Michael Bublé: How He Overcomes Self-Doubt Daily & The Ugly Truth About Fame

Michael Bublé drops his mask in this raw conversation, revealing how becoming a father at the peak of his career completely rewrote his definition of success. The Grammy-winning artist who's sold 75 million records admits he's "failing miserably" at being present while simultaneously choosing family over fame at every turn—a decision that's cost him millions but given him everything that matters. He opens up about his stage alter ego, his unshakeable faith, and why the moments his kids will never remember are actually his greatest achievements. This is what it looks like when someone figures out how to stay human while staying on top. Pre-order It's Time (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)In this episode you will:Discover the counterintuitive truth about why choosing family over career actually makes you better at bothTransform your relationship with criticism by understanding how sensitivity can be your greatest professional assetBreak through the myth that you need to sacrifice everything for success by seeing Michael's real-world blueprintMaster the art of maintaining authenticity in a world that rewards performance and personasUnlock the power of individual impact and why one kind act can change someone's entire life trajectoryFor more information go to https://lewishowes.com/1827For more Greatness text PODCAST to +1 (614) 350-3960More SOG episodes we think you’ll love:Josh Groban – greatness.lnk.to/1818SCThe Jonas Brothers – greatness.lnk.to/1794SCMichelle Obama – greatness.lnk.to/1767SC Get more from Lewis! Get my New York Times Bestselling book, Make Money Easy! Get The Greatness Mindset audiobook on SpotifyText Lewis AIYouTubeInstagramWebsiteTiktokFacebookX Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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

• 0:00Lewis Howes?

  Welcome back everyone to the School of Greatness. Very excited about our guest. We have the inspiring, the funny, the very talented Michael Buble in the house.

• 0:07Speaker 01

  Thanks Louis.

• 0:08Lewis Howes?

  Good to see you brother.

• 0:09Speaker 01

  Man, it's nice to be home. Nice to be with you.

• 0:11Lewis Howes?

  Good to see you man.

• 0:12Speaker 01

  Nice to see you too.

• 0:12Lewis Howes?

  There's so many young artists out there that are great musicians or singers or performers or artists in general

• 0:20Lewis Howes?

  who have such incredible talent, but they're missing something. Like they're missing something from breaking through. What's the thing that usually great artists are missing from where they are? When you're like, you've got the talent, but you're missing something. What is that missing that a lot of them have to get that opportunity to break through that next level?

• 0:39Speaker 01

  I don't know, because I can't break through. You tell me.

• 0:43Lewis Howes?

  You can't break through?

• 0:44Speaker 01

  Listen dude.

• 0:45Lewis Howes?

  You've broken through.

• 0:45Speaker 01

  I was driving yesterday and I was listening to, um, I think it's 103.5. Is that what it's called? KT?

• 0:53Lewis Howes?

  Not sure.

• 0:54Speaker 01

  The LA, LA station? And the, the, the DJ said, um, "Love this song. Not sure why it wasn't a bigger hit. This is Michael Buble."

• 1:05Lewis Howes?

  Come on.

• 1:06Speaker 01

  I will, I'll, um, "I'll Never Not Love You." And my wife was driving. And my wife looked at me and she was like, she goes, "What do you think?" And I was like, my heart was like, oh, and I was like, um, my heart hurts. And I was like, it's a, I wrote a great song. That song was written with Michael Pollak. Michael Pollak wrote Flowers for Miley Cyrus. And this is a hit song. Damn, we wrote a hit song. And you know what? I made a music video where I spent a ton of dough and, and the music video was my wife and I going through our, and it was a sequel. This music video was a sequel to the music video for Haven't Met You Yet that I had made with my wife.

• 1:48Speaker 01

  You know, and I was like, I was like, I have a hit song. I was like, I'm gonna make this music video and people will remember the Haven't Met You video. And then when they see this, that, that it ends in the surprise ending of this "I'll Never Not Love You" music video is that it's this, it's part two. They're gonna go crazy. Like, I was like, this could be a hit. I'm gonna have a huge hit. I got a big record company. You know what I mean? I got lots of support. This is gonna be big for me. Like, how could it not? Um, and it's funny, man. I listened to the song on the radio yesterday on, on Coast. It's called Coast. And I was like, uh, I was like, this is good, man. And my wife was like, well, why it wasn't a hit? And I said, like, I don't know.

• 2:32Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 2:33Speaker 01

  I said, I don't know, maybe. I don't know. Can I blame?

• 2:39Speaker 01

  It was my fault for spending so much on a music video and not using that money to do online marketing because I'm too old and stupid to know that that's how it's done now. And people told me, by the way.

• 2:50Lewis Howes?

  They said, hey, do more TikTok, do more.

• 2:52Speaker 01

  Yeah, don't do it. And I was like, but I can't do more TikTok because my TikToks, they don't go out to like, that, you know what I mean? Like they're reaching the people I have, but they're not reaching other people.

• 3:02Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 3:02Speaker 01

  And, uh, you know what I mean? Like it's, so you're, the answer is, I don't know, dude. And it's not working for me, man. Like I put out stuff and.

• 3:11Lewis Howes?

  You're like, this is a hit.

• 3:12Speaker 01

  And it doesn't go like higher, dude. Derek Huff, we did a music video together.

• 3:17Lewis Howes?

  Music video with Haley. It's great music video.

• 3:19Speaker 01

  And, and by the way, I wrote that with Ryan Tetter and, uh, we won a Grammy.

• 3:24Lewis Howes?

  It's a great song.

• 3:24Speaker 01

  Didn't douche.

• 3:26Lewis Howes?

  But it's still, that's a dream for any artist to be able to hit a Grammy and do.

• 3:31Speaker 01

  I understand.

• 3:32Lewis Howes?

  Hundreds of millions of downloads.

• 3:33Speaker 01

  But it didn't.

• 3:34Lewis Howes?

  It didn't reach billions.

• 3:35Speaker 01

  It didn't, it's not, listen, if you asked people in my record company or my management.

• 3:40Lewis Howes?

  You're, you're thinking.

• 3:41Speaker 01

  If you ask them and go, was it a hit? They go, nope.

• 3:44Lewis Howes?

  On a different standard that you guys have. But any artist.

• 3:47Speaker 01

  Well, you were asking me about.

• 3:48Lewis Howes?

  Yes, yes.

• 3:49Speaker 01

  Successful, right?

• 3:50Lewis Howes?

  Breaking through.

• 3:51Speaker 01

  I'm breaking through. I'm not breaking through.

• 3:52Lewis Howes?

  You've broken through though. You've broken through your sellout arena tours, your, you know, you're on the voice. That's breaking through and you've been broken through for 20 plus years.

• 4:02Speaker 01

  I guess it never, it never.

• 4:04Lewis Howes?

  I hear you on the, the songs here and there. I get it. I get it. Dude, you've broken through personally in a massive way.

• 4:11Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 4:12Lewis Howes?

  And most people will never break through who have talent.

• 4:15Speaker 01

  I, I don't know. Like I, and they ask me, people ask me all the time. I'm like, I don't understand. I don't understand. I don't understand how it works. I don't understand with all the options that we have, why someone, um.

• 4:28Speaker 01

  Blows up or then I get it's even deeper than I'm like, okay, so your song blew up.

• 4:35Lewis Howes?

  Now what?

• 4:36Speaker 01

  Do you have a?

• 4:37Lewis Howes?

  Do you have a follow song?

• 4:38Speaker 01

  Do you have a follow song or more importantly,

• 4:43Speaker 01

  do you have a sustainable business model that that you can you like, I feel like you can sell two seats today and two seats tomorrow, even just that two seats a day, like there's a sustainable business. But how how does that young person? There used to be like, dude, when I was coming up, that's what I did. I played clubs. I played clubs. I played restaurants and bars.

• 5:04Lewis Howes?

  For thirty people. Yeah, yeah.

• 5:06Speaker 01

  Anything, but you know what? I could go and they would pay me hundred twenty bucks and I could two hundred fifty bucks and I could pay a couple of side man and get, you know, my trio and it's not there. So now it's like the voice, listen to me, I love you, the voice, but you should not. That should not be where people have to come to get their break. Like the voice is a really is is is lovely, but what is she experience for any like? No musician should ever have to come out on stage

• 5:38Speaker 01

  with someone's back facing them.

• 5:41Speaker 01

  You know, thank God we're not judges, you know, the other show is judges. Oh, my God, I would be a judge. Thank God we're coaches where it's like, we don't need to give them critics, critique critiques that we can just say, how can we help you?

• 5:53Lewis Howes?

  I'm curious about you. How do you deal with criticism when you put all your money, heart and soul into a new song, a new album, a new project? And you think this is a hit, but for whatever reason, in your interpretation, it hasn't, it doesn't break the goals that you wanted to break. How do you deal with criticism in your career and not take it personally?

• 6:16Speaker 01

  I I do take I just I will. Sometimes I'll just like my right here. I'll bite right there and I'll just cry. Woo.

• 6:25Lewis Howes?

  I was like, what's he gonna show me something here? I was like, what is this? Do you take it personally? Does it hurt you though?

• 6:31Speaker 01

  Of course it does. It sucks. Yes. You wanna be, I wanna be loved, man. Everybody wants to be loved. And by the way, I'm really good at what I do because I'm insecure, because I'm sensitive. Like dude, I will look out to that arena and there's 15,000 people, but I'm not playing to the 14,999 that are grooving. I'm looking at that one dude who's like.

• 6:52Lewis Howes?

  Who's on his phone or who's not? Yeah, yeah.

• 6:55Speaker 01

  And it's like, that, that, that's me. And I'm like, I wanna break that guy. I'm gonna break that guy. You know what I mean? I'm gonna break that guy and that, um, but I'm sensitive. And by the way, I'm the same way at the dinner table. If you take me and hang out with your buddies and, um, and I feel like there's a silence or there's someone who's not comfortable. I can't handle it, man. I gotta make sure that like.

• 7:17Lewis Howes?

  It must feel good.

• 7:18Speaker 01

  Everybody's feeling good and like, that's plam, you know? And my wife tells me that I have a problem with boundaries.

• 7:24Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 7:25Speaker 01

  She tells me that people, uh, take advantage of me.

• 7:28Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 7:29Speaker 01

  That I'm too kind and that I can still be kind, but I, you know, but that I need to, um.

• 7:36Lewis Howes?

  You need to be kind but firm like.

• 7:37Speaker 01

  And I'm like, yeah, like, like Reba. And I'm like, yeah, but it's just not me. You know, I try my best, man, but it's, yeah, dude, it's just, I get, of course I get hurt, but I don't wanna, I wanna, you know, and it's funny. I look at my son, my, my son Noah, my oldest and it's like, I look at him and like, oh dude, you're me. I'm like, you're me, dude. You are, you know, and he'll say things like, no, I didn't, this kid said me and I was gonna punch him in the head. And I'm like, I'm like, no, yeah. I'm like, I'm listening. I'm like, you are gonna have a punch him in the head. You know, you love to talk tough and it's one of those things where, and then I would have said, and I could have said.

• 8:13Lewis Howes?

  But you didn't.

• 8:13Speaker 01

  I'm like, no, you didn't. You didn't. You're just like me. Instead you were, you said something nice and tried to deescalate and then you walked away and went, oh, kill him. Um, it's just me, man. It's just me.

• 8:26Lewis Howes?

  So how do you stay present with four kids, your wife, who's all demand your time and attention in a beautiful way, not in a negative way? How do you stay present with? Continue to strive to accelerate your career and strive to flourish and develop your family life at the same time.

• 8:44Speaker 01

  I am failing miserably miserably, you know, because I'm not as present as I should be. And I'm so ambitious and I work so hard that I'm on my phone too much and I'm thinking too much and I'm working too much. And so there's that part of it that's definitely negative, you know, it's like I wish that I could put my phone down more, I wish that I could. And weirdly, at the same time, I'm also, I also think it's a positive thing that my children can watch their dad work his ass off. Like, for me, words are so cheap and, you know, you want your kids to exercise, well, go to the treadmill, get on the treadmill every day and like, they see you do it, they'll

• 9:28Speaker 01

  do it, you know, and it's like, I want them to know that that being ambitious and working hard is a positive thing, like, and by the way, mom is way better at taking that time and really putting her phone down, but mom works hard too. My wife, my wife is not only acting, but she's producing and she's putting together these films and she's writing some of the films and like, and so she just does it better than I do, you know, but I am not ready to stop, you know, it's important to me, my, my career, the creative process, whether it's me making a record or a movie or writing

• 10:10Speaker 01

  a song, it still fulfills me so much that I have to do it or I'll be unhappy and if I'm unhappy, probably my wife will be unhappy and if we're unhappy, the kids will be unhappy. So I'm doing my best, man.

• 10:24Lewis Howes?

  It's interesting because, yeah, we, you know, I'm going to be a dad in a few months.

• 10:28Speaker 01

  Because you don't know right now.

• 10:29Lewis Howes?

  Exactly.

• 10:30Speaker 01

  You think you know.

• 10:31Lewis Howes?

  Exactly. And so it's shifting in certain ways already because. I'm I didn't tell you this before, but I'm pursuing the Olympics to play in the Olympics for a sport for a sport called team handball, which you've probably never heard of. It's kind of like water polo on a basketball court.

• 10:48Speaker 01

  Yeah, I know exactly.

• 10:49Lewis Howes?

  No water. Yeah.

• 10:50Speaker 01

  Yeah, I I've seen it. Yeah.

• 10:51Lewis Howes?

  Okay, it's big in the Olympics, big in Europe. But I've was on the

• 10:54Speaker 01

  Pretty big court, too.

• 10:55Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, bigger court than a basketball court. Yes.

• 10:57Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 10:58Lewis Howes?

  Like kind of soccer with your hands.

• 10:59Speaker 01

  It's awesome. Yeah, it sounds exactly like I would want to go and hang with my dudes and get wasted and play that.

• 11:04Lewis Howes?

  It's fun. And so the reason I'm saying this is because I've been planning to go back and forth from Spain to LA to play professionally to get back on the USA national team to go to the Olympics.

• 11:13Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 11:14Lewis Howes?

  Which is here in three years in LA. And I'm already starting to be like, oh, I can't go as much when I'm a dad, you know, and I need to really figure out the time. I can't be gone for six weeks. Maybe I can be gone for 10 to 12 days. So it's already learning how to

• 11:31Speaker 01

  I love hearing you talk about this.

• 11:33Lewis Howes?

  You know what I mean?

• 11:34Speaker 01

  Well, no, what I love is that you have this this sort of plan in your head.

• 11:39Lewis Howes?

  Which is all gonna go away probably.

• 11:40Speaker 01

  But because what you just don't know.

• 11:42Lewis Howes?

  You don't know. I don't know.

• 11:42Speaker 01

  Know what you're talking about.

• 11:43Lewis Howes?

  I don't know.

• 11:43Speaker 01

  I'm gonna tell you, you're wrong about all of it.

• 11:45Lewis Howes?

  I'm sure I am.

• 11:46Speaker 01

  Oh, you're complete. No, it's not. It's not what you're saying. It's how you're saying it.

• 11:50Lewis Howes?

  Tell me, give me some advice.

• 11:50Speaker 01

  Well, because you're saying because exactly what you said was, you know, I know that I should go for this long and then I should and this because I shouldn't be gone for more than this time.

• 12:01Lewis Howes?

  So how do you do with it? How do you do it?

• 12:03Speaker 01

  Here's what you're not understanding.

• 12:04Lewis Howes?

  Give it to me.

• 12:04Speaker 01

  You're not gonna be, you're not gonna want to be gone for that long.

• 12:07Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, yeah, exactly.

• 12:07Speaker 01

  And that's where this is all gonna turn to for you. Because what you haven't, which you can't know, because you haven't met the love of your life yet. And that little girl or that little boy will be the greatest thing that ever happens to you in your life. You have no idea because it's impossible to know. It's like telling someone what jumping in a pool of water feels like if they've never felt water in their, you know.

• 12:30Speaker 01

  You are about to fall in the deepest way and you are not going to want to go away for that long. And by the way, the older that little meat popsicle gets, the less you're going to want to go away. You're going to miss them when you don't see them for hours. Forget about. Days, weeks. Days and weeks. And I want to go and do this. So how do you, how do you navigate? Do all the things. How do you navigate your career? You don't. Your career will fail and suffer in certain ways. But how have you done it? Were you, I haven't done it. I'm not as big as I should be. No, I'm not kidding. I'm not.

• 13:06Speaker 01

  I'm not. I'm most definitely not. I haven't sold the records I should have. I haven't.

• 13:11Speaker 01

  You sold seventy five million records. Doesn't matter. Haven't done the amount of tours. I did a lot of that, you know, in a different way before my kids where. You were grinding twenty four seven. Grinding twenty four seven. My tours were two months, two and a half months at a time. You know, fifty two countries, you know, then you come home and you do the TV show and you do the special and you make a, you know, there's whatever. Then you record another album. And now it's definitely, you know, I do The Voice because it's awesome to be on TV and I love the gig, best gig ever. That's cool. You know, like I love being a part of people's life. It sounds like all cheesy, like you have to be a part of the kids, you know, to help younger, but really like people, whatever me,

• 13:51Speaker 01

  man, it's so cool to, to invest your time into watching someone else make their dream come true. But it's easy. The Voice is easy. Yeah. You get me and Snoop and Reba McEntire and Al Horace. Jumping around, having fun. No, but we can't, you can't. Can't fail. That's not that. It's that you can't get us in a room because we're all busy. Yeah. So you know what? You get five days. It's intense. You know, twelve hours or whatever it is. And then it's done. But we do it. It's intense. And then we're gone. And Snoop goes off and does his thing and Reba or I, um. And so it's great gig. I do, I love corporate work, you know, I will tour, but it will be in bite sized pieces. Really? Yeah. Like, how long are you touring at a time right now?

• 14:32Speaker 01

  I won't go for, I will not go, usually dude, it's, so here's how you should tour. If you're, if you're a responsible touring artist and you wanna make millions and millions of dollars, not just for you, but for the band and the agency, you should go for at least without a doubt, a month, at the very least, one month gone. You know, more, it should be more, it should be six weeks. Uh, that's enough to make sure that your crew, your travel, you're not bringing people in and out. Um, you know, everybody's there economically, it's, it's responsible. Maximize it, yeah. Maximize it, you know, it's expensive to tour and. It's a lot. Um, you know, and then, you know, after a month and a half, then everybody gets their, their week off or their week and a half.

• 15:16Speaker 01

  And then you're back. Now you're gonna go to the next country. Well, my last two tours were three weeks off, two weeks on, two weeks off, two weeks off, three weeks on, three, you know. So three weeks was the most. The most dude, and of course my. And you're bringing the family. My accountant, my dad, my manager, you know, they were going, dude, you know how much you're leaving off the table? Do you know that? You know, you didn't go to that, you could have gone and played two shows in that country. And two, and you know, you could have gone and played four in London and then four in Manchester and, and I was like, no. No. And so, yeah, it's hurting me for sure, man.

• 15:56Speaker 01

  But I'm, I'm just telling you honestly, not because this gorgeous camera is on my face, but um, I will be miserable, I'll be miserable. Really? Yeah, what? I need to, what? To play more shows and make more money or have more power? And that's what kids can do for you, you know? That's what family can do for you and um. It's funny, it's very sweet for me to sit here and watch you. And, you know, and, uh, and right now you're, you're hearing me and you're trying to process it. But again, it's impossible to process.

• 16:32Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 16:32Speaker 01

  You know what? You're gonna wanna work. You're always gonna wanna be fulfilled. And you know what? You're smart enough to look at your wife and go, hey, this fulfills you too. I love, you know, she's probably really happy when she's, and she probably complains too, like we all do. And she probably goes, man, I don't wanna do this anymore. You know, fifteen hours on set and I'm gonna just be, you know what my wife would say to me constantly? She does now. We just came from Argentina. She made another beautiful movie. And, uh, she was like, I think I'm done.

• 17:00Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 17:01Speaker 01

  She's like, I think I'm done. By the way, she's done this in a loop.

• 17:04Lewis Howes?

  She said this every two years, right?

• 17:06Speaker 01

  Done. It's too much. I just wanna, and then gonna be a mom. It's enough to be a mom. I love being a mom. And then we get home. And she's home for four months.

• 17:16Lewis Howes?

  She misses it.

• 17:17Speaker 01

  And all of a sudden she's sitting there going,

• 17:19Lewis Howes?

  What do I do?

• 17:19Speaker 01

  I'm just a mom. And she's like, I'm, this is all I do. I just, I'm just a service to drive them to school and take them to sports. And I'm like, babe, because you're, you're a, you're a beautiful, incredible actress and businesswoman. And, and I see how much light is in her eyes when she's, she's on a day on set and the scenes are intense and challenging and she's tired. And I can see how fulfilling it is. I'm the same and you're the same and your wife is the same.

• 17:54Speaker 01

  But both of us have really tried to basically take it on as best as you can under the situation.

• 18:03Lewis Howes?

  What advice you have for me then? Or what, what advice do you have for yourself, looking back before you had your first child? Where you were like, this, I'm going all in on my career and this, nothing's gonna stop me.

• 18:15Speaker 01

  I did it alright.

• 18:16Lewis Howes?

  You did it right.

• 18:17Speaker 01

  I did it perfectly.

• 18:18Lewis Howes?

  Okay.

• 18:18Speaker 01

  And I'm doing it perfectly. And, um, yeah, will I sell as much or be as big or?

• 18:26Speaker 01

  No, but will I ever look back and go, oh my God, I missed the greatest moments of life. Dude, I've watched so many people that I know in this business and other businesses and they. Struggle in there. Well, they missed it, man. They missed the kid, especially the kids at this age, you know, till they're 12 or 13. They they were working and kind of hurrying up the whole thing and and and then they realized that they searched for. They searched for those feelings and they searched for for that. For the joy of, you know, listen, dude. My kids won't remember last night.

• 19:09Speaker 01

  I'm just telling you, we watched, we watched Finding Dory or whatever the hell it's called. Okay, and all four of my kids were in our bed between me and my wife.

• 19:24Speaker 01

  I gave tickled them, you know, gave them tickles on there. They love their hair getting, you know, and they'll never remember that. They'll never remember falling asleep in my arms and they'll never remember that I carried each of them to bed. Because we make a bed in the room where they can.

• 19:43Speaker 01

  And for them, they won't, you know, they'll probably remember family holidays or that time that dad spazzed out when their marks weren't good or whatever.

• 19:56Speaker 01

  But those are the greatest memories of my life. And they're happening daily and I don't want to miss it, man. I know I sound all cringy and like I'm being too sloppy and. I'm so sure I'm right. I'm so sure I'm right. And if I'm wrong, let me be wrong, but. I don't understand people who have kids and don't feel this way. I don't understand it. I almost lost mine. Maybe that changed things, you know, that our son had a diagnosis that we thought we're gonna lose him and. It made us even more, but that's not even true because I was before that I was already. All in. All in, man, and.

• 20:35Speaker 01

  You know, I just, you know, my dad said it many times. He, I asked him his advice. Dad, I'm, you know, we're pregnant or I don't know my wife, what am I, I don't know what I'm doing. And he would just say the same thing to me. He'd say, he'd say, partner, calls me partner, my Louis. He'd say, partner, um, no one knows what they're doing, but I can tell you this. He'd say the days, um, the, the, the, the years are short, but the days are long or the days are, excuse me. The days are long, but the years are short. And, um, he was right.

• 21:08Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 21:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 21:09Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 21:09Speaker 01

  How could I not get a sentimental and emotional about this? Yeah.

• 21:13Lewis Howes?

  What is the biggest lesson fatherhood has taught you then?

• 21:16Speaker 01

  Oh, it just changed everything. It changed, changed. It's just changed everything. It changed. I mean, listen, man, we're in a world where people are pretty cynical and people will say things like, you know, people don't change. Tigers don't change their stripes. A leopard never changes its spots. Um, yeah, you do change, you know?

• 21:34Lewis Howes?

  What was the biggest thing that changed about you?

• 21:36Speaker 01

  Oh, my God, my level of empathy, how much deeper my faith got. Um, uh, you know, God, a lot less ego driven.

• 21:47Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 21:48Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 21:48Lewis Howes?

  Before it was all about you.

• 21:49Speaker 01

  All about me, all about power, a career.

• 21:52Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 21:52Speaker 01

  Fame, ego, you know, um, oh, for sure, you know, for sure. And now I realize, you know, it's sad, but as I'm about to hit 50 in a few months, I'm like, man, I thought my legacy would be the music. I thought it would be the songs I wrote or some kind of, you know, that at Christmas, I mean, everybody's, you know, I mean, everybody's.

• 22:13Lewis Howes?

  Playlist.

• 22:14Speaker 01

  Living room playlist. And, uh, and then I realized, wow, that, that's none of it.

• 22:19Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 22:19Speaker 01

  None of it will be, that's, no one will remember any of that. My legacy will be, um,

• 22:27Speaker 01

  how many people feel, not what I said, not what I did. And one day, you know, when I'm gone, people will come to my kids and they'll say, I met your poppy.

• 22:37Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 22:38Speaker 01

  I met your poppy when he was peeing.

• 22:43Lewis Howes?

  The School of Greatness Show.

• 22:44Speaker 01

  The School of Greatness Show.

• 22:45Lewis Howes?

  In the bathroom.

• 22:46Speaker 01

  And the guy that he used to see that was a janitor at Warner Records. And, and, and your dad was such a nice man.

• 22:54Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 22:55Speaker 01

  That's the stuff that will, I mean, that is it, dude. That's all we got, dude, you know? In this lifetime, anyway.

• 23:00Lewis Howes?

  That's it, man. Because if you're like the most famous singer of all time, but you're a jerk to everyone, that's what people are gonna remember.

• 23:05Speaker 01

  Not even a jerk. It's like, use your, use your greatness, man. You know, and you know, before this, before the camera started and you and I were talking about kind of Rolex and branding. I'm, I'm so proud to be the face of Rolex. I've been the face of Rolex for however many years.

• 23:20Lewis Howes?

  Congrats, man.

• 23:21Speaker 01

  Yeah, man. But branding isn't the watch you wear. It isn't the drink you have in your hand. It is the consistency of every single relationship, discussion.

• 23:35Speaker 01

  Meeting a dude in the bathroom. Like, and by the way, you don't have to be nice. You can just, you can be a prick.

• 23:41Lewis Howes?

  But that's your brand.

• 23:42Speaker 01

  But if that is consistent.

• 23:44Lewis Howes?

  That's your brand.

• 23:44Speaker 01

  Yeah, man, that's.

• 23:45Lewis Howes?

  It's your reputation. What your reputation is, is your brand.

• 23:48Speaker 01

  Consistency. It is your reputation. Is that you, you know? And we're allowed to make mistakes and we're allowed to screw up and we're allowed to be young and stupid and do really, we all do it, like all of us, and then we're allowed to grow. And, you know, you don't need kids to learn how to do that, you know, you just, sometimes it's just a little bit of age and all that.

• 24:09Lewis Howes?

  Did you think about branding growing up when your grandfather was taking you to the jazz clubs and nightclubs? Were you thinking, or are you more just like, how do I be the best singer I can be and best artist?

• 24:18Speaker 01

  No.

• 24:18Lewis Howes?

  Performer? Or when did you start thinking, oh, my voice alone isn't what's gonna make me great or successful or reach the goals that I want to reach? I need to be thinking strategically about the business, about relationships, about PR, marketing, branding. I need to be collaborating. Like, did you think about those things?

• 24:36Speaker 01

  No, that, that literally, those thoughts didn't start.

• 24:41Speaker 01

  Really affecting me till I would say maybe five or six years ago.

• 24:47Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 24:47Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 24:48Lewis Howes?

  Come on, when you're forty five?

• 24:49Speaker 01

  No, no, no, no, yeah.

• 24:50Lewis Howes?

  Come on.

• 24:51Speaker 01

  Totally.

• 24:51Lewis Howes?

  You didn't think about any of that stuff?

• 24:52Speaker 01

  Mm hmm.

• 24:53Lewis Howes?

  You just led with like, I've got the greatest voice in the world and I'll just make that.

• 24:56Speaker 01

  Like, I'm a good entertainer. I love what I do. I used to talk about, I used to, I remember meeting Gordon Ramsay and I was like, dude, you and me, we're the same. And he was like, what do you mean we're the same? And I was like, we're both kind of like chefs. And we love what we cook, you know, but more than that, I think we love who we cook it for. And that's how I thought of myself. I was like, dude, and you know, it's weird. The only thing I was serious about was, and this is gonna sound weird as a Canadian, even at like fifteen, at fourteen, I loved the great American songbook. I loved jazz. I loved the writers, the arrangers, the orchestrators. I loved the musicians, you know, you just said Les Paul. Dude, I would sit, listen to Les Paul and Mary Ford.

• 25:39Speaker 01

  And I mean, I would, my grandpa used to put these records and he would have this thing where you could put a record player and tape it onto the cassette.

• 25:47Lewis Howes?

  Uh huh.

• 25:47Speaker 01

  And then I would like find the song, I'd finally, I'm confessing that I love you. And I would listen to it like over and over, over and over. And I would, and I was always like so afraid and I would think like, man, why am I the only one my age that digs this the way I do? Why are they not hearing?

• 26:08Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 26:09Speaker 01

  How unbelievable this is? How can they not, even at that age, I was like, how can they not understand the artistry? How do people my age not get, God, this is so good. Like, this is grooving harder than any hip hop groove I have ever heard. Like, this is, um, melodically, this is genius. This is incredible storytelling. Like, my God, the artistry, the musicianship, the, the singers, the songwriters, like.

• 26:36Speaker 01

  And I was so protective of it that even before I was ever even successful, I was like hoping there'd be more people like me. So every time, like when I met Amy Winehouse for the first time, I was so excited. I remember hearing her. And I was like, oh my God, she's real. She's authentic. What was that like? Oh, she was awesome. She was um, she was like, she was awesome. She was um, funny and um, she didn't think it was gonna happen for her. You met her before, but she would be. Oh, yeah, yeah. We would do like these weird like shoots for like these kind of indie mags and stuff. Really? Yeah. When was this? When did you meet? Oh, God, I would be at that time, I was probably twenty seven. But so you'd already been, you'd already taken off at that point then?

• 27:20Speaker 01

  No, I I wasn't really, things weren't going so, I mean, people didn't really know who I was till I was twenty eight, twenty seven, twenty eight. But they didn't know, they only knew in the Philippines or like South Africa or like. You weren't big in America yet. Oh, no, no, no. But I was so in England, I was like doing, I was doing like, um, you know, I was Sina Warner and I would go and do, you know, some like kind of event where they'd have like the upcoming Right. people of of jazz. And it would be me and Jamie Cullum, who I'm still in love with Jamie Cullum and. So how old was Amy then, when you met her around? Probably,

• 28:00Speaker 01

  I'm gonna get, well, how? She was twenty seven when she passed. I think she was twenty seven. Um, young. She's twenty, twenty one, probably, like just a kid, you know, like, I mean, I was just a kid too, even though we go like, oh, you were twenty seven, but I was um, but I was so excited. And I remember um. Did your guys ever sing together? No. Oh, my gosh, that'd be an amazing. And I remember too, like there was the guy named Peterson Cotty and uh, kid in Canada named Matt Dusk. And I just, and people, I remember like uh, the producer at the time, this producer I worked with, he would go to me, he'd say like, hey, man, um, aren't you worried like about those other people? Like, you know what I mean? That they're gonna take, they're they're gonna take the position. Of course, Harry Connick Jr. was before us.

• 28:43Speaker 01

  And dude, I was still to this day, man. That's like my. That's great. If I'm wasted in the bus with my dudes and we're gonna have like a party night. The first thing that goes on is Blue Light, Red Light. Uh, one of his great records that he wrote stuff and orchestrated and he's a genius, man. Genius. And it's like, he was our godfather, man. He like was a big, you know, just this big part of letting us get in. And, and I remember this, this producer kept saying to me, hey, man, you know, you, you gotta be the one. And I was like, no, I don't. And he was like, what do you mean? And I, I don't know why, but my dad and I would talk about it. Uh, we'd always make the analogy of a furniture shop.

• 29:22Speaker 01

  And my dad, when I, and my dad would say to me, hey, Mike, would you rather, would you rather own a great furniture store? You know what I mean? And, and, and it sits on the street and you get the people coming by? Or would you rather have a subculture where you had all these amazing furniture stores and they were all special and different? And it was, you know what I mean? Diana Krall and, and Leve and Jamie Cullum and Peterson Cotty and, and Amy Winehouse in it. You know what I mean? And Gaga, who I love Gaga too. And it's like, yeah, man, that's how we keep it alive. Like, that's how we keep it alive. By building a subculture of all of us doing it in weird and different ways. And then, and then like me going to Snoop, I go to Snoop all the time.

• 30:07Speaker 01

  And I'm like, dude, you understand, man. You're like the, like, you're kind of like Louis Armstrong in a way where, you know, you bridge the gap between this kind of music and a brand new generation and, um, and my music works with your music. Even though people might think that's weird, they shouldn't, like, you know, the roots of jazz, the roots of jazz and swing are where your music came from. Right. Like that is, and so when you, when you actually, if you took a stencil and you took like Gin and Juice, I know this sounds silly, man. Break it down for me. Break it down for me. Well, man, you took a stencil of Gin and Juice and you put it out there. And then you took a killer ripping swing song that was just grooving and cooking.

• 30:50Speaker 01

  And you put them on top of each other, you would find way more similarities than you'd ever find differences. Like it is the root, man. You know what I mean? It's different stylistically, but.

• 31:05Speaker 01

  That thing that we love is just swing. The boom, boom, boom, boom, it's swing. It's what it is. Comes from rhythmically that soulful gorgeous place. And so I just love that. I love watching all those things grow together and damn, man, I'm a protector of this stuff. Like I want this to go long after I'm gone. I hope that I can find a young kid who uh.

• 31:31Lewis Howes?

  Things like you.

• 31:31Speaker 01

  Dude, there's a kid in England that I just wrote on Instagram. I don't remember his name, but I found him like George or something. His name is, he's good, man.

• 31:40Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 31:40Speaker 01

  He's good. And he's too young, but he's good. And I'm like, you know what?

• 31:45Lewis Howes?

  Six, seven years.

• 31:46Speaker 01

  I'm gonna give him a call and you know what? Maybe I, maybe I'll help him produce a record or maybe I'll do somewhere. He can sort of be the next dude. Maybe he can take over. I don't know if he's a great entertainer. I don't know what he sounds like live, but I'll go check it out and find out.

• 31:57Lewis Howes?

  That's cool. That's cool, man. Well, you did that. I saw the video of you with the guy who like the mom who like brought the kid up on stage.

• 32:03Speaker 01

  Yeah, the little guy Sam, I remember.

• 32:04Lewis Howes?

  Sam, was it his name or he's like, and you're like, Sam can sing, right? You did a whole little intro.

• 32:08Speaker 01

  Sam couldn't just sing that, that night I was, I remember being real. I had done like, I think I'd done, that was one of 12 nights at the, I think it was the O2 or one of those places.

• 32:18Lewis Howes?

  In London.

• 32:19Speaker 01

  Where it was in Manchester or somewhere. I'd done a lot though. I just remember that my voice was crushed.

• 32:24Lewis Howes?

  You were like, you come up and sing, give me a break.

• 32:26Speaker 01

  It was like, now, now when I, and that'll show up in like my algorithm sometimes. And I'm like, damn, Sam couldn't just sing. He sang that better than me. Like he did, he sounded better than me at that, at that, at that point. I was like, oh damn, Sam.

• 32:40Lewis Howes?

  Yeah. When was that? Do you remember?

• 32:42Speaker 01

  Dude.

• 32:42Lewis Howes?

  I wonder what he's up to now.

• 32:44Speaker 01

  I don't know. He tried. I think his mom and him tried to go and do some like, you know, but.

• 32:49Lewis Howes?

  That's great, man. Hypothetical situation. Let's say you could only do, um, you can only perform with one person, female and male, still alive. And one female male who's no longer with us. You know, I'm sure you could pick from thousands of people who are all great, but who would you personally want to do a duet with or sing with? Who's alive still, male or female, and someone who's passed? Whether you perform with them already or you haven't. And what song would you want to do with each one of them? Whether it be your song, their song, a cover of another song, putting you on the spot.

• 33:26Speaker 01

  No, no, it's a great question. I mean, uh. I think someone dead, I think would be either would one or two would be either as a male, it would be Dean Martin, or it would be, it would be Elvis. Wow. One of those two. That'd be incredible. I think Elvis, it would be. What song? Oh, man, probably something that would be easy to harmonize to like something like, I was gonna say a ballad, but might be more fun to, it might be for more fun to sing, to something that swung real hard, like,

• 34:02Speaker 01

  yeah, I don't know what it's called. I don't know what it's called. How's it go? Goes, I've been searching over mountains, I love the valley too. I've been running all the way.

• 34:20Speaker 01

  Baby trying to, I think it's called trying to get to you. Uh huh. And man, it was, it was just like the guitar just rips and. Okay. He'd be, that would be amazing. And then Dean, I think, I think probably everybody loves somebody sometimes. Because I'm, I've always been a huge Dean Martins. Wow. A fan and, and I think it's one of my favorite songs because of the content, the lyrical content. There's a line that I think is so wonderful and romantic. And I always think about my wife, it's the last line. Everybody loves somebody sometime, and although my dream was overdue. I, everybody, oh, God.

• 35:05Speaker 01

  No, it's the line, if I had it in my power, I would arrange for every girl to have your charms. Then every minute, every hour, every boy could find what I found in your arms. Oh, my gosh. And I thought, I always thought that was really so sweet and like so cool. And dude, the way he delivered it was effortless. And he was my favorite. And again, more of a favorite because of, not just because of what he did musically, but how in, in all the people that I met, you know, in this, in this business, when I heard about how he treated people. That's that's what I heard. I heard good things. And by the way, the same thing about Elvis.

• 35:47Lewis Howes?

  He treated people well, yeah.

• 35:48Speaker 01

  Kindness, empathy, you know, humility.

• 35:52Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 35:52Speaker 01

  And I didn't hear that about some of the others who I had idolized.

• 35:55Lewis Howes?

  Mm hmm.

• 35:56Speaker 01

  You know, so.

• 35:57Lewis Howes?

  What about female?

• 35:58Speaker 01

  Female, uh, that is a great question. It really is. Um, man, it's a great question.

• 36:07Speaker 01

  God, it's hard not to say, it's interesting, because it's hard not to say Reba McEntire for someone who's, you know, who's now, because um, I just, I love her. She is a, you know, uh, people ask me often about The Voice and they'll say like, you know, what's Snoop like? And it's like, it's like, hey, you know what?

• 36:29Speaker 01

  If you, you know, Snoop is awesome, but the gangster is Reba.

• 36:34Lewis Howes?

  Really? Why?

• 36:35Speaker 01

  Because she's like, that woman is kind and and she's, she's classy and um, but she is, she is so her. She is, that's it. She's her. She's uh, she is so comfy in her skin and she's tough if she has to be, but always kind. She's firm, but always fair. Um, she's just so cool, man. Like, she's just, she's so cool. Always with a smile, always courteous, but um, you know, you don't mess with her.

• 37:12Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 37:12Speaker 01

  Nobody messes with Reba. No way. And I, and she's, she's still, it's the greatest. I mean, what a voice.

• 37:18Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 37:19Speaker 01

  I love country music. I mean, for me, and it's weird, I know, for people, but country music and the Great American Songbook are like the same thing.

• 37:27Lewis Howes?

  Similar, yeah.

• 37:27Speaker 01

  They are. They're the same. It's like I, when I think about Patsy Cline, or I think about Willie Nelson, or I think about um, Hank Williams, or I think about Reba, it's like. That's the American songbook.

• 37:40Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 37:41Speaker 01

  I mean, I'm young enough where that probably should be the American songbook. You know what I mean? And country swings too. So, so Alive, probably, probably Reba. I, I really love her a lot.

• 37:54Speaker 01

  And, um, and she, you know, she's, you know, I just had dinner with her and, um, it's funny because she's the one I said, like, I said, you know, how are you feeling about everything? And, and she said to me, she goes, man, I had no idea how hard it was going to be to get here. She said, but if, you know, but she said, but getting here was nothing, nothing close to as hard as it is to stay.

• 38:19Lewis Howes?

  We were talking about this before you started the camera that,

• 38:21Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 38:22Lewis Howes?

  you know?

• 38:23Speaker 01

  We were just at sushi and she literally said to me, she's like, staying is hard. You have to.

• 38:28Lewis Howes?

  It's hard to get to the, the top or make it, right? It's hard to make it, whether you're an athlete and you win a championship or you've got some level of success or in business or an artist, you have a hit song. But it's hard to stay a hit.

• 38:44Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 38:44Lewis Howes?

  For years. It's like, maybe some people do it for a year or two and then it's hard for them to replicate.

• 38:50Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 38:50Lewis Howes?

  How have you been able to do that for 20 plus years?

• 38:54Speaker 01

  Well, it's, it's interesting. It's a great, I mean, listen, it's a, it's an interesting question because I don't think there's a, there's an answer for it. I, I only say that because I think, um, it really is in the eye of the beholder. And I think that, um,

• 39:08Speaker 01

  firstly, dead female artist, Keely Smith, who I knew and I loved. She used to sing with Louis Prima. If I could go back, have Keely when she was young and the best.

• 39:23Speaker 01

  I think that success now is, is relative. And, um, and I mean to say really logistically relative. Because, ah.

• 39:37Speaker 01

  I can go and tour. I could sell tickets. You know what I mean?

• 39:44Speaker 01

  I think my brand is pretty good.

• 39:48Lewis Howes?

  You got great, you're the face of Rolex, you got Brandy, you're on The Voice, you got Opportunities, Christmas, you got all these things that are crushing.

• 39:54Speaker 01

  But, uh, I don't have 60 million followers.

• 39:59Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, you know.

• 40:00Speaker 01

  And if you ask my kids, who's more successful?

• 40:03Lewis Howes?

  Taylor Swift.

• 40:04Speaker 01

  No, not, not even. It's like you ask my kids, like, if there's like, there's a 20 year old artist out there who has 60 million followers and, um, and you go like, and my, my kids are like, Dad, we love you, but you're not, you're not at that level. You know what I mean? And this business has become very strange. I don't know if you ever have these conversations with musicians, but it's very strange because there's a big difference between successful and perceived as successful.

• 40:35Lewis Howes?

  Oh, yeah, yeah.

• 40:36Speaker 01

  You know what I mean? Like, you know, and I know what my manager would say. My manager would say is, dude, listen, look at the statements at the end of the year, Buble. You're successful.

• 40:44Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 40:45Speaker 01

  But.

• 40:46Lewis Howes?

  There's also a lot of people with a lot of followers that make no money.

• 40:48Speaker 01

  Well, that's but, but, but.

• 40:51Lewis Howes?

  But they're seen as.

• 40:52Speaker 01

  Super, super famous.

• 40:52Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 40:53Speaker 01

  And they really do change culture, you know what I mean? And they have a footprint in, in the, you know, the lexicon or whatever. Um, so it's a weird, it's like, and, and there's very few that have both. There's, there's, there's Taylor Swift, but like, you know, there's, and so it's a weird question. It's like, and by the way, I'm this insecure, you know, I'm like this insecure and I always will be like, you know, how come I don't have more followers? Why does my wife have way more followers than me? You know, like my wife is her, I, I don't even know what I have on Instagram.

• 41:28Lewis Howes?

  My wife has Puerto Rico, too.

• 41:29Speaker 01

  Does she?

• 41:30Lewis Howes?

  Yeah. Oh, she's huge in Mexico. Yeah. We can't walk around the streets.

• 41:32Speaker 01

  Same, same. That's exactly, dude, I hold the.

• 41:35Lewis Howes?

  Not because of me, because of her.

• 41:36Speaker 01

  I hold the camera.

• 41:36Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, me too, man. It's a mob.

• 41:38Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 41:38Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 41:38Speaker 01

  And I'm, yeah.

• 41:39Lewis Howes?

  And they're like, oh, wait, that's Buble. But here's what you gotta, here's what you gotta start doing.

• 41:44Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 41:44Lewis Howes?

  Something I did about, actually before I met my, my wife, we have about a million and a half subscribers on our Spanish YouTube channel.

• 41:52Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah.

• 41:52Lewis Howes?

  So when I'm in Mexico, a lot of people come up to me who are fans of the podcast in Spanish.

• 41:57Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 41:57Lewis Howes?

  But I'm like, you gotta start doing music in Spanish now.

• 42:01Speaker 01

  I have, I've done a couple of things. But yeah, you're right.

• 42:04Lewis Howes?

  That's the next level too.

• 42:05Speaker 01

  Dude, I love it.

• 42:05Lewis Howes?

  Interviews in Spanish, all this. You're fluent, right?

• 42:08Speaker 01

  When you say fluent, how is yours?

• 42:11Lewis Howes?

  I can understand a lot.

• 42:12Speaker 01

  So puedo tener una conversación con vos. I can have a conversation with you, pero es difícil para mí con verbos, con conjugación.

• 42:20Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 42:20Speaker 01

  Con verbs and conjugation.

• 42:21Lewis Howes?

  Mismo.

• 42:22Speaker 01

  I.

• 42:22Lewis Howes?

  It's mismo.

• 42:23Speaker 01

  I get lost very easily.

• 42:26Lewis Howes?

  Argentina Spanish is very different too.

• 42:28Speaker 01

  My kids will say like, they'll just always make fun of me and be like,

• 42:31Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 42:32Speaker 01

  Why does mom speak such good English? But your Spanish sucks. And I'm like, oh, God.

• 42:36Lewis Howes?

  I know. I'm, I'm, I can understand probably sixty, seventy percent.

• 42:40Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 42:41Lewis Howes?

  Entiendo cincuenta por ciento cuando tú hablas lento conmigo. Pero necesito hablas lento.

• 42:48Speaker 01

  Yes, I understand.

• 42:49Lewis Howes?

  And clean.

• 42:50Speaker 01

  Sí.

• 42:50Lewis Howes?

  Limpio.

• 42:51Speaker 01

  Limpio.

• 42:51Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, exactly. But, uh.

• 42:52Speaker 01

  On the voice, they always get mad at me.

• 42:54Lewis Howes?

  Why?

• 42:55Speaker 01

  Cause every time a Latin artist comes, I go, hola, mi amigo, bienvenido a vos. And like, Stu goes, oh, mother.

• 43:02Lewis Howes?

  Cause you can do a little bit. If you can do a little, it goes a long way.

• 43:05Speaker 01

  Conversation. I can like, if you put me in the street in, in Mexico.

• 43:09Lewis Howes?

  You're good.

• 43:09Speaker 01

  I'm good, dude. I will get where I need to go. I can do it all.

• 43:13Lewis Howes?

  I can get where I need to go, but I sound like a baby. You know, like I, I went to the barber in Mexico and I'm like, okay, for thirty minutes, we can understand each other, but I do not sound good at all.

• 43:24Speaker 01

  My wife always say, you talk like a caveman.

• 43:26Lewis Howes?

  A caveman. Yeah, exactly. I sound, I sound like a baby.

• 43:28Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 43:28Lewis Howes?

  Um, that's cool, man. What? So back to the fame and success then.

• 43:32Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 43:32Lewis Howes?

  What has money, fame and success taught you?

• 43:37Speaker 01

  Oh, God, that it's fleeting. Fame is fleeting, but obscurity is forever.

• 43:43Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 43:44Speaker 01

  Um, listen, dude, I still struggle with making sure that I separate who I am from what I do.

• 43:50Lewis Howes?

  Interesting.

• 43:51Speaker 01

  It's hard to do. There's a reason I never left Vancouver. Like we were talking about where we live and dude, I was, I was very sure that I needed to stay in Vancouver. And I, I felt like it was because I wasn't strong enough. If I had gone to LA to live, I probably, you know, not at this point now, but early on I would have got washed into this.

• 44:10Lewis Howes?

  Interesting.

• 44:11Speaker 01

  You know, wanting to be cool and. Be with that group of people and, you know, them bringing me in and um. So it was really nice for me to stay in Vancouver. With all of my friends that I went to high school with and elementary school with. That still treat me like shit.

• 44:27Lewis Howes?

  That's funny. Um. Did you go to fantasy football league?

• 44:30Speaker 01

  They do. If you see my group chat, it's just like, and it's funny, man, like um. They still, it's brutal. Like if you, if you showed up in a Oscar and golf or something.

• 44:41Lewis Howes?

  Uh huh.

• 44:42Speaker 01

  If you heard them talk about me. You know, the amount of disrespect and like. But that's how it should be.

• 44:49Lewis Howes?

  You love it. Yeah. Well, it brings your ego down.

• 44:51Speaker 01

  Oh, my God, that's and it's I never left. And so I got my mom and dad live uh four blocks away. My best friend lives seven houses away. Um. And so uh.

• 45:03Lewis Howes?

  How do you separate your identity?

• 45:04Speaker 01

  My kids go to the elementary school I went to.

• 45:06Lewis Howes?

  That's cool.

• 45:07Speaker 01

  It's like the same public school, you know.

• 45:09Lewis Howes?

  Then how do you separate your identity? Of who you are with the fame, success and money that you have?

• 45:16Speaker 01

  Oh, I always, I know it sounds so stupid, but I always uh. When I'm even with my kids, my kids know. My kids are like, Poppy, why are you putting they'll call it the bat suit? Why are you putting on the bat suit?

• 45:28Lewis Howes?

  So your suit when you're on stage?

• 45:29Speaker 01

  Bat suit when I'm on stage and I become him. I become that guy. And.

• 45:34Lewis Howes?

  Who is that guy?

• 45:35Speaker 01

  Oh, he's so cool.

• 45:37Lewis Howes?

  He's the coolest.

• 45:38Speaker 01

  He's so cool.

• 45:39Lewis Howes?

  The most charismatic.

• 45:40Speaker 01

  He's so charismatic. He's Teflon. Nothing can ever affect him. He's funny. He's quick. He's, you know, Deb and Aaron and so all the things that I'm most definitely not in.

• 45:52Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 45:53Speaker 01

  Yeah, dude, yeah. And I told my dudes on the voice like. Cause you know, like even the kid that won twenty six of Roneo. Uh, we would be backstage and he would say, thank you so much, sir. Thank you, Mr. Buble for helping me. And I said, like, hey, dude, this dude. Uh, yes, sir. I'd say this dude doesn't exist when you get on stage. Okay? He say, yes, sir. I say, no, dude, you're about to become Batman. Okay. And he did. Boom. And he performed and it was like.

• 46:18Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 46:19Speaker 01

  Yeah, man.

• 46:20Lewis Howes?

  So what is that? Is that? What is the alter ego for you then? Is it a Batman imagination? Or is there you have a name for it? Because?

• 46:29Speaker 01

  No, it is just the alter ego. It's like it's for sure. It's the alter ego. It's like I become.

• 46:33Lewis Howes?

  Beyonce's got it. Gaga's got it. Like everyone's got it.

• 46:37Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 46:38Lewis Howes?

  And they're different when they're not on stage.

• 46:39Speaker 01

  Absolutely. And for me, I guess it's again, it's probably about protecting myself in many different ways, spiritually, mentally, you know, becoming him on stage. I think it's more attractive.

• 46:51Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 46:52Speaker 01

  To people.

• 46:53Lewis Howes?

  Than an insecure.

• 46:54Speaker 01

  Then me being, you know, I'm still, I can still be stupid and self deprecating. But most definitely, no, it's like, you know, you're. You know.

• 47:04Lewis Howes?

  You're him.

• 47:05Speaker 01

  You're him. You know, listen, me doing the voice, there was a method to the madness. I said, no, for so many years, my manager was like, listen, you want to make movies, right? And I was like, yeah, I'm an actor. And he said, you want to make, you know, do TV shows? I said, yeah. And it was like, hey, then let's do the voice because these people know you. You know, they know you. You go on the odd interview or, you know, the converted come to see you in arenas all over the planet. And they know you.

• 47:34Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 47:34Speaker 01

  And but a lot of people don't know you.

• 47:36Lewis Howes?

  Interesting.

• 47:37Speaker 01

  And so he was like, I think this is a really great chance for people to really get to know you. And so.

• 47:43Lewis Howes?

  Your full personality.

• 47:44Speaker 01

  Yeah. And I was like, you know what? All right. And I had no idea I'd love it so much.

• 47:48Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 47:49Speaker 01

  But I think where this is going to is that that's the next step, right? Is for me to to go now into and to, you know, to make movies and.

• 48:00Lewis Howes?

  That's the next step, huh?

• 48:01Speaker 01

  Yeah, that is the next step. It is happening as we speak.

• 48:05Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 48:05Speaker 01

  And I think it was nice for me to be able to not shock, shock the audience.

• 48:10Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 48:10Speaker 01

  By, you know what I mean? By going into that, it was nice to have that, that nice little.

• 48:16Lewis Howes?

  Bridge.

• 48:16Speaker 01

  Bridge.

• 48:17Lewis Howes?

  That's interesting, man. That's cool.

• 48:18Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 48:21Lewis Howes?

  How did you learn about this kind of alter ego? Did you?

• 48:24Speaker 01

  I was always, I was fourteen and it was

• 48:26Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 48:27Speaker 01

  Alter ego, yeah. Cause I was on stage and when I was that young, fifteen or sixteen, whether it was sit-ins at jazz clubs, my grandpa would would sneak me in. I was, you know, way under drinking age, which is nineteen in Canada. And even then I had started to build this alter ego.

• 48:45Lewis Howes?

  Really?

• 48:46Speaker 01

  Who I, you know, and the funny part was is that I didn't have a chance to go and see Bobby Darin or Frank or Dean or any of those heroes. And so it really, you know, it was, um, it really came from, from, you know, just sort of failing a lot. And, you know, I probably looked like such a spaz. I probably did.

• 49:13Lewis Howes?

  Was there like a moment where you're like, I'm gonna try something else. I'm gonna try to imitate one of my heroes on stage?

• 49:18Speaker 01

  No, I did, I did Broadway shows too before. People in there too, I did, like, I was in a lot of theater. I did a lot of theater. Um, you know, like I did either whether there were musical reviews or just straight theater. Um, and so I was sort of fine. And by the way, even vocally, I talk about this a lot, but vocally, I was like, I didn't know what I sounded like.

• 49:39Lewis Howes?

  Interesting.

• 49:39Speaker 01

  You know what I mean? Like I was taking a little bit of Frank and next in it was a little bit of Elvis and Ella Fitzgerald's vibrato and a little bit of the way that Bing would drop his epiglottis and, and, you know, Dean, the way he would, um, everybody loves somebody sometime. He would do these little flips with his voice and, and, you know, um, and then I would go and listen to the Ink Spots and I would go, oh, I like the way that he sings in his head voice. If I didn't care. And I would steal all of these and I talk about this too much, but it's the truth.

• 50:15Lewis Howes?

  And then you mix it together.

• 50:16Speaker 01

  How did Frank, wow, Frank, why does he sound so good? When he sings, um, I've got you under my skin. Oh, he's really hard on us. I've got you. Those e's and u's and the vowels and, and I would like just. Impersonate all these different people and Sarah Vaughan and Peggy Lee and and the way that Louis Armstrong would sit way behind the beat. And then I just become just this probably really bad impersonator of all these, depending on the song or this stuff. And then all of a sudden, one day it was like, oh, no, now I found this, you know?

• 50:56Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 50:57Speaker 01

  So.

• 50:58Lewis Howes?

  I love how you just explained your whole

• 51:01Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 51:02Lewis Howes?

  life.

• 51:02Speaker 01

  I still do it too, dude. It's funny, I watched Chris Martin in this, I can't remember what song it was he had written, but he did this interview and he was like, how'd you write this song? He was like, oh.

• 51:12Lewis Howes?

  Is this where he was on the piano, talking about it?

• 51:14Speaker 01

  Yeah, he's like, I did this impersonation of, was it, I think it was, I think it was Neil Young. That he was like, I did this impersonation of Neil Young, how I thought Neil Young would do it. And I was like, holy Chris, that's what I, that's, that's it. Like, oh, so you basically started to become him. And when you did, that's where, that, you know what I mean? That's where the song, and so even today I do it, like, I was writing a song. I just wrote like a holiday song called Maybe This Christmas last year and I was on the guitar. And I'm a terrible guitar player, but I was sitting in my room and I was feeling no pain, you know?

• 51:56Speaker 01

  And I started, I wrote, so I played the first chord and I was like, oh, I know what it is. I was like, I've been running all my life. And, but I didn't do it as me.

• 52:07Lewis Howes?

  Who'd you do it as?

• 52:08Speaker 01

  I did as Willie. So I was like, how? Cause it would sound real country. And I went, I was running all my life. I've been trying to get it right. And I did this bad, it's bad. But sentimental ain't a thing. And it was like this bad Willie Nelson. But when I. When I did it and I sort of thought, what, how would I do this? Um, and it just happened and it was like the song came together and I was like, this is perfect. But you do, you become these people, these influences.

• 52:40Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 52:41Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 52:41Lewis Howes?

  I've only got a few final minutes with you, your team's letting me know, we gotta get you off to the next pressing you're doing.

• 52:46Speaker 01

  It's not a pressing, you know what I'm doing?

• 52:47Lewis Howes?

  What's that?

• 52:48Speaker 01

  My wife is a, I want to say the most frugal.

• 52:53Speaker 01

  She's, but frugal with our money.

• 52:56Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 52:56Speaker 01

  And I said to her, like, she's got all these red carpets, she's just made a, man, she just made a movie that's so good. It's not out yet, but she, we're gonna have.

• 53:03Lewis Howes?

  Spanish movie, right?

• 53:04Speaker 01

  Spanish movie, it's a true story and she like, anyway, she, I'm, she's gonna win a bunch of awards and I'm gonna have to go to a bunch of red carpets. And she needs.

• 53:13Lewis Howes?

  To look good.

• 53:13Speaker 01

  To close, she needs looks, right, red carpet looks. And she's like, don't worry, I'll just go to wherever. And I was like, no, we should get a stylist. And she was like, do you know how much it costs together?

• 53:24Lewis Howes?

  A lot.

• 53:25Speaker 01

  So I'm going home and the stylist has pulled a bunch of stuff for all these red carpet things.

• 53:30Lewis Howes?

  For you both?

• 53:31Speaker 01

  No, for her.

• 53:32Lewis Howes?

  Okay.

• 53:32Speaker 01

  And uh, she's gonna, and I know her so, I, it's like, we've told the stylist, like, please put away this pipe. Cause she'll look at stuff and she'll be like, I hate it. And it's like, you don't hate it, you hate it because.

• 53:43Lewis Howes?

  The price is so high.

• 53:44Speaker 01

  The price is high and, and, and she's protective of, it's not, it's not cheap. She's just protective of.

• 53:50Lewis Howes?

  That's good.

• 53:50Speaker 01

  So that's what I'm doing.

• 53:51Lewis Howes?

  That's cool.

• 53:52Speaker 01

  We have a, what time is it right now?

• 53:53Lewis Howes?

  It's time to get you out of here, it's 12:48.

• 53:55Speaker 01

  Yeah, so one o'clock they're gonna be at the house. Don't worry though, whatever. She'll, she'll be fine.

• 53:59Lewis Howes?

  We'll be.

• 53:59Speaker 01

  As long as she doesn't look at the price tags.

• 54:01Lewis Howes?

  She can get started without you, yeah, I see. Um, but I have a few final questions for you. Cause I do want to respect your time and your wife and don't want you to be too late.

• 54:10Lewis Howes?

  What do you think is the biggest thing holding you back from being the next level of you as either a person in your career? In all areas.

• 54:20Speaker 01

  Oh, nothing now. Nothing. I'm in such a good place, man. I like me.

• 54:24Lewis Howes?

  That's good.

• 54:25Speaker 01

  You know, I'm comfy.

• 54:27Lewis Howes?

  That's good, man.

• 54:27Speaker 01

  Good in my skin.

• 54:28Lewis Howes?

  That's great.

• 54:29Speaker 01

  I think I probably sound better than I ever sounded. Um, I am.

• 54:33Lewis Howes?

  On interviews or actually on stage?

• 54:35Speaker 01

  No, like music wise, I'm very confident and um, you know, it's really weird too is that I've come to this place where um, you know, man, I have a friend and he always says to me, cool is as cool does. And you know, so many people are trying to be cool. And they're real worried about looking cool. And I think I've hit this point where, you know, I'm like, man, I don't think it's cool to try to be cool. I think it's cool to be comfy in your skin and you know what I mean? And yeah, it might sound all cringy, but we are in a cynical world where, you know, you're about to bring,

• 55:15Speaker 01

  you know, children in and um, if I'm not part of the solution of making it a better, brighter, sweeter, kinder place, then I'm part of the problem. And so I'm good with, I'm good with just doing what I do. I'm good. I'm very good. Like so, yeah, nothing's keeping me from it, you know?

• 55:33Lewis Howes?

  You've got, I've got two final questions, but you've got a 20 year anniversary of your album coming out.

• 55:38Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 55:38Lewis Howes?

  You've got The Voice, which is out. You got, you know, great content on social media. I think you're going on tour latest year or a little bit for one week at a time, maybe?

• 55:48Speaker 01

  I'm doing a little tiny thing.

• 55:49Lewis Howes?

  Little stuff here and there. Uh, where can people connect or really be involved in your world more and really see what you're up to? And from the album to The Voice, like, how can they support you?

• 56:01Speaker 01

  Uh, they don't need to support me, you know? They don't need to. They've already done that. It's funny, man. I just went on a Disney cruise.

• 56:08Lewis Howes?

  I saw the post about that. That's awesome.

• 56:10Speaker 01

  And I, my friends.

• 56:11Lewis Howes?

  Antarctica, is that what it was or what? Was it Antarctica or where'd you?

• 56:13Speaker 01

  It was Alaska.

• 56:15Lewis Howes?

  Alaska.

• 56:16Speaker 01

  My friends, some of my friends in the business called me and they were like, are you, are you an idiot? They were like, why? You went on a Disney cruise? Like you, just you and your family? And I was like, yeah. And they were like, they're like, did people make you crazy? And I was like, no. I was like, I did a lot of pictures. And uh, and they were like, but did you, did you get to like?

• 56:36Lewis Howes?

  Enjoy?

• 56:37Speaker 01

  Do we enjoy? And I was like, yeah. And I said the truth. I was like. Those people, I made a million pictures. But if without those people, I never could have afforded to go on a Disney cruise. It's expensive.

• 56:48Lewis Howes?

  Expensive, man.

• 56:49Speaker 01

  Yeah, and so it's like, um, yeah, I could have done it without all those people. You know, it's funny, I've tried lately because I was so, I'm old. Like, I'm not old.

• 57:00Lewis Howes?

  You look young, man.

• 57:01Speaker 01

  I'm not old in that way. I was old in like, like 10 years or eight years ago, everyone was like, you really should concentrate on your social media. And I was like, social media, no, I'm never gonna watch social media, you know? Uh, and so, but now I have this like, really, I'm, I love connecting with people through it. You know what I mean? Whether I'm an idiot on TikTok or I'm, um, or I'm like, you know, like I had like my favorite post that I made, I think in the last forever, was I said, um, I said, I'm, it's time to go back in the studio. I was like, it's time to go make another record. And I was like, so even though everyone tells me not to poll, I was like, I wanna know, I was like.

• 57:45Lewis Howes?

  Do people want me to?

• 57:46Speaker 01

  I was like, what do you wanna hear?

• 57:47Lewis Howes?

  Oh, what'd they say?

• 57:48Speaker 01

  Oh, weirdly, I actually, I, and I'm not usually this like professional, but I actually, someone in my office went and broke down. There was, I don't even know how many thousands of responses through Facebook and all that, because they share the post everywhere. This massive percentage said, we want jazz, we want swing, but can it be originals?

• 58:11Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 58:12Speaker 01

  In that, in that style. And I was like, I was like, this is amazing. Why, how come I'm not doing this more? And so I think more and more, I'd love to, um, you know, like, it's not, I don't, like, I don't know. I don't, I know I have a lot of friends that have like the team. You know what I mean? They're, the team is doing it and I like doing it. I don't, I don't love a team doing it because every time I do it, it just feels like it's off brand and it, something's weird about it. Even if we can't articulate why it didn't work. So, um, I mean, that's where we meet now. Before I go on tour, I gotta meet there. I gotta go to Instagram and Facebook and whatever, and TikTok and whoever the hell else you're supposed to go.

• 58:56Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, make sure you follow Michael on, on Instagram for sure. You got great stuff there, man.

• 59:01Speaker 01

  Uh, my page is Luisa de Lopilato dot com.

• 59:06Speaker 01

  My wife is so hot. Let's be honest. They're gonna follow her more than they ever follow me. I would too.

• 59:15Lewis Howes?

  I'm gonna have to connect our wives at some point because I'm sure they'll do a Spanish movie together or something.

• 59:18Speaker 01

  Without a doubt, my wife would be thrilled. You know, it's funny too. I think that they would um. I think my wife would love to connect with someone who may be able to understand better than anyone else exactly what we're. She's feeling, what she's talking about.

• 59:35Lewis Howes?

  It's funny, before we get to the last two questions, my wife is like, she's made forty movies. She's, her last one was number one on Amazon two weekends ago. Last year was number one on Netflix, the movie that she wrote and produced and starred, all this stuff. She's like, I don't need to make more movies for a couple of years. I just want to be a mom, you know? But I'm already like, she's already got opportunities coming to her like the end of next year. I'm like, okay, be a mom, yes. And you don't have, you can do both, you know, it's like, you don't have to make movies nonstop.

• 1:00:03Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 1:00:03Lewis Howes?

  But you can figure out a way to do both.

• 1:00:05Speaker 01

  And you see her happy, right?

• 1:00:06Lewis Howes?

  Of course, she's like thrives, man. She's, yeah, she's writing still. She's pregnant. She's like loving the creative process. So anyways.

• 1:00:13Speaker 01

  Same as my wife. It's the same thing.

• 1:00:16Lewis Howes?

  Okay, two final questions. I gotta get you out of here. Uh, before I ask them, I want to acknowledge you, Michael, for your authenticity, man, just being truly who you are and being open and vulnerable and honest about all this stuff, the insecurities, the the highs, the lows, everything you've been up to.

• 1:00:32Speaker 01

  Thanks, Louis.

• 1:00:32Lewis Howes?

  I think it's really cool that you've been able to be yourself for twenty plus years in this industry where most people lose themselves. I think a lot of people, you see them doing things, you're like, is that, do they do that for attention? Is that really them? Maybe it got a lot of likes or followers or some type of financial opportunity for them, but you start to see them going off a little bit. And I want to acknowledge you for being consistently who you are as a father, as a husband, as a family guy first.

• 1:01:04Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:01:04Lewis Howes?

  Through your career and not burning yourself out, not doing press every day, not doing touring every day, but I saying, this is my dream life. And it's okay if I'm not number one at everything of every moment. I'm always on tour in front of the biggest audiences. Because the real value comes in when you're watching Dora the Explorer with your four kids in bed. And that's what you're going to remember the most. And your kids are going to remember that, even if you don't think they will. And so I acknowledge you for

• 1:01:35Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:01:35Lewis Howes?

  being a great dad, showing up for them imperfectly the way you do. And um, and doing it your way, man.

• 1:01:43Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:01:43Lewis Howes?

  Not to take Frank's

• 1:01:44Speaker 01

  Oh, I love it.

• 1:01:45Lewis Howes?

  words, but doing it your way throughout this journey. And I know that you're going to continue to be a massive success for decades to come, as long as you do it your way.

• 1:01:54Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:01:55Lewis Howes?

  So I acknowledge you for that.

• 1:01:56Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 1:01:56Lewis Howes?

  I've got a, these two final questions. This is called the three truths question. So it's a hypothetical scenario. Imagine you get to live as long as you want, but it's your last day on earth. And hypothetically, you've got to take all of your work with you. So no one has access to your songs or movies or anything you ever make, hypothetical.

• 1:02:18Lewis Howes?

  And for whatever reason, on the last day, you get to leave behind three lessons that you've learned with the world. I call it three truths. And this is what we would get to remember, be reminded of you by, these three lessons. What would be those three lessons for you that you would share with the world?

• 1:02:33Speaker 01

  Ah, the three lessons?

• 1:02:35Lewis Howes?

  And maybe you'd share it with just your family and we would get to hear it too. But what would be those three truths for you?

• 1:02:41Speaker 01

  I think the three truths, one of them would be that um,

• 1:02:47Speaker 01

  to try as best you can to live with an attitude of gratitude.

• 1:02:52Lewis Howes?

  Hmm, let's go.

• 1:02:53Speaker 01

  Honestly, this life is very quick. And um, you know, being grateful, I think is, is healthy.

• 1:03:03Speaker 01

  Second, I would say that I would hope to impart that individually, human beings have so much power. We feel small. We feel like we're alone. We feel like we're helpless, or, or at least that we can't help. But you have so much power.

• 1:03:24Speaker 01

  Just as an individual. And I mean, it doesn't have to be big. You just walk out of your apartment, your house. And it is one kind, random act. It's telling, it's saying good morning. It's telling someone you like their shoes. Um, you have no idea how much you can impact and change somebody's life, you know? Um, and three, um, try to be as honest with yourself as possible. Because um, it's, it's easy to lie to people. But it's even easier to lie to yourself. And I think I can put myself in a position to know that if it was the last day on earth.

• 1:04:07Speaker 01

  I would hope that as I sat there alone with my own thoughts. That I would be able to know as my eyes were about to close and nothingness was coming. That I, even through all my flaws or faults. I liked myself.

• 1:04:26Lewis Howes?

  Hmm, that's beautiful.

• 1:04:27Speaker 01

  You know? I carried, I carried, I spread the good word. And carried that love of God in my heart. And pass that on to my babies.

• 1:04:36Lewis Howes?

  I've got one final question. That was beautiful. I might have to have you back on in the future.

• 1:04:41Speaker 01

  Okay, let's go.

• 1:04:42Lewis Howes?

  Because I did.

• 1:04:43Speaker 01

  Listen, off, you can edit this. For sure, we are going out for dinner. The wives are gonna hang. We're gonna sit there, love this and speak Spanish.

• 1:04:53Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, we'll try to listen.

• 1:04:53Speaker 01

  Let's go. I can't wait to hear them. I'm, I'm deeply interested. And honestly, I wonder what they're gonna come up with. I'll bet you, I will bet you right now.

• 1:05:01Lewis Howes?

  They'll make a movie together or something.

• 1:05:02Speaker 01

  I bet you a million bucks they're gonna do something together.

• 1:05:04Lewis Howes?

  And we'll be featured in the movie.

• 1:05:05Speaker 01

  Because my wife has all of those movies on Amazon, Netflix, number, all the same things you're talking about.

• 1:05:09Lewis Howes?

  Argentina. They probably know the same people outside, but yeah.

• 1:05:12Speaker 01

  Absolutely.

• 1:05:13Lewis Howes?

  Um, gosh, I'm, I'm. The only thing I really wanted to dive into more was faith. About your faith, but we don't have time for it. So I'm gonna have to do it another time. Or maybe this would be a private conversation that I'll share another time with with the audience. Cause I did wanna know about how your faith plays a role.

• 1:05:30Speaker 01

  Well, before we go, why don't we just say something?

• 1:05:33Lewis Howes?

  Okay.

• 1:05:33Speaker 01

  Because I think.

• 1:05:34Lewis Howes?

  Try to be respectful of your time. They'll let me know like, hey.

• 1:05:37Speaker 01

  I just think it's hugely important for me.

• 1:05:38Lewis Howes?

  How is your faith impacted?

• 1:05:40Speaker 01

  Well, it's everything. We talked about priorities.

• 1:05:42Lewis Howes?

  Uh huh.

• 1:05:42Speaker 01

  And, you know, that is number one. That's ahead of ahead of the kids. It's ahead of my wife. It's ahead of my life, my business. Number one is faith. Number one is faith.

• 1:05:52Lewis Howes?

  What is your relationship with God like?

• 1:05:54Speaker 01

  Great. Really nice personal relationship. Um, I'm a failure in every way.

• 1:06:04Speaker 01

  But uh, I, it's funny, man. I was in bed last night and I was like, even in my own self, I was like in my heart. I was like, God, I love you. I love you so much, you know, like I, I know I'm so imperfect. God, I wish I was better, but um, I was like, God, if I, if I, if this was the, if this happened tonight and I didn't wake up, I love, I love that connection. I love it so much. I love that I, I share it with my children. Um, I love that my wife, that her faith was so strong that when I was wavering, that she, and I love that I, I can feel this and have this without ever making people feel puky about it. Cause I can't, I have a hard time with people that smoosh it in your face and,

• 1:06:48Speaker 01

  and like so much of what, when we talk about faith, there's so much, I just cringe. Cause I go, they're not there. There's no faith there. They're hiding behind their faith and they think, cause they go to church on Sunday, but they're horrible people doing horrible things. That's not faith, you know, just cause you say you, you know. Whatever, you know, that's, you know, you know, that's all. Living it. You live it, man. Are you living it or you're not living it? Because, um, and then there's this other thing like I, I, uh, I watched Matthew McConaughey. He's great. And I was like, how cool. And this inspired me, man. No joke. And it's the reason why I know I'm turning people off sometimes. I know it, man. When you talk about your faith. Yeah, man. I know that there's, um. But you're turning a lot of people on.

• 1:07:32Speaker 01

  Like I am not gonna get on to the top 200 jazz dudes in Rolling Stone because I'm not cool. Like, how could, why? I'm not cool. He's this like God loving dude, like. Yeah, you're not drinking and alcoholic, you're not doing drugs. By the way, just so you know, I'm doing all those things. Yeah, yeah. I really am. I mean, I'm not perfect. Yeah. But I love my God, man. Yeah. That's, you know, and like, uh, um, and then I like, and you know, I, by the way, just so you know too, every single show of The Voice, when it was me, Gwen, uh, Snoop, Reeves, uh,

• 1:08:12Speaker 01

  even now and now, we don't step out to that stage without holding hands. Really? Man. All together? All together, dude. All praying together? All pray together. Who leads it? Uh, sometimes me, sometimes Snoop, sometimes Reba. Wow. Yeah. And, uh, you know what I mean? Never pushing on people, just like, hey, let's, you know what? Hey, give us the power right now to come out and help these young people and, and spread the light and the good word of love and empathy and kindness and goodness and, uh, and maybe lead people towards it so they can feel this way in their, in their tummy, you know, or whatever. And, uh, like, so when I talk about Matthew Conaughey, that was like, I remember watching and going like,

• 1:08:51Speaker 01

  this dude is putting himself out there and there's somebody right now, cause it's weird how you can say, and nobody blinks an eye. But if you say, hey, praise God, that's great. God is great. People are like, huh. It's like, I always found that weird. I was like, so I love that we, you and I have this great platform. And I don't care if someone watches this and they go, you know what? I feel the way I feel, uh, whatever. I don't care if they're Christian or Catholic or Jewish or Muslim or whatever they are. And they go, you know what? I have this, I love my personal relationship with my God, the universe, whatever you wanna call it. And you know what? That talk that I watched Lewis and Mike have. I can say that.

• 1:09:33Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 1:09:34Speaker 01

  I can, you know what? When my friends ask me or I'm out at dinner, I'm not going to be afraid to, you know, to say it, to, to put, you know, my cards down and say, yeah, yeah, I got a good, strong faith.

• 1:09:46Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 1:09:46Speaker 01

  Cause it's weird for me. We're in a world where dude, you know, I have a great pastor, that great pastor, Pastor Dave, hey? And uh, he did a sermon a couple of months back and it was awesome and he was just talking about the lights being out, man. And he said, the lights are out everywhere. And he said, um, you know, he said, I stayed at a hotel and he said, uh, and the lights in the city went out, but this hotel was an old hotel and had a generator. He said, so the lights were out everywhere, but this old hotel, it stayed lit for us. He said, you know, we had a little dinner, you know, we had to sleep, we plugged in our phones. And uh, and he said, faith, faith is that generator.

• 1:10:29Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 1:10:30Speaker 01

  He said, the lights are going out all over the place. He said, but faith is that generator, you know? And though it may be dark and though it may seem scary.

• 1:10:41Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 1:10:42Speaker 01

  You know what? You're allowed to keep that light, that pilot light on inside you and keep things lit up whenever they're also getting dark. And that's what faith is. And so I hope that people have that for when they go through that time or when, even when they don't go through that time. Just I think it lifts them up and helps.

• 1:10:57Lewis Howes?

  Keep that light on, man. Yeah.

• 1:10:58Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 1:10:59Lewis Howes?

  Gosh, beautiful. Next time we'll have to talk more about that. But um, final question, Michael, what's your definition of greatness?

• 1:11:07Speaker 01

  Having this conversation with you, being completely present, uh, talking about faith and then going next door as quickly as I can before I get home because they're doing all you can drink mimosas.

• 1:11:20Lewis Howes?

  I know, right across the street.

• 1:11:22Speaker 01

  Let's go.

• 1:11:23Lewis Howes?

  Thanks, Michael. Appreciate you being here.

• 1:11:24Speaker 01

  Thank you, Liz. Thanks, Matt.

• 1:11:26Lewis Howes?

  I hope you enjoyed today's episode and it inspired you on your journey towards greatness. Make sure to check out the show notes in the description for a full rundown of today's episode with all the important links. And if you want weekly exclusive bonus episodes with me personally, as well as ad-free listening, then make sure to subscribe to our Greatness Plus channel exclusively on Apple Podcasts. Share this with a friend on social media and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts as well. Let me know what you enjoyed about this episode in that review. I really love hearing feedback from you and it helps us figure out how we can support and serve you moving forward. And I want to remind you, if no one has told you lately, that you are loved, you are worthy, and you matter.

• 1:12:09Lewis Howes?

  And now it's time to go out there and do something great.