In this interview, I’m joined by Joe Polish. Described by many as “the world’s most connected man”, Joe is the Founder of Genius Network and Genius Recovery.

The former is one of the world’s largest and most exclusive communities of entrepreneurs, while the latter is a nonprofit Joe established with the aim of changing the global conversation around addiction.

He is the author of two books: Life Gives to the Giver and What’s In it For Them, which this interview focuses on.

His story is pretty incredible too. After suffering sexual abuse as a child, Joe later fell into problematic substance use and other forms of addiction to numb the pain. When he eventually managed to get sober with the help of 12-step meetings, he then set up a carpet cleaning business, taught himself marketing, and gradually became one of the most connected entrepreneur’s on the planet.

To give you an idea, he’s the person Richard Branson goes to for marketing advice for his nonprofits.

This conversation will give you an idea into Joe’s thinking and philosophy as we discuss things like:

— The surprising connection between entrepreneurship and addiction

— How thoughtfulness can radically improve your life

— Why Joe invests more time, attention, money, and effort into relationships than any other area of life, and why you should too

— How suffering creates opportunities for connection

— What he learned from taking a year long sabbatical.

And more.

You can learn more about Joe’s work and book at: joepolish.com, Genius Recovery at https://geniusrecovery.org, and Genius Network at https://geniusnetwork.com.

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Joe Polish is the Founder of Genius Network®, one of the highest level groups in the world for Entrepreneurs. He curates the Annual Genius Network Event, Genius Network ($25,000), and 100k ($100,000), all three groups being home to some of the most successful Entrepreneurs alive, and is considered one of the most influential Connectors in the world.

Joe has also helped build thousands of businesses and generated hundreds of millions of dollars for his clients. He has been featured in INC, Fortune, Forbes, Success, U.S News & World Report, among others, and has spoken at Stanford University. Joe also hosts three of the top ranked marketing and business podcasts on iTunes, including iLoveMarketing, 10xTalk, and GeniusNetwork. He’s also changed the lives of many others through his charitable causes including: The Make-A-Wish Foundation, Artists For Addicts, Genius Recovery, JoeVolunteer.com, as well as being the single largest contributor to Sir Richard Branson’s charity, Virgin Unite.

His documentary “CONNECTED: The Joe Polish Story,” premiered at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre (formerly Mann’s Chinese Theatre), and his documentary “Black Star” won the Audience Choice Award at the Sedona Film Festival. Joe’s mission with Entrepreneurs and Genius Network® is “to build a better entrepreneur,” and his mission with Genius Recovery is “to change the global conversation of how people view and treat addicts with compassion, instead of judgment and to find the best forms of treatment that has efficacy and share those with the world.”

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Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro
01:05 - Entrepreneurship, Addiction, and the Search for True Success
13:38 - Transforming Entrepreneurs and Addressing Addiction
23:18 - Lessons from Sean Stephenson
29:14 - How Pain Shapes Empathy and Connection
40:39 - The ELF Approach
54:36 - Unlearning for Growth
1:04:33 - Practical Tips for Building Meaningful Relationships
1:14:56 - Joe’s Book and Resources

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Interview Links:

— Joe’s website - https://joepolish.com