 I'm excited to be here with James Granstrom. He has a podcast, be sure to check it out. And then Instagram page where he shares a lot of wonderful deep and healing work. And yeah, James was kind enough to have me on his podcast. So check out my episode there. I'll have all the links below this video. And James, today we're gonna talk about healing, soul health, breaking old patterns. I'm really looking forward to this conversation. Thanks for doing this. Thank you for having me, George. It's a delight to speak with you again. And I hope what we have and can help a lot of people along the way. Absolutely, yeah. So let's start with this just broader topic of healing and how sort of this mind, body, soul. How do you see all that connected when it comes to true health and healing? We'll kind of start there. Well, I guess, I mean, we've got to really start with what we can see, which is really physical first because the body is where you first learn about the first stage of health, but there are really three stages, which is obviously your body, then your mind, and then of course, your soul. And for me and my journey, I started out learning about the body because I started male modeling 20 years ago. And I found out that I could get myself in fantastic shape, but my mental health, my mental wellbeing was not even in the picture. I could look great in the pictures, but I wasn't feeling great so that there was a mismatch of energy going on. So I went down the path to ask the question, there's got to be more to real, true, perfect health and perfect wellbeing than just the physical form of what I'm eating. I've got to understand more about the mind. So I went on a huge journey whilst I was modeling so that this was what I was learning about in the meantime whilst doing photo shoots and going around the world, doing campaigns and adverts and so forth so that I could understand that connection. And that's what led me to also understand more about the soul health because as soon as I started to address the mind and the mind became and found a lot more stillness then the soul really kicked in and the joy kicked in. And ever since then, when I really started to make that shift, which was probably, well, almost 20 years ago, nearly two decades ago, almost just shortly after that, that is when I discovered that I was experiencing what I call radiant health. And I really want that for other people and I really haven't been sick at all in that time. And I know it's because of a few of the things that I've put into place that I do, like such as habits, understanding my mind, understand how to work with it rather than against it. And then of course, understanding the soul health, what that's all about. So I hope that gives you a bit of legs in which to start this conversation, realizing that we are quite holistic. We have to understand each section of ourselves before we can move to the next level in the game. But what you will receive at the end of it is hopefully this radiant, beautiful health, this balance. And that's really what life's all about. It's always trying to find that balance and you're always kind of gonna be dancing. I call it the dance, but hopefully in this conversation we can get you to find that beautiful state of equilibrium with a few tools and tricks along the way. That's awesome. And I just wanna let you people know that you are a wellbeing coach. So at this time, people can contact you about that possible service. Yeah, okay, so let's get into this. This is really interesting. First of all, you mentioned that you were obviously your profession required that you'd be physically well or looked physically well. And you're saying that that wasn't necessarily connected to your mental and your, I guess, soul state. And I just wonder how many people have that disconnection. And not just in the modeling industry, but just in the business world or gosh, even athletes or whatever, it's like just you go around, people look like they are successful and they're outside looks really good, but we don't know the kind of turmoil or the kind of disconnection that they're facing within. And so how it must have been an interesting juxtaposition because I mean, in your industry of modeling, there is a lot of physical wellness apparently, but I imagine as you started delving into the mind and the soul, maybe that wasn't a common conversation. I don't know, maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. I'm curious about that. It was not. I mean, when I first started, George, I was the only one. I was the only guy I was in Milan. I was in, you know, in Tokyo, I was in London. I was doing this, you know, doing this tour going between different shows and doing these types of things. And I was the only guy who wasn't drinking. I was the only guy who was plant based at that time. This is like going back to like 2004, you know, I was the only guy, you know, going to the Sarch. You're going, doing this, doing this. And I was the guy who wasn't drinking at the parties. I was the guy, you know. And people were like, what's wrong with you? What's wrong with you? And I was like, well, I've done that and it doesn't work for me. And this is when I understood that confidence really comes not from having something in your hand, but it has to come as in a drink or a cigarette or whatever. It has to come from within which is about the choices you make. So confidence really was something I was challenged with because I was quite anxious. I was always like, I'm not sure what's going to happen next. I don't know what's happening next. And so one fears what they can't control really. So anxiety has obviously, particularly since COVID has been a really big thing for a lot of people because a lot of people have experienced a lot of uncertainty and my job was completely uncertain. And the only thing that could create certainty was the habits that I created. So that's what I went about. I went about creating a routine in a job that didn't have a routine. So my daily habits of turning up, doing certain things were what solidified a new level of confidence which exuded more energy inside my mind and my body. And then obviously my soul was like, oh, I feel happy. I feel relaxed. It's similar to a lot of people watching this have a business or are working on creating one. And that's the same kind of uncertainty is there. It's like, when you're in a regular job, maybe there's more income certainty but it's like in a business, it's like you have to create the routines. You have to create the habits and you have to create the clients, et cetera. So let's start getting into what habits have you discovered that really work well for you? Okay, so there are a few. So it doesn't really matter what line of work you're in whether you're a solo entrepreneur, whether you're running a business and taking care of people or you've got a family of your own and you're turning up to work every day, whoever you are we all need to create certain structure in our life by taking care of ourselves. And unless you can take care of yourself, alas, you're gonna be expending energy to others which is great, but eventually the person who runs out of gas is you. And you don't wanna be that person because now you've got nothing left to give and that's when sort of resentment kicks in, that's when sort of fatigue kicks in and that's when you get really out of balance and when the mind goes out of balance the body goes out of balance. So what we really wanna do is create a mind that knows it's got equilibrium so that the body can follow. So one of the things that I do first thing in the morning is I wake up, I have, I really, before I get out of bed I'm just thinking about a few things I'm really grateful for. I think that's a really important thing and I try and go into a memory if I can about something I'm really grateful that happened yesterday or someone I really love and appreciate. I do about three things and then I'm up and I'm ready for the day. And then so I get up and I have a shower and I have a hot shower and then a cold shower at the end. Boom, the reason why the cold is is because I want my body to become alert and I want my body to become uncomfortable. The cold will shock you to become uncomfortable because life is usually full of adversity. If you were here and being living at this time you're gonna experience challenge every single day in some way, shape or form. And the sooner you get to be structured in being uncomfortable, the more you'll be able to turn up in life with equilibrium because you need to be the person in between who is able to remain steady when life throws you a little challenge or something happens or something happens to someone you care about. And the people that always thrive are the people that are able to remain in some level of equilibrium with a vision and realizing the power is within themselves to be able to focus correctly. And that is when after I've had a cold shower obviously brush my teeth and I sit down for a 20 minute meditation every single day. Wow, that's amazing. You know, I'm focused, that's just an internal focus and that is where I first discovered about the mind which then led me to the soul. It was like, okay, I can do the stretch or by the way, I didn't say this before I do the meditation, I've got like a 40 second yoga stretch that I do which is a sun salutation. And I've cut it right down so that I can do it rather than it's a really long one. I've got, I can do it in about 40 seconds and it does both sides of the body, give my body a stretch. I've given my body a fresh, you know, alertness for my mind. Then I'm sitting down to meditation, large glass of water, let's go into the meditation. And then that's my setup every single day for nearly 20 years. I've not missed a day, George. Wow, that's amazing. Now, just a little bit on the cold shower part, that is obviously not something most people do. Although these in recent years, it's become more well known as a way to maintain, you know, health and vibrancy. And I've started doing that myself, you know, in a couple of months ago and it's like the way I think about it is, and actually, I don't know if it's a good idea. Now I actually start with a cold shower before it turns hot. And I think just, you know, it's like it takes time for the water to get hot anyway. I might as well use it for the cold shower part of it. But I think of it like, I imagine it as like the soul diving into life. That's how I imagine it. And I get into the cold shower. It's like the soul had to have the courage to dive into this life. And just like me having to have the courage to dive into the cold water, because eventually once you're in the cold water for a few seconds, it starts to acclimate a bit more. The initial shock obviously wears off. And obviously it's still not totally comfortable. But like you said, I think it does something to the body that keeps it vibrant and keeps the immune system healthy in some way. I don't know all the signs behind it, but I just know that it's become more and more well known. So I started doing this in about 2006. And I started doing what you did actually, George. I started doing it with a cold shower like before anything. And I did it for four months through sheer willpower, but I lost momentum. And I lost momentum because I was like, how is this helping me? Because it's taking me about an hour and a half to warm up after this. And this is midwinter as well in the UK and London. Currently I live in Spain, so it's a lot hotter. But in the UK and London, it's really cold for those first, that first few months of the year. And so it was only when I returned probably about a year or two ago and started doing it hot water, now cold water. So I start off warm, so I acclimatize. And then now the choice is mine to go fully cold. And that's between 15, 30 seconds to a minute. And what that's really doing is allowing your fresh, red blood cells to come right to the surface. It's creating a state of mental alertness. It's helping build your immune system. It's helping you control your mind by saying, I'm making this choice that's uncomfortable, yet I know I'm gonna thrive in it. And of course, when you come out the womb, you are coming from a water-based element. And it's a real shock for you as a little baby when you came out your mother's womb to have that shock from a water element to an air element. That's why babies cry, right? Because as soon as they come up, they're shocked to be number one, taken out of the womb from a different element. So this is called like the first sign of trauma. So as soon as you go back into that cold water, you begin to heal that version of yourself. Because the more you go into that cold shock, the more you begin to release and the body starts to repair, build this strong immune system and then your energy becomes bigger. So if you ever find yourself in a rut, in your day and you find your energy dipping or you find yourself in an irritable mood, the best thing you can do is go to the shower and go for like 20 second cold shower, shake it out, change your emotional state and you will bring your body not only to ground because water grounds you, but it will bring you back to the present moment again. And that's where most people suffer. They're far too in the future, far too in the past and not in the present moment. And one thing a cold shower or a cold plunder will do is bring you right into the present moment. For sure. For sure. Wow. People don't do, which is why there is a lot of mental anxiety because they're always thinking in the past or the future what they could or couldn't control, but you're not thinking it and all you're doing is thinking about it now, which makes it bigger. Now, tell us a bit about your meditation, the 20 minutes that you do in the morning. I mean, you don't have to walk us through all of it, just curious if there's any like main thing you want people to know about it. Like, how is it, yeah, what's different or what's the main sort of like technique or the way you do it? The real purpose of meditation is to allow the mind to quiet. Now, sometimes for 20 minutes, my mind is really noisy. Everybody's mind is really noisy. It's kind of like you've got this monkey on the shoulder that wants to dart around between thought after thought. But if you can focus on one thing, like a central point, for some people it's a mantra, for some people it's a dot on the wall, for some people it breathing, just following your breath is really good. Some people just thinking the word on, for some people just chanting the word on, why on by the way, on is like the sacred sound of the universe beyond the music of the spheres. As soon as you go into deeper meditation, all this sort of understanding just becomes super clear, but it doesn't sort of seem present. It wasn't present. I couldn't access it like a swipe card, getting to the VIP room when I was just concerned about eating the right food and going to the gym and pumping a bit of iron. But as soon as I began to sat down in meditation, you just begin to sort of receive lots of information in blocks of thought that just sort of helps you about what's good for you to do next. And meditation was something that was kind of like, I got signs to go, you wanna check this out. And so I got three signs in the space of one week, which is why I followed it up. And so if you're listening to this or watching this interview, then maybe this could be a little sign for you to follow this up because what will be on the other side of having a daily practice, however small will be radiant wellbeing if you keep it up. That's what happened to me. And if it can happen to me and I was someone who's highly anxious, just a guy just going about my business, just trying to make it in my work, trying to do this. But I was still being very much in my future but not in the present. And as soon as I began to enter the present moment, just things started to happen that were beautiful like a seed beginning to grow and bloom at the right time. And that's what was happening to me and that's what will happen to you if you give yourself that space every single day. Yeah, beautiful. So let's move a bit into the soul part of things. So how do you, yeah, tell us about it. What do you feel is, how does a soul call to us? And how do you interact, I guess, with the soul on a daily basis? Well, you are a soul with a body not a body with a soul. That's the best way to describe it. Your soul wants to feel this freedom, growth and joy, boom. And if you're feeling that, you're touching that soul aspect. You know, when you go to a concert and you see the musicians on stage and the lights are going and the music's blaring out and you can just feel the passion coming through, the people on stage, that's them in a physical form having their soul getting the chance to express themselves. So anything that makes you feel really, really good is your soul saying, hey kid, you're right on track. And anytime you're feeling less than that, it's kind of, you're not resonating with the soul. So you're trying to find that freedom, growth and joy. And sometimes the challenging moments of our lives become the most beautiful in hindsight because your soul is growing and evolving. Because you want come to learn a few things so that you can express yourself in more beautiful and deeper ways that will not only benefit you because of the joy you feel, but will also extend out and help loads of other people too. So one thing I've learned about the soul is that we're all connected and when you are really doing your right work, you really make a beautiful impact on other people and it just feels like home to you. It just feels so right. And so as soon as you start doing that, as soon as you start doing things that make you feel great, like following your bliss, such as Joseph Campbell's wise words, then you begin to touch that essence of your soul and you can do that every single day. And meditation is a way for you to become aware of that and awakened to that. And it's not the only way, but it's just a way. Yeah, it's beautiful. I fully agree. And that connection to the soul and joyful growth, I appreciate you saying that it's not always pleasurable in the moment when your soul is growing, but if you are willing to open yourself to the experience at hand and allow that to come through you, looking back, you may actually really deeply find the fulfilling that, wow, okay, this is how I grew and this is what I learned, right? And it's beautiful you mentioned that because if you look at things like Shakespeare, right? When you look back, you can laugh at things, right? And when you're in the moment, you can't laugh. You can cry sometimes or you lose your cool. I know I have on many occasions, but when I see the real wisdom in some texts and some poetry and some writings, like Shakespeare's writings of life is but a comedy of errors and how right he was and how tuned in he was. When you can look back in hindsight and go, oh, that was a good thing that that thing happened, but at that time or that breakup or that business that went south or me having to change jobs or perhaps me having to move home or whatever, whatever those difficulties may be, featuring every one of us. You know, you can look back and go, do you know what, that was a real blessing in disguise that happened, but in the moment you can't see it. Yeah, absolutely. And so connecting the soul's growth and joy to our physical health, let's make that connection now because when the soul like on a daily basis, for example, like if we can allow the soul to be expressed and like you said, find its home in our daily experience that does contribute powerfully to good health. And then the word that you use there is ideal, the contribution, right? So if you're doing something you enjoy, there is joy in the doing, right? So for instance, you know, if you're a podcast and you're sharing information or you're a business coach or you're a singer, you're an athlete or you're an entrepreneur, you're running a team of people, whatever you do, as long as you are enjoying what you're bringing to the table in your contribution, your soul is happy, right? But if you're not enjoying what you're doing, you have to reassess to go, well, what would bring me joy and how could I bring it? Because everybody's picking up on the feelings that you're emitting or broadcasting out into the world. And sometimes we have to do work just to support ourselves, but can there still be joy in the doing? Could you still bring that element of, I'm gonna make this the best I can because I know this isn't the job that I really want, but it's a stepping stone. And what if I bring a little joy and I contribute myself to whatever I'm doing? And let's just see what unfolds as a result because you never know who you're gonna meet, you never know who you're gonna interact with, but I tell you this, if you've got a little passion, you've got a little joy and you're bringing yourself to the equation, even if you're in a, particularly if you're in a job that you don't particularly care for, that's just trying to help you earn a bit of money, you'll never know who you might meet on those days when you're feeling good, despite it not being the perfect job for you. Thank you for that, yeah. Let's talk a bit about how clients work with you. I wanna talk about your work a bit as a wellbeing coach. So first of all, tell us who you love to work, what kind of person you love to work with or what kind of stage of transformation they're going into. And secondly, when they start to work with you, what are the key pieces that you work on with them? Well, the main thing is is that I just take one challenge that somebody's going through and we find, I work through the solution with that person to be able to discover the best possible solution for the one challenge that they've got. And then it sort of tends to blend from there. And so I've had quite a few clients, I've had athletes, I've had mums, I've had high level businessmen who are running businesses, I've had single entrepreneurs, all each with their different challenges. And what they usually come with initially is like I've got stress. I've got stress where I'm not well, there's something wrong with my body or something or other, can you help me? And I'm like, good. And what I've discovered in my time is that I'm able to spot the patterns which create the problem in the first place. And then very much like a new computer program, I help give you the new software to plant the new program. And it's a lot easier than it seems, but the real aha moment comes out when someone goes, that was the reason that made me feel like that and why I've had this experience. That's the reason why I lost money with that particular client. And that's the reason why that business didn't work out, but now this is going really well. And this is the reason why my relationship's suffering. I'm like, and I'm able to point out the exact reason why and then show them tools and habits that we'll be able to bring that back into equilibrium. And soon as you get one area of your life really, really working well, particularly your health, it seems like everything else begins to click into place. So I'm just here really to help you remind you of what you already know that people have forgotten in a sort of lighthearted, joyful way, but it will be profound because you're gonna go away and go like, I just came for stress, stress relief. You're like, well, that's not the only thing you're gonna get, you're gonna get a new perspective. You're gonna get a new outlook. And as a result of that, you're gonna remain quite well if you keep it up. Yeah, because from the new outlook creates, hopefully new habits that bring the wellness on a daily basis. And I totally agree. It's like if you can focus on the health and the wellbeing, it tends to cascade out into the other areas too. Well, James, I'm grateful for the work that you do and for the content that you create on your podcast, your Instagram and elsewhere. I'll put the links below this video so folks can follow up and check that out. Any kind of parting words of wisdom as we conclude this conversation? Yeah, parting words of wisdom would be, be gentle with yourself, be kind to yourself, be kind to yourself. Everyone's having a tough time. Try and give people the benefit about the best you can. Be kind to yourself because when you're kind to yourself, this is a state of energy or flow. And when you're hard on yourself, this is a state of energy that's forced. And so the more flowing you can be with your energy, meaning gentler, what happens is you create less resistance in the mind, which creates less resistance in the body. And the wellbeing is about a wellbeing of wellness, which is yourself. And anytime you're being hard on yourself or hard on other people, even though they might be justly needing that, what you're doing is you're saying, I'm willing to accept myself not being well because of my casting judgment. Wow, that is food for thought. I appreciate you saying that. There's a lot in there. There's a lot, yeah. So I encourage folks to watch that again, watch this again. And also find something to be happy about. Try and watch something funny on TV. For goodness sake, life's supposed to be fun. So, you know, try and find something funny to watch and look for lightheartedness because your lightheartedness keeps you free, which will keep you in tune with your soul. Amazing. Thank you for that. Thank you. Well, James, always a pleasure to connect with you. And folks, if you enjoyed this conversation, well, you might want to watch it again to get some of the nuggets again and kind of reflect on that, but check out the links below to James's podcast, Instagram, et cetera. So, all right, well, I wish everyone a wonderful day, a great day of well-being, and thank you again, James. Well, wishers, thanks again, George. Much appreciate it.