Get FIRED UP! Get PASSIONATE! Get NEW YEAR READY! Guest starring World Champion Athlete Dave Tabain

Ange
And that’s why it’s critically important to start the year in a positive mindset and set yourself realistic goals that are achievable.

Andy
And that’s the key right there to smashing your business this year, achievable goals in a realistic timeframe.

Ange
So with that in mind, I wanna introduce you all to a close friend of ours and a world champion athlete, Dave Tabain.

Andy
He is an absolute superstar when it comes to setting up the right mindset to take on the new year, and we’re so glad he is joining us in the studio today. Plus he used to be a gun tradie as well. He’s my type of guy, how are you, champion?

Dave
Hey, good guys. Great to be here.

Andy
So Dave, you are known for saying POW! I know I’m known for saying Hell Yeah! But where does the whole pow story come from?

Dave
Well, uh, long story short, we used to be on a job site and me and my best mate, we’ve gotta go to the blues, been on a work site, we had to do a few shitty jobs, and just one day we made our pact and we said, Hey, you know, uh, I’m not gonna let you be miserable on a job site if we’re, you know, and vice versa. Hey, if I ever be like that, don’t let me do that. And so, um, we’ve actually watched that movie, stepbrothers. Have you ever seen the movie Stepbrothers? Will Farrell likes the guy in there, he’s like, pow. He’s like, what do you say? Pow . And so it, we, we actually started punching each other in the arms to say, Hey, if you are gonna be miserable, I can punch you as hard as I want. And so, um, after a few dead arms, we then started doing the pow thing. It just caught on from there. And then I started to take that into competing. So when I’d compete, I’d be wrecked, I’d be tired, I’d been doing warm up and you know, I thought it’d actually be funny one day to actually do the pow to psych myself up and everyone thought I was bloody crazy. So,

Ange
Totally.

Dave
It just became a bit of a thing from there. And uh, so I used to do it before competition to psych my competitors out. Cause I literally thought I was crazy and then, you know, kind of caught on and, uh, I guess the rest is history, but, We might talk about it a little bit later as well, but that’s where it started on the job site to psyche each other up.

Andy
So can you give us just one big one right now?

Dave
POW!!!

Andy
Oh, Jesus!

Ange
Dave, you travel the world empowering others to achieve their best in fitness and health and life through a bullshit free approach. Can you take us through this?

Dave
Yeah, I guess, um, you know where all this kind of started off from, he’s growing up and seeing my parents literally go through the struggles of their own health and fitness and mental health and all that kind of stuff, and working to put bread on the table and, you know, literally struggling from it. So, being a young kid, I grew up watching the struggle going on, going, Hey, when I’m big enough, when I’m strong enough, when I’m old enough, yeah, I’ll do something about it. And coming from a small country town, about 500 people could yako down in regional New South Wales. You know, I just saw so much struggle and suffering going on and I was like, you know what? When I get to that age where I can do something about it, I’m gonna do something about it. And for me, fitness was that vehicle that first got me involved. So, you know, uh, I guess the biggest approach where we talk about that is just showing people that simple steps that they can do on an everyday basis that doesn’t cost them money can really, you know, put ’em in a much better place or much better direction. So essentially all I do is help people get back on track with their health or fitness. That’s as simple as it is.

Andy
That is unreal. And you know, , what you’ve done, you’re talking about being in a small town with 500 people and then you turned into a three time kettlebell world champion with both national and international records. You know, it takes some real serious dedication to be able to do this. I mean, we all think we’re all super dedicated to making our trade business successful but at times it just gets all too hard and the momentum just seems to slow.

Ange
Yeah. So I’m curious to know, Dave, how do you keep yourself focused to achieve a champion title? Like what does it actually take to become a Kettle Board champion, or more specifically, three times over.

Andy
That’s huge.

Dave
Well, you mentioned dedication, but let me tell you, in the early days it wasn’t dedication. It was actually desperation.

Ange
Right.

Dave
And coming from that town, seeing my parents struggle and family and all that sort of stuff, I was not dedicated. I was at a level of desperation where I was like, there is no way I’m gonna grow up and go through this again, or let those around me have to struggle throughout life. So for me, to be honest, I was desperate. I was working four jobs, doing my trade apprenticeship, and had my gym. And it was kind of like one of those things where I was not gonna not win. You know, for me it was like I actually had a shirt that said how many on the front, on the back, as many as it takes. And that was my attitude. Now, years later, I accidentally died from a crazy cup that happened a few years ago, and I’m only just getting over it now, but, Basically at the start it was desperation. A lot of us were getting to this point where, you know, we wanna make change for our family, you know, ourselves and all that. And you know, that’s what got me started. Now, after a few years of doing that, winning these world titles, I then actually started to learn how to actually drive out of a different kind of gear. Desperation can get you far, but it can also get you to burn out.

Ange
Totally.

Dave
And for me, I burn out. I’ve been breaking down and losing my eyesight and my health since I last saw you two years ago. I’ve been on a bit of a journey, as you can tell. I’ve got a 10, and I’m feeling really good now. Before I was actually struggling quite a lot, but the thing was with that desperation, I was not gonna stop. And so I’m glad I’ve got that drive within me. But now it’s working from a more of a space of inspiration. So from doing this in the world titles, that was my vehicle to show people that I can do it. And it was also to show the people that I work with and train that they can do it too. If I can do it, I will come from this little town. Yeah. Having all these challenges and all that. Yeah. You can at least turn up at the gym and take themselves a little bit more seriously. So a bit of a tagline there, is this worth it because you are worth it, your health, your wellbeing, all that kind of stuff. Yeah, that’s kind of how I started to look like a three time World Champion. To be totally honest, sometimes we have skills and you know, if we put in the effort, they can pay off. Yeah. And for me, lifting a kettlebell for a long period of time, that was my skill. You know, I was taught to be on a shovel. Being a kid, you know, for me, my family’s worth was those that could last in the shovel for a long period of time. So Kettlebells were max rips, you just can’t put it down. . And I was just like, I was that desperate. I was like, well, I’m gonna have to pass out, unless I put it on, I’m gonna have to pass out to, uh, before I’ll let you win or, or before I’ll let go of this thing. So yeah, I guess that was kind of the drive.

Andy
Great attitude and Absolutely.

Dave
And then showing up. But I had a lot of people that believed in me that put me into the competitions. Cause I wasn’t gonna go initially.

Andy
Have you always had this much energy?

Dave
Uh, I’ll always be excited. Yeah. You know, and uh, I think a lot of it comes from when you’re shut down a lot in life, because a lot of times growing up, I actually had a bit of a speech penny growing up, and I was told to be seen, not heard. So a lot of my life, I had the energy, but I was shut down for it. And when you’re shut down enough, you know, that’s also where the desperation comes from, in big time. And I was realizing, you know, in my little town, like there’s more to life, you know, Hey, why can’t I feel good? And I had some certain mentors come into my life to show me that, you know, life doesn’t have to be miserable. Life doesn’t have to be full of suffering. You can get out there and have a crack and change the direction of, you know, uh, your upbringing to a degree. So for me, that’s where the excitement comes from and this is actually where your growth comes from, is being held back. The resistance you had to face so many times is building you up and giving you that strength. So the excitement comes from me just seeing what’s possible. Yeah. Yeah. We’ve faced enough challenges, so we don’t need to be miserable facing those challenges either, so it might as well be exciting to do something.

Andy
Exactly. Yeah.

Ange
Cool, that you got involved in fitness when I think about your past, and you talk about being a tradie, but you said I had a gym on the side, so clearly fitness has always been like something really important to you. I don’t know, stay fit.

Dave
Yeah, well I guess, um, yeah, the way I got into fitness, I had a mentor who introduced me to the kettlebell, so he had the first kettlebells in Australia and this was a guy who, his name’s Mark Elliot.

Ange
In your little town.

Dave
In my little town. He was a high school teacher that really believed me cuz I was getting kicked outta school in year 10 and I was getting put in this work program to say, you know, there’s no point going to year 11, 12, get into this trade thing now.

Ange
To be called tradie journey, right?

Dave
Yeah. Typical tradie journey. And you know, I got thrown in there and that’s also where I met my best mate, Brad Booth, a guy that came and spoke and he had enthusiasm, he had excitement. And to be honest, in those programs, there weren’t that many people that came and talked about work who were excited. So when he spoke , I actually had land fever. I was working like I still had four jobs at the time at that point. But, um, these people that had come into my life and introduced me to the kettlebell and, and into being excited about life, you know, they made a huge impact.

Ange
And they taught you about how to show up?

Dave
Taught me how to show up. And, you know, kettlebells are really just a vehicle. It was a tool, you know, and it was actually an opportunity for, like, it would’ve been weird if people just came to a little shed and I just pumped them up about life. But when they came and they, they thought they were coming for training and I’m there talking about what they can do. Yeah. Because that’s the bigger picture is like training’s one component and it’s there to compliment your life. They’ll complicate it. So whenever people come and train with us boxing, kettlebells weights or things like that, you know, I just, I was just being that person that I wish I had and then did get, yeah. I was just doing that for others.

Andy
That’s awesome.

Ange
Something you just said there, Dave, really struck a chord. You talked about how you are worth it. And we talk about that often with our Lifestyle Tradie members because they tend to put health as a backseat when they get really involved in making their business success and they now have a partner and children and now a team to look after and they forget about themselves. It’s not just him, but she does the same thing too. And what I love about what you were saying is that personal health is so critically important and that they are worth it, that they need to put themselves first. In your opinion, what do you think about that? I mean, you’re a business owner, so what’s your thoughts about that from a health perspective?

Dave
Yeah, well, uh, look, you’re looking at someone that wore burnout as a badge of honor, you know, like for in regards to these competing and titles and all that. To be honest, it took me three world titles to realize that I am worth it not having to prove myself in this arena. So it’s quite interesting when we talk about this, but a lot of times in business, you know, when we take on more responsibility, you, we’ve gotta pay the mortgage, you gotta pay the rent. And you know, you then develop a family in that. What happens is you, the love starts to get squeezed outta what you’re doing. You know, you are, you’re then on the grind. You’ve got other people, you’ve got so much more responsibility that you probably aren’t used to handling. And that’s where we can start to, um, you know, work and take on things at all costs. And that’s where our health just goes by the wayside. Yeah. Because you know, the bank just cares about whether they’re getting paid or not.

Ange
Totally.

Dave
You know, you starved, whatever. So, yeah. So that, but that is a journey for everyone out there listening that yeah, there’s gotta be times where you’re gonna achieve that burnout. Well done. Because guess what? I worked hard. Hey, right now, if you’re listening, if the wheels haven’t fallen off yet, haven’t gone hard enough, but hey, once the wheels have fallen off, though, it’s a time to reflect and go, Hey, how can I do it better? Yeah. The whole point is how do we go through this, as effortlessly as possible without taking the effort out of it sort of thing. So you wanna achieve that level, hit that ceiling, reassess, look at yourself and go, Hey, what’s not working? And then go again. A lot of people, what happens is we get what’s called learned helplessness, where we hit that ceiling and we go, poor me and we get into a struggle street. And we then feel like we need to suffer or you know, we don’t take our health seriously because we go, well, I’m not worth it cuz I’m not achieving this. I’m not achieving, you know, this amount of, uh, turnover for the year or this profit, or, you know, I can’t buy my partner a new car, whatever it is. Or like, you know, business isn’t going well. And like, to be honest, I’ve been in that position where you know, you start to get all the success and you start rowing, you take on my responsibility and all of a sudden it stops working. Yeah. And what do you do when it stops working? So that’s where some people can get stuck in that learning helpless point going, Hey, it’s worked all the time before and then all of a sudden it’s not. And then their health. It’s actually a form of self abuse because we’re not getting the outcomes we want, and therefore we are actually not looking after ourselves. So for anyone out there listening right now, uh, who’s in that position where they’re burned out, they’re going hand to the wall and they’re not getting results they want, guess what? That’s actually a good time to sit back and go, Hey, what isn’t working? And also stop taking it so personally that you’re not getting results, and actually look at it and go, Hey, what are the actions I’m putting in my body, my health, my relationship, and how can I do it better? Because A, you can do it better and you don’t have to be guilty about it. We’ve all been in situations where things have been tough and things haven’t worked out and, and maybe we did grow too fast or whatever it is, and, uh, sit back and just go, Hey, like, you can do it better. And maybe just take this burning moment. You could say like, walking on the coals. As a realization that um, hey, it’s great that you got here. It’s great that you put effort in, but now let’s look at how we can do things better.

Andy
A hundred percent, mate. And you know, I just reflect back on my time and you know, in business we have ups and downs and sometimes we’re flying and sometimes it’s a struggle. It’s about the grind and getting through it, but you’ve gotta look at yourself and am I actually at my best? Because if you are not at your best, your business isn’t at its best, your family isn’t at its best. And, and I just gotta look back six, six months ago, and I had a very close mate. We’d hang out five, six times a week close and he committed suicide. Now there’s a story behind that, but he committed suicide and obviously it’s not a great time. And, and I use the alcohol to probably numb that process. Now, I’ve never been a, a huge drinker but I haven’t been a small drinker either, have I? But I, all of a sudden I decided I’d have a scotch in the afternoon or at five o’clock at night, and then that scotch Ange would look at me and go, mate, that’s, that’s a double or a triple, is that a double scotch? And I go, no, no, there’s a lot of ice in it. You know, there’s a lot of ice. But I actually ice in it down. I actually measured it and it was like a three and a half. Uh, shot, you know, and, and then all of a sudden I’d have that shot and I’d feel really good. Could I’d get a good buzz buzz and then all of a sudden I’d have a beer, and then I’d go on beer, I’ll have another beer, and then, oh, I don’t wanna drink too many beer, so I’ll have a glass of red wine. And, and that’s how my week started to go. And all of a sudden, I was getting cranky. I was getting short. I had a couple of blowups of work. I was probably not treating Ange, the kids anywhere near I needed, I put on weight. I just wasn’t at my best. You know, I, I felt like I’d swallowed a sheep, you know? I was sitting at 92 kilos. I was heavy. I was sluggish. My head wasn’t clear, and it was just that point when this, I’ve gotta change it. I’m the guy that’s meant to be leading the trade industry and showing everyone where to go. And I’m in a real rut here and I hadn’t been in a rut like that for a very long time. So, you know, I got into PT and the training and eating well and I still drink and still have fun and, you know, 10 kilos lighter and going to gym four times a week. I am a different guy. And that’s a lesson for everyone is if you are in that rut, you gotta f**king pull yourself out of it cause no one else will.

Dave
Yeah, and Andy, um, you know, out of all that, you know, if we were having a really hard hearted conversation, I’d say, what part of blame do you feel that you actually taking on your mate losing his life, taking his life?

Andy
Yeah. Well, I took a lot of blame because I was very involved and, you know, even on that day I was meant to go into his house. So I won’t dive too much into it, but I took a lot of blame around that. And, um, when you start losing his shit like I did and the drinking, and this is what I, and I’ve, I’ve come across to this since with a lot of business owners.

Ange
Spiraling downwards.

Andy
Spiraling downwards, and all of a sudden it’s like, I’ve got too much work. I’ve got too much stress. This is happening. The tradies do, and everything’s just a constant drama.

Ange
And everything was an excuse.

Andy
You’re leaving this world of dramas and excuses. Now I’ve got a problem. I just deal with it and fix it and we move on. Listen, there’s no doubt about it. And there’s still a bit of that lingering with me today. Yeah. With what you said. You know, there’s regrets. I wish I did things differently. I’d never been in that situation before. And I’ve never seen myself as someone that’s ever had depression. I pray I’ve had low days. No doubt about it. So when he was there, I, I’m the rah rah guy, a bit like you. And I was like, come on mate, we just gotta fix this. Come on. And he, and I’d rev him up for a second. A day later, he’d be back down to zero.

Dave
So, uh, Andy, on that, you’ve mentioned a word fix. Yeah. Fix and solve is what we always wanna do.

Andy
Because we’re tradies in a way, right?

Dave
Yes. The, the true thing when it comes to holding on emotional baggage is to actually dissolve the pain that’s there to begin with. Yeah. And a lot of time we take on things in life when we carry it through and as we experience life and get older mm-hmm. When we’re experiencing things for the first time specifically, we hold onto it. And everyone’s met someone who holds baggage. Now, when we hold onto baggage, it is now a choice to actually keep holding onto it. You know, some people are, become aware of it and then continually hold onto it because it keeps them safe. This is the kind of work I do now, which is transcended way beyond fitness and that cause a lot of people get into fitness for these reasons, but I can train someone, I can turn ’em into a world champion that still does not take away the pain that they’re having before they go to sleep. Now that’s the whole thing that while I got into this training I saw as a way that I could help people, you know, like improve their health and all that. And you know, then I realized once I improve their health, they get their body, they get in shape, they get energy and all that kind of stuff. Imagine giving a high powered car to someone that doesn’t know how to drive. So I can improve someone’s body, but if they’re still holding onto this emotional pain, you know, then guess what? Then they are looking great and they’re still feeling the pain. And so, you know, the work I do now, especially with the Parman kids books and going into that, is actually the trauma work. Yeah. And so actually releasing so to, to some degree, like, you know, we’re not gonna go fully into this podcast, but there’s some level of, uh, guilt and responsibility that you are holding onto, uh, for something that, you know, a you never knew would go there and a lot of things in life happen because you didn’t expect it to happen. It just happened, how it happened, and a lot of times we then bear that pain forever. And that’s where these things knock you off, tilter. So everyone listening to this right now, whenever we go through life, there’s gonna be events that will knock us off, tilter, they will come at our left field and all that. A lot of things in life just have no reason behind it to a degree. It’s so sad. Now, obviously in hindsight, we wish we could do better. But especially when you lose loved one and all that is, you know, a lot of times you can’t go back in the past and a lot of people will then drink and eat and, you know, not look after themselves or themselves sabotage themselves in, in any way form, or they play a part in their own suffering.

Ange
Yeah. Gotta choose your reactions, right?

Dave
Well, yeah.

Ange
And although I think it’s important that people lean into that pain, like I think it’s important that Andy has gone through this process. You know, I, I think that’s good for someone’s healing process, but I do think it’s important that you stop at some point on self-reflection and say, I gotta do something about this cuz no one else is gonna do this for me. Yes. So if, if I need to get past this, or if I need to choose a better reaction so that I can live my life to the fullest that I possibly can, then only you can change it.

Dave
Totally. Yeah. And that’s, and that’s the doing part of it. Mm. And um, you know, making the choice to go, Hey, you know what, like despite what had happened, I can’t control that, but what I can control is moving on and doing the best I absolutely can. Because I guarantee anyone who you could ever come back to would say, Hey, guess what? Go get outta there rocking . You know, I wish I could, you know, you know, so it’s, um, you know, it is a topic and I talk at schools like, this is, you know, and on these topics, the thing is you can’t blame the person for going down that path. They saw things being black and white. That’s kinda like the nature of this, but, Yeah. But when you go through these things, I understand that we are human. You picked up, you got thrown off tilted cuz you are human too. You may be a superstar. Andy . Oh yeah. Like, but you’re also human, Andy. And that’s also why probably people connect with you so much cuz you’re real, you go through the grind, you experience things and also you actually don’t let ’em defeat you and which is a great testament of yourself. Mm-hmm. . And you know, that’s a great example too, and. You know, off air. I’ll talk about how to release that too. But understanding that whatever pain and suffering you’re going through it, it will help you grow. There’s a thing called post-traumatic stress, but there also, there’s a thing called post-traumatic, uh, growth, which is the next step. And that’s, you know, what I, I do talk about these days. So, yeah. So any,

Andy
That’s awesome.

Dave
Well done for getting back on and pulling yourself up. Yeah. Because um, you know, it’s commendable and that’s what I’ll say about that.

Andy
Thanks, mate.

Ange
You were saying that you now talk about this with kids. Mm-hmm. so. No, of course you do these books called Pow Man. Yeah. Specifically for children. Can you talk to us a little bit about that? Because what I love is what you’ve just been talking about. You’ve now kind of gone, I think this is important to talk about with grassroots so that these kids are mentally prepared for the future. Tell us a bit about that.

Dave
Totally. So the Pow Man Kids book is uh, helping kids, basically learn their life skills to deal with difficult situations and people without letting it defeat them. So in life, what’s one thing we’re gonna guarantee we can come across is bullying, difficult people, not getting what we want. All these kinds of things now, and let, instead of letting it defeat you, is let it actually, uh, grow you. You know? So if you can actually turn the negative experiences in your life to something that actually gives you something great, your strength, and realize that you’re actually grateful for the shit you went through. You know, and, and so it takes a bit of skill to do that cuz a lot of the time we will instantly be seen as the victim if we went through bullying and all that. Now for me, you know, I’m 32, I held onto my bullying experiences, which actually got me into kettlebells. The reason why I saw Mark as well is I had someone saying he’s gonna bloody beat me up. Yeah. And so for me, I was like, I better get it strong and get into this. So whatever reason why we got into it, like, hey, got me three world titles and all that, you know, sometimes, the way we get the gifts in life are through, you know, this thing, the, the best things, experiences. So if you can actually learn to turn a negative into a positive and rise beyond whatever you go through, you know, that’s beautiful. Yeah. It’s actually kind of becoming the alchemist of your life sort of thing.

Andy
Yeah, mate. So you’ve come from a small town with 500 people and I know you mentioned to our members when you talked on stage with our guys that your mum was super keen to be a tradie. Now I listen to you now and see your journey and what you’ve done and you like, you’re just an absolute superstar. How does your mom see you now from the early days of you just being a tradie to how far you’ve come since then?

Dave
Yeah. Well, uh, my mom, yeah, she really had a heart set on me becoming a tradie and, and that’s her want and desire. To be honest, I’m not sure my parents actually really understand what I do in today’s world and that, and that actually built me up a lot. So when we talk about these three world titles and all that kind of stuff, how many world titles do you think it took me to realize my worth is not conditional.

Andy
Oh, I think you mentioned earlier, was it three?

Dave
Three, yeah. .

Andy
That’s right. .

Dave
So check this out. So a lot of the time I talked about being desperate and all that. Yeah. You know, and I was doing a lot of talks on this sort of stuff. You’ve gotta be desperate, you’ve gotta do all this sort of stuff. But you know, to be honest, there was a lot of pain within me. And so for me, going out and doing a different path, you know, mate, that was different to what my parents wanted and all that sort of stuff. It was my vehicle for the moment to get me where I am now in life. But my mom just wants to see me happy. You know, she knows that now. So, you know, for her wanting me to do anything different, she’s just trying to do the best she could with what she had. She’s just trying to put me in the right direction. So anyone out there whose mom or dad has said, you should do this, you do do that. Understand they’re coming from a place of love. They’re not just trying to control your life, whatever it is. But, you know, when I was a young kid, I’d be like, no mom, I’m not gonna do that. I wanna do this. You know, and so there was a lot of, uh, resistance with myself around what my parents wanted me to do. But you know, I’ve come to this point now that my parents are just trying to do the best they can. You know, and, and for their kids. So anyone out there who’s fighting for their parents, is, just go, Hey, like understand they come from a place of love. They, they just dunno any other way to do it and go about what you wanna do anyway. Yeah. Because that’s how you’re gonna be happy with what you do. So.

Andy
Exactly.

Ange
You’ve definitely come a long way from, you know, these early days of these early stories of you being a tradie. And I know that when you spoke to our last Lifestyle Tradie members from stage, we were talking about the importance of actually taking checks, like pausing and looking back on the journey from when they literally first started their business and where they’ve come from. It kind of leads me to a question that I’d like to cue your opinion about, which is why is it important for anybody to reflect back on where they’ve been to where they are today?

Dave
Yeah, so the reason why it’s really, uh, important to reflect on where you are is because a lot of times we can be stuck comparing ourselves to other people’s success. And you know, I feel that we’re not enough now, to be honest, me, training free walk titles, doing all these different business ideas and working and all that. I was really working from a place, it’s not enough. Yeah. Why? Because my parents are still miserable. Mm. In some ways, you know, like now they’re actually, my dad just made a hobby farm and you know, they’re better, doing better than ever. But I used to have this viewpoint, this perspective that, you know, that my success is not enough. You know? And so that’s where I was really driven. A lot of people need to reflect and actually look at how far I’ve actually come to actually give yourself some credit. Because a lot of us, we work from a space of debit where we’re going, it’s not enough. We’ve gotta go bigger, you gotta have more people, gotta get more jobs, gotta do all this sort of stuff. And that actually squeezes the joy out of what we are doing. So once you actually sit down and reflect and actually go, Hey, I’m actually doing bloody good. My heart’s still beating, so I’m still, I’m still bloody in the game. That’s, you know, I tell people now, If you want a little check in to see if you’re still in the game or if you’ve really failed, if your heart’s still beating, you’re still in, you still win it. You know, you’re still in there. You’re not, you haven’t failed. So it’s really important to reflect on, uh, see how far you’ve come and just understand, hey, give yourself a bit of credit. You know, you’re doing great and you know, hey, maybe you’re doing some dumb stuff that you at the moment aren’t helping you. Acknowledge that, accept it. Don’t be in delusion and actually understand that we got yourself into a mess if you did. Yeah. You can also get yourself out.

Andy
And that’s a hundred percent right. We talked to so many tradies out there and you know, we’re all driving, everyone’s driving to be bigger and better. And the thing is, you don’t have to be bigger and better. You just gotta have the business that you want. With the lifestyle you want. And you know, we talk a lot about having the freedom to choose. It’s not about who’s making the most money or who’s doing the biggest turnover, or who’s making the most profit. It’s about being able to choose what you want outta life. Yes. To make sure you’re happy. Cuz if you’re not happy, there’s a problem and you’ve definitely gotta fix it. Mate, I just wanna talk a little bit about this 30 day challenge you do. You know, with my understanding of it, it really asks people to take on a solutions based mindset instead of a struggles based mindset, you know, for tradies out there and their partners listening, can you explain about your 30 day challenge and what’s involved with this?

Dave
Yeah. So, uh, the 30 challenges of the program I put together to give people a deadline to get started on their, on their goals. Yeah. Not only a deadline, but also got them to reflect on where they are currently at, get real of themselves. Cause a lot of time we go, ah, we’re not that bad, not that bad. It’s, you know, I’ll do it next week or whatever. And then the wheels bloody fall off and then, then you go, poor me, you know, why does this happen to me? Why do I gotta go to the doctors? Or whatever it is. Why is my business in the clacker? And so the 30 day challenge is just giving people a small, achievable window to go, Hey, where can I clean up myself, my lifestyle? You know, because we are a product of our environment. And so if we can set up our environment to actually be inclusive of our goals, we’re gonna plan to get there a lot easier. Yeah, that’s what a 30 day challenge is. I just help everyday people, you know, draw the line in the sand and go, Hey, for the next 30 days I’m gonna do things differently to get different results. And then that basically becomes their new routine and their new lifestyle. And you know, in the 30 day challenge, simple things that compliment their lifestyle and not complicate it. So therefore they get to end the 30 days and go, holy shit, I can actually go further. I can actually do this as my new routine and hey, I’ve got more energy. My staff are, uh, healthier themselves. They’re looking after themselves and you’re actually spiraling up or spiraling in a positive way, not a negative way, not bringing everyone down.

Andy
And I think sometimes with health, we look at it and we go, I know I need to be fitter. I know I need to be better. I know I may need to cut back on the alcohol, but then we go, ah, I just can’t be bothered at all. Ah, it’s too hard. But, you know, if you’re drinking three beers a day, it’s a win to go drinking one beer a day.

Dave
Totally.

Andy
You know, so it’s about small steps, steps, steps, yeah. Yeah. And that’s the big thing.

Dave
Yeah. Small steps. And, you know, a big thing is when it comes to your health and fitness, we all fall off track.

Andy
A hundred percent.

Dave
You know, that’s, that’s a given. We’re all gonna fall off track. Now what I like to say out there is, hey, if you fall off track, you know, fair enough, you may be taking on a lot of responsibility. So, uh, of course something’s gonna go, you know, fall off or whatever, but, um, you know, there’s a difference between falling off for three years compared to three months. Yeah. So if we go for three weeks, weeks to three months, Yeah. That’s success. If we go for three weeks to three days, Three dates, three hours. Three hours, three minutes and three seconds even. Mm-hmm. , you know, probably don’t wanna be known for only lasting three seconds, but , when it, when it, when, when it comes to having a, a shitty, uh, attitude or mentality. If you can recover after three seconds and bounce back from whatever challenge you face. Yeah. Hey, you are getting your life back. And that’s, that’s a big thing.

Andy
And I, and I think it’s, I always like to put things back to sport cause I love sport so much, but you look at, say the NRL or the AFL or whatever sport you follow, the soccer, whatever it is, but a lot of these guys, they will train the house down for like 10 months of the year or 11 months, but they have that time off where they let loose, they get on the beer, whatever it is for them. But I think a lot of us think you’ve gotta be perfect forever and you can’t, you’re gonna lose your way. But it’s about resetting, looking at where you’re moving forward and just going again.

Dave
Totally. You know, when you talk about being perfect forever. Yeah. Show me someone who’s perfect forever.

Andy
Well, no one.

Dave
No one. They don’t even exist. No. So perfectionism is, it shouldn’t be the aim, it’s just progress. You know, little steps and that and having fun and enjoying yourself. You know, I’ve got people when it comes to fitness and health, it’s like, hey, if you’re getting around getting social with your friends and having a beer that actually provides a great part of your lifestyle, you know, definitely your social group. That’s actually more important than sitting at home eating lettuce leaks. Yeah. And so, um, it’s finding that balance that works for you and your lifestyle, your body as well, and your health where attack cuz sometimes the wheels are really falling off. You’ve actually gotta give up the beer for 30 days, whatever it is. A lot of these, you know, people, if you’re a tradie out there listening is actually, you are on your own team right now. Yeah. You, you are a professional athlete. You chose your own business. Treat yourself like a professional athlete. You know, a lot of people treat themselves like bloody second grade athletes and then expect their business to flourish. And so, you know, uh, I’d even say like being in business is you gonna actually learn to go, hey, like, you’re not only the CEO, you know, you’re also the manager, all these different things. Start taking yourself seriously like a professional athlete and get behind yourself. You know, start bloody rip it in.

Ange
I think a lot of people are watching too, right? Meaning a lot of the members that we work with with Lifestyle Tradie have a team, like a lot of tradies don’t necessarily work on their own. Their dream is to grow and their thought process is to at least have one, if not multiple tradies that work with them. And therefore they have this position that they see themselves knowing that they are the leader and that this group is looking up to them, which is the truth, right? We talk about the fact that the reason why someone a tradesman has chosen that company to work with is because they’re actually attracted to that guy and the way he speaks and the way he paints the vision of the business and how they see that they’re, how they’re gonna fit in. And they generally stay because of the culture inside the business and because of that guy. And that is a lot of pressure on that business owner cuz they do see it like that too. They do go, I am responsible for this guy. I’m responsible for his family.

Dave
On that Ange. Instead of saying, you know, I’m responsible for that guy. Go, no, I am a guy that is responsible for more than just oneself. And actually go, Hey, this is how I live. This is my standard. You know, because a lot of people, you know when you’re talking about tradies that actually like to see themselves as a leader. I hope they see themselves as a leader cuz a lot of them don’t. A lot of ’em are sitting there, you know, they’ve got their staff out, their staff are thinking about going, oh plumber, what can I get away with? Sadly, a lot of tradies out there are letting their staff actually dictate the smoker breaks and how the, the attitude, the energy. You know, I’ve seen these people, uh, on job sites and you know, the reason why they don’t wanna get bigger in physics cuz more headaches. Yes. Because they’ve got more people that are just leeching off themselves.

Ange
You get what you tolerate though. You get what you tolerate, right?

Dave
That’s a big thing. So I hope anyone out there who’s, who’s tolerating a lot of shit right now. Yeah. Is going, Hey, you’re actually responsible for that. And if you wanna get bigger, you wanna get better with it, take ownership for it. If you are turning up like shit, don’t expect anything better.

Ange
And to your point, if you are that business owner. And we’ve just talked about how important it is to physically get better. And from a mindset perspective, show up with integrity every single day. And ensure that your team is seeing you do that too, because they’ll then hopefully be just like them.

Andy
Well, it all starts with yourself. You know, you gotta look at yourself in the mirror right now, in the division mirror, wherever you are listening to this podcast and actually think, am I at my best? Yes. And if you’re not, then you need to look at fixing. Mate, I just wanted to say, because you are a potential bachelor, on Channel 10, so do you reckon you would’ve fit into that reality tv?

Dave
Bloody fat.

Andy
What do you think?

Dave
Uh, the Bachelor is um,

Andy
Because what people can’t see here is you what, six foot two? If mate, he’s got a body like a God.

Ange
No. We’ll have to post those pictures. You see?

Dave
Podcast.

Ange
Good looking bloke.

Dave
No, look, The Bachelor, gotta ask for it. I posted online just to take the piss a little bit. Yeah. It’s just a reality show. I did, I did do some dating shows ages ago when I first released my kids’ books. It’s a bit of a joke. . Yeah. And uh, and that’s exactly what it was. A bloody joke. , if you go back and search it, it was a bit of fun. But, um, yeah, with The Bachelor, you know what, I’ve got friends that have been on it and I’ve actually got a girlfriend now, by the way. So, uh oh, there you go.

Ange
He’s taken down.

Dave
So you need to go on bachelor, but not the biggest fan of the reality shows. There actually is no truth to him at all. No, you know, sadly,

Andy
There’s too much behind the scenes. It’s all about what’s,

Dave
It’s not for reality and um, yeah, I’d rather just get out there and meet people in real life, you could say.

Andy
Yeah, exactly. So, mate, um, we like to play a little game, um, here, and what we’re gonna do is we are gonna shoot you three questions. You’re gonna have around about 30 seconds to answer them. Are you ready?

Dave
Ready! Sorry, that didn’t sound like I was, I was that ready? But I’m ready.

Andy
Are you ready?

Dave
Are you ready? I’m ready. .

Andy
Okay. So do you think you were born with this work hard mentality? And if you do, tell me why?

Dave
I think we’re all born, you know, quite like a helpless little baby. Yeah, right. I think we learn it through the environment of our upbringing, you know, so whatever worth is attached to something, so for me, my feeling’s working hard. Yeah. You know, that’s where I picked it up because for me, you know, if that’s valued in my society and in my life, my, my childhood, you know, I’m gonna go after that to get loved. Because for me, what I actually learned as growing up is a lot of the things in my life were actually conditional. If you weren’t this, you wouldn’t get a reward. Yeah. Right. So therefore you become a performer. So we’ve talked about all this stuff three times. Well chairman, how long did I have to live life as a performer before I realized like, I’m just worth it regardless, you know? And that’s where self worth really comes in. So anyone listening right now, you know, why is your business worth it? Cuz you are bloody worth it. There’s no question about it. Once you stop questioning that and get on with it, that’s where you can actually work hard and love it.

Andy
A hundred percent, mate. The second question is, if you grew up in the city instead of the country, do you think your life would’ve been different?

Dave
Oh, a totally different city of the country. Like my first gym was in a shed, right? Yeah. Now, maybe that could have started in a city, but my next gym in the studio, I paid $85 a week in an old abandoned doctor’s surgery, you know? And I renovated myself, and it was that rundown. They didn’t care what I did, so I just knocked walls out. I did all these different things. So it would’ve probably been harder to find a space to get into it. The thing is there’s way more people, you know, I would’ve just been outdoors and and started that way. So I think, uh, life would’ve a hundred percent been different. Maybe I wouldn’t have had the same vail or been outside and as much as, you know, I was growing up in the country, but to be honest, I didn’t grow up in a serious world who had no idea, but probably would’ve been different.

Andy
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Cool. And if you had one bit of advice for the trade business owners and their partners sitting out there right now, what would it be?

Dave
Biggest advice is, surround yourself with people that are winners not losers. Now, I don’t mean being in a bad way, where it’s like, you know, everyone’s losing nice stuff, but just look at someone’s life and how they’re living their life. A lot of people actually bring others down, talk crap. They play a game of who can do less, you know, who can drink more, who can do all these different things. And for anyone out there who’s feeling like they’re a little bit sick of that kind of lifestyle and not getting success. And you know, the thing is as you get older, you take on responsibility. And if anyone’s out there sitting there and taking on responsibility, but they don’t have people around them are actually cheering them on and pro success and helping them out. Find those people, get out there and find people that are, are doing what you wanna do. Because there was this one piece of advice that got sadly from my dad, but you know, he did the best he could with what he knew. But I remember this guy called Brad Booth, say, talking to me at school. He was the guy that came and spoke when I was in that program. Mm-hmm. And he said, successful people help people. And they love to see that drive. I remember going home that day and telling my dad and going, Hey Brad, this guy, he said he’ll help people and if you’re successful, you’re driven. You know, he’ll be able to help you out. And um, my dad actually turned around and went and looked at me and said, why the f would anyone help you? Who’s successful? They don’t help anyone. And I remember that defining moment. He was like, literally my, my little heart literally broke. Yeah, think of my dad. But then I looked at my dad and went, well actually you wouldn’t know cuz you haven’t been opened to be helped by anyone. You’ve always been shut off. You haven’t listened to anyone. The only people you listen to are negative people, and sadly you can get into that rut from your family upbringing where you come from is just listening to only those who wanna criticize you, but I actually chose to go against, you know what my dad’s advised me there. And I went and, um, chatted to Brad Booth and I actually told him that story years later. He said, if you had told that story, I would’ve hid you on the spot to come work for me. So the biggest thing, what you can do right now is right now you may not feel that you’re at a level two get help. You may not feel that you’re having the best health habits or whatever. You might be drinking too much. You might be, you know, not doing the best work you could say, but just understand that getting yourself out there and actually finding those people that you wanna be like or improve upon, just surrounding yourself for those people is the best way to actually get better.

Ange
Tall poppy syndrome here in Australia. It was rough.

Dave
Yeah. Yeah. Which is sad. People would rather bring people down, but that keeps them safe. And I can tell you now that uh, we don’t need any more people bringing us down. It’s really important to surround good people. And that’s a quick space. Cause osmosis just being around people to lift you up. Like right now, I’m mean you decided. Just been around, around you guys. Thanks. You can’t put a value on that. Like having supportive people, you know, is one of the most important things you can have in life. So get around people that you know, stand and wanna support you. That’s the biggest one.

Andy
A hundred percent. And mate, so we are looking into 2022, or we’re in 2022. What are the big goals you’ve set yourself up for this year?

Dave
Yeah. Well, I guess breaking a little bit away from the fitness side of things, I’ve got a new book coming out called Unbreakable. The tagline is, how to turn a breakdown into a Breakthrough to become a, uh, unbreakable.

Andy
I love it.

Dave
Now, the essence of that book is at the end I say, I hope by now you realize you’ve never broken to begin with. You just picked up things along the way that were never yours. Emotions, pain you took responsibility for things that aren’t yours to take responsibility for. And basically in that there’s a little process, we actually freeze sail from this emotional baggage because that’s what’s taken up space in our operating system. It stops us from actually growing and better than that, there’s a lot of judgment, guilt, and shame that we hold onto. So basically now it’s like tuning people up emotionally, so then they can go out and train better. They can eat better, they can do better, they can be a better father, brother, wife, whoever you wanna be. That’s the real path that I’m going to take. So 2022. I’ve got some cool stuff coming out for kids fitness-wise and just getting ’em moving. But yeah, unbreakable, that’s my new book and I’m really excited to see where that goes.

Andy
Awesome.

Ange
Dave, that is just awesome. Thanks so much for joining us today. I feel like we’ve really gotten into the nitty gritty of how to set ourselves up for success in this year of 2022, and absolutely smash it.

Andy
Mate, you’re an absolute superstar. You know how much Ange and I love you buddy, but just before we let you go, can you give us one big pow?

Dave
Pow!!!

Andy
Well, Ange, now I feel like I’m gonna hit the gym. Yep. . I feel pumped, but we should call it today.

Ange
Absolutely. Today’s been absolutely epic and I’m sure every single listener got so much out of that. Sounds good to me though. Catch you next week.

Andy
Catch you!