We had the good fortune of connecting with Nelson Rodriguez Jr and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Nelson, what role has risk played in your life or career?
This is always a funny one to answer for me. In my book, Montana Method, I write a chapter about your superpower. Everyone has one, mine is risk taking. My entire life I’ve taken many risks and one could argue that it’s made me the man I am today. I have an inhuman tolerance to risk. More than once I’ve risked everything I had to get my self to a the next level in life. The main thing is that if the bet is on me then I’m always willing to risk it all. My attitude is if you don’t have that kind of confidence in who you are then you’ll never get anywhere in life. No one needs to believe in you or what you’re doing but you. That’s the only person that can never doubt you. 1% doubt and you’re out.
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Podcasting is a business and it’s also an art form. Words have interested me for as long as I could remember. Spanish is my first language so I’ve written ideas, poems, songs, books all my life. The first time I remember writing creatively I must’ve been maybe 6 years old. It makes sense now why I grew such a love for podcasting. It’s an extension of writing through spoken word, conversation and language. Because of podcasting I’ve really gotten to the root of my passion which is story telling. A great story can and has changed the world many times. That’s what I hope to do with my own personal story and the stories I write.
I found podcasting in the most challenging time of my life after getting indicted by the federal government and losing all the money I had at the time as well as my business that I had legally created and built for 4 years of my life. I devised a plan, I would record enough episodes so that the podcast could keep going while I was serving my sentence at Coleman Federal Prison up in central Florida. I schedules all of the episodes and clips the week before I was sent in and left it up to God.
When I got out I had a YouTube short get over 100,000 views and the podcast had steadily grown while I was gone. 115 episodes later here I am. You can make anything happen with commitment. Chase the dream, it’s all we got. The world is yours. But the catch is you have to go out and get it.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
So I live in Miami. I would take my friend to the beach, probably el farito or one of the more local known beaches and not just south beach. We’s go to some sort of local performance they would only be able to see in Miami like maybe a salsa band or a local comedian. I’d have them sit in during one of my podcast sessions so they could meet some of my friends from the media world and check out my studio. I would take them to eat cuban food FOR SURE, probably sergio’s or versailles. I’d feed them a cuban breakfast on one of the days at Latin America or Latin cafe, a cuban lunch on another day like a cuban sandwich or a media noche and a cuban dinner some other night at probably Havana 1900. Rey de las fritas would be another place I take them to eat to try some cuban fast food. I’d finish it off with one of the night boat tours in bayside.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate this to my grandfather, Francisco “Pancho” Rodriguez. He was my best friend and I could always pick up the phone to call him on my worst days just to hear his voice and laugh at one of his crazy stories. During my indictment with the federal government the only two people who sat in the courtroom behind me were my mother and my grandfather. He almost passed out walking to the court room. For some time he had heart issues and those days any long walks or extended periods of standing would make him dizzy and be short of breath. When we were in the lobby of the court building a security guard wanted to cal him an ambulance and he refused, he was going to be there for me in court or die trying. My grandfather passed away while I was incarcerated. I never got to say goodbye to him. This and any success I have in the near future I’d like to dedicate to him for being there in the worst time of my life, and choosing to be by my side in spite of facing his own death.
Website: https://montana-method.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/montanamethod/
Twitter: https://x.com/Montanameth0d
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/montanatheprophet
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MontanaMethod
Other: All My Links https://link.me/montanamethodmindset
Image Credits
Kevin Vazquez @lythalmind