Topic #1: Avoiding & Getting Out Of Ruts
K. Deep
Can you take us to 2022 when you were having panic attacks?
What was happening then? How did you find yourself in that situation? And what steps, strategies, or mindset helped you get out of it?
Joey Justice
During 2022, I had 2-6 hour panic attacks multiple days a week. They were caused by a combination of stress (running a ghostwriting agency) and caffeine abuse.
I solved the problem in two ways:
1) I took a 90 day caffeine break at the end of the year. This improved my sleep and also reduced my stress, anxiety, and blood pressure.
2) I created new habits around work so I stopped working past mindnight. I prioritized my health so I could better handle my work as needed.
These changes quickly eliminated the panic attacks, and thankfully, I have only had one actual panic attack since November 2022.
K. Deep
That’s great to hear man
A 90-day caffeine break, coming off of caffeine abuse, must have been difficult. What steps/strategies did you take or what helped you stay consistent?
Joey Justice
The biggest thing that kept me consistent was knowing the panic attacks would likely come back if I didn’t keep the break going.
I drank decaf coffee, caffeine-free diet sodas, and flavored water to help with the cravings.
A few simple things that helped my sleep:
- Taking a hot shower before bed
- Journaling by candlelight
- Turning off my screens 1 hour before bed
- Not eating or drinking within 1 hour of bed
Topic #2: Finding Motivation During Difficult Times
K. Deep
Love the idea of remembering what would happen. And having alternatives to help with the cravings… sounds much better than going complete cold turkey.
Switching the gears a little…
July 13th, 2023. You and Dan Koe were working on Kortex. You had invested $50k til that point. Dan mentioned things weren’t going well. I can only imagine how difficult it would have been to continue. Yet, you guys successfully launched Kortex University by the end of 2023. And Kortex (the app) will soon be here. How or what motivated you to keep going?
Joey Justice
We brought on Matthew Ao in July 2023. He has enginering and startup experience, so he was a good fit for the project. We basically started over with the app from the ground up.
The motivations behind Kortex University were:
- Generate revenue that would be used to fund development of the app
- Create a group of initial users for the app to act as beta testers
- Help more people build their own businesses and brands
Dan and I believe the app itself will be hugely useful to creators. There are many other notetaking apps, but we feel like Kortex will be unique
K. Deep
How can people find or create something they truly believe in?
Cause I see a lot of people start a business or job believing in it, but eventually lose that belief and drive.
Do you have a philosophy behind it?
Joey Justice
First, ask themselves if they’re pursuing their own goals or if they’re pursuing goals other people assigned to them.
Next, think about their interests and look for ways they could use those interests to create impact, influence, and income.
Finally, maintain their motivation by breaking down their goal into milestones, alternate going hard for a while and then taking it easy for a bit, and tracking their progress on a regular basis.
Topic #3: Overcoming Clouds Of Negative Thoughts
K. Deep
Love it.
Shifting the gears again…
Can you take us back to 17th March 2023?
You posted about having gained 147 lbs over the 4 years before it. Before that, you had lost over 110lbs twice.
I myself have gone through multiple cycles of weight loss and weight gain. One of the worst parts of that journey is the self-doubt & feeling of insufficiency that comes everytime the weight comes back.
How was it for you and how did you overcome those doubts, thoughts, and feelings to start over again?
Joey Justice
I regained weight the latest time because I prioritized work over my health. I didn’t even realize how much weight I had regained until one day I passed 300lbs again for the first time in like 10 years.
I was disappointed with myself. I’ve always felt inadequate when my weight is high because I know it reduces my performance and I think it affects how others see me.
The way I pushed past it was to focus on one thing – the only way things would ever improve was for me to start making better decisions. I started making my health more of a priority, which led to creating boundaries around work as well as food, alcohol, and late-night gaming.
K. Deep
Love it. Do you have some strategies or things you tell yourself to maintain those boundaries (besides remembering what would happen if you didn’t maintain them)?
Joey Justice
I try to focus on my long term goals rather than my short term tasks, desires, or feelings
I have to put the right things first in each moment rather than pursuing whatever I’m drawn to at the time.
Topic #4: The High Achiever’s Routine
K. Deep
Awesome. I truly think that’s what a lot of people lack – long term vision. Once I started seeing health in decades and what will take me there, instead of weeks and months, it got easier for me too.
Going back to Kortex and Kortex University…
It’s a massive massive project. What does your daily routine and work routine look like now to stay productive and disciplined?
Joey Justice
My daily routine shifts as my responsibilities for Kortex evolve. My current daily routine at a high level is:
- Start my day off with 90 minutes of focused work on Kortex
- Catch up on emails, Kortex Slack, and the Kortex Telegram channels
- Get into Kortex calls (mainly enginering calls and university trainings)
- Take a break in the afternoon to have lunch, take a walk, and rest a bit
- Return to working on admin type tasks
- In the evening, finish my daily steps (15000 a day), play some games, or read a book to help me write content for my own business
K. Deep
Do you have any rituals for your focused work?
Joey Justice
- Get some coffee or sparkling water
- Put on headphones and load up Brain.fm or the Interstellar soundtrack
- Close all browser tabs and apps not related to the work I need to do
- Set my physical timer for the time of my work block
- Start working
- Ignore distractions that come up. For example, if an idea/question/problem comes to mind, I’ll write it down instead of pursuing it immediately
- At the end of the work block, I stand up and walk around for a few minutes
About Joey Justice
Joey Justice is an ex-software engineer turned founder and business coach.
He has worked as a productivity consultant and ghostwriter for 6, 7, and 8-figure creators, influencers, and entrepreneurs.
He has overcome many personal struggles like video game addiction, panic attacks, weight gain, caffeine abuse, and more.
Most recently he founded Kortex and Kortex University with Dan Koe, where he helps people build online businesses and achieve peak performance.
Joey on X: https://twitter.com/joeyjusticeco
Joey’s Blog & Newsletter: https://www.joeyjustice.co/
Kortex University: university.kortex.co
