Tech Exec Wellness Podcast: Conversations to Reignite Your Soul
In the fast-paced world of technology, where innovation and disruption are the norm, tech executives often find themselves caught in a whirlwind of high-pressure decision-making, long working hours, and constant connectivity. The relentless pursuit of success and the demands of their roles can take a toll on their mental, emotional, and physical well-being. However, a new narrative that emphasizes the importance of tech executive wellness as a crucial component of sustainable success is emerging. This is the story of the tech executive's journey to rediscover balance, prioritize well-being, and ultimately thrive in their personal and professional lives.
If you're ready to embark on a wellness journey that will empower you to live your best life, I invite you to subscribe to Tech Exec Wellness, Navigating the Digital Balance, wherever you listen to podcasts. Together, let's cultivate harmony within ourselves and radiate positive energy to the world. Each week, we'll explore a wide range of topics related to wellness, inviting experts, thought leaders, and everyday individuals who have transformed their lives through mindful living, self-care, practices, and holistic approaches. We'll dive deep into areas such as nutrition, fitness, mental health, spirituality, mindfulness, personal growth, and more.
Tech Exec Wellness Podcast: Conversations to Reignite Your Soul
Ep. 7: Interview with Marcus Peterson, MBA
Picture yourself waking up to your favorite song, kickstarting your day with a smile. This rhythmic beginning is a part of Marcus Peterson's daily routine, a seasoned VP at Aurelius Legacy Partners with a unique journey from sports to finance. On this episode of Tech Exec Wellness, we chat with Marcus about his passion for music and how it plays a crucial part in his life. You'll hear about his favorite artists, the concerts that left an indelible mark on him, and we even share our favorite tracks. This episode is a testament to the transformative power of music.
As we step away from the musical notes, we dive into Marcus' journey in the world of finance and his transition from a financial advisor to the director of an investment advisory firm. But Marcus isn't just about numbers and notes; he has a heart for charity too. We delve into his work with My Friend's Place, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that provides aid to those less fortunate. But the generosity doesn't stop there, Marcus has ambitions to start his own charity through his sock line. Tune in to hear how something as ordinary as socks could change lives and potentially, the world.
As we wrap up, we take a closer look at wellness, technology, and social media. Have you ever thought about how socks contribute to our wellbeing or their link to climate change? Well, we hadn't either until Marcus enlightened us. Our conversation also touches on the increasing role of AI in fitness and wellness, and Marcus shares his thoughts about incorporating technology into his health regimen. We then navigate the intricate world of social media, discussing its implications on mental health and underlining the importance of self-awareness, resilience, and a balanced "social media diet". This episode ends on a note of self-compassion, reminding us all to say no to things that don't add value to our lives. Join us to gain a wealth of insights on staying healthy and grounded in our rapidly evolving technological world.
Please visit our website https://www.techexecwellness.com to stay up to date and subscribe to our newsletter!
Hi, welcome back to another episode of Tech Exec Wellness. I'm your host, melissa. I am Erica. Today we are thrilled to have Marcus Peterson. Marcus Peterson is a vice president at the firm, where he applies multiple insurance disciplines for his clients. That's coordinated across relationships acting as a value complement and extension to existing financial professionals, service providers, businesses and high-network networks. Armed with excellent networking skills and a vast connection in sports and business, he leads the firm's client and community outreach programs. He's passionate about financial literacy. He educates his clients on insurance matters and helps them plan for protection and peace of mind.
Speaker 1:Marcus has a wealth of experience in finance and sports. He started his career as a financial representative at Northwestern Mutual, then became a director at Gideon Strategic Partners. Before that, he was a wide receiver in the National Football League, playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Los Angeles Chargers. He remains active in the NFL community as a treasurer of the NFLPA former players board. But wait, there's more.
Speaker 1:Marcus has a global perspective and a strong network in both sports and entertainment. He has been featured in several publications. These include MSNBC, espn, new York Weekly's 30 Under 30, l Men's Magazine, medium and MarketWatch. He holds an MBA in Global Business Finance from the University of Derby, which is in England, and a BA in Human Resources and Marketing at Seton Hill University. Marcus is also a dedicated philanthropist who supports my Friends Place, a nonprofit organization that helps youth experience and homelessness move toward wellness, stability and self-sufficiency. He has been involved with MFP for over 15 years. Marcus, welcome to the show. Before we get started, I must know what is your favorite music genre, artists, and if you could share with us your most memorable concert experience.
Speaker 2:Well, first and foremost, I want to say thank you. That was a beautiful intro, so thank you for that Well you're welcome.
Speaker 2:To answer your question, my favorite genre is Neo Soul, Nice. My favorite artist of all time is Chade. My favorite concert experience? That's a really good question. I would have to say I've been to many concerts, but what was super memorable? There's two, actually. So one of my favorites is seeing Jill Scott, the Hollywood Bowl, yes, which was insanely insane. And then the second one was I was able to see Prince at his last concert. I was young but I was at the Forum which is in Inglewood, California. So those are the two.
Speaker 1:Wow. So I have to say that Jill is one of my favorite artists, as was Prince. So when you were at the Prince concert, what was so memorable? Like, where were you envisioning yourself when you were in that concert? Because obviously you felt a lot of happiness, a lot of joy. Can you kind of delve a little deep into what you were feeling when you were at that concert, even though you were very young?
Speaker 2:For me, yeah, obviously his music was very dominant in the 80s 90s. So for me to see the genius because my father is a musician and my mother loves music as well so I went with my mom and just to see him live, with all the thoughts and things that I've heard about him and seeing, like you know, on media, but to see it executed in person, like he had an all-fee-mout band. I mean he can play every instrument, like from the stage to the. What he tried to depict for his audience to see. It was just mind-blowing. I didn't appreciate it as much, probably till he passed, and then that's when I reminisced like wow, this is what was going on, because, you know, I was a little bit younger than what I am now, obviously, but I can definitely appreciate the art of who he is and what he did.
Speaker 1:That is so amazing. I know in one of our first podcast episodes, Eric and I were talking about the legacy of David Bowie and Tina Turner. I was fortunate to see both of them and Prince. Just, I don't know the logistics of it, but it just didn't happen in this lifetime. So I have to say that is incredible that you got to see Prince. I still listen to his music but, yeah, music does something for the soul, for sure.
Speaker 2:The only time I'm not listening to music is if I'm sleep, reading or watching something. But yeah, music. I have to have music playing 24-7. And something interesting is every day I wake up and a song plays in my head randomly. It's not a particular genre, it could be any genre, but something I've made. It heard six years ago, yesterday on the radio on a commercial, or 20 years ago, but some new song pops in my head every day and I have to wake up, even before I brush my teeth, play it because it's just going to stick with me and it's going to boat me all day. But literally every day I wake up I wake up to a new song.
Speaker 1:Would you say that? And, eric, I want to hear from you as well Would you say that there is a certain song that uplifts you in the morning? Because I started doing that as my daily. One of my rituals is listening to a song like Whitney Houston, for instance, higher Love Remix with Kygo. Is there a song that kind of amps you up and gets you started to your day, or do you just kind of go through the playlist?
Speaker 2:No, I just kind of go through a playlist. I was in high school because my dad does gospel, so like there are times where I play gospel music in the mornings, but I wouldn't say a specific song or genre. It just literally, as I'm waking up it pops in my head like any song. It's not the same song either, so it's. They're all different songs.
Speaker 3:That's interesting. I've told Melissa this before. The song Sweet Child of Mine by Guns N' Roses is the song that I listen to before I do a podcast episode or like if I'm preparing for a meeting. I like EDM the most and I would have to say that I remember by Cascade is a song that I could listen to in the morning every single day. Are you familiar with Cascade?
Speaker 2:I know the group, but I've not heard them yet.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 2:Excuse me, excuse me.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, that's okay. He's a underground DJ that started in Chicago. He did a lot of underground music from Chicago and has just blown up in the EDM world, so that's my favorite genre Nice. Have you ever been to an EDM concert?
Speaker 2:I have. I was at one in Vegas and then one in LA. I'm all about experiences, so it was good to experience, like it was, that music is energy, it's a feeling. It's not necessarily what you hear, but how you feel. So it was interesting to be a part of that experience multiple times.
Speaker 3:Perfect. I love that, so I would love to hear some more about you. Can you walk us through your career journey and the NFL, and how you transition to your current role?
Speaker 2:Interesting. I always get this question and my only answer is literally God. I don't have any type of formula or express sheet of one through ten. It's just literally been blessed to have these opportunities. One thing about me even when I was young, I was always not risk averse, meaning I always like taking risks. If people were always going left, I'd like to go right. So, with that being said, I was born and raised in Los Angeles, california.
Speaker 2:I went to undergrad in Pittsburgh, pennsylvania, and then from there how it works is either you get drafted or you get picked up by the NFL. But I didn't really care too much about playing football until like my junior year of college. When some NFL players are like, hey, you're pretty good, you can do this, and that's when it clicked for me Well, maybe I should start taking this series. But then, like your support group, if everybody's doing the same thing on a positive level, you tend to mentally be in that space as well. So fast forwarding. Then I went to school in London where I got my MBA in Global Business Finance. And it's interesting because my grandma always wanted me to get my MBA. So I was like, yeah, I'll just do it, and I really didn't want to get it. It was because it was considered a fifth year. So in order to play football I had to like do a course and when me just graduated with my undergrad I said you know, it can be beneficial because one I just graduated. So I'm still in that mental school space two, three months later. So it was a blessing that I was able to do that. So I got into Global Business Finance from there. That's when I went to Jacksonville and then a year later, you know, playing in Texas and different showcases in Iowa, things that nature.
Speaker 2:I was blessed with the opportunity with Los Angeles Chargers and it was good because it's on the business side, it's in Los Angeles, so it's a huge market and I'm from, born and Raised in Los Angeles, so the business and the marketing and the networking around that and my story really took off with that platform and I knew how to use that. And, like I said, going back, like if I would have had that opportunity when I was like 21 or 22, come out of college, I didn't. My rookie year I was 25. So I had the experience of traveling the world, meeting a lot of new people, discovering who I was as an individual. So that's what the whole blessing of disguise was, because my mental space of if and when I get this opportunity, I'm going to know what to do with. So as that happened, a lot of doors opened so I knew to take all the candy walls and the candy store.
Speaker 2:I got my MBA in Global Business Finance, so I had a lot of corporate offers but I just knew football was my thing at the time. From there, that's when I started with Northwest Submission because my cousin was there as well, and then I developed a habit obviously of the financial advisor and helping individuals with their financial state, with a short term, mid-term, long-term. But what I realized that was was that a lot of my clients in Will House did not particularly just need products and insurance based items. A lot of things were, like you know, private investments, holistic planning, so just a larger scale of kind of what my net work needed. So that's what alluded me to becoming director at an IRA called Gainer's Strategic Partners and then there for about two years and a couple partners and I we started an investment registered advisory firm in Los Angeles and Century City and then we opened a branch here in Boca Raton, florida.
Speaker 2:So it's all been a journey, like I always say, like you can go from one stone to another, but life is just about moving forward. So all the things that I've tried led me and alluded me to meeting certain people that can guide me to this part of life. So if I never would have tried those things, I would have never met this person. So I always look back and I see the opportunities that I did take those opportunities. Whether I liked it or they worked or not, there was something in them that was a gem that led me to, obviously, my purpose in where I am in life now.
Speaker 1:That is beautifully said. You and I have a lot in common. I'd like to ask you this, though when you you give back, can you tell us a little bit about my friend's place, what that organization's about, how you got involved in it?
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, I remember like it was yesterday. I was nine years old, so born and raised with both my parents. I remember, oh my God, like Christmas as a kid is like going to heaven, it's insane. So I remember sitting in my alarm clock all the time for like six am to wake up to go see Santa Claus or get the presents or whatever. And I remember when I was nine, it was like 82 degrees and I was like, and I was getting up to go like rush to the Christmas tree and deliver them, and I was stopped by my parents okay, we're not going to like get the gift yet, we're going to go to this place called my friend's place and give back. And I was so angry I mean selfishly pissed that I couldn't really experience that, experience it up and experiencing of opening the gifts and the joy around that. And I had an attitude the whole time going there.
Speaker 2:And then when I got, so it's in Hollywood. It's a youth center for like individuals from 15 to about 30 or 35, with people who moved to LA wanting to be an actor, actors to start their dream. And then you know something happens with you that I like being so expensive in inflation or family issues, but just less fortunate in the Los Angeles community. So it's a huge nonprofit organization that I connected with. So we were giving back with my church and giving food and toys and things of that nature, and it was from 9 to 12. I'll never forget this.
Speaker 2:Being nine years old, I was behind the bench, you know, giving out food and just helping out in any way I could, and to see individuals that look just like me, in my same age and older, that had so much joy the joy I've had, you know, opening gifts and being excited to receiving things. And then that's what woke me up and I remember getting back home and I was like you can open your gifts now. And that changed my life. For since that day, like I really didn't even want to open gifts, I wanted to just give it away. So that opened a whole charity thing for me. So from that I started giving.
Speaker 2:Every year I was in my friends place Thanksgiving, christmas, and as I got older I connected with them on my own and my own brand. That's why I started a sock line. Globally we're giving back for the homeless. As you know, one of the three things essential things that less fortunate need on a global scale is, you know, either a female products toothpaste, toothbrushes and also socks. There's a whole medical thing about how beneficial socks are, especially with climate change, but those are one of the key things that I wanted to give and execute with my brand on a global scale was able to do it, and multiple states in the United States, spain, all throughout Europe and South America, so it was a blessing to do that. But it all started when I was nine years old, going to my friends place, so I've been indebted to them and the family that I've established there over the last 20 years, so it was a blessing for them.
Speaker 1:Marcus, you mentioned something about socks and climate change. This is new to me. Can you shed some insight on how socks are related to climate change?
Speaker 2:I can't give the specific science behind it, but as far as your ears, your hands and your feet, those are the top three controllers of kind of how your body reacts to either being hot or cold. So, as you know, being in Denver, if your feet are cold, that means your whole body is going to be cold. So whether your feet are cold or wet, it's it really kind of controls how your whole body in the bloodstream flows when it comes to being cold. And then, obviously, being cold, your pores are open. That opens to. You know you're getting a cold or fluid pneumonia.
Speaker 2:So socks are very pivotal to the human body. See a lot of individuals walking barefoot. There's things on the ground whether socks can help prevent from the concrete or class or things like that nature. But there's a multitude of benefits on having socks and a lot of less fortunate don't have socks and shoes that you really don't see on an everyday basis or might not think about. But socks are very pivotal and you know you can give food turkeys and all that stuff. That's cool, but that's very. It's temporary, like in a 15 minute or two hour fulfillment, but to me, as a demure research, socks can last, you know, depending on who you are, what you're doing, for you know, a month or two a year, so I want to do things that were not necessarily temporary but in my power to make it last a little bit longer.
Speaker 1:That's great and thank you so much for your contributions. I do some similar things with veterans, being a veteran myself, and bomba socks was an organization, yeah, where you'd buy and they give it to homeless people, so I really like the initiative.
Speaker 2:And that's where I got my model from. Yes, I did my research on if you buy one, then if you buy two, one pair of ghosts or the proceeds go to homeless. So that's where I based my model from.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. Yeah, I think that's incredible. Thank you so much for that. With AI and everything, now what are you doing to keep your wellness going, your health journey? What type of workouts do you like to do, and are you thinking about incorporating AI into that?
Speaker 2:To answer your question. No, in a certain sense I might have to just call it how life goes, but for me, just I like it's interesting, I work out all the time but I really hate working out. But as far as like the health around it, as I'm getting older, not playing anymore, I want to kind of keep my metabolism where it is and I just know the benefits of health, water and sleep and exercise. So I like to work out in the gym area, outdoors, running, just on the cardio side of things, like still playing football or having those football workouts, just to keep the healthy side and self care on that. But I probably work out four times a week, mostly in the gym or outdoors, either doing cardio and just kind of maintaining the health there.
Speaker 3:I understand you want to keep moving. I need to do a better job with cardio. I was at one point attempting to be a competitive bodybuilder and I competed a couple of times but yeah, I didn't get anywhere big with it, it was just more at the regional level. My partner, he's a pro bodybuilder, so we kind of live in that lifestyle and when I can't work out it drives me crazy. And I understand the statement of you hate to work out, but you know that it's basically a necessary evil. I love to train and let things heavy, but I hate cardio and, as a previous football player, you probably can't live without cardio, right?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that's what I'm used to because it's like what my position? You have to be moving all the time and you have to have that stamina because you can run up and down and feel it, but it's the duration of the forward game is very long, so you have to be in shape. And also, on the physique side, like cardio, you lose weight. You lose body weight, I mean water weight or things of that nature. So my psyche is used to that training just how you kind of see you know Ray Lewis or hockey players or former basketball players still doing those workouts and things of that nature, because that's just kind of in their minds what they've been doing for a very long time. So that's all they kind of know. And for me, yeah, I want to say stay healthy. I just kind of know the benefits as I get older, how it translates and it helps out long term.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's good for your heart, so I trust me. I know that my doctor tells me all the time, so I do wonder what your thoughts are on the impact of technology and social media and mental well-being and how can we maintain a healthy relationship with it. And I think this, before I let you answer this question, is important because of where you've been in your life and where you are today. Can you share your thoughts on that?
Speaker 2:Two thoughts, so yes, one. So I'm coming on it in both shoes. I learned in life to look at things in both shoes. I am going to answer this question as not having any children and being single and on the other side of the perspective is if I did have children, how would I view technology and social media and things of that nature? So for me, one I think you have to know yourself first, because a lot of like videos and how perceptions of things society might think it should be can alter a lot of people's mental.
Speaker 2:So mental health around social media can be very good or it can be very detrimental. It starts with within first, like if you have armadillo skin. Me being in business and sports, you know, you get told know a lot, so you kind of get used to that. So you have to know and be grounded in who you are as an individual. Again, to answer that question in some capacity, I think it's good, especially on the business side, you see a lot of millionaires and billionaires that have gained their wealth and their exposure and their platform via social media or a phone. On the other side of things, you have a lot of people who either alter their body, their mindset.
Speaker 2:Keeping up with the Joneses is a phrase, or going into financial debt just to impress people that don't care about them or don't know. So I think that's why it all goes from the root of who am I as an individual and what matters to me and my happiness. Because you can see a lot of times when people try to do things just for social media or attention, which can be detrimental in the end If you look back and say, man, five years ago I shouldn't have cared that much, but you still have to live with the actions that you've done in the last five years. So it's a hot and cold topic with that. But I think, like I said, it depends on who you are and if you control it the way you want to control it, then it can be good.
Speaker 1:Marcus, how can we, from your perspective, how can we cultivate healthy relationships? Because you mentioned something that really resonated with me keeping up with the Joneses People out there buying things. They're on Instagram. They look like they're living their best life and, erica, we talked about this before where you don't get to see the peaks and the valleys of these individuals. So are you a person I mean, social media is good for branding yourself, but are you more interested in having personal relationships, going out for coffee, being with people, versus scrolling on social media endlessly?
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm both Like I can see social media just to like if I meet somebody on a cruise, just to see how I that's what I do like about social media is like you're always in tune with people. If you don't see them for five years, 10 years, or if you went to college with them, like, oh, you kind of see what they're up to, like updates. So I do like it in that aspect. I do. I'm a very in-person person. So I like, like you said, going out for coffee, meeting people in person or connecting or keeping up via social media. I think social media is definitely a value add tremendously for millions and millions of people here on this planet, because you can connect with someone in China in one second, or you can connect with, you know, the CEO of Mergers and Acquisitions. So it's the connections and the rapidness of time of how you can execute things is the positive thing around it. That's what I really like about social media. Just how we met on social media, so it's like it's amazing how it's developing, to what it's become. So I like it in that aspect. And just to add one more thing I think I always like to look at things as, as you know I'm like food.
Speaker 2:You think of a diet. When you think of a diet, you think of eating healthy. You think of, you know, consuming edible foods. When I think of diet, when you're speaking on social media, you have to have a diet. You have to kind of watch and preserve. What is it you see, what is it you hear, what is it your mental contains? Because if you don't, like they say, you are what you eat, but then you are what you see, you are what you hear, you are what you consume your brain. So if someone has an addiction to something or to social media or whatever, and they see that and they hear that, then that's in their psyche, that's what they think about, that's what is real, that is what's acceptable. If you're able to turn it off and think for yourself, then that can. You can separate social media versus reality.
Speaker 1:I love that you said that, because you are what you eat. You are what you ingest. So I'm very mindful about people I talk to. If they're negative or whatnot, I I got to cut them out of my life because I'm in a different phase in my life where I want to be around positive people, I want to eat whole foods and I want to digest good social media. That's inspirational versus drama or anything like that. So I think for the people out there listening, it's very important to not only what you ingest as far as food, but social media, like you said.
Speaker 2:Right. Having a diet is so key.
Speaker 3:I've lived with having a diet coach or nutritionist for the longest part of 15 years. I wasn't always as healthy as I am today and I have to have that accountability. And you do feel better when you eat better and you're following what you would call a meal plan or a diet per se, and I know you understand that as well. So can you tell the listeners a little bit about, from your perspective, how you can build resilience and bounce back from a setback or challenge in their wellness journey or your wellness journey?
Speaker 2:Oh man, that's different for different people. How about from your perspective? How can I answer this question? Yes, from my perspective.
Speaker 2:I, when I was younger not even younger, let's say, in high school I was always really cared about what people thought. Well, I was very cognizant and wanted to be liked and things of that nature. But I had a best friend that I met that he didn't care about anything and obviously, being around that that's where I developed that confidence and just not caring what other people think about me and that's what literally changed my life. So you have to come into a mind frame of what makes me happy and not caring about other people's opinions. And another thing is my biggest like. I don't know if it's because I'm only child or whatnot, or I was in the household being an only child, but my favorite answer is no, like, if it's not benefiting to me, I have absolutely no problem of saying no. So if it's opportunity, if it's something you're thinking or whatnot, if it's not of a short term, midterm, long term benefit towards me, I have absolutely no problem saying no. And there's so much peace in that that can take you a long, long, long way.
Speaker 1:So I'm not going to say my age, but it's taken me a long time, marcus, to say no to people. So was there a little moment where you're just like you know what I am going to say? No, I'm going to stand my ground and I'm going to be assertive. So what gave you that?
Speaker 2:I was young I don't know if that's a test to like I said, growing up in an old child home. It was very selfish, so maybe that's where it came from. I didn't really have to share like that, so maybe that's where it came from but just understanding who I was to like if it wasn't beneficial or just kind of. And then as you get older you learn like hey, you're helping other people but then you can kind of get like stabbed on the back or those are just life lessons. Like you can't say no to it, you can't say yes to everybody. But I've man, I developed that at a very early age. Like I have no problem with protecting my peace. Well, it doesn't matter who it is friends, colleagues, family, it doesn't matter and a lot of people around me understand that. So like my peace is number one to me. So if it's compromising that, then it doesn't need to be in my world. But to answer your question, I was young, very young.
Speaker 1:Well, I think many people out there should listen to this and definitely not be afraid to say no. So I'll ask you one last question, and I think it kind of ties into this but what is the importance of self compassion and what advice would you give to those out there, young men and women, especially for having a positive self image? And I think we talked about social media earlier. So again, you don't see people with their makeup off. You don't see people as their true selves. So what can we do as a society ourselves to have a positive self image and be authentic?
Speaker 2:So, going back to, just like my upbringing, I had a lot of alone time, so I became my best friend at a very early age. So I think, to answer your question, spending a lot of time alone figuring out who you are, what you like, talking to yourself, figuring out your purpose and being still in the moment. A lot of times we kind of have friends and opinions and social media, but a bulk of the time we need to really sit down and be with ourselves, because we can lie on social media, we can lie to other people or have a facade, but you can't lie what's in the mirror. So the more time you concept the truth, what's in the mirror, I think that would help tremendously. It's a journey.
Speaker 2:Like I said, a lot of people don't figure out who they are or kind of like how to get compassion to their 99 years old. You could be seven years old or 99. But the earlier you do it within, the better your perception on life will be. So I think being still being alone, going into those positive environments, that's another big thing For me. I gather my thoughts a lot being in those tropical areas.
Speaker 2:I like beachy areas, I like scenery, I like interior decoration where I can feel creative and feel in the moment and that's where a lot of my thoughts gather. So go to a place where you feel the most. You can benefit within, whether it's in the rain, whether it's cold, whether it's an atmosphere like EDM or at the beach or swimming, wherever it is that you feel the most comfortable with yourself and gather those thoughts. But I think it starts with being alone a lot and turning off the social media and just talking to yourself and figuring out who you are as an individual, and then that will eliminate or kind of decrease opinions and thoughts of society and social media for sure.
Speaker 3:That's a great answer. I actually have one more question for you, Marcus Do you meditate?
Speaker 2:I do, and I didn't do it just because of breathing. I did it because playing football, I mean, you would wake up feeling like crap. So I used to literally have to take yoga before I worked out a practice and after, just to feel good. And so doing that for a long time, a couple of years I developed the benefit outside of just like flexibility and things of that nature. So it's interesting you said that because I just took an exam, glad to do continuous education for my profession on Monday and right before I did meditation and yoga and it just made me feel so much better with my breathing. So, like I said, it was blessing that it came from the physical aspect of what I needed it to be. But as I transitioned out of it, I continue to do it for the mental side.
Speaker 3:That's amazing. Melissa has been actually leading me down a path of meditation, and, melissa, you can add something here too. So that's where the question came from, because she's really the one that has turned me on to that. That's good. That's good.
Speaker 1:So, marcus, do you do a guided meditation, or are you at the point where you can literally just be still in a room without any guidance?
Speaker 2:No, no, no. So all I do is I just turn on YouTube. There's a yoga instructor that I really like. It says yoga with Adrienne and she has like a multitude of things, whether it's headache or it's anxiety, flexibility, hamstrings, whatever. Like I said, I used to always just do it on the physical side my lower back was hurt on my hamstrings or whatever but she has other things about, like if you're dealing with depression, if you're dealing with excitement, whatever it is. So I just do it at home by myself. I've done it sometimes, I tried to do it with other people, which is hard, like a real yoga instructor. Yoga is hard. The real yoga is hard. It's really hard. But I like to kind of just do it in the conveyance of my living room.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm with you on doing group yoga. It's very hard, especially hot yoga. I don't know if you've ever tried it.
Speaker 2:I did it once and then, yeah, that was it, but I mean I can do it.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's the best.
Speaker 2:I can do it again. Yeah, it wasn't that it was too hot, it was just. I just never went back. I don't know why it was so long ago, I just remember doing it.
Speaker 1:They scared you off.
Speaker 3:Maybe, it was really hot and I like to be hot. I just want to add the socks comments that you made, that if you don't have socks on your feet, you're cold your whole entire body. That's true for me as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that socks. So your ears, your feet and your hands.
Speaker 3:That's interesting. I love everything that you said today. You truly are an amazing individual and I want to thank you so much for coming on this episode today. Do you have any last thoughts you want to add before we wrap it up?
Speaker 2:No, I just appreciate you guys for having me.
Speaker 3:Not a problem, and again to our listeners. Thank you for tuning in. Don't forget to subscribe to our podcast on a variety of platforms and check out our website at wwwtechexecwellnesscom. Take care, and thanks for tuning in.
Speaker 1:Take care, Thank you guys Bye.
