What happens when you achieve the life you were told to want… and realize it doesn’t actually feel like yours?

This week’s conversation with Florian Kemmerich, founder of On Vocation, explores a quiet but powerful truth many high performers face: success doesn’t always equal fulfillment. This episode isn’t about quitting your job or blowing up your life — it’s about choosing your life consciously instead of inheriting it unconsciously.

Most high performers aren’t failing — they’re functioning.

They’re capable, respected, productive, and doing “everything right.” And that’s exactly why the deeper questions get postponed. Education and career paths teach us how to make a living, but rarely ask:

• What do I actually care about?
• What feels meaningful to contribute?
• What kind of life would I choose if I wasn’t responding to expectations?

That gap doesn’t show up immediately. It shows up later as burnout, golden handcuffs, quiet dissatisfaction, or the feeling of being busy all day but disconnected from yourself.

As Florian put it:

“I had been the absent subject of my own education.”

Florian introduces the idea of vocation — not as a title or outcome, but as alignment.

A vocation isn’t about status or external validation. It’s about dedicating your skills in service of something greater than yourself.

The key distinction he makes:

• Imagination is externally driven (money, recognition, approval).
• Intuition is internally driven (service, responsibility, meaning).

You don’t have to abandon your experience to follow your vocation.
Vocation answers why you care.
Your skill set answers how you contribute.

Avoiding these questions doesn’t make them disappear — it delays them.

The longer you delay conscious choice, the higher the cost:

• Over-identification with money or status
• Quiet regret
• Feeling like you never really chose your life

As Florian said:

“Work becomes exhausting when it’s disconnected from who you are.”

This episode aligns directly with Prime Principle: Clarity.

Clarity isn’t about having all the answers — it’s about asking better questions and acting intentionally instead of reactively.

If this episode resonated, this is exactly the work we do inside Prime Performance Coaching and the Momentum Mastermind:

• Clarifying who you are becoming
• Aligning effort with intention
• Turning awareness into momentum
• Designing a life and business that actually fits you

You don’t need to abandon your life — you need to author it.

To dive deeper into Florian’s work:

• 📘 Book: On Vocation – Aligning Purpose with Profession
• 🌍 Website: on-vocation.com

Florian also has upcoming books on Purpose & Business and Purpose & Capital, along with future workshops and a gamified platform.

You don’t need to figure everything out today.

But you do need the courage to ask the question honestly:

Am I living my life — or just responding to expectations?

As always:
Reflect honestly. Choose intentionally.
And keep surviving the side hustle.

What happens when you achieve the life you were told to want… and realize it isn’t yours?

In this episode of Surviving the Side Hustle, Rob sits down with Florian Kemmerich — founder of On Vocation, author, investor, and global thought leader — to explore what it truly means to align your work with who you are.

At just 33 years old, Florian walked away from a high-level corporate career, a marriage, and a version of “success” that looked good on paper but felt empty in real life. What followed was a deep personal reckoning that led him to ask a question most people avoid:

Am I living my life — or just responding to expectations?

This conversation is a powerful invitation for anyone who feels successful, capable, and busy… yet quietly disconnected from meaning.

Florian shares that most education systems teach us how to make a living, not how to live a life. We learn skills, roles, and expectations — but rarely pause to ask what we are actually here to contribute.

That gap eventually shows up as:

• Midlife crises
• Burnout
• Divorce
• The “golden handcuffs” feeling
• Or the quiet regret of “I was too busy to live.”

Despite external success, Florian realized he was hiding behind competence, achievement, and identity. A coaching process helped him see that beneath the armor was an unexpressed inner calling — something ignored since childhood.

His realization:

“I had been the absent subject of my own education.”

One of the most powerful distinctions in this episode is the difference between:

• Externally driven imagination (fame, money, approval)
• Internally driven intuition (service, contribution, meaning)

A vocation isn’t about titles or outcomes — it’s about dedicating your skills in service of something greater than yourself.

You don’t need to burn your life down or abandon your experience. Florian emphasizes that vocation and skill set must work together.

Just like Rob’s transition from strength & conditioning into performance coaching, your skills transfer — the context changes.

Vocation answers:

• Why do I care?
  Skill set answers:
• How do I contribute?

Florian developed a practical, repeatable process to help people:

1. Cut through noise
2. Identify their vocation
3. Define a theory of change
4. Choose where to apply it
5. Build stamina & perseverance
6. Measure impact
7. Design a meaningful professional path

This framework now lives in his book On Vocation, with more books and a gamified platform on the way.

• 🌍 Website & Book: on-vocation.com
• 📖 On Vocation: Aligning Purpose with Profession
• 🔜 Upcoming books on Purpose & Business and Purpose & Capital

Vocation isn’t about quitting everything.
It’s about choosing consciously.

When your work becomes an expression of who you are, effort feels different.
Contribution feels energizing.
And success stops feeling hollow.

As always — reflect honestly, choose intentionally, and keep surviving the side hustle.

Here’s a hard truth most high performers don’t want to hear:
Your body isn’t slowing you down — your ignorance of it is.

In this Friday Recap, Rob breaks down the biggest lessons from this week’s conversation with Beth Mielbrecht, a health coach with 35 years of experience as a mechanical engineer. Beth doesn’t treat health as mysterious or spiritualized — she treats it as a system. And systems, when understood, can be fixed.

This episode is a wake-up call for driven side hustlers, solopreneurs, and high achievers who believe they can outwork the consequences of neglecting their health. It’s not about working less — it’s about stopping the habit of treating your body like it’s disposable.

If you’re building something meaningful and pushing through pain, fatigue, or burnout “just a little longer,” this recap will change how you think about performance, recovery, and long-term success.

Most people don’t neglect their bodies because they’re lazy — they do it because they’re driven, capable, and under pressure. The lie we tell ourselves is: “Once I hit this milestone, then I’ll take care of myself.”
The problem? The goalpost always moves.

Beth reframed this perfectly:

If you don’t schedule recovery, your body will schedule it for you — and it won’t be convenient.

Beth spent 35 years as a mechanical engineer. Engineers don’t accept “there’s nothing you can do.” They assume problems have causes and systems can be understood.

She didn’t abandon that identity — she layered it into health. The human body follows logic, patterns, and cause-and-effect just like any other system.

Beth offers a short 10-question quiz to help identify where your system is out of balance and what to focus on first.

👉 Visit YourHealthWithBeth.com to take the quiz and access her private podcast.

Your body isn’t a disposable tool — it’s a business partner you can’t replace.

Ask. Listen. Take action.
And remember: you don’t hustle your way to freedom — you build capacity for it.

What if your biggest business bottleneck isn’t strategy, effort, or execution — but your health?

In this episode of Surviving the Side Hustle, Rob sits down with Beth Mielbrecht, a health coach with a surprising background: 35 years as a mechanical engineer. Rather than abandoning her engineering identity, Beth layered it into her work — applying systems thinking, problem-solving, and structure to human health.

This conversation explores why entrepreneurs and side hustlers so often ignore their bodies while building something meaningful — and why that tradeoff always shows up later as burnout, pain, poor focus, or declining creativity.

Beth breaks down how symptoms are not random, why suppression (coffee, painkillers, cortisone shots) delays real healing, and how learning to ask, listen, and act can radically improve both health and performance.

If you’re grinding toward a goal while pushing your body aside, this episode will change how you think about success.

Beth spent decades as a mechanical engineer — trained to fix what’s broken and understand how systems work. That same mindset now guides her approach to health:

• Problems have causes
• Systems can be optimized
• The body is not mysterious or broken

Health, she explains, isn’t separate from business performance — it’s the foundation of it.

Entrepreneurs often believe:

• “I’ll deal with it after this launch”
• “I just need to push a little longer”
• “I don’t have time to slow down”

Beth explains why this happens — and why it backfires. Pushing through fatigue, poor sleep, and pain doesn’t disappear the problem; it stores it for later.

Beth shares the most common signals that show up before major health issues:

• Poor or restless sleep
• Stiffness and loss of mobility
• Chronic tension, headaches, or joint pain
• Declining focus and creativity

These aren’t isolated problems — they’re connected signals from the body asking for attention.

Caffeine, sugar, painkillers, and “pushing through” fall into what Beth calls suppression — not healing.

True recovery requires:

• Adequate sleep and recovery
• Consistent movement (especially walking)
• Nourishing food and hydration
• Reduced stimulation and stress overload

When inputs improve, outputs follow.

Beth explains how she helps clients reconnect with their bodies:

1. Notice the symptom
2. Ask what was happening before it showed up
3. Connect emotional and physical stress
4. Take informed action

Health improves when curiosity replaces avoidance.

Beth offers a 10-question health quiz that helps identify where your system is most out of balance and where to focus first.

👉 Take the quiz at YourHealthWithBeth.com
(You’ll also find her newsletter, resources, and ways to connect.)

Beth’s core message is simple but powerful:

Your body wants to heal. It’s not broken or attacking you.
Ask. Listen. Take action.

When your health improves, your creativity, clarity, and business performance rise with it.

Friday Recap – Featuring Stanley Bronstein

What if the thing holding you back isn’t a lack of knowledge, motivation, or opportunity — but the stories you’ve been telling yourself for years?

That’s the real challenge behind this week’s conversation with Stanley Bronstein.

Stanley is an attorney, CPA, author, and systems thinker with over four decades of experience. One thing he corrected immediately:

He’s not a former attorney or CPA — he’s still both.
The difference is that now he works by choice, not necessity.
Not for money — but for meaning.

That alone should make you pause.

One of the most powerful lines from the episode:

“I knew I needed to lose weight for 42 years. I acted in year 42.”

That’s the difference between knowing and real awareness.

Real awareness requires:

• Truth
• Ownership
• Action

Knowing without acting isn’t awareness — it’s avoidance.

As Stanley put it:

“I changed my life in an instant… but it took me 42 years to be ready for that instant.”

On February 1st, 2009 — four months before his 50th birthday — Stanley asked himself a brutal question:

“Where will I be in five years if I don’t change?”

He didn’t like the answer.

So he made a decision, not a wish:

• He stopped drinking alcohol and soda
• He cut foods that didn’t serve him
• He started walking every day
• He took full personal responsibility

No blame.
No drama.
Just ownership.

Stanley didn’t rely on motivation. He changed his identity.

He didn’t ask:

• “Should I walk today?”
• “Should I eat better today?”

Those decisions were already made.

That’s what commitment does — it removes friction.

As he reframed it:

“Discipline isn’t punishment. Discipline is self-respect in action.”

Over 17 years, that identity led to:

• 70,000+ miles walked
• Nearly three times around the earth
• Sustainable health and clarity

Short-term thinking mortgages your future.
Long-term thinking invests in it.

One of Stanley’s most powerful mindset shifts:

“I don’t have to do these things. I get to do them.”

That perspective turns effort into privilege — something every entrepreneur and side hustler can relate to.

Stanley turned his entire journey into a system called The Way of Excellence — a human operating system built on:

• Awareness
• Long-term thinking
• Personal responsibility
• Discipline
• Commitment
• Integration of mind, body, and spirit

If you’ve been around the show, you’ll recognize the overlap with Prime Performance:

• Inputs determine outputs
• Systems beat motivation
• Identity drives behavior

The wild part?
Everything is free — books, videos, frameworks — no paywalls, no opt-ins.

👉 Explore it at thewayofexcellence.com

Some transformations don’t come from motivation, hacks, or quick fixes — they come from radical honesty and long-term commitment.

In this episode of Surviving the Side Hustle, I sit down with Stanley Bronstein — an attorney and CPA with over four decades of professional experience — whose story is as powerful as it is grounding. Stanley lost over 220 pounds, kept it off for more than a decade, and built a life where he no longer works for money… but for meaning.

This conversation goes far beyond weight loss. It’s about awareness, discipline, identity, responsibility, and truth — and what happens when someone finally stops negotiating with themselves.

Stanley shares his journey from childhood trauma and decades of self-destructive habits to building a personal operating system he calls The Way of Excellence — a framework for sustainable change in any area of life.

We explore:

• Why knowing you need to change isn’t the same as being aware
• How long-term thinking creates freedom while short-term thinking mortgages your future
• The difference between temporary changes and permanent identity shifts
• Why abstinence is sometimes easier (and healthier) than moderation
• How discipline becomes effortless once decisions are removed
• Why motivation fades — but systems endure
• The power of integrating mind, body, and spirit

Stanley also opens up about the emotional roots of his journey — including the loss of his mother at a young age — and how healing those experiences was just as important as changing his habits.

You can “know” something for years and never change. Real awareness begins the moment you act.

When you commit 100%, decisions disappear — and discipline becomes automatic.

Perspective shifts everything. Health, movement, and growth are privileges, not punishments.

When you decide who you are, your habits naturally follow.

Motivation fades. Systems compound.

Stanley has made his entire framework — The Way of Excellence — available for free, including:

• His full system
• Short educational videos
• Digital copies of all five of his books

👉 Visit thewayofexcellence.com to explore the resources or connect with Stanley directly.

This episode touches nearly every Prime Performance principle:

• Resilience through responsibility, not toughness
• Intentionality through long-term thinking
• Clarity through radical self-honesty
• Optimization through systems and routines
• Sustainability through identity-level change

As Stanley puts it:

“You don’t change the world by fixing everyone else. You change the world by changing yourself.”

If you take one thing from this episode, let it be this:

Stop lying to yourself.
Tell the truth.
Then act on it.

This episode picks up Part 2 of the Top 10 Takeaways from Surviving the Side Hustle — pulling lessons from some of the most impactful conversations since the show began.

These aren’t tactics or hacks. They’re foundational truths about confidence, awareness, communication, consistency, and alignment — and how Prime Performers actually sustain momentum over time.

Guest: Celeste Moore
Episode 82 – February 26, 2025

This conversation centered on confidence, presence, and personal branding — not as aesthetics, but as alignment.

Many people want to be taken seriously in their business, career, or side hustle… yet they don’t take themselves seriously first.

Key Lesson: Influence starts with presence.
Prime Performance Tie-In: Self-investment isn’t ego — it’s leadership.

Reflection: Where do others believe in you more than you currently believe in yourself?

Guest: Bob Martin
Episode 135 – November 18, 2025

This conversation slowed everything down — in the best way. We explored mindfulness, reflection, and how speed without awareness often disguises burnout as progress.

Key Lesson: Clarity doesn’t come from speed — it comes from space.
Prime Performance Tie-In: Momentum requires regular check-ins, not just checklists.

Reflection: When was the last time you paused long enough to ask, “Is this still the right direction?”

Guest: Danny Brasile
Episode 101

This episode focused on communication, influence, and the difference between talking at people and truly connecting with them.

Most professionals focus on sounding smart. The real skill is making others feel understood.

Key Lesson: Connection precedes conversion.
Prime Performance Tie-In: Prime Performers speak to people — not over them.

Reflection: In your conversations, are you focused more on your response… or their reality?

Guest: Quinn Magnuson
Episode 139 – From Gridiron to Boardroom

Quinn shared lessons from athletics, discipline, and long-term consistency. Motivation fluctuates. Conditions change. Results aren’t guaranteed.

Effort, preparation, and perspective are.

Key Lesson: Momentum isn’t emotional — it’s mechanical.
Prime Performance Tie-In: Confidence is built through small, repeatable actions.

Reflection: What is one effort you can commit to consistently in 2026 — regardless of how it feels?

Guest: Adam Vora
Episode 33 – March 20, 2024

This conversation explored purpose, decision-making, and the danger of too many well-meaning voices.

Too much input creates confusion. Clarity improves when alignment replaces consensus.

Key Lesson: Discernment is a performance skill.
Prime Performance Tie-In: Prime Performers choose mentors, inputs, and feedback intentionally.

Reflection: Whose voice do you need to turn down in 2026 so you can hear your own more clearly?

If even one of these lessons resonated, revisit the full episode — and more importantly, apply one takeaway this week.

As we close out 2025, reflection matters just as much as goal-setting. In this solo episode, Rob looks back on five of the most impactful conversations from Surviving the Side Hustle so far — not tactical how-tos, but core truths about health, identity, effort, and alignment.

Guest: Holly Porter

Holly shared her near-death experience and the health collapse that forced her to stop everything. What stood out most wasn’t just the trauma — it was the clarity that followed.

For years, she succeeded on paper while ignoring the signals her body was sending… until they couldn’t be ignored anymore.

Reflection: Where have you been ignoring physical, mental, or emotional warning signs because slowing down feels uncomfortable?
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/surviving-the-side-hustle/id1711453767?i=1000713366899

Guest: Kenny Green

This conversation dug deep into identity and belief systems. Most people chase strategies and shortcuts while overlooking the internal narratives driving their decisions.

Those beliefs don’t show up immediately — they reveal themselves through repeated patterns.

Reflection: What belief about yourself quietly guided your biggest decision this year? Was it empowering or limiting?
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/surviving-the-side-hustle/id1711453767?i=1000712387433

Guest: Zoraida Morales

Zoraida’s story of surviving cancer and corporate burnout reframed success entirely. Healing wasn’t just about treatment — it required trust, intuition, and learning to listen again.

Reflection: What part of your wellbeing did you sacrifice this year in the name of productivity?
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/surviving-the-side-hustle/id1711453767?i=1000714447262

Guest: Ben LeRose

One of the most popular episodes of the show, this conversation explored ambition, work ethic, and the pride side hustlers take in outworking everyone else — and the cost of doing so without recovery.

Reflection: Where could better systems replace brute force in your life or business?

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/surviving-the-side-hustle/id1711453767?i=1000639840629

Guests: Meredith & Craig

Meredith and Craig shared the behind-the-scenes story of leaving security, saying yes before certainty, and building a business together without waiting for confidence to show up first.

Reflection: What opportunity did you delay this year because you didn’t feel ready?

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/surviving-the-side-hustle/id1711453767?i=1000740347869