First of all, thank you. Thank you for joining me on this journey toward Becoming UnDone.
I promise I am working hard behind the scenes to make this a resounding success.
But as the content of the interviews is teaching me over and over again, sometimes you absolutely NEED to fail in order to fly.
While the perfectionist in me hates this truth, the achiever in me is finally starting to come to grips with the fact that it doesn’t have to be perfect.
It just has to be my best.
And if I am truly committed to the process, then that best should get better. Each and every day.
Today, I am out in the shop learning how to manage the subscriber list , recording a promo clip so that I can submit the show to all the podcast listing services, and editing and producing the first full interview I did with Joseph Skrajewski.
Tragedy to Addiction. Addiction to Recovery. Recovery to Impact.
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My very first guest for episode #1 is Joseph Skrajewski. Joseph serves as the National Director of Business Development at the Hazelden Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California.
In 2001, Joseph was a bright, up-and-coming financial advisor who landed his first job out of college at Morgan Stanley in downtown Manhattan. Jersey-born and bred, he will be the first to tell you he had big dreams of riches and power and influence and his career path was headed squarely in that direction.
Until that Monday.
While he had spent his first three months on the job working from his office in the World Trade Center, as fate would have it, he was taking a licensure exam that had been scheduled months in advance. Instead of being at Ground Zero, he was miles away at a testing center on the morning of September 11, 2001.
The days and weeks and months that followed proved to be pivotal, as bouts of depression, guilt, and uncertainty led to coping through growing addictions–first alcohol and then drugs.
He came undone.
Eventually, with the help of friends and family, he got help. In the process, he learned about the disease of addiction and how woefully misunderstood, undermanaged, and over-stigmatized it can be in our society. A growing desire to be part of the solution to addiction counseling led to a massive pivot in career direction and trajectory, as he enrolled in a master’s program in counseling with a new plan and a new purpose.
He became UnDone.
Today Joseph is a world-renowned leader in bringing awareness, funding, and impact to the treatment of addiction disorders. His work at the Hazelden Betty Ford clinic has helped to revolutionize how physicians and other healthcare providers are trained to prevent, recognize, and treat addiction disorders. He has helped craft legislation at the federal level and served as an advisor in the Obama Administration and even helped create a children’s character and program to help young family members of those suffering with addiction to better understand the disease.
He is an absolute rock star and his high energy and insights are sure to inspire!
His episode, Episode 1: PIVOT debuted on 1/1/23 and is available for your enjoyment here on the site or on any of your favorite podcast hosting platforms.