#1692 - Jason Wilson

Joe Rogan (0:04)

The Joe Rogan Experience.

Honor to meet you too. You know, I've paid attention to your videos, and I follow you on Instagram, and so many times, I've watched your videos and said, that's an authentic guy. Like, I want to meet that guy, I want to talk to him. So, I was really excited that you were willing to do this.

Jason Wilson (0:30)

Oh man, I was honored, you know, let me turn this, I guess. I was really honored.

When I reached out to you on Instagram, I was surprised that you were following me. I was blown away, man. I just said, man, you know, I've been watching you for a while, and I was just, you know, when you offered for me to come here, man, I just was just ecstatic. So thanks, man, it's an honor.

Joe Rogan (0:49)

Oh, my pleasure. You know, I think one thing that young boys and men as well need in this world is guidance.

And mentorship, and to get that from martial arts is one of the best ways and one of the most, one of the most fulfilling and satisfying ways. So I found you from a video that a bunch of people sent me of you working with a young boy who was having a hard time dealing with the pain of like punching through a board. You know the video. And just the way you were communicating with him and letting him know that it's okay to cry and that, you know, just express yourself. And it was refreshing and it was authentic. But it was also like, you could tell, like, that kid is going to get a lot out of that exchange. And I was like, I want to meet that guy.

Jason Wilson (1:36)

Well, yeah, man, I mean, that video opened my mind up to really what me and we're dealing with inside. Because when that video went viral, our offices at our nonprofit had to shut down. Really? Okay, so the Cave of Adullam, the martial arts program you're speaking of, is under the umbrella of our nonprofit, The Union. And so when this video went viral, my wife calls me, who was our executive director. She says, Jason, is there a video that's going viral? And I'm like, what do you mean? 2016, I didn't really understand the terminology.

And sure enough, this video started racking up a lot of views.

Shortly thereafter, our phones wouldn't stop ringing. And it was men from all over the world crying to our staff, calling in crying saying, I want to be free. I'm tired of holding all of this in. I wish my coach would have talked to me that way when I was going through a lot.

Joe Rogan (2:28)

Well, it's hard to find a good mentor. And I think every man needs a mentor. And one of the things that martial arts does that I think is really important is it gives you these goals to work towards as you move through a belt system or whatever kind of system that each martial art that's different has.

As you develop your skills and you get more proficient and you improve, you have like tangible progress and you can see it. And I think there's a lot of people that go through life not exactly sure where they stand, where they're at. And I think martial arts provides you with real feedback in one of the most, I think one of the most emotionally and physically difficult things that a person can do.

Jason Wilson (3:17)

Yes, and so many people don't realize the young boy in that video, Bruce, he was actually had a fear of failure. He had broke that board easily the week prior. But because of this test and the pressure and everyone watching, he just froze on his non-dominant hand and he couldn't break through. So he broke down crying and I welcomed his tears and said, look, we cry as men, you know, let this go. And men, and I love about martial arts more than sports, it makes you face your fears.

And nothing like if a punch is coming at you, a kick, or if you're grappling and you're concerned if someone's going to take your back and choke you.

I apply all these principles in life as well. And so when you give a man or a male a safe space to really be emotional and let go of the anxiety that he feels every day, the father wound, his fear of failure, his lack of confidence, where he can have a moment, we call it a moment on the mat, where you can stop the training and you can express what's overwhelming you in that moment, they transform instantly, man, and it's a great thing to see. And I've never seen anything work like the arts. Even with my son, he's 13 years old, you saw him, you know, 6'1 and a half, everyone says, you're going to play basketball, and it's like, no, it's other things that I want to do. And so even with sports, I say, son, it'll give you some confidence, but when we spar, we're training, the anxiety he feels, the voices, oh man, Chris hit you again, what are you going to do about that, how are you going to maneuver, how are you going to respond? And I allow him to break down in that moment, I say, okay, cool, now it's time to recover, reflect on it. What's the lie? What's the truth? Do you think this man is not supposed to hit you? He's a skilled fighter.