Throughout our lives, we all have to face a variety of situations – whether it's a job change, stage fright, emotional breakdown, or physical illness. Many of these catch us off guard, throw us out of our routine, generate high levels of stress, and cause psychological discomfort expressed through feelings of fear, frustration, and worthlessness. Often, we react under the influence of emotions or negative energy.
How can we gain the ability to positively adapt to different situations or overcome adversity and learn from it, so we come out stronger and ready to face new challenges? How do professional athletes or managers master this ability? How can we successfully get rid of bad habits or adopt new ones? And how is all this connected to the quality of our energy and the ability to consciously manage it?
Guest of this podcast, Radim Valigura, a mental coach, consultant, and coach of top-level managers and athletes. He coached elite tennis players in Switzerland, including tennis legend Martina Hingis. His new book Mental Resilience, written in a captivating way, offers valuable advice on how to handle daily stressful situations and optimize performance.
You can watch all subtitled episodes of Trime podcast on YouTube.
You can also find the podcast on our YouTube channel.
Podcast transcript:
00:00:05 [Michal]
Today, I have a rather unconventional guest sitting across from me – Radim Valigura. Radim, welcome.
00:00:10 [Radim]
Hello.
00:00:11 [Michal]
I'm thinking about how to greet you. Radim and I have known each other for a long time. I've worked with him for several years. Some might know Radim Valigura as a former tennis coach, especially thanks to Martina Hingis. Today, he trains and coaches many managers, entrepreneurs, and so on. His new book has just come out. Radim, what do you do?
00:00:37 [Radim]
I deal with a topic called mental resilience. It's essentially a form of self-development or a skill – training a specific skill that helps us become more conscious and intentional in managing our lives. Technically speaking, a mentally resilient person is someone whose brain cells and cerebral cortex are active, meaning they don't act purely under emotion but are able to perceive things consciously thanks to that activated cortex, giving them access to the highest possible intelligence. This training essentially increases the energy capacity in the periphery of the neocortex – or in other words, in our brain.
00:01:48 [Michal]
Let's go through those specific areas – how exactly do you train or operate? So, the sport – you originally came from tennis and trained Martina Hingis, but back then you were a physical tennis coach.
00:02:03 [Radim]
That was from 2007. So until around 2010, I mostly worked in tennis. Since about 2005, I had been living in Switzerland. Of course, due to my collaboration with Martina – who at the time had been No. 1 in the world for four years. Then she had a break until 2001, and when she made her comeback in 2005 and returned to fifth place, I was there with her.
[00:02:36] Michal
You were incredibly young to be coaching such a star, weren't you?
[00:02:37] Radim
That's exactly it. I was twenty-four at the time and originally started as a sparring partner. When I joined, her coach was her mom, Melanie Monitor. I assisted for about two years. I was involved in Martina's technical training, played daily practice sets with her, and observed their coaching routines. Then, in the fall of 2005, when Martina announced her comeback to top-level tennis, I was offered the chance to go with her. That’s how it began – and yes, I was only twenty-four. Imagine a twenty-four-year-old guy who already had some experience, lived abroad, spoke the language, was used to a different mindset – and suddenly he's traveling with such a star. Picture arriving in Australia, where newspapers were full of headlines about a tournament where Martina was the main attraction. You walk into the airport hall, and you're swarmed by journalists. A white limousine awaits. I remember that long limo. Or having an entire floor rented in a five-star hotel, staying in a two-story suite. That was my first contact with the big world. And even though Martina wasn’t ranked in the WTA at the time, she was treated like a world No. 1.
[00:04:24] Michal
Was it more excitement or more stress?
[00:04:27] Radim
That’s the thing – the feelings were mixed. I was stepping into a huge unknown, but I was incredibly excited. I remember it felt like a dream come true. I went from someone who had only seen the elite world of top-level sport from afar, to being right at its center. And of course, even if I didn’t realize it then, it wasn’t easy at all. That was one reason I got into this field. I first became interested in how to manage pressure. Why does it happen that a player – like Martina or any other star – plays one way in training, but once the match starts, with an audience, cameras, points, fame, and money at stake, their performance changes? I saw this firsthand every day, and it fascinated me because that’s the core of it. One thing is knowing the technique – how to work with the body – another is strategy and tactics, but the third and hardest thing is executing it all under pressure.
[00:06:01] Michal
That’s exactly what fascinates me about it, because I think everyone knows it—just like everyone knows the principle when, I don't know, a mother gets into some crisis situation involving her child, and suddenly she's capable of what we’d call supernatural strength—like lifting a car when a child gets stuck underneath. How do you explain that? Because I’ve experienced it, and I think everyone has, but can you explain it in some way?
[00:06:34] Radim
Well, now you've set the bar pretty high, because here we're getting into a different realm—working with energy, which already borders on spirituality. Because, as they say, “your faith will heal you,” or if someone truly believes in something, they don’t doubt it, and all their energy flows in one direction. And in this context, if we go a bit deeper into the mechanics of this, we need to understand what energy actually is. Because to do something for which there's no rational explanation—say, if an untrained person, with no muscle or strength, not lifting weights regularly, suddenly performs a feat comparable to someone who trains daily—then the question arises: how is it possible? And that’s where we talk about energy. If I simplify it, people often imagine energy as a force. But when you ask, “What is energy?” people imagine all sorts of things. Some think of electricity, others imagine atmosphere or mood, some think of motivation or raw strength, while others see it purely physically—like lightning. And of course, there are many people who see it through a spiritual lens—as something between heaven and earth. So, we have all these different perspectives. Naturally, since people can’t fully grasp it rationally, they struggle to work with it—or see it as something supernatural. But to put it simply, energy can be either physiological, or let’s say, we can divide it into two drawers. One is the energy we produce—physiologically—based on the processes in our body. This is the energy influenced by how we eat, how we rest, how we move, and the way we influence this energy is what we call a healthy lifestyle. But just because someone sleeps well, eats well, and is rested doesn’t mean they can master their emotions, or do something uncomfortable—like quit a job, fire someone, speak in public, or handle competitive pressure. Because that touches on the second type of energy, which is not so easily grasped. We could call it free energy or emotional energy. And this energy—called different names in different cultures and religions—is known as prana in India, chi in China, ki in Japan, mana in Israel, and we simply call it energy. So first, it’s important to recognize that these energies are interconnected and complementary, and sometimes they surge massively—creating that kind of performance.
[00:10:25] Michal
So if I understand correctly—let’s say I’m low on mental energy, I go for a 30-minute run, and suddenly my brain works way better. That’s kind of the physiological, down-to-earth explanation, right? And then there’s the other part—when someone has a lot of energy, and I’m not even sure if it’s physical, mood-related, or what—but suddenly nothing feels like a problem. You start seeing big ideas and all the things you could do. But when you’re low on energy, everything seems gloomy or you’re more pessimistic. So how do you actually train what you do—mental resilience? Because we know how to train muscles, how to lose weight with food and so on, but how do you work with this?
[00:11:14] Radim
I’ll try to answer as simply as I can, because this is definitely not an easy topic. The way a person thinks—in other words, how they approach things, whether they view something positively or negatively, whether they look for solutions or focus on problems—is essentially tied to the energy they have, or the quality of their energy. And the quality of energy can be recognized through feelings, because feelings are how we communicate with our subconscious. They’re a reflection of the level of our energy. And I’m not talking about general feelings like “I feel good” or “I feel bad.” I mean deeper feelings that we often don’t consciously realize we’re experiencing. Feelings like being threatened, attacked, ignored, abandoned, unappreciated, trapped, or left hanging—those are all negative feelings. On the other hand, there are positive feelings like feeling motivated, proud, or appreciated. Now imagine, Michal—what happens to you and your energy when someone you admire, someone close to you, comes and says, “Hey, you’re doing great.” They praise you for something. Exactly—it automatically affects your feeling. You start to feel appreciated, even if you don’t consciously notice it. And the result is physical—you straighten up, you look ahead, you smile. Something shifts. And few people realize that just by changing a feeling, your posture changes—and someone who stands tall and feels good naturally thinks more positively. I’d compare it to a glass: is it full, half full, or half empty? What do you decide?
[00:13:24] Michal
Can I measure it, or does everyone see it differently?
[00:13:27] Radim
Well, it depends—when I look at it, the answer will depend on the quality of energy I have at that moment. If I feel good—in other words, I have a strong, positive feeling in my body—I’ll naturally have enough energy and my mind will think, “Yeah, it’s still half full,” because I don’t feel like anything’s missing. But if I feel bad—let’s say I argued with someone on the way here, or something didn’t work out, or I’m carrying around a feeling that isn’t aligned with a good emotional state—then I’ll automatically see the glass as lacking. Something’s missing—because inside, something is missing. That’s the emotional quality, or the quality of energy.
[00:14:14] Michal
And that’s actually what mental resilience is about—when these negative influences hit me, I should be able to respond appropriately, effectively, and quickly.
[00:14:18] Radim
Exactly. That’s what it’s about. But mental resilience isn’t about being unaffected or cold-hearted. It’s not about suppressing emotions or becoming robotic. Quite the opposite. It’s about realizing what state I’m in and being able to make a conscious decision regardless of that state. So for example, if I feel nervous, I don’t deny it. But I know how to breathe through it, calm my body, and shift my attention. And this is what can be trained. It’s the same as muscle training. There are methods, exercises, and techniques to do it. The problem is, we’ve never been taught how to do it. We’ve always been told to calm down or stop crying, but no one explained how to do that effectively. Mental training teaches exactly that—how to regulate your inner state so you can respond rather than react.
[00:15:10] Michal
So it’s not about becoming emotionless, but more about recognizing what's happening inside you and then being able to steer it?
[00:15:17] Radim
Precisely. It’s about building the inner capacity to handle life. To be present and aware. Not to be constantly pulled by every impulse or emotion. It’s like being in the driver's seat of your own mind instead of sitting in the backseat and letting it drive you. And the better you train it, the faster you can return to balance—even when something unexpected or challenging happens.
[00:14:24] Radim
Again, mental resilience is really a skill that comes from understanding the full context—how energy works and how it influences our behavior and actions. In other words, I’ll use a quote from someone no longer living, David Hawkins, who said: “The power of information lies in its context.” That’s exactly it. When I understand the context—say there’s a situation and I look at it with a broader perspective—for example, if you come to me and say you’re not feeling well, but I know that for the past week you’ve been dealing with personal issues like a divorce, I’ll interpret your complaint differently than if I saw someone punch you in the stomach and you said your stomach hurts. A trivial example, maybe, but the point is: the context I perceive connected to that situation shapes how I respond—what advice I give you. In the second case, I’ll tell you to get some ice. In the first case, I’ll tell you to get some rest and not stress over what’s going on at home. So mental resilience, grounded in rational understanding of how energy works, allows us to broaden our perception of a situation and then apply the right tools—breathing techniques, visualization, tried-and-true principles, physical exercises, energy therapies, whatever works in the moment. So if I feel my energy is dropping because of a particular emotion, I simply need to replace that emotion with a different one. That raises my energy, changes how I think, and automatically shifts how my body functions. So it’s really a comprehensive education in how to be more in charge of yourself.
[00:17:08] Michal
I really see a parallel here. We work with supplements, nutrition, lifestyle, sport—and we get a lot of questions like, “I still haven’t lost weight, so what now?” For me, it’s always the same story—if I have my nutrition 100% figured out, and another piece too, but I don’t sleep well or I go to work every day in a foul mood, then the whole thing can’t really work. So is it about identifying the unresolved issues or weak spots and being able to recognize where my vulnerabilities are?
[00:17:47] Radim
That’s a good way to put it. From my perspective, I think of it like this: we have a certain amount of energy—I call it firewood or fuel for the day. And this energy consists of those two types—how I’m doing physically, like how I live, eat, take care of myself—that’s one part. And then there’s the free-flowing energy—call it emotional, spiritual, whatever—something that influences us and those around us. I can think of it like this: I have a certain energy fund for the day, and it’s like a channel where that energy flows. Imagine I have a symbolic pile of firewood. Each topic I focus on is like a small fire, and every time I give it attention, I throw a log onto it. So when I focus on something, I’m feeding it energy. That fire could be about losing weight, work, commuting, answering emails—or politics. As soon as I give it attention, think about it, do something physical about it—I’m tossing my energy logs onto that fire. Now think: how many of those fires actually belong to the “lose weight” course? If I want to lose weight, then I need as many of those energy fires as possible to align with that goal. If I have activities that don’t match that goal, I’m tossing logs elsewhere—and then I lack the energy to follow through on my main goal. Let me give a different example. Say someone wants to quit smoking. Your energy is going somewhere, and right now it’s into that habit—smoking. When I say I want to quit, I’m saying I want to stop giving energy to smoking. But energy can’t be stopped—it can only be redirected or transformed. So I can’t just stop something—I need to shift attention to something else. Another fire. Instead of tossing logs into the smoking fire, I toss them into running or healthy living. In other words, I replace that fire with another. It’s the same with losing weight. If I have a main fire labeled “lose weight” but lots of activities unrelated to that, then my energy gets scattered and I lose the ability to follow the main goal. I’m not sure if I explained it clearly?
[00:21:22] Michal
I think I get it—that where I focus my attention, I create a reaction. Sometimes sooner, sometimes later. Could it be explained that way? Because I’ve used simple tricks. I had a bad habit of turning on my phone first thing in the morning—pretty awful, right? So for the first week, I tried not turning it on for 90 minutes. It was tough at first, but then it became automatic. Same with reading the news—spending 15 minutes daily. These are small, simple habits, and I feel like it’s kind of like throwing a ball against a wall—it comes back to you in an equivalent way.
[00:22:08] Radim
That’s a great example. Let’s say I want to eat better or look better—then logically I need to eat better food. Right? In smaller portions, better quality, move more, etc. If I say “I won’t eat this anymore,” then I’m cutting off energy. I can either replace it—eat this instead—or improve the quality of what I eat. Like swapping salami for ham. I start replacing things gradually. It’s like someone who wants to start working out but can’t imagine going to the gym. It feels overwhelming—logistics, planning, everything. So either you wait until motivation builds up to the point where you snap and go—or you start small. Do five push-ups, then ten, then maybe three again. Add it up over the day or the week and suddenly you’ve done a hundred push-ups in a week. But if you looked at it from day one and said “I have to do a hundred push-ups,” you’d likely say “I can’t do that,” and give up before you even start.
[00:23:36] Michal
Yeah, I think professional athletes would confirm that the first training sessions after a break are probably the hardest, even though they’re not as intense as before.
[00:23:45] Radim
Of course, yeah.
[00:23:46] Michal
Let’s dive into that—how do you actually work with athletes? Let’s start there. How do you approach mental preparation with them? Because it’s such an intangible thing. I know people who seem incredibly mentally strong or resilient, and then a big race comes up—and they just collapse.
[00:24:08] Radim
Right. The very first and most important thing is understanding why you’d even want to do this kind of work. So, for example, if I’m an athlete and something like this is happening—like, I perform well in training but suddenly in a match I can’t replicate that same level of performance—it means that something is influencing me to the point where it’s holding me back. First, I need to understand what that “something” is. In other words, I need to understand what’s happening inside me during training, how that works, and then what changes when I’m in competition—when there are spectators, when sponsors are watching, when results matter, when the media’s involved, and so on. Suddenly, all these external factors are in play, and I need to understand how they affect me energetically. Because today, if you look at various studies—it's written about everywhere—they say that people operate consciously only about five percent of the time. That means 95% of what we do happens on a subconscious level. And what I mean by that—because it's a complicated concept for those unfamiliar—is, let me ask you, Michal, do you remember when you took your driving test for the first time? Do you remember the experience?
[00:25:57] Michal
Yeah, I remember it very well.
[00:25:58] Radim
Do you remember the route you drove?
[00:26:00] Michal
Not exactly, but I think I could recall about 80% of it.
[00:26:04] Radim
Do you remember what the instructor looked like?
[00:26:08] Michal
Yes, very clearly.
[00:26:10] Radim
See? When you took your driving test for the first time, you remember everything about the drive. In other words, your maximum attention was on being aware of the road. And today, when you drive, say, from Prague to Brno on the D1, how much of that trip do you remember?
[00:26:30] Michal
Nothing, I’m listening to an audiobook.
[00:26:31] Radim
So you remember the audiobook. But if I asked you what was in the book? Actually—no, not the book—what did you see on the road?
[00:26:39] Michal
Snow in Vysočina.
[00:26:41] Radim
Snow in Vysočina—you might remember that. But we often realize that ten minutes go by, and we have no idea what happened during that time. That’s exactly the point—our consciousness switches off when we start thinking about something. In other words, when our attention is redirected elsewhere. So when I start listening to an audiobook, and I begin thinking about what’s being said, someone else has to keep driving—because my conscious mind is somewhere else. That means my subconscious—my autopilot—takes over.
[00:27:25] Michal
More unconsciously, right.
[00:27:26] Radim
Exactly. That’s where the 95% comes in. Every time our attention is occupied—thinking about something, solving a problem, whatever—someone still has to operate our body. I don’t mean vital functions; I mean things like replying to someone, driving, doing tasks. And that’s all handled by the subconscious. Now, for an athlete, it’s the same. They operate one way during training and another during competition. But 95% of what determines the result is driven by the subconscious. In other words, they don’t even know why a muscle suddenly tightens up, or why they start thinking about things they don’t want to. Why does a thought like “I can’t do this” or “What if I mess up?” pop into their head? They don’t have control over it—because 95% of it is subconscious. So what needs to happen with athletes? First, they need to be educated—about how their subconscious works, and how declining energy quality shows up. And the less high-quality energy we have, the more we default to our subconscious and old habits—patterns from childhood, adolescence, from our parents, because those are deeply ingrained. It’s like we’re on playback mode. That’s the first step—education. Once the athlete understands how energy works, how it drops, how it affects performance—they begin to see the value in the whole process. And when something becomes meaningful to us, we naturally give it more attention. For example, if I’m out of shape—like my strength coach says, I’m carrying too much passive mass—how much effort will I put into changing that? As much as it matters to me. Then I meet someone I like—and suddenly I want to look better. That becomes meaningful, and boom, I’m motivated to work on myself. That’s why people often start training after breakups, job loss—some life event that shakes them up. They channel that surge of energy—often frustration or anger—into transformation. So to get back on track and not get too long-winded here, the athlete must first be educated. And once they are, they no longer resist mental training—because it becomes something tangible. Not some woo-woo brainwashing voodoo stuff, like this profession used to be called. Still is? Not so much anymore—but I remember being called that. Once it becomes part of the routine, it’s just like physical training. We train physically, emotionally, and we also need to train mentally. Mental training means I rationally understand what’s happening inside me and I use tools to immediately raise my energy again. Because when high-quality energy flows into the brain, the neocortex kicks in. And the neocortex is what sets us apart from animals. That’s where our intelligence resides. And in competition, all those skills—tactics, templates, creativity—reside in the neocortex. If we can’t access it, it’s like this: in training, we’re firing with a machine gun. Then we get to a match—and we’re holding a water pistol.
[00:32:00] Michal
I get it—probably by the time people meet with you, they’re already somewhat open or on the path. Like today, anyone can look up information on supplementation, sleep, light exposure, and so on. But how could a regular person start working on their mental health or resilience? And theoretically, is it even possible to work on the subconscious alone?
[00:32:33] Radim
You mean working on the subconscious by yourself—is that even possible?
[00:32:36] Michal
I mean, generally—if I want to educate myself on mental health or I'm interested in the psyche, can I read books…?
[00:32:45] Radim
Absolutely—education is always the first step. So yes, self-education in this area is key.
[00:32:50] Michal
But the things you mentioned earlier—like the athlete whose performance drops under pressure—those seem quite complex.
[00:33:01] Radim
I actually explain this in the book I wrote. In order for us to become aware of a topic—to bring it into consciousness—we need to rise, let’s say energetically, to a higher perspective so we can look at it objectively. In other words, step out of the emotion that’s tying us down. I can do this on my own through personal growth, experience, and education—or I can take a shortcut. That shortcut is borrowing someone else’s energy. I go to a coach, a therapist, or a specialist who provides me with their competence, their know-how, their energy in the form of their biofield. Through conversation or specific methods—this is what’s called energy psychology—I can, with their help, rise high enough to see the topic clearly. And once I understand it, I bring it into consciousness. That’s when something shifts: when I realize why this issue is mine, why it affects me personally, and what I can learn from it in a positive sense—I stop seeing myself as a victim. I begin to welcome the challenge. And once I welcome it, I’m on the best path to overcoming it.
[00:35:08] Michal
So if there’s an issue or a situation that’s stressing me out, then together we can start working on it, right?
[00:35:17] Radim
Exactly—together or with a therapist in general. Because if we look at the word coaching, coaching is guidance. It’s mental work, which of course involves emotions. And it can involve the body as well—there are many methods. But in energy psychology therapy, which also offers many techniques, we work with free-flowing energy—emotions—and go deeper, straight into the subconscious, which controls about 95% of our behavior… though of course, don’t take that number as dogma.
[00:36:08] Michal
Yeah, I get that. We’ve worked together for a while now—I’ve been to several workshops, and interestingly, you often work through the body. People experience things physically, and then you explain the context on the flipchart and how it all works. And your book, which I devoured in a week, basically describes a full-day seminar, right?
[00:36:33] Radim
Exactly. Two years ago, during the first wave of COVID in spring, I suddenly lost most of my corporate training sessions. No groups, no meetings. So I figured it was time to create—finally I had the space for something I never had time for before. I decided that if I couldn’t meet people in person, I’d turn my work into a book. So the book is an authentic record of how I lead a seminar.
[00:37:17] Michal
Can we show it to anyone who might be interested?
[00:37:21] Radim
It’s a book told from my perspective—I’m the narrator. You get a look inside how I think and how the people I guide think. It’s about how I lead sixteen top-level managers from a large company that’s under pressure from its foreign parent company. No matter how hard the employees try, expectations keep rising. The management doesn’t know what to do anymore. That’s the setup—I’m running a seminar with these managers, and the whole book is a report of how I guide them. The techniques are described in action. Everything in the book is based on real experience—fifteen years of practice and hundreds of seminars, structured to provide a clear narrative and answer questions like the ones we’re discussing now.
[00:38:40] Michal
If people go to radimvaligura.com—I hope that’s the right website—yep, great. They’ll see you in a suit, in a kimono, and even with a foam sword. Your background is in aikido, right?
[00:38:56] Radim
Not exactly aikido—but what really defines my work is combining dynamic movements from professional and combat sports—bodywork—and translating that into mental training. I apply that to business and elite sports. The concepts I explain about how energy works—I bring them into a tangible form through movement. So if I want to show you how you might behave in a team meeting when someone keeps sabotaging a solution—always pointing out problems—I might give you a sword. We both grab practice swords, and I show you what’s happening in the body. How you’re reacting, and what you can do to create constructive collaboration. That’s also described in the book. Of course, it’s all in context—there are 280 pages. So there’s a lot of explanation, but of course, not everything needed for this kind of work can be included.
[00:40:15] Michal
You also work with brain hemispheres and similar things—some people get to experience it firsthand. When I attended the seminar—or actually several times—it’s funny how skeptics often show up thinking, “What’s this tennis coach going to do—motivate us?” And then after a brief intro you say, “Let’s change and move,” and they experience it in their own body. Do you work with kids too? How do hemispheres work, and how did this method even come about?
[00:40:51] Radim
Well… back in 2005, I was going through experiences I’d never faced before—like I said at the beginning, when I was with Martina Hingis. I needed to figure out how to cope. Back then, I met people who were doing similar work, but in different areas and on a different level. That’s when I began studying in what some might call the “spiritual” world. And today, I’d say—if someone asks me what I actually do—I say, I rationalize esotericism. In other words, I translate what’s between the lines into something people can understand and work with. So, let me answer your question about hemispheres. Many people know the left hemisphere is analytical and stores memory. It’s the detail-oriented side. The right hemisphere, on the other hand, is not analytical—it’s creative, and it doesn’t perceive time. Knowing what each hemisphere does is one thing. But understanding the *importance* of hemispheres in our lives is something else. And when I bring it into practical terms—the left hemisphere is where all our learned skills are stored. In sports, it holds templates and techniques. It’s where execution happens—what I need to do, the action itself. The right hemisphere perceives subtleties—it’s present in the moment. It senses the right timing: should I attack or retreat? Should I shoot or pass? In business, having great arguments and preparation doesn’t guarantee success if I don’t use them at the right time and place. Maybe the other side isn’t even receptive—and I waste all my arguments because I couldn’t sense the right moment. Maybe I even push too hard emotionally and talk more than I should. That’s where mental resilience training comes in. By getting to know myself, I can gain more self-control and use my firewood—my energy—more effectively.
[00:43:27] Michal
A lot of books in this field focus on success—how to get rich, five steps to grow your business. Do people come to you with that in mind? Do you also deal with topics like success, improvement, or is it more about mental health, calm, and well-being? Or is it the connection of these things?
[00:43:50] Radim
It’s all connected. When is a person successful? When they’re able to realize what they want. Success means something different to each person. Of course, everyone has a goal—but the question is, do we even know what our goal is? And when we’re making progress toward that goal and reaching it, we consider ourselves successful. The question is: what should that goal be? For some, it’s money or material things; for others, it’s something more abstract, like spiritual growth. Each goal brings something different. We live in a material world—we need to function physically and also manage the spiritual side. So these topics are interconnected. I’d say my “clients,” or rather the people I work with, come from many different sectors. I go where doors open—I don’t knock them down. If a company is open to this kind of work, I’ll work with the company. If it’s a university, sports club, or individuals—it’s about where the ground is fertile. That’s where these ideas can be planted and put into practice.
[00:45:23] Michal
What fascinates me—can you say why some people have a huge hunger for success and improvement, and others are just totally content? Is it genetic, something we’re born with?
[00:45:36] Radim
That’s quite complex, because it depends on the context. We can look at it from the narrow lens of this life—from conception to now. But we can expand the view using epigenetics—looking at what we inherit from our parents and ancestors, from our family system. Or we can go even further and view it through an esoteric lens—like past lives. So again, it depends on the context. In the broadest sense, maybe I came into this life to fulfill a purpose I couldn’t complete before. In the narrower view, maybe I was suppressed as a child. Maybe my father left when I was young—many of my ambitious clients have no relationship with their father or never lived with him. That’s very common. So when someone is high-performing, very driven, often there’s a hidden need to compensate for something unfulfilled. But of course, I don’t want to generalize—it can also simply be a personality trait.
[00:47:51] Michal
Again, a nuanced and complex answer—thank you for that. One last thing I’m curious about: we work in the health space, which is a huge topic right now. Some people take it super seriously—too seriously even—and end up stressed. Others go to the doctor for a pill with a Coke and a baguette in hand. What explains this? Everyone knows—like someone who smokes two packs a day—that they’re heading for trouble. The survival instinct is strong in everyone. Yet some seem not to care at all, while others obsess over it.
[00:48:43] Radim
That’s exactly one of those polarities. And why it’s such a complex answer—because there could be so many reasons. Why would someone unconsciously harm themselves, like through smoking or destructive behavior? Sometimes people deny it, suppress it. The subconscious is way more powerful than the conscious mind. This also ties into self-worth. If someone is constantly harming themselves over time, it can reflect a self-punishment pattern—something inherited from their parents or past generations. Or they’re punishing themselves for something they’ve done—or felt—earlier in life. Like being treated poorly in school and now trying to prove something. These are simplified examples. The root of it is: if feeling good, being connected to myself, and maintaining a good inner state doesn’t hold more value for me than eating pizza—then I’ll choose the pizza. I recently heard a great story from my instructor at a constellation school: There are two brothers. One is homeless, lying in the street. Someone asks, “How did you end up here?” He says, “My dad went to jail when I was ten, my mom was an alcoholic, we had no money—what do you expect?” Then the person walks to a mansion nearby, where there’s a garden party, expensive cars—and it turns out to be the brother of the homeless man. They ask, “How did you end up here?” He says, “My dad went to jail when I was ten, my mom was an alcoholic—so I had to take responsibility.” So it really comes down to how we respond to our situation. And how much meaning we attach to growing. And again—meaning grows with context. So the more we educate ourselves and expand our perspective, the more energy and motivation we find to change something.
[00:52:20] Michal
That was a deep answer—and a beautiful example. I think we can wrap it up with that. Radim, for anyone who wants to learn more—where can they find you?
[00:52:28] Radim
I have a website. I live in Brno but work between Brno and Prague—I have offices in both. And of course, social media. “Mentální odolnost” (Mental Resilience) is the name I go by there. That’s how I share and promote this work. But I work on the principle that those who are meant to find me, will find me. What’s meant to be, will be.
[00:52:58] Michal
And now you’re in nearly every bookstore display these days.
[00:53:02] Radim
Yeah, it’s a new experience for me. The book’s been out for a month now, and it’s nice to see it in store windows—I won’t lie.
[00:53:10] Michal
That’s great. Wishing you continued success with the book—and thank you for being here. Hope to have you back again.
[00:53:15] Radim
Thank you too, Michal, for the invitation.
[00:53:16] Michal
Take care. Goodbye.
[00:53:18] Radim
Goodbye.
