Recovering from a crushed ego, the need for acceptance and freedom with Ryan French
When a serious injury cut short Ryan French’s professional boxing career, it set him on a path to becoming a transformation coach and helping people achieve physiological and mental fitness.
Now Managing Director of Hitting Targets Limited, Ryan French shares the many insights and lessons he learned during his journey, particularly around getting to grips with a critically damaged ego!
In this episode we discuss:
01:20 About Ryan French
03:23 Ryan on how being seriously injured in a boxing match put him on the path to becoming a transformation coach
09:38 Ryan on dealing with loss when you’ve associated your identity with what you’ve lost
12:02 Sometimes, knowing you are wallowing in self pity doesn’t help you snap out of it
15:08 Did you blame yourself for sustaining injuries from that boxing fight?
17:00 Ryan on the biggest learning after the loss
19:13 Would you say you are grateful for the experience?
20:50 How Ryan’s clients benefit from his experiences as an ex-professional boxer
24:10 How have you adapted the routine and habits you picked up from boxing professionally into your work?
26:16 Ryan talks about getting kicked out of the army and how it changed his life
Quick Juice Questions
31:33 Do you invest? If so, what do you currently invest in?
“I’ve got an ISA. That is my limited experience with investing.”
32:01 What most inspires you? And when and where are you most inspired?
“I love being with nature.
My wife and I have got a golden retriever and a son. We go to the countryside quite a lot, near the seaside. Quite often, I’ll just have a moment where I just look out over the landscape and have that real sense of connectivity. That’s when I normally get my ideas.”
32:55 Which book has most inspired you and changed your thinking the most?
34:35 What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received and/or given?
“The world doesn’t revolve around you.”
39:25 If there’s one last bit of Executive Juice you can share for people who want to get to the top of their game, what would it be?
“You can listen to podcasts, spiritual stuff, and business books all you like. But if you don’t actually put into action the things you’re learning, then it’s all just soundbites.”
Links Mentioned:
Books Mentioned:
- The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
- The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
- Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsh
Quotes:
- That [boxing] was like a crutch I was using. If I needed to escape from reality, then I would start fighting again. Had I not gotten injured to a level where I couldn’t box again, I wouldn’t have faced it.
- I’m not a religious man, but there’s power in this universe that keeps everything going. My relationship with that power since going through that [fight loss] is pretty amazing.
- It [the coaching] is client-led, very organic. All I do is ask them questions and they find the answers themselves. But, hearing penny-drop moments and you see the results of that, after days like that I have this deep sense of peace and purpose.
- When I’ve got that experience of performing at a high level and also being able to come back off of a life-changing injury to be able to move into an area of peace and still produce results in business and life, that adds a lot of confidence to the people I’m working with.
- Having that ability to still be having a goal in the future while acknowledging how far you’ve come is a really useful tool to use. You can sometimes forget, “Yes, this is where I am and this is where I want to get to, but look how far I’ve come.”
- My life is much more fulfilled and much more joyful when I put someone else’s needs before mine and try and be of service to someone else. That is when I feel most alive.