Ep 71: Live Through Love with Ruben Rojas
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Ep 71: Live Through Love with Ruben Rojas
Episode 71: Show Notes
By using the urban landscape as his canvas, Ruben Rojas encourages communities to change for the better through optimism and collaboration. Once vacant walls become vibrant reminders that inspire those who see them dream big, live in possibility, and live life through the lens of love. But Ruben wasn’t always so in touch with this message.
In today’s episode, you’ll learn more about his journey, from real estate to financial planning, and how he ultimately became disillusioned with material success. Ruben shares the story of how he came to paint his first-ever mural while completing a Mastery in Transformational Training (MITT) course and how it changed his world forever by inspiring him to start asking the ‘right’ questions about self-love and purpose.
Tuning in, you’ll hear about Ruben’s transition from a financial planner to full-time artist, the evolution of his now-iconic ‘love’ artwork and his Live Through Love message, and his current definition of success, which has everything to do with impact and very little to do with material wealth.
We also touch on the process of reinvention, forgiveness, and self-awareness and Ruben reflects on how becoming a husband and a father has only reinforced his mission to help others live life through the lens of love, plus so much more!
We hope you’ll join us for this candid and inspiring conversation with Los Angeles-based artist, activist, speaker, and entrepreneur, Ruben Rojas.
Key Points From This Episode:
Ruben reflects on his favorite toy as a child: a little, red, handmade dog.
Learn more about his upbringing, his family dynamics, and his favorite activities.
The philosophy that was echoed in his household: work hard, and success will come to you.
The art classes Ruben took as a young person and what he aspired to be when he grew up.
How he viewed success when he was younger: nice cars, expensive clothes, material things.
Follow his journey from studying kinesiology to real estate and into the 2008 financial crisis.
Hear about the reckless driving that he was wrongly charged with, which formed part of what Ruben calls his downfall.
How he got into financial planning and ultimately became disillusioned with material success.
Ruben’s experience of the Mastery in Transformational Training (MITT) with Lewis Howes.
Hear the story of how he came to paint his first ever mural during his work with MITT.
How that first mural inspired Ruben to start asking what he calls ‘the right questions’.
Learn about the slow transition from his work in finance to full-time artist, starting with the non-profit he cofounded, Beautify Earth.
Discover more about the conversations that Ruben’s murals facilitated for him.
The creative process behind his iconic ‘love’ artwork and the Live Through Love message.
How he has interpreted his Live Through Love message in various different ways.
The powerful ‘Forgive/Forgiven’ mural that he did at Lancaster Maximum Security Prison.
Find out how his merchandising and prints make Ruben’s artwork more accessible.
Why Ruben sees the reinvention and emulation of his original work as a compliment.
Ruben shares his current definition of success, which has to do with impact, not money.
Some insight into the advice he would give his younger self: “Shift quicker.”
How being a father and a husband has changed his art by reinforcing his mission.
Tweetables:
“I’m succeeding. Then, I hit a wall and I'm like, ‘Wait a minute. I'm in this situation again, where I'm being driven by money, but I'm no longer wired this way.’ Don't get me wrong, it's great to make money. We need to make money, but I wasn't driven by how big my paycheck was.” — @RubenRojas [0:27:25]
“Words are the easiest way to communicate, beyond being present and body language, obviously. You put a word on a wall, that says, 'You belong here.’” — @RubenRojas [0:33:44]
“There are folks that are more enlightened than others. This is true, but we all have this inside of us. We all have this energy inside of us. It’s whether we listen to it and tap in. Whether we call it our heart, our guardian angel, or [the] universe – it's there.” — @RubenRojas [0:36:14]
“My art is just an invitation and a conversation. I'll open the door. You walk through and interpret it the way you want to interpret it.” — @RubenRojas [0:48:20]
“Why love? It's simple. We operate out of love, or we operate out of fear. Everything else goes under those two columns.” — @RubenRojas [0:50:34]
“Humanity is how old? No one's inventing anything at this point, really. We're just reinventing. We're making it our own. We're delivering it our own way. We're making it better. We're improving upon it.” — @RubenRojas [1:06:42]
“As long as I believe in the mission and the vision, I believe we can taper our doubts. They're not as loud.” — @RubenRojas [1:10:35]
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: