Rich Roll on Growth, Greatness & Letting Go

Rich Roll (0:01)

It's not really about the amount of time you have. It's about the day that you're in or the moment that you're in. There's always room for improvement. And I think greatness or mastery is pursued in the process of self-knowledge and self-understanding in a fearless and courageous way. That's what we're here to do, man.

Michael Gervais (0:30)

Welcome back or welcome to the Finding Mastery podcast. I am your host, Dr. Michael Gervais, by trade and training a high-performance psychologist.

Today's guest needs no introduction, but I am thrilled to do it anyway. Rich Roll is a world-renowned ultra endurance athlete, a plant-based fitness advocate, a best-selling author, host of the hugely popular Rich Roll podcast, husband, father, and he's also a good friend.

This is Rich's fourth time on Finding Mastery. His episodes are often some of our most popular ones, and there is a good reason for that. His humility and frank discussion on his sobriety and recovery and his internal challenges and how he navigates them, as well as his courage and commitment to challenge himself to his edges, to his limits, to be his very best.

The whole package here is a real inspiration to me. In today's conversation, we dive deeper into what it means to work to be present, to really be present, the rewards of service and giving back, and the search for moments of awe every day. And then we're going to do something fun and a little bit different. We sourced your questions for Rich and I to wrestle with, and we had an absolute blast diving into those questions. That will come in the second half of the conversation. So be sure to stay tuned there. So with that, let's get into it once again with the incredible Rich Roll. I'm so stoked to be here with you.

Rich Roll (2:10)

The piercing eyes of Dr. Gervais penetrating the soul. It was all casual a minute ago. And then as soon as you clapped and were on, like the way that you are able to just look at somebody, I know you're not doing it to get people back on their heels or anything like that, but there is definitely a thing of like, oh, the good doctor is in session.

Michael Gervais (2:33)

He's in session, yeah. Can you imagine like spending eight hours? So that's how I structure my days now with a client, whether with an athlete or a performer, like eight hours in a room with me. And by the end, we're both exhausted.

And the truth that we get to, the insights, the understandings, the best practices that fold from there, but there's nowhere to go.

Rich Roll (2:53)

Yeah, nowhere to hide. No detail goes unnoticed.

Michael Gervais (2:57)

It goes unchecked.

Rich Roll (2:57)

Right?

Michael Gervais (2:58)

Yeah, so good.

Rich Roll (3:00)

Does anybody freak out?

Michael Gervais (3:03)

Relatively, you know, that's a relative term.

Rich Roll (3:06)

Boxed into a corner.

Michael Gervais (3:07)

There's just nowhere to go. But that, I think that we're so busy dancing and shifting and conforming and wanting to be part of something that we trade some of ourself to belong, that when you get into a room and it really is about you being completely you, all of your frailties and all of your ambitions and your scar tissue that it's like, oh, I'm here. This is me. And that is such a rich gift, you know?

But before we jump into all of that, do you have anyone in your life that sees you that way?

Rich Roll (3:41)

Oh, my wife definitely sees me that way. Yeah. There's no getting around it.

Michael Gervais (3:47)

I figured you were gonna say that.

Rich Roll (3:48)

And it's a gift. I wouldn't say it's a gift and a curse. It's a gift, but it's also a dynamic that presents its own challenges. Like I was gonna say, with what you just shared, that experience must be cathartic and freeing at the end of it, but also it's hard to be confronted with your truth or to be in a situation where your blind spots are revealed to you. And if you can inhabit curiosity around that, it's great.

But also, who wants to deal with their character defects? You know what I mean?

Michael Gervais (4:28)

Don't we just drink those away? Oh no, you did that for way too long.

Rich Roll (4:32)

As they say, Michael, it worked until it didn't work. Until it didn't work. But it worked for a minute.

Michael Gervais (4:38)

Until you kind of ran thin of those buffers. Yeah, so how long you been sober?

Rich Roll (4:44)