Professor Kenny Kim, a Korean American instructor with close to 22 years in jiu-jitsu, has wanted to be a martial artist and own a gym since he was a boy. He tells Pete and Professor Lucas Rubbo that some of the friends he grew up with are now dead or in prison, and that whenever he drifted, the mats and his mentors pulled him back. Today he calls himself the richest man alive, not for the money but for the time he gets with his son, and he explains the discipline behind his mornings, starting with 30 minutes without touching his phone.

Kenny talks about the stories of people who used jiu-jitsu to overcome adversity, including a veteran in a dark place who messaged that he would take his first class the next day. He gives his answer for why the art changes lives: the physical challenge and the humility it brings, and a South American culture of hugs, handshakes and hanging out that more formal martial arts rarely have, something he found missing when he planned a camp in Korea. He closes with a class at a social project in Brazil, where black belts hugged and cheered kids with disabilities, and why that moved him more than any world champion.

In this episode

• 0:00 Welcome
• 2:08 Meet Professor Kenny Kim
• 3:14 A morning without the phone
• 4:17 Why he feels like the richest man
• 8:34 The discipline to commit
• 10:43 Always coming back to the mats
• 12:46 Stories that fuel his fire
• 17:57 Physical challenge and humility
• 24:16 The South American culture of closeness
• 30:29 Planning a camp in Korea
• 33:40 Community and a place to go
• 35:50 Getting comfortable being close
• 38:55 A social project in Brazil
• 42:10 Camps, seminars and his book

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