The Action Factory Podcast

Many years ago, back in what I call “the good old days,” I was in a nightclub, as I often was. I spotted this older guy on the dance floor, maybe 60 or 70 years old, surrounded by a crowd of people no older than 25. He was dancing, pulling moves, flirting, and having a great time. My mate turned to me, screamed over the music, and said, “That’ll be you at 60.” I nodded.

I thought, Yeah, of course it will. Why wouldn’t I still be out here dancing? But I had no idea how wrong I was.

I’m Michael Dawson, the author of Quit Your Diet: Think to Shrink, and if you’re sick of calorie counters, yo-yo diets, then you’re in the right place. I’ve built a simple 14-day roadmap to help you stop dieting, for good.

In this video, I want to talk about something deeper. It’s about who we can become. About how we all grow into someone our younger selves could never imagine, and why that’s a good thing. Change is inevitable.

What isn’t inevitable is the direction that change takes. And that’s where things get interesting. It helps to start thinking and acting as your future self, now.

In this episode, I’ll help you take the first steps toward that future with practical insight, a clear roadmap, and a question that just might change your life.

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👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

What if the reason you keep starting diets and quitting them has little to do with willpower, and everything to do with a script you’ve unknowingly been following for years?

In this episode, Michael Dawson reflects on a life-changing moment triggered by one simple glance through his old journal. From quitting alcohol as a type one diabetic to uncovering the subconscious pattern that fuels diet failure, he breaks down a familiar cycle: the promise, the routine, the collapse.

It’s an invitation to see dieting through a completely different lens , one that asks: What if the person who starts the diet will never be the one who succeeds?

Perfect for anyone who’s tired of starting over, this episode explores how to step out of the loop, stop chasing a fix, and start becoming someone who doesn’t need fixing.

_______________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

In this episode, I’m talking about why pretending can be one of the most powerful tools for personal change.

We start with the true story of Chris Gardner, the man behind The Pursuit of Happyness, who showed up every day acting like he belonged in a world that hadn’t accepted him yet. He wasn’t successful, he was pretending. But that act changed his life, and it’s something you can learn from too.

I dive into the psychology behind behavior-first change, why acting as if can lead to real transformation, whether it’s about confidence, health, or quitting diets for good. I also share how this fits into my framework of seven assumptions I make about every client, and that I encourage you to make about yourself.

If you're tired of yo-yo diets, obsessive tracking, and feeling stuck, visit actionfactorypublishing.com. Right now, lifetime membership is free, and you’ll get instant access to free chapters of my book, tools, downloads, and a quick quiz to help you figure out your level of change.

Thanks for listening—please follow the podcast so we can keep this conversation going. New episodes drop twice a week.

_______________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

A woman looked in the mirror after plastic surgery and still saw someone she didn’t like. That moment changed the life of Dr. Maxwell Maltz—and it changed the way I think about weight loss too.

I’m Michael Dawson, author of Quit Your Diet, and in this episode, I’m digging into the conversation around Ozempic, Wegovy, and the so-called miracle weight-loss drugs. But instead of just focusing on the headlines, I want to talk about what these medications don’t address: your mindset, your self-image, and your real relationship with food.

I share:

Why weight-loss drugs might be a short-term fix with long-term uncertainty

The real reason so many diets fail—and what to do instead

My QYD framework, a psychological path to food freedom

How to build lasting autonomy instead of dependency

And why the image we hold of ourselves might be the most important piece of all

If you’re tired of dieting, unsure about the hype around injections, or just ready for something that feels more human—this episode is for you.

What if every diet you tried, every rule you followed, every plan you stuck to (and then abandoned), every time you “gave up”  was actually the best decision you could make at the time?

In this episode, Michael Dawson invites you to reframe your past choices through a radically compassionate lens. Because if every decision you made came from a place that made it the best decision at that moment even when it didn’t lead to lasting change, then maybe it’s time to just move on.

Maybe it’s time to draw a line under all the diets, all the guilt.

If you're tired of calorie counting, meal plans, and the constant feeling of failure… this could be the turning point you didn’t know you needed.

_______________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

What if your diet started as a solution and became the problem?

In this episode, I’ll share a story about a man who wins the lottery and ends up solving a series of problems with the wrong solutions. It’s the perfect metaphor for how we end up trapped in the cycle of dieting.

We’re talking about a powerful idea today:

I’ll explore why so many of us turn to diets as the "obvious" fix, and how that in itself is the problem. I'll talk about:

How diet culture trains us to look in the wrong direction

And what it takes to replace the wrong solution with one that actually works

I’ll also introduce one of the 7 assumptions I use in my Quit Your Diet program—assumptions that can shift the way you see yourself and your habits.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in the dieting loop, this episode will help you see why... and how to start building your escape plan.

Thanks for listening. Subscribe, follow, and come find the tools waiting for you. Membership is free right now, and it’s packed with downloads, support, and insight to help you quit diets for good.

__________________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

__________________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

I want to share something today that’s not exactly revolutionary,  but it can transform your weight journey forever:

You are the true expert in your own life.

In this episode of Quit Your Diet, I draw on my years of experience working in tough therapeutic environments to explain why outside advice so often falls short, and why trusting yourself is the key to lasting change.

You’ll hear about a real conversation I had with a young client, a powerful moment where I resisted the urge to offer solutions and let him lead instead. What happened next taught me one of the most important lessons of my career. And it’s directly relevant to your journey with food, weight, and self-trust.

My approach flips the traditional diet mindset on its head. Instead of handing you another plan to follow, I help you build your own 14 day roadmap to quitting diets forever.

In this episode, I’ll even share a simple but eye-opening exercise I use with professionals that shows how powerful your own solutions can be, when you’re given permission to trust yourself.

This is part of my seven-part framework designed to help you quit diets for good and build a new, natural relationship with food.

If that sounds like something you need, you’re in exactly the right place.

__________________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

What if your biggest weight struggles aren’t really about food, but about the mental map you’ve been using to navigate your life?

In this second episode of the Quit Your Diet: Assumptions series, Michael Dawson shares a powerful story that reveals how our beliefs shape what we see, feel, and do, even when those beliefs are completely off the mark.

You'll explore the first of seven core assumptions Michael makes about every client:

The map is not the territory.

Discover: Why perception often overpowers willpower How unseen beliefs shape your identity A fresh way to view dieting “failures” and why they’re not your fault If you're tired of calorie counting and meal plans, and ready to rethink the way change actually happens, this episode is your starting point.

__________________________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on — and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

🎥 Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

🎓 Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember:

What if the story you’re telling yourself... is completely wrong?

In this episode, Michael Dawson kicks off a powerful new mini-series by revealing the hidden power of assumptions, those snap judgments we make about others, the world, and most dangerously, ourselves.

With a gripping story about a speeding driver, a compassionate cop, and a twist that flips everything on its head, Michael shows just how much a single sentence can rewrite reality.

You’ll discover:

Why the assumptions you make without evidence are silently steering your life

How to use Michael’s 7 Assumptions to change how you think, speak, and act, starting today

How beliefs like “You are the expert of your own life” and “There is no failure, only lessons” can unlock lasting change

The surprising truth about human behavior and why “pretending you can” might be the key to becoming who you want to be

Whether you’re here because your Quit Your Diet quiz pointed to identity and beliefs, or you just feel stuck, this episode gives you a fresh, compassionate lens to see yourself through.

Hit play now and learn how to challenge the lies your brain whispers, one life-shaping assumption at a time.

______________________________________

👣 What to do next...

If today’s episode hit home, take the FREE quiz to find out which level your weight obsession lives on and how to start changing from that level:

You’ll get:

Prefer video? You can watch this episode and the rest of the series over on the Quit Your Diet YouTube channel:

Become a site member today and get early, free access to my full training course when it launches.

☕ Like what you’re hearing? Support the show on Buy Me a Coffee and get exclusive invites to my monthly live coffee mornings:

📚 Explore more tools and resources at:

Thanks for tuning in — and remember: