The Determined Society with Shawn French | Adversity & Mindset

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Daria Berenato for a powerful conversation on reinvention, identity, WWE, entrepreneurship, authenticity, trauma, healing, and building life without permission.
The episode dives into different chapters of Daria’s life, including:
• Growing up with a drive for independence
• The South Jersey “shut up and do it” mentality
• Launching Demon and the meaning behind Built Without Permission
• Being doubted and still choosing to show up
• Walking into an MMA gym as a teenage girl
• Becoming the first female WWE talent with an MMA background
• Coming out on national television
• Living authentically and helping others feel seen
• Losing her WWE identity after ten years
• Winning a championship, tearing her ACL, and not getting renewed
• Healing, ayahuasca, and learning to let things flow
• Surviving a terrifying home invasion and stalking incident
• PTSD, safety, and the deeper story behind Demon
• Reinvention, purpose, and finding her fire again
This conversation goes beyond wrestling and entertainment. It is about identity, courage, heartbreak, authenticity, healing, and the determination to keep building even when life strips away the version of you that everyone knew.
Listen to the full episode now on The Determined Society.

Connect with Shawn
https://link.me/shawnmf32

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION:
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Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:
Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064
Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Connect with Daria Berenato
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedariaraeberenato/
Website: https://www.thedariarae.com/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thedariarae

The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.
Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In the new episode of The Determined Society, Shawn French sits down with Jay Roberts for a powerful conversation on adoption, ambition, Wall Street, failure, rebuilding, real estate, health, family, and what it really means to play the long game.

The episode dives into different chapters of Jay’s life, including:

• Being adopted from Korea and raised in America

• Growing up with a single mother and no safety net

• Turning insecurity into drive

• Losing family during the financial crisis

• Why success is built through process, not shortcuts

• The power of writing goals down

• Building a vision for your life, family, and business

• Wall Street, investment banking, and extreme work ethic

• Public failure and starting over in Miami

• Real estate, big deals, and thinking bigger

• Health, longevity, and quality of life

• Family, presence, freedom, and what really matters

This conversation goes beyond money and business. It is about process, resilience, ownership, health, family, and building a life that is not just successful on paper, but meaningful in real life.

Connect with Shawn

https://link.me/shawnmf32

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION: https://thedeterminedsociety.com

Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

Connect with Jay Roberts

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jayroberts/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayroberts

Website: https://www.jayroberts.com/

The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.
Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ulysses "Uly Monster" Diaz broke cycles of adversity, prison, and street life by walking into a boxing gym at 35. In this raw conversation, he opens up about breaking norms, fatherhood, faith, and the discipline that transformed his identity. One of combat sports' fastest knockout artists shares how accountability and daily discipline changed everything.

 Together, we dive into:

• Growing up in Miami with no male role models

• Learning to fight at six years old

• Street life, prison, and the consequences of bad choices

• Touring with Pitbull and still trying to find his path

• The moment he asked God to pull him out

• Starting his fight career at 35

• The discipline and accountability of the boxing gym

• One of the fastest knockouts in combat sports history

• Fatherhood, marriage, faith, and family

• His son’s cancer battle and what it taught him

• Why consistency is the key to changing your life

• Letting go of people who cannot grow with you

This episode is about redemption, faith, fatherhood, consequences, discipline, and the determination to stop repeating the past and become the man your family needs you to be. Watch the full episode now on The Determined Society

 #thedeterminedsociety #shawnfrench #ulyssesdiaz #ulymonster #bareknuckleboxing #bkfc #boxing #combatsports #fightermindset #faith #fatherhood #redemption #resilience #comebackstory #inspiration

Connect with Ulysses Diaz

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uly_monster/

X: https://x.com/Uly_MONSTER

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Ulysses-Diaz-100063488343637/

 

Connect with Shawn

https://link.me/shawnmf32

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION: https://thedeterminedsociety.com

Subscribe on Apple/Spotify:

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.
Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Adversity and loss can destroy families—or forge them. Susan Malzoni shares how protecting her peace, preserving family energy, and building intentional wellness habits became her path to honoring her son and late husband Victor. In this raw conversation, discover the discipline, boundaries, and purpose-driven mindset that transformed grief into a blueprint for lasting resilience and connection.

This conversation explores what it means to speak kindly to yourself, move through fear, protect your energy, and choose purpose even in life’s hardest seasons.

In this episode, we dive into:

• Protecting your energy and keeping your circle aligned

• Why connection at home matters

• Women, insecurity, confidence, and support

• Men’s mental health and emotional expression

• Health, wellness, supplements, and biohacking culture

• Speaking kindly to your body and practicing gratitude

• The difference between motivation and determination

• Taking fear out of decision-making

• Grief, resilience, and moving forward after loss

• Honoring Victor’s legacy through dogs and rescue work

• Relationships, shared passions, and creating a meaningful life

This episode is a powerful reminder that healing does not always mean hiding from pain. Sometimes it means choosing purpose, protecting your peace, loving what still remains, and finding the positive even in life’s hardest moments.

Connect with Susan Malzoni 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susanmalzoni/ 

Connect with Shawn 

https://link.me/shawnmf32 

Subscribe to our newsletter for all updates and heavy doses of DETERMINATION: 

https://thedeterminedsociety.com 

Subscribe on Apple/Spotify: 

Apple- https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064 

Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.
Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Eric Spofford survived five overdoses and rebuilt his entire life through discipline and spiritual growth. In this raw conversation, he reveals the moment of surrender that led to sobriety on December 7, 2006—and how the habits forged in recovery became the competitive edge that built and sold a $115 million enterprise. A masterclass in overcoming obstacles, breaking limiting beliefs, and turning adversity into actionable discipline.

In this episode, we dive into:

Eric's fifth overdose and the reality of late-stage addiction

Getting sober on December 7, 2006

What surrender really meant for him

The difference between abstinence and true recovery

Losing friends to the opioid epidemic

Building sober houses and treatment centers

Scaling a recovery business to a $115M exit

Learning business through relentless self-education

The loneliness that comes with success

Why money and material things do not create fulfillment

Fatherhood, character, loyalty, and human connection

This is a raw conversation about addiction, recovery, loss, leadership, success, money, loneliness, and the determination to rebuild a life that once felt impossible to save.

Connect with Eric Spofford

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericspofford/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjv2eT-tACaCYO18wSllyNg

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-spofford-grc

Connect with Shawn: https://link.me/shawnmf32

Newsletter + more: https://thedeterminedsociety.com

Follow The Determined Society

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/determined-society-with-shawn-french-adversity-mindset/id1555922064

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5kS9tkLGQLcVyRgB3mDznw?si=184c18d1b9d44f53

The Determined Society is hosted by Shawn French — a show for people who refuse to quit. Every episode goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the real stories behind resilience, reinvention, and the relentless pursuit of a life built on your own terms.
Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all others.. If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it — and leave a review. It helps more than you know.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.