709 The Secret to Self Worth with Alicia Silverstone

SOMETIME SAVING SOMEONE ELSE WILL SAVE YOU. Even the most successful people can struggle with self-esteem. You won’t be able to share your gifts with the world if you don’t feel worthy. Often, finding a cause we believe in can cause us to figure out who we are and what we stand for. Be empowered to make a choice you believe in. That’s why I am so grateful to share a conversation I had with an actress who has found meaning by taking a stand on Animal Rights: Alicia Silverstone. Alicia Silverstone is an actress, entrepreneur, New York Times bestselling author, and animal rights advocate. She’s started acting at an early age. She is known for starring as Cher in the comedy hit Clueless, and Batgirl in Batman and Robin, and she currently stars in the TV show American Woman. She’s written The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet and The Kind Mamma. In 2004, Alicia was named PETA's "Sexiest Female Vegetarian.” Alicia shared how becoming famous at such a young age challenged her and caused her to find a cause about which she was passionate. Learn about Alicia Silverstone’s personal journey of self-worth and hear about her new endeavors on Episode 709. Some Questions I Ask: What was your biggest challenge after Clueless? (5:17) Did your self-esteem increase after you made decisions about your diet? (12:54) If you could only do one, which would you choose: acting or spreading your message? (26:30) How were you able to handle all the fame? (35:13) How did you learn about business? (41:37) How do we cultivate our intuition? (53:09) In This Episode You Will Learn: How cleaning up her diet changed Alicia’s life (6:00) What the Kind Diet is (11:00) Why “Hollywood Diets” don’t work (12:15) What Alicia believes is the root of the world’s problems (19:50) The biggest lesson Alicia’s son has taught her (28:29) About Attachment Parenting (29:37) How breathwork changed Alicia’s life (54:23) Get more from Lewis! Get my New York Times Bestselling book, Make Money Easy! Get The Greatness Mindset audiobook on SpotifyText Lewis AIYouTubeInstagramWebsiteTiktokFacebookX

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

• 0:00Lewis Howes?

  This is episode number 709 with Alicia Silverstone.

• 0:06Lewis Howes?

  Welcome to the School of Greatness. My name is Lewis Howes, former pro athlete turned lifestyle entrepreneur. And each week we bring you an inspiring person or message to help you discover how to unlock your inner greatness. Thanks for spending some time with me today. Now let the class begin.

• 0:31Lewis Howes?

  Mark Twain said, "The worst loneliness is to not be comfortable with yourself." And Wayne Dyer said, "Self-worth comes from one thing, thinking that you are worthy." Today, we've got a great episode with Alicia Silverstone, who's an actress, model, environmentalist, author, businesswoman, all the things. She made her film debut in The Crush, earning the 1994 MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance and gaining further prominence as a teen idol when she appeared at the age of 16 in the music video for Aerosmith's "Cryin'."

• 1:10Lewis Howes?

  And then her famous role in the movie Clueless. Today, we talk about her secret magic on finding your main purpose for life. Also, how she got started in her own business and how she was able to build a community. Why you need to follow your heart and truth to continue your journey of self-worth. And what it was like growing up on screen and getting that much attention on screen at an early age. That and so much more. And as always, as you're listening to this episode, make sure you take a screenshot while you're listening on your phone. Tag me on your Instagram story, tag Alicia as well, and let us know what you enjoyed about this.

• 1:51Lewis Howes?

  Text it to a couple of friends while you're listening and let's spread the message of greatness to everyone. Without further ado, the one, the only, Alicia Silverstone.

• 2:06Lewis Howes?

  Welcome everyone back to the School of Greatness podcast. We have Alicia Silverstone in the house. Good to see you. Thank you for being here. And you've brought in an array of products and you're on the cover of this magazine right now. You've got books and you've got movies and shows and you've got a lot that you've been doing over the last 20 plus years since everyone knows you in Clueless, which was a big hit. And you've had an incredible journey, so congrats on everything.

• 2:31Speaker 02

  Thank you.

• 2:31Lewis Howes?

  What's been the biggest challenge for you over the last 20 years, would you say? Since having this big hit movie and having an entire life afterwards. You have a kid, you've come up with many different programs and products. What's been the biggest challenge since that movie?

• 2:49Speaker 02

  I mean, I think that the challenges are more personal and things that are just that everyone struggles with in life. I think that one thing that was really big for me is when I was younger, probably has nothing to do with being female, but I only know the female experience because I'm a female. But I, but I kind of presume that most people have self-worth issues and struggle with that stuff. And when I was about 21 years old, I made a choice to not eat animals anymore because I didn't, because I saw how we were raising them and what we were doing to them. And I just, once I saw it, I could not deny it anymore and it broke my heart. And when I made that choice, while I was doing it for the animals, it saved me because

• 3:34Speaker 02

  it made me feel like I was empowered to make a choice that meant something. And it was the first time in my life that I felt like, oh, I can stand for something. Because I think being that I was young and having self-worth issues, you just, it was very difficult to know who you are and to know how to stand up for yourself in any circumstances. And I was tough and strong in business in some ways, but there were other ways that I was just a complete mess. And so. Finding this and being able to say, actually, I don't believe in this. This is wrong and I'm not going to stand for it. And I'm going to make choices that align with my heart and my principles and that feel good was so empowering.

• 4:11Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 4:12Speaker 02

  And now I was able to walk around feeling lighter and happier and more free, knowing that I was really following my heart and my truth. And then, of course, all the health benefits were unbelievable. But just the kind of, that journey of self-worth, I think, is a big one that we probably all have. And that really, really helped me.

• 4:31Lewis Howes?

  Now, once you were already a big star at that time, didn't Clueless come out? And you were doing other commercials before that. And so why did you struggle with self-worth when a lot of people were celebrating you for the things you were creating?

• 4:43Speaker 02

  Well, I think self-worth is so complicated and I don't think being in movies solves anything for anyone.

• 4:47Lewis Howes?

  It almost heightens it, right?

• 4:48Speaker 02

  It's just a job. And yes, it can heighten wherever you are in your life. And I think your upbringing and all kinds of things factor into what make you who you are and what make you deal with what you're dealing with, right? But before Clueless, I had done nine films. I mean, I had started acting when I was, professionally, I suppose, when I was 14 was my first acting job in the Wonder Years.

• 5:12Lewis Howes?

  Wow. And how old were you in Clueless?

• 5:15Speaker 02

  18. Or I think I turned 18 on set. So between then and there, I did, The Crush was my first film with Carrie Elwes. It's a real classic. Check that one out. And I did, like, Hideaway with Jeff Goldblum. And I did a movie with James Gandolfini in France called Le Nouveau Monde.

• 5:32Lewis Howes?

  As a teenager?

• 5:34Speaker 02

  Yeah, this is all as a teenager. I did The Babysitter. Joel Schumacher produced it. And then I did True Crime with Kevin Dillon. I did a ton of movies. And so by the time Clueless came around, I was sort of like a really tired little actress. I think that there's been many challenges over the years, too personal to probably discuss here, but I know that my foundation has always been.

• 5:59Speaker 02

  To go back to The Kind Diet, the book that I wrote, because it was that foundation of standing for something that I believed in. And then also, so what happened is, once I cleaned my diet up, and I really, because I did it for these animals, then I felt so different inside. And I realized that all the gunk, like all the trash that we put in ourselves, and all of our intestines being all jammed up, and how it makes us not feel good. When you don't feel good, you don't act your best. You can't be your best self. So I ended up writing another book called The Kind Mama, and it's very much about, you know, how to have the happiest, healthiest children. Because when you feel good, when your insides are clean and working correctly, and there's nothing interfering,

• 6:44Speaker 02

  you feel amazing. Your energy's different, your patience level's different. So for me, that has always been the base that I go back to. Because if I start going off of my favorite way of eating The Kind Diet, too much.

• 6:58Lewis Howes?

  You feel it.

• 6:58Speaker 02

  Oh, you instantly feel it. You feel it in your skin, you feel it in the way you go to the bathroom, you feel it in your moods, you start to get cranky. And the second, you just fix it with one meal, one meal of fixing it. And you can feel energetically how you're like, oh, I'm much happier now.

• 7:15Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 7:15Speaker 02

  I mean, it really is an antidepressant, the food. You know, you can really change.

• 7:20Lewis Howes?

  Or depressant.

• 7:21Speaker 02

  It's a depressant, yes. And so you can, it's medicine, food is medicine. So you can really diagnose yourself, heal yourself, and maintain a really, really happy, healthy lifestyle. But the thing is, is that it's really hard to know what that feels like until you clean yourself out. So most people, myself included, at 19 years old, puffy, tired, exhausted, working hard, eating crazy, not even thinking about it, eating normal, just the way everybody else does.

• 7:46Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 7:47Speaker 02

  And when you, until you clean it out, you really don't know what, you don't know how icky you feel. You just know this is normal.

• 7:54Lewis Howes?

  How do you clean it out?

• 7:55Speaker 02

  Well.

• 7:56Lewis Howes?

  What's the process?

• 7:56Speaker 02

  So I wrote The Kind Diet to really, because I was, I had friends who couldn't poo for 10 days.

• 8:01Lewis Howes?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 8:02Speaker 02

  People who had like all these illnesses, I know. And so I would just help people with, help, you know, like little pretend prescriptions of like, eat more of this, eat less of that. And so a lot of people said, well, you just write a book. And finally, I did. And when I did, I was able to put it all into this one place. So The Kind Diet is a book about if you really want to feel your best. And look your best and really be able to make change in the world, knowing that because when you eat, you eat three times a day essentially, right?

• 8:27Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 8:27Speaker 02

  Sometimes more, sometimes less. But that's three powerful decisions you're making, not only for yourself, but you're making it for the world. Because those food choices. So like the easiest way I like to think about it is here's this plate of food over here. And here's this plate of food over here. They're both delicious, okay? But this one over here, it's hurting the earth terribly. It's hurting your body. And it's making people who can't eat in other countries who are starving to death not have food because we're not distributing our resources properly. This one over here tastes just as yummy, but it's not doing any of those things. It's good for the earth, it's good for your body, it makes you feel amazing. Then which one are you gonna pick? Duh, right?

• 9:08Lewis Howes?

  It's a good one.

• 9:08Speaker 02

  So it's just about acquainting yourself with what those foods are. And so in my book, I go through all the foods and explain to you why these foods are really great for you and why you want to eat them. Brown rice, quinoa, vegetables, greens. You know, even having a little seaweed is so good. And I don't mean the salty one, like in the package.

• 9:25Lewis Howes?

  Crispy ones, those are good. I love those.

• 9:27Speaker 02

  Those are good potato chips, but they're not the one I'm talking about.

• 9:30Lewis Howes?

  I love those.

• 9:31Speaker 02

  So yeah, it's just about making choices that are gonna really make you feel vibrant and well and your best and allow yourself to feel your best. Because once you go through it, like so like I challenge people to just try it for a week. And I just met a guy who was gonna have to have some awful thing done to his tummy. And I gave him all this information and I just said, why don't you just give yourself a month? You have a month anyway, your surgery is scheduled for a month, why don't you just try it? And already he feels so much better and they're talking about not having to have the surgery. So these are the kinds of things that happen. And they do it in conjunction with their doctor, I'm not.

• 10:01Lewis Howes?

  Sure.

• 10:01Speaker 02

  You know, but it's just about being aware that there are these choices that you can make that will make a huge difference and make you feel better.

• 10:09Lewis Howes?

  Do you feel like your self-worth increased then after you made those decisions?

• 10:12Speaker 02

  Oh my god. Yeah, because I was no longer being responsible. I think for a long time I was in denial. So when I was on a plane, I was eight years old and I was on an airplane with my brother. And I was eating lamb and he started making the sound of lamb.

• 10:27Lewis Howes?

  Oh, man.

• 10:28Speaker 02

  And I was horrified because it never occurred to me that the food I was eating was actually an animal, which I think is the case with a lot of kids. They don't make the connection. Why would they? No one's telling them. They're not like, hey, eat your, you know, that pet cow you have outside. Yeah, eat that. They're not really doing that. So I think that we disconnect. And in the disconnecting, we allow it and it's acceptable. But once you're aware, I mean, that was really disturbing to me. And so then I tried to be vegetarian, but I was eight years old and there wasn't really anyone vegetarian around me. So I just ate a lot of ice cream and eggs. That's not really healthy. And ultimately forgot, very strategically forgot about the issue because I loved meat. I loved it. I loved all the taste of it. Like I said, it's not that it's not good. It's just this other stuff is just as good and happens to be really good.

• 11:12Lewis Howes?

  Better for.

• 11:13Speaker 02

  Yeah. And so I, so that was the first time I dabbled with it. And then I'd say from eight. At eight. So from eight years old.

• 11:21Lewis Howes?

  Ice cream and french fries.

• 11:23Speaker 02

  Yeah, until I realized that wasn't working. And then from eight to 21, I call myself a flirt, which is in my book. It's like I was trying and I'd be thinking about it. And when I'd be around other people who are vegetarian, I'd ask them questions and I'd be interested. But then if I was out with other people, my selfish gene thing would come up and I'd be like, can I have a bite of that? But it wasn't until I really saw firsthand what all this suffering was. For me, that's what got me, seeing the suffering, seeing the torture.

• 11:48Lewis Howes?

  From the animals.

• 11:49Speaker 02

  Yeah, the animal suffering. I just couldn't, I was like, this is unbelievable that this is occurring. I cannot believe that this is allowed. How on earth? I mean, I just was horrified that everyone wasn't telling me this. And I wanted to run around screaming rape and murder to everybody if I could listen. But then I realized that wasn't helpful at all. But in that journey, it made me feel so different. It made me feel different that I was no longer standing for something that I didn't believe in. Because a lot of people say. You know, I'm really disappointed in what's happening with the earth, but they don't make any choices to actually make change.

• 12:20Lewis Howes?

  They're not standing up for something.

• 12:22Speaker 02

  Yes, and so that doesn't feel good. What feels good is when you actually say, no, this doesn't work, and I'm gonna do something about it. That's what's empowering. That's what feels amazing. And then you can like lay it in bed at night and know you've done your part, that you're doing, and believe me, I don't do everything that I can. And every, I mean, I do everything I can, but I make mistakes. And sometimes I do use a plastic bottle every once in a while. And I'm like, oh, I don't want to. But then I think, well, you know what? Most of the time, I'm using my filtered water from my sink with my glass bottle that I reuse over and over and over again. So if 99% of the time I'm doing something the way I wanna do it, then I can be okay with the time that I don't.

• 13:01Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 13:01Speaker 02

  Do you know what I mean? But if I just always don't. So it's not, nothing is all or nothing. And that's really what the kind diet is about. It's the way I live. A huge lesson that I've learned is it's not all or nothing. I remember when I was younger and I wasn't on the kind diet, and I used to try and diet. And that mindset.

• 13:19Lewis Howes?

  The Hollywood diet, just like.

• 13:20Speaker 02

  Just like whatever diet you would try to do.

• 13:22Lewis Howes?

  Starve.

• 13:23Speaker 02

  Just don't eat Reese's Pieces all day long.

• 13:24Lewis Howes?

  Starve, yeah.

• 13:25Speaker 02

  You know, try not to get, eat Scores, Snickers bars all day long.

• 13:30Lewis Howes?

  Zagnum was my candy bar.

• 13:32Speaker 02

  Right, so you would just like, and you start the day off like, I'm gonna be really good. And by like, the second you have the bad thing, then you're like, screw it, I'm gonna eat whatever I want and go crazy. That mentality is not healthy. And so where I have, now that I have this real foundation, not just like not eating candy bar. I don't need that stuff. Now that I eat so clean and I feel so good, it's okay if I have a whiskey with friends one night, because I know where to go the next morning to feel better again.

• 14:01Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 14:02Speaker 02

  Or to, to clean it out. And, and how to, it's that foundation that's so strong. And so I do think that that, that foundation is the answer to everything.

• 14:12Lewis Howes?

  Do you feel like having that foundation throughout your career has supported you with, I don't know, whether it's not getting the part or competing with other, you know, female leads in Hollywood or whatever it may be. I'm not in the acting world, so I'm not sure exactly, but just the pressures of being in Hollywood and acting. Do you feel like having that foundation allowed you to, to have more self-worth, even when you didn't get the part or you didn't get the job or whatever it may be you wanted? Did that support you?

• 14:40Speaker 02

  I mean, it certainly did. I imagine that also just that my nature of like, I wanted to be a theater actress. I was a theater nerd. So I never had a desire to be in movies or to be in television. Like, I didn't, I just wanted to be an actress. So being that I was a little theater nerd, my, I never had my eye on.

• 15:01Lewis Howes?

  Movies.

• 15:02Speaker 02

  I didn't know about, I never wanted to be famous, for God's sakes. I had no idea what that was. So when it happened to me, it didn't feel great. I didn't understand.

• 15:10Lewis Howes?

  How did you handle all that?

• 15:11Speaker 02

  And not great. I mean, so that's, I really dove into, how can I make this world better? That distraction of being so, I was genuinely, deeply concerned about what I was seeing in the world with animals.

• 15:24Lewis Howes?

  Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one.

• 15:25Speaker 02

  Yeah. I mean, I started really working with animal organizations when I was like sixteen, probably. And then I continued to do that. And when, when I figured out that I could help all the people, like that, to me, this is the most efficient effect. Little A-type over here. I like to be efficient. And knowing that food choices not only affects the animals, so you're entering, you're, you're contributing to ending the suffering of creatures. Not only makes all your illnesses go away and heal you and be able to really sure you up so you're protected against illnesses. But it's all, then there's the environmental issue. You know, cowspiracy, these movies that tell, you know,

• 16:09Speaker 02

  that show you what's going on with our earth. And then, on top of it, you look at all the kids and people who can't eat in the world because we take their food and we feed it to an animal. It's so inefficient. And then we feed that animal to rich people or subsidize it so people can afford it. But it's not the cost that it is to the world and to the, and to that creature, like. So, does that make sense?

• 16:30Lewis Howes?

  Of course.

• 16:31Speaker 02

  So it's knowing that instead of going to like, I used to go, if I was gonna go to an environmental, like they have functions to raise awareness for, say, there were shamans in the rainforest, or you're gonna go help the oceans, or you're gonna go help children who have cancer. To me. All of them are wiped out with this one thing. And that is so exciting, that this one thing that you choose to do, eating, affects all of them. And to me, I was like, that's a slam dunk for me. Like, why would I bother focusing on one thing over here or one thing over there when I can really get to the root of the problem?

• 17:04Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 17:05Speaker 02

  And solve it from its inside out. And that's where I, that's why I chose it.

• 17:08Lewis Howes?

  That's a big challenge to overcome, though. A lot of people love to eat meat, love to eat animals.

• 17:13Speaker 02

  Yes, of course.

• 17:14Lewis Howes?

  Do you feel like that's ever gonna change?

• 17:16Speaker 02

  Well, I just hope that we can seduce people into knowing, like, look, I was a food snob. I loved steak. I loved all of those things that you love to eat. When I know, like I said, there's that plate over here that has that delicious food, but there's this other plate. Like, the recipes in my book are divine. I mean, if I feed you, you're, everyone who eats my food is like, oh, my God, this is so yummy. So you're not gonna be deprived. There's no delicious deprivation, like, at all. You will be, it's just about, you will be satisfied, you will be turned on, you will be excited.

• 17:47Lewis Howes?

  And you'll feel good.

• 17:47Speaker 02

  And you'll feel good. And you'll know that the choices you're making are having such an impact on the earth and animals and people. And so, to me, that's the motivation. You know, at 19 years old, if you'd said to me, Alicia, if you make these choices, you know, this will be a lot healthier for you, I would've been like, I don't care. Like, I was 19, I don't care about my health.

• 18:06Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 18:06Speaker 02

  You know what I mean?

• 18:07Lewis Howes?

  Like, I'll burn it off.

• 18:08Speaker 02

  Who cares? Like, I didn't just like, I thought if you were telling me to be healthy, you were telling me I was fat. You know what I mean? Like, don't talk to me about my health. It's very defensive. But knowing that I was making a difference in the world and that I was helping creatures and not, and trying to end suffering and not contributing to suffering, that, like, feels so good in the body and feels so good in the soul. And so that was my motivator. But as, there are people who are not 19, who are adults, I think being healthy is something that's really important to you, to many people. And having the right information and being able to make the choices. And you don't have to do it all. You can do baby, baby, baby steps. And just being informed, knowing. What I love is today, it's very different today than 20 years ago when I first started doing this.

• 18:51Speaker 02

  Now, when I talk to people, I meet people all the time who say, Well, most of the time you just meet people. I was in this security line going in the airport and this guy said, "I'm vegan." And he was like so excited to meet me because he's vegan. He was just a very unsuspecting person I would not have assumed. So that was exciting. And then, but also sometimes people say to me, "I love that you're vegan. I want to be vegan too, but I'm just not there yet. But I'm trying. I know it's the way to go." And that is a big difference than 20 years ago. Because I feel like 20 years ago, people were like,

• 19:17Lewis Howes?

  You were like a freak.

• 19:18Speaker 02

  "Are you gonna survive?"

• 19:18Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 19:19Speaker 02

  And now they know that it's not about surviving. It's like, this is the path of survival. You want to survive? Look at all the MMA fighters who are vegan and athletes who are vegan because it gives them better performance. So we no longer, in general, not everyone, but we have dispelled the myth that it's not healthy. And now people know it's healthy. They're just, can I get there? And so they're trying. And I think the more we try, if you do it two meals a day, that's a great thing.

• 19:45Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, one meal a day.

• 19:46Speaker 02

  One meal a day. Just anything you can do to make the change and move in the direction. But I think being informed is really important. So you know why you're doing it and you understand what those foods are doing to your body, which I go into detail in the book. And I think also, just if you can, give yourself a chance to really clean it out. Because there's nothing like the power of getting it out of you. And then when you start bringing it back in, you can feel the difference. And you're like, whoa, whoa, whoa, okay, I get it.

• 20:11Lewis Howes?

  Wow. Do you feel like this is one of your main missions in life? Is to spread that message?

• 20:15Speaker 02

  I do. I do. I feel like it's like the secret. So many actors are doing this, but they do it for their own reasons. Because it makes them look beautiful and it makes them look young and it makes them skinny and all those things, which are all great. But like, it feels like you're keeping like this amazing secret from people, which is great. You don't have to share. A lot of people just don't want to share this information. For me, I'm like, that feels so selfish. I have like this magical secret that has changed my life and made it so much better and changed so many people's lives that I know. And, you know, people getting off all their medications with their doctors. But like, all the things that they had, gone. And they slowly go off all the meds with their doctors. And that's like the most amazing thing to me.

• 20:59Speaker 02

  And and it's so empowering and exciting. So, yes, it is my mission to help people wake up to this information and make the choices that they want to make. It's no pressure and no judgment. Everybody's at different places in their lives.

• 21:11Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 21:11Speaker 02

  But just hope hopefully we can give them the information so that they can make the choices best.

• 21:16Lewis Howes?

  You know, it's funny, I hang out with a lot of vegans. I'm not vegan yet, but I hang out with a lot of vegans. And I always am like, let's just go to a vegan restaurant because I do feel better.

• 21:25Speaker 02

  That's so great.

• 21:26Lewis Howes?

  And I focus on just having eighty percent, ninety percent on my plate. Just vegetables.

• 21:32Speaker 02

  So good.

• 21:32Lewis Howes?

  And then a little bit of meat here and there. That's the goal because I feel better when I do that. But I used to just only eat meat essentially. And just kind of be on a meat diet, you know?

• 21:41Speaker 02

  Have you had the Impossible Burger yet?

• 21:43Lewis Howes?

  I have.

• 21:44Speaker 02

  Isn't it great?

• 21:45Lewis Howes?

  It's pretty amazing.

• 21:45Speaker 02

  Did you have it at Crossroads?

• 21:46Lewis Howes?

  I know the guy who invented it.

• 21:47Speaker 02

  Tall?

• 21:48Lewis Howes?

  No, the other guy, Dave.

• 21:49Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 21:50Lewis Howes?

  Dave, yeah, at Beyond Meat.

• 21:51Speaker 02

  Oh, great.

• 21:51Lewis Howes?

  Yeah. I didn't have it at Crossroads, it's another place in Santa Barbara.

• 21:54Speaker 02

  Beyond Meat is a different burger than the Impossible Burger.

• 21:56Lewis Howes?

  Is it?

• 21:57Speaker 02

  Yeah, it's different.

• 21:58Lewis Howes?

  The Impossible Burger is different?

• 21:58Speaker 02

  Those are two different guys. So, Beyond Meat is a very different burger and that's good too.

• 22:01Lewis Howes?

  The Impossible Burger is amazing.

• 22:02Speaker 02

  But you need to go try the Impossible Burger.

• 22:03Lewis Howes?

  I have done it.

• 22:04Speaker 02

  Okay, at Crossroads.

• 22:05Lewis Howes?

  I've been at Crossroads many times.

• 22:07Speaker 02

  Go and get the Impossible Burger.

• 22:08Lewis Howes?

  I had it in Santa Barbara at another place.

• 22:10Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 22:10Lewis Howes?

  It was amazing. I was just there a few weeks ago.

• 22:12Speaker 02

  If it's done, like, it can be unbelievable.

• 22:14Lewis Howes?

  The pretzel bun and it was like.

• 22:15Speaker 02

  Yes, exactly, the pretzel bun.

• 22:18Lewis Howes?

  It was so good.

• 22:19Speaker 02

  Yeah, and so then when you taste that, you're like, I don't need the other.

• 22:21Lewis Howes?

  It tastes like a burger.

• 22:21Speaker 02

  Right?

• 22:22Lewis Howes?

  It's not essentially healthy for you.

• 22:24Speaker 02

  No, it's just if you're trying to. It's just if you're trying to satisfy that urge.

• 22:27Lewis Howes?

  It's very processed, it's not like it's healthy.

• 22:30Speaker 02

  But nor is a burger.

• 22:31Lewis Howes?

  It's healthier, maybe.

• 22:32Speaker 02

  It's healthier than the burger.

• 22:33Lewis Howes?

  But there's vegans who are very unhealthy as well.

• 22:36Speaker 02

  There are, but there's.

• 22:36Lewis Howes?

  There's a lot of vegans that are unhealthy.

• 22:38Speaker 02

  There are people who make that.

• 22:39Lewis Howes?

  They eat the wrong things, tons of sugar, tons of.

• 22:40Speaker 02

  Yes, but so are so are non vegans.

• 22:43Lewis Howes?

  Absolutely.

• 22:43Speaker 02

  So, it's it's just a matter of like why you're doing it. Some people aren't doing it for health, they're doing it just for the animals.

• 22:49Lewis Howes?

  Absolutely, yeah.

• 22:50Speaker 02

  And.

• 22:51Lewis Howes?

  But I I love vegans. They inspire me to be better.

• 22:54Speaker 02

  Yeah, Woody Harrelson's a really good example of a.

• 22:58Lewis Howes?

  Is he at Crossroads? He's at Crossroads, Woody?

• 23:01Speaker 02

  Woody Harrelson is the actor.

• 23:02Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, isn't he go to Crossroads?

• 23:04Speaker 02

  I mean, I didn't.

• 23:05Lewis Howes?

  There's always that, like the vegan mob.

• 23:06Speaker 02

  There's a million people, I mean, the Rolling Stones go to Crossroads and they're not vegan. And Johnny Depp eats there all the, like, these are people that eat there all the time, not because they're vegan.

• 23:14Lewis Howes?

  Cause it's good food.

• 23:15Speaker 02

  Delicious it is and how good they feel.

• 23:16Lewis Howes?

  It's amazing food, yeah, that's amazing.

• 23:18Speaker 02

  I was just saying, he's a good example because he's an older gentleman now. And no offense, Woody, we love you, but he's, you know what I mean? He's getting up there and he, he's still so young, but the point is, he just looks, he's so vibrant. He looks so well and he's been doing it for so long and he's a man, man. You know, he's a man's man.

• 23:34Lewis Howes?

  He's been vegan for a long time?

• 23:35Speaker 02

  He's been vegan for so long and his skin is amazing. He just looks great and he's so healthy. He's a good example.

• 23:40Lewis Howes?

  Wow, what's your other main mission in life, you think?

• 23:45Lewis Howes?

  And if you could just spread the message of eating in this way or, or act, which one would you choose?

• 23:51Speaker 02

  Ah, that wouldn't be fair, because I did do that for a while. I did for a long time choose spreading my message more than acting. And I think at some point I just sort of went, why can't I do both? And how do I figure out how to be more effective? You know, if I put all my energy into my activism, was what I call it, then I'm not giving myself. I love theater. Yeah, and I started doing more plays. I did a play with David Mamet, he directed me. And I did a play with Laura Linney on Broadway. And I did a play recently at the Manhattan Theater Club. Recently, like three years ago. But, yeah, I just want to do both now. And I think that there's room to do both and just be more selective.

• 24:34Speaker 02

  I will say that my other mission is my son. I really take pride in being a good parent.

• 24:40Lewis Howes?

  He's seven, right? Is he vegan?

• 24:42Speaker 02

  He's totally vegan.

• 24:43Lewis Howes?

  Has he ever had any meat?

• 24:45Speaker 02

  No, he always, like, the other day, someone was eating some fish and they were gonna throw it away. And I said, Bear, do you want to try it? And he was like, his eyes got like, like, he gets like he wants to, but then I go, you can try it, baby. And he was like.

• 24:58Lewis Howes?

  Oh, my God.

• 24:59Speaker 02

  He doesn't want to try it, because he feels so bad about the animal. And he's so sensitive and wonderful and he, he's, he will eat a little dairy here and there as a, out in the world casualty, but he's not, he won't.

• 25:13Lewis Howes?

  At home, he doesn't, yeah.

• 25:14Speaker 02

  Yeah, I remember we were at a pizza place for his birthday and I was letting him, they have vegan cheese pizza. And there was like, you know how there's like a bar? A glass partition up and then underneath it like the food's kind of pouring out. So some of it was coming out and there was a salami there and Bear was like.

• 25:32Speaker 02

  And I was like, yeah, I see that. And he was like, should I try it? And I said, if you want to. But he was like. So he's like, he thinks he wants to and then he doesn't. So it's kind of cute to watch him go through his process.

• 25:44Lewis Howes?

  What's the biggest lesson he's taught you?

• 25:48Speaker 02

  Focus and prioritizing and being present in the moment.

• 25:53Lewis Howes?

  Are you scatterbraining too much?

• 25:54Speaker 02

  I'm just, I want, I wish there were like eight versions of myself to do all that I want to do. I'm very passionate and excited about life and there's so much to do and I can never get it all done. But when I met him, when I met my son.

• 26:07Lewis Howes?

  Hey, son.

• 26:07Speaker 02

  When he came out of me, I, um, I remember making a pledge to him and I talk about this in the Kind Mama. I pledged to him a way that I would want him to feel in his life, like what my parenting would, what my commitment to him was. And that it was so important to me. I won't probably say the words right because I can't remember what I wrote. But the idea of it was that I would want him to always feel like he was heard and seen. And that he didn't feel uncomfortable in his skin around me or anyone, that he felt so sure that he belonged in the world and that he knew himself and was free to be exactly who he is and that I would not interfere with him at all in terms of who he was and, and his spirit and his energy.

• 26:51Speaker 02

  And that has been the way that I have raised him and I did attachment parenting. He was on me all the time. He's on my boob, he was in my little pouch.

• 26:59Lewis Howes?

  It's called attachment parenting?

• 27:00Speaker 02

  Attachment parenting. But in the Kind Mama, I talk about it a lot too, but um, it's really, uh, you know, when, when, they've studied, there's a really wonderful book called The Continuum Concept and they study these tribes of people and they watch, there's no psychological damage to these children. Like there's no issues with them. These doctors did all these studies.

• 27:19Lewis Howes?

  Based from parenting?

• 27:20Speaker 02

  From how these kids were raised because the kids are with their parents all the time. They're on their body, the babies. The babies are on the bodies. They sleep with their mommies. They're on the baby's boob, the mommy's booby. They have easy access. They can feel their heart. They can look at their mommy all the time. They're just right there.

• 27:33Lewis Howes?

  For how long?

• 27:34Speaker 02

  Until they crawl away.

• 27:36Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 27:36Speaker 02

  And that's what they do. Like they're, and then they're fiercely independent, these babies. It's amazing.

• 27:41Lewis Howes?

  So the first year, you're like attached and then?

• 27:43Speaker 02

  Yeah, but attached doesn't mean like inconvenience. It's more beautiful. It's more bonding. It's the most delicious thing.

• 27:51Speaker 02

  It was the most delicious thing in the world to me, being his mommy at every turn, and especially when he was a baby. And your hands are free then. It's like, you know, doing this with the stroller, they're further away from you. And I'm not saying I'm anti-stroller, I'm just saying, I never used one. My kid was right here.

• 28:06Lewis Howes?

  In like a little backpack thing.

• 28:07Speaker 02

  My ergo. I had a baby ergo, and yeah, it's like a little baby pouch. And it's really, they're always there. And that's how they do it in all the other countries. You know, they have their children right there. And anyway, if you were to read Continuum Concept, you'd see like, they really track the social development of the child and how independent they are and how they have no, they're no, they're not.

• 28:28Lewis Howes?

  They're not attached after that.

• 28:30Speaker 02

  They're attached like they love, but they're not needy. Or like, my kid is so independent. My kid is more independent than any, I mean, like, it's, people are always shocked, who aren't, who don't do the same kind of parenting. They're like, whoa, he's just amazing at how he'll.

• 28:46Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 28:47Speaker 02

  Yeah, we went to see a concert recently and he, I walked into the, and I don't, wouldn't have taken, it was a little bit of a naughty move, but it was a girls' band and I, and my friend wanted to go and I was like, okay. And so Bear came and he runs right, I mean, he runs away from me up to the front of the stage and I'm, I gotta go after him, but he's not afraid. He runs right up there. I go grab him and I'm like, okay, we should probably go back because I think it might hurt your ears. And then we were standing in the back and then he finds this stairwell and he decides to go up the stairwell. And he finds the sound booth and then I have, I follow him. There's a rope up, so we all kind of like go under the rope, sneak underneath, go, go up and I, because I gotta catch my son. He's hanging out with the sound guy.

• 29:28Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 29:29Speaker 02

  And the sound guy's got him now moving and operating the thing. This is a seven-year-old and he's just totally, he's made this whole thing. And then at one point I go to the bathroom and the guys try to get me out. The security says, you can't go up there. And I said, I know, I'm so sorry, but my son is up there. So I've gotta go back up there to get him. And he was like, you can't. And I said, well, you've gotta come with me because I can't leave my son up there. So come with me. So I go up there to get him. And I said to Bear, we gotta go because the security's asking us to leave. And the sound guy goes, he can hang here, you guys can hang here. And I said, we can? And he said to the security, I'm so, he's with us. And I was like, my son did that, there's nothing to do with me. I was getting kicked out.

• 30:07Lewis Howes?

  Amazing.

• 30:08Speaker 02

  So I just think that's really cool that he's so alive and awake and happy to talk to anybody and make friends with everyone and not afraid and super independent and forgets I'm there.

• 30:20Lewis Howes?

  Have you read the book Conscious Parenting?

• 30:23Speaker 02

  I haven't, but I've heard of that.

• 30:24Lewis Howes?

  Really powerful book, yeah. Dr. Shafali, it's all about how to raise conscious kids. But might be something to check out, but it sounds like you're doing a great job.

• 30:31Speaker 02

  Thanks.

• 30:32Lewis Howes?

  But that's the biggest lesson he's taught you is about focus, presence.

• 30:35Speaker 02

  Yes, oh, because when, sorry, thanks for bringing it back. When he was born and when, and when I would be with him, like, everything would melt away. Like, when he was on my booby, or when I was just being with him, just taking care of him. Any moment of taking care of him just felt like the most important thing in the entire world. And so, everything would go, all that, like, angst, or, you know, need, or whatever.

• 31:01Lewis Howes?

  Hustle or drive.

• 31:01Speaker 02

  Yeah, we're just gone. I just am happy to be right here with you. And that was pretty incredible.

• 31:08Lewis Howes?

  Did you feel like you had no desire to want to be acting then? Or like you were missing out on something?

• 31:13Speaker 02

  I still was acting. He came with me when I, I mean, really early on. I don't know if this was a good choice or not, but it felt right. When I was like, Bear was about two and a half months old. We went to New York and I did a film.

• 31:24Lewis Howes?

  No way.

• 31:26Speaker 02

  And he would just, like, come on my booby while I was in the hair and make a trailer.

• 31:30Lewis Howes?

  Getting ready, yeah.

• 31:30Speaker 02

  And then I'd hand him off to his dad. And I'd go to work, and then I'd come back. And I was just constantly coming back to

• 31:37Lewis Howes?

  Feed.

• 31:38Speaker 02

  Feed with him and, and be with him. And that's how we did it. And I, I was only working three days a week on that job, so it worked out pretty well. Yeah, it was like that.

• 31:47Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 31:48Speaker 02

  Mm-hmm. So I worked, I've worked with him a lot. And then there was the one time I worked when I was, then I worked again when I was eight months pregnant. I mean, eight months with, he was eight months old. And I was like, I hadn't slept at that point in, for more than two or three hours at a time in eight months. So then I was like, I'm losing it. But then I got over that hump, that hump. That was very difficult to learn my lines first. I was doing like a thing on Suburgatory. But then I did another movie. I did a few, I did, I continued to work consistently with him, but I just was much more selective after that.

• 32:19Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 32:19Speaker 02

  And

• 32:20Lewis Howes?

  And the progress you worked on, yeah.

• 32:21Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 32:21Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 32:22Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 32:23Lewis Howes?

  But you had been doing, after Clueless, you've been doing theater a lot more? Or were you still doing a lot of films as well?

• 32:28Speaker 02

  Both.

• 32:28Lewis Howes?

  Both.

• 32:28Speaker 02

  I've always been doing both.

• 32:30Lewis Howes?

  Yeah. What was the biggest challenge for you after that, when the fame started to come? How were you able to handle that and manage it? Was it overwhelming for you? Or did you feel like you navigated it well?

• 32:41Speaker 02

  I don't think I handled it well, which is why I got into all the activism. I think I just was more interested in. And I was like this as a kid, too. I remember my friends thought I was really intense. Because, you know, I was always sort of interested.

• 32:54Lewis Howes?

  Very passionate.

• 32:55Speaker 02

  Yes, passionate, like in Hebrew school. I'm Jewish and in Hebrew school, I remember getting to all these heated discussions with the cantor and rabbi. Because I was always like, why are we talking about what's in the past? Like, what are we doing about right now? There's this happening here, there's this happening here. I didn't really know what I was talking about. I was 12. I was like 12 and under, from like eight to 12. But I knew that there was suffering in the world and that we should be handling it now. And not just kind of like, woe is us about our past. Although it's important to remember the past, but also important to move forward, which many people do. It was just that particular, you know, I was just a feisty little kid. So I think that, yeah, it always seemed important to me that there were deep issues and deep things to be dealt with.

• 33:38Speaker 02

  And that whatever we could do to fix them, I wanted to be a part of that process.

• 33:43Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 33:44Speaker 02

  That's how these were born.

• 33:45Lewis Howes?

  So tell me about it.

• 33:46Speaker 02

  I was pregnant with my son. And my midwife said, you need to take a prenatal vitamin. And I was being cocky, I was like, I don't.

• 33:54Lewis Howes?

  I don't need this, I'm healthy.

• 33:55Speaker 02

  What do I need a prenatal for? I mean, seriously, I eat, what, for folic acid? I eat folic acid all day long, I eat greens, like, what are you talking about? She was like, but what about when you're traveling? Or when you just like have a naughty day where you just like lose it and you eat whatever? And I said, okay, I can buy that. So like an insurance policy, fine. I'll take a prenatal for an insurance policy. And so I start looking for a vitamin to take. And I literally can't find anything that's as healthy as how I eat. Everything is loaded with either chemicals.

• 34:23Lewis Howes?

  Sugar.

• 34:23Speaker 02

  Or sugar and or basically mostly chemicals.

• 34:28Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 34:28Speaker 02

  And so I said, this is ridiculous. And I couldn't believe it. So I started asking, really doing heavy research, like, there must be something out there that is clean.

• 34:37Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 34:37Speaker 02

  And even the cleanest that's on the market, because there are a few companies who are more responsible. They weren't certified organic, they weren't non-GMO verified. They would have food in them, but then they were wrapped in chemicals.

• 34:48Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 34:49Speaker 02

  So that didn't make sense to me. Why are we taking food and wrapping it in chemicals? So I thought, I've gotta create this. So I went looking for a partner and I teamed up and I created this line called My Kind Organics. And what makes them so special is that the first line that we did, or our round of products that we did are like these, I wish I had it for you right now, but this vitamin C spray and this B12 spray.

• 35:11Lewis Howes?

  You just spray it on your tongue?

• 35:12Speaker 02

  Mm-hmm. And they're so delicious. Like you can't, the kids can't stop spraying in their mouths. It's like.

• 35:16Lewis Howes?

  Interesting.

• 35:17Speaker 02

  It's like crack. And there's no sugar in it. It's just pure fruits and vegetables.

• 35:21Lewis Howes?

  Natural sugar.

• 35:23Speaker 02

  Yes, but there's no added.

• 35:24Lewis Howes?

  Nature's candy.

• 35:25Speaker 02

  Yes. And there's no like, even if you look at it, it zeroes out. There's, it's like zero sugar in it.

• 35:29Lewis Howes?

  Right, right.

• 35:30Speaker 02

  It's not made with anything that's naughty. Then we came out with this one, which is the collagen builder. So that one really works for hair, for hair, skin and nails. My hair, the people who do my hair and makeup, you know, over the years, I've been trying these and loving them. They really notice a difference with their skin. And then we came up with gummies. And what was so special about these gummies is there's no gelatin in them.

• 35:51Lewis Howes?

  How do you make a gummy then?

• 35:53Speaker 02

  We're using fruit pectin.

• 35:54Lewis Howes?

  Okay.

• 35:55Speaker 02

  Gelatin is nasty when you hear what it is. It's so gross.

• 35:58Lewis Howes?

  Tastes so good, though.

• 35:59Speaker 02

  Sure, it tastes fine, but it's gross. It's literally, it's literally the slaughterhouse floor. All the like stuff that you would literally sweep up and throw away, and they pour acid on it. So you're eating like the nastiest nasty with acid.

• 36:14Lewis Howes?

  Sugar, though.

• 36:16Speaker 02

  That's gelatin.

• 36:17Lewis Howes?

  Oh, gelatin.

• 36:17Speaker 02

  It's just a gelatin. Gelatin's the binder. So we are not using that. We're using pectin.

• 36:21Lewis Howes?

  Gosh.

• 36:22Speaker 02

  And we, and we don't use any sugar. Any gummy on the market that you were to use, I'm here to try it.

• 36:27Lewis Howes?

  It's just the fruit. What kind is this? I am gonna.

• 36:30Speaker 02

  It gets stuck. That's the only problem.

• 36:31Lewis Howes?

  Uh-oh.

• 36:32Speaker 02

  So any gummy on the market.

• 36:34Lewis Howes?

  No sugar in this.

• 36:35Speaker 02

  There's no added sugar. It's made from organic peaches and apples.

• 36:38Lewis Howes?

  Which I don't like.

• 36:38Speaker 02

  This one's really yummy, too. That's our new ones I'll tell you about.

• 36:41Lewis Howes?

  I told you before, I don't like fruit, but.

• 36:43Speaker 02

  Oh, no, you hate fruit.

• 36:45Lewis Howes?

  I'm trying, though.

• 36:45Speaker 02

  Well, then don't eat them.

• 36:46Lewis Howes?

  For you.

• 36:47Speaker 02

  I think they're good.

• 36:48Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, not bad. You like this one?

• 36:50Speaker 02

  So, the gummies.

• 36:53Speaker 02

  What makes them so different is they have no, like if you were to buy any of the mainstream gummy, they have two teaspoons of sugar in each serving. And I'm sorry, if I'm gonna have sugar, I'd rather have a glass of wine, or whiskey, or some amazing vegan cake that I make. I'm not really interested in having it just be a part of my daily routine. That's a lot of sugar to put in my body.

• 37:12Lewis Howes?

  Right.

• 37:13Speaker 02

  So this doesn't have that. It's certified organic peaches and apples. And we even employ like the most wonderful farmers who are all organic. It's really lovely. It's full circle. We know everything about it. And then we started a, what's coming out right now, which I'm really excited about, is our herbal line. And so the herbal line, that's what these are, the immune, these are immune boosting gummies. So if you were sick, you would wanna be popping these elderberry gummies. Or if you need a sleep remedy, there's a good sleepy time one. There's ashwagandha.

• 37:41Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 37:42Speaker 02

  There's adrenals, there's turmeric. Turmeric tea, a really yummy golden milk tea.

• 37:49Lewis Howes?

  I love turmeric.

• 37:50Speaker 02

  It's so good. And so we have it in six different variations of like what you need. If you need it for pain, or if you need it for just inflammation, or what your thing is.

• 37:58Lewis Howes?

  Where can people get all this?

• 37:59Speaker 02

  You can get it on Amazon, and you can get it at Whole Foods.

• 38:03Lewis Howes?

  MyKindOrganics.

• 38:05Speaker 02

  And what makes these, we worked very hard to be able to create this herbal, because our extraction method is so different. So anyone else who's doing turmeric right now, or doing these herbals, what's a bummer is that, A, they're probably not using organic material to begin with. But let's say they are. Then, they're processing it. The extraction process, to get the curcumin and all that, all the good stuff out of everything, they use hexane, which is gasoline. So they're using gasoline to extract, or they're using GMO corn. So we're not using that. And it took us a long time to figure out how to do it. And we've come up with a water, water solution, just water, to be able to extract. And then when we can't do that, we use organic, non-GMO verified

• 38:48Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 38:48Speaker 02

  corn. So it's a very different, very thoughtful, from, from the root to, you know, the table.

• 38:55Lewis Howes?

  And when did you learn about business, and putting together partnerships, and developing products, and?

• 39:01Speaker 02

  All of my business stuff has come out of a need. Again, it's my desire to fix problems. So I saw that there was this problem. I wanted to take a vitamin. I couldn't find something that was good enough for me. And then I thought, well, I, if this isn't good enough, For me, like, what on earth are people taking? Like, and everyone blindly takes vitamins, thinking, "Well, this is good for you. Of course it's good for you. It's a vitamin." You never question, like, what is in it. I doubt people even read the labels. I mean, some people do. But most people don't read the labels of the vitamins. And if you do, it's frightening what's in there. And so, they're all made in labs. It's just, like, gross junk. And so, I just thought, "This is absurd."

• 39:40Lewis Howes?

  Was this the first company you created, though?

• 39:42Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 39:43Lewis Howes?

  And when did this launch?

• 39:44Speaker 02

  I don't remember. I think it's been about four years.

• 39:46Lewis Howes?

  Four years?

• 39:46Speaker 02

  Maybe five.

• 39:47Lewis Howes?

  So, did you, so it's the first company you really launched because of this need, this desire to have something better? How did you go through those steps? Did you find a business partner? Did you?

• 39:56Speaker 02

  Oh, okay, so, I think what had happened was, the first thing I did was I created my website, thekindlife.com. And the kind, well, thekindlife.com came, and it's so pretty right now. We just did a makeover. It's really, really great. But we started that so that I would have, because I wrote the book. So, the Kind Diet came out, and I thought, "All the people who are gonna read this, and get excited and turned on, and want more information, or be able to connect with veteran, healthy vegans, and/or people who are new to it, and they wanna ask questions." I wanted a community. And it was the most sweet community. Our, the people that would, you know, you go on other sites, and it's like, people say mean things, and it's all this, like, trash talk, and it's really nasty, and like, the internet can be really mean. This was a place where people were like, "Hey."

• 40:42Speaker 02

  It's just like love. Like, everyone had love. It was a total love fest. And I would go on there and talk to people, and it was so fun. People'd ask questions, like, "What do I do? My boyfriend, you know, he's doing a bit about food. Like, I want him to be vegan, but he's not." And then somebody would come in, usually me, and be like, "Just let him be, and like, eventually he'll get there, maybe." And like, "Show him this documentary."

• 41:02Lewis Howes?

  Right, right, right.

• 41:03Speaker 02

  "Have him read this book. Tell him it's important to you for your birthday." Like, whatever.

• 41:06Lewis Howes?

  Sure.

• 41:06Speaker 02

  Give suggestions. And then everybody's like, "Oh, this is what happened." And so, it was this community. So, we did that, and then, so it was the book, the site, and then I started creating some products. I created, so I had created other products, but they weren't my creation. Like, this was all my brainchild. That was like, somebody said, "Will you design for me?" I was making these handbag, these vegan handbags that were all made from hemp, I made them with hemp and soy ink, with recycled plastics, so they were super conscious.

• 41:34Lewis Howes?

  You were hand-making these?

• 41:35Speaker 02

  No, no, no, just designing, designing and creating, and deciding, like, what they would be made of, so that they were super conscious. Mostly designing, like making pretty. And then also doing that with, I did that for a beauty line for a moment. And I think that's all the things I did. And then this was my brainchild. So I, I think just through working on those projects, I've got confidence to know that I could create something. I mean, even with the Kind Diet, I was filling a need. There wasn't, I would give, I would give books away to people who needed information. And I kind of got stuck at one point thinking, I don't know what the right book is to give to that person and that person. And I wanted a book that I could give to all of them.

• 42:14Lewis Howes?

  Everyone, yeah.

• 42:15Speaker 02

  And especially to this sort of, this mainstream. I wanted a book that I could give to someone that would make them inspired and excited and feel like they were talking to their girlfriend and feel, or their guy, or a friend, and feel like easy to read, so their head didn't hurt, but give them all the information they needed from the best resources possible, from Harvard studies and from doctors and scientists. But in a really palatable way and also in a really beautiful way. So that the information was, the, the book has beautiful photography in it and that the food is really decadent and exciting and interesting. And so that no one can say, ah, vegan food's gross, you know? That it would be delicious, amazing food.

• 42:55Lewis Howes?

  Sure.

• 42:55Speaker 02

  So like a book for foodies, but also for people who want to learn and grow and change. And so that's why it was all coming.

• 43:03Lewis Howes?

  You got the confidence from all that, yeah?

• 43:05Speaker 02

  Yeah. Cause I saw how well, I saw how successful when I did the Kind Mama, the next book. That took me years. It was so hard and it's so, such a labor of love, my God. But I'm so proud of the book and it helps women get pregnant. It's like boosts your fertility, gives you a smooth pregnancy. But I remember when I was doing that book, I thought, what am I gonna talk about prenatals? I need to talk about prenatals and I don't have one I can tell anybody to take. And so I was in a stuck situation where I already did, you know? But by the time I released the book, the, the vitamins were like coming. So I was able to say, there will be something coming. But um.

• 43:40Lewis Howes?

  Did you find a business partner or did you just kind of start going down manufacturers? Or how did you do it?

• 43:44Speaker 02

  I went to, I mean, I'm lucky in that I had a licensing agent because I had already done those licensing deals with the other companies I told you about, EcoTools and Juice Beauty. And so I said to my licensing agent, I want to create a vitamin and I need a partner.

• 44:02Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 44:03Speaker 02

  Who do you think would be the best person for me to partner up with? And she started investigating and then set up a meeting with me in Garden of Life. And I told them my ideas. They told me what they thought of it and they were excited. And it was really a great, a great partnership because they, they were just as excited about the idea as I was. And so we really found a good partnership.

• 44:24Lewis Howes?

  Oh, that's cool.

• 44:24Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 44:25Lewis Howes?

  I'm gonna ask you a couple of final questions, if that's okay.

• 44:27Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 44:28Lewis Howes?

  This is a question I ask everyone at the end of an interview. It's called the three truths.

• 44:32Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 44:33Lewis Howes?

  And I feel like you've had a pretty interesting life. You've lived many lives.

• 44:37Speaker 02

  Mm-hmm.

• 44:38Lewis Howes?

  And experienced a lot of different things. And the three truths is about the things that you would say on the last day. So imagine it's your last day many years from now and you've achieved and done everything you want to do. You've had the happiest life. You've lived the life you want. You've written books. You've created products. You've done the movies. You've done everything you want to do. It's all happened, but for whatever reason, you've got to take it all with you. So nothing stays behind. But you get a piece of paper and a pen to write down three things you know to be true about everything you've learned. I like it, yeah.

• 45:11Speaker 02

  I'm sorry.

• 45:11Lewis Howes?

  It's okay. The three, they're so good, you just gotta pop them in. This is the, the three lessons that you would share behind. If people don't have any other of your work, they couldn't read stuff that you've written before and this is all they would have to be remembered by you in the physical form, what would you say are your three lessons or truths you would share with people?

• 45:30Speaker 02

  I think the first one is for sure to trust your instincts. And really, that's such an easier thing said than done, but to really harvest, cultivate a connection with your heart and your being, which really helps by doing the kind diet so that you can feel it and know it and hear it. Because you can really feel your body when you feel good. And, and then cultivating the faith that you know what's best at all times and to just be able to ask yourself. So I have sort of like, I don't know if you know about muscle testing?

• 46:06Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 46:07Speaker 02

  I kind of do that with my heart so I can go in. And, and it's hard to believe sometimes because sometimes it, it tells you something that you just didn't think would be the answer. But it's sort of like going inside.

• 46:21Speaker 02

  And it's what I want my son to have. And he does. I mean, he fiercely has it on his own. Like, he just does not. He knows exactly what he wants. He knows exactly what he thinks to. I ran by a movie that I've been asked to do. And I was telling him all the reasons why it would be a good idea. And then he goes, "Well, what's the problem?"

• 46:40Lewis Howes?

  You're right.

• 46:41Speaker 02

  Good point. Good point, baby. Like, and this is a little seven-year-old. Like, I try not to talk about too complicated things, but he's so clever in that way. And anyway, that just, I didn't have that ability to trust myself for a very long time. And it's so powerful when you can and when you just go inside and ask yourself what you need and want and be able to act upon that, I think is like the most incredible thing. And I don't know if we teach each other how to do that. I think, I think parents often knock the sense out of you immediately with the "no" and "don't do this" and "you need to be like that." And trying to like carve their children to be, instead of allowing them to just be who they are

• 47:25Speaker 02

  and cultivate trust. And the trust that I have in my son, because he's so, he trusts his own instincts. And he's right. I mean, he led us into this place in New York. We were walking down the street and he was like, "Let's go in here, mommy." And I was with my friends and we were all out on the street. And I was like, "Okay." But I would never have walked into this place. We walk in, great music playing. We all start dancing. We have a full dance party in the cafe. It's like nine o'clock at night. And it turns out it's a vegan joint. None of us even realized it was this amazing vegan joint. So.

• 47:59Lewis Howes?

  He had the instincts.

• 48:00Speaker 02

  He just had the instincts. So he's always like, "Trust my instincts, mommy."

• 48:02Lewis Howes?

  That's funny.

• 48:03Speaker 02

  But anyway, so trusting your instincts and really listening to, knowing that you have the answers and being able to be your own mommy. Like mommy, if you didn't have a mommy that was the best mommy or the best parenting, you to, and even if you did, that kind of ability to.

• 48:20Speaker 02

  Parent yourself and love yourself and care for yourself in that way.

• 48:23Lewis Howes?

  Wow.

• 48:24Speaker 02

  And then definitely the kind diet because being on a plant-based diet is the secret to all like being healthy, feeling great and living long, healthy life without all the pain. And I just posted something on my site about Bart. He's 81 years old and he has no medication. He's never needed any and he's so healthy and he's so young and vibrant. He's like, he owns the Candle Cafes in New York, these amazing restaurants. And the Candle Cafe, Candle 79.

• 48:52Lewis Howes?

  Candle 79 is a good place.

• 48:53Speaker 02

  Isn't it great?

• 48:54Lewis Howes?

  Right, on 79th Street.

• 48:55Speaker 02

  Yeah, Lexington and 79th.

• 48:57Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, it's good.

• 48:57Speaker 02

  So you know, they have the Satam.

• 48:59Lewis Howes?

  All my vegan friends take me to all the restaurants, so.

• 49:01Speaker 02

  Yeah. So he's.

• 49:03Lewis Howes?

  They have amazing chocolate like.

• 49:05Speaker 02

  Yes, the chocolate peanut butter mousse thing.

• 49:07Lewis Howes?

  Oh my gosh.

• 49:07Speaker 02

  It's just divine. And anyway, he's like this 81-year-old, young, vibrant guy.

• 49:14Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 49:14Speaker 02

  And you know other 81-year-olds who A, don't even make it to 81 and the ones who are, are sometimes it's a little crunky.

• 49:20Lewis Howes?

  Yeah.

• 49:20Speaker 02

  So he's not, he's like a good example of it. And I guess those are my.

• 49:24Lewis Howes?

  So the three?

• 49:25Speaker 02

  I guess those are my three.

• 49:26Lewis Howes?

  Was there, I mean, you're speaking into intuition, trusting your intuition. Was there something in the last, in your life where you, had you listened to yourself sooner? You know, you could have made a different decision.

• 49:40Speaker 02

  Yes.

• 49:41Lewis Howes?

  Or you held on to something too long where you're like, oh, my intuition was telling me this, but I just kept doing it for five, 10, 20 years.

• 49:47Speaker 02

  Yes.

• 49:47Lewis Howes?

  What are some of those things?

• 49:48Speaker 02

  I can't tell you.

• 49:51Speaker 02

  But there's so many. I mean, not so many, but there's some big ones where you're just like, if you just had the, if I had had the ability to just take care of myself like in that way and go like, what do you want?

• 50:04Lewis Howes?

  Hmm.

• 50:05Speaker 02

  Not be in your head about it because you can analyze things to death and go around and around in circles and it's all fear. But if you just go. What do I want? Do I want to go do this movie in the Hamptons right now? Yes. You know? And not have to go through all the like, why and the pros and the cons and the like, all that.

• 50:25Lewis Howes?

  Absolutely.

• 50:27Speaker 02

  So, yes, that's a funny, simple example, but.

• 50:30Lewis Howes?

  How do we cultivate that more, our intuition? And how do we, when we know we've, say we're in a situation for a few years, and we know we're supposed to get out of it. But we're all so bought into it. We've already invested so much time and energy into this project or this person or this.

• 50:47Speaker 02

  Person, it's usually the people. It's the people.

• 50:51Lewis Howes?

  How do we trust and eliminate that or remove ourselves from that without?

• 50:57Speaker 02

  I mean.

• 50:57Lewis Howes?

  How do we know that's what we really want?

• 51:00Speaker 02

  I know. I don't have the answer of like, all I know is how. It's not easy because sometimes those decisions are, you're just not ready to make them. Sometimes you still have to get, you're still gathering information. I'm more talking about the ones where like, I really, like, if somebody could have just smacked me and just said like, enough, just get out. Like, that would have been ideal a long time ago. I'm not talking about my, my partner. But a long time ago, I think I spent so much time like itching, this doesn't feel right. This doesn't feel right, doesn't feel right. Well, if you're itching and it doesn't feel right.

• 51:37Lewis Howes?

  Don't do it.

• 51:38Speaker 02

  Don't do it, but I didn't have that. I didn't know this wisdom yet. So it wasn't until I met someone doing breath work.

• 51:44Lewis Howes?

  Breath work is key.

• 51:46Speaker 02

  And she really had me start to understand some deep stuff about myself that I was not aware of, feelings of the deep stuff. And mixed with my diet, making me so clean that I could receive it. So it was diet mixed with, and then that opened my heart and my spirit. And then working with the breath work. And then that cultivated self-worth and the understanding of like, I've got to figure this out enough. And it was soon after doing breath work that I was able to release this, start making changes that needed to happen. But, but I think that the diet. Possibly breathwork. Definitely, if you don't have a great therapist. A great therapist is a wonderful thing and they're hard to come by.

• 52:30Speaker 02

  And so you have to really keep meeting them until you find the right one. But I think all of those things can be really, really helpful.

• 52:37Lewis Howes?

  Supporting. That's great.

• 52:38Speaker 02

  And if you don't have that, then you have like, you know, some kind of group that you go to. Or you have an amazing friend. Like lately, I feel so blessed with my friends because these three women in my life are just like amazing. And I'm so lucky that I get to talk to them about everything. And they're so smart and so loving and it's really good.

• 53:01Lewis Howes?

  That's great. Well, I want to acknowledge you, Alicia, for using your wisdom for good. You know, you're creating conscious products, conscious books, you know, doing the projects that you love, the activism to give back. I think it's really powerful that you're using your platform in a positive way to help people. And for me, that's incredible.

• 53:20Speaker 02

  Thank you.

• 53:20Lewis Howes?

  And that's someone who's a great individual. So I acknowledge you for all the good that you're doing in the world.

• 53:25Speaker 02

  Thank you.

• 53:26Lewis Howes?

  My final question for you, before we ask the final question, what's the website and where are you on social media? And how can we connect with you online or follow the things you're working on?

• 53:34Speaker 02

  The kindlife.com. I have Instagram, AliciaSylve. It's like the whatever, the checked one.

• 53:41Lewis Howes?

  Yep.

• 53:41Speaker 02

  And

• 53:42Lewis Howes?

  Sylve?

• 53:42Speaker 02

  I think it's Sylve. I don't think we can get the whole thing. And I neglected to mention that I actually am an actress as well. And that I have all these

• 53:49Lewis Howes?

  You're working on a few shows right now.

• 53:52Speaker 02

  Yeah, my show, my show just had its finale, but you can watch all of the episodes.

• 53:56Lewis Howes?

  You can binge it.

• 53:56Speaker 02

  You can binge watch it, American Woman. And it's a really good show about the seventies. It takes place in the seventies. It's like amazing hair, makeup, wardrobe, music. It's really good. And it's about women's liberation, women like empowering themselves and growing and struggling. And all the current things that we're talking about in the last year are really reflected in the show. And because it's amazing to see how women, how far we've come and how far we need to go. But like, you know, my character can't get a loan on a home, a bank loan because she doesn't have a man. It's like that, we don't think about that. It's just 1975. It's crazy. So anyway, that and I did a bunch of movies like the Yorgos Lanthimos's movie and The Killing of Sacred Deer and I'm just working a bunch.

• 54:39Speaker 02

  So lots of fun projects that I've been working on. But American Woman, I'm super proud of.

• 54:45Lewis Howes?

  Amazing.

• 54:45Speaker 02

  And yeah, I think you can find me on Twitter and all the things. What else is there? Facebook?

• 54:50Lewis Howes?

  You spend time on Instagram personally or no?

• 54:52Speaker 02

  I do things for my work and for my activism and that's really it. I mean, but my lifestyle, that might mean me picking, I just picked the most amazing tomato off of my vine at home. And because I grow some food and I love it. So sometimes it's just silly things like that. Like this amazing tomato that I could so excited about. But it's also all the, all the film projects and all the, I was just on Jimmy Fallon and.

• 55:18Lewis Howes?

  Uh huh. I saw that. That was good.

• 55:20Speaker 02

  You did and Colbert and that kind of stuff. So I just post all that stuff.

• 55:24Lewis Howes?

  That's cool. We can follow you there.

• 55:26Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 55:26Lewis Howes?

  Very cool. Well, the final question for you is what is your definition of greatness?

• 55:32Speaker 02

  The way it comes to my mind is my son. Just that free spirit and being so in your body and not afraid of anything and not, like there's no walls up. It's all just like, that's pretty great. But I also think it's great when people make good in the world, like really do stand up for what they believe in and fight for things. I mean, there's so many inspiring people out there doing wonderful things. Jane Goodall and a million Jane, there's so many Jane Goodalls everywhere. You know, all the people, all the activists that I get to work with. And I was just in Washington speaking and Capitol Hill and recently in Sacramento lobbying for bills to get passed.

• 56:17Speaker 02

  And I love going and speaking with politicians who are on the other side than me and listening to them and understanding why they choose to do what they do and trying to talk to them about why this bill is important to pass. And it's such an interesting thing to do. So I think there's greatness in all the people who are lobbying and trying to, not the regular lobbyists who are lobbying for like oil. That's not so great, but I mean like fighting to end.

• 56:43Lewis Howes?

  To make a difference.

• 56:43Speaker 02

  To make a difference. And there's so many people doing that. So I don't know. There's a lot of greatness out there. I hope that answers that.

• 56:49Lewis Howes?

  Yeah, that's great. I appreciate it. Thanks for being on.

• 56:52Speaker 02

  Thank you.

• 56:57Lewis Howes?

  There you have it my friends, I hope you enjoyed this episode. If you did, make sure to check out the full show notes. LewisHowes.com/709, where you can watch the full video interview. Check out all the information about what Alicia is up to with her business, her books, and all of her projects back there. Connect with her on social media. And as always, make sure to share this with your friends. You can post it on Facebook, and Twitter, and LinkedIn, and Instagram. Tag me @lewishouse, and let me know what you thought about this episode. Again, LewisHowes.com/709. And I want you to remember these quotes that we talked about in the beginning. Again, Mark Twain said that "The worst loneliness is to not be comfortable with yourself."

• 57:39Lewis Howes?

  If you're not comfortable with yourself right now, it's time to get there. It's time to start creating some goals for the life that you want to start living. And it's time to start taking action on those goals, so you can lean into that person that you want to be, and become more comfortable with the person that you're becoming proud of from the actions you're taking every single day. And Wayne Dyer said, "Self-worth comes from one thing, and that's thinking that you are worthy." No matter where you're at in your life, there are things you can do today to increase your worthiness. Be your word, be in integrity, work hard, do what you're gonna say you're gonna do, and make other people smile. I love you so very much, and you know what time it is.

• 58:22Lewis Howes?

  It's time to go out there and do something great.