Live Through Love with Ruben Rojas

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Ever wondered how stripping down to the bare essentials can streamline your life and reduce the noise of modern living? Join me and my guest Light Watkins, as we navigate through the concept of spiritual minimalism, and discover how a life crammed into a single carry-on can pave the way for a more fulfilling existence. We unravel the myth of finding our purpose in a world overshadowed by social media, crammed with forced grandeur and unrealistic expectations.

Highlighting the importance of curiosity, Light discusses how this can reignite our lives during even the most mundane moments. He demystifies meditation, as we explore the different ways it can be practiced, from monks to everyday people. No need to strain like an Olympian, simply let your mind roam free and cultivate a relationship with it that doesn't involve thought shaming. Walking, that simple, everyday activity, is also brought into the limelight, as we discuss the art of 'flaneuring'- aimless walking as a form of meditation.

Our conversation takes a deeper turn as we discuss the power of emotional restraint and how responding rather than reacting can be transformative. We underscore the role of personal responsibility in shaping our lives and understanding the power of love and living unconditionally accepting of others. We come full circle back to spiritual minimalism, and how these practices can lead to a more fulfilled life. Light and I invite you to embark on this journey of self-discovery and purposeful living with us. Unpack your life, simplify and find your purpose in this noisy world.

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Key Highlights

• Nomadic Existence and Finding Purpose
• Finding Purpose and Cultivating Presence
• Understanding Different Approaches to Meditation
• The Value of Presence and Walking
• Curiosity, Education, and the Human Experience
• Connecting to Intuition and Instincts
• Presence and Emotional Restraint's Power
• The Power of Love and Purpose
• Spiritual Minimalism and Fulfilled Living

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Follow Light @lightwatkins

Get his book Travel Light

Love Notes from Light:

Loving is when you are unconditionally accepting of other people.

I packed my entire existence into a carry-on bag and set off on a nomadic journey that transformed my perspective on life.

Doing "normal things" can be very profound if you're present to them, and then that could be the gateway to something more that will happen down the line. But you have to be present to what you're feeling, what you're sensing, what's what's emerging through you.

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Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

This episode is brought to you by Caldera Lab. Save 20% with code RUBEN on your new favorite skincare line with a 60-day guarantee.

Rachel Scheer, a Functional Medicine Dietician and CEO, shares her unique take on gut health, how dis-ease manifests in the body, and how you can create greater self-love and abundance in your life.

Listen in to gain a fresh perspective on the abundance mindset, the gut-brain connection, and how to take full ownership of your health and happiness.

How does Rachel define living life through love? Living a life of inspiration – by healing, getting back to your true self, taking charge of your internal purpose, and creating from that place.

Key Highlights

• How bodybuilding helped Rachel overcome insecurity and find confidence, control, and power in herself & How it ultimately made her sick
• Gut health directly impacts mental health. How does this connection impact our self-love?
• How getting to a place of inner peace and worthiness helps us live the life we want
• Abundance = presence + gratitude
• How to know if you're operating in lack and ego or operating in abundance
• Embodying awareness, ownership, & your values
• How to turn anything into a spiritual practice

Follow Rachel Scheer @rachelscheer

Visit her website

Love Notes from Rachel Scheer:

We may start from a place of insecurity, not feeling good, which is totally okay… but that can't be what keeps us going. At some point, we do really need to heal that relationship we have with our self, otherwise there will always be a negative byproduct.

Your power comes in when you can be present in your life [and] have full gratitude of everything that surrounds you.

As long as we are identified with our thoughts and with our pain, we can never actually, truly heal from that.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

This episode is brought to you by Caldera Lab. Save 20% with code RUBEN on your new favorite skincare line with a 60-day guarantee.

Licensed Therapists Vanessa Bennett and John Kim (aka the Angry Therapist) are changing the narratives around therapy, self-love, personal responsibility, and relationships.

The pair speaks candidly about the tumultuous journey of liking and loving yourself, as well as how expensive and broken the therapy system is, yet how vital it is to our collective wellness. They also uncover the root of cancel culture, how opinions are being weaponized, and what you should look for in a therapist.

How do John and Vanessa define love? Love is a moment-by-moment action that we choose. Love is a living, breathing thing that doesn't dwell on what was, will be, or could be, but it's accepting and living in what is now.

Key Highlights

• John and Vanessa detail why they became therapists after being unhappy (and angry) in their careers
• What's the difference between a coach and a therapist? Can you be a therapist or coach at any age/experience level?
• "Trauma is subjective"
• The Affordability of Therapy: The mental health system in America is broken, but there are ways you can access therapy for less money
• What should you look for in a therapist? When should you break up with your therapist?
• The journey of liking yourself vs. loving yourself and combatting negative self-talk
• Our collective responsibility in making the world a better place & White women's role in ending gun violence (or any problem)
• How therapy and opinions are being weaponized
• "Cancel culture comes from hiding, not from showing yourself."

Follow John Kim @theangrytherapist

Follow Vanessa Bennett @vanessasbennett

Buy their book, It's Not Me, It's You: Break the Blame Cycle. Relationship Better.

Love Notes from John Kim & Vanessa Bennett:

Loving is a process. Love is active. So, it's through the process of loving other people that you also learn to love yourself.

Never exchange your truth for membership.

Each of us is one cup of an ocean.

Accountability can still be had without demonizing or cancelling.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Steve Epting, Chicago Artist, Creative Producer, and Vocal/Performance Coach, is here to share his story of going from choir boy to touring and performing with celebrities like Beyoncé, Jay-Z, and Kanye West.

Steve shares his views on mental health and success, the importance of pouring into yourself before you pour into others, and how to overcome insecurity and self-doubt in any creative pursuit.

How does Steve think about living through love? It's how you speak to yourself, uplift and communicate to others, and go after what you want.

Follow Steve Epting @needfor_steve

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Key Highlights

• Steve's turning point: "If you don't enjoy the work getting up to a profession, you won't enjoy the profession."
• How do you know you're on the right path in life?
• What it's like working with Kanye West
• How to overcome insecurity and self-doubt in your career
• Lessons for creators and entrepreneurs on self-improvement and incorporating love into everything you do
• How a supportive community can help you succeed in new areas of life
• How do you define/measure success for yourself in the music industry? How does that keep you motivated?

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Love Notes from Steve Epting:

You can really have whatever you want in this life, you just really have to be aligned and you really have to see it.

There are no limits. We put limits on our self.

When you're able to be real with yourself first, then you can be real with other things.

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Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This episode is brought to you by Caldera Lab. Save 20% with code RUBEN on your new favorite skincare line with a 60-day guarantee.

Atticus, the anonymous poet, is sending us love from the shadows and speaking his truth about love and fear, art and creativity, mental health, and his anonymity.

Atticus joins Ruben to discuss the intersections between art, our perceptions of gender, and our unique struggles with mental health/illness. He sheds light on his creative process as a poet, whether he'll ever show his face to the world, and the exciting collaboration he's been working on with Ruben.

How does Atticus define love? Love at its core is an exchange. You're giving and giving, then falling in love with what you've given to someone else over time. Love is so much more about safety, vulnerability, and showing up than saying "I love you".

"There is a beauty in simplicity because people can access it." - Atticus

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Key Highlights

• Atticus describes how he became a poet (spoiler: it was never his intention)
• As men, why do we feel like we need permission to do "feminine things"? Why are men so encouraged not to be vulnerable?
• How art can bust misconceptions of masculinity
• Why Atticus chose to be anonymous & Will he ever show his face?
• How poetry helps people, including Atticus, cope with depression and mental illness
• What inspires Atticus to write from the female and elder perspectives, even though he's a young man
• Meeting the Dalai Lama
• His creative process for writing, the feelings of fear and love behind his books, & dealing with writer's block
• A sneak peek into the upcoming Atticus x Ruben collaboration

"You never know what kind of positive effects you're having on people." - Atticus

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About The Guest: Atticus, the anonymous author of four national bestsellers - Love Her Wild, The Dark Between Stars, The Truth About Magic, and LVOE, has taken the world by storm with his beautiful poetry and powerful, simple themes of love and strength of the human spirit.

Follow Atticus @atticuspoetry

Visit his website

Buy his books

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Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Kute Blackson, a Transformational Teacher and "The Billionaire's Go-To for Advice", dives deep into the magic of surrender and why surrendering is the most powerful thing you can do to live through love.

Kute speaks on why surrender is the key to freedom and how to get "unstuck" in life by surrendering to love.

How does Kute live through love? He lives a life that's in service to a purpose and in service to something bigger than himself.

Key Highlights

• What's preventing us from getting out of our own way and overcoming our limiting beliefs?
• How societal conditioning keeps us stuck in life and prevents us from being in the flow
• Why is surrendering important? How do I "surrender" without quitting or losing?
• Goal-Setting vs. Soul-Setting
• How to surrender more in life
• "Ego is not the enemy, our relationship with ego is really the key."
• What to do when you feel stuck in old, unhelpful patterns
• The problem with searching for love outside of yourself
• How Kute overcame the feeling of failing to live up to your own potential

Follow Kute Blackson @kuteblackson

Buy his books, "The Magic of Surrender" & "You Are The One"

Visit his website

Apply to join Boundless Bliss – The Bali Breakthrough Experience

Love Notes from Kute Blackson:

The degree to which we are identified in an ego is the degree to which we are not free.

Resistance is the ego's mechanism of trying to hold onto its sense of self and that's why we get in our own way.

Every one of us, we are craving surrender whether we know it or not.

We have to want the truth more than we want what we have. We have to want the truth more than we want what we think that we want. To me, the truth is what sets us free.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Ruben recaps his first few months of 2023, highlighting what's been challenging him and helping him on his path of living through love.

Join this intimate story time as Ruben shares what he's doing to live through love, keep fear at bay, and maintain an open mind through his triumphs and failures as an artist and entrepreneur.

If you're struggling to embody love or you're not sure if you're living through love, this episode will offer you helpful (and relatable) insights that will get you back on your path of purpose.

Key Highlights

• Living Through Love: Two major events that reminded Ruben that he's on the path of purpose.
• Curiosity Mindset: The powerful benefits of having a "we'll see" attitude.
• Wins and Losses Lessons: A behind-the-scenes look at the projects and collaborations Ruben has been working on in 2023.

Love Notes from Ruben Rojas:

Take a step toward whatever it is that's going to make you happy.

There's a lot of wins in between a lot of losses and they're not really losses, they're lessons.

There's too much fear in the world. Let's keep showing up, let's keep choosing love, and remember to live through love.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Mando Fresko is a Mexican-American entrepreneur, speaker, and media personality who's getting candid about why his main priority in life is kindness.

Listen in as he joins Ruben to talk about the beautiful journey that is finding your true self, making a positive impact on your community, and pursuing what you love no matter what society or your family tells you.

What does Mando think about living life through love? It requires risk and sacrifice, but there's more love in the world than you think - just look, listen, and feel for it.

Key Highlights

• Mando shares what inspired him to go against the grain of his culture and societal norms, enter the entertainment industry, and start his own radio show.
• He describes the work ethic and love ethic he's developed to find success in life & why he doesn't work for the money, but rather for happiness.
• Being of service to your community hits harder than you think!
• How do we show up in the world the way we want to be treated? How can we be a vessel for love and kindness, so we can give and receive more easily?
• Mando speaks on how the Latinx community can influence positive change and create a culture of love in America - right alongside the BLM movement.

Follow Mando @mandofresko

Visit Mando's website

Listen to Mando & Friends

Hubwav Media

Fresko Foundation

Love Notes from Mando Fresko:

If you love something, do it. Do it because you love it, do it because you're passionate about it, do it because it's feeding your heart.

Lately, I'm making an extra effort to just be a vessel of kindness because I want that for me. I want people to be kind to me.

My heart has a six pack right now, my heart looks like The Rock… It's a muscle you have to work out.

Living a life through love, I would say, is a life where you make choices to put your heart into everything that you do.

Love is 365, man.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Chris Dufey is a physique coach, business mentor, speaker, and father of 4 girls who's here to tell you how to go from a dad bod to a leading father figure and how to best serve the world through authenticity and love.

Chris and Ruben dive deep into their philosophies around fatherhood and business, showing up every day as your authentic self, and training yourself to do what's best for your mind and body.

How does Chris live through love? By being his authentic self and serving others through his authenticity.

Key Highlights

• How do you stay fit as a busy entrepreneur? Chris shares his journey from being overweight to competing as a fitness model and becoming a world-renowned physique coach, plus his personal struggle with bulimia.
• He explains how to train yourself to do healthy things, then divulges (for the first time) the journaling prompt that's helped him do it.
• Chris speaks on how emotions can be tied to food/eating and how that informs his role as a father to four girls.
• You know what to do, but do you have the character to do it?
• The key to stop bullshitting yourself is renegotiating with yourself.
• Can you really sell a coaching business? Yes, Chris did it. Listen in to learn the mindset that enabled him to do the seemingly impossible.

Once you finish this episode, answer this prompt & share it by tagging or DMing Ruben and Chris on Instagram!

If I love myself, will I _______?

Follow Chris @christopherdufey

Visit his website

Listen to Ruben on Ep 31 of the Christopher Dufey Podcast

Love Notes from Chris Dufey:

Love – It's that essence that, when everything gets ripped back, when you drop any story… what's there? It's love.

I will achieve what I want because it's just who I am, it's just what I do.

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.

Candice Craig is a dancer, entrepreneur, singer, songwriter, model, and actress. She's also a PCOS advocate whose fight for a cure led her to lobby in front of Congress.

Candice joins Ruben to open up about her struggles with self-love and mental, physical, and emotional health as a woman living with PCOS. She also talks about how she's navigating the potential of infertility, creating her own stage through social media, and seeking purpose and love through entrepreneurship.

"I'm still me inside of this body no matter what and this is my tool, this is my temple, and I have to still pour into her." – Candice Craig

Candice says love is forgiveness. Love gives life meaning. Whether it's with friends, family, followers, your partner, or yourself… love is the through line that brings us together and brings us to our purpose. Living life through love is being able to pour into yourself and others so we can become the best, happiest versions of ourselves.

"Love is probably one of the only things worth living for." – Candice Craig

Do you resonate?

SUBSCRIBE to Live Through Love so you never miss an episode & RATE/REVIEW it on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.

About the Guest: Candice Craig is a dancer, entrepreneur, singer, songwriter, model, actress, and PCOS advocate. She is the Founder and CEO of 5678 Count Me In, an apparel and beauty company. Throughout her dancing career, she has danced on world tours, in videos and on television for acts such as Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, Diddy, Ciara, Pharrel Williams, Pitbull, Mark Anthony and more.

Follow Candice on Instagram

Follow Ruben on Instagram

Watch and subscribe to Live Through Love on YouTube

This is an Operation Podcast production, connect with us @operationpodcast.