33: Rich Roll on How He Went From Hitting Rock Bottom to Inspiring Millions Through His Books and Podcast

Today we are back with another story behind the story of a change-maker who is an absolute podcast role model. In this episode we welcome Rich Roll, a champion swimmer turned alcoholic, turned lawyer who ended up having a few run-ins with the law himself.

Rich’s incredible story about hitting rock-bottom and clawing his way back to sobriety is one that has inspired many along the way. After going through the recovery process, Rich began putting the pieces of his life back together only to realize that he was out of shape and burning the candle at both ends — essentially hitting rock-bottom physically.

So, in his 40’s, Rich dusted off his training trucks and started swimming again, switched to a plant-based diet, and used this combination to gain back his health. This led him down a path towards doing ultra-endurance races and being in the best shape of his life!

Rich then when ton to write about how he overcame all of these rock-bottom moments in his #1 bestselling book, Finding Ultra, which led to the launch of his wildly popular and inspirational Rich Roll podcast. During our conversation with Rich, we are going to explore how he went from being a bestselling author to starting his super successful podcast, which was not as linear of a process as you might think. 

Rich discovered that even with a bestselling book under his belt, the speaking gigs and other paid opportunities that you’d expect with all that success simply were not happening! This resulted in Rich hitting rock-bottom again, financially, which got so bad that his house was in foreclosure, his cars were repossessed, and the city even repossessed his garbage cans. 

It was at that time that Rich stepped out and launched his podcast in his friend’s barn, while flat broke, but still full of hope and inspiration. So whether you are thinking about getting sober, quitting your day job, starting a plant-based diet, writing a book, or even getting into the best shape of your life, don’t miss out on this episode!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Reflecting on Rich’s favorite activities during his childhood.
• How Rich was impacted by his grandfather’s legacy later in life. 
• Rich’s journey into swimming and his determination to get to the top.
• The work ethic that drove Rich; where did he get the motivation?
• How Rich decided to cold-call a swimming coach to get recruited.
• The Bruce Kimball backflip story: Rich’s introduction to alcohol.
• Rich’s slip into the dangerous life of drinking and driving.
• Two lucky breaks that changed the trajectory of Rich’s life.
• What ultimately pushed Rich over the edge and got him motivated to find sobriety.
• The shock Rich had when he found out how far down the path of alcoholism he was.
• Rich’s epiphany: pivoting his career away from being a lawyer.
• A health scare and existential crisis that Rich was faced with at age 40.
• The first step Rich took towards his health journey: a week-long fast.
• What is an Ultraman race and what does it include?
• Why Rich sees the Ultraman as a spiritual odyssey; something that will transform your life.
• How the opportunity to write his book came about and the financial implications.
• The role that podcasts played in Rich’s journey towards health.
• Importance of being vulnerable in order to be impactful when telling your story.
• How the podcasting landscape has changed over the last few years.
• Rich’s tendency to go all-in on his choices and mute out the rest of the world.
• Why it is important to remember that, no matter what, nobody is you.
• The most recommended interviews to listen to on Rich’s podcast.

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