UnLost Cause

How Ralph Velasco Turned His Love of Photography and Travel into a Business [Hint: Test Demand 1st]

Ralph Velasco, known as the Continental Drifter, shares how he turned a childhood fascination with photography and culture into a thriving international travel business after the age of 45.
In this episode, we explore how Ralph's journey from restaurateur and financial advisor to tour leader and author was catalyzed by the 2008 financial crisis, and how small steps like teaching community classes helped pave the way.
Discover how curiosity, courage, and community can unlock your next chapter, and how you can build a thriving business by combing your passions and purpose.
Highlights:
- Meet Ralph Velasco: From Financial Advisor to Global Tour Leader
- Childhood Roots: Early Travel, Photography & Curiosity
- Buying His First Restaurant at 21 and Funding World Travel
- Burning Out & Reigniting Through Digital Photography
- The Power of Testing Ideas Locally Before Going All-In
- When the 2008 Financial Crisis Became Ralph’s Catalyst
- Overcoming Fear and Embracing Reinvention
- Building a Business with Small Group Tours & Repeat Clients
- Lessons from Over 100 Trips and a Life on the Road
- The Birth of Mindful Travel and His New Books
- How to Be Present: "Be Here Now" in Life and Travel
- What's Next: Pre-tiring & Leaving a Legacy of Stories
Ralphs's Books and Website:
- Bucket List for Travel: Places to Go Before Your Knees Give Out: https://amzn.to/46eVPJE
- How to Be a Mindful Traveler Using Your 5+ Senses: https://amzn.to/4eR5U1D
- https://continentaldrifter.co/
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When a Cup of Tea on the Commode (for your dying mom) Changes Everything

We know it’s coming...that moment when we become caretakers for our aging parents. There’s no roadmap for the emotional, physical, and spiritual toll it takes.
In this moving episode of UnLost Cause, Mark Steven Porro shares his unexpected journey. He was living a carefree life in LA as an actor, designer, and entrepreneur when he dropped everything to care for his 89-year-old mother.
What unfolds is a beautifully vulnerable and often humorous story about unconditional love, loss, and what really matters when time is short. In the process, Mark discovered that saving his mom may have saved him too.
📘 His memoir, A Cup of Tea on the Commode, captures the joy and heartbreak of their final years together. And today, he brings that same honesty and humanity to this conversation.
👉 Watch and read more at UnLostCause.com🔗 Follow Mark at @MarkStevenPorro
Buy his book: https://amzn.to/40bqbc4

Pain Is Inevitable. Suffering? A Choice. | The UnLost Cause of Allison Briggs

“Pain is inevitable. Suffering? A choice.”
That’s the hard-earned insight Allison Briggs brings to life in this raw and revelatory episode. A licensed therapist, writer, and mother, Allison turned a childhood of trauma, a marriage marked by survival, and the chaos of raising a neurodivergent child into her calling: helping women heal their nervous systems and reclaim their voice.
This isn’t a story of overnight success. It’s a journey of decades. Of picking up the dream again and again—and finally choosing to live without regrets.
Highlights:
-Pain is inevitable. Suffering? A choice.
-Allison’s chaotic childhood: kidnapping, custody, and trauma
-Defining codependency and developmental trauma
-How movies like Mommy Dearest and Rudy sparked hope
-Early dreams buried by instability and fear
-Teaching as a survival-based decision
-Choosing the Peace Corps—and confronting loneliness
-Buddhist wisdom: Pain happens. Suffering is resistance.
-Reverse culture shock and the myth of the American dream
-From counselor to mother of a medically fragile child
-Divorce, unemployment, and building life from the ashes
-Taking the leap into private practice -Reclaiming voice through brainspotting, writing, and self-trust
 
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Join the UnLost Cause community to find support and support others to turn their lost cause into an UnLost Cause: https://unlostcause.com

How to Live a Life Without “I Wish I Had"

"I wish I had" is the saddest phrase according to John David Graham.
John David Graham turned detours into destiny before turning multiple lost causes into UnLost Causes.
He burned out of multiple jobs and persevered through 200 book rejections, and yet he found purpose in the unlikeliest places.
This episode is about how grit outlasts doubt, and how legacy starts with one act of courage.
At 53, John David Graham faced homelessness...again.
He’d held more than a dozen jobs, from fireman to minister to journalist, but had never felt truly at home in any.
Then he and his wife took a leap: they opened their home to someone released from prison.
That moment ignited what would become the Good Samaritan Home, a $2M nonprofit that’s helped 2,500 people restart their lives.
And at 75, John published his first novel, Running as Fast as I Can, which has now won over 30 awards.
Running as Fast as I Can on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4kYB1up
Good Samaritan Home: https://johndavidgraham.com/good-samaritan-home/
 

Joe Bassett’s UnLost Cause: Rediscovering Purpose Through Survival and Successful Failures

Joe Bassett grew up immersed in the outdoors, skipping school to read survival stories and test his limits with just one match and a dream.
But by adulthood, he was chasing a different path: a career in music and ministry.
For decades, the wild part of him lay dormant. In his 50s, a return to his father’s wilderness camp triggered a deep awakening.
Joe launched Valiant Outfitters to help others reclaim themselves through survival skills, backpacking, and time away from the noise of modern life.
In this episode of UnLost Cause, Joe reflects on imposter syndrome, near-death moments, book deals, and why nature is the best place to find out who you really are.

Tony Robbins Meets Charlie Brown: Mark Papadas and the Power of “I Am”

At 59, Mark Papadas reignited a lifelong calling and launched I Am For Kids, a personal development program transforming how children and families see themselves.
After years in sales, consulting, and coaching, a simple comment about his son sparked what he calls a “divine download” that became his life’s mission.
This episode is about the courage to pivot, the power of identity, and what happens when you decide to live with no regrets.
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Price *others* pay when you don't follow your dreams?

At 52, Debbie Sluys boldly stepped away from a secure, 30-year career in childcare to pursue a deeper calling: helping others visualize and achieve their dreams. What started as a boutique vision-board studio soon became Dare to Declare—a thriving global movement empowering people through intentional visualization and purposeful living.
In this episode of UnLost Cause, Debbie shares how early childhood struggles shaped her passion, how a single powerful question changed her life's trajectory, and why it’s never too late to live a life free of regrets. Whether you’re feeling stuck, considering a bold change, or just looking for inspiration, Debbie’s heartfelt journey offers practical insights, courage, and hope.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
Debbie’s inspiring leap from childcare director to visionary entrepreneur.
How a pandemic setback fueled Debbie’s global success.
The transformative power behind Dare to Declare’s vision board process.
Practical advice to turn your dreams into reality—no matter your age.
Why choosing gratitude and embracing your purpose matters deeply.
If Debbie’s story resonates, please subscribe, share, and leave a review—it helps us reach others ready to reclaim their dreams and live boldly after 40.
Join our community on Substack for more inspiring content: www.UnLostCause.com
#UnLostCause #SecondAct #VisionBoard #Courage #LifeAfter40

Millie’s Sipping Broth: Layoff to 2,000 Walmarts. Learn How Llance Kezner Created a New Category

What if losing your job was the best thing that ever happened to you? In this inspiring episode of UnLost Cause, former tech VP Llance Kezner shares how he and his wife Lori—a teacher—turned a home kitchen idea into Millie's Sipping Broth, a product now stocked in nearly 2,000 Walmart stores.
From setbacks like layoffs and manufacturing challenges to viral moments during COVID and a golden ticket from Walmart, Llance opens up about the messy, meaningful path to reclaiming purpose after 40.
This episode is for anyone who feels like their dream might be “too late”—because Llance proves it never is.
02:10 – The kindergarten classroom moment that sparked it all
06:00 – Childhood sales lessons from a Christmas tree lot
10:40 – How his global trade background shaped his resilience
17:15 – The tidal wave of 2009: layoff, loss, and the search for control
21:30 – A garlic accident that led to their first product
26:05 – Pivoting from award-winning garlic to sipping broth
30:50 – Real-world testing at Pike Place Market
38:20 – Why innovation is only half the battle: packaging, pricing & pitch
42:10 – Going viral during COVID thanks to Weight Watchers
48:40 – How Walmart’s Golden Ticket changed everything
54:15 – What keeps Lance grounded—and moving forward
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Near-Stroke at Christmas. A Year Later? Launching a Travel Business for Women 50+

What happens when a lifelong change maker hits the wall? Stephanie M. Jones shares how a near health crisis forced her to stop giving to everyone else and finally start giving to herself. Her new venture, The Selfish Luxury Traveler, is more than travel, it's about joy, self-care, and rewriting your story after 50.
 👉 If this moved you, please like, share, and subscribe to UnLost Cause.
🎧 Full podcast + newsletter: https://unlostcause.substack.com
📲 Follow Stephanie: @TheSelfishLuxuryTraveler

From Harvard Business School to RevGTM: Kevin Nakao’s Story of Reinventing Joy at Work

Kevin Nakao’s story is one of serial reinvention. From launching a Grammy-nominated record label to leading marketing in startups and now running his own solo consultancy, Kevin’s career is a testament to lifelong learning, humility, and hustle.
In this episode of UnLost Cause, Kevin shares the lessons of choosing joy over title, getting his hands dirty again in his 50s, and why he’s more fulfilled now as a “company of one” than ever before.
⏱️ CHAPTERS03:12 – The impact of non-traditional Asian parents06:45 – First entrepreneurial sparks and childhood role models11:20 – How hustle got him a job at Universal Music17:40 – The startup shift: From record label to tech22:55 – Realizing he didn’t want to be CEO again27:10 – Why freelancing beat corporate leadership32:00 – The financial and emotional planning before the leap37:30 – Pricing lessons as a freelancer41:10 – Company of One: Pros and cons45:15 – AI’s impact on marketing and Kevin’s plan to stay ahead50:40 – Family life, flexibility, and redefining success54:05 – The emotional tax (and freedom) of freelancing58:00 – Advice to those over 40 with simmering dreams1:01:20 – Kevin’s ask to the UnLost Cause community
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