We all have something we lean on when life gets uncomfortable.

A phone. Work. Routine. Other people. Comfort. Procrastination. Excuses. Sometimes we don't even realise we're doing it.

In Episode 40 of The Imperium Story, I break down the metaphorical "crutches" I personally lean on — anticipation, screen time, needing to be in the right state to work, and rationalising my way out of things.

We explore why we naturally gravitate towards these crutches when faced with discomfort, friction, responsibility and accountability, and how something that gives us short-term relief can quietly prevent long-term growth.

Because a crutch isn't always inherently bad. Support can make you stronger. The question is whether what you're leaning on is helping you build your own capacity — or allowing you to remain dependent on it.

So ask yourself:

What are you using as your crutch?

And more importantly:

Is it helping you stand stronger, or stopping you from learning how to stand on your own?

What does it really mean to put yourself first without becoming selfish? In this episode, Karel Lloyd explores self-respect, responsibility, suffering, emotional awareness, and the difficult process of learning to see yourself clearly.

Using powerful ideas from Jordan Peterson and The School of Life, this conversation dives into the relationship between pain and growth, why so many people neglect themselves while caring deeply for others, and how comparison quietly pulls us away from our own path. Karel reflects on purpose, control, discipline, gratitude, and the kind of inner strength it takes to face life honestly.

This episode is about becoming more aware of your patterns, understanding your emotions, and learning how to carry yourself through hardship with clarity and intention.

Topics include:

• putting yourself first in a healthy way
• self-respect vs selfishness
• pain, suffering, and personal growth
• emotional awareness and control
• comparison, gratitude, and ambition
• purpose, discipline, and responsibility

If you've been trying to understand yourself better, let go of what you can't control, and grow through what life has handed you, this episode will stay with you.

#38 — Someone Else Will Do It Anyway

What happens when the position you want is taken by someone else?

This episode explores the two sides of the phrase “someone else will do it anyway.” On one side, it can become an excuse for doing something wrong. On the other, it can become a brutal reminder that the world doesn't wait for you.

The job you want will be filled. The business you want to build will be built. The financial position you want will be reached. The person you want to become will be someone else's reality if you're unwilling to do what it takes to get there.

We dive into competitiveness, relentlessness, industriousness, perseverance, initiative, determination, effort and focus, and why small actions compound into the evidence and confidence required to become the person you say you want to be.

We also explore the difference between wanting to win and refusing to lose, using the infamous Chuck Vogelpohl vs Dave Tate story as an example of what it means to hate losing so much that you simply refuse to stop.

Because ultimately, this episode isn't really about someone else.

It's about you.

If you don't take your spot, someone else will.

What is inside of you that you haven't shared yet?

Everyone has thoughts, feelings, ideas, experiences, and emotions that sit beneath the surface. Sometimes they come out through conversation. Sometimes through journaling, art, training, writing, or creating something that allows us to finally get it out of our heads.

But why do we suppress these things? Why are we so afraid of being judged, misunderstood, or criticised?

Inspired by The Creative Act by Rick Rubin and ideas I've taken from people like Robert Greene, this episode explores what it actually means to look inward, understand what you want to share, and have the courage to put it into the world.

We talk about creativity, introspection, discipline, vices, self-awareness, action, and the importance of staying true to who you are while creating the things that matter to you.

Your work doesn't have to be perfect. It doesn't even have to be for anyone else.

Maybe the purpose is simply to create it for yourself.

Because what you put into the world can become source material for someone else. Something that inspires them to think differently, create something of their own, or start looking inward.

So the question is simple:

Do you want to share what is inside of you?

Why is everyone so tired all the time? In this episode, Stellar Hawke breaks down the three biggest areas affecting modern energy levels: nutrition, movement, and sleep.

From a nutrition perspective, the conversation explores how ultra-processed foods, poor gut health, unstable blood sugar, and weak metabolic health are leaving people overfed, undernourished, and constantly running low on energy. Stellar explains why food quality matters, how inflammation and digestion affect how we feel, and why wholefoods create a stronger foundation than quick-fix supplements.

The episode then shifts into movement and the female body, looking at how sedentary lifestyles are affecting hormones, fertility, inflammation, and long-term health. Stellar unpacks the role of strength training, how women can better train through each phase of their cycle, and why movement is about far more than aesthetics - especially for hormonal and reproductive health.

In the final part of the conversation, the focus turns to sleep - why so many people struggle to stay asleep, miss out on deep sleep, and rely on hacks instead of habits. Stellar shares simple ways to improve sleep hygiene, the effects of blue light, hydration timing, and ultra-processed food on recovery, and how social media fear-mongering has made basic health feel more confusing than it needs to be.

Topics include:

• nutrition and energy levels
• gut health, blood sugar, and metabolic health
• ultra-processed foods and chronic fatigue
• movement and the female body
• strength training, cycle awareness, and fertility
• hormones, PCOS, and endometriosis
• sleep quality, deep sleep, and recovery
• blue light, routines, and health misinformation

A reflective piece on why we seek external validation, how embarrassment and insecurity shape our need for approval, and what it takes to build self-worth from within.

Through self-awareness, purpose, and emotional ownership, this explores how to stop living for other people’s opinions and start living in alignment with your own values.

Pain exists to teach.

In this episode, I explore one simple idea: things that hurt, instruct.

Through the stories of Louie Simmons and Henry Ford, this episode looks at how physical pain teaches adaptation, how mental pain teaches resilience, and how failure often becomes the price of growth.

Louie Simmons showed what it means to refuse victimhood - to focus on what you can do when life takes something away. Henry Ford showed that repeated failure is not the opposite of success, but often the path to becoming capable of it.

If you’re dealing with setbacks in training, business, relationships, or life, this episode is a reminder that pain is not always a signal to stop. Sometimes it’s a signal to adjust, learn, and keep moving.

Physical pain teaches adaptation. Mental pain teaches resilience. Things that hurt, instruct.

Why do men and women feel further apart than ever before?

From the manosphere to the femosphere, dating apps, social media algorithms, emotional suppression, masculinity, femininity, trust, relationships, and modern dating culture — this conversation dives into the growing divide between young men and women.

We speak about:

• Why masculinity is constantly labelled

• How online algorithms radicalise both men and women

• Dating apps and the illusion of replaceability

• Emotional suppression in both sexes

• Why relationships are becoming transactional

• Fear of vulnerability and loss of trust

• Mental health, communication, and emotional intelligence

• What healthy connection actually looks like

Not a men vs women conversation.

A conversation about why we’re losing connection — and how we bring it back.

For six years, my journal has been the one place where I could be completely honest with myself.

In the first episode of The Self Awareness Series, I revisit the lessons hidden inside hundreds of journal entries—from battling a victim mindset and learning resilience, to finding purpose over pleasure, developing healthier self-talk, trusting my younger self, and understanding that life only gives us one chance.

This isn’t an episode about having all the answers. It’s about looking inward, making peace with your past, and using reflection to build a better future.

If you’ve ever felt lost, stuck, overwhelmed, or unsure of who you’re becoming, I hope these lessons remind you that you’ve survived difficult seasons before—and you’ll survive them again.

In this episode:

• Why you’ve already proven you’re capable of overcoming hard times
• The difference between pleasure and purpose
• How your self-talk shapes your identity
• The power of journaling and self-awareness
• Learning to appreciate the people around you before it’s too late
• Why your younger self believed in you, even when you didn’t

If this episode resonates with you, I’d love for you to share it with someone who needs to hear it.

Why do we approach the things we’re good at with confidence, but meet every new challenge with doubt?

In this episode, I explore the idea that most of us already know how to deal with adversity—we’ve just forgotten how many times we’ve overcome it before.

Using my experience under a 285kg squat, I unpack why confronting a heavier weight isn’t about learning a new movement, but trusting the skills you’ve already built. The same principle applies to life. Whether it’s a difficult conversation, a career change, a breakup, anxiety, or uncertainty, the challenge in front of you often isn’t proof that you’re incapable. It’s simply asking more of you than you’ve experienced before.

We dive into why it’s important to stop belittling your own struggles, how acceptance can remove unnecessary suffering, why action is the antidote to anxiety, and how friction and confrontation become the very things that shape resilience.

This episode is a reminder that growth rarely feels comfortable, but discomfort doesn’t always mean you’re on the wrong path.

Sometimes, the only difference between the life you’re living and the one you’re capable of creating is your willingness to confront what’s standing in front of you.

The challenge isn’t there to stop you. It might just be there to introduce you to the person you’re becoming.