On Good Authority: Publishing the Book that Will Build Your Business

Kevin Chiu is the co-founder of Catalyst, an NYC-based startup that has raised $5.5M from top venture capitalists like True Ventures & Work-Bench to build a customer data platform that helps tech companies reduce user churn and increase product adoption. Prior to starting Catalyst, he led sales teams at fast-growing companies like Greenhouse Software and DigitalOcean. Kevin also recently received the Forbes 30under30 award for Enterprise Technology entrepreneurs.   He is also two years sober, after a series of incidents that showed him he may have a drinking problem (including a time he got mugged while in a blackout). If you want to know the secret to getting sober and then raising millions of dollars, this one is a must-listen.

In 2014, Willam (Bill) Freer launched the first Family & Friends SMART Recovery meeting in Washington, DC. He was elected to the SMART Recovery Board in 2017 and was named chair of its first Communications Committee. That same year, he became a founding Board member of SMART Recovery International. He helped write the SMART Recovery Five-Year Strategic Plan: Freedom from Addiction.   Now serving as President of SMART Recovery, Bill was a guest on our recent Light Hustle retreat where we were able to sit down and chat about the history of SMART, why this program appeals to certain types and how they have a special rule about how you can't trash AA, among other topics.

Todd Zalkins is an addiction specialist, private counselor, interventionist, and public speaker.   The author of the memoir, Dying for Triplicate, Zalkins was the subject of the award-winning documentary The Long Way Back: The Story of Todd “Z-Man” Zalkins, which documented his own descent into addiction as well as his relationship with the band members of Sublime.   Todd is the Founder and CEO of Four Keys, Inc., an integrative enterprise that encompasses four major aspects of recovery: interventions, treatment recommendation, private counseling, and public speaking & education.   We got to know each other at the recent Light Hustle Publishing retreat, where we talked about sharing our stories, ate s'mores (Todd's first!) and sat down to record a chat about addiction, publishing and what it was like growing up in the belly of the beast.

We break from our regular programming of stories and interviews for a guided meditation designed to help you get in your body, breathe and then access the part of you necessary to share your story.   If you think you may have a story inside of you but haven't been sure how to access it, give this meditation a try.   We'll be back next week with another interview. But in the meantime, why not give this a try?

Mia is a teetotaling NYC broad currently living in LA. She gave up drinking in September of 2015 when she finally stopped ignoring the fact that she would never live the life she so craved if she didn't remove the booze. After nearly 4 years of living this unmasked lifestyle, she has organically created a community online of like-hearted women. Mia is currently facilitating alcohol-free adventure retreats, hosting book club circles and will soon be launching her signature Get High Naturally Breathwork and Coaching programs for the Gray Area Drinker.   In this episode, we talked about finding a community in recovery, how sobriety may give you a "second" marriage and getting out of your comfort zone, among many other topics.

Ruby Warrington is a British writer and thought leader currently living in Brooklyn, NY. Formerly Features Editor on the UK Sunday Times Style magazine, in 2012 she launched The Numinous, a cosmic lifestyle platform that updates all things "new age" for life in the Now Age. Ruby also works as a consultant, while other projects include "sober curious" event series Club SÖDA NYC and spiritual coaching program Moon Club.   Author of Material Girl, Mystical World, Ruby's second book, Sober Curious, was published on December 31 2018. Offering an eye-opening new way to think about our relationship with alcohol, Sober Curious reveals the enormous benefits that come from unlearning the mindless habit of drinking and embracing the life-enhancing choice of sobriety: greater joy, clarity, confidence, and connection.   In this episode, we talked about what it means to be sober curious, the importance of sharing our stories and why one should never sign a new business deal when Mercury is in Retrograde, among many other topics.

Omar Pinto is a Life Transformation Coach, Addiction Recovery Specialist and Lifestyle Entrepreneur who hosts the popular SHAIR podcast.   He took his last drink and hit of cocaine in May 25, 2003. This was the beginning of his journey into personal development.   Over the next 15 years he would completely transform his life - Mind, Body and Spirit. It took him four years to successfully complete the 12-Step recovery process in Narcotics Anonymous.   He launched SHAIR in February 2014 and it now boasts over 1 million downloads. Omar has also cultivated a thriving Facebook Community with over 5,000 members and runs a successful personal development Life Coaching business.   Today, Omar is living his dreams by helping people transform their lives and become the best version of themselves, working remotely from his home office with clients from all over the world, continuing to learn and grow as a coach all while living in Costa Rica with his beautiful wife and daughter.

Arlina Allen is many things. A Silicon Valley executive, she is also a writer, the host of The ODAAT Chat podcast and the founder of Sober Life School. Sober since 1994, she's been married for 21 years and is the mother of two teenage boys.   In her own words...   "When I was 25 I hit rock bottom.   I had managed to alienate my family and all my friends. Although I was ambitious, my drinking and using was getting the way of my sales career. My heart was broken after ending a relationship and I had no evidence that I would ever feel different.   I stood at the abyss and I had to make a decision.   Through a series of fortunate events, I managed to find a community of people who had overcome their addictions and were willing to help me do the same.   These people changed the entire trajectory of my life.   I started out feeling lost, full of self loathing, demoralized and hopeless. But after a short time, my life began to transform. I felt a new zest for life. I began to see life beyond addiction. It was as if the veil in front of my eyes had lifted and I could see a path to the life I had always dreamed of.   All I ever needed was the right information, the right support and the willingness to do the necessary work. For that, I will be forever grateful.   After this type of “near death” experience, it is human nature to want to shout the message of recovery to the entire world."   In this episode, we talk about long-term sobriety, dating cops and why it's so important to share your story with the world.

Anna David is a NY Times bestselling author, journalist, occasional TV talking head, coach, creator of this podcast, CEO of Light Hustle Publishing and the person typing these words.   This story involves the time she opted to respond to a missive from a stranger that read "I'm hot and you're hot; plus, I'm sober and you're sober."   But was he sober? Well, that's something she found out more about when he moved from LA to New York to be with her. Just how did this love story end? You're going to have to listen to find out.

Bucky Sinister s a stand-up comedian and author of nine books, including Black Hole: A Novel and Get Up: A 12-Step Guide to Recovery for Misfits, Freaks and Weirdos.   He's told many stories at numerous shows—including one where he brought a now-deceased friend (in an urn) up on stage with him—but it's safe to say this is the most graphic tale he's told at a Light Hustler show.   Just how does a story about dating a mysterious woman with a mohawk get graphic? Let's just say it has to do with a tattoo of hers he discovered in an intimate moment.   Want to know what in God's name that means? You're going to have to listen.