MyPillow's Mike Lindell opens up on his battle with addiction
MyPillow inventor and CEO Mike Lindell speaks out on how he found faith in God and turned his life around.
This is a rush transcript from "Life, Liberty & Levin," April 14, 2019. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
MARK LEVIN, HOST: Hello, America. I'm Mark Levin. This is "Life, Liberty & Levin." We have a great guest, Mike Lindell. How are you, sir?
MIKE LINDELL, FOUNDER, LINDELL RECOVERY NETWORK: Thanks for having me, Mark.
LEVIN: It's a pleasure. Now, we're not doing an infomercial.
LINDELL: Right.
LEVIN: I wanted you on the program because you have a fascinating background. And I think it could affect a lot of our audience members. You're a big Trump supporter.
LINDELL: Yes.
LEVIN: You are a man of deep Christian faith.
LINDELL: Yes.
LEVIN: You are a remarkable entrepreneur. And you were a drug addict.
LINDELL: Yes, crack addict.
LEVIN: A crack head. Do you want to explain that to me?
LINDELL: Well, I was -- I think my addiction goes back childhood when my parents got divorced. Divorces weren't common, and I became a very -- put into a new school and I became very shy or I would show off to people like little things like, "Hey, watch me jump out this bus window." And then it manifested into you know, using alcohol first and then got into cocaine, where --
LEVIN: How old were you when you get into coke?
LINDELL: Oh, probably late, late teens and you know, 16, 17. And then in my five-year reunion. All my other -- you know, everyone has graduated from college or they were starting families or they've kept the same employer and I'm there and I wanted what they want and I'm there, I'm all drunk and then telling them about owing the mafia money for football bad, sir. Jumping out of an airplane in a parachute partially opening and, you know, doing all these and telling all these stories, which were true, but they're going "Wow."
But it took -- because I didn't want to hear what they did because I wanted what they had. So it became a lot of pains, a lot of inner pain. And then I got into cocaine, and then it was 20 years functioning cocaine addict. And then 10 years crack cocaine. So it was a long, long, you know --
LEVIN: So you're lucky to be alive.
LINDELL: Yes, 40 years of addiction.
LEVIN: Yes, and how did you get out of it?
LINDELL: Well --
LEVIN: Did you get out of it?
LINDELL: Yes. You get out of it. I mean, I don't believe addiction is a disease. I believe that all addiction either comes from wounds as child, things that happen or trauma. And that's why veterans can be traumatized later on. Any trauma can manifest into I believe, addictions to mask pain.
And for me, a lot of things had to happen and I lost a 20-year marriage and had all these things happen in the mid-2000s. But 2008 there was about three things that happened and seeds were planted for me. Drug dealers did an intervention. That was kind of a big thing I had.
LEVIN: Now, why would drug dealers do an intervention?
LINDELL: Well, here's what happened. I was up to 14 days and I was living -- staying downtown in Minneapolis and a half hour from where I was making or the doing pillows at this little schoolhouse, but I had a warrant out for my arrest and I was going to be found innocent the following Tuesday.
So I was hiding out down there and I come out of the room and three of the biggest dealers, I didn't even know they knew each other and I said, "What are you guys doing?" The one guy goes, "Mike's been up for 14 days. We're shutting him off." And the one guy goes, He looks to me like, "What's the matter with you?" And he says, "You ain't getting anything from my guys." And he leaves. The other guy --
LEVIN: Wait a minute, so up for 14 days. So you were you were using and they even said, "That's enough. We are going to cut my ..." They must have liked you.
LINDELL: Well, here's what --
LEVIN: They wanted to save your life.
LINDELL: Yes, here's what here's what he said -- actually, yes, they all like me. But here's what they said. You know, I was a good customer, too. But the one guy left then and it was his place and he went on the streets and shut off his people. And now I looked over and the dealer, he finally went to sleep. I ran out of crack and I was doing one of these numbers and I headed down to the street of Minneapolis, about 2:30 in the morning, couldn't get drugs anywhere. And I went out, I was very resourceful, and nothing.
I come back upstairs, all defeated. And he's standing there waiting out now for me and he says, "Man, give me that phone. He says I'm going to take a picture of you." He says, "You're going to need it for that book you've been bragging about telling us you're going to write," and he said, "You've been telling us for years this My Pillow is just a platform for God and you're going to come back someday and help us out of this addictions and all the dealings that we have." And he says, "We're not going to let you die honest." Because I would always tell these guys all the time. You guys, "This pillows is just to platform for God."
LEVIN: So is this the singular event that started to turn your life around?
LINDELL: No, there was a lot of things but that was just one thing. Then about six months later, my one son, he came back from a hunting trip and he was in the driveway. And he says, "Dad, I can't stay here anymore. I want to live with my brother." He's got a tear and his lips are quivering. And he said that and that hit home to me. I'm going -- I'm not hiding too much from him.
LEVIN: He must have known you were addicted.
LINDELL: Yes, You know, when they when the kids were from 16 down, they don't remember that. My daughter said one time she says, "You know, we're a very dysfunctional family." I said -- that was towards the end -- I said, "I don't know what that means, but don't say that again. That sounds horrible."
But I my son hit me with that, and then in December of '08, something really happened that is very important to my story. My friend came to me and he was my equal. We had both did cocaine the same time in the 1980s started. We both were functioning addict throughout the '80s and '90s. In 2000, we both switched to crack about the same time and I heard he had found the Lord and been freed of these addictions for three years.
And he came walking in I was all by myself this place out there. I had locked everything. I'm just a little pulse out there alive and, and within it with the company and stuff. And he came in I go, "Dick, what are you doing here?? And he goes -- he goes, "The Lord led me here," and I knew he had been straight for three years. I hadn't seen him in a year. And I go, "Well, as long as you're here," I said, "I've got some questions for you." I said, first one I asked him, I said, "Isn't boring?"
And he goes, "No man, it ain't boring."
LEVIN: Being clean?
LINDELL: Yes, being clean or being with God, whatever. I was asking him kind of both, and he we went into an hour of questions where I had been in and out of treatment in the '80, and these counselors that have been to the school, but never been were addicts have been. And he was my equal where I could -- whatever he said, I trusted him because he's been where I've been.
LEVIN: And did he say?
LINDELL: He said, "No man, it ain't boring." And he's telling me that questions like how do you feel inside now? How do you -- do you have anything -- thinking about the past -- just all different questions. But I didn't quit that day. It another month later. It was January 16, 2009. And I knew that day, people say was that your bottom? Well, for money wise, I made sure I didn't have any money left because I knew I would be an incredible story to help people, a story of hope. I would always know these things as they were happening, something bad would happen. They go, "Oh, that's going to be good in my book someday and help people." That was kind of weird thinking, but that day I knew my calling that God chose me for this to help people and with the addiction with everything that's going on. Now, I didn't quite know what I was going to be.
LEVIN: But you meet with him. Did he turn you on to faith?
LINDELL: No. Seeds were planted my whole life.
LEVIN: So they're planted your whole life. Did he gives you the jumpstart to do something about it?
LINDELL: No, I mean, like I say there were seeds planted. You go back to the days when I was in -- I'd be left in my bar. I owned a bar for 13 years after the barber closed and my friends would all tell you that, we'd go back afterwards and sit and do cocaine and stuff. And I'd be telling them, "Hey, these drugs are bad." And I was telling about end times and Revelation in the Bible I read about in jail and they would quit that day and find Jesus and then I'd wake up like, "I'm losing friends. What do I say?" You know, I didn't really know. But that was me wanting to convince myself a lot of the way that I function. So I'll be talking to people and wanting what I'm telling them, you know what I mean? So I'm trying almost to convince myself, but seeds were planted my whole life and God chased me basically.
LEVIN: And when did he catch you?
LINDELL: Ready for this? February 18, 2017. That's when I did a full surrender.
LEVIN: Two years ago.
LINDELL: Full surrender and what happened there now, I can go out and speak out for Jesus like I could a pillow, you know, with that same passion. And I went to U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, about a couple months after that Born Again experience and as I prayed with 50,000 millennials and told my story about five minutes' worth and I'm going -- and I'm scared. I don't usually see this. I was petrified, but it just -- I was able to do it.
And three weeks later, I'm at an amusement park with my granddaughter and all these millennials and these kids, these teenagers coming up with, "Wow, I heard you at U.S. Bank Stadium. You changed my life." Some of them said, "You know what? I am born again. And your story is so hopeful." Finally my granddaughter had to say, "He's my grandpa and we need to go on some rides." But I think that was God showing --
LEVIN: What is that like by the way? You're known everywhere. You're ubiquitous on TV, on radio. What is that, like? Does that have an effect? I mean, obviously it has an effect, but does that does that have an effect on your ego? Does that have an effect on your ability to stay straight?
LINDELL: No, no. For me, I mean, I drive a pickup truck at night, so me, I've always wanted to help people. And to get that feeling back, like those millennials that I've -- because I had such a feeling of unworthiness back in the day, and inside of me, it makes me feel good. And my thing will be is if I have to be somewhere and because I'll stop and talk to every person if they want to talk, so I'll kind of get to tie it with that because --
LEVIN: You're very outgoing.
LINDELL: Yes, or I'll talk too long. But I love it because I love helping people and hearing their stories. When people come up to me now, I mean, Mark, you'd be amazed it's not about you know, "Oh, the pillow helped me." It's beyond that. This platform has worked. They either come up and say, "Wow, your transformation and what you've done from crack addict to where you are," they're amazed by that and that story of hope, or they say, "Wow, thanks for backing the President and having his back. You tell him we're praying for him." I mean, it's one or the other. I mean, this is amazing.
LEVIN: You've had good relationship with your kids.
LINDELL: Yes, yes. All my kids, we haven't left too far from home. I live in the same town I grew up in and all my kids have worked for me and now, I have grandkids and now, it's amazing. They came through. They all played a part in my business and that's pretty amazing.
LEVIN: When we come back, I want to ask you because this is part of your life. But you have these other parts of your life, too. You're an entrepreneur. I mean, you turned a basic product into a huge business. But even more, you're now political. You're a big fan of the President. You showed up the Conservative Political Action Committee event. And you've managed to stay in business because a lot of businesses get boycotted as a result of that.
LINDELL: Watch out, I'll double my ante.
LEVIN: That's right. So I want to discuss all of that when we return. Ladies and gentlemen, don't forget to watch Levin TV, Levin TV most weekdays. Just give us a call 844-LEVIN-TV, 844-LEVIN-TV or go on the internet and get us at blazetv.com/mark, blazeTV.com/mark. We'd love to have you in our wonderful community there. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEVIN: Mike Lindell, you're a prominent Trump supporter. You show up at his events. Were you an early Trump supporter? What is it about him that you saw that said, "Wait a minute, that's my guy, and I'm going to be open about it publicly come hell or high water."
LINDELL: Right. Well, I think part of that is when I came out of 30 years of addiction, I was like a little kid with a clean slate. I didn't know a Republican from a Democrat or a liberal from a conservative. I had no clue. But I also knew what was going on in this country and stuff. I'm going, "What's happened?" I was like, "What?" You know people are unemployed. Everything was chaos, so we are giving money to countries and I'm going, "Why are we giving them?" There is this thing called ISIS. I was like waking up out of a coma, going, "What is going on?"
And then in June of '15, I had a dream. I get these dreams sometimes, and it was very vivid of me being in a room with Donald Trump, and a couple days later, he announced -- he came down the escalator and announced he's running for President and then the dream came back again. Same dream. It was like a reoccurring. And my sister had called me up and she said, "You know he's going to win and whatever," and I'm going --
LEVIN: So your sister knew.
LINDELL: My sister had the same kind of dream.
LEVIN: Way back then.
LINDELL: Yes, she had the same thing. And she's very, very -- Born Again Christian. And she goes -- actually, she said -- I don't know if she said he is going to win, but Donald Trump, she says is who I would go with. I know, she said that? And anyway, then I end up going to Israel that fall and I met some guys that you would all know. No, I went over there and I asked them, what's a liberal? What's a conservative? What's this?
I wasn't even believing that everything -- my values were all over here. And I'm going -- I go, "You're kidding." So I look it up. I Google what I could over in Israel with that signal and I'm going, "Are you kidding?" I mean, all of these common sense things were here and all my Christian stuff was here, and then we get -- a bunch of divine things happened leading up to the summer of '16.
And all of a sudden, I got an e-mail from Donald Trump. "Mike, will you meet me in Trump Tower in New York City for this meeting?" I am going, "Wow, coming to fruition." And my Board -- I was actually in a Board meeting before that and my corporate attorney goes, "You know, if you do this, you're going to hurt our sales," they said. And I was mad. I just walked out and one of my girls in the Board came on and she said, "You know, we didn't get this far by you not listening to God." And I went back in there. "We didn't get this far by not listening to God." And that meeting --
LEVIN: So the lawyer, he's a cautious corporate lawyer. He says, "Stay out of this."
LINDELL: Yes. Oh, there were a couple of other ones in there --
LEVIN: A couple of others say, "Stay out of this. You're going to hurt business."
LINDELL: Right. And everything I've ever done with My Pillow. I took, you know, this is what I'm supposed to do and I don't back down for anything. So now I went into New York with high hopes and on August 15, 2016, at 10:00 a.m. I walked into Mr. Trump's -- Donald Trump's office and it was just him and I and he looked up, he says, "Mike, you always wear your cross." He says, "Are you a Christian?" I said, "Yes." And I said, "This is a divine appointment, Mr. Trump," and we started talking. I said -- I told him, I was an ex-crack addict, and I was going to -- with my foundation or I mean, my Recovery Network, we're going help addicts and, and he talked about how he was going to bring jobs back and he talked about the inner cities.
He talked about my Made in the USA, and it was about 30 to 40 minutes, and it was like, I'm going, "Wow, this guy is the most common sense -- he is going to be the greatest President in history." And I mean, I was just blown away and I walked out of the office, and now I didn't stop there. And this is really key which I tell people. I talked to some greatest President in history. And I mean, I was just blown away and I walked out of the office and no, I didn't stop there. And this is really key, which I tell people, I talked to so many of his employees, and every one of them was like talking to one of my employees. I've never had that happen with any other person.
LEVIN: And what do you mean by that?
LINDELL: The passion they had for him. The loyalty. It seemed like every one of them, he had done something personal to help them. And they said, he cares so much about people and about and I knew he cared about the country and the stuff he's telling me. I go, "This guy --" I mean, I was so excited and I went all in.
LEVIN: Let me ask you a question. The man you met there and the man you've come to know. Is that the man that's portrayed by the media?
LINDELL: No, it's shameful. It is so shameful. I don't understand it. And now you know, what I do like now though, is I can say to all everyone I've talked to," I told you so," you know, all these things despite of the media, and I spoke two days before the election in 2016 or three days before in Minnesota before he got there. And I ended my speech -- I was scared - so scared to get up there with the speech, but I started talking and it was about two minutes and I pointed to the media and I said, "You guys are wrong. He's going to be the greatest President in history."
And now I go, you know, my own media minister and everywhere, they're going, "I told you guys." They don't want to -- you know what's funny is they don't know what to say one-on-one. They'll call me the -- I was just out in California in some very left progressive areas and I'm talking him to people and they're going, "We love what you're doing, Mike but what's wrong with you? You're aligning yourself with this President?" I go, "What do you mean?"
And I go down a list, he's done -- you know, brought jobs back. ISIS is gone. High stock market. Low gas. I see all my friends now employed and the wages. It's just amazing to me and I'm -- and for the media to attack, I am just waiting and I'd I just seen it the other day, like 50-some percent approval rating now. I've said it before so many times. Everybody loves our President, some just don't know it yet. And they're jumping on board and they come over here and they go, "Well, I guess they're right. I guess they're right." Pretty soon, it's going to be down to just the fake news and a few people going, "Okay, I guess we give."
LEVIN: All right. Very, very fascinating. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
AISHAH HASNIE, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Live from "America's News Headquarters," I'm Aishah Hasnie. Severe weather across the south killing at least eight people including three children. This is the aftermath from a suspected tornado in Franklin, Texas. Dozens were injured here and nearly 100 miles east in Angelina County, fierce winds toppled a tree onto this car, killing two kids in the backseat. Widespread power outages are currently being reported in Georgia, North Carolina and Texas. The storm is now making its way north and is forecasted to bring thunderstorms to the Mid-Atlantic.
Well, Tiger Woods is back. The 43-year-old golf great winning his first major in 11 years at the Masters. He shot a two under 74, a one-stroke victory at the Augusta National. It was his 15th major championship and he's now only three away from the all-time record of 18 majors.
I'm Aishah Hasnie, now back to LIFE, LIBERTY & LEVIN.
LEVIN: You seem to wear your emotions on your sleeve. You're telling America about your past. You want America to know because there's a lot of people out there you want to help, which we're going to get to in a minute. Your passion for this President. Your passion for your faith. You go around the country speaking about your faith. Small crowds, big crowds and what do you tell them?
LINDELL: I tell them -- you know, basically I tell them my story where you always see me with my cross on TV and God took me. I couldn't talk to people. It goes back to my fear of worthiness.
LEVIN: Mike Lindell couldn't talk to people.
LINDELL: Right, that's right.
LEVIN: But you don't have that problem now.
LINDELL: Right, I guess not. But you know, it went back, I think to my childhood, we talked -- I said earlier about that. Going in a new school, I just was -- you know, you can get rejected if you don't talk to people. In fact, the first infomercial I ever did, there was a live audience and the producer called the other one the night before, he said, "Oh, you're going to need an actor," and I said, "No, I want to do it with -- like I do with these shows."
LEVIN: These shows meaning, you used to travel all over the country.
LINDELL: Old shows, I did it for seven years when I was turned down everywhere going show to show and fair to fair all over the country and -- but I remember the night before and now, I didn't know this at the time this producer was brought in by this other friend of mine, and we're doing our reads and he goes, "This guy is the worst I've ever seen. He's never going to make it. Why did you bring me here?"
And the next day we go to do this infomercial and I walked out reading my lines and here's an audience. I was so scared. And we did it and I finally said, "You guys, we've got to pull away the teleprompter and bring in a table like I do at the shows and pretend the audience wasn't there." And we did it and it aired October 7, 2011 in the middle the night. I was living in my sister's basement. I had like five employees, me and my kids and 40 days later, I had 500.
LEVIN: It is amazing.
LINDELL: But you always see me on TV, I always wear my cross. I got attacked for that where people would call up and I'm going, but you know -- I hadn't done a complete surrender in Jesus Christ, sir. But it was -- I believed in God, but I didn't have that personal relationship. And this kept -- it was like, "Okay, God, show me more, show me more," and all of a sudden, one of the things with my friends now -- so after I go in for the President, I was invited to the White House for a manufacturers summit and all of a sudden, they go, "Who is sitting here?" And they go, "The President because he wanted to sit by you." And I'm blown away.
So now it's on TV. Here's me and the President and all my friends are going, "Jesus is real. There's no way this ex-crack addict is standing with the President." But God kept showing me more and more things and I end up going to a retreat. It was actually this ring Operation: Restored Warrior. It's actually for veterans and it's a -- and I went in there with hope. I was with this gal that since 2014 and she had that relationship. And Kendra -- Kendra, she goes, "Mike, you haven't done a full surrender." And we kept -- well, I believe in God and so -- but I knew she was right deep down and I walked in there, I ended up -- Jesus showed up. I did a full surrender.
And I when I walked out of there, now I can proactively pray. Before I used to react and say, "Please, God, get me out of this situation." Now, I can proactively pray, and it's God's will, because His Will is in the Word.
LEVIN: You have a big platform now. People know who you are. You're trying to use that for good. You're trying to reach out to people who are involved -- who are as low as you had been at one point, trying to show them what they can be.
LINDELL: Absolutely. And there's a lot of combinations there. I believe in November 8, 2016, God gave us a second chance, He gave us grace when Donald Trump was elected. And this ties in with my faith. Right now, during this time, I mean, I believe that there's a spiritual warfare in our country, too. I believe that.
When I go out and speak to people, I spoke at a big church 4,000 or 5,000 people telling my story of hope, you know, with the addiction, and then also the part God played in it. And if you don't put it -- if you don't -- if I sat here and told you my stories, you'd go, "Wow," I could get to the third one and if you knew it was real, you can go, "Yes, there is a God. There is Jesus."
But to do that, and then to help people out of addiction because I've been there and then to help them out of that and then to help the President anywhere I can, going out to the stuff feeds common sense and the conservative things that's being done -- the good things that are getting done in our country and to help in any way I can because to me, they all tie that together.
LEVIN: What do you do when an addict comes up to you, and says, "Mike, I need help"?
LINDELL: Well, right now, you know, I have -- I'm setting up my Lindell Recovery Network. And this is where you put in your -- a 22-year-old opiate addict might not relate to a 50-year-old meth addict. So I have these hundreds and hundreds and now it will be thousands of stories of addicts telling what they didn't like about that specific drug.
And, and now they -- you're watching this website, when I launch it, they're going to go, "Wow, that's just like me, that person puts in their age and addiction." So now, they go this guy made it. He's just like me. Kind of like my friend, Dick that came back to me three years later, I hadn't seen him. He was my hope - hope match - there's a good word. He is my hope match. So here you have all these hope matches. And then I'm going to go, "Hey guys, over here," and they'll press this button, and I'm going to tell them, "You know what, here's your help." And what works at the faith based centers, the Teen Challenge, the Salvation Armies, the Union Gospels. I vetted over 2,000. It'll soon to be 4,000. All of these help, and I'm going to tell the addict, "You go in here, and when you get out, I'm going to be there for you."
LEVIN: So you're going to use modern technology, the internet set up a site, it is interactive so people who are need can go on that site, write in what they are, what the problem is and so forth and then they'll be able to connect to somebody or some institution.
LINDELL: They'll be able to go over here. Basically, this is to the addict not shaming the family going, "Oh, you'll get your addict help. Addiction is a disease," and all this stuff to monetize this industry which is very sad. Give us 50 grand, come into a secular treatment center and insurance will pay for it or break into your 401k and spend all your money on this and 30 days later, you're going, "Oh you're out." No, they're not. They need to be helped inside. They need healing.
And so basically, what I've done is, they trust me. The addicts trust me because I've been there as a crack at it. And I'm going to go, here's their hope matches because the closer you get to a match as a whole, here's your help, but here's the key thing. I'm going to tell you -- it's just like I'm selling to the addict. It's not the family. I'm talking to you, the addict, and to the addict. And I see you guys.
Once you get out, I'm going to be there for. I'm going to have paid mentors all over the country that these addicts and I'm paying. They're going to be careers for them. That's all they're going to do. And now if they have a specific problem, there's an app, they'll put in, let's say that they didn't get that job. Then their own mentor will come down and they are their match and they'll get help. It's the circle of help and hope.
LEVIN: That's very exciting. It sounds very exciting. I look forward to that being launched. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEVIN: Mike Lindell, but you're known out there to the American people as the face of a fabulously popular product now that everybody uses in one form or another. And you've been through all these challenges. And yet, you've been an entrepreneur throughout. And now you're a very, very successful entrepreneur. There's a lot of people who are wondering how you did it. How'd you do it?
LINDELL: Well, you know, I've always been an entrepreneur. I've had it out of necessity. I think the first thing, my sister flooded a second story building back in the '80s. I have an apartment complex with a waterbed. I became a carpet cleaner. You know, each thing I did, there was kind of -- it kind of manifested on a profit solution. But I want to say, having the passion, having faith, but here's one of the things I want to tell any entrepreneurs out there right now.
One of the things I didn't have was a safety net. What we're living in right now with all these jobs and raises, you know, I mean, wages rising. I see it in my own company. I have 1,600 employees, but a lot of them now -- and these are careers. A lot of them are going out and taking the chance to starting their own little businesses and stuff because guess what? If they would happen to fail and learn from their failure, they can go back and do their job because there are jobs out there everywhere now.
It's an amazing time we're living in for that. We are at this at this time, everybody -- don't be afraid. There is so many good ideas that are left on the shelf of people going, "I've kind of great idea, but I just -- I'm afraid." Out of fear. Fear blocks all of that it's a false fear.
If I didn't -- you know, all of the things that happened to me, you know deviations and I would tell you that -- I always -- I'm going to do a thing on deviations in my company. I have 1,600 employees, about 500 have my direct phone number. Well, I don't get calls, I only get calls when there's a deviation good or bad. So if there's peace, it's like, I can put it out of my head. And that's amazing.
Now, if you're an entrepreneur, and no matter how big or small you are, if you watch those deviations, and you learn from them, and either focus on the good deviation or learn from the bad, and that includes failure. I have a friend of mine that I'm -- one of the smartest guys I've ever known. He's been working on something for four years. And it's got it -- he wants it to be perfect before he gets out there, and I go, you know what, if you've got that great idea and you don't do it, that's a shame. Get out there. I told him, I said, "Get out there and fail." You know, what's the worst that can happen? You know, get out there.
LEVIN: Have you ever failed a business?
LINDELL: Yes, I've -- whether you call it failure, I didn't take it all the way to -- like when I had a bar for 13 years. It was devastating when I had to sell it by a series of events. But I look back now and that was a peg. If that hadn't happened we wouldn't be sitting here.
I think a lot of -- you know, that's why I always look back at failures at the time. People -- I want to tell you another thing 99.999 percent of everything people worry about never comes to fruition and that --
LEVIN: So stop worrying, you're saying.
LINDELL: Yes, stop worrying.
LEVIN: Get out there and do your thing.
LINDELL: Yes, stop worrying because if you look back in your own life, I look back at mine and I've only got one in a million, one in a billion. This never happens. When do you combine them and it becomes a miracle? That's why I knew God was following me through that having that faith.
But if you look back, most people you look back and say for entrepreneurs and ventures whatever, if something didn't happen here, you know, you wouldn't be here. When I got real big and then when I took you the five employees to 500, I took in tens of millions, a hundred million dollars in six months. At the end of it, I owed like five million. I had -- everything was done wrong. Other people had took advantage, but I learned from that and then I learned so much from that, and so another thing, too I want to mention for an entrepreneur out there or a business, learn from someone that you trust in that business so you can learn a lot and say, "Okay, what have you done?" And you know, so you don't have to -- all of this wasted time that you could save time on learning what he's done, his failures and his successes.
LEVIN: And is there anything you would have done differently?
LINDELL: I would not done one thing different if I wasn't sitting right here, if it changed where I'm at right now. You know, sure, do I look back? Do I have regrets with my addiction and 20-year marriage? My kids, that maybe they were -- you know, well, they were affected. You know, I look back, did I lose some time? You know, was it wasted time? I think a lot of addicts look back and say, "Wow, I wasted all that time." No, it's starting right here.
There's Proverbs 356, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not to your own understanding, acknowledge him in every way and He will guide your path," and for me that became real -- not to look back and they say, with God all things are possible and I think, so there's really no regrets. If I'm going to use my past and my story to do better.
LEVIN: Don't forget folks, you can watch Levin TV, Levin TV by going to blazeTV.com/mark, blazetv.com/mark and sign up there. Or give us a call 844-LEVIN-TV, 844-LEVIN-TV. It's very exciting over there. We'd love to have you. I'll be right back.
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LEVIN: You're a wealthy man. You're a famous man. You think you'll ever run for office?
LINDELL: Well, I get asked all the time and I think if God had me run for office, I would. That's what I tell the media. That's what I tell everybody I talk to, but right now, I think where God has put my platform is to help everything that's going on now with help the addiction, helping people get to faith, help our President and I think the platform, I can do a lot good there rather than -- not to say I won't, if God said, "Hey, Mike," if I got it in prayer, "I want you to do this." I'm open to anything just like I was when I had the dream and that came from God to go all in and when I went all in for President and then it doesn't matter. Then it's telling God I can do it. All the pushback and all the things that is going -- I just put my faith in that and they ask me every day, "What's your busiest day?" I say, right here.
LEVIN: You know, as I listen to you, the different phases you've gone through in your life and yet that consistency with faith, but the different phases you go through in your life, you're living a very full life, aren't you?
LINDELL: Yes, it's amazing.
LEVIN: You grab that gold ring and you run with it.
LINDELL: It's been like living inside of a movie. I mean, you know you go back in the day to where I'd be -- have a gun to my head at some place in some city and then the next day, be eaten with three millionaires with two, three or forks and going realizing --
LEVIN: I understand two forks, what do you do with three?
LINDELL: I don't know. I'll try to figure it out. But I just remembered, this actually happened. I was in a place -- in a very bad place in a city with a gun held captive. To get everything back, everything was out to different crack -- middle of the night. My wedding ring, all of these different things. I got them all back, ended up back in Minnesota in Minneapolis, the next day, eating with three millionaires and all of them pulled me away from the table and said, "Whatever you do, don't tell them you don't have any money." And I felt safer with the guy the day before.
LEVIN: You were making a presentation?
LINDELL: These were all trying to out -- they were all trying to carve up my company. Some of my company has been tried to be taken so many times. I mean, that's stuff we haven't touched on. All the betrayal and all of these things. They were all shysters trying to carve up as a businessman, and you know, and here I felt safer in the hood with a gun. I knew where their pain was coming from. These guys, I didn't understand the corruption and the and the money and the greed and I'm going, you know --
LEVIN: But you -- I mean, you've lived different lives. You've been in different places in your life. Do you ever sit back? And I know you thank God, but it's a lot of you. Do you ever sit back and say, "I've got to pinch myself. I can't believe I'm doing these."
LINDELL: Here's a defining moment. It was after -- it was actually after the President was elected. I was invited to the White House in the summer of 2017 and he -- I go in there, it's a manufacturer summit. And here's my name tag, and there's like 20 people and I'm getting this little tour and I'm still surreal. I'm going. "I'm in the White House," and I go, "Who is sitting here?" There was no name tag and the guy says, "The President is. He wanted to sit by you." And I am going, "What?"
Now there I'm going -- it was like my life flashing back and going -- now my friends see that and I think there's probably 20 who said, "Jesus is real. This is Mike Lindell, the sex crack-addict sitting with the President." And these are for me -- that's why I say like living inside of a movie. I think back to the old Mike in decades, it's like, I've been living - always kind of living inside of a movie with 14 near death experiences and all these things that I didn't think happen to normal people or anybody and I think -- and then and then all of a sudden, now you're here.
If you took a thing -- one of the things to for me, is where I had that fear where I couldn't talk to people even two people at the same time. I was very shy. And now if you opened up a picture in the future, and there I'm speaking to 50,000 people, I would go, "It ain't happening." And that's -- those are those two things that really get to me where I'm just - - I get goosebumps and go you know, God used my weakness of not being able to talk to be able to spread that and help.
LEVIN: And in a lot of countries, most countries, you would never go from here.
LINDELL: Right.
LEVIN: To here.
LINDELL: USA.
LEVIN: USA. We'll be right back.
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LEVIN: Let me ask you a question I ask a lot of my guests. Where do you see this country heading in the next five to 10 years? You can see these negative forces, the culture and all around. On the other hand, we're a vibrant people. We are great people. We've overcome an awful lot. You've overcome an awful lot. What do you think we're going to be?
LINDELL: I think it's going to be amazing and I see what's going on right now and it just keeps getting better and better. If you actually would shut off the TV shut out --
LEVIN: Except this show.
LINDELL: Except this show. But I mean, shut off the news and go look around you and what's going on. And by the way, Donald Trump is going to win by over 380 -- it is just going to be a massive win because everybody knows what he's done and people are going to keep jumping in like I said. Everybody loves our President, some don't know it yet. And for me, there is no -- God gave us grace on November 8, 2016.
This is a whole -- this was a turning point in history, where now we're going to go on and everybody pretty soon, that very loud or silent -- the silent majority, it's flipped flopped and pretty soon that voice over here is going to be --
LEVIN: You know, a lot of people in the press are going to say, "Well, there's Mike, talking about God giving us grace. That is God giving us an opportunity to like Donald Trump." He must be some kind of throwback. He must be a deplorable. He must be you know --
LINDELL: No, I see -- I'm a common sense. I'm a businessman. I never knew anything about politics. I know what's right, what's wrong and what's working. And, and our President is amazing and he's done it in spite of the fight every day. I get it. But for me, it's like, they go, they'll try and attack me and now less -- and at the end, 99 percent will attack the ones attacking me. That's why I know everybody really deep down, they are going, "Wow, he's doing so good." But there's these this way over here, this force or whatever, that's trying to stop it and stop it. And pretty soon, you know, everyone is going to go, "Wow, this is great, the direction we're going." And all the -- it's going to be -- I see so many things I see for myself personally, addiction, you know, these, these addiction, getting wiped out in the next six years. Look at what the President did with ISIS in two years. Boom. Gone. Hello. That was one of my biggest worries.
You know, here's the addiction. It came on strong. Addiction, let's get it gone. You know --
LEVIN: And he's focused on this opioid crisis.
LINDELL: Absolutely. I was there when he signed the opiates law.
LEVIN: You were there. More than anybody.
LINDELL: Yes, so his passion is to help, help not just the country, these opiate addiction, to destroy it. That's one of his biggest things. I was there when he signed it. And everything I'm doing with the Lindell Recovery Network plugs right into that, you know.
LEVIN: You're very, very excited.
LINDELL: I'm very excited for the future. It's going to be amazing.
LEVIN: And I want to tell you something, it's been absolutely fascinating to talk to you on the air and off the air.
LINDELL: Mark, thank you for having me on.
LEVIN: Putting my head on your pillow will never be the same again. That's it folks. I'll see you next time on "Life, Liberty & Levin."
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