

Brian: I, one of the things that,

that, John and I were talking about

349

: 00:14:10

earlier is, everybody kind of has this.

350

: 00:14:12

Outside presence of the things that

they've done and, and the collection

351

: 00:14:16

of highlights and timeline, but it's

kind of like, you kind of, there's

352

: 00:14:20

a stigma applied to that, I think.

353

: 00:14:22

And, you know, the way that you

are focused on being human and the

354

: 00:14:25

person that you are, it's much.

355

: 00:14:27

Rounder and bigger than just

this collection of things.

356

: 00:14:30

You're not just like a prop,

you know, you're, you're human.

357

: 00:14:33

And the fact that you've kind of done

a lot to focus on, every day and the,

358

: 00:14:38

the things that you come across and

the things that have happened to you

359

: 00:14:41

and, and how you've attacked those, I

think are inspirational to everybody

360

: 00:14:46

and, uh, and, and helpful to everybody,

361

: 00:14:48

Chris: and that's the hope.

362

: 00:14:49

I mean, cause we're all dealing

with it in some ways too.

363

: 00:14:51

Right.

364

: 00:14:51

As we continue to get older, it's one

of those, you go, ah, well, that's

365

: 00:14:55

a little bit harder now than it

used to be, you know, and it's like.

366

: 00:14:58

Oh, really?

367

: 00:14:58

Okay.

368

: 00:14:58

You're totally fine.

369

: 00:14:59

That's awesome.

370

: 00:15:00

I was jealous before.

371

: 00:15:01

Now I'm really jealous.

372

: 00:15:03

John: Chris, you said something a

minute ago about when you came back

373

: 00:15:05

to school after your accident, kind of

educating your classmates and friends.

374

: 00:15:09

I know you still do that.

375

: 00:15:11

And probably every day, uh, to some

extent, does that ever get tiring

376

: 00:15:15

to you to be the one who's kind of

got to educate folks on, how they

377

: 00:15:18

might want to interact with you and

how you might want to, , be seen.

378

: 00:15:21

Chris: I mean, it, it, yeah,

it gets tiring at times.

379

: 00:15:24

I mean, I think that that's, you know,

yeah, there are times that we're just

380

: 00:15:27

going about our lives and, and I don't

need to, I don't need to educate every

381

: 00:15:31

single person I come in contact with

or any person who might have seen me.

382

: 00:15:35

Necessarily, but but certainly like

when I was first back at school, it

383

: 00:15:38

was it was my responsibility in a lot

of ways, because because this could.

384

: 00:15:42

This, this could be something that could

make me totally separate, you know?

385

: 00:15:45

And so, and I think that was the

biggest fear was that if, if I

386

: 00:15:49

left it to assumption that then

I'd be the one who'd lose out.

387

: 00:15:53

And I think that that's some

of what I still see every day

388

: 00:15:57

is if I leave it to assumption.

389

: 00:15:59

That, you know, cause I get this

sometimes I get people who, you

390

: 00:16:02

know, I had one guy who he asked me

for directions and I was giving him

391

: 00:16:05

directions and, and then he turned

to me and said, well, well, is there

392

: 00:16:08

going to be a cure and I'm like, okay.

393

: 00:16:11

You know, which, which in some ways I

feel like I have to apologize for, for

394

: 00:16:14

my situation, you know, I think he's

trying to be gracious, but, but at the

395

: 00:16:18

same time, it's one of those that I

think that, that there's a part of it.

396

: 00:16:23

And you know, I think that we're

in a society where we're looking

397

: 00:16:25

for the magic pill, right?

398

: 00:16:27

Brian: Oh, yeah.

399

: 00:16:27

Chris: But We're human by

definition of our struggle.

400

: 00:16:30

Really.

401

: 00:16:31

I mean, the struggle defines who we

are and how we deal with that struggle

402

: 00:16:35

and how we find creative ways of of

confronting it and being successful

403

: 00:16:39

within it and and all of that stuff.

404

: 00:16:41

And I was getting outta my racing chair

one time and this, uh, this woman, I

405

: 00:16:45

was, I was visiting my parents and I

was getting outta the racing chair, and

406

: 00:16:47

I'd just, you know, gone for a workout

along the, along the coast, and this

407

: 00:16:50

woman's like, oh, I didn't realize you

were, you were in a wheelchair, you know?

408

: 00:16:53

And it totally changed the whole thing.

409

: 00:16:55

And I was like, yeah, I just.

410

: 00:16:55

Went for a 12 mile workout kind

of thing, you know, it's like,

411

: 00:16:59

what did you do, you know, I mean,

there's, there's a part of it, right.

412

: 00:17:02

And it's like, it's easy to see

nothing, you know, it's easy to see

413

: 00:17:06

whatever perceived limitations there are

versus, yeah, I did a 12 mile workout.

414

: 00:17:10

It was probably, you know, 48

minutes or whatever, you know,

415

: 00:17:14

and I think that's the, I mean,

you try to get people beyond it.

416

: 00:17:17

And I think that's one of the

challenges for all of us is getting

417

: 00:17:20

beyond what we think we know.

418

: 00:17:21

And what's that quote?

419

: 00:17:22

It's like the definition of an

expert is someone who knows more and

420

: 00:17:25

more about less and less, which is

really a definition of growing older.

421

: 00:17:29

I think too,

422

: 00:17:30

, Brian: when you first got into,

competitive disabled skiing, you know, how

423

: 00:17:33

was your, how were your parents with that?

424

: 00:17:35

Were they, was it hard

to bring them along?

425

: 00:17:37

Was that an interesting conversation?

426

: 00:17:38

Chris: I started ski racing at six

years old and I did not recognize.

427

: 00:17:43

how brutal a sport it is for those

who are watching, who care about you.

428

: 00:17:48

And, you know, especially like running

downhill or something like that.

429

: 00:17:52

I mean, it's sort of like,

yes, I hope that you're safe.

430

: 00:17:55

I hope that you're happy with how

you've done, you know, I mean, there

431

: 00:17:58

are all these different levels of like

protection that as a parent, you want

432

: 00:18:04

to be able to provide that you can't.

433

: 00:18:06

You know, I think my parents

were great in that respect of, of

434

: 00:18:10

being able to shelve their fears.

435

: 00:18:13

They really did.

436

: 00:18:14

I did not, I wasn't aware of their

fears, but it's hard to watch a ski race

437

: 00:18:17

when you care about people in the race,

438

: 00:18:20

John: Yeah.

439

: 00:18:21

Brian: I read somewhere that, that

you said you never really, faced your

440

: 00:18:24

injury head on until, you know, the

end of your career, you know, and you

441

: 00:18:28

became, you know, you went through

some depression and, and really going

442

: 00:18:31

through just understanding that, you

know, that part of your life was over.

443

: 00:18:35

Can you talk a little bit about that?

444

: 00:18:36

Chris: You know, it was more difficult

for me to retire from competitive

445

: 00:18:40

sport than it was to break my back.

446

: 00:18:42

My identity was more

challenged by retiring.

447

: 00:18:45

And, and I think there were a couple of

things that were involved in that one.

448

: 00:18:48

It was, it was separation from my,

from my youth, from my passion,

449

: 00:18:53

this thing that I, about which I'd

been passionate throughout my life.

450

: 00:18:57

As surprising as this might sound, it

was also the thing that made me unique.

451

: 00:19:02

It gave me a unique platform to,

to know that I had the potential to

452

: 00:19:07

affect a greater change, gave me a

reason to affect a greater change.

453

: 00:19:11

And, and, and when I retired, I

suddenly, you know, became that guy in

454

: 00:19:14

a wheelchair, but I also became like.

455

: 00:19:16

regular guy.

456

: 00:19:17

I mean, I might to your point

before I might have a resume that

457

: 00:19:21

said that on a couple of days I

had some pretty good days, but

458

: 00:19:24

John: Understatement.

459

: 00:19:25

I won a few gold medals here

and there in the Olympics.

460

: 00:19:31

Yeah, go ahead.

461

: 00:19:32

Sorry.

462

: 00:19:33

Chris: it was a greater.

463

: 00:19:34

It was a greater challenge to to

move forward after that and go.

464

: 00:19:38

Okay.

465

: 00:19:38

What?

466

: 00:19:39

How am I going to be

passionate about something?

467

: 00:19:42

But also.

468

: 00:19:42

How am I going to balance my life?

469

: 00:19:44

One of the things as an athlete,

we, we get celebrated for having

470

: 00:19:47

greater and greater tunnel vision

that the world can be going crazy.

471

: 00:19:51

There's complete chaos going around you.

472

: 00:19:53

You can, in the face of all

this adversity, you can perform.

473

: 00:19:56

And, and then, you know, I've retired and

I kind of went, okay, yeah, that's good.

474

: 00:20:01

But did I sacrifice other

things along the way?

475

: 00:20:03

Did I sacrifice a potential career?

476

: 00:20:05

Did I sacrifice a family?

477

: 00:20:07

Did I sacrifice, you

know, financial stability?

478

: 00:20:09

Uh, you know, some of these

other things that, that are sort

479

: 00:20:12

of that everybody, everybody's.

480

: 00:20:14

Contemplating and confronting, but

that was that I felt like was really

481

: 00:20:19

challenging and what came out of it was I

needed to have a goal that was bigger than

482

: 00:20:24

me, myself, , uh, I might be transitioning

you guys more quickly than you, than

483

: 00:20:29

you like, but that's what, what brought

me to Kilimanjaro and to hopefully, you

484

: 00:20:34

know, being able to shine a light on 1.

485

: 00:20:37

2 billion people, 15 percent of the

population in the world who are, you

486

: 00:20:41

know, effectively invisible because from

the time we're little, we're taught not

487

: 00:20:44

to stare at someone who looks different.

488

: 00:20:45

I want to give them a reason to stare

and to see themselves, you know,

489

: 00:20:48

drop themselves into, I mean, you

guys saw, saw our documentary movie.

490

: 00:20:53

You want to be able to drop yourself into

the, into the role of the protagonist

491

: 00:20:57

and go, we, we climbed up that mountain,

492

: 00:21:00

John: No, you didn't go too far ahead.

493

: 00:21:02

Perfect transition because as you

were talking about, being aware as

494

: 00:21:05

you retired that you'd had a platform

as a professional skier,, can you

495

: 00:21:08

talk about the decision you made to.

496

: 00:21:11

attack a mountain,, and, and use that

as a platform to, like you said, shine a

497

: 00:21:15

light on some of the, some of the things

that, , people ought to be aware of,

498

: 00:21:18

in terms of people with disabilities.

499

: 00:21:21

Chris: I went out in the midst of trying

to figure out who I was and what I was

500

: 00:21:25

supposed to do and where I was going.

501

: 00:21:26

I rode up a mountain

bike trail near my house.

502

: 00:21:29

I had a three wheeled off road

hand cycle and rear wheel drive.

503

: 00:21:32

And so I pedaled up, took me an hour and

10 minutes to get up and I turned around.

504

: 00:21:36

And I feel like a thought tapped

me on the shoulder and it said, you

505

: 00:21:39

need to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.

506

: 00:21:40

And it's one of those, I'm sort of turning

around and go, where'd this come from?

507

: 00:21:44

You know, I have no idea.

508

: 00:21:45

I'd never considered it.

509

: 00:21:47

And, and, uh, but, but yet the

metaphor of climbing a mountain

510

: 00:21:50

is exactly what we're all doing.

511

: 00:21:52

Right.

512

: 00:21:52

And we're all climbing

our proverbial mountain.

513

: 00:21:55

And I thought, okay,

well, this makes sense.

514

: 00:21:57

And in some ways even makes more

sense than the Paralympics because the

515

: 00:22:00

Paralympics is, you know, I'm, I'm one

monoskier competing against another

516

: 00:22:04

monoskier and go, okay, that looks cool.

517

: 00:22:07

But the vast majority of the

people who are watching haven't

518

: 00:22:09

necessarily skied in a monoski.

519

: 00:22:11

And they don't necessarily understand

the context as much as they do in,

520

: 00:22:16

okay, here's a man who's trying to

confront the largest, tallest mountain

521

: 00:22:21

in Africa, like, okay, I haven't climbed

a mountain, but that sounds hard.

522

: 00:22:27

John: Having watched the documentary,

I, I can say it looked hard.

523

: 00:22:31

Brian: I think three seconds in, I was.

524

: 00:22:32

I was watching with my daughter.

525

: 00:22:34

We both, like, our jaws hit the ground.

526

: 00:22:36

It was like, right away, it speaks to you.

527

: 00:22:38

And I watched the, uh, I watched

the trailer with my son, because he

528

: 00:22:41

doesn't have the brain attention to

watch the entire thing, if anything.

529

: 00:22:45

But he didn't, too.

530

: 00:22:46

He was like, I couldn't

go more than three feet.

531

: 00:22:48

But you get it right away in

what you're trying to accomplish

532

: 00:22:51

as you're watching that.

533

: 00:22:53

And, uh, I also was like,

going downhill is so much fun.

534

: 00:22:56

And going up, like, it's

such a different thing.

535

: 00:22:59

You're going the opposite direction

and up a mountain and in the hardest

536

: 00:23:02

type of experience, that's, uh,

that was really compelling to me.

537

: 00:23:05

Chris: Thank you.

538

: 00:23:06

The hardest part about being on the

mountain was that I was sort of in

539

: 00:23:10

in active thought the whole time when

you do sort of an endurance sport.

540

: 00:23:15

It's almost like the opposite of

REM sleep kind of thing where you're

541

: 00:23:18

your body's active and your mind has

just tuned out and which is great.

542

: 00:23:23

I mean, that's sort of like

being in the zone in a lot of

543

: 00:23:25

ways climbing the mountain.

544

: 00:23:27

I was problem solving the whole time

like in like 18 inch increments.

545

: 00:23:32

It seemed like okay, I need to get

here to there, to there, to there.

546

: 00:23:36

And that was the most exhausting part.

547

: 00:23:38

It really was.

548

: 00:23:39

John: Yeah.

549

: 00:23:40

So, interesting to hear that it

was mentally exhausting on top of

550

: 00:23:45

obviously being physically exhausting.

551

: 00:23:47

Um, real quick, I want to make sure that

we are clear to folks who are listening.

552

: 00:23:51

Um, we're referring to, and this isn't

just a shameless plug, but maybe it is.

553

: 00:23:56

Uh, we're referring to the documentary

called One Revolution, which is

554

: 00:23:59

available on Amazon Prime Video.

555

: 00:24:02

So, uh, in fact, if you're listening.

556

: 00:24:05

Please watch it.

557

: 00:24:06

If you don't watch that movie and come

away, uh, impressed, awed, inspired,

558

: 00:24:13

moved in some way, Get in touch with

me, and I will, I will Venmo you the 1.

559

: 00:24:17

99 rental fee.

560

: 00:24:19

I mean that.

561

: 00:24:21

Uh, go watch it.

562

: 00:24:22

Uh, but anyway, in that documentary,

Chris, you know, I think Brian and

563

: 00:24:24

I were talking, we were both kind of

struck by not only the juxtaposition

564

: 00:24:28

he just spoke of, like, you know, you,

you made a, you made a first career

565

: 00:24:32

hurtling yourself down a mountain, and

then this is about going up a mountain

566

: 00:24:37

as slowly as you possibly can imagine.

567

: 00:24:40

Um, Yeah.

568

: 00:24:40

It's interesting.

569

: 00:24:40

I agree

570

: 00:24:41

Chris: I was going fast at two and a half

miles an hour to give you perspective.

571

: 00:24:44

That's when I was flying.

572

: 00:24:45

John: Yeah.

573

: 00:24:46

Yeah.

574

: 00:24:46

It looked that way.

575

: 00:24:47

Um, I want to see the documentary

of your, your, your dissent.

576

: 00:24:50

Um,

577

: 00:24:51

Brian: that was our own, our only, uh,

criticism of the documentary is that

578

: 00:24:54

it would have been great, like the

final, you know, two minutes just to

579

: 00:24:57

watch you continue to go down the Hill.

580

: 00:24:58

It would have been like, ah, cathartic.

581

: 00:25:01

Chris: slowed down a whole

lot more than you would think.

582

: 00:25:04

I was at walking pace.

583

: 00:25:05

So like the top part that you

saw at the end of the movie on

584

: 00:25:08

the screen field, that was fast.

585

: 00:25:11

John: looked to me like the

brakes were about to go, like, set

586

: 00:25:14

aflame just cause you're holding

back a lot of inertia there.

587

: 00:25:18

Chris: I had two disc brakes and actually

Dave, who is my guide, put one of them on.

588

: 00:25:24

So it was, it was on the whole time

as I was going down and it turned,

589

: 00:25:29

it turned black, like the disc

brake heated up that much that it

590

: 00:25:34

turned black, but when we got below

Harambeau, then we're on the trail and.

591

: 00:25:39

I'm just like I'm working hard and I'm

problem solving still like okay if I get

592

: 00:25:43

over there, then I can go down this way

and I'm not going to flip over, you know,

593

: 00:25:48

which is a big concern for me, and, and I

was a walking pace these guys are walking

594

: 00:25:53

behind me having a conversation I'm

like, I am still working hard like this

595

: 00:25:58

is the downhill part this is supposed to

be the coast and there was no coasting.

596

: 00:26:02

It really wasn't.

597

: 00:26:04

John: Well, the thing, one of the

things that really struck me watching

598

: 00:26:07

the documentary, there was conversation

about how people were coming down the

599

: 00:26:11

mountain, meeting your party on your

way up, and they were, you know, in

600

: 00:26:14

the, in kind of the celebration mode of

having summoned it and now coming down

601

: 00:26:18

and saying how it's the hardest thing

they've ever done, and then they see you

602

: 00:26:22

and instantly shift their perspective

about, What's actually hard in this life.

603

: 00:26:26

Chris: It was.

604

: 00:26:27

It was validating on so many levels.

605

: 00:26:29

I mean, this is kind of like

you, you come up with a big idea

606

: 00:26:32

like this and you think, okay.

607

: 00:26:34

This sounds like a good idea.

608

: 00:26:35

And then you get into the minutia

of what you're doing and you're

609

: 00:26:37

like, is this really important?

610

: 00:26:39

You know, are we really doing something?

611

: 00:26:40

I mean, your, your sort of

motivation wanes at times and you

612

: 00:26:44

think, are we really relevant?

613

: 00:26:46

And you're going up and you see these

people and you see their reaction.

614

: 00:26:49

You're like, I think we're relevant.

615

: 00:26:50

I think that what we're doing makes sense.

616

: 00:26:54

But the other part is we

were sharing an experience.

617

: 00:26:57

So they had just done it.

618

: 00:26:58

They were on their way down.

619

: 00:27:00

They knew what was going on.

620

: 00:27:01

They knew what we were encountering.

621

: 00:27:03

And so, and that to me is one of the

coolest, it's the reason why I love

622

: 00:27:07

sport is I can watch it and I can sit

on my couch and think we did that.

623

: 00:27:12

Meaning that we as human

beings did this amazing thing.

624

: 00:27:15

And, and that I think is the

cool part because they did

625

: 00:27:18

something that was amazing.

626

: 00:27:19

And then they looked at me and went.

627

: 00:27:21

Okay, that might be a little bit

crazier than what we tried to do,

628

: 00:27:25

but we, we had this perspective to

really be able to appreciate what went

629

: 00:27:29

into each person's journey or safari,

as they say, in Africa, you know,

630

: 00:27:34

John: So tell us about the mission.

631

: 00:27:36

What, what kind of, what, you

know, you already told us that your

632

: 00:27:38

inspiration was a voice in your head

while you're hurtling down a mountain

633

: 00:27:42

to, you know, go climb a big one.

634

: 00:27:44

Tell us about the mission.

635

: 00:27:44

What, what is it, what were

you trying to illuminate there?

636

: 00:27:47

Chris: our mission with one

revolution is to turn perception

637

: 00:27:50

of disability upside down.

638

: 00:27:51

And in a lot of ways, that's for the 1.

639

: 00:27:53

2 billion people in the world out

there to change the narrative from

640

: 00:27:58

that's too bad to what do you do?

641

: 00:27:59

What do you have to teach me?

642

: 00:28:01

But it's also about that thing that stands

between us and doing what we want to do.

643

: 00:28:06

That thing between our ears can

be really, really debilitating.

644

: 00:28:10

Oh, you're not smart enough to do that.

645

: 00:28:12

You're not creative enough.

646

: 00:28:13

You're not rich enough.

647

: 00:28:14

You're not strong enough.

648

: 00:28:16

You know, you're not whatever

649

: 00:28:18

and and that's what I wanted to do.

650

: 00:28:20

And the mountain gave me gave me

the platform that the accident

651

: 00:28:24

had given me before gave me a

platform to say we as human beings.

652

: 00:28:28

Are the product of the challenges that we

find to pursue and how much we're willing

653

: 00:28:34

to learn as we go through that process.

654

: 00:28:36

You know, are we willing to kind of go?

655

: 00:28:38

Okay, I'm willing to feel and

look stupid right now in this

656

: 00:28:42

process to get where I need to go.

657

: 00:28:44

And that is really scary.

658

: 00:28:47

That is really scary to try

something for the first time.

659

: 00:28:50

So, so I think that that's

what the mountain did for me.

660

: 00:28:53

Brian: yeah, you know, your,

your acceptance of vulnerability

661

: 00:28:56

as you got to the top.

662

: 00:28:57

that was really compelling for me.

663

: 00:28:59

And just that clarity of, you know,

nobody climbs a mountain alone.

664

: 00:29:04

just really, uh, it really stuck out to

me as like, you know, it all made sense.

665

: 00:29:09

And, you know, we talk about, you know,

being human and, and understanding

666

: 00:29:12

things and, and just being able to.

667

: 00:29:14

Yeah.

668

: 00:29:14

Attack things as they happen to you.

669

: 00:29:16

I mean, it's so important

to have that vulnerability.

670

: 00:29:19

And, I feel like that really came

through in what you were doing there.

671

: 00:29:22

Chris: It's an interesting thing.

672

: 00:29:23

I think as we get older, right?

673

: 00:29:25

I mean, we can, we can look back on,

like, the things that our parents

674

: 00:29:29

made us do when we were kids.

675

: 00:29:31

It's like, I don't want to,

I don't want to do that.

676

: 00:29:33

I'm going to look stupid doing that.

677

: 00:29:34

Why, why, why are you buying me these

sneakers instead of those sneakers?

678

: 00:29:38

I'm going to look totally uncool.

679

: 00:29:40

And as we get older and we can

make our own decisions, we can,

680

: 00:29:43

we can avoid all of those things.

681

: 00:29:45

. Like I wrote and illustrated

a children's book called Is it

682

: 00:29:48

lonely to be a four leaf clover.

683

: 00:29:50

And in order to do it, I had

to learn how Oh, To draw.

684

: 00:29:53

So I read a book and did all

these exercises drawing on

685

: 00:29:56

the right side of the brain.

686

: 00:29:57

I read it and did all these exercises.

687

: 00:29:59

And then I kind of wanted to keep going.

688

: 00:30:01

So I went to our local, art center

and I took a painting class and

689

: 00:30:07

there were, there were three of us.

690

: 00:30:09

In the class and the other two

were professional and I was I

691

: 00:30:12

was not and we're sitting there.

692

: 00:30:14

We have a model and I

looked at that blank canvas.

693

: 00:30:17

It felt like for 20 minutes and I

thought, I'm just going to leave.

694

: 00:30:21

It's just it's just easier to leave.

695

: 00:30:23

And eventually I sort of okay, I'm going

to make one mark, I think those things are

696

: 00:30:29

helpful for us because one we survive it.

697

: 00:30:33

That's the biggest message is, yeah,

you can do this and you can survive it.

698

: 00:30:36

But two, you start, you start ending

up getting more of a feeling that.

699

: 00:30:40

I can do things that I

didn't think I could do.

700

: 00:30:42

I ended up meeting the woman who

ended up publishing my, my children's

701

: 00:30:46

book and my graduation book, in

that class, you know, and it's like,

702

: 00:30:50

I survived and actually enjoyed it.

703

: 00:30:52

And every once in a while I look

at the, at the painting that I did.

704

: 00:30:55

Good.

705

: 00:30:56

It's not too bad.

706

: 00:30:56

You know,

707

: 00:30:57

Brian: Yeah.

708

: 00:30:57

You know, we're, we're talking to a lot

of people about, about marketing and,

709

: 00:31:01

and how they, they encounter decisions

and things that happen, um, as they're

710

: 00:31:06

kind of leading brands and stuff.

711

: 00:31:07

But, so much of what you're talking

about is so transferable to, , making

712

: 00:31:11

decisions and taking risks.

713

: 00:31:13

I love your statement about, saying

yes to everything and the possibility

714

: 00:31:16

of what can happen from there.

715

: 00:31:17

And, um, I think that you can't be afraid

to make a mistake, or to take a risk

716

: 00:31:23

there's things that might happen, but it

also might take you down a different path

717

: 00:31:26

or continue to, to wind around the road.

718

: 00:31:28

So, I think that it, that mentality,

that mindset is so important.

719

: 00:31:33

Chris: is, I mean, it's kind

of the improv of life, right?

720

: 00:31:35

It's the yes.

721

: 00:31:37

And Because if you say no, the story ends

722

: 00:31:40

John: Looking at all the things

that you've accomplished or tried.

723

: 00:31:43

It's that trying part that, you

know, just makes people, so impressed

724

: 00:31:46

with your fearlessness, right?

725

: 00:31:48

I, I'm going to go to an art class.

726

: 00:31:50

with professionals and figure out

how to illustrate my own book.

727

: 00:31:53

I'm going to go do an open mic

night and try stand up comedy,

728

: 00:31:56

even though I've never done that.

729

: 00:31:58

I'm going to strap myself into

a chair and go down a mountain.

730

: 00:32:01

I'm going to strap myself into a hand

cycle and try to climb a mountain.

731

: 00:32:04

Like, these fearless decisions to

say yes, that's what I think, Chris,

732

: 00:32:08

makes me so excited to be able to

talk to you, uh, today and any day.

733

: 00:32:12

Chris: I appreciate it.

734

: 00:32:12

John fearless, it doesn't actually, it is

not accurate because there's always fear.

735

: 00:32:18

I think that fear can be our

greatest motivator, right?

736

: 00:32:20

I mean, it's the thing

that says, Hey, stop.

737

: 00:32:22

And you're like, okay, am

I risking my life here?

738

: 00:32:25

Or am I making a good decision?

739

: 00:32:27

Is this this thing that,

that is the impediment?

740

: 00:32:29

The fear is the impediment.

741

: 00:32:30

The fear in a lot of

ways is the competitor

742

: 00:32:32

that's the thing that we have

to confront are the things that

743

: 00:32:35

want to make a stop in fear.

744

: 00:32:36

Obviously is the greatest

single one and gone.

745

: 00:32:39

I mean, what is it John Wayne

? Courage isn't the absence of fear.

746

: 00:32:43

It's being scared to

death and doing it anyway.

747

: 00:32:45

know, I think that there's a part of

that that we have to go scared to death.

748

: 00:32:49

Here we go.

749

: 00:32:49

I mean, that's being on stage for

open mic night was and I've done it.

750

: 00:32:55

I don't know.

751

: 00:32:56

I haven't done it in a while, but

I've done it like five, six, maybe

752

: 00:32:59

more times, you know, kind of thing.

753

: 00:33:01

And it's, it's one of those, like,

yeah, I mean, I'd love to be funny.

754

: 00:33:04

I mean, that's, that's each time I

do a speech, I'm like, oh, I wish

755

: 00:33:07

I were, I wish I were funnier.

756

: 00:33:08

I wish I, I wish I just had

them laughing the whole time.

757

: 00:33:10

And, and so yeah, to go and do that.

758

: 00:33:13

The worst part was waiting in the line

because you sign up and only so many

759

: 00:33:17

people are going to get a spot , but you

get your three minutes and the lights

760

: 00:33:21

on your eyes and you go, okay, have fun.

761

: 00:33:23

Can you have fun now?

762

: 00:33:25

John: is that video somewhere?

763

: 00:33:26

Can I find that video clip

of you doing an open mic

764

: 00:33:30

Chris: I don't know if I

don't know if there's a video.

765

: 00:33:32

John: Well, if there is, I want it.

766

: 00:33:34

Chris: yeah, yeah.

767

: 00:33:35

No, there should be.

768

: 00:33:36

John: We'll dedicate a

podcast to critiquing your

769

: 00:33:38

performance as a stand up comic.

770

: 00:33:40

Chris: don't know if you have enough time.

771

: 00:33:42

John: It might be brief.

772

: 00:33:43

Hey, Chris, can we go back a little bit

to some of the, you know, the inspiration,

773

: 00:33:47

um, to go ahead and, uh, climb Kilimanjaro

and do that as a way to raise, , awareness

774

: 00:33:53

of, , people with disabilities.

775

: 00:33:55

, we saw a year ago, about a year

ago, Apple released, um, this really

776

: 00:34:01

amazing epic two minute commercial

called The Greatest, where they

777

: 00:34:05

were showcasing their, accessibility

features built into the product.

778

: 00:34:08

and it just, it focused on a huge

range of individuals with disabilities.

779

: 00:34:11

What other brands do you think do a

really good job of building accessibility

780

: 00:34:16

into their products and service?

781

: 00:34:18

Because Apple is exceptional.

782

: 00:34:19

Like so much of what we enjoy in

our iPhone is a feature that was

783

: 00:34:23

started as an accessibility feature.

784

: 00:34:25

who else do you see out there doing a

really good job of building accessibility

785

: 00:34:28

or mobility into their products?

786

: 00:34:30

Chris: you know, I mean, it's, it's,

it's a really interesting question

787

: 00:34:33

and I think that some of, I mean, I've

been really interested to see some of

788

: 00:34:37

what's happened with the US Olympic

and Paralympic committee, sponsors.

789

: 00:34:41

So like BP was the first one to

use Paralympic athletes in their

790

: 00:34:48

promotion during the Olympics.

791

: 00:34:50

And that to me is a, is a big step, right?

792

: 00:34:52

I mean, I keep talking about

like the human journey and we

793

: 00:34:55

love the underdog, right?

794

: 00:34:56

I mean, this is the story.

795

: 00:34:57

Like, we love the underdog who

can find a way to be successful

796

: 00:35:00

because that underdog represents.

797

: 00:35:02

All of us.

798

: 00:35:03

And, I love the idea of universal design

that to me is the stuff that you're

799

: 00:35:07

like, well, this just makes sense.

800

: 00:35:09

whether in computers, whether in

architecture, I mean, that's, that's

801

: 00:35:13

what's really cool is to say, is to have

someone who thinks out the process enough

802

: 00:35:18

that it's accessible, I mean, accessible

in, in whatever meaning of that term,

803

: 00:35:23

or in all of the meanings of the term,

I guess, but it just, it makes sense.

804

: 00:35:27

One of the things that kills

me is like ramps on a building.

805

: 00:35:30

You know, I mean, it's like,

okay, that's like a zit on the

806

: 00:35:33

end of your nose kind of thing.

807

: 00:35:34

You know, you're like, oh, we did that.

808

: 00:35:35

And now we've got to do

this and just add it on.

809

: 00:35:37

You know, it's like,

can we avoid that part?

810

: 00:35:39

Can we figure out a way to make it work?

811

: 00:35:42

that makes it make sense that

it's not like, Oh, there's a

812

: 00:35:44

separate entrance over here.

813

: 00:35:46

And if you have the

secret knock on this door.

814

: 00:35:50

You'll be allowed to get in.

815

: 00:35:51

John: I was telling Brian a story

about going to a restaurant with you

816

: 00:35:53

once and, and we had to go through a

service elevator through the back and

817

: 00:35:57

go through the kitchen to get to our

table, which was not how everybody else

818

: 00:36:01

in that restaurant got to their table.

819

: 00:36:03

It felt very, exceptional

and not in a positive way

820

: 00:36:06

Chris: I had to do that when I got

inducted into the hall of fame.

821

: 00:36:09

It really is.

822

: 00:36:10

I mean, it's one of those you're sort of

celebrated in one moment and in the next

823

: 00:36:13

moment, you're like feeling a little bit

like a second class citizen, you know,

824

: 00:36:16

John: Totally.

825

: 00:36:16

This touches on, so Brian and I have

been talking a little bit, um, about,

826

: 00:36:21

uh, this concept of inspiration porn

and, you know, it's like regular porn.

827

: 00:36:27

It's kind of hard to define,

but you know, when you see it,

828

: 00:36:29

I think, you know, talking about

some brands who use, , people with

829

: 00:36:33

disabilities in their marketing.

830

: 00:36:35

it doesn't work unless it's authentic.

831

: 00:36:37

And it's actually, , it's not

referring to something that

832

: 00:36:40

the product inherently enables.

833

: 00:36:41

it tends to feel a little

bit, um, exploitive.

834

: 00:36:44

And, you know, I also, I wanted to get

your perspective On that phenomenon,

835

: 00:36:49

how often you see it and experience

it, because I feel like I noticed

836

: 00:36:52

it first time I was around you and

people will come up to you and without

837

: 00:36:55

knowing anything about you just said

you're an inspiration because you kind

838

: 00:36:58

of showed up in a wheelchair versus

knowing all that, you know, that the

839

: 00:37:02

Brian was talking earlier about, all

the full rich elements of your life.

840

: 00:37:05

Chris: You know, I mean,

it's an interesting thing.

841

: 00:37:06

I mean, it's a really

interesting question.

842

: 00:37:08

I happen to be, you know, not at

the moment, but I was looking over

843

: 00:37:12

Brian's shoulder at one point and

saw the Rocky poster behind him.

844

: 00:37:16

Uh, yep.

845

: 00:37:17

There it is.

846

: 00:37:17

The original, the first one at

the top of the, the art museum

847

: 00:37:21

there at the top of the steps.

848

: 00:37:22

Right.

849

: 00:37:22

Isn't that what's going on?

850

: 00:37:23

John: no ramp to the top of those steps.

851

: 00:37:24

I don't think either by the way.

852

: 00:37:26

Chris: I don't think,

853

: 00:37:27

Brian: No, absolutely not.

854

: 00:37:28

Chris: but in, in the hand cycle

that I, that I went up Kilimanjaro,

855

: 00:37:31

I could go up those steps.

856

: 00:37:33

Brian: Oh,

857

: 00:37:33

Chris: I could go up that.

858

: 00:37:34

Yeah, which would be pretty cool.

859

: 00:37:36

Should have thought of that.

860

: 00:37:37

That would be

861

: 00:37:38

John: Next time

862

: 00:37:38

you're

863

: 00:37:38

Chris: have having the anthem

864

: 00:37:40

John: all right.

865

: 00:37:40

Next time you're in Philly, buddy.

866

: 00:37:42

I know what we're doing.

867

: 00:37:43

Chris: Exactly.

868

: 00:37:44

We've got to do

869

: 00:37:45

John: we're climbing the rocky steps.

870

: 00:37:47

Brian: steaks, not cheese steaks,

we'll sit at the top and then we'll,

871

: 00:37:49

Chris: The incentive.

872

: 00:37:50

Exactly.

873

: 00:37:51

But the thing is, I mean, we're

all looking for inspiration, right?

874

: 00:37:54

And and that movie.

875

: 00:37:57

Did a tremendous job.

876

: 00:37:58

I mean, you, you feel like, okay,

I can take on Apollo Creed now,

877

: 00:38:03

you know, like I'm, I'm ready.

878

: 00:38:04

I don't think that would work out

very well for any of us, but, but

879

: 00:38:07

we felt like we were ready and,

and, and that's so inspiration porn.

880

: 00:38:12

I mean, it's, I think it's one of the

things that the pity aspect is, is

881

: 00:38:16

the issue, you know, the pity aspect

of like, oh, it's so great for you.

882

: 00:38:20

And it's like.

883

: 00:38:21

No, it's, it's blood, sweat and tears,

and being successful is often a matter of.

884

: 00:38:27

Not quitting, it's sort of like that's

the that's kind of the first step is

885

: 00:38:31

is like Finding a way to be successful

finding another strategy And and so

886

: 00:38:35

I never want to say no to people's

inspiration, but it is one of those

887

: 00:38:39

you try to sort of spin it in a way

that they can understand that it's that

888

: 00:38:43

it's yeah This is about the passion.

889

: 00:38:44

This is about taking a risk I mean,

I often say the greatest risk we

890

: 00:38:48

take is taking no risk at all If we

stay in the comfortable part, we're

891

: 00:38:53

not going to figure out who we are.

892

: 00:38:54

And if we take the risk, yeah, we might

get beaten up a little bit along the

893

: 00:38:58

way, or we might get beaten up a lot

along the way, but sometimes those

894

: 00:39:02

people who've been beaten up along the

way are the people that we celebrate.

895

: 00:39:06

And, and there is.

896

: 00:39:08

It's a bit of responsibility on my part to

project who I am and what I'm all about.

897

: 00:39:16

And it's not just me, obviously, it's,

it's, it's, you know, the people that I

898

: 00:39:21

surround myself with as well, and my, my

competitors and those kinds of things.

899

: 00:39:25

I mean, I'm not the only one doing this

by any means, but it's, but there's a

900

: 00:39:28

responsibility to, to tell the story.

901

: 00:39:32

And that's why we did the movie.

902

: 00:39:35

When I said, okay, we're

going to climb Kilimanjaro.

903

: 00:39:38

I also thought if you don't tell

the story, it didn't happen.

904

: 00:39:42

Brian: you know,

905

: 00:39:43

Chris: we have to find a

way to make that happen.

906

: 00:39:46

John: Well, Chris, you've got, you've

got some, some broad shoulders that you

907

: 00:39:50

put that responsibility onto and, and

I'd say, , really handled it beautifully.

908

: 00:39:54

, Brian, what else do we have for Chris

909

: 00:39:56

?

Brian: I wanted to know a little bit about your, your competitive fire today,

910

: 00:40:00

you know, how, how have you,, I guess

channel that, uh, to where we're at

911

: 00:40:04

today, because, you know, it's almost

been, what has it been 18 years since

912

: 00:40:08

you retired or, or close to that,

913

: 00:40:11

Chris: Uh, 2004.

914

: 00:40:12

Yeah.

915

: 00:40:13

So yeah.

916

: 00:40:13

18.

917

: 00:40:13

Yeah.

918

: 00:40:14

Something.

919

: 00:40:14

Yeah.

920

: 00:40:15

18, 19 years.

921

: 00:40:16

Brian: because that doesn't, that, that

fire never necessarily leaves you, but

922

: 00:40:19

how have you, how have you continued to,

Control that or channel it, you know,

923

: 00:40:25

you did the mountain climb and you've

continued to try different things,

924

: 00:40:29

but you know, what are you, uh, today,

kind of, how are you channeling that?

925

: 00:40:33

I guess

926

: 00:40:34

Chris: Yeah.

927

: 00:40:34

I mean the competitive part of it is.

928

: 00:40:37

Is not liking to lose, you know, being

being willing to being willing to take

929

: 00:40:42

to do what it takes to be successful, but

I think it is also that being willing to

930

: 00:40:48

take a risk to so, you know, so, yeah,

jumping into the podcast world, which

931

: 00:40:54

which I had done, which is one of those

that you think, Oh, what am I doing?

932

: 00:40:59

I don't know if you guys think

that, but yeah, What am I doing?

933

: 00:41:02

How do we how do we ask questions?

934

: 00:41:03

How do we make this interesting?

935

: 00:41:05

How do we keep those people?

936

: 00:41:07

Uh, you know, and and you also open

yourself up for criticism, right?

937

: 00:41:11

You put it out there and like,

Huh, that's the dumbest question

938

: 00:41:15

I've ever heard in my life.

939

: 00:41:17

you.

940

: 00:41:18

John: What are you

trying to tell us, Chris?

941

: 00:41:19

Brian: noted.

942

: 00:41:20

Chris: That's good.

943

: 00:41:21

John: There's

944

: 00:41:21

Chris: not that I'm saying that about you.

945

: 00:41:22

I'm saying that this is coming from

personal experience, but, uh, but we

946

: 00:41:26

open ourselves up to criticism, right?

947

: 00:41:28

And I think that's the competitive part

is, is being willing to open ourselves up.

948

: 00:41:35

To that criticism and recognizing

there, there are a whole lot of

949

: 00:41:38

people who are going to say no.

950

: 00:41:40

That's, you know, I kind of, I

kind of find it all the time.

951

: 00:41:44

Like with my foundation, we do a

school presentation called name tags.

952

: 00:41:47

Which is helping students to move

beyond the labels and limitations

953

: 00:41:51

that we put on ourselves and

others, and it's resilience based.

954

: 00:41:55

Our motto is it's not what happens to you.

955

: 00:41:56

It's what you do with what

happens to you just for me.

956

: 00:42:00

I'm I'm reaching out

to school saying, Hey.

957

: 00:42:03

People have loved this.

958

: 00:42:05

It's great.

959

: 00:42:06

Kids write college essays.

960

: 00:42:09

I had some kid chase me down in the

airport to chant our motto and it had been

961

: 00:42:14

five years since I'd been at his school.

962

: 00:42:17

John: That's

963

: 00:42:17

Chris: time I'm reaching out to schools,

you know, and and these doors are not

964

: 00:42:21

swinging wide open or often, you know,

often I'm not getting any responses.

965

: 00:42:26

I'm having to continue to follow

up and follow up and be like, I

966

: 00:42:30

don't know if that quite fits.

967

: 00:42:31

I'm like, no, no, you don't understand.

968

: 00:42:32

This is great.

969

: 00:42:34

This is you're going to love it.

970

: 00:42:35

And and I think that that's

the competitive nature of God.

971

: 00:42:40

All right.

972

: 00:42:41

No, no, no, fail, fail, fail.

973

: 00:42:44

Okay, keep.

974

: 00:42:44

We're going to keep going.

975

: 00:42:46

You know, Jordan said that, right.

976

: 00:42:47

You know, I missed over 9, 000 shots

in my career, lost almost 300 games,

977

: 00:42:51

26 times been trusted to take the game

winning shot and missed, I failed over

978

: 00:42:56

and over and over again in my life.

979

: 00:42:58

And that's why I succeed, you know?

980

: 00:43:00

And it's like, he was pretty

good at what he did, I think.

981

: 00:43:03

You

982

: 00:43:04

Brian: Yeah, well, I think it was

Gretzky who said, uh, you miss a

983

: 00:43:07

hundred percent of the shots you

don't take or something, you know, he

984

: 00:43:11

Chris: Exactly.

985

: 00:43:11

It really, and he was pretty

good at what he did too, right?

986

: 00:43:14

Scored

987

: 00:43:14

almost two times as

many points as anybody.

988

: 00:43:17

Brian: How has the, um,

you know, as you're.

989

: 00:43:20

Commentator on the Paralympic games.

990

: 00:43:23

How has that Olympic experience changed

since, since you were there, you know,

991

: 00:43:28

for the athletes and for the fans, even.

992

: 00:43:30

Chris: oh, wow.

993

: 00:43:31

I mean, it's, it's funny, I did a,

I did a podcast with Julie Foudy

994

: 00:43:36

a while ago, and uh, it was great.

995

: 00:43:38

And just one of my heroes, you know, from

en's World Cup Soccer team in: 1999

996

: 00:43:42

And, and that was in an era where

they could go and win the world

997

: 00:43:46

cup and people are like, so what

did you do with your summer?

998

: 00:43:49

It's like, we won the biggest thing in

our sport and you don't know about it.

999

: 00:43:55

Right.

: 1000

00:43:56,220 --> 00:44:00,690

And that's, that was the same thing

for me with the Paralympics is that.

: 1001

00:44:01,185 --> 00:44:04,045

People didn't know what

the Paralympics was.

: 1002

00:44:04,045 --> 00:44:06,865

I mean, it has a lot of

brand recognition now.

: 1003

00:44:06,865 --> 00:44:11,445

It's come a long way from what I did.

: 1004

00:44:11,465 --> 00:44:13,955

And my first games was 92 in Albertville.

: 1005

00:44:14,435 --> 00:44:18,475

, we, we didn't have opening, opening

ceremonies in, in a stadium.

: 1006

00:44:18,815 --> 00:44:20,475

We were actually just up in teen.

: 1007

00:44:20,475 --> 00:44:22,025

We were up in a mountain village.

: 1008

00:44:22,385 --> 00:44:24,525

I, I've never even been to Albertville.

: 1009

00:44:24,690 --> 00:44:25,890

I went to the games in Albert.

: 1010

00:44:25,890 --> 00:44:27,210

I've never been to Albertville.

: 1011

00:44:27,620 --> 00:44:28,700

Uh, didn't even go.

: 1012

00:44:29,200 --> 00:44:32,070

John: Uh, to your point, Chris, I, I,

I'm, I always tell people because I

: 1013

00:44:32,070 --> 00:44:36,250

was amazed when I learned that your

ski courses, you're doing the same

: 1014

00:44:36,290 --> 00:44:42,960

course as the able bodied Olympics,

, competitors did two weeks prior.

: 1015

00:44:43,030 --> 00:44:44,170

It's the same course, right?

: 1016

00:44:45,005 --> 00:44:47,915

Chris: It's, it's, for the most

part, it is the same course.

: 1017

00:44:47,915 --> 00:44:51,865

It's the same venues, and it's

been that way since Seoul in 88,

: 1018

00:44:52,835 --> 00:44:56,195

where the Paralympics have followed

two weeks after, after the Olympics.

: 1019

00:44:56,195 --> 00:44:59,165

And, and so yeah, same

venues, same, same courses.

: 1020

00:44:59,165 --> 00:44:59,555

Same.

: 1021

00:45:00,435 --> 00:45:01,425

Same.

: 1022

00:45:01,455 --> 00:45:05,775

You know, same, same, uh, same

fear, same, uh, same competitor.

: 1023

00:45:05,805 --> 00:45:06,225

Really,

: 1024

00:45:06,460 --> 00:45:09,170

John: And now the Paralympics have

the same pomp and circumstance

: 1025

00:45:09,170 --> 00:45:11,760

with the open and closing ceremony,

which is really cool to see.

: 1026

00:45:11,760 --> 00:45:14,900

And, and, and it's been, it's been,

it's been great that you've been able

: 1027

00:45:14,900 --> 00:45:16,810

to be the color commentator for those.

: 1028

00:45:17,310 --> 00:45:18,300

Chris: It's been really fun.

: 1029

00:45:18,300 --> 00:45:23,490

That's where, yeah, for me being able to

be, you know, the analyst for the opening

: 1030

00:45:23,540 --> 00:45:27,820

and closing ceremonies for NBC for the

Paralympics has been really cool to kind

: 1031

00:45:27,820 --> 00:45:31,940

of be able to communicate the excitement

that the athletes have coming in.

: 1032

00:45:32,405 --> 00:45:36,185

thinking about doing their job, and what's

going through their mind, but also to

: 1033

00:45:36,185 --> 00:45:40,665

see, we don't have a lot of audiences,

you know, back, back when I first

: 1034

00:45:40,665 --> 00:45:42,575

started, we weren't even on television.

: 1035

00:45:43,185 --> 00:45:46,445

And my biggest games

was, was Lillehammer 94.

: 1036

00:45:46,605 --> 00:45:50,335

I won all four races and

none of my family even came.

: 1037

00:45:50,935 --> 00:45:51,365

Brian: Really?

: 1038

00:45:52,030 --> 00:45:52,650

Chris: No, they didn't.

: 1039

00:45:52,670 --> 00:45:56,300

And that was probably my fault because

they had been in Albertville two years

: 1040

00:45:56,330 --> 00:46:00,080

prior, because that's when we started

switching from winter to summer.

: 1041

00:46:00,080 --> 00:46:02,029

And, and Lillehammer, yeah.

: 1042

00:46:02,150 --> 00:46:06,540

Was a lot like a lot like New England,

you know, where we were racing

: 1043

00:46:06,540 --> 00:46:10,480

in Hafele and, you know, you're

getting the smell of cow manures.

: 1044

00:46:10,480 --> 00:46:12,310

You're going up the lift, you

know, because it's a working

: 1045

00:46:12,310 --> 00:46:14,200

farm and and this kind of stuff.

: 1046

00:46:14,200 --> 00:46:18,520

And I have I have such fond memories

and just love the Norwegian people.

: 1047

00:46:18,520 --> 00:46:21,630

And I don't think I was prepared

because I finished and I turned around.

: 1048

00:46:22,175 --> 00:46:27,115

And it was four deep, like lining,

lining the, uh, the course.

: 1049

00:46:27,125 --> 00:46:30,515

And I went, wow, how cool is this place?

: 1050

00:46:30,515 --> 00:46:33,645

And I wasn't smart enough to

tell my family to show up.

: 1051

00:46:34,645 --> 00:46:38,045

John: So when they came to the

next Olympics where you didn't win,

: 1052

00:46:38,095 --> 00:46:40,395

you know, five gold medals, were

they super disappointed in you?

: 1053

00:46:41,395 --> 00:46:43,055

Chris: You already

peaked and we missed it.

: 1054

00:46:44,055 --> 00:46:45,795

John: Hopefully there's

footage of that somewhere.

: 1055

00:46:46,795 --> 00:46:48,405

Chris: Footage of you missed it.

: 1056

00:46:48,515 --> 00:46:48,965

John: No,

: 1057

00:46:49,845 --> 00:46:51,125

Chris: Plenty, plenty of footage.

: 1058

00:46:52,125 --> 00:46:52,525

Yeah.

: 1059

00:46:52,570 --> 00:46:56,340

Brian: love when, uh, I did listen

to your Julie Fowley podcast and, uh,

: 1060

00:46:56,810 --> 00:46:58,170

what'd she call it, silver, white, gold.

: 1061

00:46:59,170 --> 00:46:59,950

John: wait, that's good.

: 1062

00:47:01,110 --> 00:47:01,460

Chris: She's

: 1063

00:47:01,485 --> 00:47:04,815

John: You're, you're, you're, when

you're talking about, uh, you know,

: 1064

00:47:04,825 --> 00:47:08,535

podcasting as something that kind of

keeps your competitive spirit flowing.

: 1065

00:47:08,605 --> 00:47:14,325

I went to your Bill Walton interview,

which I equated to riding a bucking

: 1066

00:47:14,325 --> 00:47:19,125

Bronco, just like strap on and

hold on and hope for the best.

: 1067

00:47:19,125 --> 00:47:22,065

Cause that guy, that

guy is off to the races.

: 1068

00:47:22,445 --> 00:47:25,985

I'm not sure you were, you were,

you were a slight participant in

: 1069

00:47:25,985 --> 00:47:27,815

your own podcast for that episode.

: 1070

00:47:28,315 --> 00:47:31,875

Chris: Yes, I thought I was in

charge and Bill, uh, Bill was taking

: 1071

00:47:31,875 --> 00:47:33,135

it wherever Bill wanted to go.

: 1072

00:47:33,135 --> 00:47:36,545

And wherever Bill wants to

go is entirely entertaining.

: 1073

00:47:36,755 --> 00:47:38,015

John: Oh, for sure.

: 1074

00:47:38,405 --> 00:47:38,945

For sure.

: 1075

00:47:38,965 --> 00:47:39,945

And, and P.

: 1076

00:47:39,945 --> 00:47:40,155

S.

: 1077

00:47:40,235 --> 00:47:42,625

obviously, a massive fan of yours.

: 1078

00:47:42,645 --> 00:47:45,585

It was, it was kind of cool to hear

him just gushing over like, you

: 1079

00:47:45,585 --> 00:47:49,995

know, how, how much admiration he

had for you, uh, when you probably

: 1080

00:47:49,995 --> 00:47:52,385

went into the podcast thinking it

was going to be the reverse of that.

: 1081

00:47:53,215 --> 00:47:56,205

Chris: Oh yeah, no, he's, he's

been a hero for a long time.

: 1082

00:47:56,205 --> 00:47:59,535

And I think he was one of the guys

who was one of my father's heroes too.

: 1083

00:47:59,535 --> 00:48:02,325

So it was one of those

like inherited heroes.

: 1084

00:48:02,345 --> 00:48:06,165

Cause I don't think in the early,

early 70s, I wasn't picking up a

: 1085

00:48:06,165 --> 00:48:09,745

lot of, uh, you know, a lot of what

was happening in the sports world.

: 1086

00:48:09,820 --> 00:48:09,979

John: Right,

: 1087

00:48:10,265 --> 00:48:10,495

Brian: Yeah.

: 1088

00:48:11,495 --> 00:48:14,645

John: Um, well, Chris, you've

been amazingly gracious

: 1089

00:48:14,645 --> 00:48:16,415

with your time and energy.

: 1090

00:48:16,545 --> 00:48:18,445

Uh, and, and thank you for talking to us.

: 1091

00:48:18,445 --> 00:48:19,525

It's been fantastic.

: 1092

00:48:19,930 --> 00:48:20,530

Brian: Really appreciate

: 1093

00:48:20,620 --> 00:48:21,250

Chris: pleasure.

: 1094

00:48:21,420 --> 00:48:22,870

And thank you guys for doing this.

: 1095

00:48:22,870 --> 00:48:26,850

Thank you for making it happen and

continue to fight the good fight here.

: 1096

00:48:26,995 --> 00:48:27,465

John: we will.

: 1097

00:48:27,840 --> 00:48:30,510

Chris: entertain and

inspire and, and educate.

: 1098

00:48:30,830 --> 00:48:31,600

John: That's the idea.

: 1099

00:48:31,650 --> 00:48:35,960

, and, truth be told, having you on our

podcast may actually be a little bit of a

: 1100

00:48:35,960 --> 00:48:40,820

Trojan horse to get the real superstar in

your household, , as a guest, your wife.

: 1101

00:48:40,920 --> 00:48:45,040

So, she may be getting, uh, a

request to, to join us sometime too,

: 1102

00:48:45,050 --> 00:48:46,660

because, that would be phenomenal.

: 1103

00:48:47,380 --> 00:48:48,040

Chris: That will be great.

: 1104

00:48:48,080 --> 00:48:48,580

I will.

: 1105

00:48:48,600 --> 00:48:51,740

I will give you guys, you

know, my best recommendation.

: 1106

00:48:52,000 --> 00:48:52,540

John: Oh, thank you.

: 1107

00:48:52,590 --> 00:48:52,950

Thank you.

: 1108

00:48:53,450 --> 00:48:53,900

I'm not sure.

: 1109

00:48:53,960 --> 00:48:55,300

I hope that carries some weight

: 1110

00:48:55,830 --> 00:48:56,520

Chris: I hope it does.

: 1111

00:48:56,520 --> 00:48:56,930

I don't know.

: 1112

00:48:57,120 --> 00:48:57,720

I can't make any

: 1113

00:48:57,970 --> 00:48:59,140

Brian: I could go either way for us.

: 1114

00:48:59,640 --> 00:49:00,310

John: Exactly.

: 1115

00:49:01,260 --> 00:49:02,960

She's like, I'm definitely

out in that case.

: 1116

00:49:03,780 --> 00:49:04,310

Chris: Exactly.

: 1117

00:49:04,980 --> 00:49:06,170

Oh, no, not at all.

: 1118

00:49:06,560 --> 00:49:07,670

John: Well, thank you so much.

: 1119

00:49:08,120 --> 00:49:09,070

Brian: Yeah, this is great.

: 1120

00:49:09,570 --> 00:49:10,040

Chris: Appreciate it.

: 1121

00:49:10,090 --> 00:49:10,740

Thank you guys.

: 1122

00:49:11,740 --> 00:49:12,290

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1123

00:49:12,750 --> 00:49:13,260

Wow.

: 1124

00:49:13,320 --> 00:49:16,710

That was, uh, that was very inspirational.

: 1125

00:49:17,000 --> 00:49:18,870

Really incredible stuff.

: 1126

00:49:18,870 --> 00:49:25,380

I mean, Chris has just a phenomenal

take on, on life, um, moving

: 1127

00:49:25,380 --> 00:49:28,190

forward, you know, making decisions.

: 1128

00:49:28,260 --> 00:49:31,450

Um, that was, that was a

real exciting interview.

: 1129

00:49:31,830 --> 00:49:32,970

audioJohnYoung: 219208

yeah, I'm glad you liked it.

: 1130

00:49:33,000 --> 00:49:36,750

Yeah, he's a really interesting

guy, , and just a really good person.

: 1131

00:49:36,780 --> 00:49:40,720

So I was thrilled he was able to

join us and share some of his, , his

: 1132

00:49:40,720 --> 00:49:42,750

experiences and his thoughts on life.

: 1133

00:49:42,820 --> 00:49:43,100

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1134

00:49:43,100 --> 00:49:44,480

Let's keep that guy in our universe.

: 1135

00:49:44,770 --> 00:49:45,170

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1136

00:49:45,290 --> 00:49:45,910

I like it.

: 1137

00:49:46,610 --> 00:49:51,060

Uh, speaking of people in our universe,

uh, maybe it's time to try to go get

: 1138

00:49:51,060 --> 00:49:55,760

some new people into our universe with

our regular segment, dear, hopelessly

: 1139

00:49:55,760 --> 00:49:57,210

unattainable guests, what do you think?

: 1140

00:49:57,750 --> 00:50:00,260

audioBrianMarks: 119208

you know, as this podcast grows

: 1141

00:50:00,260 --> 00:50:03,690

and grows and grows, I think these

people are becoming more attainable.

: 1142

00:50:04,530 --> 00:50:05,090

What do you think?

: 1143

00:50:05,500 --> 00:50:06,720

audioJohnYoung: 219208

Uh, sure, why not?

: 1144

00:50:06,890 --> 00:50:10,700

I mean, haven't heard back from, uh,

Taylor, and I don't know if you've heard

: 1145

00:50:10,700 --> 00:50:12,830

from Michael Jordan, but let's keep

: 1146

00:50:12,845 --> 00:50:16,795

audioBrianMarks: 119208

uh, maybe I need to, you know, check my

: 1147

00:50:16,795 --> 00:50:18,295

voicemail and make sure it's not full.

: 1148

00:50:18,665 --> 00:50:20,175

Maybe Tim Cook's been trying to call.

: 1149

00:50:20,185 --> 00:50:20,595

I don't know.

: 1150

00:50:20,810 --> 00:50:22,710

audioJohnYoung: 219208

think Tim Cook's leaving voicemails.

: 1151

00:50:24,945 --> 00:50:25,155

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1152

00:50:25,155 --> 00:50:25,795

Well, who you got?

: 1153

00:50:26,120 --> 00:50:28,600

audioJohnYoung: 219208

right, I'd like to start with,

: 1154

00:50:29,090 --> 00:50:33,915

Dear Santa Claus, all I want for

Christmas this year is world peace.

: 1155

00:50:36,155 --> 00:50:37,855

Just Just kidding.

: 1156

00:50:37,865 --> 00:50:40,925

First of all, we know Santa Claus

doesn't deliver world peace.

: 1157

00:50:41,125 --> 00:50:43,695

And second of all, we also

know that he has a much higher

: 1158

00:50:43,695 --> 00:50:45,195

appearance fee than we can afford.

: 1159

00:50:45,195 --> 00:50:52,145

So, uh, I actually am going to send

this letter to dear Sir Richard Branson.

: 1160

00:50:52,645 --> 00:50:53,305

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1161

00:50:53,555 --> 00:50:53,845

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1162

00:50:53,845 --> 00:50:55,025

Right up your alley here, Brian.

: 1163

00:50:55,025 --> 00:51:00,865

According to Wikipedia, you are

quote, a British business magnate and

: 1164

00:51:00,865 --> 00:51:05,595

commercial astronaut, but even that

lofty description doesn't do you justice.

: 1165

00:51:06,315 --> 00:51:10,155

You created a mega brand, Virgin, which

somehow conveys a hipness from the

: 1166

00:51:10,155 --> 00:51:14,645

media and entertainment business to

mobile phone service, to healthcare,

: 1167

00:51:14,885 --> 00:51:20,015

to pretty much every form of travel,

air, rail, cruises, and now space.

: 1168

00:51:20,925 --> 00:51:22,105

Talk about some big decisions.

: 1169

00:51:22,115 --> 00:51:24,875

You decided to shift from

running a huge chain of record

: 1170

00:51:24,875 --> 00:51:26,675

stores to launching an airline.

: 1171

00:51:26,675 --> 00:51:30,225

And after conquering travel here

on Earth, like that wasn't enough,

: 1172

00:51:30,395 --> 00:51:34,355

you decided to tackle space tourism

by launching Virgin Galactic.

: 1173

00:51:34,895 --> 00:51:35,945

Badass name, by the way.

: 1174

00:51:36,845 --> 00:51:37,875

The list goes on and on.

: 1175

00:51:37,935 --> 00:51:41,955

And while we here at Snap Decisions would

like to hear about your business successes

: 1176

00:51:42,165 --> 00:51:44,645

and failures, we'd love to just hang out.

: 1177

00:51:45,365 --> 00:51:49,955

The world seems pretty low on billionaires

who don't take themselves too seriously

: 1178

00:51:50,195 --> 00:51:52,015

and who just seem to enjoy life.

: 1179

00:51:52,515 --> 00:51:56,605

We're happy to come to your private oasis,

Necker Island, if it makes being our

: 1180

00:51:56,765 --> 00:51:59,005

podcast guest a little easier for you.

: 1181

00:51:59,305 --> 00:52:02,335

Sincerely, John O'Brien,

the Snap Decisions team.

: 1182

00:52:02,385 --> 00:52:02,595

P.

: 1183

00:52:02,595 --> 00:52:02,965

S.

: 1184

00:52:03,785 --> 00:52:06,485

I know you know Chris Waddell,

who we just had on the Snap

: 1185

00:52:06,485 --> 00:52:08,335

Decisions podcast as a guest.

: 1186

00:52:08,555 --> 00:52:13,885

So, while booking you as a moonshot,

you, more than most, understand that

: 1187

00:52:13,895 --> 00:52:15,835

sometimes you make it to the moon.

: 1188

00:52:17,570 --> 00:52:18,210

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1189

00:52:18,500 --> 00:52:19,170

I like it.

: 1190

00:52:19,750 --> 00:52:20,340

I like it.

: 1191

00:52:20,485 --> 00:52:22,025

audioJohnYoung: 219208

go Sir Richard, let's class this

: 1192

00:52:22,025 --> 00:52:23,505

joint up a little bit with a Sir.

: 1193

00:52:27,050 --> 00:52:27,620

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1194

00:52:27,620 --> 00:52:28,160

All right.

: 1195

00:52:28,360 --> 00:52:29,370

I think we got a chance.

: 1196

00:52:29,715 --> 00:52:30,275

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1197

00:52:31,080 --> 00:52:33,810

I'm not sure how to get these letters

to these people, but, uh, keep making

: 1198

00:52:33,835 --> 00:52:35,945

audioBrianMarks: 119208

our people to give it to their people,

: 1199

00:52:36,000 --> 00:52:38,310

audioJohnYoung: 219208

yeah, I forgot about our people.

: 1200

00:52:40,565 --> 00:52:41,785

audioBrianMarks: 119208

get our people moving on that.

: 1201

00:52:42,140 --> 00:52:45,280

audioJohnYoung: 219208

have a plan for this one, so it's a plan

: 1202

00:52:45,280 --> 00:52:47,330

which will reveal itself later, I hope.

: 1203

00:52:48,305 --> 00:52:48,825

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1204

00:52:49,655 --> 00:52:49,959

All right.

: 1205

00:52:49,959 --> 00:52:50,720

I'm looking forward to it.

: 1206

00:52:51,350 --> 00:52:51,720

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1207

00:52:51,720 --> 00:52:53,240

Well, Brian, you have a great day.

: 1208

00:52:54,590 --> 00:52:54,880

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1209

00:52:54,900 --> 00:52:56,860

My people tell your people

to have a good day too.

: 1210

00:52:57,440 --> 00:52:57,790

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1211

00:52:57,900 --> 00:52:58,110

All right.

: 1212

00:52:58,150 --> 00:53:01,060

And to all the people who might

be listening to this, thank you.

: 1213

00:53:02,090 --> 00:53:02,660

audioBrianMarks: 119208

: 1214

00:53:02,950 --> 00:53:03,370

audioJohnYoung: 219208

: 1215

00:53:04,390 --> 00:53:04,690

audioBrianMarks: 119208

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