The Journey

Hosted by Ricardo Vargas

Business Entrepreneurship Management

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Aug 2026

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About the show

In this podcast, I will record my journey to becoming successful in the business world, starting from literally day 0 until I make it. You will listen to raw experiences, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I wish the great minds of our times did this as they were coming up, so I hope to do that here. Thank you for investing your time and I hope you enjoy!

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August 22, 202621 min

$40 Day Passes and Final Mission | NYC Road Trip Pt 2

Four hours from home, three weeks of planning, and one delivery that didn't show up on time. What happens to a plan when the one piece you can't replace fails three hours before you need it? This is the day we found out — the Summit One Vanderbilt mission, the after-action report, a $40-a-day Manhattan gym, and Brooklyn on a day when the whole city decided to be outside. Day 2 of the New York trip. No script, no second take. Execute, finish the job. Chapters 00:00:00 What Was The Real Reason We Drove Four Hours? 00:00:30 Who's Asking Who At Summit One Vanderbilt? 00:01:07 Why Did The Flowers Never Show Up? 00:01:43 Did We Actually Pull It Off? 00:01:49 The Host Meet-Up 00:02:35 Is New York Worth Hating? 00:02:51 After Action Report — Was He Nervous? 00:05:36 Is A $40-A-Day Gym Actually Worth It? 00:09:10 Why Do Gyms Get The Posing Room So Wrong? 00:10:44 What's Waiting For Us In Brooklyn? 00:11:13 Does Doctor P Really Taste Like Strawberry And Cream? 00:12:53 Can You Ever Turn Down New York? 00:17:56 Who Is Kev Shrimp Elite? 00:19:23 What Happens When Marquis Signs His First Shirt? 00:20:28 What Was Vicky's Favorite Part? ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com Code:RICO GRND Tracker App: https://grnd.ricoxjourney.com/login FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts

August 19, 202645 min

The LONG Drive & Side Quests | NYC Road Trip Pt 1

Ricardo and Marquise hit the road from Baltimore to New York City with one primary mission: help their boy ask out his girl. What starts as a straightforward road trip turns into a comedy of errors, miscommunication, and side quests that test their patience and their commitment to the brotherhood. They stop in Delaware for gas station beef jerky taste tests and energy drinks, argue about bed sheets in an underground Airbnb that looks like a prison cell, feast on Jamaican jerk chicken in Queens, and discover Hummus Fit — the meal prep spot that might've just changed their lives. Marquise tries beef jerky for the first time. They take four trains across Manhattan hunting for one specific Gymshark shirt that doesn't exist. They stand in Times Square where the Avengers Tower was filmed. And they drop some real talk about why going to the gym isn't as scary as you think. But the real reason they're here? A side mission three weeks in the making. Flowers. A rooftop. Summit One Vanderbilt. A thousand feet in the air with see through floors. A yes or no question that could change everything. The plan was foolproof. 100% success rate. Until the flowers didn't show up. Then the backup plan kicked in. Then chaos. Then elevator doors opening into the clouds. This is part one. The setup. The grind. The journey before the moment. If you've ever done something crazy for your boys, you'll get it. 00:00:00 Road Trip Begins: Baltimore to NYC 00:03:34 Delaware Pit Stop & Travel Snacks 00:07:02 The Real Reason We're Going to NYC 00:12:56 Arriving at the Underground Airbnb 00:14:50 Jamaican Jerk Chicken Feast 00:15:51 The Great Bed Sheet Struggle 00:19:09 Next Morning: Hummus Fit Run 00:20:58 Manhattan Mission: Gymshark Hunt 00:25:31 Times Square & Avengers Tower Moment 00:32:38 Gym Advice: Just Do It 00:36:40 The Side Mission Begins 00:41:57 Summit One Vanderbilt: Epic Failure 00:42:53 Mission Update: We're In 00:45:00 The Big Moment ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com Code:RICO GRND Tracker App: https://grnd.ricoxjourney.com/login FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

August 6, 202650 min

Every Road Leads Back to God

Ricardo was 130 pounds, running marathons, and feeling like a rag doll. Andrew was spamming 100 push-ups a day during quarantine, trying to build something out of nothing. This week on The Journey Podcast, Ricardo and Andrew from GRND CO break down the physical side of transformation — not the highlight reel, but the real grind behind building a body that can carry the weight of your purpose. They get into what it actually takes to go from skinny or stuck to strong and disciplined. Andrew talks about how soccer and muscle couldn't coexist until he learned balance. Ricardo opens up about body dysmorphia, binge eating to fill a void, and the marathon mile where he begged God not to let him stop. They cover the mental traps that keep you stuck, why all roads lead back to God, and how your physical discipline is a direct reflection of how much you respect yourself, your future, and your Creator. This isn't about six-packs or biceps. It's about the deeper truth: your body is not your own. God gave it to you. What you do with it matters. If you're building something, this episode will remind you why the physical pillar is non-negotiable. ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com Code:RICO GRND Tracker App: https://grnd.ricoxjourney.com/login FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

July 10, 202651 min

The Day God Took Everything We Treasured | Brutal Honesty

Andrew had a first-division pro soccer offer in Colombia. He turned it down to follow God. Ricardo was crying on his couch on a Saturday night after exhausting every option — money, girls, gym, grinding harder. The next morning he walked into church and the weight came off his shoulders. This week on The Journey Podcast, Ricardo and Andrew from GRND CO get raw about the spiritual side of becoming a man. No crystals, no self-help fluff — just two young men talking about what it actually took to find God after years of running from Him. They cover Andrew's year playing pro soccer in Bolivia, the seeds their moms planted, baby baptism vs. believer's baptism, why God takes what you idolize, and why more young men are seeking faith right now. 00:00:00 Intro & Episode Setup 00:03:15 Spirituality vs. Self-Help — What We Actually Mean 00:06:45 Bolivia — Professional Soccer & Losing Himself 00:14:00 The Moment Andrew Reached Out 00:19:00 Getting Close to God Means Facing Your Ego 00:25:00 Crying in Church — The Switch That Flipped 00:30:30 The Endless Treadmill of Goals Without God 00:34:30 Church Is the Cable, God Is the Power Source 00:41:00 God Is a Little Jealous — Idolizing the Wrong Things 00:48:30 Opposition on the Walk — Friends, Family & Planting Seeds 00:50:30 Announcements — Grind Tracker App & Coaching ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com Code:RICO GRND Tracker App: https://grnd.ricoxjourney.com/login FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

June 23, 202637 min

Why Rock Bottom Is a Privilege (Not a Curse) - GRND CO

Ricardo and Andrew from the Grind Collective sit down for the rawest conversation yet. Andrew opens up about losing himself inside his soccer identity — the fame, the clout, the pro-level talent — and how it led to drugs, depression, and crying himself to sleep every night. His mom catching him was the turning point. Ricardo shares how heartbreak kept him in bed for two months, how Googling 'top paying jobs' at 17 led him to entrepreneurship, and why rock bottom is actually a privilege. They break down the four pillars every young man needs, confront ego culture head-on, and announce the upcoming GRND CO program. This isn't motivational fluff — it's two young men telling the truth about what it takes to become the kind of man worth being. 00:00:00 Intro & Bloopers 00:03:00 Hard Times Create Hard Men 00:07:30 The YouTube Rabbit Hole & Starting a Real Business 00:10:30 Revenge Fuel Becomes Self-Expression 00:16:00 Rock Bottom — Drugs, Low Self-Esteem & Mom's Intervention 00:22:00 Leaving Soccer & Getting Close to God 00:28:00 Health as the Mandatory First Pillar 00:33:30 The Easy Path — Drugs, Women, Gambling vs. Doing the Hard Thing 00:38:30 You Don't Own Your Body — God Put You Here 00:42:00 Making Men Again — The Mission Behind GRND CO ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com/ code:RICO FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

June 17, 202635 min

Pizza Doesn't Feed Your Soul (& Here's What Actually Does) - GRND CO

Ricardo and Andrew are two twenty-somethings launching GRND Collective — a faith-driven fitness coaching brand built on the idea that physical, mental, and spiritual transformation are inseparable. What happens when two guys who taught themselves everything about fitness realize the real problem isn't workouts — it's that an entire generation of men are broken from the inside out? This conversation starts with a police encounter during a failed video intro and ends with a raw confession about cheese balls, rag-doll moments, and why pizza might be destroying your soul. They break down how they're structuring their coaching program around different client goals, why they refuse to yell at a dad trying to lose weight like he's a bodybuilder, the generational cycle of bad nutrition nobody talks about, and why Andrew says there's no saving this generation of men without God. 00:00:00 Why Did the Police Shut Down Our Intro? 00:03:30 Why Did We Decide to Start This? 00:05:30 When Did Andrew First Step Foot in the Gym? 00:08:00 Could Soccer and Muscle Coexist? 00:11:00 How Did Finding God Change Everything? 00:13:30 Was Ricardo Really a Rag Doll? 00:16:00 Does Information Overload Kill Progress? 00:19:00 Why Are Skinny People Counting Calories? 00:22:00 Does Pizza Actually Feed Your Soul? 00:26:00 Who Taught You What to Eat Growing Up? 00:29:00 Is Being Unhealthy at 28 100% Your Fault? 00:32:00 What Does Finding God Change About Your Lifestyle? 00:35:00 Are the Men of Our Generation Chopped? 00:37:00 Do People Treat You Differently Based on Looks? 00:39:00 Should You Yell at Someone Who Ate Pizza? 00:41:00 Can You Earn Your Pizza Slice? 00:43:30 What Is GRND CO Really About? ───────────────────────────── https://freshsupps.com/ code:RICO FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/andre3w_i16 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

May 22, 202612 min

I Stopped Being That Guy | The Real Reason Why

This isn’t really about business. It’s about identity. Who you are when nobody’s watching—and what it costs to change. Mark Siles discusses insecurity, past immaturity, discipline, and the “anchor” habits that have kept him moving forward. Watch to the end for the real question underneath all of it: are you chasing freedom… or responsibility? Subscribe if you’re building your life the hard way—on purpose. Chapters 00:00:00 The Goal: Be Proud Of Yourself 00:04:57 Why The Gym Became His Anchor 00:09:46 Almost Insane Self-Belief 00:13:13 Moving Out: Freedom Vs Responsibility ───────────────────────────── FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

May 9, 202640 min

The Real Price of Not Taking Action

Eight words wrecked my whole week: "If you think the price of being successful is too high, wait until you've served the bill for regret." This episode is different. No guest. No interview. Just me, a microphone, and the ideas that have been keeping me up at night. We talk about the guy who spent six months building the appearance of a business before he built the actual business. The dopamine trap that tricks your brain into thinking you already accomplished your goals. The plank that's easy on the ground and terrifying 1,000 feet in the air. The difference between loyalty friends and gravity friends. And the thousand small choices you make every day that are either feeding your dreams or feeding your fears. The bill of regret compounds. The bill for trying and failing never does. That's the trade nobody understands. 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:30 The Quote That Wouldn't Leave My Mind 00:03:30 A Few Years Ago I Started Building Something 00:05:00 There Is No Secret — Stop Looking for One 00:07:30 Idea #1 — You Can't Trick the Universe 00:14:30 Idea #2 — The Work That Builds Anything Real Is Invisible 00:28:30 Idea #3 — The Plank: 1,000 Feet in the Air 00:34:00 The Cost of Trying vs. The Cost of Not Trying 00:41:00 The Last Idea — Every Day You Feed Dreams or Fears ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📩 JOIN THE NEWSLETTER Every week — strategy, lessons, what I'm building. → ricoxjourney.com/subscribe ────────────────────────────────── FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

April 23, 202614 min

Getting Back to Church After Years of Resentment

Marcus, Ricardo, and Parker all grew up resenting church — forced Sunday services, boring sermons, and rules that felt like chores. In this clip, they each share how they found their way back to faith on their own terms. Marcus talks about his dad's influence, Ricardo shares how hitting rock bottom brought him back, and they discuss why denomination politics miss the point entirely. Chapters 00:00:00 Church Felt Like a Chore Growing Up 00:02:30 His Dad's Philosophy on Religion 00:05:00 Going Back to a Non-Denominational Church 00:07:00 Ricardo's Parallel Journey Back to Faith ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📩 JOIN THE NEWSLETTER Every week — strategy, lessons, what I'm building. → ricoxjourney.com/subscribe ────────────────────────────────── FIND ME EVERYWHERE 📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174 🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

April 19, 20261 hr 44 min

Success Looks Different Than You Think - Marcus Roberts

I had a powerful conversation with Marcus Roberts, owner of two Augusta locations, about his transformation from a lazy teenager in Montana to building a million-dollar lawn care business. We dove deep into topics most business podcasts avoid — from morning meditation and faith to the mental toll of management and finding your true purpose. Marcus got real about the osmosis effect of surrounding yourself with the right people and content. We talked about the difference between physical and mental exhaustion, why firing employees is one of the hardest parts of leadership, and how meditation isn't some mystical practice — it's just sitting with yourself. The conversation took an unexpected turn into religion and spirituality, where all three of us shared our complicated relationships with faith. Marcus told the Mexican fisherman story that completely reframes what success means. Sometimes we're already living the life we want, we just don't realize it. This isn't your typical business interview. It's raw, reflective, and gets into the real cost of entrepreneurship — both what you gain and what you might lose along the way. What's your Mexican fisherman moment? Drop a comment below. 0:00 Intro 1:53 Marcus Roberts: From Lazy Teenager to Two-Location Owner 4:37 How to Move Up: What Managers Actually Look For 9:00 Building Future GMs: Marcus's Operational Manager Playbook 20:00 The P4P Model & Paying Employees for Performance 28:06 Faith, God & Building Your Own Relationship With Religion 49:08 What's Actually Wrong With Church Culture 1:00:00 Grieving With Purpose: A Different Way to See Loss 1:15:30 Going Deep: Reflection, Silence & Self-Awareness 1:19:51 The Rare Thing About Building Something of Your Own 1:23:35 Burning the Plan B: Going All In on Yourself 1:36:00 The Fisherman & Jeffrey: A Story About What You Actually Want ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📩 JOIN THE NEWSLETTERES Every week — strategy, lessons, what I'm building.→ ricoxjourney.com/subscribe ────────────────────────────────── FIND ME EVERYWHERE📺 YouTube → youtube.com/@thericardovargas 📸 Instagram → instagram.com/ricardovargas174 🎵 TikTok → tiktok.com/@r.vargas174🐦 Twitter/X → twitter.com/ricardov174 🧵 Threads → threads.net/@ricardovargas174 🎙️ Podcast → The Journey on Apple Podcasts ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━