Hey, welcome back to the Daily Mastermind, George Wright III with your daily dose of inspiration, motivation, and education. And I am joined by an amazing guest. It's taken a little while to get him here, but Dr. Karen Dintala, how are you doing today? I'm doing very good, George. How are you? I'm doing great. Thank you for being here. And for those of you listening, we're going to refer to him as Dr. Calm, because this is how this guy is known throughout the industry. I'm going to give a quick intro so people understand who you are. Dr. Calm is a born certified internal medicine physician, author, speaker, stress management expert. He's an overall amazing authority in this field, a master's in public health and a diplomat of the American Board of Integration and Holistic Medicine, multiple books. In fact, one of the books, Calm in the Midst of Chaos, is just like my ever growing focus. and you've got a new program coming up too here, which is a 10-week program on health, happiness, and harmony. So super glad to have you here, man. What's your big focus right now in your business? Right now, the most important thing is the H3 program, health, happiness, harmony. I'm rolling out this transformational program. I really mean transformation. It is not informational. With the intention to help people, especially this new year, now it is January. this new year to take action, get the right guidance to improve their health, improve their happiness, and to bring back harmony into their lives. Not simply balance, not simply alignment. Harmony is much more than that. And it's amazing that this time of year, that is what's on people's minds. I mean, of course, they want to grow, they want to develop, they want to end their life and their business, but they do want to do it in an intentional way with health and harmony and happiness. Let's start real quick by helping people to understand where you came from. I don't usually do a lot of background because you have got a huge pedigree, but help it in the individuals listening to this podcast to know what got you into this realm and why you do what you do. I wear multiple hats and over a period of time, I kind of merged all the hats into one, which is what I do now. So I bring in my internal medicine expertise as a traditional medical doctor. So if you need prescriptions, if you need to get a traditional medical perspective, I am the guy with more than 20 years experience. And very fortunately, right at the beginning of my career, almost 15 to 18 years ago, I also got exposed to mental health aspects, stress management experts. And I wrote multiple books on the topic. At the time, I realized it's such a huge issue that people were not addressing. Now, lots of people are talking about it. I'm talking about 15, 18 years ago. So I started on that. I wrote multiple books on that topic. Then also in my journey, I got into integrative and holistic medicine, functional medicine. So now where I stand in 2026 is I bring all these things together and help people because it's not simply about physical health it's not simply about mental health it is not simply about functional medicine and taking supplements and all that right it's not about just alternative medicine it's really about healing and how can you bring all these facets together everything nothing left out yeah so that it is coming from a doctor who saw it all and then can help you fit oh this is good for you in this aspect but maybe for something else you should actually try this and I'm not only going to treat your body not just medicines but also going to help you calm your mind because when you are in that state healing is greatly enhanced right not only just healing we're also talking about harmony in your relationships at your workplace with yourself maybe with a higher power if you believe in that but it's really bringing it all together yeah I love that and I remember when we first met and sat down and talked um I was doing a article uh feature on you and I realized that it wasn't just this holistic approach you know people look some people treat problems some people try to prevent problems people are in personal development mental health physical health what I noticed about you and what I liked and why I wanted you to have you on the podcast is it does create more of a sense of harmony, fulfillment, health, and happiness, but it's also like a state that you help people to get into. And that state of calmness in the storm and preventative and holistic approach is what helps you to be more effective as well. So from my perspective, it's a much higher level and founders and CEOs right now are dealing with a lot of stress. What are some of the biggest things you come across with founders as far as like those hidden stressors that constantly affect them from your perspective and your practice? You know, from a superficial perspective, it's very simple. Oh, I have so many deadlines. I have the funding needs and, you know, I got to do this podcast. I had to go talk to these people. All the task list, you know, that are overflowing your life as essentially. That is a very simple answer, right? But the deeper answer is that they don't have a clear system to manage all of that harmoniously. Deeper than that, they lack the deep calmness that is needed. What I notice again and again and again is that when people are operating from a restless and stressed state of mind, they put obstacles in their path. They miss opportunities and they, you know, they're indecisive. So all these things play a role in the outcomes that they are getting. But when people are deeply calm from within, it's like this clarity that comes to you. There is an inner guidance that comes to you and everything just falls into place. Yeah, clarity is a great word. Right. And not only just that, people think that calmness is simply feeling calm. No, it's really, it ignites your innate wisdom, which helps you navigate the life challenges. You know, like you have a very good GPS that tells you where to go next without getting confused. And it enhances your performance and how you relate to the world, the people. It changes entirely. It's a totally different dimension. That's that state. Yeah. That state. Yeah. I love how you said clarity too, because I think you can manage that stuff with practices, but when you have clarity and direction, I'm curious because a lot of high performers, very successful people I know, they believe stress is like that price of success. And I do think there's a lot to be said for having some of that, like stress push you, right? But what's that fine line between healthy pressure and destructive stress from your perspective? I'm going to say something totally outrageous. I want to debunk that myth. Okay. That stress is needed for high performance or, you know, it's some kind of motivator for you to, you know, do better. That's a big myth. That's a big myth. Okay. And we need to go into the definition of stress itself, actually, if you want to demand that myth, right? Yeah. And I actually like that you're saying this and I'll tell you why, because it's almost like an automatic acceptance that people feel like, well, you have to be able to deal with stress. That's just like, you have to have that to be successful. Yeah. So I love what you're saying. Keep going. The point is, what is stress? Most people equate stress to pressure deadlines you know people giving too many things to them that not true stress at its core is simply a state of mind where you are miserable and unhappy that it that's it if you're happy if you're calm you can have all these things coming at you but you're not crumbling under pressure yeah you can do all of the stress right it's how you handle it Yeah, the key is even not even about how do you handle it. Yes, to some extent. The key is to really understand the difference between pressure and stress. We have this definition about stress going on for many, many, many, many years. I'm talking about more than 100 years. If you look back into the history of the definition of stress, you know, it comes from, I think, Frank Salier, I think, you know, many years ago, taking that physical aspect of pressure. like someone is pressing you or you take a metal and you put the metal under stress the very physical physics aspect of stress and they created that into mental stress you know yeah so that's the root of it but the point is the mental stress is so much different than the physical stress lots of times you may not have nothing going on around you to push you to pressure you and you're still going crazy here. Yes, yes. Yeah, and it's physically, it affects you physically, not just in your mindset, right? Right. So it is not just something external that is coming at you. Yes, to some extent, there are always external stresses. We cannot deny it. But it is also what you are creating inside, constantly, in your head. And that is actually causing that external pressure or even inviting them into your life because of your own state of mind, because of how you are perceiving things, how you are processing the information. Research shows you can see it, all the articles, all the scientific articles, that is ultimately how you process information that determines your state of mind. And that's not innate, right? Like, in other words, someone can learn to be able to process. because I liked how you said when you started, it's a state, you're a state of mind of how you perceive maybe pressure that you create stress from it. So that is not something that, you know, because I know some people, they kind of seem to be hardwired to be a little bit more laid back. What you're saying is that the whole idea of needing stress debunked, it's, and there's a difference between pressure and stress, but it all comes back to how you deal with it. So the actual framework you use to deal with it because by nature those things affect kind of everybody and today the marketplace is so packed and so busy and so ongoing that it's hard unless you're intentional to really put practices in place that help you to maintain that correct it's confusing right now the marketplace everyone is there coming at saying that oh do this diet do that diet do this exercise do that excess no not this way to burn the fat no that is the way to burn the fat no this is the way to build a muscle or this is that you should take a supplement no you should take this protein drink or you should not take anything you should fast and some guy says that you should not fast so it's like how do you sort of overwhelming or they say like i have a very very packed schedule and people say well just stop and meditate and i'll think bro you have no idea like i can't just like turn it off and meditate you know so yeah the marketplace thing is that That's another reason why I'm doing the Health Happiness Harmony program, because for a common man, they could be very intelligent, very smart people, CEOs, CFOs, very educated, you know, in whatever speciality that they are in. It's still very confusing. Even for doctors, it is confusing. Trust me. So I'm putting together a program where I wrote all the confusion, bring clarity. What you really need in life. what you really need to improve your health performance everything in your mind so that's but but also you mentioned something you asked me this question is it innate this processing of the information or the state of mind and you know how people are hardwired here's the answer both yes and no and the reason why i say that is it is innate for you to be peaceful and joyful that is how you born look at kids two-year-olds toddlers they're naturally peaceful and joyful yeah they have no cares in the world like they right you don't stress at all yeah they don't stress at all they don't have to go to the stress management program they don't have to read books to be happy i mean of course they don't have the same responsibilities as adults right but i also know so many adults who have no responsibilities who are very stressed out yeah people who have millions of dollars people who have name fame like all the things that they need and they still are stressed out you see what i'm saying the first point is if you look at kids that happiness that peace of mind is innate to us okay then what happens is with time we get conditioned to be not happy so we were in a state of unconditional happiness when you're born. And then as a kid grows to an adult, like, you know, throughout those phases, right? Initially, maybe as a five-year-old, six-year-old, I want that toy to be happy. And then as a 11-year-old, like, I want that bike to be happy. And then teenager later, I want that iPhone or, you know, whatever it is. Then as an adult, you want a job, then later relationship, then a big home, then this Ferrari or whatever it is, right you have all these things conditioned into your head saying that i need that to be happy so we now live in a state of conditional happiness hardwired that you are talking and the media constantly tells you the people constantly tell you there's nothing wrong in achieving them nothing wrong in fact we all should strive to have that abundance there is no doubt about it The problem is when you identify your happiness with those things. You create the conditions. Conditions. And then when those things taken away from you are threatened or taken away from you, you feel unhappy, distressed, right? Yeah. So now this answers your question about processing the information. So we are conditioned to process the information in a certain way over a period of 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years in life. And all of a sudden you wake up and say, why am I feeling so stressed? Why am I feeling so bored? Or why am I feeling unhappy constantly, even though when I have all these different things, right? So you got to uncondition your happiness and actually go to your innate state, innate state of peace, joy, that well-being that you're born. So how do you begin to do that? I mean, I know you don't just do it. You've got to take it through a process. And I will point out, I want to point out for the listeners, if you didn't really catch that, your innate state is peace, joy, and happiness. It's not about finding peace, joy, and happiness. That is your innate state. Maybe it's getting back to that, but it's not something that you don't know. You do truly know that already. You've just conditioned yourself past that. So where do you begin? If someone says to you, Dr. Kohn, my life is just chaos and I'm managing it and I'm super successful or maybe I'm struggling, where do I begin? yeah so i'll give you a direct example because i see lots of patients clients and then they come to me and they ask me and they're totally in shatters and everything is going in the wrong direction and all of that like i think that conversation what we just had and reminding them of their true nature and i tell them look you already perfect look you already complete no matter what your external situation right now that doesn define you Who you are is much more beautiful more that a treasure that you cannot compare with anything else out there. When they hear that, wait, what? I'm complete. I'm already perfect from within. It creates that shift in their state of mind, that way of relief for them. Like, I'm good. I'm okay. I don't need to be anything else that I have been hearing from everyone and also from my own self. I'm so happy as I am. So that shift itself is huge. And I have seen this again and again and again so many times. So I know from experience is not simply me talking about it. And it will stay with them in that session, in that moment, maybe a few days. but how do you take that and anchor it deep within that is where the work is needed that is where some kind of system is needed so for that i created a system what i call is the happiness formula i love it and i do think it's very important to note that most people are looking for a strategy a tactic something outside themselves so if you can truly connect if someone can truly say, listen, I have what I need right now to be happy, to be more calm, to be less stressed, then it is more about not finding the solution, but anchoring that piece, that state that you have throughout your day-to-day and throughout your week-to-week. Because I can tell you without exception, you operate at a higher level when you're calm. You operate and you get bigger results when you're calm. You might have said this before to me, I made a note of it, but cultivating this state of calmness can really be a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Would you agree? A huge advantage. Why is that? I mean, talk to me about that. Oh, yeah. I mean, it's shown, it's just not me saying it. Research shows that people who have organizations who have some kind of program that promotes wellness, calmness, cutting down stress, there is drastic improvement in their productivity and financial productivity i'm talking about not simply you know people performing better by almost 30 percent who doesn't want that an average person they have so much stuff going on so much stuff they're stressed out they're burnt out too many pressures and they don't have tools yeah how to handle it right right no one teaches them not at school, not at home, not in college, not at work. And if there is some kind of program, which is like bare minimum, okay, we did it. Hey, you got it done, you know, but nothing comprehensive that fix their life entirely, you know, transform them entirely and puts them into that, what I call is a deeply calm state of mind. And people may say, oh, I'm using this SEPA, I'm using, you know, this meditation guided thing and all that that's band-aid yeah i call it tactics without a strategy because it's not that it might not help you to listen to a meditation app or write in your journal but if you don't have a real system like you said or a protocol or a strategy then you're just dealing with the symptoms you're just putting band-aids on it right you're 100 that is what it has become and i appreciate all these apps whether it's calm app or headspace app and They have done a good job in bringing that awareness to people's lives that this is important. And I love that. But that is only going to take you so far in accomplishing your goals. So what you really need is a system that works for you, a strategy that you can follow. And not only that, you need to hold you accountable, anchor yourself, teach you, guide you as a mentor. And to give you the consistency, because without it, you don't establish the habits to be calm. Consistency of the habit. You don't do these calm, stressed, calm, stressed. Let me ask you this, because I know we don't have a ton of time. And I'm going to put, just for those of you listening, I'm going to put some links in our show notes to some amazing stuff, including this 10-week program that Dr. Calm has coming up. But there's two things I wanted to kind of hit while we had your time. One is there may be CEOs or business leaders right now right smack in the middle of some chaos. You may have one or two practical tips for them. And the other would be maybe to help us prescribe a daily calm kind of protocol. So just a few kind of tactics and strategies we can give our listeners. Let's start with maybe a CEO or a founder that's right in the middle of like some major chaos. And they just they don't know how to kind of sort of cut the noise for a minute. What do you recommend typically for your patients? Yeah. If someone is in that kind of deep distress and chaos and they need instant results now so that they can pause and think clear, I recommend an instant de-stressing, instant relaxation exercise. Less than five minutes, they can feel totally centered, get the clarity, feel better. yeah i can go do this stuff and i use that medicine on my own self a few times in my life and it works like magic so that relaxation exercise i'll be happy to share with them i can send you a link yes that actually they can go through that by themselves and use it it's free it doesn't cost them anything that's great and they can turn it on whenever they want have it on their phone yeah because sometimes you just need a hard interrupt you just need something that's going to break that cycle for you. And I like how you said it to step back, take a minute, de-stress, calm down, recenter, get back to that innate state. So that's a great kind of, we'll call it like break the glass emergency tactic kind of deal. What do you typically, just on an ongoing, like what kind of a prescribed daily routine do you have, or do you recommend for people to sort of start to have mindfulness around this topic in their day-to-day life? So what I say is 20 minutes a day keeps 90% stress away. Doesn't seem like a lot. I'm surprised more people don't do it, but like, so 20 minutes a day. And what would you do in that 20 minutes? Yeah, because most people don't have a system to follow. That's the reason they don't do it. And, you know, there is no other system in this world as far as I know. And so I created this system what is called p-e-t system p for principles there are three principles e for exercises two relaxation exercises t for one calming technique so when you have that system you learn that system and you practice it every day 20 minutes a day that's it that is what all i ask of you of course you can meditate for 60 minutes you can participate in a program you for the entire week, which I can help you with all of those things. But most people, they don't have time. How can you just learn something and sustain it? It's like brushing your teeth. What happens if you don't brush your teeth for a week? Oh my goodness. You can't even think about it. Your mouth is going to be foul smelling. In most people's lives, the reason why there is so much stress is that they don't have any daily ritual to get rid of that stress. Like you brush your teeth every day so that you can remove the dental plaque. You have to brush your mind every day to remove your mental plaque. Otherwise, all the negativity and emotions accumulate in your head, stagnate, just like the dental essentially stagnate. And then that's the reason your brain, your mind is foul smelling and you wonder where it is all coming from, right? Because in life, it's a battle every single day, all of us. And so in the process, we accumulate all these negative emotions negative thoughts and the conflicts this that so much stuff You got to clear it daily Yeah And I think it daily is the key And I think a lot of people forget, and that's why I wanted to have this topic and have you on is people forget that the problems they're dealing with, whether it's stress, anxiety, depression, lack of results, whatever it is, they think it's their tactics and strategies in business and they stop remembering that is their state that affects their productivity, that their lack of perspective, calm, peace, harmony, all those types of things are the reasons. And so they, and maybe they feel a little overwhelmed that they don't feel like they can handle these, which is why I think you're right. Having a strategy, but a daily routine is so important. I like that PEC routine that you're talking about. Now, is this the core of what your upcoming program is going to be? where you would actually work with people and help them and help them to set the routine and the rhythm and things? Or is that just part of it? Yeah, it's part of the program. But also, I want to add on to what you said, which is so important. The daily routine, the daily ritual is important. And some people may even have it, but it's not effective. Yeah, there's a problem. Correct. Because you can't just say meditation and journal every day. Exactly. That is what most people like, okay, I'm sitting there, I'm listening to this, and I'm writing stuff. That's good. Nothing wrong with it. It's good. And most people do not even know how to meditate properly. Yeah. Right now, the word meditation has become like nutrition. It's like everywhere. Like another fad. Like, oh, okay. Well, what kind of meditation are you doing? Box breathing or, you know, guided meditation. People are simply following stuff that is out there on the internet. Someone said this and that and all that, but that doesn't necessarily get them the lasting change result deep transformation a system that is needed and people don't know the difference between meditation and relaxation and what actually happens when you do it there is so much knowledge gap in that area yeah and i want to close that gap so that everyone can benefit from it and it is good i am so happy like 15 years ago when i first started talking about this literally there was nothing yes on this topic yes there was mindfulness there were a few other things but almost nothing but now we are at a stage where there is so much that is overwhelming so what people need right now is the clarity guidance yeah to do it right to do it right yeah i agree it's kind of like the information age it used to be you paid for information then that became really free so you paid for a perspective on it now you want people to help you do it in this space I found because I know from experience like I've tried the all kinds of meditation apps and things and people start with the tactics I meditate I journal I've got this app and then they start and that's treatment this is a band-aid then they back up to preventative I want to try to exercise and things I love what you're saying about the ultimate solution is a strategy if you have a strategy and a process then the things you do and the tactics you use and everything, number one will probably work better, but they'll last longer. I mean, I could listen to a calm meditation. It will help, but I want to eventually not have to need that as much or to deal with. So I think having the strategy and process is a real thing. And I think it's come, time has come to really do that. So I love that message that you have. Yes. Once you have a system in place and you're like automatically dialed in all that system and And then your mind thinks completely different, completely different. And then something could be coming at you right now. But you're like, OK, we'll handle. Let me finish this podcast. And then I'll deal with that later. So you're in a different state. Well, and I believe people look, I mean, it's not my opinion anymore, right? Like neuroplasticity is a real thing. You can train your mind and you can, through a process and repetition and frequency and consistency, get to a place that you deal with things better. So Dr. Calm, how do people connect with you? What's the easiest, best way for them to find you, connect with you? And of course, I'll put a bunch of things in the show notes as well. The easiest way is simply email drcalkalm.md at gmail.com. And it directly comes to my inbox and I see your message. number two you can just go to my website dr.com. and you can see i love it i love that you actually are so passionate about this that you want people to email you and i i would look if you're listening to this i'd encourage you to do that you know most people don't take action and move forward by connecting and this is an opportunity right now so take advantage of it thank you so much for your words and for your wisdom and i think we're going to have a lot more to talk about as your new program rolls out as well. Is there anything else you would like to say before we take off for our listeners? First, I want to say thanks. Thanks, George, for inviting me on this podcast. It's a real pleasure being here. Number two, for the people, I know it's not easy because I have it. Life is not easy. There are challenges, health challenges, financial challenges, relationship challenges, whatnot. If nothing else, there is war. In the past, we had COVID, or there's something else, there's always something. And calmness is a superpower that will help you manage these challenges gracefully. It will help you see order in all that chaos that's happening around. Chaos is happening outside, but if you are not calm, that chaos is going to enter inside and you will feel chaotic. The point is, when you find the deep calmness within, every single aspect in your life is going to improve you will know the right decisions to make for your health this supplement that supplement or this program that program all your inner wisdom will guide you what is right for you not what that some person wants to make you buy something you know the same thing with your finances your relationships where should i break up should i file for divorce or should I stay in and try more? There is no right answer. Every person's situation is different, but you need to make decisions coming from that inner wisdom, that clarity. And there is only one thing that can give you that. And that is finding that deep. That is what I help people. Yeah, I love that. And, you know, the thing is I have put this program called health, happiness, harmony. And the reason for that is it's not simply about health. That's important. is not simply about happiness, right? You can be all happy, but you may have health issues. And it's not simply about health and happiness. It's also about harmony in your life, whether it's relationships, getting on with other people, wherever you are in life, in alignment with your goals, with your career, all of that stuff, right? Yeah. It's a 10-week transformational program, health, happiness, harmony, H3 program. I love it. more than 15 years of experience put into that so that it's easy for people to do what they need. A lot of people just need something to be able to jump into for structure. So I appreciate that message. I think it hits home for most people and I will certainly be following up. And for those of you listening, putting some details in the show notes, but if you're listening to this and you're struggling with things, just know that your innate state is calm. I love how he said that and that it's never too late to start creating the life that you were meant to live, but you've got to take some action. You've got to do the things consistently. And like we both said on the daily, and if you do that, you're going to find that things happen. So do me a favor and share this episode. Let me know what you're dealing with. Hit me up on the Daily Mastermind, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, pretty much everywhere. George Wright III here with Dr. Calm. I hope you have an amazing day. Thanks for joining us. you
