Alchemy Podcast with Doug Cartwright

Some conversations feel less like interviews and more like something that needed to happen. Doug and Bob Peck have been in each other's orbit for years — two guys who found their way to Ram Dass, Alan Watts, Christ, and Milarepa not through a single tradition but through a relentless hunger for what's actually true. In Episode 78, they finally sat down and went deep.

Bob Peck, author of Original Sin is a Lie, and what Doug calls a genuine spiritual philosopher, brings a rare combination of academic grounding and lived devotion. Together they explore the idea that underneath every religion, every tradition, every awakened master, there is one substance. Bob calls it the volcano, the original eruption of undeniable love and insight that slowly cools into institutional rock over centuries. Doug names it more simply: capital L Love.

Doug also brings something no theology class can teach: the perspective of someone navigating stage four glioblastoma, who walked into a radiation session after feeling a quiet part of his soul whisper I get to go home soon, and found peace in that. He credits it directly to the teachers who shaped him, and this episode is his most honest articulation yet of why the search for truth matters and how you know when you're actually getting closer.

If you’d like to support Doug during his brain cancer journey:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/dougs-fight-against-brain-cancer/cl/s

• 00:00 — Intro & welcome
• 02:20 — Doug introduces Bob Peck and how they met in Austin
• 05:01 — Doug's Mormon upbringing and evolving relationship with faith
• 05:41 — Bob's spiritual background and religious studies degree at UT
• 12:08 — Doug's ayahuasca ceremony in 2017: why did Jesus show up?
• 14:46 — Bob on Jesus: one of the greatest luminaries of human civilization
• 15:39 — The premise of Original Sin is a Lie
• 16:52 — What the best spiritual teachers do: myth-busting calcified paradigms
• 19:07 — Doug's Ram Dass awakening and listening to lectures before radiation
• 19:49 — First encounter with Maharaji: the powers, the monkey god, the confusion
• 23:51 — How to spot the real deal: vesselhood, humility, transferable love
• 27:42 — Dr. Larry Brilliant: when I was near Maharaji, I loved everybody
• 29:33 — The volcano metaphor: all religions come from mysticism
• 34:00 — Walking into radiation and feeling: I get to go home soon
• 35:02 — The real barometer: what's happening inside you is how you know if it's true
• 38:01 — How Bob discovered Milarepa through a TikTok comment
• 39:29 — The three-act story of Milarepa
• 47:38 — Bob reads Milarepa's poem: all worldly pursuits end in sorrow
• 49:55 — Does everyone have a teacher or guru?

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Bob Peck:

• IG: @bobpeck

Misty Tripoli hasn't been back in 25 years. She and Doug are cousins who lost touch, reconnected through a peptide-induced vision and an Instagram follow, and sat down to talk about everything that happened in between.

What happened in between is a lot. Bulimia for 16 years. A top fitness career in LA built entirely on a facade. One bong hit that collapsed the third dimension and sent her looking for who she actually was. A Nike contract that arrived within two weeks of her walking away from everything. Eighteen years in the jungles of Mexico, off the grid, building an oasis she didn't even know she wanted until the money to build it showed up.

And underneath all of it, the same thread: faith. Not the kind that denies what is hard. The kind that lets you hold a vision even when you are bankrupt, even when you almost run out of money twice, even when the how is completely invisible.

Doug brings his own thread into this one. A glioblastoma diagnosis. A transformed relationship with death. The strange freedom that comes when you stop pretending you are going to live forever. What grief actually feels like when you hold your mom on her last breath. What it means to feel more alive than ever at the exact moment the doctors say you probably won't be.

Timestamps of Key Moments

00:00 — Intro: A 25-year gap, a peptide flush, and the Instagram follow that brought them back together

03:30 — Head cheerleader and bulimic at 16: how Misty held both realities at once

07:00 — Dad leaving at eight, a teacher who noticed, and a mother who raised seven kids alone with no financial support

12:00 — What Wendy Tripoli actually was: youngest elected state legislator in Utah, wise woman, seeker, and the black sheep who had to find her own way in

18:00 — How Misty describes feeling her mom now: the tarot deck by the bed, coffee in the jungle, and answers that just appear

24:00 — LA fitness queen, keeping up with the Joneses, and everything built on a lie

29:00 — One bong hit, the veil falling, and the moment Misty connected to the power she had always known was there

35:00 — Quitting the corporate job, meditating eight hours a day, and dancing alone on the beach as the Groove Method is born

41:00 — What Groove actually is: ancient tribal dance, unified movement, and why it hits like a spiritual experience even though all you did was shake your ass to hip hop

47:00 — Nike signed her within two weeks: the story of how she went from bankrupt to a seven-year contract by just showing up and doing what she does best

53:00 — Moving to Mexico: Oliver on the beach, one last night in Puerto Vallarta, and the moment she decided she was never going home

58:00 — Two suitcases to one: how Misty got rid of everything she owned in two weeks and never looked back

01:03:00 — Faith as the actual mechanism: why most people can't take the leap and what Misty did differently

01:09:00 — Reprogramming money beliefs with Abraham Hicks, money trees in her mind, and going from nothing to the Body Groove app becoming the number one advertiser on Facebook

01:16:00 — Finding the land: stripping down, swimming to the back of a cenote, and buying it on the spot without knowing what she would build

01:22:00 — Doug's diagnosis, what changed, and why he has never felt more alive

01:30:00 — Death, fear, and faith: why you cannot hold both, and what it actually looks like to carry death sweetly

01:38:00 — Misty holding her mom on the last breath, the room filled with loved ones, and why she cried once and then started talking to her more than ever

01:44:00 — Stillness as the path back to faith: sitting in the jungle, watching molecules become closets, and the wisdom that lives in nature

01:50:00 — The future of the oasis: buying the surrounding land, full food production, chickens, goats, and her own surrender experiment in the jungle

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Misty:

IG: @mistytripoli

In this deeply moving episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug sits down with Rebecca Devine, a long-term glioblastoma survivor whose story completely reframes what it means to receive a terminal diagnosis. After losing her mother to the exact same form of brain cancer Doug was recently diagnosed with, Rebecca found herself years later facing the same disease, only this time, she chose a radically different path.

The conversation explores the emotional shock of hearing the words “glioblastoma,” the fear of losing your identity, the importance of self-advocacy, and the growing world of alternative treatments, clinical trials, and integrative healing approaches that many patients never hear about. Rebecca shares how she navigated motherhood, relationships, fear, uncertainty, and the pressure of prognosis while refusing to let statistics define her future.

Doug and Rebecca also dive into the psychological side of cancer: what happens when life suddenly becomes fragile, how mortality changes your priorities, and why hope itself can become a form of medicine.

This episode is not about false positivity or pretending cancer is beautiful. It is about reclaiming agency, choosing your own story, and learning how to stay alive emotionally, spiritually, and mentally while fighting for your physical life.

If you'd like to support Doug during his brain cancer journey, you can here:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/dougs-fight-against-brain-cancer/cl/s?utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp20_t1&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link&lang=es_US

• 00:00 — Intro: connecting through the same diagnosis
• 02:45 — Rebecca’s mom being diagnosed with glioblastoma out of nowhere
• 03:30 — Losing her mother mentally before losing her physically
• 05:50 — Planning a wedding while fighting for her mom’s life
• 08:30 — What Rebecca learned watching traditional treatment fail
• 12:00 — Rebecca’s own symptoms begin years later
• 15:00 — Passing out while driving and waking up in the ambulance
• 17:50 — The hospital initially finding nothing wrong
• 20:30 — Hearing the diagnosis and realizing history was repeating itself
• 24:00 — Refusing to accept statistics as fate
• 28:10 — Searching for treatments beyond standard protocol
• 33:00 — Germany, vaccines, immunotherapy, and becoming her own advocate
• 40:00 — Living years beyond what doctors predicted
• 43:30 — “You are not your diagnosis”
• 46:30 — Dating, relationships, and vulnerability while living with cancer
• 48:20 — Wanting to keep ownership of her own story
• 52:00 — Promising new clinical trials and alternative therapies
• 56:00 — The emotional balance between realism and hope
• 01:00:00 — Why purpose and identity matter during illness
• 01:04:00 — Helping newly diagnosed patients navigate the fear
• 01:08:00 — Final reflections: choosing how you live, no matter the prognosis

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Josh Hardman:

• IG: @thatbrainyblonde

In this solo episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug shares the full story of the moment his life split in two.

What started as a brutal headache turned into an ER visit, a scan they almost didn’t run, and a diagnosis that no one is ever prepared to hear: a massive brain tumor requiring immediate surgery.

Doug walks through the raw, unfiltered reality of those first hours, waking up to his mom after she had spent the night alone with the news, the shock of being told he needed emergency brain surgery, and the surreal experience of having part of his identity taken from him before the tumor was removed.

He opens up about how the tumor was affecting his personality, his thoughts, and his sense of self… and the overwhelming relief of feeling like himself again just moments after surgery.

The episode also touches on something harder to explain, a moment in the middle of the night, post-surgery, where Doug experienced what he believes was a visit from his dad and someone close to him who had passed. A moment that brought him a deep sense of peace and certainty that everything would be okay.

If you’ve been following Doug’s journey and want to support him during this time, you can do so here:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/dougs-fight-against-brain-cancer/cl/s?utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp20_t1&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link&lang=es_US

This isn’t a polished story about lessons learned.

It’s the real-time account of what it feels like when everything you thought was certain suddenly isn’t.

• 00:00 — Intro: this isn’t a normal episode
• 01:20 — The headache that wouldn’t go away
•  03:40 — Arriving at the ER and how bad it really was
•  05:30 — Pushing for a brain scan when it wasn’t protocol
•  07:10 — Falling asleep before hearing the results
•  09:00 — Waking up to the reality: “you have a massive brain tumor”
•  12:00 — The shock of needing immediate emergency surgery
• 15:20 — How the tumor was affecting his personality and mind
•  18:40 — Six-hour brain surgery and full tumor removal
• 21:30 — The moment he felt like himself again
• 24:10 — Realizing how different he had been for months
•  27:00 — The emotional comedown after surgery
• 29:30 — The 3AM experience: a visit from his dad
•  33:00 — Feeling peace in the middle of chaos
•  36:20 — Trying to make sense of everything that just happened
•  40:00 — Final reflections: when life changes overnight

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

In this powerful episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug sits down with Josh Hardman for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like two men comparing notes from the same storm. Both facing a glioblastoma diagnosis, they open up about what it actually feels like to hear the words that change everything.

Josh shares the moment his wife confirmed his diagnosis, the emotional collapse that followed, and the decision he made in the middle of that pain: to fight with everything he has. From combining Western medicine with holistic approaches to building his own protocol, he walks through how he’s choosing to take ownership of his life in a situation most people feel powerless in.

But what makes this episode different is the shift in perspective. Josh talks about how cancer stripped away the noise, anxiety, pressure, and distractions and replaced them with something far simpler: presence. Mornings feel different. Time feels different. Life feels different.

Doug and Josh explore what happens when urgency becomes real, how priorities instantly reorder, and why facing death can sometimes bring you closer to actually living.

If you’ve been following Doug’s journey and want to support him during this time, you can do so here:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/dougs-fight-against-brain-cancer/cl/s?utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp20_t1&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link&lang=es_US

This episode is not just about illness.

It’s about clarity, presence, and what remains when everything else falls away.

• 00:00 — Intro: two men facing the same diagnosis
• 02:40 — Josh on the moment he heard “you have brain cancer”
• 06:10 — Emotional collapse: the first hours after diagnosis
• 10:30 — Choosing to fight: mindset vs. statistics
• 14:50 — Building a personal protocol: Western + holistic approach
• 20:15 — Taking ownership in a situation you can’t control
• 26:40 — How cancer removes trivial anxieties
• 31:20 — Seeing life differently: the shift in perception
• 36:10 — Presence: mornings, stillness, and appreciating simple moments
• 42:00 — The role of family and commitment in the fight
• 48:30 — Fear, uncertainty, and learning to sit with both
• 54:10 — What actually matters when time feels limited
• 59:40 — Redefining success and urgency
• 01:04:20 — Doug and Josh on living fully, not just surviving
• 01:08:00 — Final reflections: choosing how to show up

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Josh Hardman:

• IG: @joshua.hardman

In this deeply personal episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug sits down with Carli Grampp for one of the most vulnerable conversations the show has ever had. With Doug recently diagnosed with brain cancer and Carli having endured her own battle with stage four cancer, the two explore what happens when life suddenly becomes fragile.

Carli opens up about the emotional toll of treatment, the fear of losing her future, the strain cancer placed on her marriage, and how facing death forced her to rebuild her relationship with herself. Doug shares the surreal reality of hearing his own diagnosis and how mortality has shifted what matters most.

This episode is not about motivation clichés or pretending pain is beautiful. It is about fear, faith, grief, identity, and the strange clarity that can come when everything you thought was guaranteed disappears.

It is raw, honest, and profoundly human.

• 00:00 — Intro: why this conversation matters right now
•  02:15 — Doug on hearing the words “brain tumor”
•  06:30 — Carli’s first symptoms and the moment life changed
•  11:40 — How treatment impacts the body, emotions, and relationships
•  18:20 — Living with fear of death while trying to stay present
•  24:10 — The pressure cancer can put on marriage
• 31:00 — Identity collapse: who are you when life stops?
• 37:45 — Doug on what matters now more than ever
• 44:20 — Spiritual growth through suffering
•  50:10 — How gratitude changes during crisis
•  56:30 — Carli on living with stage four cancer long term
• 01:03:00 — Why presence becomes everything
• 01:08:20 — Final reflections: what they hope others learn from pain

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Carli Grampp:

• IG: @carli.noelle.grampp

In this episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug sits down with world-renowned trauma expert and author Mastin Kipp for a deep dive into the intersection of neuroscience, emotional fitness, and personal evolution.

This conversation strips away the "woo-woo" fluff of the self-help industry and focuses on the biological reality of change: your nervous system. Mastin breaks down why "slowing down" is actually the fastest way to achieve your goals, explaining that our bodies often hold onto developmental programming that keeps us in a state of "stuckness" or chronic stress. He challenges the modern "magic bullet" mindset, advocating instead for an integration-focused approach to healing that treats emotional health as a form of athletic training.

The episode also tackles the complexities of modern relationships and the "bad advice" prevalent on social media. Mastin shares profound insights on why relationships are a "two-nervous-system experience," how to handle triggers through "implementation intentions," and the critical difference between true gaslighting and simple disagreement.

Whether you're a high-achiever battling imposter syndrome or someone looking to break free from long-standing emotional patterns, this episode provides a tactical roadmap for reclaiming your internal system and leading with true courage.

• 00:00 — Intro: Mastin’s level of influence and the journey to healing
• 02:30 — The "Deathbed Metric": Choosing Door A vs. Door B
• 07:22 — Courage as "Rent": Why past bravery doesn't accrue interest
• 10:05 — Deconstructing Imposter Syndrome: External focus vs. self-obsession
• 13:10 — Developmental Trajectories: How early caregiving shapes self-worth
• 15:51 — The "Brotherly Advice": Why you must slow down to speed up
• 19:50 — First Principles: Elon Musk, Mars, and avoiding internal feelings
• 23:08 — Redefining Trauma: Beyond the "Big T" and "Little t" myths
• 31:10 — The Integration Trap: Moving from "Magic Bullets" to behavior change
• 37:00 — Ambition and Stress: Why high-performers are never truly "finished" healing
• 40:40 — The Tom Brady Method: Rehearsing triggers before they happen
• 47:00 — Instagram "Bullshit": Calling out bad relationship advice and labels
• 50:00 — The Weaponization of "Gaslighting" and "Narcissism"
• 54:30 — Choosing the Relationship: Navigating a two-nervous-system dynamic
• 59:30 — Governance and Agreements: How to argue without threatening the bond
• 01:03:20 — Final Thoughts: Where to find Reclaim Your Nervous System

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/ 

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/ 

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Mastin Kipp:

• IG: @mastinkipp

This isn’t a normal episode.

Recently, I was diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer, a glioma.

If I’m being honest, hearing the statistics puts things into perspective really fast. But at the same time, I’ve never lived my life as a statistic… and I’m not about to start now.

What this has done more than anything is shift my perspective.

Sitting in a hospital bed, facing my own mortality, I’ve had a lot of time to think about what actually matters. And the truth is, it’s not the things most of us spend our time stressing about.

It’s relationships.

It’s the people you love.

It’s the people who show up for you.

I’ve felt that in a really real way these past few days, and I’m more grateful than I can put into words.

There are three things that keep coming back to me right now, something I learned through Ram Dass:

Love everyone.

Serve everyone.

Remember God.

That’s what I’m holding onto in this season.

I don’t know exactly what the road ahead looks like, but I do know this, I’m going to fight, I’m going to stay present, and I’m going to live fully.

I appreciate all of you more than you know.

— Doug

Krew Ericksen was 18 years old, dead broke, eating hot dog sandwiches, and completely alone in a market after his entire team quit mid-summer. He stayed anyway. That decision, more than any close rate or commission check, is the whole story.

Eight summers later, Krew is loading 50 guys onto a bus to Maryland as the founder of the Coffee squad, a dad to baby Cozy, and one of the most genuinely fun people in the door-to-door industry. But this episode is less about the numbers and more about the invisible stuff: the culture that actually keeps people in the fight, the self-belief that has to come before the skill, and what happens when you stop looking for love and it shows up on a Costa Rica work trip.

Doug and Krew cover all of it. The Meraki brotherhood that shaped him. The solar transition that scared him. The charity tour that quietly became the thing he is most proud of. The Wednesday wiffle ball games that somehow turned into their biggest sales day of the week.

If you have ever stayed when leaving would have been easier, this one is for you.

Timestamps of Key Moments

00:00 — Intro: Eight summers in, 50 guys heading to Maryland, and the man behind the Coffee squad

03:20 — The first summer: hot dog sandwiches, a team that quit, and a manager who left him stranded in the rain

07:00 — The phone call where his dad laughed, hung up, and changed everything

12:00 — What finally brought him back after making $3,000 and getting hosed on his backend

14:00 — Finding Zach, joining Meraki, and the gut feeling that God was pointing him toward the Rocky Boys

18:30 — Knocking during Covid, everyone home, and going from $3K to $33K in one summer

22:00 — Roman candles, broken TVs, and what fun actually does for a sales team

28:00 — "Playfully curious": the mindset shift that takes the pressure off the doors

31:00 — The transition to solar: what changes, what transfers, and why the in-home experience suits him

36:00 — The quiz close and the neighbor strategy: how Krew solidifies deals and kills the cancel before it starts

44:00 — Managing different personality types and what Krew learned running his first office in Jonesboro

52:00 — The bet with his dad, the unforgettable tattoo, and hitting $100K before August

55:00 — Family Day every Wednesday: wiffle ball, Otter Pops, and why it ends up being their biggest sales day

01:04:00 — Recruiting frat presidents, talking to parents, and underselling to overdeliver on campus

01:08:00 — Fear of failure is behind every lack of commitment: how to instill belief before summer starts

01:14:00 — Meeting Jaina: one Vivint account, one bold ask, and the ice skating date he never looked back from

01:18:00 — Becoming a dad: Cozy, the cul-de-sac dream, and accessing a new dimension of love

01:22:00 — The charity tour: 65 special needs kids at a trampoline park and the one who hadn't left his room in four months

01:26:00 — The state of solar, the energy crisis, AI, and why Krew thinks it is ready to blow

01:34:00 — What Krew is most excited about in 2026: Cozy walking, talking, and a great time to be an Ericksen

Follow Doug:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/doug_cartwright/

Join the Alchemy Accelerator: https://www.alchemysalescoaching.com/

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: @AlchemyPodwithDougCartwright

Follow Krew:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/krew24/

In this episode of The Alchemy Podcast, Doug sits down with Kenny Cox, one of the most respected leaders in the door-to-door space, for a masterclass on leadership, standards, and what actually earns respect from a team.

This conversation breaks down the harsh truth about leadership: you don’t earn the right to lead by title, you earn it by production. Kenny explains why the best managers are still the best reps, why teams don’t follow words; they follow example, and how most leaders lose their people the moment they stop leading from the front.

The episode also dives into one of the most misunderstood decisions in sales: when to stay and when to leave. Kenny shares why chasing “easier money” almost always backfires, how to recognize a true pull toward change versus a desire for relief, and why the wrong move can reset your entire trajectory.

This one is direct, tactical, and rooted in real experience. It’s about discipline, ownership, and becoming the kind of leader people actually want to follow.