Kyo Conversations

Chef and Iron Chef America winner Mark Tarbell opens up about nearly drowning, spending the next three decades sleeping only two to four hours a night, and eventually learning to use breath, meditation, service, and the pause to make better decisions. He also reveals the obsessive preparation behind his Iron Chef victory, why he refuses to live in past glory, and how saying no can become a gift. Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — The question that opens every interview: “Who are you?” 00:14 — Mark Tarbell on having the heart of a servant 00:45 — Where Mark’s generosity and humility began 01:33 — The grandmother whose home was always open 02:03 — Nearly drowning and realizing we are one breath away 02:46 — When a high achiever discovers he is not in control 04:30 — Sleeping two to four hours a night

Marc breaks down why 90 days is the right container for real change, then walks you through the two-layer exercise that actually anchors a season: your one professional outcome, and how you want to show up while you work towards that outcome. That second layer is the one almost everyone skips, and it's exactly why hitting a goal doesn't always feel like winning. This is episode two of a 7-part series teaching you how to build your own 90-Day Mental Fitness Blueprint by hand. Start with episode one if you haven't yet — this one builds directly on your baseline scores. Have your plan built for you in 15 minutes → blueprint.mchampagne.com Use code POD50 for 50% off while this series airs. Special props

We were promised that more data would give us more control. Somewhere between the sleep score and the blood panel, many of us stopped asking how we actually feel. After stepping away from the demanding executive career that had shaped much of her identity, physician and healthcare leader Dr. Nasim Afsar was forced to confront a deeper question: Who are you when the role, schedule, and story that defined you are suddenly gone? In this conversation, Nasim and Marc explore identity beyond achievement, the danger of trying to fix every uncomfortable emotion, and the growing anxiety surrounding wearables, supplements, testing, peptides, and longevity protocols. They also examine how unified health data and artificial intelligence could create a more personalized and human healthcare system—provided that people remain the owners of their information and the centre of every decision. This is a conversation about becoming whole, trusting how you feel, and remembering that no technology can replace sleep, movement, pu

Most people are functioning but very few are thriving and we all deserve to thrive more days than not. In ten minutes, Marc walks you through the 7 pillars of the Mental Fitness Assessment — Clarity, Adaptability, Emotional Agility, Focus, Sleep & Recovery, Rumination, and Stress Load — and shows you how to self-score honestly across all seven. More importantly: what the relationship between your highest and lowest pillar actually reveals. Not a weakness to fix but your single biggest opportunity for the season ahead. This is episode one of a 7-part series teaching you how to build your own 90-Day Mental Fitness Blueprint by hand. Or — if you'd rather have yours built for you based on your actual answers — that option takes about 15 minutes. Have your plan built for you in 15 minutes → blueprint.mchampagne.com Use code POD50 for 50% off while this series airs. Special props

How would your life change if every setback wasn't blocking your path—but redirecting it? A devastating warehouse fire. Years of uncertainty. A company that nearly didn't survive. For Barrett Ersek, CEO & Founder of Holganix those moments became the foundation for a mission that's now transforming agriculture, helping farmers regenerate soil, improve profitability, and remove carbon from the atmosphere. But this conversation goes far beyond business. Barrett shares the deeply personal experiences that reshaped how he leads—from a life-changing lesson on gratitude to an extraordinary psychedelic journey where he believes his late mother revealed a completely different way to build companies, lead people, and live. Together, Marc and Barrett explore entrepreneurship, purpose, family, resilience, regenerative agriculture, leadership, intuition, and what it truly means to live in "flow." Whether you're building a company, raising a family, or simply navigating uncertainty, this episode offers a refreshing re

Leo Rossi spent decades behind the scenes with legendary artists including Fleetwood Mac, The Who, Brian Wilson, Prince, Chaka Khan, and many of the musicians who shaped modern music. But this conversation isn't really about rock and roll. It's about purpose. Leo shares remarkable stories from inside music history, the lessons he learned from creative geniuses, how one decision at 15 years old altered the course of his life, and why losing his son ultimately led him toward a mission that's impacting children around the world. This is a conversation about legacy, generosity, faith, and living the magic of every moment.   Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — "I'm the luckiest guy on Earth." 02:00 — Why authentic conversations create deeper connections 04:05 — Accidentally finding a career backstage 0

For years, we've been told burnout is something individuals need to fix with better habits, stronger resilience, or another meditation app. But what if we've been asking the wrong question? In this episode, former Deloitte Chief Well-Being Officer and author of Hope is the Strategy, Jen Fisher shares why burnout is often the outcome of broken workplace systems—not broken people. Together, we explore hope as a practical leadership strategy, why organizations continue admiring the data instead of changing behavior, how AI is reshaping humanity at work, and why the next generation may be our greatest reason for optimism. Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — The question that opens every interview: "Who are you?" 01:25 — Burnout forced Jen to redefine success 03:40 — Becoming one of the world's first Chie

Why is it that some ideas spread effortlessly while others disappear, even when they're objectively better? Colin Hodge joins Marc Champagne to explore the psychology behind startup growth, customer behavior, identity transformation, and the lessons learned from building successful companies over the last decade. They discuss why empathy is the foundation of sustainable growth, how entrepreneurs become trapped by their identities, the surprising role journaling and reflection have played in Colin's success, and what separates products people try from products they keep coming back to. Whether you're building a business, launching a creative project, or simply trying to create meaningful change in your own life, this conversation offers a powerful framework for understanding how people think, decide, and grow.   Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https:

How would your life change if you could see the patterns running your future before they became your reality? For more than twenty years, Dave has used journaling as a tool for clarity, growth, and self-discovery. What began as a simple writing practice evolved into Reflection, a platform helping people capture their thoughts, identify patterns, and better understand themselves. In this conversation, Marc and Dave explore why self-awareness is becoming one of the most valuable skills in a rapidly changing world, how reflection can help us navigate uncertainty, and why the future of AI may be most powerful when paired with deeper human insight. They also discuss journaling as a thinking partner, the surprising lessons hidden in old journal entries, emotional intelligence, parenting, mental fitness, and how small reflective practices can create extraordinary long-term change.   Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal S

This is a conversation about fear, obsession, and what happens when a scientist decides to rebuild the limits of human creativity. Marc sits down with Alex Mehr (scientist, entrepreneur, and founder of Famous Labs) for a conversation on mental resilience, entrepreneurship, and the future of AI-assisted creativity. Alex opens up about leaving his dream role at NASA, the emotional volatility of building companies, and the practical mental tools he uses to navigate fear, anger, desperation, and uncertainty. Make sure to check out Famous AI, the platform I used to build the Mental Fitness Blueprint!    Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — The question that opens every interview: “Who are you?” 01:00 — Alex’s transition from NASA scientist to entrepreneur 03:00 — Why curiosity alone isn’t enough in busines

Lately, I’ve been feeling like more and more people are quietly asking the same question: Is there something more going on beneath the surface of everyday life? So for this special roundtable episode, I sat down with Erin Maechler and Valentin Randon for a deep conversation on consciousness, intuition, meditation, altered states, remote viewing, and the future of human potential. We explored why so many people feel a shift happening right now, how consciousness may extend far beyond the brain itself, and why topics once dismissed as “woo-woo” are now being studied through science, performance, and human optimization. From the Monroe Institute and Joe Dispenza to telepathy studies, visualization, and peak performance, this conversation challenged even my own assumptions about what may actually be possible. Whether this world feels completely familiar to you or totally new, my hope is that this episode simply opens the door to more curiosity, deeper questions, and a new perspective on what it means to be human.

This is a conversation about the invisible emotional weight people carry into work every single day and what happens when someone finally makes space for it. I sat down with Courtney O’Brien (HR leader and community builder) to explore the hidden emotional world inside modern workplaces. We unpack psychological safety, anxiety, spirituality at work, powerful questions, collective healing, and why humanity may be the most overlooked leadership skill of our time. From fear of flying and nervous system regulation to AI companionship and emotional intelligence in corporate culture, this episode challenges the idea that professionalism requires disconnection from ourselves. Courtney shares why she believes work can become a spiritual teacher, how shame silently shapes human behavior, and the simple practices that help people reconnect to themselves—and each other.   Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better

What if the life you’re searching for is hidden inside the things you’ve stopped noticing? Matt Hranek — founder of WM Brown, bestselling author, and storyteller — joins Marc for a conversation about curiosity, craftsmanship, ritual, and the beauty of slowing down in a world addicted to speed. From photography and magazine culture to watches, coffee, saunas, and storytelling, this episode explores how presence and observation can completely reshape the way we experience life. Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 01:00 — Becoming “the world’s most interested guy” 02:00 — How Matt’s father shaped his eye for observation 03:00 — The first camera that changed everything 04:30 — Studying photography and art history in Europe 06:00 — The energy of 1990s magazine culture 07:30 — Why Matt knew digital photography wou

Former YouTube leader David joins Marc to break down the psychology of great content, what most creators misunderstand about the platform, and what he learned helping build monetization products for creators at YouTube. The conversation also explores burnout, mental health, identity shifts after parenthood, and how David walked away from a high-pressure career at YouTube to build a business aligned with his purpose. Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — “Who are you?” 02:22 — Why structure, simplicity, and consistency matter more than ever 04:35 — The real reason Marc wants to relaunch Behind the Human on YouTube 05:18 — David’s early fascination with YouTube and creator culture 08:09 — The pressure of leadership, parenthood, and burnout at YouTube 10:22 — David opens up about depression and taking m

There’s a moment in every life when what once worked stops working and you have to decide what to do next. Cecily Mak explores the space most people live in—but rarely talk about: the in-between. Not addiction, not crisis but the awareness that something in your life no longer feels aligned. Through her journey of stepping away from alcohol, Cecily discovered that the real work was about listening. Listening to intuition, to patterns, to the subtle negotiations we make with ourselves every day. This conversation goes far beyond habits. It’s about identity, self-awareness, and the courage to create space in a world designed to keep you distracted. Show Partners: Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life   Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne   Timestamps: 00:00 — The question that opens every interview: “Who are you?” 02:00 — A dream, a council of elders, and messages from lineag

He grew up without limits—roaming forests, facing pain, and learning what it means to be human before the modern world could tell him otherwise.Csaba Lucas shares a radically different perspective on what it means to be human—shaped by a childhood in socialist Hungary, years of elite athletic training, and decades spent living with tribal cultures across Africa, the Amazon, and beyond.From learning meditation through pain… to understanding the human body through survival… to witnessing how modern systems disconnect us from ourselves, this conversation challenges nearly every assumption we hold about health, longevity, and identity.Csaba breaks down why most modern “optimization” is missing the point, how we’ve become disconnected from our natural intelligence, and why the future will reward those who deeply understand themselves.Show Partners:Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip SaunasPersonal Socrates: Better Question, Better LifeConnect with Marc

She spent years mastering the game of business… only to realize the real work was learning how to let go.Julie Meyer spent decades building a global consulting firm, working with some of the world’s biggest brands.Julie opens up about the reality behind high performance—the patterns, pressure, and identity tied to achievement—and what it took to step away from it all.From becoming a “recovering hustler” to embracing a slower, more intentional chapter of life, Julie shares what it means to rebuild from the inside out.Show Partners:Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip SaunasPersonal Socrates: Better Question, Better LifeConnect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagneTimestamps:00:00 — The question that opens every interview: “Who are you?”01:00 — Julie’s current chapter: joy, intention, and awareness03:15 — The perspective shift that comes with life experience05:00 — “Recovering hustler”: her early identity and self-doubt06:30 — Failing school, re

Before the whisper, it looked like a life of meaning—until a subconscious message exposed everything underneath.Ben Katt shares the moment that forced him to confront a truth most people avoid: you can build a life that looks meaningful on the outside—and still feel completely disconnected on the inside.After years as a pastor serving others, Ben hit a breaking point that exposed how much of his identity was built on achievement, expectation, and performance. What followed was a journey into the unknown—through burnout, self-inquiry, and ultimately a radical redefinition of who he was.This episode explores the uncomfortable but necessary path of shedding old identities, sitting in uncertainty, and learning how to reconnect with something deeper.Show Partners:Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip SaunasPersonal Socrates: Better Question, Better LifeConnect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagneTimestamps:00:00 — The question that opens every inte

Anna Gudmundson, CEO of Sensate, explores the intersection of technology, nervous system regulation, and human potential.From growing up in Northern Sweden with a deep curiosity for systems, to building a career in early-stage tech, Anna shares how she began to see her own behaviors as patterns—“bugs in her code”—that could be understood and improved.But everything changed when years of stress led to a complete breakdown in her health. What followed was a deep journey into functional medicine, meditation, breathwork, and nervous system awareness—ultimately reshaping how she lives, works, and leads.This conversation explores how to regulate your internal state in a chaotic world, why most people are operating far below their potential, and how combining ancient practices with modern technology may be the key to a more resilient future.Show Partners:Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip SaunasPersonal Socrates: Better Question, Better LifeConnect with

Sleep isn’t just rest—it’s the foundation of your memory, attention, emotional stability, and decision-making.In this conversation, Dr. Michael Breus, “The Sleep Doctor,” breaks down why sleep is the true currency behind mental fitness—and why most people are unknowingly operating at a massive disadvantage.From debunking popular trends like mouth taping and blue light blockers to explaining why the 5AM club doesn’t work for most people, this episode cuts through the noise and brings you back to what actually matters.You’ll walk away with simple, science-backed ways to improve your sleep, sharpen your thinking, and take back control of your energy. Make sure to take your Chronoquiz! Show Partners:Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip SaunasPersonal Socrates: Better Question, Better LifeConnect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagneTimestamps:00:00 — The question that opens every interview: “Who are you?”01:30 — Dr. Breus on curiosity, education,