Sebastian Maniscalco OPENS UP "I Struggle With My Inner Critic" How He OVERCAME Anxiety & Self-Doubt

30:34Well, not that criticized, but, like, even you coming up with the school of greatness. Like, how does that look? Should we tilt it this way? Should we tilt it that way? You know? And I'm more like, eh, it looks good, you know? And she's more like, you know, should we take the of and make the other words curse it? Like, wants to see a lot of different ways it could be done. Wow. What's her birthday? September 6th. Okay. What are you? I'm Pisces. I hear Pisces. But my fiancée's Virgo. She's August 20th. Oh, is she very specific? Yeah, she's an artist too. I mean, she's an actress and writer, producer.

31:09Yeah. So you know what I'm going through at all. Exactly. Yeah, exactly. What's the thing you love about your wife the most? What do I love about my wife? Just the optimism, like anything's possible.

31:27She is super social, which I'm not. Really? And she has... Are you more introverted? Yeah. Really? Definitely not the life of the party. Come on. No. If I know you, we're going to have a good time. If, you know, I don't... It takes me a while. I'm like souffle. It takes me a while to get ready. To warm up. To warm up. You're more reserved around people you don't know. Yes, very laid back, very... But when you're doing stand-up, you don't know the audience. I don't know the audience. I feel stand-up is completely different than going to a party or going to a dinner with a group of people that I'm unfamiliar with.

32:09I tend to even go engulfing with three other guys I don't know or I'm quiet. I'm just quiet. I like to listen first before I start opening my mouth. I don't like to, I don't share a lot of my personal views or about me a lot. You know, like I come on these things too. It's like, you know, how much do you share? coming into this like, you know, do I... Who's this Lewis guy? I'm going to open up to him and tell him my whole life. Yeah, I mean, there's a lot of people. I've seen your show. Some people say sometimes they break down a little bit. They get emotional. I've gotten emotional. I was on Gayle King, and I was crying with my father on an interview.

32:55So it's like, how vulnerable are you going to be on these things? You know, I'm sure like people, you could tell someone might have their guard up a little bit. like they're not gonna like and give you a lot uh so yeah that's it's always like even nowadays it's like i know this is gonna go out to a ton of people and you you know you say oh anything that you don't want in here we could edit out or whatever you know but like you know i'm always i'm almost editing as i'm talking really yeah yeah what do you think would happen in your life if you didn't edit before you spoke i mean obviously we want to be mindful of what we're saying at all times and not just blurt out mean things.

33:35But if you spoke more openly from your heart, do you think something would change? If I speak more openly, I'm extremely sensitive and emotional. So my fear is always going down the road. Like, I could cry at any moment. I just want to go see if the - Oh, I saw that this last weekend. Did we balling? Dude, it's beautiful. Yeah. So - The music and, oh, man. Balling. so so not that i'm fearful of crying it's just sometimes like oh do i really want to go down this road today um so and you ask oh what would happen if i was unfiltered i tend to uh say things that might be a little abrupt and brash but i mask it with humor and it comes out you can laugh at it or it doesn't come out as...

34:31I get my point across, but I make you laugh as I'm doing it. Right, right, right. But there is a part of me that could come out, if I don't do it with humor, could be a little aggressive. Like a jerk or something. I wouldn't say a jerk. It would be a little... I don't want to say inappropriate. It would just be a little... Insensitive. Insensitive, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, that makes sense. Yeah. Interesting. I've had a lot of comedians on here. Um, and I'm curious who are two or three when you were kind of in the scene early on that you really looked up to that you still respect today? Um, when I started comedy, when I came out here in 98, I really enjoyed watching Bill Burr.

35:22Man, he is funny. Funny cat. I got into the elevator of where I was living in the apartment complex. And first day I lived there, Bilber's in the elevator. Come on. And I was like stunned. I was absolutely stunned because, you know, you're in Hollywood. You see these people on TV and it's a far cry from Northwest suburbs of Chicago. I always thought Hollywood was growing up like where these people live. Yeah. But they're out in the streets. But they're out in the streets. And now I'm seeing it firsthand. Like, Bill Burr is in the elevator. So gracious. He invited me. I even opened up. I said, bro, I came out here.

36:03I'm a huge fan. I'm starting comedy out here. And he's like, want to come to the show tonight? Come on. He did not. So he invited me to the show at the Laugh Factory that night, first night I'm here. Come on. I'm at the Laugh Factory. The first day you got to LA. First day. Shut up. It's crazy. I couldn't believe it. I literally couldn't believe that I ran in. It was almost like Kismet. is like I ran into a comedian I respect and thought was super funny and now he's inviting me to a show um so yeah he's one of the guys that um was an inspiration for me and you know friends with him to this day he's comes over once in a while for the kids party so um who else did I enjoy I mean I've always been a Seinfeld fan uh and then subsequently met him years ago what was that like doing the recently you did a stand up with him with netflix yeah i didn't myself gaffigan and bergazzi at the hollywood bowl what's that like growing up watching seinfeld and then being on stage for after him as like the same level essentially yeah it was you know i felt that feeling when he invited me on the comedians and cars like Like, here's a guy, grew up watching his show.

37:23And now I looked at that show as like he was like our Johnny Carson. Because we didn't have Johnny Carson. So I felt like if Seinfeld thought you were funny, then you kind of like were in the club. He gave you the nod, right? He gave you the nod. Like, come sit down on the couch. Wow. What was that like? It was surreal. I mean, we're whipping around Los Angeles in a 1969 Camaro. And then when I went to New York, he invited me back on the show again. and we were on Vespas, going through New York on Vespas. So, yeah, a lot of these moments that have happened in my career, I could have never imagined, you know, me doing a movie with Scorsese, a guy, I had posters on my wall, and De Niro and Pesci and Pacino.

38:09I mean, it's really, I mean, and again, enjoying those moments when they're happening, because I wasn't really enjoying it. I was nervous. I had anxiety. I was like, can I do this? I mean, before I got out of my trailer, I'm going, I'm going to do a scene with Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci with Scorsese directing. I haven't acted, really. I mean, I've done a handful of things. Little skits or something. Yeah, yeah. It's like, you know. What was that like? How did you perform? I didn't sleep for two nights before the scene. And when I went to rehearse with them, it was just, ironically enough, they took the Gotham Comedy Club in New York and they made it to Copacabana.

38:59So I'm literally performing, acting in the same club that I started performing in New York. Come on. Years later. Come on. Or years earlier. In a way, did you feel more comfortable because you'd been on that stage? Yeah, I was on the comedy club. But it didn't look like the comedy club, obviously. That's surreal, man. Surreal. And then when I came out there to meet them, I didn't know, like, you know, like, to relate it to what you do. You got someone that's coming in that you're going to interview, maybe that you admired as a kid. Sure. And the night before, you're almost playing these, how's that going to work?

39:37When he comes in or when she comes in. Are they going to be cool? Is it going to be a kid or a good pod? Yeah. They're going to have a lot of people with them. Are they going to like the set up or whatever? That's me. The night before, how's this going to work? Are they going to come in? Do they think that I know what I'm doing? Because I don't. Yeah. But very gracious. Very nice. And now we're going to do the scene. and then we do the scene and they yell cut and De Niro and Pesci and Scorsese get in a huddle without me. I'm the only actor that they're not talking to. Like, did I do something wrong?

40:17Am I messing up? I thought I was fired. But, you know, they've been working together for 40 years. I got a shorthand. But again, in my head, always negative. Always looking at the negative. I'm done. It's over. I'm going home. It's never, oh, they're probably talking about how great I was. So I don't know what that is, and I don't know who thinks otherwise. Like, we were talking, you seem a very positive guy and grateful, and this, and I'm grateful that we get to live in Los Angeles, and I saw a seven-year-old kid who was selling candy. And I'm sitting there listening to that, and I'm like, wow, man, I sometimes, I'm about LA.

41:02What the? going on this ain't in la i knew when i came out the night in 1998 look at the on the street that this and that crime and infrastructure taxes taxes so i'm i'm that guy where you're the hey it's sunny today how blessed are we yeah i ain't that guy which you know i i people like you i'm like wow it's nice to be around it's a practice you know i can be in a i can be in a negative state whenever I want to be. And it's, and then at the end of the day, I'm like, that's not a good day. I didn't feel like I had a good day. Like me complaining about everything that's happening or what I don't have doesn't make me feel good.

41:44And the energy isn't supporting my fiance, my friends, my team. They're probably all feeling my energy too. And it doesn't mean just make every day positive, even when stuff's going bad, but it's also when I'm in the practice of, okay, what can I do? You know, I ran three miles this morning to make sure I get out any frustrated energy, right? I'm going to lift later. Probably I'm going to get in the sauna. You know, you're starting to do the ice tub, which you don't like. I heard you complaining about that on social media. You know, it's like, I'm doing things that I think is going to give me more peace.

42:15And so it's, it's a practice. It's a practice. I agree with you. However, in my line of work, I am looking at to make a living almost because it a lot of what I do is funny yeah it's true like nobody wants Seinfeld too it's kind of like you know in a different way it's like how can you find the negative of things and speak about it I went out last night and there's a service charge now on when you go out to dinner it's a service charge and then tip right so if I I have a take on that and it's a plus tax on top of that yeah so it's a it's a I'm about that. But it's funny. I've realized there's nothing funny.

43:00Funny doesn't come from like, oh, there's a service service? That's fine. I'll pay it. People are not going to laugh at that. People are going to laugh at the fact that, what are they trying to do? Rip me off? It becomes humorous. Or like the tipping culture now. It's like when you buy something at a kiosk, it's like default is 25 % tip. Or you're kind of a jerk if you say no. Well, then they almost shame you into the tip. They'll turn it around. They'll go, I'm just going to ask you a few questions. Why don't you just tell me? They're just going to ask me if I want to pay you more money. Right.

43:35But yeah, I mean, there is something to be said about living your life in a positive way and how that positivity affects people around you. Because if you are positive, you're right, your fiancé is going to be a lot happier with you. Your coworkers or your employees are going to be much more happier rather than you walking around with this negative cloud over your head. so it's and again i don't want to paint a picture like i'm walking around with like just negativity it's just my thought process is always i'll give you an example uh doctor wanted to change my appointment like we were going to go over some blood work can we can we do this 15 minutes earlier I read into that.

44:21I think, oh, they found something in my blood and they need an extra 15 minutes to tell me I'm going to pass away. Right? Like, really? That's, again, funny. Funny. Yeah, yeah. Right? But, like, who the hell would... Normal people go, oh, yeah, no problem. We'll do it at 10 o 'clock. I go, why? Why are you switching this? Yeah. Because my blood's screwed up? You know, like, that's insane to think that. Right. But that's part of what makes me, as a performer, funny. Yes. Because I'm looking at that, and I guarantee you, other people, maybe not you, but if I say that on stage tonight at the comedy store, they'll laugh their ass off.

45:05Because they're laughing. I laugh too. Yeah, they're laughing at my neuroses. Uh-huh. No, I mean, it's like I played football and it's, I have compassion. I'm going to be careful what I say here, but I have compassion for some football players when they are trained by their coaches to be killers for three hours in practice. And then all of a sudden you're supposed to switch it off and be like this almost loving Zen human being. When it might take a few hours when you're driving back home where you're like still kind of got that testosterone rage feeling where you're screaming at someone in the car or you're just quick with someone or you're whatever because you've been physically pounding against another human being for hours in practice there takes time to like step into kind of almost a new identity a new personality a new human and that's not easy to do when you're trained to be a certain way and you're paid to be a certain way and you're celebrated to be aggressive if you're an athlete like that where you're celebrated to be neurotic you're paid more it's funny by living in that way of thinking for those hour two hour sets that you do and then to just go back and be like life is beautiful thank you for this 20 up charge and you know i'm blessed to pay taxes in california it's like well i never thought of it that way yeah it's funny that you put it in those terms and kind of correlating it to a trained almost killer out there, and then he's got to come back.

46:38Be like this loving husband. Loving husband, yeah. I get it. I'm paid to think a certain way. How do you shut that off when it comes to everyday life? Which, for me, you make a good point of it. I'll definitely leave here today thinking more about what you just said and trying to apply it. Yeah, but I'm assuming that, I mean, correct me if I'm wrong. I'm assuming that all day you're looking for those moments. It's out for material. It's not that I'm looking. It just hits me. Hits you. But you're like, you're writing it down. You're memorizing. You're thinking about it. You're telling someone, oh, did that land?

47:20And it's just a constant, you're looking out and you're seeing it or it's hitting you. And it's part of your daily thought process because that's what makes you funny. Otherwise, you don't just sit down for two days and say, let me think about the last three months and how I can make funny material. Yeah. Yeah. Always a hypersensitivity of what's going on around me, which could be great when it comes to being a comedian, but also could act as a something as a negative because you see things maybe that other people are not seeing. Yeah. Yeah. I've run into this with my wife where, you know, she might meet somebody and not kind of see what I'm seeing and what they're doing or how they're behaving.

48:00And, you know, she's like, can you just like, you know, I can't. It's almost like, it's like I relate it to an allergy. If you're allergic to peanuts, and I brought peanuts in here, you are either going to start coughing, sneezing, whatever. You don't have any control of that. That's the way I look at comedians. Interesting. It's like an allergy. We react to the environment around us, and we're unconscious about it. It's happening. It's like we're constantly having an allergic reaction to society. And then you're using that as material. Going back to what you said, Scorsese, De Niro are huddling after you do this scene, and you're not in the huddle.

48:45and you're thinking to myself, I'm fired, I was horrible, I can't believe I screwed this opportunity up. What happens next? We got to do better. They came to you? No, me, on my head. But what happened, though, after that? Nothing. Do it again? All right, I don't know what the hell they said, but we're doing it again. And then as time went on, over the course of the day, doing the same scene over and over and over again, you know, Scorsese would come out and give me a note, joe pesci came out and he started directing me a little bit really which i was like is this am i supposed to be directed by yeah yeah yeah but i guess scorsese i found out later on through joe pesci had said you know you know like i guess scorsese always thought pesci should be a director because he always got good instincts so you know that was something i think worked out with them where there's a scene where i'm telling de niro's character off and and i throw up my hand and when Pesci had told me prior to that, he goes, this guy's going to kill you in the next scene.

49:48You need to leave this scene so he is so pissed off at you, he's going to kill you. You can't leave here kind of nonchalant. You got to leave here with some impension. Piss him off. Yeah. Piss him off. And again, it's like, wow, that's a great note. But again, why did I think of that? Even though this show I'm doing right now, Bookie, Chuck Lorre will come out and go, you know what do it do it this way because your character is feeling this right now i'm like why did why didn't i think of that so he didn't have to come out and tell me that but again that's your thought process that's my thought process you think kobe told uh his coaches don't coach me after when they do a timeout when they're losing and he's like don't tell me what to do think michael jordan you know when you're watching him back in arlington heights and you went to to watch him the arena you think uh his coach has not given him some positive reencouragement and said hey here's what i'm noticing that you didn't see because it's a blind spot yeah you think he jordan's saying screw you coach i'm gonna do it my way no i got it all figured out no yeah i mean it's like but here's where the insecurity comes in for me it's like I've had so much pressure on myself to to be the best and then when you fall short of it and somebody's got to tell you that's not the best try it this way I I take it as like oh I should I should I should I should have came up but I've been I'm becoming more I'm adjusting my thought process when it comes to that because I've talked to other actors and they're saying when he's watching it on the screen, to your point, you're not seeing what he's seeing.

51:32You're here. He's there. So he's got a bird's-eye view of what's happening, where you're kind of... And if you're thinking about what's on the screen, you're not in the flow. Not at all. You got two kids, right? Two kids. Five and seven? Five and seven, yeah. So when they were like one, one and a half, and they were trying to walk, and they kept falling over, did you like scream at them and say, hey you should you should have this already figured out this walking thing no i didn't you know what i mean it's kind of like you've never trained to be an actor like how are you supposed to be this like world-class actor in your first few scenes yeah i i i get it but i again i would just think that i would be able to have enough instinct to become that it's again that much is with De Niro and Scorsese in your first scenes ever?

52:26It's like, come on. You just never want to be... You put so much pressure on yourself. You never want to be the weak link. I hear you. I hear it, man. I hear it. Even though you're a rookie on the football team, and you're going to go out for a pass, and you never played in the NFL before, you miss an open path. Boom, done. Yeah, you don't want to drop the ball. Your teammates are like, this is the pros, bro. Those mistakes you can't make. You know what I'm saying? True. Regardless if you're a rookie or a five-year veteran, And I think if you're playing in the same game that everybody else is playing in, you have to be as equal to or greater than those people.

53:00Man. And yes. And also have context. Like, hey, this is my first movie. They know they're bringing me in for a specific reason because I have a gift in some other area or I have an audience in some other area that can bring to this movie. They wanted me for this. It's not like playing the whole movie. It's like a specific role. so they should also give context of like your experience level if i'm 15 and i get dropped in the nfl i can't expect to live up to the standards of 28 year old men who are pros just because i played football for a few years true but had the opportunity to like catch a pass or something so context also i feel like context but i hear you though man i'm i'm all i did it my first scene in movie my fiance's movie and i was nervous man i was so nervous because i'd never done acting before i don't know how to act but i freaking trained for those four lines for like two weeks like over and over yeah because i didn't want to i didn't want to slow down the set i didn't want to waste any time i was like i'm gonna nail it and do the best i can and um it was nerve for sure yeah but in that case you you don't you don't do you you you're stepping so far out of the box of what you normally do the expectations cannot be that high with you right they are high for me because for you yes but what i'm saying is this guy don't act the other people maybe you're your fiance or what have you i'm i'm i'm in the entertainment business and i'm going from one thing.

54:37You're not acting. Yeah, but I'm, it's similar. Stand up, I'm acting up there in a way. It's similar. It's not like I'm taking a huge leap outside. It's not like I'm a comedian. It's a leap. And now I'm going to be a chef. You know, it's, it's, it's. Yeah, it's two different arts though. It's like saying I'm going to shoot a photograph and paint a photograph. Those are two different art. You're in the arts, but it's two different arts. Yeah, but I think they're close enough together. I hear you, man. I hear you. This is a great conversation. I'm loving this conversation about this. So what, I also heard you talk about, earlier in this conversation, you said you are a sensitive, emotional person.

55:15You'll cry. You cried at a movie this weekend that you watched, but you struggled crying on set with De Niro. Is that right? In a scene with De Niro? Oh God, yeah. That was tough. Why was it hard for you to cry on a scene with De Niro versus you can watch a movie and cry in a moment? What was the struggle there? With the De Niro thing, it was the expectation that you've got to cry. Pressure. Pressure. Go see a movie, the emotion hits you. This was, okay, this is an emotional scene, you've got to cry. Plus, during that scene, during that whole movie I had sciatic pain. I had sciatic pain for two years trying to perform stand-up, acting.

56:02I don't know if you've ever had it, but it's just not a good feeling. It's like nerve pain on the side, yeah. Shooting. I don't know. I had to come into that scene out of breath. And the director said, why don't you run around the tarmac and then come into the scene and then you'll have, you know. So I'm running with sciatic pain in like slippers. That should have made you cry alone. That must pay. I should have. Dude, that must pay. I'm really in a lot of pain right now. It's in agony, yeah. So I go into the scene. We do the scene. De Niro's crying. I mean, I almost became, I did become just a fan.

56:41I was just watching him, like, in the scene. I'm in the scene, but in my head, I'm going, that's amazing, man. And I'm like, I got the next line. Cut. Do it again. No cry. Second scene, no cry. You did your line also, no cry. It was a scene. It was lines back and forth, back and forth. I'm not crying. So I tell De Niro, I said, listen, I need help. I don't know what to do there. He was, okay. So we go into the airplane that was on the tarmac, and I said, I can't get there. I've never cried on film before. Can you give me some advice? He goes, well, I was going to tie in, but I'm going to give you a process.

57:24There's no process. This is, I'm just coming into this, hoping to God I cry. And he starts to tell me, you know, what I do, what his process is. He starts talking about his kids. He starts crying as he's talking to me. Real life cry about his family. Not fake cry, real cry. Yeah. I start crying, watching him cry. I go, I got to use this. So as I ran out of the airplane, I started running around the tarmac crying. He told me, think about your father and your mother, what they sacrificed for you to get to where you are. Your father came from a small town in Sicily at 15 years old, didn't know the language, and started a family, bought a home.

58:20Think of all those things. So I started, I'm like, wow. You know, as I'm thinking about this, as I'm running on the tarmac going, it's amazing where my family came from and where I am now. And that really kind of produced a lot of emotion. The problem with movie making is I did it, right? I did it. I cried during the scene. Cut! Do it again! Oh, it's so hard. I got to think about that again. And then each cry, each scene gets lesser and lesser of emotion. Yeah. And that's why those days, I mean, it's a learning lesson. Now I know when you do an emotional scene, you got about three of those in you.

59:04Three takes, man. Yeah, after that, it's hard to recreate that emotion time and time again. I mean, there's people that can do it. But for me, it's like we did the scene, you know, because you do a wide and then you close. Well, on that, we do a close-up first, and then you kind of go from there. But, my God, it was a learning experience. I mean, I'm arguably with one of the best actors who have ever done it, and for him to kind of walk me through that was very instrumental in me, kind of taking that and then applying some of those lessons to what I'm doing now with Bookie and other projects. This is beautiful, man.

59:39I'm curious about comedy feels like it's really having a big moment right now in culture. I mean, it's like you can go on Netflix or any streamer and it just seems like there's specials everywhere. Everyone's on tour. People are building millions of followers on social media. And it seems like social media has created more superstars in comedy in the last four or five years than probably in the last 20. It seems that way. How do you feel about the rise of comedy startup for so many guys in the last three to five years in their rise to success with social media versus the way you and others did not to success in the way of comedy.

1:00:37what's your thoughts about where comedy is now and where some of these guys and gals are kind of really taken off with content versus before? So this is an interesting question for me because you could slip into this, huh, my day, you could do that, which I've had my moments of like, is what we're seeing now on social media with these kind of, I call them like flash in the pan videos. And then they're catapulted into, okay, you're going to go see them live now. And 2000 people are going to show up and see what they see. I've never been to these standup shows. So I don't, I don't know. I can't speak to like if a guy or a woman makes it offline and then starts doing comedy live.

1:01:28I don't even know what that looks like. All I know is I know how hard it is to come up with material. And I know how much practice that this requires to be a polished seasoned comedian. I can't even imagine how the internet prepares you at all for live performance. because there's you you got to do the work there's no like you you can't jump the line you can but then like what what happens after that right you could build audience and get attention but you still have to deliver on stage gotta deliver on stage so that's number one am i am i mad at the way this is i'm mad at the sense that maybe we're not going to see or maybe this is taking away from the younger generation the course of doing night after night after night and maybe we're not going to see as polished comedians.

1:02:30Maybe. I don't know. Time will tell. You could also look at it like this. I have the same... I have social media. I have the same opportunities that they have, right? I could be utilizing social media to become the biggest comedian in the world because I not only have the act, I also have the opportunity now to build with these videos online. Now, for me, I don't think I have found my world on social media. You're lame. You're lame. I don't know where, you know, I do a podcast the Pete and Sebastian show I've been doing this for 12 years 12 years? I've been doing this 11 I didn't know many people were doing it longer than me we're under the radar you're popular we're not now I've been trying to crack the podcast code now with all these comedians blowing up on podcasts right yeah I'm like jeez like you just go down the list of the the theo vaughn everyone but you yeah everybody but me is making it in the podcast arena right so i'm like all right what do what do we got to do on our what are we missing on the podcast what what's not what do we we've never had guests it's just it's just pete and i talking so we're like the fact that we don't have guests is that why we're still in the basement because we're not bringing in a guy or a girl with an audience that's going to make our podcast broader appeal right so we started bringing in guests over the last year and we have yet to see whether or not like this is going to pay off or whatever pay off but you know social media is there you got the same social media everybody else has So you can't complain that somebody is doing well on social media and then selling tickets in an arena.

1:04:42You can't complain on that. But it is a level of focus, attention, and energy. And I feel like social media, in a sense, is its own art. It's like, do you want to spend five hours a day thinking of one video? And is it going to take off or is it not going to take off? it could be a full-time job thinking about bits on social media or how you get to start this content or the whatever it might be and we only have so much energy and attention it's like do you want to be great on stand-up or your specials or can you be great at everything i don't know that's challenging no i've heard time and time again you pick one thing and you're great at that that thing and and that's it not that's it i mean you can do other things but your energy is listen if i took my energy and said okay i got a podcast i got to do video of the week or whatever it is i'm not writing material i'm not thinking about material i'm thinking about all these other things but you look at social media go this got 38 million views you know like you go there and going there was really no time or energy thought into this it was just kind of like it this hit like a moment and you don't you can't explain why things are popular and why things are not you'd like to think that you know it's just like cooking if you're in if you're in the the kitchen for three four hours preparing a meal and somebody's in the kitchen for five minutes per meal what's going to be better the five minute meal or the guy that took the time never know i don't i i don't know you would think it would be the guy that took the time but now it just seems I don't know I can't figure out even today's humor what are people laughing at because it's so subjective it's like you look at something online and go I don't think that's funny or you go see somebody just stand up and go I don't get it I don't understand why this guy's got 15 ,000 people in the audience it's so subjective and to try and figure it out but I think it is the relationship they've created with their audience what makes it funny to them.

1:06:49You know, it's like, especially with kind of the online social media audiences with the content. It's like they build a relationship of the content that they like in consuming that personality. And then they might go to, sell out 15 ,000 people. And for you, it may not be that funny or others, it may not be funny, but to their audience, they found a connection humor. You make a good point. Probably the same with you. It's like, you know, you've captured an audience that's just like, sells out everything you do. Well, the audience was... I've created it through the stand-up. Yes. It's not necessarily that people fell in love with me personally.

1:07:26They fell in love with the stand-up. What I think is happening is these podcasts. They fall in love with the personality. Yes. Oh, God, this guy is like... He's going through so much stuff at home. And then he or she puts out tickets for sale and they go, not necessarily for the stand-up, but for to your point oh i have a connection with him because he farts in bed too right right so and if the person learns how to be great at stand-up or talented enough they should have a great career or a good career yeah but you to me this the stand-up listen you you gotta do it It's just you have to do it.

1:08:10And I think if you went to go see a seasoned comedian and maybe a guy or a girl who hasn't really been seen, you tell the difference if it's right next to it. If you're eating a steak, you eat... If you're eating McDonald's and you don't have any other comparison... Tastes great. Tastes phenomenal. I hear that. But who are the, who's one standup comedian that you've seen in the last five years that doesn't have a big audience? That isn't selling out arenas, but you're just like, man, this person has really, they've got a gift. They've really studied well. They've put in the reps. They put in the time.

1:08:52And it's just like, they are funny every time, but they're not well known yet. Who is that person? I wish I could give you a name. I'm not one of these guys. And I probably could have done this... Actually, I did this with, um... I said Theo Vaughn a while back. The guy was going onstage and really killing, but no one really knew who he was. This was about seven years ago. Really? So he was crushing onstage. Yeah, yeah. He came into his own... in stand-up, like, it kind of happened... He was at it for a while, and then something clicked where he started doing... And the video content started to take off.

1:09:31And then the podcasting took off. So that was a guy that I kind of thought that was going to go places. But I'm not a guy now, now that I have a family. The time is limited. Going out four nights a week. Yeah. I mean, I'll go to the comedy store tonight. I'm going to do two sets there, and I'm going to go home. It's not like I'm going to be hanging out watching other guys or girls perform. Sure, sure. So I don't know who the hot person is coming up just because time. I don't have time. Yeah. what's the best piece of advice your dad has given you lately? You're at the top of your game in terms of where you've ever been in the past.

1:10:10There's obviously a lot of room for you to grow if you want to grow. You've sold out Madison Square Garden five times. You've got a massive tour that's about to happen here, I think, next month, Oliver. And what is the best thing that your dad has said to you with all the success that you have at almost 51 years of age now?

1:10:36I guess the advice is never to rest on your success. So, and then, you know, my mom is going to watch this too. My mom is always, never talk about me. She's always wondering, how come she's not in the act? How come you don't talk about me on podcasts or whatnot? But I love my mother to death, And she's also a huge part of kind of giving me advice. Everybody goes to my dad because my dad, I always talk about him. But also my mom, you know, my mom is my muse. My mom is someone, if I could get dying laughing, I'm like, I'll use that on stage. That works then. That works. My mom is a good gauge of kind of what's funny.

1:11:20And when I call her and we get on a roll, there's nothing better than making my mother laugh. other than my own family when I get my mother going it's like because

1:11:44my mom

1:11:48is

1:11:52my mom and my dad are divorced and my mom is living in california near my sister and she lives alone and um i never thought my parents would have gotten divorced grew up in a family where laughing and now they're not together so for me to make my mom laugh not that she's she's my mom goes out more than i do she's got friends, she's having jazz night here, she's having a glass of wine here, but I feel with my mother, if I could make her laugh, that it's just a, I don't know, it's a good, selfishly, it's a good feeling for me because, you know, I never would have thought my mother would be living alone at 78 years old.

1:12:43I thought my parents were gonna grow old together and die together. I never thought here, I never thought I'd call my mom and then have to call my dad. I always thought I was going to be, Ma, put that on. Right. And it's not that way. And yeah, they got divorced later on in life. So for me, it was, you know, some kids witnessed divorce early on. Maybe they don't know what's going on. Why is that mommy and dad? But when you have like a full 35 years to like they're together and now you got kids yourself and you know they're not coming to see your kids together they're separately coming it's separate and it's it's like it's it's it's a tough pill to swallow just because i never perceived it going that that way and uh you know they still talk but uh you know they're still they're still in communication but it's just like christmas is not with the both of them so so providing laughter to her to for me is is gold and same same thing with my kids and my wife too um what's the thing you love about your mom the most my mom um

1:14:08it's just always there really it never like uh you know always there mom's always gonna pick off the phone. Yeah. Always. So for me, I told myself I wasn't going to get emotional, but I think this is appropriate. And especially now that my parents are getting up in age, you think they're always going to be there. And sometimes you take it for granted. And I always try to make that a point in my head. My mom always says, I said, Ma, I got to call you back. She goes, yeah, right. Because sometimes I don't call her back. And I should be more mindful of that. But yeah, my mom is gold. Wow. That's beautiful, man.

1:15:03Yeah. If you could, your parents are 70... 78, 77. So let's do a hypothetical question here. You could fast forward, call it 30 years, and you're 81, 80, 81. And you continue to accomplish every dream that you have imaginable in your personal career, but also in your personal life. You see your kids grow up the way you want to. You're there, you're loving, all these things happen in your life. And hypothetically, if you could be your 80-year-old self for a second or see him having a conversation with you. And he could know exactly what you're about to go through the next 30 years. And he can give you three pieces of advice for you today.

1:16:02What do you think your 80-year-old self would say to you today about how to live the next 13 years of your life? Wow. My 80-year-old self would tell me, first and foremost, stop worrying so much. Just take each day as a blessing. Don't worry about what you cannot see in the future because I'm always worried about what ifs. What if this happens? What if that happens? Don't worry. um also we would say um don't work so much really don't don't kill yourself working this much uh spend time with your family uh my my dad has often said he he worked too much for what you know like for what you know like he missed a lot of the childhood memories you know um so he probably tell me to relax with the work which i've often said you know after this tour maybe maybe i just go and do casinos or las vegas you know maybe pull back a little bit this is this is a big undertaking this tour for me it's a lot how many cities 94 94 cities 94 shows i should say 94 shows.

1:17:24How many months? From July 11th to April 10th, I think. They shoot a special at the end of this. 94 shows in a couple months? Well, no, no. April to... I'm sorry. Now, July to April. So what did that? April, next year. Next year. Oh, gosh. I was thinking April to July. There's a dyslexia in me. I was like... Yeah. Over the course of eight months. Okay. I got you. Wow. 90? 94 shows. So... These aren't like going down the street to the comedy. No, these are like major, you know, arenas. Yeah. Yeah. It's a lot of energy. A lot of energy. But what I like about it is I used to do two shows a night.

1:18:06Like I used to go to a theater and I'd go, let's say. Seven out of nine or something. Yeah. Yeah. And for me, it's like one show, give it all I got, and then leave it on the table next night and the same thing. So going on this tour, it's not only the tour. It's the promotion behind the tour. It's the selling of the tickets. It's all that. And for me, it's great. It's great. But maybe pull back a little bit after this and kind of enjoy the fruits of my labor, enjoy my family, and just enjoy. I did it. It's great. I love doing this. but you know what's it all about i want to get more into charity i want to start giving back more i want to do uh i might want to tackle something else i told my wife i go maybe i want to go to culinary school maybe i want to because i'm passionate about cooking not to become a chef or open up a restaurant just the love of it just for the love of doing something just to do something out of pure enjoyment not figuring out how do i monetize you know everything now is like if you have a hobby, put it up online and then you could get a chef the sauce.

1:19:29Right. Because you're, you know, like, I'm kind of tired of, like, trying to figure out how I exploit my own personal love of life for, and how it feeds into stand-up. Can I just do something to do it without, not in the world? No, I'm making pasta tonight. why can't I just make pasta and not go hey guys I'm doing that you know it's it gets to become a little too consuming of of like you know just want to just want to go on vacation and not like tell anybody I'm going on vacation or how do we like make people laugh while I'm on vacation do i have to but no it's like i feel like a lot of people have feel pressure to constantly be putting out this content that i don't know do you really need to be i mean i just it's getting to like is there any privacy anymore i people are in the hospital their their grandfather's not and they're whipping up a facebook live grandpa's done you know it's like can't we just keep right With the family?

1:20:38Yeah. I don't know. Maybe I'm antiquated in my thinking, but I don't know. I just feel like... Have you ever been able to enjoy the tours, the big tours that you've done? Like you said, I'm going to finish this and hopefully I kind of just pull back and maybe do casinos or smaller mini tours or weekend gigs or whatever, but do you think you can enjoy day by day these next nine months? Well, I told myself I'm going to enjoy it more than I ever have in the past because in the past you know like people go oh you sold out Madison Square Garden four times how was that experience I don't even remember because I was worried about selling out for Fort Lauderdale the next weekend you know what I'm saying so sometimes when you're in it you're not really in it you're you're past it already and you're not you're not even you're not even conscious of what's going on around you because your head might be other other places this time around because I'm bringing my family oh that's good because I'm bringing my kids I want them to like relish.

1:21:37That's beautiful. I get more enjoyment now. And I always have. I'm a big guy in hospitality. I love making feel good. I love making people feel good. That's why I do stand-up comedy. But I also like making people feel good in other areas, whether it be me hosting them at the house for a party or, you know, giving back to my family in a way where, you know, whether it be financial or whether it be educational, whatever it is, I just like giving. And that's where I think this charity component is going to come in after I think to do this tour to get more involved in the community. Stop talking about what you're seeing and go do something about it.

1:22:29You know what I'm saying? Like, how do I improve? Because I think a lot of times, like, what am I going to do? What am I going to do that's going to cause an impact in a problem that's so huge? You know? It's like voting, you know? You vote for that. Are you going to vote? What's it going to do? What's my vote going to do? Well, you're going to how many cities? 90, well, 94 shows. I think it's like some 80s, 80 some cities. I mean, do you have a charity component already? I have a foundation called Tag You're It. I fund it. There's no board of directors, no nothing. I just give money to it. I'll go on a game show.

1:23:06I'll play for my charity. And then the pillars of the charity are Alzheimer's disease, because my grandfather died from Alzheimer's. Veterans, because my father's a U.S. veteran, a United States Army veteran. and children's education. Wow, that's beautiful. I know a lot of communities are underserved when it comes to education. And my kids are fortunate to go to private school because the L.A. school system is kind of shot. But if I could do anything to help that, that's great. But then, again, what type of impact can you make? Well, I would love to push back on you for what you just said because I think you're in 80 cities, you're going to be in front of tens of thousands of people most nights.

1:23:50You have a big impact to whether to say something before or after on stage to every city, you and your family do something for a local Alzheimer's facility or schools. And to make it a point, maybe not every city, but you're saying, hey, as a family, we're going to go to show up at a few of these cities to the children's hospital or to the Alzheimer's or to the old folks homes or whatever it might be and bring joy and serve. You know, I need you as a lifeline, bro. Talking to you, it's like, yeah, what? Again, I'm sitting here, as you're saying this, I'm going, why didn't I think of that? You know, why didn't I think of having a charity component on the tour?

1:24:34This is why I talk about, I mean, because you're focused on being the best at what you do. You're focused on the reps of comedy, of stand-up, of promotion. You don't have all the time and energy to see the blind spots. This is why I love having coaches. And I have a coach that supports me in almost every area of life. I don't know everything about money. How am I supposed to know about money? Like you said, growing up with the scripts that we had as kids. So I have to unlearn things and read books, find money, mentors, invest in it, you know, go to courses, whatever it might be. Same thing with relationships.

1:25:09My parents were fighting all the time, screaming at each other. They got divorced when I was a teen. It was a nightmare. I left, I ran away from home to go to a private boarding school when I was 13 because I didn't want to be at home. I didn't feel emotionally safe. I didn't know about relationships. I failed in multiple relationships until I'm in the relationship now. And it took years of coaching to heal, to unlearn. And I used to beat myself up and feel shame thinking I should have known better. Why didn't I already know this? But I spent 15 years shaming myself and that doesn't feel good.

1:25:44And so I've just learned through more self-compassion. I'm not going to know everything in the world. Let me try to surround myself with good coaches and mentors and just learn a little bit more as I go, as I feel stuck or feel like I'm going through a problem. And so I was just saying it for you because I know you have a big platform in person and you can move audiences to laugh. And when you can open someone's heart to laugh, you can get them to take action in other areas or at least be aware. You can get them to listen. And if you want to say a one-minute message about something you care about with your charity, I think it's a great opportunity.

1:26:21You can bring your kids on stage and say, hey, we're doing this as a part of our tour. We're going to these different Alzheimer's centers. We're doing kids' school. Whatever it might be that you care about. I think it's a great way to enjoy this process even more over the next year. Yeah, I agree. By serving just a little bit outside of the comedy as well. So you can enjoy it and be of service and do good. But we can talk later about it if you want more. I'm not going to coach you on this, but. No, it's a great idea. And I definitely want to implement that. And you've got enough on your mind already.

1:26:52So maybe it's something your wife supports you with. No, no, no. I mean, this is something that's important. And it would make it more meaningful. Exactly. Every time, you know, you talked about gratitude and really wanting to enjoy this tour. And I want everyone watching and listening to go to the tour. I want to go. Hopefully, you're coming here in L.A. Yeah, August 17th. August 17th. So I got to go check it out because your stand-up on, your specials are freaking hilarious. Well, thank you. So I want everyone to go who's watching and listening. Where can we sign up for tickets to buy tickets on the tour?

1:27:28So I go to SebastianLive.com. All the tour dates are there. And going to a lot of different cities. I haven't even gone before, like Youngstown, Ohio. All right. I'm from Ohio. So that's good. Okay. So, yeah, we're going to all the Boston, New York, Chicago's, and Philadelphia, Fort Lauderdale's. But, yeah, San Antonio, someplace that I would perform once. Austin, Texas, got a brand new arena. So, yeah, going to a lot of different places. And Sebastian Live, Sebastian Comedy is the Instagram and the Twitter. I try and populate that with funny videos so people get away from it. You start scrolling down any of these social media platforms, it's depending on your algorithm and what it's feeding you.

1:28:14Uh-huh. But, you know, for me, I always stop on the videos that, you know, create a smile and not so much anxiety. And I don't even watch the news anymore. I don't either. So. Yeah, you put out humor and things that make people laugh. I try to put out positivity. I think that's what people should consume more of. Yeah. I agree. Things that bring a smile to someone's face. Sebastianlive.com Make sure you guys get tickets Bring your friends, your family I just feel like especially Over the next six months I think you're doing this at the perfect time As there's going to be so much chaos In the world with the election And the political season And just like families probably Fighting with each other over What's right and wrong and who to vote All these different things Just stop fighting Go watch you live, laugh bring your family bring your friends connect have fun um we we can enjoy life too yeah and you know what to reflect on what you said earlier about um laughter and and and how popular comedy is and i think the reason is because to the point of people bickering red yeah blue and that's wrong and the way you think sucks or whatever it is, when you get people together in a comedy club or arena or theater, none of that is happening.

1:29:44It's just everybody is laughing in unison as one for an hour. Regardless of your political affiliation, your religion, or whatever it might be, everybody at least agrees, in my opinion, for an hour everybody in that room agrees that this is funny right and then they leave and then they beat out of each other but but i think that's why people are looking for this the the people people are so inundated with all this whether it be you open up your ipad your phone you turn on the tv you're just getting constantly bombarded by all this stuff and people are looking for a release and outlet and I think comedy is providing that right now for people so yeah you're right I think this is a great time to tour perfect timing man I hope um I hope I'm gonna I'm gonna message you halfway through and check in and making sure that you're enjoying the moments I'm sure there's gonna be stress and travel and all these things but I hope that you're enjoying it as well and uh if you are watching or listening and you go and you get a VIP upgrade and you get to do a meet and greet with Sebastian, make sure to remind him to enjoy the moment and say, hey, school of greatness, I heard you say you were going to work on enjoying the moment.

1:31:05And make sure to remind him in case he's not. I do have two final questions for you. Okay. Before I ask them, Sebastian, I just want to acknowledge you. Again, this is our first time meeting, and I want to acknowledge you for your openness, your realness, and your honesty about where you're at in your life. 50 years of living ups and downs but a lot of joy, a lot of success and a lot of fun and fulfillment and I acknowledge you for there's some comedians I've had on that they want to be in comedy mode all the time and it's fun but I appreciate that you're able to also open your heart and talk about things you're working on things you're struggling with, things that you're excited about and all these different things So I acknowledge you for just the real human connection that we've had and your open and realness.

1:31:55And the journey you're at, I just think it's a beautiful journey to watch. So congratulations on everything. And I acknowledge you for the joy you bring to so many people in the world. Very, very nice of you to say all those things. Very nice. My question to you is. Yeah. Is this something that I like to acknowledge you for? Is this something that you have learned from somebody else? Or is this something that you came up with to do at the end of these shows? Or did you... Because I think a lot of times, like, I'll take some of the stuff that you told me today. Yeah. And I will repurpose it and say it like it's my own.

1:32:38Yeah. Right? Sure. The positivity, the gratitude. even what you're saying now I acknowledge you for I think this is a good it's a good thing to say to somebody because you know you go through an interview and you kind of let's recap it in your own way yeah is this learned or is this something that you came up with on your own I don't know if anyone comes up with anything on their own I never saw anyone's at an end of an interview say I acknowledge you for what I'm seeing in you, but I have done a lot of courses, personal development work, you know, trainings, mentors, coaches. And I think what I always wanted as a child was to be seen and acknowledged.

1:33:24And I think every child wants to be seen and acknowledged for their existence. And many years I didn't feel seen and acknowledged. And so I overworked, I over hustled. I did whatever it took to be the best in my sports so that I was never neglected. That continued in the business world after I got injured. I overworked, I overtrained. I was, you know, whatever I can do to be the best. When I hit 30, I'm 41 now, you know, I was a multimillionaire in the bank account. I had like a little audience. I had a successful business, a little personal brand, but I was extremely miserable. And I was chasing validation from everyone else, but I didn't have it with myself.

1:34:19I wasn't able to acknowledge me or see me, the worst of me, the best of me and everything in the middle. And so it's been an 11 year journey since starting this show of kind of reclaiming that power and ownership of, sure, it's nice to be seen and acknowledged by others, but the real tragedy is if we work so hard on the things we love and enjoy and we don't acknowledge ourself. And so I try to acknowledge me, you know, quietly every day and say, man, just keep doing the work. You're doing a good job. Sure, you can be better, but being consistent is a great step. And, um, I know that most people crave acknowledgement and it's just something I started doing on the show.

1:35:09Again, I never saw someone do it, but I was just like, I know people want to feel acknowledged and I want to speak into people what I see in them. So yeah, I started doing it at the end of every interview and I just think it's, um, imagine a world where everyone was able to acknowledge themselves better and the people in their lives better. And, you know, I'm not saying like your dad never saw you or your mom never saw you. They just were criticizing all the time. It's not what happened. Obviously they saw you and acknowledged you, but imagine a world where, you know, we can coach and empower people to level up and also see all the beauty outside of it so that's part of the journey it's a nice it's a nice touch and sometimes i don't know how to accept those acknowledgements you know like even compliments like i feel i feel like it's hard for people to acknowledge to receive to receive it yeah it's like i almost want to jump out of it i know it's very uncomfortable for a lot of people yeah it as you were saying i'm like oh another one he's doing another one you know well it's interesting because in the more in the more i've and most people are uncomfortable and i don't do it to make people uncomfortable no i really don't but i've i've learned that most people and comedians believe it or not you know they want or actors they want the laughter they want the you know it's what's the there's like a joke about comedians i can't remember and like actors about always needing applause growing up or something or never having like their parents like acknowledge I can't remember, but there is a stereotype of actors and comedians needing that to fuel them to feel worthy, right?

1:36:54And I'm not saying you need that, but I've seen comedians struggle with receiving acknowledgement. Even when they get clapped on stage, it's like fueling something, but they still don't feel enough. Sometimes. I don't know if that lands or if that speaks to your industry at all, but it's what I've noticed. I struggle with that. At the end of my show, I know some comedians that stay out there and they're bowing. Right, right. They really receive it. Taking it all in. Me, I want to get out of there. Thank you. Off the stage. Yeah. And maybe people are wanting to give a standing ovation or maybe people are wanting to kind of applaud the performance more.

1:37:39And I cut it short because laughing at me is fine, But then acknowledging me is some switches. This is interesting. If you're willing to go for a few minutes on this. Yeah. Something I've learned over the years. Because I used to say, nah, like I could do better. Like when someone would acknowledge me or celebrate me, I'd be like, yeah, but what about that one thing I missed? I remember, I'll tell you a story. I broke a world record for the most receiving yards in a single game. 418 yards in college in one game. Whoa. 17 receptions, five touchdowns, 418 yards in one game. And we lost the game.

1:38:18And afterwards, I'm pissed that we lost the game. I'm the last one in the shower to leave the locker room. I'm moping around. I'm frustrated. I'm angry. Everyone left the locker room. My coach comes in. I'm literally in the shower naked. It's an open shower for those watchers. Guys shower naked. Anyways, coach comes in and kind of creeps around the corner and just says, congratulations, you broke a world record today. Most receiving yards in a single game ever in the history of college football. And no one's done this in the professional leagues either. And I was head against the shower kind of wall, the hot water running down me, again, butt naked.

1:39:01And I'm thinking, what? We just lost a game. And he's like, congrats. and I was miserable for a week. Like I'd done something no one in the history had ever done. But all I could focus on was like, yeah, but I dropped that one pass. And what if that was the thing that could have got us to win? It's still on me why we lost. It was like beating myself up. It took me weeks to be able to be like, oh, that's actually kind of cool that I did that. And I've learned over the years that when you block someone from saying, hey, that was awesome. Congratulations. What a beautiful job you did. When you say, nah, or you block it, or you don't receive it, you're robbing that person of a gift.

1:39:44You're robbing the audience. And you're not doing this intentionally, so I'm not trying to put you down, but you rob an audience of really being like, wow, I just had my mind blown. Thank you for giving me this hour of joy. My life was before I came here. And you took me out of the darkest place of my life. Without that, I don't know where I would have been tonight. I might've been drinking all night. I might have been beating someone up. I might have committed suicide. But because of your gift, your hard work, 50 years of life experience that you brought for this hour, you brought me joy. And if someone stands up and wants to applaud and scream, it's a disservice to rob them of that gift.

1:40:25And again, I'm not blaming you or making you wrong for never doing that in the past. But I would, again, encourage you to take it in for a little longer than you used to. Yeah. be willing to stand there and see what people do and just be uncomfortable for 60 seconds see what happens at the end of the time no i'll i'll fight through it that's my suggestion it does get quite uncomfortable i can imagine man it's hard to see 20 000 people just sit there and acknowledge you and like standing ovation and scream and it's not easy unless you're a narcissist maybe then you're like keep it coming keep it coming that's like no no if you're a decent human being you feel like a little bit of like oh you know yeah you want to have some humility you feel uncomfortable like i understand yeah yeah because there is there is a sense of i again negative i'm thinking if i stay out there longer than i should someone's going what is this yeah like yeah like it the i hear you and there might be three or four people that are saying that too you're probably going to get a few people that said what was he out there for 30 seconds tweeting out there.

1:41:33You're going to see that. You don't have to be out there five minutes, but it's like, if you stay five seconds, try to stay 50 seconds. It's like, extend it and see how you can make yourself as an experienced feel uncomfortable and really receive and enjoy those moments. That would be my suggestion, but you didn't come here to get coached by me. No, no, it's a good learning experience for me. So, but thank you for, I have to acknowledge you for giving me some nuggets and morsels of knowledge where I'll leave here and implement into my own life, that one being the charity event and another being the relishing and the applause.

1:42:10The receiving, yeah. I told you before we started, my intention is to make this the most powerful conversation you've ever had. It was damn good, I gotta tell you. And to impact people around the world. Yeah. And so I have one final question for you. So I've acknowledged you. You shared kind of your three lessons. If you were 80, what you would tell yourself today, you said, stop worrying. You said, don't work so much and be with family. I don't know if you said the third thing, but is there one other thing that your 80 year old self would say to your, your current self? Take care of your health, which I'm in the process of doing.

1:42:50I feel like, yeah, you spend the money on a car. He's from a vacation. Why don't we spend money on becoming the most healthiest person you can possibly be? Because I think sometimes, especially now getting up into your 50s, not to say that that's old, but, you know, things, parts are getting older and they're starting to fall apart. I just snapped my calf muscle performing and had to do the rest of the show limping around. Oh, man. That's tough. So I don't want those things happening anymore. I mean, I work out. It's not a workout where I come out of there exhausted. I'm moving around. I, you know, light stretching and what have you.

1:43:35But the workouts of, like, to exhaustion are not something I'm doing. Just because I'm afraid, what else is going to snap? Right. I mean, I was talking about this on Joe Rogan. I snapped two of my biceps. I ruptured my biceps. At the same time? Not at the same time. Different times. But there is no trauma. I had no trauma in it. Did it hurt? Oh, what is that? It was like I woke up and this is what I have. Interesting. And I got kids. Yeah. And I don't want to be... I become, or I'm becoming, which I don't want to... We go to an event and it's... We went to Disneyland. My family gets on there, say hi to daddy.

1:44:24I'm the say hi to daddy. Like I'm on the sidelines. Yeah, yeah. They went skiing. I can't ski. Say hi to daddy. And I'm thinking I'm missing memories, moments with my kids because what? I'm not taking care of my body and I'm not at optimal health. So my 80-year-old self would definitely tell my 50-year-old self, when you're my age, 80, you don't want to be stagnant. Yeah. and sitting in a chair. I don't want that. Final Flesh and Sebastian, what's your definition of greatness? Definition of greatness.

1:45:04I don't think you can define yourself as great. I think greatness has to be from other people. Like Muhammad, I said he was the greatest, right? but that was just his kind of persona. To me, Michael Jordan is the best basketball player I've ever seen play. There's debate on that. But I think you're great when other people are applauding your greatness, not necessarily yourself. I mean, not to say that there's people out there saying I'm great, but greatness to me is, I haven't you know you see something or you taste something and go I've never seen or felt anything like that so there's and I think we're throwing greatness around too much you know there's just like everybody oh he's a genius or he's the goat I did a thing a year ago about the goat everybody's the goat now.

1:46:10I mean, goats are there. You know what I'm saying? So, I think if we reserve greatness for true greatness, it has much more meaning than if you start throwing this word around for everything that you see. I hope today's episode inspired you on your journey towards greatness. Make sure to check out the show notes in the description for a rundown of today's show with all the important links. And if you want weekly exclusive bonus episodes with me as well as ad-free listening experience, make sure to subscribe to our Greatness Plus channel on Apple Podcast. If you enjoyed this, please share it with a friend over on social media or text a friend.

1:46:50Leave us a review over on Apple Podcast and let me know what you learned over on our social media channels at Lewis Howes. I really love hearing the feedback from you and it helps us continue to make the show better. And if you want more inspiration from our world-class guests and content to learn how to improve the quality of your life, then make sure to sign up for the Greatness newsletter and get it delivered right to your inbox over at greatness.com slash newsletter. And if no one has told you today, I wanna remind you that you are loved, you are worthy, and you matter. And now it's time to go out there and do something great.