Quick Before You Forget

You can build an extraordinary life while still being terrified you don’t belong in it.

Rudy Rush is proof.

After more than 30 years as a comedian, actor, radio personality and entertainer, with HBO, Showtime, Showtime at the Apollo and national radio on his résumé, Rudy revealed something during this conversation that stopped me in my tracks:

Some of the biggest accomplishments of his career happened with his confidence at just 2 out of 10. And then life forced him to rebuild.

After years of success came an overwhelming stretch of loss, uncertainty, career upheaval and financial instability. Somewhere in the process of starting over, Rudy began confronting the fear he'd carried with him for decades and finally recognizing his own worth.

In this episode of Quick Before You Forget, we talk about rebuilding confidence, overcoming fear, hitting rock bottom, knowing your worth, setting boundaries, trusting your gut and finding the courage to keep moving when the life you knew no longer looks the same.

Rudy shares what changed when he finally stopped worrying about who liked him, the career lesson that took him from $1,500 to $15,000 for the same work, why he says “Be fair, don’t be nice,” and the moment he realized he could finally say something that once made him deeply uncomfortable: “I am great.”

Because maybe confidence doesn't always come before the extraordinary thing. Sometimes you do the extraordinary thing scared. Again and again and again. You keep showing up. Until one day, you finally look back at everything you've survived, created and accomplished and realize: You've been proving you belong there all along.

***

Quick Before You Forget is a personal growth podcast about remembering who you are while you're building who you're meant to be through honest conversations about identity, resilience, connection, mindset, music and the courage to keep moving.

Quick before you forget: Accept the good about yourself. You might already be far more extraordinary than you've allowed yourself to believe.

Rudy Rush's Song of Survival: DMX - X Gon Give to Ya (Deadpool Song)

Quick before you forget: The world doesn't need more perfection. It needs more you.

AI ethicist, author, and responsible AI expert Olivia Gambelin joins me, Ty Schmidt, for a conversation that goes far beyond ChatGPT, automation, or the latest artificial intelligence tools. This meaningful conversation is about something much more personal to all of us: how to stay human in a world increasingly designed around efficiency.

Olivia explains AI ethics in a way anyone can understand, why your values should guide the way you use technology, and why you don't actually need AI in every part of your life.

Together, Olivia and I explore human-centered AI, creativity, imperfection, intuition, storytelling, music, connection, and the surprising return to analog experiences happening as artificial intelligence becomes more powerful.

Olivia also shares the childhood rainbow cape that became a symbol of imagination and courage, the career setback that ultimately led to her first book, Responsible AI, and why learning to trust herself changed the way she moves through uncertainty. If you're overwhelmed by AI, worried about falling behind, or simply wondering how to use technology without losing your creativity, authenticity, or humanity, this conversation is for you.

Because the future isn't only about what technology becomes. It's about who we choose to become alongside it.

Olivia's song of survival: That Old Pair of Jeans, Fatboy Slim

QUICK BEFORE YOU FORGET: AT A GLANCE

WHO is Julie Voris?

Julie Voris is a mindset and habit coach, speaker, wellness entrepreneur and Disney Cast Member who has spent decades helping women live with more purpose, confidence and intention. She has spoken to audiences of more than 10,000 people, raised three daughters and built a career around helping women remember that their lives are not over just because one chapter has ended.

WHAT is Quick Before You Forget?

I’m Ty Schmidt, host of Quick Before You Forget, where I have meaningful conversations with people who can help us remember who we are while we build who we’re meant to be. In this conversation, Julie and I discuss joy, identity, aging, motherhood, grief, movement, self-belief and what Julie has learned about human behavior from watching people experience Disney from the other side of the camera.

WHY do you need this episode of Quick Before You Forget in your life?

Because somewhere along the way, a lot of us stopped participating in our own lives.

We became the person taking the picture instead of getting in it. The person cheering everyone else on while quietly putting our own dreams away. The person waiting to feel better, look better, have more time or finally feel “ready.” 

Julie’s reminder is simple: Joy does not have an expiration date. And neither do you.

WHO needs this episode of Quick Before You Forget?

Anyone who has caught themselves wondering:

Is this all there is? Did I miss my chance? When did I stop feeling like me? Am I allowed to want more from my life?

Quick Before You Forget with Julie Voris is a reminder that changing your life doesn’t always require changing everything. Sometimes it starts with noticing something good in the world around you. Putting down your phone. Walking outside for ten minutes. Believing yourself before anyone else does. And getting back in the picture.

QUICK BEFORE YOU FORGET: You are not too old, too late or too far gone to participate fully in your own life.

Get in the photo.

Meaningful Moments

00:00 — Joy Does Not Have an Expiration Date
01:00 — Who is Julie Voris?
03:00 — Why Your Best Chapters Aren’t Behind You
07:00 — You Still Have So Much Life Ahead of You
09:00 — What Disney Has Taught Julie About Creating a Life
12:00 — What Julie Started Noticing as a Disney Cast Member
13:00 — Does Joy Have an Expiration Date?
15:00 — Ty’s Full-Circle Search for Joy
18:00 — Get in the Freaking Picture
20:00 — Disney Is a Laboratory for Life
22:00 — Participate in Someone Else’s Joy
23:00 — The Practice of Noticing
25:00 — You Can Be Grateful AND Want More
27:00 — How Grief and Joy Coexist
29:00 — Stop Doomscrolling and Change Your Corner of the World
32:00 — Move Your Body, Change Your Mind
34:00 — Take Back Your Agency
37:00 — Give Your Brain Space to Think
39:00 — Why Do You Want an Out From Making Your Life Better?
40:00 — “Most Expensive Day Ever” vs. “Best Day Ever”
43:00 — Who Believed in Julie? Julie Did.
44:00 — Life Is a Group Project
46:00 — Doing the Real Work on Yourself
47:00 — Moms: Your Life Did Not End When You Had Kids
49:00 — Make the Baggage Lighter for the Next Generation
51:00 — You Are Not the Only One
53:00 — What Julie’s Three Daughters Have Taught Her
57:00 — It’s Your First Time Here, Too
58:00 — What Julie Would Tell Her 22-Year-Old Self
1:00:00 — “It’s Not That Deep”
1:01:00 — The Song That Became Julie’s Lighthouse
1:02:00 — Quick Before You Forget: Get in the Picture

Julie's song: Happily Ever After, Jordan Fisher & Angie Keilhauer
Ty's earrings: https://www.lovisa.com/?ref=tyler2922
Ty's fun pink pens: https://amzn.to/4gi6dER

Two things can be true.

You can spend years doing the work and still be learning how to live in the light. Your song of survival can be something that grounds you in challenge AND a soundtrack for creativity and innovation.

This episode of Quick Before You Forget features a conversation that is months (years?) in the making and I am so grateful to Keila Shaheen for this soulful time together.

Can you guess which of us is ENFJ and which is INEJ?

Did you notice how I called out going to meet Alex Warren at Red Rocks six whole weeks before it happened?

You also finally get more of the story about my hot tub Let Them friend Pat, the stranger I drove almost 12 hours in the car with to use our comp tickets to see Mel Robbins in April.

Keila and I talked about what it actually looks like to step into your light and how to notice glimmers, which are tiny moments of joy that help you regulate your nervous system. Because this is a safe space to practice believing that two things can be true. And that the work doesn’t just heal what hurts. It also helps you notice the good. I can’t wait to hear what you think of this one, friends! 

Meaningful Moments

00:00 – Meet Keila Shaheen and why becoming whole means holding both shadow and light
02:00 – Childhood conversations, curiosity, and the foundation of deep inner work
05:00 – Why road trips create transformational conversations
08:00 – The journal that unlocked a lifelong love of self-reflection
09:30 – The dark night of the soul that inspired the Shadow Work Journal
14:00 – Turning pain into purpose and why transformation becomes contagious
16:00 – How to keep going when you feel stuck
20:00 – What shadow work actually is (and why so many people misunderstand it)
22:00 – Carl Jung, psychology, and reconnecting with your soul
26:00 – Why healing isn't about fixing yourself
28:00 – How to pause when anxiety takes over
30:00 – Building your personal toolkit for emotional regulation
32:00 – Learning to notice beauty again
34:00 – What are "glimmers" and why they calm your nervous system?
36:00 – Music, creativity, and accessing deeper parts of yourself
39:00 – The soundtrack of survival
42:00 – What Keila would tell her 22-year-old self
45:00 – Why courage is the fastest path to growth
49:00 – Creating light in a world that feels chaotic
51:00 – What light work actually looks like
52:00 – Why light was never meant to erase darkness
54:00 – Becoming the light you need

Resources
The Shadow Work Journal - https://a.co/d/05xirQXx
The 369 Journal: https://a.co/d/01ZLzpwJ
The Lucky Girl Journal: https://a.co/d/04pkKNkE
The Light Work Journal - https://a.co/d/0g42DP86
The Book of Shadow Work - https://a.co/d/006XxuP2

You can build a life that looks successful on paper and still know, deep inside your soul, that something isn't right.

Ryan Hanley knows that feeling at a visceral level.

In 2017, after years of chasing more of everything - more opportunities, more speaking engagements, more recognition, more success - Ryan collapsed backstage at a conference. From the outside, his career was taking off. Behind the scenes, he was exhausted, anxious, disconnected from his family, and beginning to realize he might be succeeding at the wrong game. That moment forced a question that changed his life:

Do I even want to become the person I'm working this hard to become?

In this vulnerable conversation on Quick Before You Forget, Ryan and Ty explore burnout, purpose, regret, fear, success, faith, parenting, and what it means to build a life that actually belongs to you.

Ryan shares why clarity (NOT MORE) may be what you're missing, how comparison can distort your definition of success, and the simple 90-second PEAK framework he uses to stop a spiral and return to the present: Presence, Energy, Awareness, and Kalibration.

They also talk about choosing risk over a life that feels safe but wrong, raising children who are watching more closely than we realize, the power of mentorship, and Ryan's belief that fear isn't proof you should stop. Instead, it's simply a data point.

Because burnout isn't always about doing too much. Sometimes we're exhausted because we've spent too long becoming someone we never actually wanted to be. And you don't need an entirely new life.

You need to come back to the one that's already yours.

If you've been feeling burned out, lost, successful-but-unfulfilled, uncertain about what's next, or like something in your life simply doesn't fit anymore, this conversation will meet you where you're at, give you a quick and necessary hug, and kick you in the pants to get started with building the life you are actually meant to live.

Meaningful Moments

00:00 — Meet Ryan Hanley: Finding clarity in a noisy world
01:00 — What does it cost when your life looks right but feels wrong?
04:00 — Succeeding at the wrong game
07:00 — The backstage collapse that changed Ryan's life
09:00 — What happens when you don't live what you teach
12:00 — “This Is the Way”: creating a code for your life
15:00 — Faith, clarity, and finding peace with who you are
17:00 — Are you living in reality—or somebody else's definition of success?
19:00 — The Ferrari problem: comparison and feeling like you're never enough
23:00 — Reality → accountability → responsibility
25:00 — What you focus on is who you become
27:00 — Finding the work that actually makes you feel alive
29:00 — How clarity makes saying “no” easier
31:00 — The PEAK Method: a 90-second reset when you're spiraling
32:00 — P: Are you actually present?
33:00 — Energy, awareness, and recalibrating yourself
35:00 — How to stop one bad moment from stealing your entire day
37:00 — Why needing to recalibrate doesn't mean you've failed
39:00 — What Ryan would tell his 22-year-old self
40:00 — Growing up poor and knowing he wanted something different
42:00 — When the “safe” life isn't your life
44:00 — The cost of spending a decade being who you think you should be
46:00 — Choosing alignment even when the next step is scary
47:00 — What Ryan's sons have taught him about becoming who you say you are
49:00 — Parenting as accountability
53:00 — The +1/-1 philosophy of mentorship
55:00 — “I'm dying” → “I'm alive”: choosing excitement over fear
57:00 — Ryan's unexpected music of survival: Wu-Tang
1:00:00 — Ryan's Megaphone Moment: courage and Ralph Waldo Emerson
1:02:00 — Fear is a data point—not a verdict
1:04:00 — Fear vs. excitement and choosing the bigger life
1:05:00 — Ryan's upcoming book, Easy Mode

Ryan Hanley's Song of Survival is all things by Wu-Tang Clan.

Connect with Ryan or book him to speak at your next event: https://ryanhanley.com

Quick before you forget: the life you've been waiting for doesn't begin when you feel ready, but rather when you decide to take one small step anyway.

In this episode of Quick Before You Forget, I sit down with leadership strategist, innovation expert, and entrepreneur Bryan Davis to explore what it really means to build a life with intention. Bryan has helped launch more than 700 ventures, and this conversation is about the courage and curiosity it takes to succeed. It's about choosing action over perfection and discovering that the biggest thing you're building might actually be yourself.

Together we discuss:
• Why we're all "figuring it out as we go"
• The difference between inspiration and action
• How curiosity creates confidence
• The Five C's of Catalytic Leadership
• Why entrepreneurship is really a mindset
• Building momentum before you feel ready
• How relationships shape the size of your life
• Raising courageous kids
• What it means to stop playing small

Meaningful Moments

00:00 Why Bryan believes entrepreneurship starts long before business
03:00 The backyard putt-putt course that sparked everything
06:00 Why entrepreneurship helps you become an 11-out-of-10 version of yourself
10:00 Inspiration isn't enough: how momentum actually starts
15:00 Why relationships are the greatest form of capital
17:30 Raising six kids to create value instead of waiting for opportunity
22:00 When everything fell apart before the biggest pitch of Bryan's career
33:00 The Five C's of Catalytic Leadership Charge Cultivate Connect Curious Courage
48:00 The surprising connection between Bryan's framework and my MAGIC values
51:00 Why the people around you determine the size of your dreams
55:00 What Bryan would tell his 22-year-old self
59:00 The message he'd share if the whole world had to listen

Bryan's Song of Survival: Thunderstruck by AC/DC

The famous first roller coaster photo: https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=873410577297&set=a.508702310587

There comes a moment when life asks you a simple but uncomfortable question: Are you finally ready to tell yourself the truth? 

This week's guest, TEDx speaker and creator of the WallBreaker Method, Raheel Siddiqui, shares one of the most honest, shocking, and inspiring stories we've ever had on Quick Before You Forget.

After reaching 405 pounds, being told he'd likely die before 40, losing his father, battling chronic pain, facing infertility, and rebuilding his life more than once, Raheel discovered something powerful: You don't break through life's biggest walls all at once.

You build your life, intentionally, brick by brick. In this conversation we explore identity, resilience, discipline, grief, health, confidence, and why becoming your own biggest supporter changes everything.

If you've been feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or uncertain about your next step, this episode is your reminder that transformation isn't reserved for extraordinary people.

It's built through ordinary decisions made consistently. One brick. One truth. One step. One meaningful conversation. At a time.

Meaningful Moments

00:00 Meet Raheel Siddiqui and The Wall Breaker Method
02:00 The first wall: obesity and childhood bullying
06:20 The doctor's devastating prediction
08:00 The promise that changed everything
12:00 Losing 150 pounds
13:45 Losing his father
16:00 Infertility, IVF, and becoming a father
19:00 Two herniated discs and starting over
21:00 "Just let it out."
23:00 Why every wall is meant to be broken
24:30 Looking in the mirror and telling yourself the truth
31:00 Becoming your own biggest supporter
35:00 Why small goals beat giant goals
39:00 Building your life brick by brick
43:00 Health before everything else 
47:00 Why taking care of yourself helps everyone else
52:00 Eye of the Tiger and remembering your why
54:30 The message everyone needs to hear

Raheel Siddiqui's Song of Survival: Eye of the Tiger, Survivor

Raheel Siddiqui Bio
Raheel Siddiqui is a TEDx Speaker and Motivational Keynote Speaker who helps leaders and teams build resilience, discipline, and mental toughness to perform at their best under pressure. After losing over 200 pounds and overcoming significant life challenges, Raheel now inspires audiences across the country with his powerful story and his Wallbreaker™ Method—a proven framework for breaking through adversity and becoming unstoppable.

Connect with Raheel:

Website: www.raheelspeaks.com 
YouTube: (125) Raheel Siddiqui - YouTube
Facebook: (7) Facebook
Instagram:  Raheel Siddiqui | Motivational Speaker | Keynote Speaker (@raheelthespeaker) • Instagram photos and videos
LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/in/raheel-siddiqui-a2a752123
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@raheelversion2.0?_r=1&_t=ZP-95Cj3Nttg5f
X:  https://x.com/raheelthe2nd?s=21&t=O3CsnSopB2U3tb6tJSR5hA

Most people don't fail because they have bad ideas.

They fail because they never take the first step. In this episode of Quick Before You Forget, I sit down with entrepreneur, engineer, inventor, and two-time Shark Tank guest Chris Guerrera to explore what really separates dreamers from doers.

Chris has launched thousands of products, worked on iconic innovations for Ford and BMW, partnered with Daymond John, appeared on Shark Tank and Good Morning America, and now helps inventors bring their ideas into the world through Pitch the Pros.

But this conversation is about courage. 

We talk about overcoming fear, taking action before you feel ready, finding the right people, building community, leading with credibility, learning through failure, and why execution—not ideas—is what changes your life.

If you've been feeling stuck, burned out, overwhelmed, or wondering whether it's too late to pursue something that keeps tugging at your heart, this episode is your reminder that the world doesn't need another perfect idea.

It needs someone willing to act on theirs.

In This Episode

✔️ Why execution beats ideas every time
✔️ What Shark Tank taught Chris about success
✔️ The biggest mistake entrepreneurs make
✔️ Why your community determines your future
✔️ Building confidence through action
✔️ How to know when to ask for help
✔️ The power of showing up consistently
✔️ Why credibility is built one promise at a time

Show Notes

00:00 Meet Chris Guerrera
2:15 How Shark Tank changed everything
8:00 Managing pressure when life gets hard
10:00 Lessons from working with Daymond John
12:00 What launching products really looks like
14:30 There is no overnight success
16:00 The biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make
19:00 Action separates dreamers from builders
20:30 Why who you work with matters
22:00 Building teams people actually enjoy
24:30 Creating communities people want to belong to
27:00 Core values before skill sets
32:00 Engineering vs entrepreneurship
35:00 What Chris would tell his 22-year-old self
36:30 Why asking for help is a strength
39:00 Finding the right people
41:00 Surround yourself with people who elevate you
42:30 Chris' song of survival
45:00 The unforgettable Good Morning America proposal
49:00 What family taught him about leadership
52:00 What's next for Chris

Most of us spend our lives trying to become someone better, but somewhere along the way, many of us forget who we already are.

I think that's exactly when and why life starts to feel too heavy, making this meaningful conversation with Kristin Mackey perfectly time for you.

Yes you. Right now, right here, you need this message in your life. How do I know? Because I need the reminder too.

In this episode of Quick Before You Forget, Kristin Mackey reminds us that growth doesn't necessarily mean "more." It could, and often should, mean "less." Sometimes it's about peeling away everything that was never really you. Leaving that job you should have left months (or years) ago. Letting go of a relationship you thought was going to last forever because it just doesn't fit anymore.

We've all faced these things and I have learned by trial, error, and often a lot more heartache than necessary that the most important character in the story? It's you. Remember that, and your life will change for the better. Trust me. And if you don't trust me, trust Kristin. She literally wrote a book about how to get to know yourself better by listening to your own frequency.

Together, Kristin and I explore intuition, authenticity, burnout, leadership, relationships, and what it means to live in alignment with your values instead of everyone else's expectations. If you've been feeling stuck, lost, burned out, or simply like you've drifted away from yourself, this conversation is your reminder that your way forward may actually begin by coming home to who you've been all along.

Her song of survival is Conviction of the Heart by Kenny Loggins, her megaphone moment is to "be kind," and you need her frequency in your life.

What happens when your brain won't cooperate but you refuse to stop living anyway?

This conversation feels personal in more ways than I expected.

I laughed so hard my face hurt. We cried together too. And somewhere between stories about panic attacks, people being chased by pigs, depression, ADHD, hula hoops, taxidermy, rainbow fountains, and hiding under tables, something beautiful happened.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author Jenny Lawson (The Bloggess) joined me for one of the most honest conversations I've ever had on Quick Before You Forget. 

Together we talked about anxiety, depression, creativity, finding your people, parenting, self-acceptance, and why sometimes the very things that make us feel broken are the things that help others feel less alone. Jenny shares stories about navigating treatment-resistant depression, discovering community through writing, finding healing through humor, embracing her wonderfully unconventional creativity, and learning to run toward joy wherever she can find it.

We also discuss her newest book, How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay, and the practical tools that have helped her keep going through some of life's darkest moments. But this episode became something more than that for me.

There was a moment involving Jenny's dog Dottie that stopped both of us in our tracks and felt so divinely timed that I still get emotional thinking about it. My Wiley said hello that day. Yes, from his perch along the Rainbow Bridge. I know it sounds impossible. Just wait until you hear or see it.

If you've ever struggled with anxiety, depression, ADHD, burnout, grief, self-doubt, feeling different, or wondering whether you'll ever find your people, this conversation is for you. And if you've ever needed a reminder that you're not alone, you have found your people here.

In This Episode
✔️ Why "depression lies"
✔️ How humor shrinks life's biggest monsters
✔️ Living with ADHD and embracing creativity
✔️ Finding your people by being yourself
✔️ Parenting, perfectionism, and self-compassion
✔️ Mental health tools that actually help
✔️ Why joy matters more than ever
✔️ The healing power of storytelling and human connection
✔️ Taxidermy, emotional support wild boars, and other things I never expected to discuss

Memorable Quotes

"It's going to be okay."

"Depression lies."

"Run after anything that brings you joy."

"If they love that in her, maybe they'll love that in me too."

"You are doing so much better than you think."

About Jenny Lawson

Jenny Lawson, affectionately known as The Bloggess, is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, award-winning humorist, columnist, and mental health advocate. Her books include Let's Pretend This Never Happened, Furiously Happy, You Are Here, Broken (in the Best Possible Way), and How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay. 

One more thing: Jenny's song of survival is "Eight Miles Wide" by Storm Large. Trust me: you'll want to look it up after this episode. 💛 ⚡️ ❤️‍🩹 🌈 🦋