I have always been an early riser. That was something that was instilled in me very early as one of my first jobs at the age of 13 was as a caddy on the golf course where I would have to be at work before 6am. The snooze button is the first thing we see in the morning and I believe we have two options: 1) go back to sleep on your dreams and aspirations or 2) wake up and attack everything that you do. No Snooze is a mindset, lifestyle, and a commitment to becoming the best version of yourself in business, prioritizing your health and wellness, practicing good habits as a spouse, parent, friend, and finding a way to take action and make progress towards your goals and aspirations.

I have lived a life full of ‘No Snooze” moments that have shaped and defined me as man. I started this podcast alongside two of my great friends and partners, Mike Parelli (co-host) and Claudio Valenzuela (Audio/Visual). In 2019, I came up with the concept because podcasting changed my life. Instead of listening to rap music and hip hop, which is something I always did in the gym to get motivated, I began to listen to motivational speeches and podcasts. Specifically, Ed Mylett and Tony Robbins where I would learn about morning routines, habit stacking, and I became addicted to personal and professional development. For years, I would listen and apply what I would learn. I watched my life become undeniably better in all facets so I wanted to share my growth and encourage and inspire others to do the same. I became vulnerable and shared all of my life’s secrets, hacks and learned that community is way more important than competition. Over the past 4 years, we’ve built an incredible community. The podcast has been streamed in over 70 countries and has been featured in major media outlets such as Yahoo, CEO Weekly, Star Tribune, and NY Weekly.

I am an individual committed to growth. In business, I was coined the youngest Commissioner in NY State in 2019 and landed a spot on 914 Incs Top 30 under 30 Business professionals. At age 16, i was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease and through proper education, creating a personalized diet and finding a medication that has worked for me, I have learned to navigate the challenging landscape of living with Crohn’s. I now speak at Universities, to large brands and organizations and have become an impactful advocate for the Crohns and Colitis Foundation of America. I encourage a healthy lifestyle and provide a roadmap to reduce stress through physical movement, mindfulness and proper nutrition.

I am most proud of being a father to my daughter, Kali. She will be 4 years old in June and has brought so much fulfillment to my life. I live as a single father with a very healthy coparenting relationship with my daughter’s mother. Too often in society, we see that fathers are not involved or only get to see their children on the weekends. Through my journey, I encourage men to stay involved in their children’s life and commit to a life of personal development so they can show up stronger and emotionally available for their children.

A major lesson I’ve had to unlearn is the standard “treat people the way you want to be treated”. I believe relationships make the world go around and if we want to build healthy, value driven relationships- we need to “treat people the way they want to be treated.” This means that to build a solid foundation, you must continuously be willing to learn about one another, what makes the other tick? what are the other persons triggers? How can you create a safe environment for one another to feel free expressing yourselves?

Our social media following isn’t by any means the largest, but we have some of the best engagement statistics on our platforms. Some of the best advice to grow your social media following is to have a specific plan and intention on creating a following and building your content. I followed a SMART goal technique for the first 20 thousand followers. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timeline is what SMART stands for. I knew that my specific goal was 20k followers and I would measure it daily to see if I can connect with 20-50 new accounts per day. That sounds difficult but it’s not. I took out a piece of paper and wrote down my top 10 podcast accounts and began to engage and interact with all of those accounts. For example, Ed Mylett had 100k followers at the time so I would comment on his posts and send a personal DM to 20 of his followers letting them know “Ed Mylett changed my life and his impact encouraged me to start my own journey. I created my own podcast and if you would like to engage with me and join this community from the beginning- I’d truly be grateful or your support. Our focus is not snoozing on life because we only get one opportunity. I encourage you to chase after all your dreams and aspirations.” I would copy and paste that message and spend 20 minutes a day, every single day.

I think people need to get very clear on their target audience and do exactly what I did but in their niche. You won’t convert everyone but with discipline and consistent action, your audience will begin to grow!