Create Fulfillment Through Stillness with Eric Balance

Thank you for tuning in to the True Grit and Grace Podcast. I'm Amberly Lago, and I'll be sharing inspirational stories of resilience and empowering ideas to elevate your business and your life, ignite your passion, and fuel your purpose. Hey, I'm so glad you're here because I have one of my really good friends with us today. So this is gonna be such a treat for you. Eric Balance is a healer, guide, conscious entrepreneur whose mission is to bring balance back to our world through the power of compassionate leadership and heart intelligence. He's got a podcast I've had the honor of being on. It's called The Resilient Minds. He's been featured in Forbes and Entrepreneur. He holds amazing retreats. And he is helping thousands of people reach new heights of true fulfillment. So, Eric, I'm so happy to see you. Welcome to the show.

I'm grateful to be here, Amberly. It's always a pleasure to connect with you, reconnect with you. And I'm just grateful for today. I think today's a very special day for me. I feel like this morning I woke up super like uncertain, scared, tired. Um, and, you know, knowing that I was coming on the podcast, I was like, no, like, I gotta change my energy. And so I went for it.

That's right, we're gonna have some fun.

Yeah, right? I gotta change my energy. So I went for this beautiful hike, you know, in my— like, literally in my backyard, 20-minute drive from here, uh, and walk down— like, they call it the Gates of Heaven. And it really— you walk down this beautiful space. It's like almost like you're climbing down ropes and you go to this beautiful beach where all of a sudden the sun opens up and, you know, you jump in the water, crystal clear water. I was there by myself, you know, like just me and one friend and nothing around you, just nature, trees, birds, like literally just feeling this abundance inside you. This, this mirror inside of your heart is reflected outside of you. And I was so just— it put me back into this state of like, wow, you know, like, I'm okay. Like, don't worry. Just, just keep going. Just keep going. Just keep trusting.

Yeah, you know, it's interesting. Just on my story on Instagram yesterday, I've been working a lot of different projects and events. And there has, you know, and it does get scary sometimes. And sometimes I think, oh, have I done too much? Or, oh, I don't want to get burnt out. Like, And just taking a break sometimes and getting out in nature is the best medicine. And I was just sharing on my story on Instagram yesterday, my daughter and I went down the street in our neighborhood and there's this— we live in an area and it's called Buffalo Creek. And there's this beautiful creek and we saw turtles and ducks. And, you know, we took our dog out and it was just so nice. I mean, it definitely wasn't as magnificent as the ocean and the stairway. to heaven that you were talking about. That sounds like heaven for sure. But it was just nice. It's just such a great reset for you in every way— mentally, spiritually, physically— and does strengthen our resilience and our creativity and spark joy. For me anyway, to get outside and breathe and just know that there's There's a power greater than us that is leading the way. And that gives me hope that I'm not doing this alone. And it also helps me to connect with someone who's doing things and that can be sometimes, sometimes scary, like as an entrepreneur, and to know that I'm not alone when, you know, you're about to launch something big, or I know you've got a big retreat coming up and it's like, oh gosh. And we were starting to talk before we started recording and I was like, oh wait, we gotta save this for the podcast, because I know so many people out there that have these big dreams and these big goals. But when you actually commit to doing them, sometimes it does take a lot of trust in yourself, in your message, in your ability to add this value to people's lives and knowing that it can help. And I was just telling you that my 13-year-old is— she's a little entrepreneur and she wants to make money. She's really good at a lot of things, but especially making horse treats. And so she's made horse treats and she's trying to sell them. And she's like, after, you know, sharing it on social media for 30 minutes, she's like, nobody's bought any yet. And I'm like, Ruby, that's how I always feel whenever I launch something really big. I'm like, wait a minute, it hasn't sold out yet. And I'm like, it's the first day. Like, of course it's not gonna sell, the first post that you put up, the first mention of it in the newsletter. And it is that trusting and that knowing. So, um, I want to know, well, first of all, before we get into— because I want to talk about your retreat, it looks amazing, and I want to ask you questions about that. But I also want to know, like, how did you become this? You have such serenity and peace and joy, and it comes across in everything that you do, from having a conversation with you, or whether somebody reads your post on Instagram, or they listen to your podcast, you can feel your energy. But it's good to know that we all go through our ups and downs. But how did you become this conscious entrepreneur? What led you to that moment? Was it a place where you were somewhere completely different and shifted your whole life? What led you to become this person that's so filled with peace and joy and abundance and that provides that for so many others.

Thank you for the kind words. It's really sweet. It's beautiful to feel and feel this reflection coming from you. It's, it's really nice. So thank you for these kind words. It's really sweet. And I honor it because for so long, like my mind and my being was scared. It's like I grew up in scarcity consciousness, you know, and, you know, it was like my parents would always argue about money. and feeling of lack of worth was so crystallized in my life. And so as I like would break the barriers of the egoic society, I would break through things that I saw. Okay, well, hold on a second. Like, how can I overdeliver in value through my like expression or valuing the individual? And it wasn't until I was like 30 years old where I really discovered there's more out there than just like making a dollar, you know? Like, why has becoming money been the focal point of my life? Why hasn't the experience of life become the focal point of my life? Why hasn't the magic allowed me to cultivate creative outlooks and perspectives of my life? And so I really got curious and started traveling. And I know that, you know, when I was younger, I went through a really dark time. You know, I was a drug addict, you know, and I used that experience of my life to discover the contrast of where I feel I am today. Like, because I feel super— like I live in heaven, you know. I feel heaven inside my heart, and I see it outside of me every day when I'm looking out the window and when I walk at night, because I can see it in other people as well. So for me, the biggest thing was like letting go of this image of what egoic society really wanted me to be, you know, really, really was like training me to be, you know, allowing myself to, to change the levels of identity that I thought that I needed to be, you know. I went— I was supposed to be this big egoic, you know, strong man, and not allowing that masculine facade of what the patriarchal society had deemed necessary for almost 2,000 years since Christ died. And to say that, listen, you know, the story is based off of, you know, making things happen and creating things rather than allowing things and surrendering. And, and, you know, I had this conversation yesterday. I was like, how do I allow myself to tune into the sacred feminine inside my heart? And I really know that it's because of my mom, my grandma, my father, his feminine side of ability to allowing me to during those dark times hold space of compassion and infinite unconditional love that gave me the understanding of wow, this really is the most healing. This really is the true abundance. This really is the the capacity to. to feel, to trust, to know, and then to finally understand that faith is the underlying way of that we truly get to hear and pay attention to what nature and everything is saying to us. And it's like, it's, it's interesting because you mentioned how powerful going to nature really is to disconnect. And if we're in silence in nature and we truly are in silence and we're listening to the wind, the trees, the, the The birds, you know, the water, the splash, everything. You can actually hear your creator speaking to you. And it takes some time to get to that stage. But if you let go of the image, if you let go what society dictated to you for so long, and it's hard. Sorry, that's not hard. It's not hard. It's a challenge, right? It's a challenge. As you discover yourself more through these paradoxes, you know, so you let go of the image, you start building esteem where you build confidence. You start understanding what real self-love is, and then you can hold compassion for yourself knowing that what you did up until this moment, and what I did up until a certain moment of my life, I was doing the best I could in that moment. And then finally, you actualize yourself into a current perspective that gives you this understanding, this, this knowing this trust that gives you this perspective of saying, I am here as a servant, as a, as a servant to our Creator, as a steward of our Creator, as a creator of Creator, because we're working as me through me.

Hmm.

And this to me has been the most beautiful story of my own kind of like Disney story, you know, like the hero's journey. And I'm— sorry.

I want to go back to, um, because there's a lot of people, especially now, that might be struggling with some addiction. I mean, that's really, you know, I, I definitely got into trouble, a lot of trouble, and my darkest time was with addiction when I started drinking to try to cope, numb out pain. Um, so I just want— I'm just curious, what, what do you think is the reason that you started using drugs and started— that addiction kind of took over in the first place?

This is a good question because I do still see like a lot of people trying to escape, right, rather than being here present now. And so what I realized in that moment, I was so stuck in my mind, I was so focused on the the challenges of, of the egoic perspective, the challenges of the egoic society that allowed me to think of like, wow, I need money. I need money right now to be happy.

And, you know, I think it's interesting, like, our, our— everybody has a different relationship with money. I had to shift my whole relationship with money. And because I grew up with, oh, you don't know, you don't want to have too much money. You got to stay humble. And, you know, you don't want to have too much, and you definitely don't want to flaunt it. And I look at it different.

Like, and, and I think you just need to be happy and money will come. Yeah.

And I look at money as it allows me some freedoms to do more of the things that I love, to make more of an impact. And the reason my daughter is pushed to make money is because she wants to buy this fish, believe it or not, this little fish that costs like $70. And I'm like, well, girl, you're gonna have to work for it. So it's a goal. So money to her is okay, it's a way to get to what I want. But I'm glad that it's not like, you know, people can get lost and depressed, and especially with what they see on social media now with money equals happiness, the private jets, The big fancy cars, the diamonds, the bags, the or whatever equals happiness. And there's a lot of people out there that have money that aren't happy. So I'm glad that you're sharing that the ego and what society says about money versus what it equals for you. So you were caught up into I have to make a certain amount of money. I have to be this strong, tough guy. I have to be successful. And you were just in your mind thinking about that. And do you think that like drugs was a way to kind of get a reprieve or a escape from that constant loop in your mind that you were thinking?

There's like a 2 kind of, uh, answer approach. The first answer is like, I definitely believe that for me it was a way of wanting to make money by selling drugs and then eventually using them. And the reason I started using them is also I think that I wanted to escape, right? I wanted to escape reality. I wanted to go to heaven, you know, like I didn't want to die, but I wanted to like feel away from here, away from now. You know, it was like, you know, those moments where you like feel on this like cloud nine, you would go to the cloud nine and then come back down. It's like those when you get high. Now you can get high by like going into the water and swimming in nature, right? Like when you have that ideal.

Yeah.

or understand that. But this was, this was the thing is like, if you realize, if you're— for me, I was living in a city where I got caught up with the wrong people.

Where was that?

They didn't— they had—

they—

my parents had an abundance of love, but society dictated that they didn't have enough abundance because they didn't have the money. And so because that's what I perceived, it put me into this presence of how can I make money quick at a young age and I was 16 years old.

What city was this?

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Oh, okay.

For 3 years I was using. So up until 19, I was in and out of the house. My parents didn't know where I was for 6 months at a time. Scared, praying, connected, and worried about where I was. There's times I could have died multiple times, you know, and thanks to grace and God, I'm still here to this day. And it wasn't until my father asked me a really profound question that allowed me to really bring my spirit outside of me and allow me to look at myself and say, hey, you know, there's an opportunity for you to change. And the question was, Eric, can you go to rehab? Not for me or you, don't even think about that right now. But he was able to break a pattern by asking me to see if I can do it for the future version of myself.

Wow.

And that was like, for me, it was like my spirit woke up and like, was like, It's time, you know? And, uh, from that space, I was able to go to rehab and, and get clean. And then after I, I left rehab, they took me to this beautiful place in Medjugorje in Bosnia where it was like a, almost like a shrine for Mother Mary, an extremely like a sacred space. And I really believe in sacredness in, in everything that I do. I, I believe life is an altar and every moment is a prayer.

And— I love that you wrote that, actually. Um, you have that in your bio, um, on Instagram, and I love that. Life is an altar and each moment a prayer. I wrote that down, actually. It's beautiful.

Thank you. Yeah, it really is, you know. And if we get to live, live— if we, if we know that by our actions and our deeds and our relationship with each other, that we get to like really pray by being, by living, by beholding the God in action inside of you, the individual that is so divine because you're a divine representation of our Creator in physical form. And if I hold and behold you by looking at you and being present to you, then I'm actually holding you in prayer of service, just like I— because I see myself in you.

Okay, I, I mean, there, there's so many questions I want to ask, but there are a lot of entrepreneurs out there that are really struggling. That they don't have happiness, they're on the verge of burnout, they're stressed. What is the first thing that you would do or say to help someone who is really struggling and maybe not with addiction, but just with all the pressure that they're putting on themselves about they have to make money, they have to provide, they have to look a certain way, they have to do all these things, they have to keep accomplishing and hustle, hustle, hustle. What would be something you would suggest to them that they could do today, right now, to help them get in more of a place of true fulfillment?

First thing is let go of the image. Let go of the identity you've created yourself, because nobody, nobody really, you know, is worried about how you look. You know, be open about your struggles. Allow the vulnerable experience of your life to be the strength that empowers you and that attracts the people that you really need for support. You know, like, I, I can tell you from my own experience, even with, uh, the space that I'm in, the place that I'm renting, the retreat that I'm hosting, I have a lot of fear about this not being a success because, you know, I'm in my mind about how it's supposed to create. So I ask people and I say, hey, you know, I'm wanting to— for you to invest with me in this land. This is my vision. This is what I see. We can create experiences here. We can do beautiful things, to cultivate a really sanctuary for people to come and heal themselves. And it's a fear, but I alchemize it into a moment of faith by sharing it in a vulnerable capacity, because then this way you're opening yourself up for somebody to help you. You don't have to figure it out by yourself.

Yes, that is so important. I think what I've learned the most is, you know, I used to feel like I had to just do it all on my own, like suck it up, keep going, don't let anybody know how I'm really struggling. And I don't do that anymore. I always ask for help. I don't want to do anything alone. I don't think that we are built and made to— I think we're built for connection and community, and we are more powerful when we come together. But also, when you do share Your experience, your struggles, it lets people know that they're not alone. And you know what, maybe there's somebody, maybe there's an entrepreneur out there that launched a course or a program or a retreat and they were completely fearless and it was like not a care in the world and it just was a swing and success and everybody signed up. I don't know who that is because most successful people that I know, and I'm talking about even like Jamie Kern, Linda. She has a bestselling book.

That's amazing.

So yeah, she sold her company for billions. I don't know the exact number, but she talked about the first time she ever launched her website and her products, it was crickets. She got no sales. And by sharing that, she's had success, but she's now able to teach people based on the lessons that she learned about her failures on how they can achieve success and do more. And so I think it's amazing when you can share what you're going through so people don't— they know they're not alone, so people can step up and help you. And I think it feels really good. I know when I can step up and help somebody, it makes me feel really good. That's why I started my mastermind, is because I wanted to share all the mistakes and failures I've made So other people don't have to do that and they can get from point A to point B faster.

This is how I believe by leading ourselves, we lead others by sharing through ourselves. We share through others because I can resonate with you by your story, by your openness. If it's like, if there's a block or there's a disconnect, or we're sharing from an egoic perspective that isn't in alignment, I can feel it. Most people can feel it. Unconsciously or consciously?

I think so. I think people can feel it when the outside doesn't match the inside. Do you know what I mean? And I say that because I did live in a place for a long time when I was struggling with addiction where I was trying to, on the outside, pretend like everything was okay, and on the inside, I was literally dying inside. And you can feel that with people. I don't know, I can feel that. And I want to match inside and outside. And so that's why I always, you know, sometimes my husband can't believe some of the stuff that I share. Um, even the first time, like when I first started this podcast and I didn't have a really nice place to record and the, you know, the gardener would come and you could hear the lawnmower and stuff. So I was recording in my little tiny coat closet and I did a story on Instagram, like, I just recorded a podcast and he saw it and he's like, I can't believe you showed yourself like recording from your closet. And I'm like, why not? Like, anybody can have a podcast. And I want to show them that I'm not perfect. My circumstances are hardly ever the way that I planned them to be. And I want to show that this is the real deal. Like, this is what you do as an entrepreneur. Sometimes you record out of your coat closet or wherever you can find a quiet spot, you know. So that others know that everything doesn't have to be perfect. You just start. You just start. Well, I am very curious though about this whole balance thing, work-life balance. So I'm very curious, as you feel there really is a sense of balance, or— because a lot of people feel it's a myth that there's never balance. So I'm curious your take on How do you create more harmony? And do you believe in balance? I do.

I believe in balance. When we are cultivating as leaders through stewards and guardians of our, of our beautiful home, if we do the work on ourselves, and we recognize that inside of ourselves, we are the universe, or a creator, Then we start to embody the creative consciousness by serving humanity, by serving our planet, by serving the water, by looking after food, by looking after our neighbors, by looking after people. And this doesn't anymore become a job. This becomes our play because we become children of the world. We recognize that the playground is our planet. And that love is really the reason that we're here, the infinite levels of love. So when we're able to look at every moment, every person, every conversation, we can recognize, wow, we can connect the dots here because this can create a bigger solution, cultivate even more abundance for our brothers and sisters from a different perspective around the world. It's funny, like tomorrow even, I have a brother here who's doing a beautiful art and culture business in Ibiza. And he has a big project with a hotel here and big into real estate. I don't even have anything to do with real estate. I don't even know anything to do with real estate. But I also have a beautiful friend who works with the sheikhs in Dubai who is working on real estate in metaverse. And all I'm doing—

Oh, wow.

—is seeing how they could come together to create a solution that could be bigger for Dubai and Ibiza and recognize that Web 3.0, that metaverse, could be a catalyst in encumbering and creating real estate for abundance for more people so that we can then amalgamate a level of economic disparity that is out of alignment because we're so focused in the past on this, like, money for me rather than money for all of us.

Hmm.

So how can we then bridge these gaps regularly? This now doesn't become job. This is just play. This is just like Here, let's, let's figure this out together, you know?

Okay, well, first let's backtrack a little bit because for some people they're going, metaverse, what is that? They might not even know what metaverse is. Can you explain a little bit like what exactly metaverse is?

So the metaverse is like a Web 3.0 version of what, what the internet is now. So it's very like digital but also virtual. And so I believe Facebook just turned their name into Meta not too long ago. So really the metaverse Although it has been created, you know, like Deepak Chopra talked about the metaverse because we live in a metaverse. He talked about the metaverse long time ago. The metaverse actually really existed because we all have a universe inside of us, right? And the metaverse is where we're currently living in, in this 3D reality, in this 3D world, right? And the meta is like all of our worlds combined together in this planet called Mother Earth. Right? And now the metaverse that is being created in Web 3.0 is coming to a perspective of online virtual and artificial reality. So people are putting on glasses, right, to be in that perspective. So if people are looking, and these guys are doing really good things in the real world, right, in the 3D, in the 3D, in the 3D everyday, you know, life, if they're wanting to cultivate— because you got to use technology to your benefit. Technology is going to be technologies regardless of the way that you see it. But if you use it as a force for good, a force for God, you will start understanding that you can actually take the metaverse or the virtual experience, help them understand what's possible in the real estate empire or in, in these worlds in the real estate world And then help them say, wow, there's a real place in Ibiza that you can come to and experience what, what real heaven on earth looks like.

Wow.

Instead of putting on glasses or virtual reality, you can actually be here. So you can use these technologies to help the subconscious mind discover, wait, there's a reality that exists like this and I can go there.

Wow, that's interesting. And you've explained it in such a great way, vivid way. Um, I actually, I've asked that same question to someone else. And they're like, well, it's really hard to explain. And I'm like, try me because— and make it simple. But it sounds like it's a great way to shift people's perspective in many ways and give people hope and excitement. Expect— do you think that this has come along more so now because of COVID and because everybody has been kind of locked down and we've been pushed into more technology a little bit? Or do you think that it's been there forever and now it's just really coming into fruition?

I think that the meta— like I said, so, so Deepak, I really believed like already it's kind of like what we already live in, that they're now— they're just using technology associated, right? So if we believe our source of consciousness as a universe. If we, if we've done the work on the internal, if we've really gone inside and discovered our sovereignty, and we believe in our hearts that we're, we're creators, we're an expression of our divine play, of our Mother Father God, whatever you want to describe nature, the universe, inside of yourself, and you find that heaven within, you can then discover that you are just, you are just a consciousness a spiritual consciousness having a human experience. And when you're having a human experience, you're actually in this space of meta. The universe inside you is, is, is experiencing the meta in the physical space. And so this already is a very— like, it's an archaic expression of ancient civilization right now. Now, because of tech, They have taken this, this, this, this unique intelligence that has been available to many of us for thousands of years. They've taken this unique intelligence and cultivated into technology so that those that are unaware of doing the work inside can come to a level in the different levels of dimensions. Because for those that you— we all live in different paradigms and different worlds and different understandings. And it's important to observe and pay attention to different people's map of the world and accept and appreciate them.

Mm-hmm.

When we can accept and appreciate them, we can also offer different ways to break down the barriers of the egoic perspective that separates us from each other. And I genuinely believe that this perspective of tech Especially if I have anything to do with it, which I know that I like will somehow be involved in a lot of different things, um, will be a way to bring people back to this intelligence of the heart, back into reality, back into the now. Because the now is really where we understand that we are in heaven. We are living consciously, but it takes time to get there. And it, it, it, it, it— and I believe tech is going to be a huge delivery mechanism for those that are on, on different levels of frequency but want unconsciously to find out their, like, truth and their excitement of life.

That's such a beautiful way of explaining it. And, um, I have heard so much about it, uh, through friends. And then when I was on Clubhouse— I haven't been on Clubhouse much— but there's talks of this whole metaverse and all the things on Clubhouse a lot. And so for you to explain it in a way that is simple enough for me to understand it, I appreciate that. Because there's always so much to learn and there's so many new things. And just when you think you've got stuff figured out, it's like, oh no, I don't. Now there's all this other stuff. But I love learning and growing, and especially about stuff like This. Um, yeah, it's—

And by the way, I don't know everything. I don't know everything. I'm just like learning from things that like through my own experience, my own experience, because I'm, I'm the furthest thing I am from is from a tech guy. But what I understand is human expression. What I understand is like the, the universal law of consciousness. What I understand is, is like infinite levels of love. How can we use it as everything as a force for good? Right. So to me, this is like how I learn, and communication is my thing. So yeah, you—

Oh, well, I think you and I could just go on and on and on and talk. I can't wait till I get to meet you in person one day, especially when I saw on Instagram that I was like, oh, you're a horse fella, because we just bought, um, a horse for my daughter. We've been looking for a year, um, to buy her a new horse. She's a jumper, and so she is Um, competing now, uh, doing jumpers and wants to go to the Olympics. And she loves horses. I mean, if she's not riding a horse, she's pretending to be a horse, or she's baking treats for her horse, or she's— I mean, we're there at the barn every day. And so I saw that you ride, and that's something that you also offer that you do at your retreats is horseback riding. There's something magical about being with a horse, and there— it's scientifically, like, backed research that's been done that when you are around a horse, because you can actually feel their, their heartbeat and the energy from their heart. I don't know exactly all the details of that, but if you look it up— I don't know if you knew this already, but that's because when I'm around Horses, or my daughter's horse especially, is just like, oh, it's like a breath of fresh air, like a reprieve. It's serenity, it's peace, it's love. It brings you like what you were talking about just a minute ago of being in the now. And so it really has been what has given me just peace and serenity when I get really, really busy and life gets eventful or life gets lifey, I'm like, I need to take a break and just go to the barn. Because I can hug my daughter's horse. And it's like, oh, it just— there's something magical about it. And horses feel your energy.

This is the biggest thing. So when I met Pollux, when I met Pollux, he, he's a 5-year-old, he's a very young horse. He's five years old, very young, and full of energy, full of energy. People were scared to go up to him, and like he was kicking and playing and dancing and singing. You know, like you know, like the one of the like I loved him. And so immediately when we met each other, it was like wow! Like because I was so fascinated with he's also a competition horse, and he's gonna go to the Olympics. So. I would love when you guys come down here, maybe, maybe, you know, it'd be amazing for your daughter to meet Pollux. And who knows, maybe they could like— because I ride, I'd love to ride like maybe with him in the jumping thing. But you know, like I have so many things that are going— it'd be amazing to have some cool stuff going on.

Wow.

But the point that I'm really saying is like Pollux, people are scared to jump on him. And with me and him, it's like this Bond. There's like, there's, there's, there's this playfulness. There's this kindness. There's this love, because people are scared of his playful, innocent energy. He's a young horse that is full of life.

Oh, that's like my— that's my daughter's horse. Like, he's a jumper. And when he is in the cross ties, getting all tacked up, his eyes get bug-eyed. And he's like, ready to go, you know. And my daughter went on him yesterday. And he got so excited because he was out by this big fresh field of grass, and he got so excited that he kind of threw her off and then took off into the pasture. And it was just like, she understands, like, okay, he needs to like run free for a little bit, then I'll get to jumping. But the first time, you know, she went from jumping, you know, 2, 3 to maybe 3-foot fences to 5-foot fences, and she's—

Wow.

13 years old. No fear. My husband was like, oh my goodness, I don't know if I can watch this. You got to check out her Instagram. I'm so proud of her. But it is— I've done lessons, Hunter Jumper, and those— y'all make it look easy. I, I've only jumped a horse once by accident. This horse I was not planning on jumping, and it jumped over a creek, and I was like— Okay. Well, that was fun. I don't know if I wanna do that again, but that was fun. Super powerful. But yeah, the energy, the connection, and you know, there's something about horseback riding. It's not just taking a lesson on a horse. It is the teamwork that it teaches you, the empathy, the compassion, the courage, the confidence. You know, the first time my daughter got on her first horse, she was thrown over a 4-foot fence and I was like, oh gosh, what have I done buying her this horse? But she got back on. And so it also teaches you resilience, you know? And so, and I saw your picture with the horse, I thought, I love that. And so, yeah. And if you're ever out this way, you'll have to come to our barn and check out these Olymp— I can't wait. I mean, who would've thought it? This, there's a small town in North Texas that people from all over the world come and train out of this barn. Our trainer's German. There's people from Dubai, Germany, Paris. I mean, all over the world that come and train for the Olympics. And so I'm like, yeah, we're going to stay here. We're here for now. We just bought some land. We're going to build. We're going to— so we'll be here. So you'll have to come, really definitely come and visit. And I just have a couple more questions.

As soon as the US lets me into the country, because—

Yeah, it's tough right now, right?

Oh no. But listen, so, so what ended up happening is when I got, when I got charged, or when I got caught with, uh, um, with, with cocaine or crack, because I was smoking crack, I got charged with drug trafficking. And they—

Oh wow, how many years ago was that?

It was when I was 19 years old. So this was almost 16 years now. And for 3, 3 separate times, I've applied to the U.S., um, Customs and Border, and they denied me with all of the stuff like I was doing. I got like a letter from, you know, the Tony Robbins Platinum Partnership. Like, everything that I tried to do to share, like, I, you know, like, I'm— I, I made a mistake. I was 19. They still have denied me. So eventually, I know it's gonna— the right time is gonna happen when it's allowed and whatever, but I will make it happen. When I do make it happen, I'm gonna come for sure.

Yeah, I would love that. And, you know, I mean, my goodness, it's been so many years ago, and People that are able to really claim their sobriety and overcome addiction and have just a heart of gold like you that are out there helping other people, it's an inspiration to so many and it gives hope to so many that they can turn their lives around. And so I know that you're doing that in so many ways, and so keep doing what you're doing and Everything happens in, in the right timing, in divine timing, I believe. So it'll, it'll happen. Um, when you're in a place— or do you ever feel this way where you, uh, have anxiety or maybe a little stressed out or scared? How do you tap into serenity? Is it going out in nature, or what does that look like? How would— what would you suggest to somebody who is feeling a little stressed or anxious to really be able to tap into serenity?

So silence has been like— nature and silence has always been something. And like being by yourself. So really taking the moment of, of allowing the, the, you know, like sometimes I need to be a hobbit and just like— or a hermit, sorry, not a hobbit.

I need to be both sometimes.

Uh, I need to be a hermit and like put myself by myself in my room and just like stare at like, you know, a book, or, or not even stare at anything.

I need to stare at a blank wall sometimes. I am not kidding. I— yeah, I love— I get up early, like 4:35 in the morning, because it's my favorite time of day. It's quiet. I can just be with my thoughts. I'm not pulled in a million different directions. I don't look at my phone, although I have to say there's many times I want to look and check my email or social media or any of that. I don't. I take that time in the morning to really listen to my thoughts, to write, because I feel like there can be so many distractions. And so I think we all have that peace within us, and it's just our ability to be in stillness, be in that quiet time. So do you have a morning ritual that you do? Or do you— are you the kind of person that hits the ground running?

So I used to be very more like focused on my morning routine and ritual. And I have to be honest, over the last probably 2 and a half months, I've been so out of flow, like not— I would say out of routine, but in flow. And to me, to me, it's also something that I'm practicing to go like back into, because I know that the time in the morning, um, the time to, to like move my body, to go for a swim, to write some stuff down, is going to help me organize my thoughts, especially right now as I'm contemplating the more expression like of how I want to contribute. And I'm super excited because recently I've had like this powerful activation of like, wow, like I'm here, I can make things happen, you know. And I wanna, I wanna be, um, in alignment all the time. And I also, you know, have this like deadline of, of how I, I want to make this, uh, this retreat really be successful and all these things. So I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself, and this is my own responsibility. So now I'm noticing that because of that responsibility, I'm actually gearing myself and almost pushing myself to stay even more centered and take more of the time to wake up early, get more organized, get more like focused, so that then when I attack my day, right, I attack it with sheer like just energy that is focused energy, not just like doing things all over the all over the space. Although I do have a lot of different conversations that are in the bigger perspective, like there's different perspectives, one on like the retreat space, then the land cultivation, then like, you know, the water supply in Ibiza, then how can we really bridge the communities, how do we ground the communities, and then how do we really bridge everything that's going on in the community here on the island to different communities around the world like Dubai, Costa Rica, Tulum, things like this. So I'm having all these conversations, but it stems from a bigger— like from, from the ground to the, to the bigger perspective. And so this is why me being organized in my thoughts right from the morning is what's going to give me the capacity to, to just be really direct and very creative. Um, and, and then I can really pass my energy on to the right people at the right time.

I think it's so important. I mean, honestly, if I didn't get organized in the morning, I would be a scattered mess. I mean, and I'm still a mess sometimes. Don't get me— I don't have it all figured out. But you know what? Every morning I, I have to know. I write everything down on sticky notes, what my priorities are, and every single thing that I have going on. I have a list of when that— a date of when it has to be, it's got to be done by this date or else it gets pushed on the back burner, the back burner, and it won't get done. And so, you know, I have to really focus. I think it's important to focus on what your priorities are, what your intentions are, and making that list with an end date so you can— and there's something, I don't know if it's because I'm very pragmatic, but I love checking off a to-do list. It feels so good. So sometimes I'll just add something on my to-do list like water the plants. And I'm like, okay, I watered the plants. I gotta check that off. But yeah, I think it's really important. I would like to say, you know, years ago before I had so many different things going on and I just had a pretty steady, the same kind of job every day when I had my fitness business, it was pretty com— it was in a comfortable place. Um, I would hit the ground running. But now that I have all, like you, I have all these different things going on. I'm like, nope, I gotta get intentional. I gotta really set a goal with a date. And so yeah, I think it's important and having those meaningful conversations as well. So where can people find out about your retreats or listen to your podcast and some of your exciting upcoming things that you're doing? Even if they want to go ride a horse with you, where can they find out about that?

Yeah, so if you, if you Come to Ibiza, please. Also, just— I'm always in Ibiza, um, you know, this is my home, so you're always welcome. I have a place here where I, I do offer like, uh, co-living experiences. We can go through like a really unique perspective in my home, the Balance Sanctuary. And so, uh, you can reach out to me on my Instagram @ericbalance. And also then, um, with the retreat that's happening from March 5th to 12th It's stepping into your sovereignty. So really recognizing the sacredness of our expression, of how you get to be the sovereign being of living your everyday with intention and purpose. And that's from March 5th to 12th.

Okay, this I think will be out, but I think after that. Okay, you can have— are you gonna have retreats that are similar to that later on? Is this going to be something ongoing that you're going to be doing?

Yes, so I'm going to— the next one is going to be April 23rd to the 30th.

Oh, good. Okay.

And then I'm going to be doing it regularly every month, um, because I do feel like there's a lot of individuals that really are, are looking to, to really step into this, and especially because Ibiza is such an important space that I don't think has been as, um, mainstream, or people haven't known about the spiritual side of Ibiza. There's— it's like, myself included, by the way, was like, I was all about, you know, spirituality. And then I felt spirit say, go to Ibiza. When I asked the question, I was like, what? That place is a party island. I came here and then, wow, was I created. Like, did I find out different information. So, wow.

Yeah, I've never been. I gotta check that out.

It'll really— I honestly, when you come, I, I can't wait to, to host you or have you or, or show you around, whatever the case is. It'd be, it'd be a blessing to, to connect deeper. It's a really sacred space here. It's a very— it's heaven on earth.

It looks like it just from your, your pictures. So yeah, y'all check them out on Instagram and tell us your website and your podcast So people can connect with you there as well.

Yeah, so if you go to ericballance.com/ibizahaven, you can check out the, the podcast, or ericballance.com— or sorry, um, you can check out the, the retreat. If you go to ericballance.com, you can find out all about the Resilient Minds podcast, what I do with regards to compassionate leadership all around the world, or working with individuals to really step into that level of compassionate truth and 100% alignment and integrity. To me, the biggest thing is just leading from the heart, really trusting in the intelligence of our heart so that we're really like expressing as creators to creators so that we know that, you know, we're really here doing the best we can with one another. And when we see we're on the— all on the same team, then, you know, that's how we cultivate more of heaven on earth.

So I love that. Well, it's always a joy to get to talk with you. Thank you so much for just sharing your heart and your wisdom here with us on the show. And y'all make sure that if, you know, take a screenshot of this and share it on your Instagram and tag us @EricBalance and @AmberlyLagoMotivation so we can see it and share it on ours. And, um, yeah, so thank you for tuning into the show, Eric. Thank you so much for being here and hope we'll be riding horses together soon.

And I just want to say thank you to you. Thank you for being so amazing, and thank you for being so sweet and kind, and thank you for just like your open heart as well for receiving, you know, everything. You ask great questions, and I just really honor your, your grit, you know, your grace as an individual. You really shine bright. You're like the sun. So I just want to say thank you.

Thank you. See, y'all, this is why I like hanging out with him.

Thanks.

Thanks for tuning in.