EPISODE 28 – MIKE LIGUORI ON KNOWING YOUR NEXT MISSION, CRAFTING A GOOD STORY AND RECOGNIZING IT IS NEVER TOO LATE 

Today we are talking with Mike Liguori, an Iraq War Veteran, Author and Founder of Live Your Truth Media.

Mike started out his career in the United States Marine Corps and when he returned home from Iraq he was met with the challenge of participating in an unfamiliar society – a world that had changed so much, but he was also faced with returning as a different person then when he had left.  He suffered from PTSD, struggled to move forward, and hit rock bottom.

Mike was able to overcome so many challenges and eventually started out his civilian career in sales and marketing and then launched his own business Live Your Truth Media in 2019.

Live Your Truth Media focuses on what matters the most when it comes to content marketing and podcasting. They want to help people create the most powerful stories and provide the best possible experience for listeners. They help to brainstorm ideas, show you how to structure episodes, how to edit your audio and how to promote your show.

Mike has worked on award winning teams, has been featured in the Huffington Post and has worked with some pretty big names in the podcasting world like The Steve Weatherford Show and Big Queen Energy just to name a few.

Mike is a gifted storyteller and has written two books – The Sandbox: Stories of Human Spirit and War and The Road Ahead and the Miles Behind.

Mike’s clients rave about his work ethic and how he has helped them move forward. I love that Mike believes in the importance of adding valuing and how he stresses the importance of knowing your customers and what they really need in order to best serve them.

I can’t wait to share Mike’s story and how he overcame his challenges. Mike is very open about discussing mental health, challenges of moving from military life to civilian life and so much more.

I am sure you will find more than one or two things to take away from this podcast.

In this episode, Mike and I discuss the following:

• • • Benefits of growing up, working, and living in Nova Scotia
    • Being drawn to be a part of something as an act of service to support your values and ideals
    • What it feels like when you return from war
    • How being in the military teaches you about accountability, responsibility, and ownership over your actions
    • The differences about making decisions based on what you “need” to do versus what you “feel” like doing
    • How the chain of command provides direction, alleviates decision making, and gives you clear instructions on what is expected
    • What happens when you leave the military and return to civilian life and the similarities to leaving a corporation and starting your own business
    • Some of the biggest struggles of being a new business owner
    • What happens when you lose your compass, and can’t find your true north
    • What happens when the fear of the ownership is combined with the fear of failure
    • How and why, it is important to show up to move through a challenge
    • How experiences influence your decisions, and why it is important for you to identify what works for you as a business owner
    • Importance of listening to yourself to know when there is something wrong with you and when to ask for help
    • Challenges of dealing with PTSD, how it can affect you in everyday life and the value of having a good support system
    • Why observing and listening is a critical skill in business
    • What sales teaches you
    • How storytelling allows you to connect and relate to people to build a foundation for a great relationship
    • How to tell a really good story in order to bring your customers on your organizations journey
    • Key questions to answer to build a good story based on the type of story you want to share
    • Value of striving for more and why it is important for people to understand what drives you
    • Challenges of being an entrepreneur – how we think and how we beat ourselves up internally
    • What you should do when you are recruiting people to work for your company
    • What does the word entrepreneur mean?
    • Why an entrepreneur experiences burnout and it’s not what you think
    • What is value and how it is subjective to everyone
    • Importance of knowing your audience and what they want
    • What is the story of the person that would purchase your product
    • How you can best help your ideal customer
    • Relationship challenges between children and their parents
    • Challenges of recognizing your own value and worth
    • Seeking praise, approval, and validation from others
    • Why you should think about reconciliation with your parents
    • Listening to your internal voice and trusting yourself to take action when opportunities present themselves
    • Men have feelings too
    • It is never too late to have something with your parents

If you would like more information on Mike, you can visit:

Website: mikeliguori.com

Instagram: @mike.liguori

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3GYdfKF

Barnes and Noble: https://bit.ly/3EasdLr

Listen to this podcast on Spotify, Google Podcast, iTunes or click play below to stream it.

If you have a minute, leave a short review here, or send me an email to tell me what other guests I should have on the podcast.