#301 The Spartan Founder's Playbook: Joe DeSena on Resilience, Parenting, and Physical Challenges
The Gabby Reece Show
Dear Media
4.8 • 954 Ratings
🗓️ 23 December 2024
⏱️ 80 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Gabby Reece speaks with Joe DeSena, the founder of Spartan Race, about resilience, parenting, and the importance of physical challenges. They explore Joe's early life, the lessons learned from his pool business, and the journey to creating a global fitness brand. The discussion delves into the role of parenting in nurturing toughness in children, the impact of technology on youth, and the significance of delayed gratification. Joe shares insights from his experiences and emphasizes the need for uncomfortable parenting to foster resilience in the next generation. In this engaging conversation, Gabby Reece and Joe De Sena explore the journey from humble beginnings in the pool business to the high-stakes world of Wall Street, emphasizing the importance of resilience, community support, and personal growth through physical challenges.
Chapters
00:00 The Resilience of Humanity
00:57 Introduction to Joe DeSena and Spartan Race
03:08 Joe's Early Life and Influences
06:00 Lessons from the Pool Business
09:06 The Journey to College
12:56 The Importance of Delayed Gratification
17:03 Physical Challenges and Tenacity
20:07 Nurturing Resilience in Children
22:58 The Role of Parenting in Toughness
25:54 Balancing Toughness and Compassion in Parenting
29:50 Navigating Technology and Parenting
33:00 The Impact of College on Joe's Life
35:54 Transitioning from Pool Business to Wall Street
45:31 The Journey from Pool Business to Wall Street
48:21 The Transformation Through Physical Activity
51:11 Overcoming Adversity in Event Planning
54:18 Resilience and Faith in Business
58:34 Lessons from Early Challenges
01:01:50 The Importance of Community and Support
01:03:48 Navigating Business Challenges During COVID-19
01:09:27 Leadership Lessons Learned
01:12:58 The Balance of Leading and Following
01:14:51 Maintaining Personal Health and Fitness
01:20:16 Aging and Endurance
01:22:12 The Power of Incremental Improvement
01:25:32 Finding Your True Self Through Challenges
To learn more about Joe Desena, check out his website: https://joedesena.com/
For more Gabby:
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TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gabbyreeceofficial
The Gabby Reece Show Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeEINLNlGvIceFOP7aAZk5A
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | All right, so Joe, Jacenna, welcome to the show. |
| 0:03.5 | Thanks for having me. This is amazing. I get to talk to Gabby Reese. |
| 0:07.1 | Oh, gosh. You and I've talked so many times. Don't act like that's anything. |
| 0:12.2 | You know, actually, we bonded over parenting more than like, you go to get after it and let's do all this stuff. |
| 0:18.5 | I think you and I, that's maybe where we had the opportunity |
| 0:21.6 | to really connect. I agree. I agree. Somebody just sent me something on parenting this morning |
| 0:27.5 | on the heels of Louis, Luigi, who had his issue shooting the CEO here in New York City |
| 0:35.6 | and what might have went wrong with his parenting. |
| 0:40.3 | So it's got implications beyond the parent being happy, beyond the kid being successful. |
| 0:45.3 | It's got broader implications for society if you get it wrong, right? |
| 0:49.3 | Yeah, no pressure, Joe. |
| 0:52.3 | So I want to dive right in. You know, in doing my homework, Yeah, no pressure, Joe. |
| 0:56.5 | So I want to dive right in. |
| 1:12.0 | You know, in doing my homework, even though I know you, it's like I can go online and I can literally see hundreds, if not thousands of interviews talking about, you know, being tough, trying something difficult, pushing through discomfort. you know, you created Spartan races. I mean, this is not only how you live, this is your persona. And I thought, |
| 1:20.1 | I would like to actually approach it a little differently because you have through this mentality |
| 1:25.6 | learned so many incredible lessons, whether it's being an entrepreneur, |
| 1:30.8 | whether it's your own physical practice, being a husband, being a father, being a boss, |
| 1:36.2 | all of these things. So maybe we could just start by, if you could set the table for us, |
| 1:43.4 | you know, you grew up in New York. |
| 1:45.5 | You had a pool business. |
| 1:46.8 | Then you had a trading desk. |
| 1:49.1 | And off of your own passion, you then created Spartan. |
... |
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