THE ED MYLETT SHOW - How to Remake Yourself Feat. Ryan Kalish
Episode Date: July 14, 2026He played in the big leagues, wore the Red Sox jersey, and had 14 surgeries trying to keep a dream alive. Then the career ended. And in the silence that followed, Ryan Kalish almost didn't make it thr...ough. Ryan is not the kind of guest I typically have on this show. He doesn't have a bestselling book or a company that just crossed a hundred million. What he has is a story that stopped me cold on Instagram months ago. I was scrolling and I saw this guy on a street somewhere in the world, walking up to a man who was homeless, and he bathed him and gave him a haircut and got him some food. I thought: who is that? I looked him up. And I thought, "I have to have him on. "Ryan brings something to this conversation that is rare: the honesty of a man who was at rock bottom and didn't dress it up. He talks about the dark thoughts after his career ended, the substances he used to self-soothe, the spiritual calling that kept finding him even when he ran from it, and the moment sitting by a river in Austin, Texas, where it all clicked. He has now served orphans, refugees, and vulnerable people across Indonesia, Thailand, Uganda, India, Jordan, Tanzania, Egypt, and more, largely on his own dime. His 70-year-old father is his cameraman. I ask Ryan questions I think most people are afraid to ask: what does it actually feel like to do this? Is it lonely? Is it worth it? What did you have to let go of to get here? And I push Ryan on whether the hit he gets from feeding someone who's starving compares to circling the bases after a home run. His answer stops the conversation. Here's what you'll gain from this episode: What to do When You're Feeling Helpless: The reframe that unlocks everything for anyone sitting in a hard season wondering what to do next. Your Old Identity Has to Die: What Ryan had to pluck out of himself to make room for who he was becoming, and why the most painful part of reinvention is also the most necessary. You Don't Have to Be Qualified: Why the people least likely to think they can make a difference are exactly the ones who should Collective Consciousness: Learn about the only thing that will actually change the world at scale. This is an episode you will share with everyone you know! If you would like to support Ryan Kalish, visit his fund link HERE. Visit Upwork.com today to post your job for free, and connect with top talent ready to grow your business. 👉 SUBSCRIBE TO ED'S YOUTUBE CHANNEL NOW 👈 → → → CONNECT WITH ED MYLETT ON SOCIAL MEDIA: ← ← ← ➡️ INSTAGRAM ➡️FACEBOOK ➡️ LINKEDIN ➡️ X ➡️ WEBSITE Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcript
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This is the Edmireland show.
Welcome back to the show, everybody.
Listen, when I started the show about eight or nine years ago,
I had a purpose with doing this show, which was to change people's lives,
to inspire people to make their dreams come true or make a change in their life,
and then give them the strategies to do it.
And as the show became more and more successful, like many shows,
you can get guests on any time you want,
you can get more and more famous people on.
And I started to do a lot of that,
And I felt like we were missing the mark sometimes, just having a famous person after famous person on.
And I want to introduce you to people that stimulate something in your heart and your soul, maybe your mind, to get you to make a shift in your life.
That's really what I want to do.
And then hopefully teach you some of the strategies to do it.
And I found somebody today that's going to do that for you.
You're going to hear a story today like you've never heard before.
Let me tell you where I found him.
And I know this is not my normal intro, everybody, because it's so meaningful today to me that you listen closely or watch if you're on YouTube.
I'm scrolling through YouTube or excuse me, Instagram several months back and I see this clip of this man.
And I didn't know where he was, but it looked to me like maybe he was in a foreign country.
He was a fit dude.
He looked like an athlete to me.
He's walking down the street and he comes up to this man who was homeless.
And it ends up being that I watched him basically bathe this man and give him a haircut and clean him up.
and help him and put a little food in his belly.
And I thought, my gosh, what a beautiful moment.
Who is this person?
And then I looked into him in his story and I said, I want this dude on my show.
I want to introduce him to the world.
And so we're going to do that today.
Let me tell you about him first.
Former Major League Baseball player, he played for the greatest baseball team in the history of the world of Boston Red Sox.
And then he played for another team called the Chicago Cubs.
I'm just kidding.
He played in the big leagues, though.
Known for his athleticism, had a good career.
just guys, tons of injuries, 14 surgeries. It just, that dream was going to end. His career ends,
and I'm sure like anybody, his identity is a little bit lost. What's he going to do with his life?
And through a process we'll go through today, this man ends up stepping away from pro baseball
and went through this transition. And now you know what he does? He's a global humanitarian.
He basically helps the most underserved people in the world. And by the way, he's done the majority of
this so far on his own dime. Everywhere from Indonesia to Thailand, Uganda, India, Jordan, Tanzania,
Egypt. He's helped orphans, refugees, vulnerable people, just out of his heart. And he's
personally funded a lot of this. And so if you're at a stage of your life, everybody, where maybe you're
ready for a change, maybe your dream's not to own a Lambo and a mansion, but you want to make a
difference in your life. And maybe your identity's been attached to a relationship you are in or a business you
did or money or something and that's gone. How do you find the new you? I got the guy for you today.
Ryan Kalish, welcome to the show. Oh man. I appreciate the intro. I feel humbled and blessed to
receive all that love. And yeah, it's been a journey and I'm excited to get into it with you today.
I'm proud of you and I'm just meeting you. But I'm proud of you, brother. I really am. By the way,
he has something called the Hope of Life Fund, which we'll talk about a little bit. And I'm going to give you
the website, even though if you're driving, you probably won't remember it, but it's givebetter.com
slash hope dash of dash life dash fund in case you end up wanting to help Ryan change other
people's lives. Okay, here we go, brother. If you're watching on YouTube, you can tell us.
A big jack stud athlete. Career ends your whole life, I know what this is like. You grew up wanting
to be a baseball player. You became it. And then it was sort of taken from you. So now you're at this
spot in your life, who the heck am I? And I think there's a lot of people listening right now or
watching that feel the exact same way. Take us through that period of your life and how you ended up
landing on. I'm going to go to Indonesia or Thailand and help vulnerable people. How the heck does that
happen? Oh, wow. Okay. I'll do my best. So obviously to retirement, it was a choice,
14 surgeries. I was trying to keep playing, but my right knee was really not doing well. So I
stepped away and it was this period of two or three months where at the same time every day,
I was going to cry, right?
Like, it was just going to come out of me.
And I started having, you know, some really deep, dark thoughts about, you know, maybe not
wanting to be here.
So I ended up out in California and I was like, I have to try.
I have to do something.
Anything.
So I signed up for a Pilates teacher training course.
So I'm actually a certified Pilates teacher as well, although I don't really do that.
And then, you know, it was really nice to get me going through the process, try something new.
And then, man, actually, you know, just to be completely vulnerable, like, you know, I kind of started abusing substance a bit.
Marijuana was kind of the thing.
And then psychedelic drugs was in the mix.
And it was very powerful and I got carried away.
And kind of what came through was the spirit of Jesus, which was so interesting because it wasn't something.
I'm not religious.
I never really liked religion.
It wasn't my thing.
And all of a sudden, here I am, I'm like, why am I thinking so much about him?
Wow.
Wow, I didn't know that.
Okay.
Yeah, it was like a, it was a really.
touching experience and I don't really like but the way I was expressing it wasn't because I was on
all this substance site it wasn't really grounded and it made people worried and you know long story
short I went through a long mental health battle even with that spirit kind of coming down into me
so over time I kind of felt lost in America I decided I need a change I'm going to I'm going to
leave. I went over to Indonesia right around 2020. And this spirit of Jesus kept coming in,
but I couldn't figure out like, I couldn't ground it. I was not behaving perfectly, you know,
like my mental health was just unstable. And then ended up getting clean, you know,
clear and clean, especially in Indonesia. It's not a place where marijuana is legal. So it was
really good for me to go there. Right. I ended up meeting my wife, you know, along the way.
I became an entrepreneur out there, started a business.
So kind of stabilized my life.
My daughter came along, which is like just such a blessing.
And then we ended up moving four years, right?
We have like a pretty normal life.
And we go out to Thailand.
You know, we moved to Thailand.
And this was where, again, you know, actually now in Thailand to marijuana,
is legal.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's like fully legal there.
Yeah.
So it kind of came back into that a little.
And here comes the like spirit of Jesus.
And I'm like, this is.
So I'm like, no, I don't want this.
Don't mess around with stuff.
You have a family, like, relax.
So it's been over, I want to say it's been 16 months since I haven't had anything like that.
But the spirit was still with me.
And I was like, what am I?
to what am I to do with this? But this feels like a calling, you know? And I'm like, okay, I went out to
Austin, Texas. I was trying to connect with certain people, didn't quite work out. And I was sitting
by this river. And I was feeling anxious and was like this spiritual calling of like, like, the
reason that you don't feel good yet is because you're not really walking with Jesus yet. And I was like,
and I like, somebody mentioned like, hey, if you really want to like do this, you need to go,
like serve the people.
And I was like, that's what I'm supposed to do.
That's what I do.
And so, you know, as a baseball player, when you get admission and you get that calling,
like I got when I was five years old for baseball.
Now I have this new one and I'm like, let's go.
So I flew out to, it started in Egypt on Easter last year.
Wow.
Went to a church with these underprivileged kids, started serving.
and I just started moving.
And I've been doing it once a month, ever since.
I met like another humanitarian,
but he was really good at content creation in Uganda.
And he taught me some of the stuff.
And I started to think like,
well, how can I raise money and get my message out if I'm not recording this?
I don't really love it.
I can tell.
Because you're kind of putting people, you know,
people's lives out there.
But we ask everyone.
And if somebody says, no,
we don't show it, of course.
Let me jump in.
I want to say that first, because I want you to keep going,
but I want to just pull kind of some clues out of what you said, brother.
And that is, number one, you did something.
So change your life, I think, like when identity like that ends,
whether you're divorced or business fails,
or you're just like chasing something in your life,
and I'll just encourage you midway through.
I don't want this anymore.
Yeah.
Whatever it is, right?
Success leaves clues.
A couple things happened that I want to make sure that people know,
you did. Number one, you did take some time to like listen to the voice on your heart,
which you say is Jesus, right? But like just to get quiet and just not, maybe not go to the
next thing right away. Maybe take a moment to yourself and listen to your soul, listen to your
spirit. And so I just think that's success clue number one, okay? I want everyone to pull out
of this from Ryan. Number two, God uses imperfect people. So,
I'm so grateful that you're vulnerable.
Hey man, I'm smoking a lot of weed, doing some psychedelics, you know, and your self-soothing
is what you were really doing during those times.
But the second part of it is when you're feeling helpless in your life, get helpful.
Get helpful.
And that's really what you did.
Now, I can't imagine when you sign your deal with the Red Sox that you're like, you know what,
in whatever amount of years, within the next 10 years, I'm going to be in Uganda,
given some dude on the street,
some or isn't life amazing?
So how does this service start?
How did you know who to serve?
Or you don't say,
people always say,
well, how did he get started?
Did you just like go,
I don't know,
but I'm going to take some action next.
What happened to get it going?
Yeah, no.
I mean, it was just, well, a quick story.
When I was six years old,
my mom told me we were in Washington, D.C.,
and she told me I got angry.
And she's like, why are you mad?
And I was like, well,
why is that guy on the street sleeping and that building so nice?
Wow.
So it was kind of potentially always there for me.
And once, you know, even during my baseball career, you know, one of my dad's friends,
or my, sorry, my best friend's dad said, you know, if you want to be close to God when you
see somebody really struggling, throw them $5.
And I always kind of stuck with me.
So I always had the eye for seeing vulnerability.
So, you know, especially in Uganda when it came down, like my friend was already doing this for many years.
Such an amazing story.
Congolese refugee starts, you know, gets over into Uganda and starts feeding kids on the street when he was 15.
And he started, you know, kind of doing that.
So that was where I, like, I already could have the eye for the, you know, for the vulnerable.
But now I'm starting to mix in like, how do I build this message?
build it into whatever it's going to do, you have to share it.
So that was that moment there.
And then, you know, I've been to India four times.
I've done it in Thailand, you know, all over the place.
And I just figure out a team, you know.
I find people that kind of, you know, the path, it leads itself if you're willing to walk it.
Yeah.
What about what's it feel like the first time or what's it feel like?
By the way, it's amazing to me this has only really been a year or two.
I didn't realize that.
One here.
That's crazy, Ryan.
I mean, the amount of places you've done.
I love to use the word vulnerable people.
Tim Tebow's a good friend.
He's been on the show a bunch of times and we live near each other.
We speak at a lot of similar engagements.
And he said, I always wanted to be an MVP when I was playing football.
And he said, I do now, but it's a different thing.
It means I want to help the most vulnerable people.
Yeah.
And Tim does that.
He's the real deal on it.
But I think sometimes with Tim, and I can say this, I think people look at him and he's like almost perfect.
you know and what attract any and and frankly he is he's a great and what i love about you is like you're like
no i'm imperfect and yet i'm still making a difference because most of us as humans we look at ourselves and
go i'm not qualified nobody i can't help anybody i can't even help myself why should i be helping other
people and that's not the truth i'm wondering compare the two feelings hitting a jack in baseball into
big leagues and your circle in the bases and be honest compare that feeling
to like the first time you fed somebody who had no food on the street.
They're exactly the same.
They have the same.
And then like my dad, I'm saying with my parents, this moment here, being able to talk about
my journey with such a man as you, they're all like the same.
They're all, they all have that, you know, just that like adrenaline rush.
But there's also this thing that you like, even my dad, he's never done this before.
He's 70 years old.
He's starting to
when we go out there.
He's my cameraman.
He's my cameraman right now.
Come on.
Are you serious, brother?
It's real special right now.
What's happening in my life, man.
Like, we've been,
we've been through a lot,
you know.
You know,
I've had a struggle mentally.
They've seen me through a lot.
And so for him to be here
on the journey,
like feeling it.
You know, he's taking,
it's a spiritual,
richness that giving back and helping people and just seeing like, wow, like, you know, a lot of people
all around the world are in a difficult position. And, you know, it's like, I don't know where
it's all leading. Wow. But I'm like, I'm here. And I want to be a leader in this world now.
You know, I feel like the time. Bro, it is. And, you know, I think often in life, we think we're not
qualified and and I often say I think you're most qualified to help the person you used to be.
And if you're lost in your life, you're helping people that to some extent are lost or have
been left behind in your case. How beautiful, bro, that your dad died. I didn't know your dad was
the cameraman. Well, you know, this trip, you know, it always varies, but this one is like
extra special. Bro, no question. Tell your dad, thank you for the work he's doing and God bless him.
I'm sure you weren't easy and going through your mental health stuff and they probably stood through
you through some tough times.
For sure.
Yeah.
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You know, one thing I want you to picture everybody before I get into some more questions,
when you see his work now, you're like, oh, there's this man.
He, you know, cut his hair on the street.
And it's beautiful the way you care for people, bro.
It's this big strong dude.
You know, he's walking up to people on the street.
But now it's being filmed because you got to raise money for it and all that.
But just remember this when you're watching these videos, guys.
That's not how it started.
It started with just with a man that's like, I just feel like I need to help people.
There was no camera.
there was no plan there was no idea of what it was going to be he wasn't promoting anything he was just
doing it and so not everything you do has to be on instagram the minute you do it and maybe nobody
you'll ever know you've made this difference that doesn't mean it doesn't count god's watching you
the difference you're making every day and so when you do what have what do we what have you learned
you know sometimes you walk by somebody who's on the street and you can feel bad
for them or something maybe and or judge them or what happened to their life or whatever it is what
what do you now know about people that are vulnerable like that that some of us that have not done
that work don't know meaning how you look at them how you view them how they their life status
like what do you what do you see and know about them we don't all right so this is a great
question in india i cut about 50 people's hair they have this
that can't afford it.
People might not even accept to cut their hair.
You know, they're living on the street.
And yes, some of them are, they're drinking, some of them.
Start cutting people's hair.
And you see scars, like big scars, like surgical scars.
And potentially, you know, maybe they had a bike accident in their life.
Maybe they were abused.
Like, so the whole point is that we don't know how they got there.
And so to, you know, with,
the spirit of Jesus with you.
They're having compassion for these people.
And like, you know, we just don't know how they got there.
And even if they did get there on their own doing, like, I feel like they deserve more
chances than whatever it is that they've had because some of us are privileged and some
of us are just born into they're never going to have anything.
And so like for me, I really, you know, try and just always keep that in mind with everyone
that I meet.
Because it's real, man.
Like, I would say 70% of those guys that I cut that hair had some sort of significant
head scar, which would, you know, be a head trauma potentially.
Indicate a lot of abuse probably in their life more than likely.
Yeah, exactly.
And so, you know, being here in America, too, like, I mean, I haven't cut people's hair yet.
It doesn't seem necessarily like something everybody wants.
But I see souls pretty well now.
And I could feel that like so many people just, they, I don't know, man.
They didn't have the luck and they didn't have like, I don't know, like the David Goggins
mindset of being able to push through everything.
And that's like not everyone can be David.
And we need to have that compassion to like have systems in place to be able to do.
I think we can do better is what I'd say.
Well, you are, bro.
And when I was younger, I used to use the term weak and strong.
And as I've traveled the world, you know, I don't necessarily believe in that all the time.
Meaning just because somebody's in a difficult situation or they're down on their luck doesn't mean they're weak.
Maybe they just made a bunch of, by the way, you've acknowledged you've made bad decisions in your life.
So have I.
Just for the grace of God, I've been able to land on my feet many different times.
And so, you know, your work gave me perspective in the sense that, let me tell you what it did for me, and I'll have you speak to it.
I think I do a pretty good job, but like, how many people do I walk by in a given day that I don't even see?
Meaning, and I'm not just talking about someone who's on the street.
I'm talking about someone in the grocery store, someone at the airport.
You know, we have a lot in our lives where our heads are in our phones and we don't even see each other anymore.
And what I love about what you're doing is, especially people on the street, you know what most people do?
They keep their head up and they walk right by them.
And if I don't look at them and I don't see it, I don't have to deal with it.
But I think that's a metaphor for life.
I think a lot of us walk by each other every day and don't see one another anymore like we should.
Do you feel that way too?
Absolutely, man.
I've seen it all.
It's all over the world.
It's not specific to anyone country.
and, you know, I also have compassion for this is the society that's been created.
It's how life is happening fast.
And so it's easy to get swept away.
And I think that I can do, you know, all of us good to, you know, just step back and try.
Because like, I mean, I wasn't always doing this either.
So it's like, I'm not, if you haven't done it, it's not like, hey, you know, come on.
There's a little bit of like, come on.
I know we could all do a little more, but it's like it all, life, I mean, life is short.
And so we're only here for a short time.
So if you haven't got there yet, it's not like a knock on you.
It's just like it takes, you know, time and life circumstances to get you to that place.
But you know, man, I was listening to your podcast with Pete Holmes and you were talking about your dad.
Yeah.
It's like, what am I going to leave behind?
You know, I'm not going to leave my, my.
car you know it's like what impact am i going to leave behind that's what i'm after now yeah bro you are i
actually was thinking while we were talking this is no joke about my conversation with pete while we were
just talking and because he and i have talked about this off camera too and you know i i i you can't
you know if you're a christian you don't earn your way into heaven right that's that's that's been earned
for you if you're a believer but whatever your faith belief is set that aside if you
for a second today. A buddy of mine gave me a compliment one time and it's just, I kept the message.
And it was after a speech I gave. But here's what he said to me. This is where I think about you.
And I want everyone to think about this. He said, bro, you can't earn your way into heaven, but what you did today.
And it was a speech that I gave. And he said, it makes me emotional. But he said, he said, I just want you to know there's going to be a long line in heaven when you get there with people there to thank you for making any difference in their life.
And whether that's true or not is immaterial. I've not stopped thinking.
thinking sense that day about, you know, what can I do to make sure that I've helped somebody?
And you made me think that.
Truly, like, try to describe for it.
Like, what does it feel like?
You get back to the hotel and you just help three or four people that day on the street.
And you, by the way, spent your own money so far mainly.
I want everyone to understand that.
Do you get back?
Is it lonely?
Is it fulfilling?
Is it emotional?
Do you cry?
Like when you make a difference,
I want everyone to feel for a second,
like they're sitting there going,
does my life have meaning?
I don't feel like I'm probably ever going to own a Lambo or a mansion,
and I don't even know that I want one anyway.
What's my life mean?
That's what most people daily,
and it causes depression, by the way.
They conclude it, most people subtly, slowly, bro,
if we're being honest,
that's why I'm so glad we're doing this today.
I think most people are reaching the conclusion.
I don't matter.
My life doesn't really matter much.
And I think this causes a sense of depression in people that they don't feel like they have meaning in their life or that they matter or that their life matters.
And so does this give you a sense of that a little bit in your life when you get back to the hotel afterwards or what are you feeling?
Oh, absolutely.
Well, I would say to anyone who I know, even for me still, you know, when you're going to go step out of,
of your normal, like take care of myself only routine. It's uncomfortable. The feeling is there for me
almost every time I go to do it. In the morning, I'm, you know, I could just go to the sauna.
I could just go to the gym. No, no. I know what feeling I'm going to have after I do this.
And the feeling at the end is like at the end of the day when I'm sitting back, it's just like
this pure, like I'm a very anxious person if I'm out of alignment with my truth.
And at the end of the day, it's like, it's just so like, ha, I did it again today.
And like, but it is also, at least for me, because I'm an athlete, like, I have a pretty, you know, I guess major league goal for all of this.
Like, I want to go further.
Let me ask you this.
Are there moments where you're like, I'm totally not the person that should be doing this?
Like, do you feel inadequate often?
No.
No, no, no, not anymore.
No, I mean, Judas was a carpenter, apparently.
So it's like, I mean, I don't have a degree, but I have the heart.
And I feel like I could be a really good leader here on Earth for connecting back to the message of Jesus,
which isn't that different from what Muhammad was saying.
It's not very different from Krishna.
You know, I think all of these guys are, you know, I'm connecting a lot to the Lakota nations.
their profits.
It's kind of all about like taking care of the planet,
taking care of the people.
And you said it just on your last podcast and Pete as well.
It's like with politics is like where we're sorry using the word sorry,
using the word love like where I'm like where is that?
Right.
Right.
Humility is not.
Humility seems to not be rewarded in the world today.
Yeah.
You got to always be right.
I have this thing I want to ask you about.
Yeah, sure.
How much of your old identity had to die for this to happen?
And what I mean by that is this, tell you an interesting story.
I have this, I bought this property.
And on the property, there's these bald eagles.
We called them Fred and Wilma.
They were this married couple.
And they lived there about 15 years before about the property.
Anyway, long story short, Fred passed away.
And now Wilma is a widow.
And I had the people from the bird sanctuary place come out and they're like, well, she's probably going to pass in the next year or two as well.
And I said, okay.
And they said just, you know, at her age and plus when they lose their loved one, they usually, they lose their will to live.
Anyway, like, six weeks later, I hear this like pecking noise in the mornings on like these rocks.
I'm like, do we have woodpeckers?
Like, what's going on?
And I find out it's Wilma hammering her beak against the rocks.
I'm like, is she trying to kill herself?
What's happening?
Then the next time I saw her, she looked like she'd lost all her, a lot of her feathers.
And I'm like, oh my gosh, she's dying.
So I called the people at the bird saying, actually the caretaker of my island did.
So I said, you know, what's going on?
I think she's in this process of killing herself.
And the bird sanctuary where people got so emotionally like, oh, my God, that's not what she's doing at all.
She's remaking herself.
She said 2% of these eagles go through a process where they remake themselves.
What she's doing is she's sharpening her beak
and she's plucking all the feathers off of herself
that no longer serve her.
Ah, yeah.
And she's going to remake her life
and she could extend her life by double.
And guess what?
Wilma is still alive.
She's remarried, she's had a baby,
and she's flying strong now.
And what she did is that old identity had to die.
She had to pluck out of herself
all these things that didn't serve her anymore.
And I think that's a metaphor for life,
old identities, old beliefs, maybe some old relationships, you have to pluck them in order to make
room for the new. Did you have to do some of that being an athlete? You have no idea. It's like,
it's happened multiple times. And, you know, even to the point where sometimes my phone is very
quiet, but since I'm so, like, in touch with me, and I know the path is unveiling itself that, like,
I used to crave, like, people to text me all the time and stuff like that.
And now I'm just like, there's, it's good.
Like, enjoy the peace because I don't, I don't think it's going to last forever.
It's a season of the life where you're like trying to build something.
I mean, you know, April 20th will be year one.
Easter was, you know, 420th last year.
So you changed your life smoking all this weed on 420.
Not last year, but in my past, yes.
Yeah, but it was 420.
That's an ironic day.
It was Easter, and I was at the church in Egypt, and that was a huge shift.
But like, obviously it was kind of funny.
I'm like, huh, that's interesting that Easter is 420 this year.
By the way, just to tell you, I want you to keep going.
That's the day my dad got sober.
And my dad celebrated that day, but all my life, I thought only my old man would get sober on 420.
So anyway, keep rolling, though, keep going.
Well, I mean, we were talking about, like, my, Jesus was a person who lived a living.
life, you know, he didn't really talk about any teams. He didn't talk, he didn't say the word
Christianity, Catholicism, Islam, but he's in all of them. How did you do that? Because he just
took care of people. He loved God and he loved thy neighbor as itself. So the more that we can
connect back to that message, you know, I'm not saying like the religions are are bad. I'm just
saying like the person that lived the life is like what I'm focused on.
And the more of us that feel connected to that spirit, no matter your religious belief,
because that archetype is in all of them, the caretaker, the bridge builder, the peacemaker,
like what Jesus was, he's everywhere in the world, you know, in different forms.
And so the more that we connect back to that, and then, you know, like, obviously,
let's just be honest, the modern-day Pharisees are still here.
they haven't gone anywhere.
Look at you.
I'm so afraid.
Was there one thing, though, of the former you that had to go away?
You said one was like need for attention, right?
Sure.
I relate to that too.
Like, as I became more well-known, I think there's an addiction to that, like, oh, people know me.
Oh, I walk in a room.
And as I've purposely sort of tried to shrink my public profile, it's a navigation I have of
I'm enjoying the piece of it, but there's still this thing like, I'm not quite that, I'm not, I'm not getting the attention.
So was that the main thing you had to peel away or what had to die or what feather had to be plucked that was the biggest thing with you for you to remake you?
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Well, I would say that in baseball, you live a very selfish life.
Yeah.
You know, it's all about you and then now and what you're doing.
And now I feel like I'm living for something greater than myself, although it's still, you know, it's a, it's a balancing act.
Like, I do want to be seen. I have that same want, but not just for an act, like, not just so I can make it to the big leagues in the here.
And now it's like, what, I have a daughter, you know, like, I don't, like, I'm a little nervous about what I'm seeing.
and I want to like try and be the change that I would like to see in the world for like her kid and their kids and beyond.
Like I have a video I'm going to put out today.
I said that.
I don't think Jesus was just living for like his life.
He was trying to show us how we grow a society based more on love and heart rather than the greed and the service to just power and money.
So I want to be a bridge for that.
Did you have to let go of that?
One of the things that comes with me in a big league baseball player is money.
Yeah.
And a lot, potentially.
I was just reading what Otani's making.
I was like, wow.
He's like in a world economy all of himself.
And the attachment, by the way, I don't think there's anything wrong with making a lot of money if that's what you want to do.
But did you have to detach from that?
Because you basically went from making money to do what you're doing to now giving it away.
You give your time, your focus, your attention, your energy, and your money to this cause.
You give a lot, and I know you don't want to take a lot of credit for it, but there's a lot of giving.
And, you know, today I'm going to try to help a little bit with you receiving, because I'm going to make you promote your site.
But was that one of the things you had to sort of abandon?
Is this attachment to, I don't know, stuff, physical material stuff?
Well, yeah.
I mean, seven years ago, even before I got into the service, I started,
like kind of selling material possessions.
It was kind of naturally,
it's naturally happened to the point
where I literally have a suitcase of items.
I have my daughter, I have my wife.
Those are the treasures, you know?
And getting back to Jesus, he says, like, you know,
he says, sell your treasures now here on earth
and you'll have treasures in heaven, you know?
So I'm really into his message.
And so it was kind of just like naturally,
part of me. But I, to be honest, and I kind of wanted to bring you stuff with you, is I struggle.
I don't really, I don't love money. I just feel like there's a balance that could do us a bit of
favor where we like really, so I'm still like, I want to get money because I want to do good
with it. And of course, I want more and more safety for my family, which right now we're fine,
But honestly speaking, like at some point I need to make this bigger to keep it going.
And like I want to do more sustainable stuff.
So money is necessary.
Ryan, great answer.
Because I have to tell you, I think today's one of these shows are like people
are just listening to two dudes talk, you know, about one making an unbelievable difference
in the world and then one interviewing it, which is me.
But I've struggled with that too because I've accumulated.
a lot of money and I've pursued it.
Yeah, I've pursued it in my mind at being rewarded for doing good for others.
But it is a unique nuance of I want to give and make a difference.
I also want my own family to be safe because you said your two treasures of your wife
and your daughter.
Well, that means one of your obligations is to care and protect them and likewise they'll
care and protect for you.
And so I'll tell you an interesting thing.
This is a little bit different level, but I'm recently.
doing like estate stuff like because I'm 55 and I've had some health issue so I have to think about
this world in my life post me you know and one of the things they ask you when you have a couple
bucks is like well how much do you want to leave to your family and how much do you want to leave to
the causes that you want to have and I'm in the midst of making those decisions right now and it's
difficult it's difficult to I don't want to feel selfish when I'm making money or leaving it to my
family at the same time I want to make sure they're cared for and protected and so I very much
relates why I admire you so much you've decided kind of on faith to go I'm going to go into service
yeah and I'll figure the way and the path to also care for my family I think that's sort of what
you're doing yeah well I have a business it's kind of a break even thing right now and so but yeah it's
like okay why can I grow this into something more I feel like with the world the way it is like
it's there are people doing it you know like the MD motivator guy yeah he's like he's grown
a huge thing and like you know I'm just and consistency as a as a former athlete like I know how
that grows things you know you know that as a businessman you know consistency action faith with a
you know for me this is definitely like a bit of a divine calling and you know I said even my friend
Chase, Iron Eyes, and the little coordination, I was telling him, like, my old story recently
is like, this is, in our world, this is divine calling. So there's a little, like, it's like that
balance between fear and love, you know? So I'm going to ask you one of the hardest questions
I've ever asked on the show. You're going to hate this, but I want to ask you it. So there's
this idea that a lot of people believe, which is like we need to care for our own country first
before we go care for the world.
There's a political ideology that says that.
I think a lot of people nod their head when they hear it.
Then I've got other friends that go, bro, there's poor in the United States.
That's one type of poor.
And then there's poor in some parts of the world, and that's a different poor.
And because I haven't traveled that much, I've not been exposed.
I really don't know.
And so help us, those of us that have not traveled the world and seen poverty in other nations or other places.
Is there a...
There is a bit of a difference.
I mean, I guess it's such a, in the United States,
it's such a contrast because most of the terrain is really nice.
You know, streets are paved well, sidewalks are nice.
And then, you know, there's these forgotten people by the system.
Now, I'll say there's a lot more of a drug problem here than there is overseas.
You know, people might be into the alcohol.
the street, but you don't have the same erratic, you know, kind of like drug problems where you
kind of see people talking to a wall like you do in the United States. Like people are, I guess they're,
I don't know, they're on the streets. Yeah, and Africa is just so, it's just so poor and it's sad.
And I have so many like things and about to say about that in my life. But it's like for the most part,
you know, people are sober.
They can't even get to, you know,
pharmaceutical drugs and opioids
and all the things that are on our streets.
So, and, you know, it's kind of like Africa is just overall
more poverty, has more poverty.
Same with India.
It kind of, I guess, it blends in a little bit.
Like, whereas here it's just like so stark
and drastic when you see it because, like,
you could just see this amazing,
businessman or woman walking with a nice suit, a Louis Vuitton bag, and then there's this just
poor person like picking dirt out of their feet. I'm down here in Phoenix. I had no idea what the
situation was. It's really bad here. It really hurts me in my soul because I can just, I can just
feel that we are not attentive to those things, which again kind of leads me back to like,
you know we're a Christian nation that's Jesus territory now like we gotta step up our game
that's what this guy said what you do for the least of these you do for me gosh so good you're so
unique I have I have like a I'm like a little sad and mad a lot of time I can see it I can see that
in you by the way I actually I think for me anyway that's coming across I can see this kind
giving man but he's still a little bit pissed too yeah and there's a that the world
has got to this extent. Help me understand something. I'm like really going there with you today.
As I've traveled, and most of my travels are U.S., I travel internationally to speak, but usually when I do it,
to be really honest with you, I'm there a day and I'm gone. So I've not spent time like what you
have. I've done some missionary work in my life in the world. I'm not going to talk about that
on the show today, but for the most part, when I speak, I travel in the U.S. And certainly the last
10 years, the major cities that I go to, whether it be Austin, Texas, or San Francisco or
LA or Phoenix, Arizona, or Portland, Maine, where I have a place or wherever, the growing population
of people that are unhoused or homeless is just dramatically exploded, right? And a lot of the
times when I see folks, take us into what you see, educate us. I do see a lot of drug use.
I have to say that. Like I see a lot of needles. I see a lot of drug use. I see a lot of heroin,
a lot of meth. I do see that. And I started to form that picture in my head. And then I went,
Okay, they're drug users or mental health issues.
Then one morning, I was going to get a cup of coffee, and I watched a woman come out of a tent in a business suit.
And I watched her walk out of the tent.
This was in Portland, Maine, to the bus stop.
Sure.
And I watched her get on a bus.
I thought that was interesting.
And so about two weeks later, I saw the same woman, and I asked her.
And she's like, well, my husband left.
I had a drug problem, but I'm completely sober.
And she appeared to me to be completely sober.
And she said, I work at a bank.
I just got the job there part time.
And right now I'm so down on my luck.
It's just easier for me.
It's the summertime.
I'm living here to save money because I cannot afford my own house
and with what I make.
Rent here is so high.
And she's really making a minimum wage income when she started.
And it changed my heart a little.
I'm like, wow.
there's different profiles.
There are people who are using drugs.
There are there is mental illness.
Yeah.
But then there are people like this woman who's just fallen on such difficult times and she
actually is working and could not afford a place to live just yet.
And I know there'll be people in the comments right now go, oh, that's no, I'm telling you.
There's such a dire split in our country between rich and poor.
Poor and certainly this must be the case in the world.
This woman's trying to change your life and work and she cannot afford a roof.
over her head currently.
Do you see a little bit of that when you travel and help people?
And I know that's the exception, not the rule.
But who do you see on the street when you're on the street?
Who are they?
Oh, man.
Well, I see yesterday I talked to a guy who he was talking about his education background.
But mainly it's not, I would say it's like 50% that drug mental health problem and just
a lot of people who have gotten kicked and kicked by the system veterans all the time,
which is really sad because like those guys have been through something and like service to the country.
Obviously, I don't agree with war, but they've gone overseas for their country and come back.
And, you know, their mental health for killing people overseas can be at risk.
And the programs are very bad.
I say this to people, the United States dollar is a strong dollar everywhere except the United States.
And so when you're being kicked and kicked and you might have made a few mistakes, man, you can get down quick.
And then it's like your spirit is down.
And, you know, I don't know, man.
I go back to Jesus.
He says, you can't serve God and mammoth, which means money.
So the spirit of God seems to be getting kicked down out of people because circumstances,
choices, currency, power, especially at home, you know, you make a few bad choices, man,
and you make a few mistakes or you just have a tough time.
There's a lot of things stacked against you right now in this system.
Bro, I'm so wonderful to talk with you.
I hope for the audience, Joe, I hope I've asked the questions that you would
want asked and I've asked them respectfully, I hope. I mean, I want to learn and understand more
too so that I can make a bigger difference in the world. And I also want to understand the mindset
of somebody who's gone from. I mean, just miraculous. World class, top 1% of 1% of 1% of 1% of
of athletes on the planet, how to set back, started behaving in ways you didn't like,
is like, no, I want to turn my life around. And I'm going to do it by helping the most
vulnerable people in the world. I just think it's beautiful. And you've really, you've really
made me think too about myself and I know you're doing that for a lot of other people and a lot of you
that are looking for a change in your life maybe it's not just to start a business maybe it's to start
doing something where you just care with your gift or your heart for people that need you in whatever
way that means maybe that's your path maybe it is a business maybe it is to make more money maybe it is
to take care of family but also maybe it's not maybe it's like what ryan's doing and maybe it's your
own version of that. I have a friend of mine who left a business and she still has her,
she took a job, but basically what she does now is she rescues animals. And she went from making
$200,000 a year. And she's like, I don't want to do this anymore. I'm going to downsize my life.
I'm going to sell my house. I can live in a smaller place. She's making $80,000 a year now, and she
rescues animals. And she's never been happy in her life. And I want to at least expose people through
this show from time to time to people that have taken a different path. It's not all about scaling
a business. It's okay. I can have the guy who ran Tesla on a few weeks ago, and I can have you on
today, and you guys can get exposed to both of those views of the world, and I very much admire what
you're doing, bro, very much. I still have one more question for you, though, but before I do it,
because you won't promote it, I'm going to. We'll put this in the show notes. If you want to give
to help this guy continue his work, go to givebetter.com forward slash
hope dash of dash life dash fund or you can follow him on instagram which is i am ryan kalish and that's
k a l i s h okay last question stud um someone's listening today and they're like i'm kind of emotional
and you know i want to start down some path of making a difference in the world because i know
my life has some meaning and i'm not maybe i feel like i haven't lived up to quite
what I'm capable of.
What would you say?
Because you're going to run into these people,
especially after this interview, bro, right?
You're going to run to these people like,
hey, and they're going to ask you that question.
That'll be one of the questions you get.
So for the millions of people who won't ever run into you,
they're running into you right now.
What would you say to them?
Well, first of all, like you said,
if you're feeling that way and like, you know,
a little bit emotional and like,
damn, I wish I'm doing something.
Like, give yourself a hug.
Be compassionate to yourself because I wasn't always here.
You know, it took me 37 years to get here, basically, before I've been doing this particular work for a year.
So be gentle.
And then, yeah, I would say, like, obviously, you know, it doesn't have to be at the scale that I'm doing it.
But make it a part of your routine to where, like, maybe you just volunteer somewhere locally.
Like there are people suffering outside of everyone's homes all over this world.
And the more that we can connect, like you said, to the fact that our lives actually do matter.
And we can make a difference and connect to, you know, that's kind of like there's a separation between the prophets and us, like Jesus and you.
But when you read the Bible, he talks a lot about how actually I am in you and you are at God and all this.
like he's talking about oneness.
So maybe we can't all heal people's, you know, blindness on their eyes,
but we can all take a step towards helping someone in a small way here or there.
And the more of us that do it, you know, our collective consciousness turns up.
And all of a sudden, you know, I don't know if that, like, you know,
I don't know when or if like the leaders of our world are going to get that heart,
but they can.
the more of us that do it, because maybe it's not this generation. Maybe it's your kid or their kid who finally makes their way into politics and brings the world together.
So, you know, we are powerful. We are not that separate from God, I don't think. So that's it.
Bro, so good. You use the word collective consciousness there at the end, and that makes me feel like it's confirmed I was supposed to have you on because for years, I haven't in a long time. I've talked about that.
And I really believe this is just one dude's opinion, but that is what needs to change in this world as the frequency and the collective consciousness of our culture.
We're getting the leaders, you guys, that we deserve.
And we need to ask more of them.
And that means raising our consciousness.
And I think every single day, it's just finding a way to make the world better in your way.
And you are qualified.
And you're not an imposter.
And it's not too late.
And you've not screwed up too much.
And you're not too old.
And you're not too young.
and here's the biggest thing Ryan's taught me.
You don't have to have it all figured out.
No.
He's figured it out as we're doing the show today.
What's the business model going to be?
How's he sustain it for his family?
He just started making a difference in finding a way to serve.
Drew?
Yeah, yeah.
And I don't have all the answers today.
We might never.
This is just one lifetime of a space rocket's been floating for however long it's been floating.
Like, if we get 80 years here, we're lucky.
And I joked with my wife there the other day.
I said, do we ever really become adults?
We're just like kids, you know, forever.
By the way, the happiest people don't.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
The happiest people spend their life at play as much as they can and in service.
And by the way, as I'm looking at you, this is a funny thing to say at the end.
Most people are listening on audio.
But everybody, if you're watching, he kind of looks like Jesus.
at least our picture that we've been shown of him all these years.
So anyway, I just had to say that the Yanks has been on my mind the entire time.
Ryan, I'm really glad I had you on.
And I hope I've given everybody exposure to just, just for today, man,
just look at your life a little differently.
There are people, even though Fox News and CNN and whoever else you watch doesn't report on it every night,
guess what, everybody, there are people in the world doing good and making it.
Absolutely.
And you can, and probably already are one of them, you could just maybe do a little more after today.
So, Ryan, thank you.
I really appreciate you having me on such an honor.
Oh, bro.
The honor's mind.
Stop it.
Everybody, this is one you share.
You hit the share button.
You say, you know what?
You want to feel better?
You want to make a difference in the world.
Listen to this conversation that was on the Milet Show with Ryan Kalish.
Love you all, everybody.
God bless you.
And Max out.
This is the Edmiler Show.
