Darren Prince ON: Imposter Syndrome, Substance Abuse & the Road to Recovery

Darren Prince sits down with Jay Shetty to talk about his freeing journey from addiction. They discuss how the substance abuse started, the effects it had on him and his family, the many hurdles along the way as he tried to break free from it, and the stories of the lives he touched and helped save. Darren Prince is a prominent sports and celebrity agent and global advocate for addiction and recovery. Through his agency, Prince Marketing Group, he represents icons such as Magic Johnson, Hulk Hogan, Charlie Sheen, Dennis Rodman, Chevy Chase, and the late Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali to name a few. Through his new cause, he has become a sought after speaker on addiction recovery and mental health. What We Discuss with Darren: 00:00 Intro 03:46 Growing up with a crippling anxiety 06:16 The Impostor syndrome grew deeper over the years 09:14 Realizing the addiction was getting bad 13:04 At 14, came the first taste of addiction 17:01 Youth should have access to a trusted teacher or a guidance counselor 21:52 When you are just a shell of yourself 28:08 How addiction affects the people around you 31:35 Helping others recover when you’re still battling addiction 32:35 Recovery isn't based on promotion, it's based on attraction 37:58 Addiction and substance abuse is not getting the coverage that it should 40:38 Your God-Managed Coincidences (GMC) 42:34 It can be therapeutic to look back into your past self 46:34 The story of a father who can see his kids again 49:34 Making a connection is all about the energy you put into it 53:43 A story of several 99 days relapse 58:38 Darren on Final Five 01:00:43 People can send help to Aiming High Foundation Like this show? Please leave us a review here - even one sentence helps! Post a screenshot of you listening on Instagram & tag us so we can thank you personally! Episode Resources: Darren Prince | Website Darren Prince | Instagram Darren Prince | LinkedIn Darren Prince | Facebook Prince Marketing Group Aiming High by Darren Prince Achieve success in every area of your life with Jay Shetty’s Genius Community. Join over 10,000 members taking their holistic well-being to the next level today, at https://shetty.cc/OnPurposeGenius See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Jay Shetty?

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• 0:44Jay Shetty?

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• 1:09Speaker 01

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• 1:38Jay Shetty?

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• 2:22Jay Shetty?

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• 2:30Speaker 02

  If you're struggling yourself with something, the quickest way to get out of your own head is to be of service to somebody else. They don't need to be struggling with drugs, alcohol. It could be a health issue, family issue, friend problem, job problem. I just think when you're there in that moment and you're there without looking for a payoff, but just to be a good, kind, caring human being, you will help that other individual.

• 2:56Jay Shetty?

  Hey, everyone. Welcome back to On Purpose, the number one health podcast in the world. Thanks to each and every single one of you that come back every week to listen, learn and grow. Now you know that I'm always on the lookout to speak to guests that are going to share with us new perspectives that can help us, all the people we love in our lives. Now, this guest I've known for a while. We've been connecting, communicating. He's introduced us to some of the most wonderful guests that we've had on the show. But this January, I had a conversation with him that convinced me that I had to have him on the show himself. I'm talking about none other than Darren Prince. Darren is the founder and CEO of Prince Marketing Group,

• 3:40Jay Shetty?

  a sports and celebrity management agency. He has represented the likes of Magic Johnson, Hulk Hogan, and the late Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, to name just a few. In 2018, Darren released his autobiography, which is called Aiming High: How a prominent sports and celebrity agent hits bottom at the top. And as you can see, it's a bestseller on Amazon. You'll have links all over the description so that you can go and order your copy today. And we'll be talking about his journey through addiction and recovery. Darren, welcome to the show.

• 4:13Speaker 02

  Thanks for having me, man.

• 4:15Jay Shetty?

  It's amazing to have you here, man. I remember when I was in London, I went back to see my parents and my sister and my in-laws because I hadn't seen them in over a year. And we were talking on the phone and I was literally like in between. I think I just got like. I think I just like had a quick meeting with someone in London or something like that. And I was, I was just driving. And as you were just telling me just before this, it was around 5:00 AM in LA. So it was about, what's that like?

• 4:47Jay Shetty?

  It's about 1:00 PM in London. And we're talking about something completely different. And then all of a sudden, you start sharing insights from your journey. And it was one of those moments where everything you said just penetrated straight through to my heart. And I like stopped the car, because I was speaking to you on speakerphone. I stopped the car and I just made a decision. I was like, I have to have him on the podcast and he needs to share this story. Because there's something about that moment where I just almost felt called, that there was a reason that we'd connected. I think we connected two years ago now, one and a half years ago, something like that.

• 5:26Jay Shetty?

  And then it all kind of became reality where I was like, okay, this story needs to be told. And I'd flicked through your book before since I had it. And then when I got back here, I started looking more into the book. I started watching interviews with you and podcasts that you'd done. And I'm just so excited that we get to share that on On Purpose today. So thank you, man. Thank you for making the time. Thank you for being a dear friend and supporter of the podcast for two years or more. And thank you for showing up today. I know you're ready to share, so thank you.

• 5:59Speaker 02

  Again, thanks for having me, man. And like I told you on that phone call, we're gonna, we're gonna touch and change and save a lot of lives today. I can guarantee that.

• 6:07Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I mean, that, just, just hearing that gives me shivers. I'm just like, that's, that like just feels so good that that's the aim of what we're trying to do here. But let's start with your childhood. I want to hear about what was Darren like as a kid? What were the things that excited you? What were the things you were insecure about? What were the things that you loved? What was your experience growing up?

• 6:32Speaker 02

  So I grew up in Livingston, New Jersey. Great loving mom and dad. Sister that I'm close with to this day. And, you know, I had a lot of friends, boys and girls. And you would have thought everything from the outside was okay, but it just wasn't. I was crippled with anxiety, no security or self-worth. I was always put in small classrooms and told I was dumb or stupid or learning disabled. And I just know by not speaking up, that's what eventually led me down the path that it led me down to. As far as hobbies, you know, I was athletic. I was incredibly obsessed with baseball cards, which by the time I was 14, turned out to be a tremendous blessing.

• 7:16Speaker 02

  Cause I started a multimillion dollar company in 1984, which, you know, all of a sudden the dumb, stupid kid was the smart, brilliant one making a ton of money. And, but again, I look back at that time and by, by not speaking up for the inadequacies, the insecurities, the feeling of less than, never fitting in. That's why I'm so passionate about what I do today, especially with the teens. Because if I could go back in a time machine, I would have addressed, you know, certain people that could have helped me.

• 7:45Jay Shetty?

  What was it specifically at the time that made you feel like you didn't fit in? What was that anxiety that was crippling you? Where was it coming from? What was the root of it?

• 7:53Speaker 02

  You know, I think, I think that I grew up a mama's boy. My mom definitely overwhelmed me with love, you know? I don't think I had it in between and just being away from her. My dad was always like a safety net for me. So anytime I wasn't around them and around different groups of people, I, I just never fit in. And I, I was, had imposter syndrome since the time I was probably this big. And I never really could put my pulse on it, why it was just that way. It was, that was just it and I never spoke up. I kept it all inside.

• 8:24Jay Shetty?

  What's incredible about that is you, you talked about imposter syndrome. And then you go on to develop and we'll talk about the journey, but you go on to develop this incredible career as a celebrity in sports management, agent and manager and your own company, the Prince Group, and you're working alongside, I mean, the biggest icons in the world. Did that imposter syndrome stay? Did it change? Did it ever feel like it went away because now you had achieved something? Or did it get deeper? Where did it go?

• 8:56Speaker 02

  It got deeper because I believed all the bull crap. I believed the super agent, the wow, look at Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Evel Knievel, Pamela Anderson, Saint Magic John, like it just the list was endless. But again, that core, which I told you about on the phone call, was so badly broken. That spirit inside of me was slowly going off the deep end until obviously I hit my bottom, which we can get into later. And I just believed it all. And I needed people to think that Darren Prince arrived. I needed that little kid in the back of the room that was in special ed, that was told he was no good, that wouldn't go anywhere. I needed the world to think that, wow, Darren Prince is the most successful

• 9:38Speaker 02

  person in our school. Darren Prince is doing unbelievable. He's on private jets, Super Bowls, backstage for the biggest concerts, award shows. I needed all of it because that gave me the validation that I was missing as a child.

• 9:50Jay Shetty?

  It's crazy, isn't it? Like, I feel like when I hear that, that's such a big part of everyone's story where we all end up seeking validation or acknowledgement or recognition for how we, what we didn't receive as a kid. The difference was that you were actually at the top.

• 10:09Speaker 02

  Doing it.

• 10:09Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, you were actually doing it. Like, that's my point, that I think we all seek it from, from different things in our whole journey, but you'd actually got there. But it's crazy. You're, you're there, but you're still looking for validation from the people who are looking up going, oh, my gosh, he did it. How did he do it?

• 10:27Jay Shetty?

  That must be a really unique experience and journey. How many of the people that you went to school with or grew up around were on similar career trajectories or experiencing what you were?

• 10:39Speaker 02

  There's nobody, but we do have Jason Alexander and Chelsea Handler that came out of my high school. So they did pretty well for themselves too. Fortunately, I don't think either one of them had substantive issues like I did, but they're, they've done remarkably well. And I truly don't know many individuals in that position because normally it's smoke and mirrors.

• 11:00Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 11:01Speaker 02

  You know, you're posting now about this life. You're verbalizing about it and you're not really living it. You need people to think, you want people to think you've arrived at the top.

• 11:13Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, we've had Chelsea on the podcast too. So it's, when I hear you say that, I think that experience is shared by so many of us. And that's why I'm so glad that we're getting to talk because what I love about your journey is that despite having all this success, you then decide to write a book, which has got nothing to do with becoming successful from the external sense, but really becoming successful from an internal space. Tell me about the day or the journey where you started to realize that you had an addiction. Because this is what the core pillar of your work.

• 11:58Jay Shetty?

  And when you shared your story with me on the phone that day, I was just like, everyone in the world has an addiction. Some people have an addiction to sugar. Some people have an addiction to their smartphones. Some people have an addiction to alcohol. Some people have an addiction to validation. Like, we all have an addiction. Everyone who's listening or watching right now, there's no one who's free of an addiction. And so when I read your story and hear your story of recovery from addiction, even though your addiction was extremely deep and in the more, in the sense that people would more align with an addiction, I think it's a journey that all of us need to go on. So tell us about when you first were able to.

• 12:42Jay Shetty?

  Realize and recognize that you had an addiction.

• 12:45Speaker 02

  So I started Prince Marketing Group when I was 24 and Magic Johnson became my first client. And I like to say what was once living to use turned out to using to live. I don't know when it turned on me, but for the first five or six years I was a rock star. I really was on the plane, networking my butt off, building the agency. Magic told me specifically, you gotta use me to knock down every door to build your agency because it's not how successful I become, it's how successful I make you and everybody else around me. That's what life's about. I was like, wow, I got the opportunity to exploit him and get on the phone with different celebrities. And it probably was, I would say around 2002, which was my pinnacle moment of my career in the book.

• 13:28Speaker 02

  And I'm going to mention it now because last Monday was the 50th anniversary of Ali Frazier, the most incredible spectacle sporting event of all time. Historically, culturally, the Vienna more stopped that night on March 8th, 71. And I spent six years with my dear friend, Harlan Warner, who was Mohammed's agent, brought me into the Ali team to get these two regal icons together. And the opportunity happened in 2002 for NBA All-Star Weekend. And I got a call from Lonnie and she's like, Mohammed, and I would like you and Joe and Joseph Marvis to come to dinner in Mohammed's suite tonight. And I just, I was losing my mind. This historical opportunity behind closed doors to see them finally make peace with each other

• 14:13Speaker 02

  and hug and embrace and world leaders, anybody would have just done anything been in that moment. Well, Jay, an hour before I went to get Joe, I'm in my hotel room snorting Percocets and OxyContin and Vicodins because that eight-year-old kid, that 10-year-old kid with a severe learning disability did not deserve to be there and had no idea how to be there, present in the moment, and take in this experience that would blow anybody away. And the fact that Joe and Mohammed loved and respected me more than I respected myself. That's when I realized, I was like, this is getting really bad. I don't know how much longer I can keep this up.

• 15:00Jay Shetty?

  I mean, even just listening to you share that, I can hear from you in your voice how, like how present you are with it now. Like, you know, just how, how like present you are with it now in that moment. And, and in this moment.

• 15:15Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 15:15Jay Shetty?

  And, which is beautiful to see. And the smile you have on your face right now as well. If anyone is listening, if you're listening and not watching, like Darren has the best smile on his face. It's incredible to think that what you just said, that they respected you more than you respected yourself. They believed in you more than you believed in yourself. Tell us about where do you think that addiction started? Through your journey and for others? Because I think what ends up happening is you have a moment like the one you just said, where it kind of hits you and we go, oh, I get it. The penny drops. But where does it start? Because it almost seems like, it almost seems like it starts

• 15:56Jay Shetty?

  so small and naive and a bit complacent. And, and then all of a sudden, it's, it's cascaded to this. How does it start? Where does it start?

• 16:06Speaker 02

  So for me, it started at 14. I was in sleepaway camp in Massachusetts and I had terrible stomach pains one night. I asked the counselor to take me to see the nurse. She gave me this clear cough syrup cup with this green liquid in it. And it tasted disgusting. But the most amazing thing about that was five minutes later, I'm walking across the softball field with the counselor back to the bunk. And I felt like Superman. Every inadequacy we just talked about, insecurity, feeling of less than not feeling a part of the anxiety, went away like that. I got back to the bunk now, I'm the cool kid, the buff kid, the funny one. Never had the courage to do this in my life. I knocked in the bunk next to us and started flirting with girls at 14 years old. I didn't think anything

• 16:48Speaker 02

  of it. I just knew whatever that was, I needed this feeling 24/7, 365 days a year. Got up the next morning, thought nothing of it, did all our activities, softball, soccer. And I'm in the bunk that next night and looking up at the sky thinking, wow, that feeling was amazing. And I learned how to lie in con in that moment. I heal over, the counselor runs over, he goes, you okay Darren? I said, oh man, we gotta go back to the counselor. My stomach is killing me. And I started shaking and I knew right then that, that this was something I needed. And I did this for three straight weeks straight, every single night till mom and dad came for visitation day and found that I was taking liquid demerol.

• 17:28Jay Shetty?

  Did you know at that time what you were taking? Or was it just the feeling that you wanted? Was the nurse or the person you gave it to aware of what they gave you? And it exposed you to like, what was the, what was the situation from an adult perspective? What we're doing with this 14?

• 17:43Speaker 02

  So, so I don't think the opiate epidemic was nowhere near as rampant back then in 1984 as it is now. I don't blame the nurse because I can get it to plenty of other situations that I found when I needed. But you're not going to tell a 14 year old kid, you can't take that again. My, my whole world got changed in that very moment. Nobody was telling me that, you know, you can't do this. And case in point, three months later, I'm back home. I had my wisdom teeth removed and I come back from the dentist and my mom gives me these two white pills. I have no idea what they were. I'm fricking flying, I'm zooted. Now my business is starting, I'm starting to make money. I'm on the phone, calling up everybody, the cool one, the one that everybody's looking at, the smart one with all the great business ideas.

• 18:27Speaker 02

  And two days later, the pills were gone. Freaking devastated, I was crushed. I had no idea I was going to get more of these beautiful white pills. That just made me feel like I was floating and flying. And same thing, go downstairs, I put the crocodile tears on. I said, Mom, my tooth is killing me. We've got to go back to the dentist. I think of a horrible infection and as a loving mother who wants to see their child suffer. She took the bait and took him back to the dentist next day. Crocodile tears and all, three more days of the pills that I found that were extra strength Vicodin.

• 19:00Jay Shetty?

  That's insane. Like it's, it's incredible to hear just, you know, the fact that all of this was just so readily available to teenagers, kids. And like you said, like there was just not an awareness, like there wasn't the, the education. And, and then once you're addicted or once you're strapped for that.

• 19:22Jay Shetty?

  It just, what is, what do you think, and I want to do this at every stage with your journey, because I know you speak to a lot of leaders, you speak to a lot of parents, and you speak to teenagers. What's the equivalent right now for teenagers that you see being the challenge? So that's the challenge that you were facing and your generation was chasing, what facing? What is the generation today facing? Where is their addiction? What is it that they are exposed to that you think parents or others may not be aware of the negative effects of?

• 19:54Speaker 02

  Well, I mean, I know there's fentanyl out there. You hear about all the horrid stories of somebody just touching it. But I think it's deeper than that. I don't think it's substances. And I'm going to give a shout out to my amazing fiancee, Priscilla, who is over there, because we had a talk a few years ago, and she came up with something that was genius. And I remember when I was at the White House, I mentioned this to Kellyanne Conway, that we need a course in grammar school and high school and self-worth. We need children to be able to have the courage to speak up. So you don't become like Darren Prince. Because by all right, I should not be sitting here with you. I had several overdoses. I should have been dead many, many years ago. And if I knew there was a course where the jocks and the nerds and everybody else

• 20:37Speaker 02

  could actually get along for that one hour or two and put your hands up comfortably and speak to a teacher or have a private session with the guidance counselor, would it change my life? Would it change my life? That's what I think the big underlying root issue is. Everybody with the social media and who's better looking, who's more athletic, what family has more money, who has bigger, better opportunities. You know, you fail a test one day, like I used to every other week. You go home with a broken self-esteem. You feel friggin worthless, you know? Have the ability to call a teacher or go to a guidance counselor before and say, "I'm not really feeling good about myself. I worked my butt off on this test and I got a D." Let them work on you. Let them work on that inside. Because if I had that, like I said, I gotta believe there's no way I would have gone down the road that I went to.

• 21:21Speaker 02

  But I don't regret any of it. My life worked out perfectly. You know, so, but my mission now is not just with adults and corporations and everybody I speak to. My biggest passion is the teens, because I have had some of the most amazing God moments with some of these kids. Three thousand in an audience and one puts their hands up and had the courage to speak up to me in front of three thousand kids. And said, he's, he's, he's acting out, he's doing some very bad things and drug wise and alcohol wise. But because of your message, Mr. Princeton, because of your speech, I'm here to tell it myself. Greatest feeling in the world. It's moments like that, doing esteemable acts that have given Darren Prince self-esteem.

• 22:03Speaker 02

  That he was looking for his whole life. It never came from Magic Johnson, respectfully, or Hulk Hogan, Muhammad Ali. It's being of service.

• 22:10Jay Shetty?

  Hmm. I, I love that how it's, it's always your pain or the challenges that you go through that become your, you know, your, your purpose and your growth, because it's, it's like you have to use the same thing that broke you to help others have breakthroughs.

• 22:29Speaker 02

  Exactly.

• 22:29Jay Shetty?

  And to help others have that moment where that kid, I mean, I can't imagine what that kid, how deeply moved he would have been by you to be able to put up his hand. Was it a guy?

• 22:39Speaker 02

  A guy.

• 22:40Jay Shetty?

  To put up his hand to, to share that in front of his peers. But see, here's the thing, let's go back again. You're now developing a confidence, a false confidence, based on what you're taking. And now you love being in that high. Because that's where you're talking to the girls, like now you've got the business ideas, like you're seeing all this happen. So it's almost like you're falling in love with a false version of yourself. Uh, and, and it's not falling in love, it's more like just falling for a, falling for a version of yourself that is being created. I mean, when I was reading and listening to your story now, I'm like,

• 23:22Jay Shetty?

  that's like the real life limitless, like the, the movie with Bradley Cooper when he's taking pills and just, he feels like a new man and you know, now he can't live without it.

• 23:33Jay Shetty?

  How do you go from, and I'm not asking you to answer this question in one go, because it's a big question, but the hardest part about what you've done, and I know this from just the few interactions we've had. So, you know, I know we've got people in the room today who are closer to you than-

• 23:50Speaker 02

  Patrick and you know, my dear friend.

• 23:51Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely, yeah. And you've got people in the room who are closer to you.

• 23:56Jay Shetty?

  Every time I've seen you, you've been with Patrick. You guys are always together. You know, you've got people in the room that know you so deeply, far more deeply of course than I know you, but what I find the most amazing thing is, you've gone from being someone who is falling for their false self to now building love for yourself, right? In the process of building, always developing. Where does that journey start to? How do you even get to the point where you're like, "I can disconnect from this false identity I've created, which actually is giving me everything I want"? Because I'm sure your confidence gets attached to that feeling.

• 24:38Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 24:38Jay Shetty?

  How do you even get the courage to say, "This isn't confidence, this is false"?

• 24:45Jay Shetty?

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• 25:28Jay Shetty?

  That's indeed.com/podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? This is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. This episode is brought to you by Orange Theory Fitness. One of the best investments you can make is in your own strength. The choices you make today can help shape how you feel for years to come. Orange Theory Fitness provides a one-hour workout to build strength, burn fat, and build muscle with an expert coach guiding you every step of the way. Head to orangetheory.com/onpurpose to learn more and get your first class free. Orange Theory Fitness, helping people live longer, more vibrant lives. Terms and conditions apply. See webpage and studio for details. This episode is brought to you by Mazda.

• 26:12Jay Shetty?

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• 26:57Jay Shetty?

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• 27:01Speaker 02

  So I think we're probably going to get to my bottom moment, is what you're asking. I was at the jumping off point, suicidal. I had the life, I had the money, the notoriety, the top of the industry. But I was so incredibly broken and I was so sick of the double life. And I went to an addiction psychiatrist, told him what was going on. He put me on Suboxone, which was an opioid blocker. But I lied to him, too. I was snorting Ambien before I went to bed at night. I was drinking still a couple of days a week. I was on a mood stabilizer, antidepressant, and anxiety pills. And I was just a shell of myself and my uncle and his then-girlfriend Andrea.

• 27:47Speaker 02

  Or my God moment, they were visiting from Florida, they were both in recovery in the 12-step fellowship of AA and NA, and they paid a surprise visit on July 1st of 2008. And I never met her before, Jay, but she walked in and surprised me and said, Are you okay? And I said, No, I'm not. She goes, You don't look okay. What's wrong? And I told her. I had accountability for the first time in my life. I told her everything. And she looked at me, she goes, Do you realize you're an addict? Your life's unmanageable? I said, Yeah. She goes, Do you realize that you're powerless over this? And you have a disease? I said, Yeah. She goes, Let me ask you the most important thing. Do you realize that it doesn't matter if you're from Park Avenue or Park Bench or Yale or jail, that the disease

• 28:29Speaker 02

  of addiction does not discriminate? And that broke my soul. And I started to just break down and cry. I said, Yeah. She goes, You want to do anything it takes, I'm like, anything. She's going to put you on a detox plan on a 36-hour, it was that next night at 7:00 PM, July 2nd, 2008. And I came back from the gym, I was married at the time. I'm shaking when I got back to my apartment, I'm vomiting, just all the wonderful detox feelings that come along with that nightmare. And I called them up, I said, I can't friggin' do this. I'm calling the friggin' doctor to get what I really need to get. And they said, It's the damn disease, Darren, talk, and you gotta go online. You have to find yourself a 12-step meeting, put your damn ego aside already and surrender. I said, I can't do it. I've been to those stupid meetings. I can't identify with those people. I hung up the phone, ran

• 29:14Speaker 02

  into the bathroom. And my, my damn wife thought I was going to kill myself because she was a part of other overdoses and hysterically crying, banging on the door and going through all the medicine camp to take a non- narcotic anxiety pill. And how came two Vicodins, which at the time actually seemed like a gift because now I had 36 hours clean for the first time in my adult life, but I needed it. And the miracle happened because I fell on my knees and I shouted out to God like I never did before in my life. And I love the fact that the emotions are still so raw. And I said, God, I can't do this. I said, I'm begging you, just take the chains off of me.

• 29:57Speaker 02

  Whatever it takes, take the money, take the notoriety, because I can't do this without you. And broken on the floor, crying, shaking, trembling. He heard me because I had this amazing sensation of this burning feeling over the shoulder. And in my good ear, you know, on the left, I heard, I've got you when you're ready. And I had a white light moment because I stood up. It wasn't me. I flushed the pills. I went into the living room and I found a 12 step meeting. I'm in a taxi cab is before Uber. I'm looking up at this beautiful night of July 2nd, 2008, saying, oh my God, for the first time in my life, I wanted to stay sober more than I wanted to get high. And I walked into a church basement in the upper 80s with about 150 to 200 people.

• 30:42Speaker 02

  And I heard the leader say, is anybody new coming back or needing help? With no ego, this hand, I believe it was God that lifted it. Because the so-called super agent was a fraud. This guy couldn't go five minutes, 10 minutes without getting high. And these people, there was about a dozen that came over to me, spiritual brothers and sisters, who all wanted a hopeless state of mind, showed me love, support, hugged me. They taught me so many things during that hour that for the first time in my life, I felt a part of something. And again, it wasn't the celebrities, it was these individuals that were once so badly broken,

• 31:23Speaker 02

  that slowly showed Darren Prince how to be the five A's, as I call them. Action, attitude adjustment, accountability and acceptance. And I put them into up here, I put them into my heart, I put them into my soul. And one day at a time, this guy started becoming whole. And the biggest gift is realizing, once you have that foundation, once you sort of know that you're in a place of safety, avoiding people, places and things, you want to keep this gift, you better give it away to other people.

• 31:57Jay Shetty?

  Thank you for sharing that, man. I mean, you're more present than ever, like just, just the way it's coming through you right now is, is really special. And I'm sure anyone who's listening or watching right now can hear it and see it and experience it through you and experiencing God through you in that moment and experiencing that moment of revelation through you as well, because that's what we all need.

• 32:23Jay Shetty?

  So thank you for showing up in that way and letting it come through you that way. But when we look at addiction today, unfortunately, we don't really understand it. I think if you've not been through it, you don't really understand it. We can be empathetic and compassionate and be loving towards someone, but we can't wrap our head around it if we've not experienced it. What does it feel like to be addicted, to have an overdose? How does it affect the people in your life? How does it impact the people that you love?

• 33:09Jay Shetty?

  You know, because I think sometimes people are not aware, and I'm not asking that as a like judging the anyone who goes through it. It's more so that we hear how difficult it is for the person who's suffering. Because often I think when we see people addicted, we see them cause pain to others and we think, oh, well, they're just causing pain to others. But I can't imagine that anyone is happy causing pain to others when they're in so much pain and suffering themselves.

• 33:37Speaker 02

  When I was 21, I was put in an outpatient program after being arrested four times for possession charge. And the day I supposedly graduated, that night I got the brilliant idea to go to New York City with a buddy of mine. And we did these mind erasure shots, took a handful of Xanax. And the night turned out so well that his car fell in a ditch. He fell asleep behind the wheel. My face went into the windshield. I woke up in the hospital with a massive concussion, 90 stitches in my face. So anybody listening right now, I don't care if you're young or older, the first two people I saw when I came through were my mom and my dad, broken in tears, helpless that their baby boy was spiraling out of control. Because that's what addiction does. Addiction destroys families. You think it's the person suffering.

• 34:21Speaker 02

  We kill everybody else around us, everybody else around us, you know? And nobody gets out for free. You've got three choices. You're going to get locked up, covered up, or cleaned up.

• 34:33Jay Shetty?

  Tell me about some of the people that you intentionally, unintentionally at that time, you knew that you were pushing away or making it harder for them, but you couldn't do anything about it. Like, did you feel helpless at that point with how you were with people? Or did you find you were actually yourself with people? This was just something you were dealing with professionally, at work and in those environments?

• 34:55Speaker 02

  You know, there were some people in my inner circle that just had no idea what they can do. It was very, it was very much a high bottom. That was very much, you know, I was living this double life. People knew something was wrong. They didn't know what, because there's so much shame. I mean, my ego, look, I've arrived, man. I can't be telling everybody that I'm, before I'm going out one night, I'm snorting six Percocets and four OxyContin's and bringing more in the bathroom with me when I'm at an event with the client. Because to me also, I'm getting these from doctors. I'm not doing illegal drugs anymore. I'm not jeopardizing my morality clauses with my clients. You know, these doctors are writing me prescriptions for sciatica, whatever it might be. So I justified

• 35:40Speaker 02

  it. And I believed my own bull crap.

• 35:42Jay Shetty?

  That's, that's the hardest part about it. I feel like knowing that you're not doing anything illegal. And it feels like, oh, this is all, you know, above the line. This is all normal and...

• 35:55Speaker 02

  No, I mean, man, I remember being on the plane with Dennis Rahm into Vegas for celebrity, I mean, coming home from London from Celebrity Big Brother. And actually, Muhammad Ali and Lani were on the flight. We had no idea. And we're back and, you know, he was ready to go to sleep and had a drink or whatever. And just here's my pill bottle. And just looks over even him. I mean, I had many clients say something in this room. He goes, "Bro, you gotta stop with those things." And I was like, "Bro, my back's killing me. Don't even start with me." Like, just...

• 36:21Jay Shetty?

  Yeah. Did you meet other people before you went into recovery that were struggling with similar things and also being quiet? And also coming up with like a white lie or whatever it was? Or did you feel so alone that you were the only person that you know going through this?

• 36:38Speaker 02

  No, it's funny. There was a handful of people, business-wise and personal-wise, that I remember going through rough times. And again, maybe just being a master, you know, con artist in my own way back then, in my using days. Not in a bad way. I just always had a way to, you know, come across as the guy well put together. I actually helped some people get sober. Not realizing I'm the one that needs the help.

• 37:02Jay Shetty?

  Wow, so even at that time, not in recovery, even at that time, you helped other people get out of it.

• 37:08Speaker 02

  Yep.

• 37:09Jay Shetty?

  Not really, wow, that's crazy. That's insane, wow, that's amazing. That just shows that you've always had this ability to have a positive influence of others. Tell us about the journey of recovery. I love your A's that you mentioned there because I think they're so practical and actionable. But before we get into the practicality, I want to hear what recovery was like, where it started, and what were the steps, the back and forth, the oscillating period, like, I want to hear about like, when you thought you had a breakthrough, but you didn't, because I feel like that's

• 37:51Jay Shetty?

  where most people spend their life is they keep having breakthroughs where, yes, I'm through, and then they get pulled back in, and that's when you've got to keep going, and you've been through that. Tell us about the start of recovery and then that period.

• 38:04Speaker 02

  So I learned so many things from my spiritual brothers and sisters, you know, they talk about 90 meetings in 90 days. If you could do anything for 90 days straight, it'll reprogram your brain and it'll reprogram your spiritual course. So I became obsessed with meetings. I learned that anything I put before my recovery, I'll lose it. I learned to stick with the winners. I learned that recovery isn't based on promotion, it's based on attraction. That's why I wanted to sit with you, because the opposite of addiction is connection. And I know people are going to be watching this and listening to it and feel our connection. And for an addict and somebody that has imposter syndrome, whether you're in your teens or you're older, that's what it's about. It's about waking up that dead spirit, that broken spirit that Darren Prince had for 24 years,

• 38:49Speaker 02

  where it becomes alive, little by little, it doesn't happen overnight, like you said. You know, you might have, you know, a detour at a certain point. But that's why we need our support system with other spiritual brothers and sisters. And it took me a good six months. My sponsor Steve always says I was an exposed nerve. And it took me at least a good six months for the physical cravings, for my brain to somewhat start working, to start sleeping again. I had every day I had to call my sponsor. I went to my meetings, I listened, I kept my mouth shut. I heard, "Take the cotton out of your ears and put it in your mouth." I started implementing the 12 steps. I don't know if you're familiar with them. I tell people all the time,

• 39:31Speaker 02

  12 steps, everybody on earth can use. Alcohol is only mentioned in the first step. We all need them on a daily basis. And, um, you know, little by little, once I got to that one year mark, I started realizing, you know what, I need to get life to be like lasagna and then I'm good. You talk about finding happiness was your purpose, which I love and so many millions of people around the world do. That was my mission, sober and lasagna, because if I can keep it there more times than not, I got a shot. And, um, like I said, once I got to that one year, man, I, I, I started becoming open pretty early on on Facebook and Instagram. My mom wasn't thrilled about it, you know, upper middle class Jewish family embarrassed a little bit,

• 40:14Speaker 02

  but then she would start having friends here and there. Well, my friend, my son, my friend is struggling. And my dad was always super supportive. May he rest in peace. And, uh, just knew that I was on to something that that was much bigger than Darren Prince, the agent. He knew how passionate I was about business, the psychotic work ethic I had from a teenager, that when I commit to a project, when I commit to an individual, you'll never meet any human being that'll say Darren Prince, that he's going to do this for me and never follow him. Came from my dad. So I put that same relentless psychotic obsessive drive, the same I do to this day, into me getting sober, because I knew if I can get it and I can get that foundation,

• 40:57Speaker 02

  slowly put those meetings, put those spiritual messages into my spiritual bank. There's gonna be a day I'm, I'm gonna need to withdraw upon it because just because I got sober, it doesn't mean life is always gonna get better. But this guy got better. My perspective changed. My perception changed on everything. And I became this spiritual, God-loving being that if something worked out in business, great. If it's something I really wanted and it didn't work out, that's great too. Just wearing life like a loose garment. And, um, like I said, to me, the biggest thing was giving it away and helping others.

• 41:36Jay Shetty?

  What was the hardest part about recovery? What was the most difficult thing that people are gonna have to break through when they're in that point?

• 41:46Speaker 02

  Slowing the brain down. How can I not go out of wedding? How can I not go to party? I cannot go to function without picking up a drink or doing something like this? Don't worry about it because you need to do something you've never done before in your life. You need to stay present. Don't project because when I speak now, I often say we're not responsible for our thoughts, but we are responsible for how long you want to think those thoughts. And if you and I made a list of projecting on 100 things that might not go right over the next few months, not that with those type of people, 99 of them aren't even going to happen that way.

• 42:20Jay Shetty?

  Totally.

• 42:21Speaker 02

  And the one that might go wrong, the biggest blessing is going to come of it.

• 42:25Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 42:25Speaker 02

  You know?

• 42:26Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 42:26Speaker 02

  But it's the constant working on this and in here and in here to just understand. Slow this down, you know?

• 42:35Jay Shetty?

  Yeah. Let's talk about the service element of it, of now you paying it forward, passing it on, becoming a sponsor yourself and helping others and serving others. Tell me about how people can help people in their lives if they think they're addicted? Because I think that for everyone who's listening today, they may not be going through addiction in the extreme sense. How can we help others in our lives that we love during this time? What should we do and what should we avoid?

• 43:09Speaker 02

  You know, there's, um, this question comes up all the time. There's so many ways to go about it. Unfortunately, if it's your loved one, most people are too close. You could always try the intervention. I'm at a point with some mothers that call me with their children. I'm like, get them arrested. You want to bury them or you want them to sit in jail? It's that simple. You know, there's no in-between anymore. Because during this interview, we're going to lose about 23 lives from the opioid epidemic just in this country alone. And look, I know people are struggling with the pandemic and all that, but addiction and substance abuse and mental health has taken a backseat to it. Not as much mental health, I should say, because people are isolated, they're in homes, but the addiction,

• 43:53Speaker 02

  you know, it's not getting, you know, the coverage that it should because it's worse than ever. And, you know, aside from, like I said, maybe an intervention, there's so many great treatment centers out there that somebody could reach out to locally to see if that loved one is willing to speak to a counselor to see if they could have a breakthrough. Because a lot of times, Jay, it takes somebody that's in recovery. You're based, like I said, based on the attraction, not promotion. Where I have a lot more success than it could be one of your closest childhood friends, God forbid, or somebody suffering, that Darren Prince is going to come in. And I'm not going to talk to you about your problem. I'm going

• 44:35Speaker 02

  to talk to you about what my problem was like. I'm going to talk about the way I behaved because I'm not going to shove it down your throat. And then if you want what I have, you're going to tell me. I think that way. I do that now. And that's when God comes into my heart and changes lives. And I've seen it time and again. It's just the most beautiful experience in the world that just never gets old.

• 44:58Jay Shetty?

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• 45:39Jay Shetty?

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• 46:21Jay Shetty?

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• 47:05Jay Shetty?

  Head to wayfair.com to shop all things home. That's W A Y F A I R dot com. Wayfair. Every style, every home. Absolutely, man. I know exactly, exactly what you mean. When, what do you think it was that made you turn towards God? Why God? Where was God in your life before? Did you always have faith? Or was this something new and fresh? Because I always find that when people go through these life-changing moments, it either goes towards God or sometimes it goes towards lower habits and our lower selves. Why for you was God so accessible?

• 47:46Speaker 02

  You know, I grew up Jewish, went to temple, always believed in a God, but I think at one point, maybe I didn't believe in him. Maybe I left my faith and life just became so crazy. But when I had that white light moment, that was it. I mean, that was it. And then I got so many GMCs and I still get them to this day. GMCs mean God-managed coincidences. And you know, I still had the ups and downs, like anybody else, and challenges in recovery. But I just know he's with me. This morning, Magic Johnson and Hulk Hogan were my first two phone calls because they're so excited about anytime I have a big platform, especially like yours, to push this message. And I'll tell you, maybe 30 seconds was about business.

• 48:30Speaker 02

  Magic was 20 minutes, Hulk was 15. It's about God. It's about God being here right now with you and I, and I'm feeling him through me. Because sometimes I don't even know what I'm going to say, and I know it's going to come out the exact way he wants me as a vessel. Because for such a long time, even in recovery, I knew I needed him. And then he started sending messages. I need Darren Prince. The agency life was just a byproduct of what your purpose is going to be. Something is going to happen through the notoriety you've gotten through your industry, where you're going to touch people around the world. And then that's when that came in, the book.

• 49:06Jay Shetty?

  Yeah. And I love that because you're almost acting as an ambassador of God in your way for the people that can connect with you. And you're using and engaging the platform that you built for that purpose.

• 49:22Speaker 02

  Absolutely.

• 49:23Jay Shetty?

  And I see that whenever you connect me to someone, or when we're messaging, or when we speak, like, I never don't feel like there's just this beautiful sincere intention behind every time we connect. And you feel that. When you sit down to write the book and put it together.

• 49:44Jay Shetty?

  What's the process like of revisiting so many of these moments? Is it actually like the smile came on your face for everyone who's listening again? Is it actually a moment of like, yes, I get to serve through it? Or is it painful to revisit those moments?

• 50:01Speaker 02

  It wasn't painful. It was very therapeutic. At that point, I was, I think about nine years, so 10 years sober. And my amazing publisher, Anna David, she had a vision. My dad passed away a year earlier and always wanted me to write a book about the agent life. But I would explain to my good dad, well, do one about the Ollie Fraser. She says, like, Dad, you know, Joe Muhammad, it was private. I really don't want to get into it. And I go, Dad, I don't have an ego anymore. I go, I'm nobody special. I work for people that are very special. I've accomplished extraordinary things. I'm just a guy that's got great networking ability. I'm a good people person. I've got good negotiating skills. And it's like, okay, well, maybe one day you'll think about it. And when I met with Anna, she just kind of like our conversation.

• 50:46Speaker 02

  She goes, your passion, the way you speak about your journey and your recovery. She goes, why didn't you write a book about it? And she goes, and implement the fly on the wall experience of being an agent. It's the most iconic figures of our time. And that's when it hit. I go, that's it? I go, that is it? And a month later, I'm in Miami and in tears of joy with Magic Johnson. And I told him and he got so excited. He goes, baby boy, this is so great. This book's gonna be your legacy and you're gonna change and save so many lives. And I turned into that nervous little kid for a second because I had to ask him for a big favor. And I call him Urban by his real name. I said, Urban, would you do me a favor and write the foreword to the book?

• 51:30Speaker 02

  He goes, man, I'd be so pissed if I didn't write the foreword to the book. What, you gotta ask Dennis or somebody else? So he did a beautiful foreword. And but that's just amazing, too. Like the support that I got. Jeannie Bossi, you had the privilege of meeting a Mark Cuban and all. I mean, so many clients just got behind me with this and social media and promoting it and doing interviews with me. And it just made me realize like I could do the biggest sports marketing deal in history. It wouldn't even matter. This is what life is about. Because they saw me go deep in hell and come back out.

• 52:06Jay Shetty?

  What's beautiful is that you had such a deep relationships with these people. And when you're referring to the phone calls you had this morning, what I love about is that your bond was so deep that you've all stayed together. Uh, and I, and I think that's something really special because sometimes people go through recovery and they look around and like, no one's the same anymore because no one went with them on the journey.

• 52:29Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 52:29Jay Shetty?

  But the impact that you had on these people's lives was so meaningful that they, they're with you on the journey. You're still all together right now. That must feel really special.

• 52:37Speaker 02

  Yeah. Hulk ended the call with, I know it won't let me tell this, but he ended the call. He goes, brother, I told you years ago, there's a light around you and you came correct and asked God for the blessing. And he's like, now I'm going to make you a blessing to other people. And that's what he's doing. And, uh, you know, Magic knows all the great work I'm doing with my aiming high foundation. A hundred percent of the proceeds go to get people into treatment. I'm affiliated with Banning Treatment Center, 14 properties. If people don't have the money, I do anything I can to get them into treatment there. Magic said, God just blesses you tenfold for the work that you're doing.

• 53:13Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely.

• 53:14Speaker 02

  That's just how life works. And he goes, I've, I've seen it. He goes, I've seen the transformation, man. It is so beautiful. I'm so happy. And I said, had me in a little bit of tears at the end because he goes, God and, and your dad's going to be there with you today, which I, I know it.

• 53:28Jay Shetty?

  I love that. I love hearing that. Tell me, tell me about, tell me about another story. I love that story you said of the, the boy standing up in the middle of his class. And tell us about another experience you've had with someone that I know there's, I know there's many.

• 53:42Speaker 02

  I got a good one. That was recent. So I was at, in South Carolina about a month ago. I spoke at Oaks Recovery, um, donated a bunch of money to get five people into treatment. And I got to meet them all after I spoke and this one guy comes over to me and he goes, thank you for saving my life.

• 54:02Speaker 02

  But I did because you're Darren Prince of the Amy C. Foundation. I said, that's great. I said, I'm so glad you're here. He goes, no, you don't understand. I was dead on the side of the road. A few weeks ago, Narcon saved my life and the local treatment center in Massachusetts couldn't take me. So the prosecutor, when the judge wanted to throw me in jail, called over here. And they said, we got a grant. We can put you on the plane. We can get you started on this brand new life. And he pulls out his cellphone. Just because of you, I'm gonna get to see my kids again. And they're gonna have a father.

• 54:42Speaker 02

  I mean, I don't care about the money anymore. I told Omar on that podcast, I go, bro, I truly believe money doesn't buy anything but temporary happiness. I love it. I take care of so many people. That'd be the only thing that's heartbreaking if I ever lost it, that I couldn't have the ability to do that. You know, I care about my purpose at this point. Because I know if I lost the business and the money tomorrow, Jay, you'd still be sitting right in front of the same Darren Prince. The Darren Prince that turned his pain into his purpose. And there's no better feeling than that. You got it at a young age. You found yourself at a very young age, which is so incredibly beautiful what you're doing. Inspire the world because people need to hear it. Do you know how many adult 50, 60, 40 that are super accomplished that haven't?

• 55:27Speaker 02

  That haven't gotten through the healing? You know, that stuff is still in here. The character defects, the acting out, the things that they do. You know, I'm not a perfect human being. You know, I still make mistakes, but I try to be accountable. I try to take an action and apologize right away because I don't want that emotional hangover. But I say like this, I'm not exactly who I want to be. I'm not yet where I want to be, but thank you, God, I'm not the person I used to be.

• 55:52Jay Shetty?

  Hmm, I love that. I love that. That's just so magical and beautiful to hear and, you know, just taking in what you just said, because I think that's something, you know, that's a beautiful affirmation that we can all repeat to ourselves and can all connect with that, that we're not who we want to be, we're not, you know, where we want to be yet, but at least we're not who we used to be. I think that's such a, such a beautiful prayer and such a beautiful affirmation in connecting us with God. I loved what you said earlier, I want to go back to it. You said that the opposite of addiction is connection. I thought that was so powerful. I mean, that in and of itself is such a...

• 56:37Jay Shetty?

  What are some of the deepest ways you choose to connect with people now? Obviously, it's service, obviously, it's helping them. But if someone wants to deepen their connection with someone, what should they be doing?

• 56:52Speaker 02

  I think be more present. Priscilla, I used to struggle with that, that's me now.

• 56:58Jay Shetty?

  Priscilla's laughing.

• 56:58Speaker 02

  But I think she's seen improvements. I love what you say about the cellphone before you go to bed, and I've been getting better at it, because that just doesn't work. You just, you just have to, if you're struggling yourself with something, the quickest way to get out of your own head is be of service to somebody else. They don't need to be struggling with drugs, alcohol, it could be a health issue, family issue, friend problem, job problem, and I just think when you're there in that moment and you're there without looking for a payoff, but just to be a good, kind, caring human being, you know, you will help that other individual 100%, because they're going to feel that energy. It's all about the energy and the, you know, what's behind it, you know?

• 57:43Speaker 02

  I don't, I'm never somebody in my business that asks for favors. My clients know that, you know?

• 57:50Speaker 02

  You, Lois, you guys, my boys, if I can help you get clients, I mean, we just had that connection on that call, you know? I just believe things happen energetically and the way they're meant to happen at a certain point, if they're meant to happen. But I just think, you know, that connection, the opposite of addiction is so powerful. And I gotta give credit to my spiritual brother, Brandon Novak from Jackass, because he's the one that's always said it. And I think he's coming up on eight years sober. It's just such a beautiful, deep, deep, you know, statement for somebody like me.

• 58:24Jay Shetty?

  How often do you still keep in touch with your spiritual family now? It sounds like you talk to them all the time.

• 58:29Speaker 02

  Look, you've got them, Lois, and all your guys. And, you know, I've got, I gotta just mention them, whether it makes the cut. You know, I've got Tim Ryan and Jennifer Jimenez and Chris Heron, who's the best in the game, the ex-Boston Celtic, and Anna David Ryan Hampton, Brandon Novak I just mentioned. I mean, they are my Mount Rushmore. They're the ones with the big, big followings. They're out there constantly pushing this message, speaking hundreds of times a year on all the biggest talk shows. And we all use each other as our own therapist. When we're drained, when we're beaten up, and we need that sorts of energy, we need that reminder, we call on them, we call on each other. My sponsor, Steve Delaval, saved my life. I called him two days ago. I said, I can't thank you enough, because many will never understand it.

• 59:12Speaker 02

  You helped me down way more than I ever helped you, because you put the work in. And you need it. I mean, I heard it in your voice when we spoke a couple of months ago. I told you what I was taught. I'm not a genius making up these things, you know? I said, learn to say no, because you gotta take care of you. I know what's going on with your book tour, and you need to get to England with your wife, and just check out them. It's key, because, you know, if you forget these little tidbits, these little nuggets, you know, you're gonna put yourself in a bad energy space, you're not gonna be good to other people, you know? I've learned so much from them, Jay, spirituality-wise, like, now life is about saying what I mean, meaning what I'm saying, and not saying it mean. I try to understand people instead of me being understood.

• 59:58Speaker 02

  And this goes for everybody. If you're in the heat of an argument with somebody, bite your tongue, stop the texts, don't send the email, because it's so much better to be alright than right. Just stay in that place of peace. In 10 minutes, you're not gonna know why the heck you were so angry in the first place. That's what I've learned that keeps me on that spiritual super beam. Because a lot of those old character defects that come out, that's gonna push me closer to relapse. And I'm not afraid of relapsing and dying. That's easy. I go bad, my system's not gonna take it. I'm deathly afraid of relapsing and living. That's what I don't want, ever. And I'll do whatever the heck it takes. I'll move away from people, places, clients, whatever it might be,

• 1:00:41Speaker 02

  to stay in that place, because nothing is ever worth going back to that life.

• 1:00:46Jay Shetty?

  Do you ever feel when you hear someone, and they say to you, Darren, you know, I read your book, I hear you, but I just can't change. Like, you know, someone's just like, I just, I just, I can't do it. It's just not for me. I'm not you. I'm not as special as you are. I'm not as hardworking as you are. I'm not as disciplined as you are. I can't do the 90 days. Have you ever had anyone say that to you? And when they've said that, what's been your response?

• 1:01:14Speaker 02

  It's a great, it's another great question. I'm at the La Montrose about three years ago, before the book came out. I had this individual, I spoke, I was on it at the New Jersey Mental Health Association Gala in May of 2015. I knew nothing about speaking. If I even watched the tape, long before I started working with my speech and coach, it was probably embarrassing, but I still got the claps and whatever. So I found out a week before that this individual was coming, a 22-year-old kid that was in 18 treatment centers, 18. And he's coming to see me, because he read my bio, and the father said, "It's the first time I saw some light of excitement." I actually knew then this event had nothing to do with me. That ego was pushed aside. This event has this individual all over it.

• 1:01:59Speaker 02

  That's why I'm chosen to be the speaker in the keynote. And we kept in touch, had a great time at the event. I spoke to him. I actually flew to London later that night. I read at a Newark airport for some business, and text me when I was in London, kept going bad. Ten, twenty times, I'd be instilling whatever my spiritual knowledge is to him. Got to a point where he wasn't checking in as much and I'm at the La Montreux three years ago and I text him from the poise, said, "Hey, bro, you doing okay?" Texts you back, "You know what? I wanted to reach out for your day. I'm just so embarrassed. I, I, I just feel like I'm wasting your time. I just can't get this. I'm just not ready. I'm not you. Everything you just said." And I picked up the phone and I called him.

• 1:02:44Speaker 02

  And I said, "Hey, man. I don't care if you go bad ninety-nine more times. Get me on the hundredth because I don't want to miss the magic in her eyes because I've seen it." From that phone call, he just celebrated six years sober.

• 1:03:00Jay Shetty?

  Wow. I love hearing that.

• 1:03:03Speaker 02

  You can see that one gets me because it's...

• 1:03:05Jay Shetty?

  I love hearing that. That's beautiful. How many of the ninety-nine did he get?

• 1:03:10Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 1:03:10Jay Shetty?

  How far did he have to get in? Was it the hundredth or he did it earlier?

• 1:03:14Speaker 02

  It did even, it did even take more, man. I think it was like another one and he was, he was there. He made it.

• 1:03:19Jay Shetty?

  You never know how close you are.

• 1:03:20Speaker 02

  And I just said, "It's just, it's the greatest feeling in the world." Because I know, again, it's not, it's not even me. I'm just, I'm just being used for my purpose, you know? I, uh, you know, I, there's just feelings never get old. It's just the greatest thing, you know? Because you're not just changing that individual. It's the mother and the father and the girlfriend and the sister and the grandparents that were at his first coin ceremony that I've got the privilege to give him that coin in tears of joy and hugging each other. This individual from two completely different walks of life. But we had one thing, we had nothing in common, but we had everything in common.

• 1:03:57Jay Shetty?

  Hmm. I love that, man. I love that. Everyone who's been listening, I hope that you're gonna go and grab a copy of "Aiming High" by Darren Prince, how prominent sports and celebrity agent hit bottom at the top. It's already an Amazon bestseller, but more importantly, the reason what's, what's resonating with me right now that I want everyone to hear is, a lot of the times, we turn to knowledge, especially in this space, reactively. We, we think about it afterwards, once someone in our family gets affected or once we're addicted to something. And the truth is that...

• 1:04:36Jay Shetty?

  We can all avoid this in our lives. If we read this book, if we listen to this conversation now, we can actually live a life where we don't have to hit the bottom to be able to practice this. And I think some of us can sometimes be complacent to the fact that, oh, that won't happen to me, that won't happen to my kids. So that won't happen. And it's so easy to get lost in that it won't happen to me. And the next thing you know, you and someone in your family.

• 1:05:06Speaker 02

  That's exactly what happens to you.

• 1:05:06Jay Shetty?

  Exactly. And it's so, I hate saying that, but it's just reality and the truth. And I know that every time my teachers would always say to me, every time I say like, oh, no, I don't think that's an issue for me. That it was like, ah, like that, you know, like, don't ever say that because you're running the risk of just having a massive blind spot. And so if any of you are listening today and have been moved by Darren, as I've been, please, please, please go and grab a copy of the book, Aiming High, share it with a friend. Darren, before we go into our final five, I want to ask you one question. Anyone who's listening, actually, no, I'll share this with you after the final five. So as you know, we end every episode with a final five, which is our rapid fire fast five. So you already know this, but the answers have to be one word

• 1:05:51Jay Shetty?

  or one sentence maximum. So Darren, the first question is for your final five is, what is your ultimate metric of success today?

• 1:06:03Speaker 02

  Happiness within and being of service to others.

• 1:06:08Jay Shetty?

  Beautiful. I did not expect a different answer. Second question, what's the best advice you ever received?

• 1:06:14Speaker 02

  Probably my father. It's not what you say, it's what you do.

• 1:06:18Jay Shetty?

  Hmm, I love that. Number three, what's the worst advice you've ever received?

• 1:06:24Speaker 02

  Probably I got a look back on my buddy. I'm not going to mention his name when we decided to go to New York City, fresh out of outpatient. It didn't turn out too well. You know, 90 stitches in my face. This is why I got this ugly mug today.

• 1:06:37Jay Shetty?

  Oh, God, no, you look great. Question number four. Facilis is laughing in the background.

• 1:06:45Jay Shetty?

  He looks great. Question number four, what's something that you think other people value, but you don't value anymore?

• 1:06:54Speaker 02

  Stuff and things. Again, I got nothing against it. I like my stuff too.

• 1:06:59Jay Shetty?

  So do I.

• 1:06:59Speaker 02

  But ultimately, it's not going to be your legacy. It's not, it's going to really make you happy. It's going to give you temporary happiness.

• 1:07:07Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely. And fifth and final question, if you could create one law that everyone in the world had to follow, what would it be?

• 1:07:15Speaker 02

  Oh, it's a great question, man. Um, one law that everybody had to follow. I think I got to go back to, you know, being kind. You know, I think that's what it comes down to so often, being kind of being a service and not enough people are, they're wrapped them to their own crap. And you don't realize when you're more kind and you're more in that place of service, everything works out so much better for you.

• 1:07:40Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely. Absolutely. Darren, one last question, which is not part of the final five, but I had to ask this to you. If anyone's listening today and they've been incredibly moved and they want to support the work you're doing, what can they do to help? How can they support? How can they get involved? How can they, apart from, of course, reading the book, which we're recommending to everyone, but how can people, how can people help?

• 1:08:01Speaker 02

  So my foundation, most likely, aiminghighfoundation.org. We take, like I said, 100% of the proceeds. If people are listening and they can't afford a book, Patrick and the publisher have sent out hundreds and hundreds of books free of charge. They can get to me on Instagram at agent underscore DP. I just want to put them in people's hands. I didn't write the book to make money. When it started making a lot of money, that's when I said, I'm going to start my foundation because that's what God would want me to do.

• 1:08:29Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, that's amazing. I love that. Everyone head over and follow Darren on agent underscore DP on Instagram. Go and grab a copy of the book. We've put the link in the comments for you as well. Darren, thank you so much for doing this. Thank you for sharing your soul and your story. And I can't wait for people to dive in the book. And I mean, there's so many more incredible stories in the book that I can't wait for people to read. But most importantly, I want to thank you for just really bearing your soul today. Being truly one of the, you know, an ambassador of God, an ambassador of God. And I deeply thank you for being that in my life and being that in everyone else's life today. And I can't wait for people to hear this. So, thank you so much.

• 1:09:11Speaker 02

  Thanks, my brother. And again, thank you for having me. Thank you for being so genuine in who you are and touching the world like you do every single day. And this has just been a beautiful experience and I can't wait to see how many lives we touch. That's why I'm here. That's why you're here.

• 1:09:27Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely. Me too. Thank you, Darren. Thank you, man.

• 1:09:39Speaker 03

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