I didn’t start this to coach, teach, trend, or tell you what you want to hear. I turned on the mic because I was surrounded by people talking… but nobody was actually saying anything real about the life I—and a lot of others—were, are, living.

You'll notice two names for the podcast as you listen to the episodes in due time. The Real Empowered Self came first. The Blue Collar Buddha was born during Sharon's cancer treatments. Both are me. Both are real. The story of why explains itself if you listen long enough.

So this is that conversation.

No “rah-rah.”

No “everything happens for a reason.”

No affirm-your-way-out-of-reality bullshit.

This is adult talk about adult life.

Death.
Marriage.
Cancer.
Identity.
Rage.
Grief.
Shame.
Hope.
Lust.
Aging.

The quiet shit people feel but don’t say (at least, not out loud).

I don’t have all the answers—and I don’t pretend to.

This isn’t therapy.

It’s not coaching.

And it’s sure as hell not “personal development.”

This is raw "self-concept."

Real-time honesty.

Figuring shit out by actually saying it the fuck out loud.

Out. Loud.

Expect strong language.

Unfiltered opinions.

Moments that might hit harder than you expected.

If you want comfort, mantras, or a 10-step plan to feel better—keep walking.

But if you’re tired of being lied to…

and maybe a little tired of lying to yourself…

If you’re trying to hear your own voice underneath all the noise…

You’re in the right place.

This is The Blue Collar Buddha.

It’s the conversation you didn’t know you needed—but were already having anyway.