The nature of soulful and mindful transformation is uncharted territory, and that means the answers are unknown.

Transformations are usually designed to improve business results.

But what's the point if it doesn't make our lives better?

Tonight, we meet two guests who are helping others make soulful and mindful transformations.

These guests have developed tools for emotional wellness.

I'm so happy you're joining us.

From Los Angeles.

This is KLCC.

PBS.

Welcome to everybody.

With Angela Williamson and Innovation Arts, Education and Public Affairs program, everybody with Angela Williamson is made possible by viewers like you.

Thank you.

MLP, which stands for Neuro linguistic programing, is a process driven model that helps the client to achieve outcomes and solutions by facilitating, loosening and reframing their model of reality to, in essence, reach their desired state.

And in doing so, achieve a new model of reality.

What are some pain points that you've been experiencing since our last session?

Probably the biggest would be procrastination.

Okay.

What about the procrastination you're finding is a bit of a challenge.

Just getting started and feel like I'm wrestling with that with an alligator.

Actually.

So the purpose of NLP isn't really to fix a person.

It's really to create options and outcomes for them to achieve that desire and really create a congruency their communication.

So my medication is really beneficial because it's looking at the mindset and practical ways to really shift and give in our current climate with what's happening.

I think it's a really good way to really heal in a very practical way.

But it looks at the the science and spirituality.

So my medication is essence, neuroscience, psychology and spirituality, blended principles to really shift.

So if the public are feeling anxiety surrounding COVID or even anxiety with work life balance and or even confidence building exercises, then my medication helps to really create powerful habits both in the morning and at night, but also look at the language patterns of how is a public or a person really talking to themselves and reverse engineer that at the conscious and subconscious level to really reach their desired state and achieve their goals really?

Thank you, Aiden.

And what an amazing video.

You really explain what is blocking us in our minds.

Can you tell me how you got started doing this?

Thank you for having me here.

Absolutely.

So my journey actually started about four years ago.

Before that, I was in clinical trial management.

I was working in pharmaceuticals, and I realized that there was a block.

I wasn't serving my purpose.

And I had about an epiphany about three or four years ago where I realized that actually I should be utilizing my background in neuroscience and psychology and spirituality to really help people to shift their blocks.

And so it was about four years ago that I established my medication with the purpose of bringing divine light and love and real practical steps in ways that people could really overcome their challenges and reach their desires.

But first, taking inventory of how they're thinking and if it's aligned with their purpose.

And so in your mind, say in your mind, do you think that it's how we are thinking is what's stopping us from achieving any of our goals?

It could be in business, it could be in personal relationships.

It just could be with what we're trying to do in our lives from day to day.

Absolutely.

So there's a mindset formula that I use in life and with my clients, which is your thoughts plus emotion equals behavior.

So if there is anything, whether that's your personal life, your career, whatever it may be, if it's the behavior that you don't like, it's not the behavior that you change first.

It's actually the thought, the originating thought.

We have about 70,000 thoughts a day, and a lot of it is repetitive.

So if I don't like where I am in my career and I keep saying I don't like it, that is what I will produce.

So it's the thought that changes.

And once the thought changes and the emotions that are associated with that will change and then the behavior exemplified will be positive.

And so really it all goes back down to what we're thinking.

Which is amazing that you're saying that because a lot of times people think it's your environment that impacts you, but they don't realize that there's a power in your mind.

So my question is, if our mind is so powerful, how do we forget that?

Absolutely.

So in NLP, there's actually the neurological models of change, which is Robert Dilts proposed that, which says that, yes, the environment is actually the bottom level.

So there's six tiers and the primary one at top is spirituality, and one above that is our identity.

So really, even if the environment that we may be in may be chaotic or even be positive, ultimately, if the identity of how I see myself or how you see yourself is not aligned, it doesn't matter.

The environment cannot impact you.

It can.

But if your identity is that you are affirming that you can overcome it, you can in essence overcome.

So the environment, of course, it does shape as a lot of the things that we experience date back to childhood traumas and experiences.

Having said that, environment has only a small percentage of impact.

It's really how at the identity level, what is seated there, what thoughts are seated there, what emotions one has about themselves that will determine whether they will overcome the obstacle that the environment brings, the value systems and so forth.

In the video that we just watched with you, you have three clients there.

And my question to you is, what happens when they reach out to you?

What's the first thing that they want to accomplish and how do you walk them through that each path?

Because every one of your clients look like to me, they have it all together.

So I want to know how they got there.

Absolutely.

A lot of my clients come to me.

They're high achievers, visionaries and so forth, but sort of have hit a mental fork in the road with really achieving their purpose.

So they know sort of what they want, but they just don't know how to get there or sometimes they don't know what they want, which is kind of a lot actually.

The why and their purpose or really what I do, they do sort of an intake to assess where they are, to really help them to discover their why.

And I do that through a system I've developed called the Car Mindset system.

So it stands for clarity, accountability of goals, love and motivation.

So I work through these modules with them to really just help them to bridge that gap between where they are and where they want to be a team that clarity, confidence and ability to think strategically.

And so that, you know, there's some that come with more of a relationship aspect, some needing career change, some needing emotional transition.

It doesn't quite matter what it is because we all look at the waiting to be calm.

So once we're there, calm, they're able to operate in the way that they desire.

So what I help them to do is get into that calm mindset, into the alpha theta frequency, and then look at their options and outcomes and how they can get to their desires.

Now, you said it's the calm frequency.

The calm mindset from the mindset system system.

Thank you so much.

I want to make sure I say that correct.

Is this what you are talking about in your book?

So I do address it in the book.

The book is really sort of the spiritual and mental playbook on how to overcome limitations that I tell through my narrative.

So it's my stories of how a overcome obstacles trials with the notion that you too can do that.

So I lay the grounds on how to do that based on principles of neuroscience and psychology and spirituality.

And I actually provide practical mindset tools and tips as well.

So it's really about learning that no matter where you are in your walk, wherever you are in your environment or your belief systems, you can always get to the other end.

It's what you're thinking that will determine that outcome and show you how to to change that, so to speak.

And you're showing us how to change it because you just said you use your personal background of how you move from the pharmaceutical industry to what you're doing today.

We're always interested in the process because what you do is search results driven work.

Absolutely.

So really my inspiration goes back to my six year old self since I was six.

I have big dreams, dreams to be my own boss, dreams to build a mental health center, dreams to free my family from poverty.

However, I heard no, everyone told me it was impossible, but I held a flicker of hope.

And then I had an epiphany to find my way to my way.

And like I said, my way was to share light and love to your unheard voice, dreams and desires.

And.

And that it helped me to establish my medication again, which is a neuroscience psychology and spirituality based mindset, consulting, coaching and speaking service.

So I take a lot of inspiration from the universe around to guide me.

But I also take inspiration from Oprah because she's also gone through a lot of hurdles in her life.

And so I find that, especially as a woman of color, to have overcome that is possible.

And of course, Rosa Parks as well in the areas, especially when it comes to racial injustice.

I talk about that, my own experiences in the book and how to shift that narrative as well.

And so there's a few people that I take inspiration from.

But above all, it really is the universal aspect that has kept me going and and exploring and ways to really break boundaries really, and live our are limitless potential.

I love your heroes.

It's almost as if I told you to say those heroes.

They're wonderful because you look at those backgrounds and the adversity behind it.

And so someone's watching right now and we didn't even get to talk a little bit.

So I want to talk a little bit about the pandemic.

So someone's watching right now.

We are coming out of the pandemic, but they are still feeling stuck and they probably felt stuck before the pandemic.

And then I see a lot of people who are hopeless.

And so my question is, if that person reached out to you today, how would you start the process to help them achieve what they want to achieve?

Absolutely.

I think with the pandemic, it's really it's how you look at it.

So for me personally, it's been a blessing.

So I've always wanted to take my medication to being a virtual service offering.

And so by having the pandemic, it's brought that opportunity.

Of course, there are challenges that a pandemic brings as well.

So if a client is feeling stuck or doesn't know I wouldn't, I would advise them that that's actually an opportunity for change and catalyst.

It's not a state of stagnation.

And so we'd probably go through that to do some intake questions to see where they are, where they want to be and visualize that.

So we'll do some visualizing exercise so that they can really incorporate their senses.

So that way they're bringing that desire into the present moment and then that will obviously open up their mind at the subconscious and conscious level to look at ways in which we can map that out.

So it will be a bit of strategy, a bit of getting to being calm.

So looking at their habits.

So what I do is create habits for them.

So that is bespoke to them.

So if they have habits, great, let's optimize that.

And if they don't, let's build it because the habits will determine how they will get out of this sort of stuck state that they're in and then bringing in some NLP.

So neuro linguistic programing techniques to really help to shift that at the subconscious level because a lot of it will be boiled down to that level of feeling stuck.

They may not know why they're feeling stuck, they're just stuck.

And the pandemic is the reason that they're doing that.

But really there's other layers that need to be uncovered.

So we will address that and have the NLP sessions to really drive that transformation and change.

I have another question for you as well, because you talked about you being stuck and that's all in the mind, but for your business is helping you transform into having more of a virtual business.

So my question is, is how can someone reach out to you that listening to our conversation and our conversation is so brief in their thinking, I want to know more.

I think right about now a lot of people I mean, I do it.

Do we want to move to that next level, but we want someone to help us get unstuck.

Absolutely.

Great question.

So my book provides some of the services that I do, but really, they can contact me on my website.

There's a contact Me page, so that's probably the best thing.

And then I offer discovery sessions to to look at the complimentary sessions to see where they are and if I can be of service.

Thank you so much.

I mean, I feel somewhat changed by you just being here with me.

So thank you so much for doing this and thank you for changing your career around to help us have mindful transformations come back as I continue my conversation with Octavio Sanchez, we'll discuss how he's helping veterans make soulful transformation.

Whatever, whatever, whatever it's like.

There are a lot of ways to reach out to a friend about their mental health, but learn how you can help out.

Sees the awkward Dawg.

Father, we thank you for all the avenues that you've given us.

Father God, this parking lot, this building.

Father God, the leadership, our elders, our pastors that have come alongside Lord to do your work, Father God.

Because even though it is a suicide awareness car show Father God, our main goal is to preach the Gospel, the love that you sent in Jesus Christ.

My brother was in the Marines.

He joined right out of high school.

He went on to do three tours in Iraq.

He was frontlines.

He was a field radio operator with the Marines.

And when he came home, he was diagnosed severe PTSD.

Randy was a corporal in the Marine Corps.

He was hit with a roadside bomb.

So, of course, it left brain damage.

Randy committed suicide in June nine, 2014.

We are two parents, a missing person, our only child.

There's a saying that that, you know, common people that they would think about it several times, several times before they would ever even attempt.

A veteran would think about it about three times to commit.

In May of 2018, I got a phone call.

I was at work.

His girlfriend at the time said he wasn't answering his phone.

They send the police to his house to do a wellness check and he had his military uniform.

All laid out.

He had a suicide note.

With mine and my.

Dad's phone numbers to call us, and he said, Do not resuscitate me.

And they found him in his car.

He shot himself in his head.

You know, when when we left the military, there was something missing.

And when we left combat, we came back.

There was something missing.

And we found it at the bottom of a bottle for about a night.

We found it in pills for about a day.

But the next day we woke up and it was missing again.

And having found Jesus, that that void is no longer there.

I want to share a conversation I had with a good friend and a great Christian the day my son passed.

He says Your son's suicide can either destroy you or define you for the rest of your life.

And part of us being here is is the choice we made.

I quickly chose to answer every phone call and text and to help others grieve with me.

I wish 17 years ago, when me and my brother came home from Iraq, we had a group like the we have in front cite.

Suicide as a choice.

We are here to get you to choose life.

I know that is not what our son did, but I believe he wants that for all his veteran.

And active duty.

Brothers and.

Sisters.

What our hopes is is that one day that this number of 22 vets a day will no longer exist.

No matter where you're at, no matter what you're going through, God is our living hope.

Jesus Christ is our living hope.

The Bible says, for I take no pleasure in death of anyone declares the sovereign law.

Octavio, thank you so much for being here, and thank you for that.

What you're doing, that video is so moving.

Can you tell us a little bit about you and how you came to start this type of ministry?

I, I grew up in Fontana from immigrant parents, and I always wanted to be a cop growing up.

So I kind of had, in a sense, a direction that I wanted to be in or go.

And I joined the Marine Corps right out of high school.

I served for a little under nine years.

Of course, the injury because of the roadside bomb that I suffered in Ramadi, Iraq, while doing combat operations.

But it just it's it's something that I don't want to say landed on my you know, on my lap.

But it's something that I can look back and see the Lord kind of working throughout my life.

And this ministry has been so special to me.

In five and a half years ago, I would have never thought that I would be overseeing the ministry, but that's how long it's been.

And when I walked through those doors, I found what I was missing, everything that had been ripped away as far as me retiring and kind of retiring in the fashion that I did because I got hurt in Iraq.

I end up at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, and I'm there for two years, and then I take my medical retirement.

So I felt like my mission or my my men that I had served with had been kind of ripped apart.

So there wasn't really closure there.

And the front site military outreach gave that to me upon entering the doors and just the camaraderie that I felt the day that I first walked through those doors.

So and I'm so glad that you are explaining it because you are letting us know that you actually walked into this organization.

It was already existed.

It did.

It did.

It was already in play.

It actually started in 2008 at church.

And the reason for the nonprofit, it wasn't a nonprofit at the time, but the reason for the ministry to be taken out of the church is there's a stigma within the veteran community that obviously, if it's if it's a church, they might not step into a church setting.

So they pulled it out and it became a nonprofit.

And we obviously focus on the ministry aspect of it with our Christian values.

So we offer a Christ centered community for our men and women and their families.

But we also added a couple other things as far as a gym that's utilized by our veterans free of cost and veteran benefits as well.

So we have a one of my good friends and he's on staff there at front site.

He sees the veterans through the entire process.

So in a sense, if they don't come in for our ministry aspect of it, kind of the healing of the heart spiritually, then they come in to work out or they come in to get their benefits worked on and ultimately they kind of see what's going on, you know, And in a what is this?

This is different.

So like I said, it started in 2008.

It stepped out as a nonprofit from the church in 2015.

So we've been a standing nonprofit organization since 2015.

But like I said, it's been such a blessing in my life, and I've seen the transformation in many other veterans, even before me and after me.

And it just amazing to see what the Lord has done within their lives, you know, once they actually open up and see what what we're all about.

And in that video actually heard a lot of different types of testimony there, I mean, from veterans that got help, but from the families that were left behind.

And so my question when I was looking at that, a 22, that number resonates with your organization.

Can you explain that to to me?

Yes.

The number 22 is the amount of veterans that commit suicide every single day.

So it's it's it's just really unbearable to think about that number.

I mean, there's so many veterans that are hurting so we have taken it upon ourselves to like anybody.

There's many other organizations that are helping in this fashion, but we've taken it to a place where I think oftentimes, you know, people lean on obviously, we have we have the medical aspect of it.

But for for me, my my hope or the void in my heart that I needed in my soul was really the relationship that I had with Jesus Christ.

And that's what healed me and that's what's been prospering in all these veterans lives as well.

However, there is a need there is a need to bring awareness to the fact that there are 22 veterans committing suicide every single day, and that's what we plan on doing and continue to move forward to try to bring that awareness to the community.

You mentioned it a little bit, but my question to you is what happens when a veteran finds your organization?

How do they first reach out to you and then what's the first thing that you want to do with them once you connect with that veteran?

Oftentimes what we see is either a mother, a father, a friend, a sister or a brother that will come in and say, hey, my son or my daughter is hurting.

We are very open.

We're honest.

That front sites only staffed by two myself and Chris, who's a veteran himself and we we we have a great support of veterans that have walked alongside and they volunteer and they're faithful through and through.

Again, our numbers have been open literally to be reached out to.

And that's what we see.

I think oftentimes they they think that, okay, it's a Christian organization that's really not my cup of tea, but it's kind of like in my situation, I always go back to my situation and I'm like, I was blown away by the camaraderie that we had.

You know, as soon as you walk in, it's a different environment.

It's this is and how can I put it?

It's it's something that you can't explain in a sense, but you have a mixed multitude of different branches of the service, which I love.

And they all show you love, you know, And once you get comfortable, they'll show you that military is humor.

But what I love about it is that everybody who walks in it, they're they're received with open arms.

They're received with open arms, whether you're, like I said, a mom, a dad, a brother, a sister, a friend.

And of course, veterans as well.

And I love that you're saying that it's not just the veteran, it's the people that love the veteran that can help step up and and get that help.

Yes.

Before we end our conversation, which went by way too fast, so hopefully you'll come back.

Awesome.

Yeah, absolutely.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And what can we do as a nation to lower that number?

Because 22 a day is just tremendous.

What can we do?

I think to answer that question is extremely difficult.

I know we throw money at, you know, at this situation, but I think in my case, it's been a transformation in my heart.

I've had these suicidal thoughts myself alongside a lot of our veterans that are serving.

They're out front sight.

And in all reality, it's the peace that I have and the living word of God that has held me.

And he's my stronghold.

So I you know, I think because we as a Christian organization might not be looked upon as someone to help, unfortunately, I would beg to differ and challenge, you know, challenge the people, the folks, our community, our country, to give it a shot, you know, to try it, try it.

There's there's so much that that can be taken away from it.

And I just love when the families are mended.

I really do.

It's very near and dear to my heart, obviously, because when I got hit in Ramadi, Iraq, my children were seven five into.

So I see the effect that it had on my children, on my family.

That's why we always incorporate the veterans and their family as well.

What we do, their efforts and military outreach.

Well, it is such an honor to talk to you and I am so glad I titled This Social Transformation, because your organization embodies it.

So thank you so much.

Thank you.

And we will talk again.

You got.

It.

Definitely.

Thank you.

And thank you for joining us on everybody with Angela Williamson, viewers like you make this show possible, Join us on social media to continue this conversation.

Good night and stay well.