Austin St. John: From Power Ranger to Real-Life Warrior Mindset

Summary

Living The Red Life – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Austin St. John: From Power Ranger to Real-Life Warrior Mindset
Host: Rudy Mawer
Guest: Austin St. John (Jason, the original Red Power Ranger)
Release Date: April 7, 2026

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Overview

This episode of Living The Red Life features a candid and wide-ranging conversation between host Rudy Mawer and Austin St. John, legendary actor and martial artist best known for his role as the original Red Power Ranger. The discussion traces Austin’s unique path from humble beginnings to global television stardom, his entrepreneurial awakening, battles over creative freedom, and hard-earned lessons about leadership, resilience, and building a lasting legacy. It’s a must-listen for entrepreneurs and fans alike, packed with powerful takeaways on mindset, risk, and the importance of the right team.

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Key Discussion Points

1. From Marine Brat to TV Icon

• Austin’s Humble Upbringing
  • Grew up as the son of a Marine and one of New Mexico’s first female police officers, moving every six months to a year.
  • “I can remember dinners where…we split a can of beans between my mom, my dad and I.” (03:01)
• Falling into Acting
  • No initial ambition for acting – focused only on martial arts and teaching.
  • Auditioned for the Power Rangers after an acting instructor encouraged him.
  • “He bugged me for a while and my mom was finally like, ‘No, you should go.’” (09:49)

2. The Power Rangers Phenomenon

• Audition Stories & Early Struggles
  • Auditioned among thousands, show initially titled “Phantom” with a character named Victor.
  • “I knew nothing except martial arts and whatever they saw in me.” (11:15)
• Breakout Success
  • Show abruptly became a global sensation, but cast was underpaid due to non-union contracts.
  • Learned of the show’s success informally:
    “We want to let you know your show has become number one in the world. Good work. Number one. Nielsen ratings. Good job.” (06:27)
• Cultural Moment
  • Appearance at Universal Studios:
    “The highway was backed up for eight miles into downtown LA. News helicopters flying overhead. … We broke Universal attendance records that day.” (07:34)

3. Mindset Lessons from the Power Rangers and Beyond

• Handling Uncertainty and Action Over Perfection
  • Importance of action over endless planning for entrepreneurs:
    “You don’t always have to have everything figured out.” (12:35, Rudy & Austin)
  • “Sometimes the greatest thing to do is do a little market research, get an understanding, build it in that direction, and then launch it.” (13:20)
• Rudy on Launch Mindset:
  • Contrasts his first failed/never-launched fitness program with a wildly successful, quickly-started one.
    • “One helped 100,000 people, and one never even saw the light of day.” (14:28)

4. From TV Star to Entrepreneur

• Early Entrepreneurship
  • Ran a lawn mowing business at nine, a paper route on the side.
  • “You’re not going to turn into the top 1%…because you’re sitting on your couch in a comfortable place. You have to get uncomfortable real quick and make mistakes and then get up and learn from them.” (16:58)
• Business Awakening
  • Recognized that the real money in Power Rangers was in licensing, not acting.
  • “I’m literally the face of someone who is making billions…off of me. … I wasn’t in a position…to negotiate.” (18:40)
  • Value of never signing away rights “in perpetuity throughout the universe.” (19:12)
• Standing Up for Himself
  • Lawsuit for creative freedom:
    “After taking a billionaire to court to win my freedom…what is there left that’s going to intimidate me in my 20s?” (20:16)
  • On leadership: find people smarter than yourself and “trust but verify.” (21:19)

5. Current Ventures & Enduring Legacy

• New Projects
  • Mighty Morning Coffee – Viking-inspired coffee line aimed at customers tired of mainstream brands. (21:48)
  • ASJ Comics – Original comic series, “Redemption”; exploring post-Power Rangers Jason’s journey.
    “Lord of the Rings meets Mad Max…It is demons, druids, cannibals, scavengers, ancient bloodlines, reincarnation. Just crazy.” (23:01)
  • Leather Bag Line – Coming soon.
  • Austin St. John BIZ – Merchandise for fans.
• Longevity of the Power Rangers Brand
  • Three generations of fans and counting; broad, diverse appeal.
  • “It taught kindness, but it also taught you not to be afraid to stand up for yourself…[that] is a mixed balance that is hard to get right.” (25:49)
  • “Third generation of fans now…there’s a romanticism, there’s a comfort that comes from the show because it was rated G with extra cheese, had action, had epic guitar…” (27:30)
  • Walter Jones (Zach) was “the first black superhero”—pride in breaking boundaries. (28:08)

6. Warrior Mindset & Life Lessons

• Patience & Time as Ultimate Heroes
  • “The two greatest heroes in existence…are time and patience.” (30:09)
  • “Luck is preparation meeting opportunity…Be patient [and] not afraid to put in the time, the work and the energy.” (31:09)
• Facing Failure and Adversity
  • On overcoming setbacks:
    • “Don’t be a victim. … In the world of business, no one cares. Did you deliver or didn’t you? Period.” (32:14)
    • Advice to cut out negative people, and the metaphor of the lion pride:
      “Who you surround yourself with, is your trajectory.” (33:15)
  • Always reframe obstacles as opportunities.
    • “You have not failed until you choose not to get back up.” (34:51)
• Risk, Conviction, and Walking Away
  • Left Power Rangers at its peak for the right reasons despite fear.
    • “Looking back, it was terrifying. … But I believed what I was doing was right. I had conviction. … I would have done it with even more conviction.” (35:14 & 36:12)
  • Real-world hardships (homelessness, rebuilding) as opportunities and growth:
    “None of that was a problem. It was all opportunities that taught me what freedom was.” (36:08)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• Austin on preparation and patience:
  “The two greatest heroes in existence…are time and patience.” (30:09)
• On entrepreneurship:
  “You get people who…either paralysis through analysis…or they’re perfectionists. Sometimes the greatest thing to do is…launch it.” (13:20)
• On business realities:
  “I’m literally the face of someone who is making billions…off of me. … I didn’t create it, and I wasn’t…in a place of power…to negotiate.” (18:40)
• On resilience:
  “How do you defeat a man who never stops getting up?” (17:27)
• On team:
  “There is a reason the tiger will never be king of the jungle. … Unlike the lion, he doesn’t surround himself with like-minded, highly motivated individuals with a common direction.” (33:15)
• On learning from hardship:
  “Experience is a direct result of success and failure. And failure is the greatest teacher.” (37:06)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Austin’s Early Life & Martial Arts Background: 02:31 – 04:57
• Power Rangers Audition & Global Breakout: 05:47 – 08:54
• Lessons on Taking Action vs. Perfectionism: 12:19 – 14:39
• First Entrepreneurial Awakening (Licensing/Business): 17:51 – 19:12
• Standing Up to Power (Breaking the Contract): 20:16 – 21:19
• Current Ventures (Coffee, Comics, Merch): 21:48 – 24:25
• Three Generations of Power Rangers Fans: 24:31 – 27:55
• Warrior Mindset, Patience & Leadership: 29:08 – 31:09
• On Failure, Resilience, and Opportunity Mindset: 32:09 – 34:51
• Taking Risks & Walking Away from Power Rangers: 34:51 – 36:56

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Where to Find Austin

• Mighty Morning Coffee: mightymorningcoffee.com (launching April 2026)
• Comics: asjcomics.com
• Merchandise: austinstjohn.biz

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Final Thoughts

This episode is loaded with practical, hard-won wisdom on entrepreneurship, the entertainment industry, and the “warrior mindset.” Austin St. John’s journey illustrates the importance of taking chances, persevering through hardship, and surrounding yourself with a strong, positive team. Whether you’re a Power Rangers fan or building your own empire, there are lessons here on resilience, authenticity, and moving forward—red spandex optional.

Transcript

[A]

You know, you and the Power Rangers was this thing that took over the world.

[B]

I knew nothing except martial arts. I really had to learn everything. And you want to know the first lesson I learned in commercial acting class?

[A]

Sure.

[B]

You're never supposed to wear red on camera.

[A]

Oh, wow. There you go.

[B]

Number one lesson they taught crazy. And then I made a career. Yeah. Austin St. John is an iconic actor and martial artist best known as the original Red Power Ranger in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Drawing from his legacy in entertainment and in his ventures as an entrepreneur, he continues to inspire others through leadership, resilience, and creative pursuits beyond the screen.

[A]

You don't always have to have everything figured out.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

And a lot of entrepreneurs don't move, especially beginner entrepreneurs. They get stuck in this paralysis mode before they even launch stuff or start. Power Rangers was not that at first, and they just got on with it, and they kind of figured it out as they went, and it became one of the biggest historical, iconic shows and franchises ever.

[B]

People get. They get hung up in two directions. Either paralysis through analysis. They don't understand it all. So they freeze.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then they make no decision. Which is absolutely a decision.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Or number two, they're perfectionists. And they get hung up on the deep. No, no, no. That's got to be right. No, no, no. This has to be perfect. No, no. This has to be that way. Sometimes the greatest thing to do is.

[A]

My name's Rudy Moore, host of Living the Red Life podcast, and I'm here to change the way you see your life in your earpiece every single week. If you're Read the Red Life, ditch the blue pill, take the red pill. Join me in Wonderland and change your life. Hello, and welcome back to another episode. Sat here today in one of my favorite jackets. If you're watching on video, you'll probably recognize it, and you'll probably recognize the guy next to me. He has a close correlation to this jacket. I'm here with Austin St. John. You may know him also as Jason, the original Red Power Ranger from my probably favorite franchise and series ever. So very excited for this. It's Power Rangers time, or Morphin Time, as they'd say. Let's get into it. So welcome to the show.

[B]

Yeah, thanks, man. Thanks for having me, Rudy. It's great. Always good to be. Welcome to Miami.

[A]

Yes, Miami is a great place to be, and I've been excited for this episode. You know, like, you were. You know, you and the Power Rangers was this thing that took over the world.

[B]

We did right Storm.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I'm sure a lot of people listening or watching have very fond memories as a kid like I did. So I'd love to start there. Like, you know, how was that, that sort of moment all those years and, and tell everyone about a bit about the story.

[B]

It was insanity. I mean, I started. I was the son of a marine. I grew up traveling the world, moving every six months to sometimes a year. We never had much. Yep. My dad was enlist. I can, I can remember dinners where, you know, we split a can of beans between my mom, my, my mom, my dad and I and like a can of beans. So, you know, I didn't come from a lot and I grew up very old fashioned, very, you know, Marine father. My mom was one of the first female cops in the state of New Mexico. So I came from a very conservative, strict family.

[A]

Not a red spandex wearing family then.

[B]

No, there was no spandex in the house anywhere for sure. At least not that I know. Who knows? But not that I know of. Yeah. So I grew up seeing, you know, many places and faces and cultures and so many things that were so cool that you can't learn in school in a single state, you know, or in a single country. And then Power Rangers. I dropped out of school the beginning of my junior year. My father was not pleased, took the job. And it was the pilot episode we weren't even sure was going to get picked up and next thing we know they're like, it's too violent. You have to reshoot it. Like, oh my God. First thing I've ever done after like five, six crazy auditions, I fought with, they put me in to choreograph and fight with the leading choreographer. At the time, he was doing all the Sean Connery films.

[A]

Oh, wow.

[B]

Yashi the Tadashi and this guy, 8th degree black belt in water roo. The highest rank I had at the time was a second don in taekwondo. I had a couple first degrees but the highest I had was second don. And they were like Strath Hamilton, the director, he's like, all right, Austin, I'm going to need you to spy here with Yamashita. And Yamashita let us know if he's got what it takes. I was like, I'm going to die. This guy's going to kill me. You know. And so we had this sparring session and the whole gym came to like a screeching halt. And in the end, you know, typical Yamashi was, he's good. And then that was it. You Know, and I'm. I'm counting all my fingers and toes and just blessed to be alive. And that was, that was, you know, a very short version. Then we ended up doing a huge fight in front of the heads of 20th Century Fox for Fox kids. And then we reshot the. The pilot or shot the pilot. Reshot the pilot. And then it got picked up for 40 episodes. We. Our first season was 60 episodes.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Like a normal season is 13 episodes. And we shot 60 in the first year. And the Northridge quakes happened. Almost shut down the studio. They called us into work. The morning of the Northridge quakes, which like dropped bridges over highways in L. A. Things were swinging from the. It wasn't even a film studio. This was like a warehouse we were filming in. And you know, lights are swinging and they're paging us like crazy because this was the 90s. It was all about pagers. And, you know, I'm trying to check on my girlfriend. The front half of her apartment building dropped into the street and they were like, come to work only on Power Rangers. Right. Superheroes at all time work now. And so just insanity. And then it went from zero to. I've heard so many different numbers. Like 40 countries, 90 languages. It went everywhere. Yeah. And so many languages. And so.

[A]

So what was. I always loved, like the entrepreneurial journey. Right. Is like.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

There's sometimes those moments. Right. So I imagine the day it airs or becomes this big thing. What was that moment like for.

[B]

For me to decide to do entrepreneurial things.

[A]

No, no. I mean more when. When Power Rangers dropped and you knew it was a big success and like.

[B]

Well, it was. So we found out it was completely informal because they didn't want the cast because it was a non union show with favorite nation contracts. So we were making nothing.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And they didn't want us to know, especially me. I was the youngest. Yeah. I was 18. I literally, I signed a contract at 17 with no parent and no agent. They had me post date the contract to my 18th birthday.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

So we find out that Jonathan Zakura, who was the producer at the time, he comes downstairs one day and Walter Jones and I, you guys would know him as Zach, the black Ranger. We're sitting in our. In our studio chairs and we have our suit on, but it's peeled down on the top and we just kind of let it hang around our waist when we're not filming and we're sitting there looking through sides. It was late at night, the other cast had already gone home and Jonathan Zakur Comes down, he's. And I'm going to do a terrible Israeli accent. His was obviously authentic. Mine is going to be what it is. I'm sorry. And he goes, guys, guys, we want to let you know your show has become number one in the world. Good work. Number one. Nielsen ratings. Good job. And then he turned around and walked back upstairs. And I'm just like, nobody around. Yeah. And I remember looking at Walter, and Walter and I were like, did that just happen? That? And. And so it just seemed like. Like it was supposed to be that way, but it wasn't an accomplishment. That was it. So it was completely informal. The first time we figured it out was when we did the appearance at Universal Studios.

[A]

Oh, wow. What was that? Like?

[B]

It was a rock star moment.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

They. We were supposed to be on the smallest stage on Universal Studios in California. And they figured out very quickly this was going to be humongous. So they put us on the biggest stage, and instead of one show, we booked, I think it was four or five shows. We filled the studio up or the. The. The amphitheater. I think it held five or six thousand people. We filled it up four or five times in a day, and people were camping out in line. The day before, the highway was backed up for eight miles into downtown la. News helicopters flying overhead. They put us on the same stage. Like, this is when it kind of hit me.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Arsenio hall showed up. There were other huge celebrities at the time. Demi Moore and Bruce Willis's kids came to see us. And just huge. And I can remember getting up there and they told us, this is a stage. Guns N Roses, Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, Madonna, like the names in the music industry all performed on that stage. And I just. I remember getting up there going, wow, this is insane. Insane for a Marine brat.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

You know, who knew? Who knew? But just Wild mind transformation. They had to escort us out with security because people were breaking down the stanchions. Like, we broke Universal attendance records that day.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

And I think to this day, maybe it's happened by now. I think to this day, those records haven't been beat again. So. Insanity. Absolute insanity.

[A]

And, you know, I think what's always cool is the story just before that too. Right. So at some point you decided to apply or audition. What was your expectation? What was that moment?

[B]

So this was. This was also. I'm not the kind of guy. Like, I'm not a camera kind of guy. I'm not. I've learned how to. How to be, and now I'm completely Comfortable?

[A]

Yeah. It takes training, right? Yeah.

[B]

Repetition. Yeah, like anything. Consistency, discipline, repetition. I had no desire to be an actor. And I ended up meeting an acting coach who I was teaching martial arts in the evenings. I would go to school and then teach in the evenings. And I was building up my. My dojo at another sensei's dojo.

[A]

This is in Cali or in New Mexico? In Cali Y.

[B]

And so I started teaching and met this acting coach. And my mom was like, oh. He's like, you should come do acting classes. I was like, I have no desire. I don't. I'm not an actor. Like, I play football and I. I punch things. That's what I like to do. And so he bugged me for a while and my mom was finally like, no, you should go. And then he looks at me and he had a huge class and tons of people. He goes, maybe you could get some students out of my class. And I thought, now that's not a bad idea. Business mind started kicking. Yeah, yeah. I was like, okay. He's. He's telling me I can have had people. And so I went in and I definitely got some students. And then there was a cattle call, which means anybody can go.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

So this wasn't like a closed audition like Johnny Depp might go to.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

This was. They advertise in the newspaper. You and your little dog Toto can all show up and everybody gets equal time. Right. And so thousands and thousands of people. I'm told that it was somewhere around 10,000 people showed up for the initial auditions. I can tell you. It was in Burbank. And the line stretched down the street for hours and hours and hours and hours. And that was, that was my first thing. And the show was called Phantom, so like, hey, you should show up. And they were like, you're. They're looking for teenagers with attitude. This is what Bob told me at the time. And I was like, I don't have attitude. What are you talking about? You don't. I don't have attitude. And so anyway, and the show was called Phantoms and the character's name was Victor. It wasn't Jake. Could you imagine? That's a whole nother show.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Sounds like a telenovela. Like, oh, ye. Kimberly. Yeah, you know, it could have been a whole nother thing, but so I went to the audition and I had no idea what in the hell I was doing. And this like, that whole saga I've done hour long sessions on because it's like a saga. So long story short, I Knew nothing except martial arts and whatever they saw in me. Strath Hamilton, the director from Australia, Katie Wallen, they kind of found something they liked and nurtured me. And then I met Walter, who really kind of took me in under his wing. He. He'd been around in the industry for years and he kind of would teach me things like, hey, when you deliver a line, maybe you should turn towards the camera. Because I would turn to talk to him. Yeah. And the camera sometimes was back here. He was like, no, no, no, no. So he. I really had to learn everything. And you want to know the first lesson I learned in commercial acting class?

[A]

Sure.

[B]

You're never supposed to wear red on camera.

[A]

Oh, wow. There you go.

[B]

Number one lesson they taught, they're like, it blows you out. Yeah. And it doesn't look good. Yeah. Crazy. And then I made a career.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So crazy.

[A]

And I think what's funny, even just listening to that, like, this became one of the biggest shows in history ever. Right. But they were going to call, you know, you, Victor, right. In the show, Phantom. And then, like, I teach a lot of entrepreneurs, like, you don't always have to have everything figured out.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

And a lot of entrepreneurs don't move, especially beginner entrepreneurs. They get. And I used to, you know, 15 years ago, they get stuck in this paralysis mode before they even launch stuff or start. And it's like, it's kind of cool to hear. Power Rangers was not that at first. And they just got on with it and they kind of figured it out as they went. And it became one of the biggest historical, iconic shows and franchises ever.

[B]

Yeah. And that's exactly the point. You get people who, in the world of, whether you're philanthropic or entrepreneurial or wherever you are in development of anything you want to do. People get. They get hung up in two directions. Either paralysis through analysis. They don't understand it. Also, they freeze.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then they make no decision which is absolutely a decision.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Or number two, they're perfectionists. And they get hung up on the deep. No, no, no. That's gotta be right. No, no, no. This has to be perfect. No, no. This has to be that way. Sometimes the greatest thing to do is do a little market research, get an understanding, build it in that direction, and then launch it. And instead of launching it in a fashion where you're like, I know everything. This is perfect. I'm giving you what you want. Launch it in a fashion where you communicate with your people and say, hey, this is my best effort. Let me know, did you like this? What do you think about that? What do you think about that? And then you get people who are interested, they buy in. They become a part of the process. And this is what you build kingdoms on.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. And I, you know, I was the same 15 years ago. I always tell my story. I spent six months building this fitness program and course because that's how I started a personal trainer and I had a sports science degree. And by the time. By the time I finished it, I never even launched it. And then I. A couple of years later, I actually launched a big fitness program. It did about 8 million in sales. And I just made it on an iPad at the beach one day and then kept. You know, I built it into something really great over time.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But it started as a spreadsheet and a Google Doc on a beach, and it's just like the polar opposite. But one helped 100,000 people, and one never even saw the light of day. And it's just, you know, crazy.

[B]

That's the insanity. Everybody's got great ideas.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But if you can make that key first step and get it out of here onto a piece of paper, whether it's a napkin or a notebook, that's a big change. And my first degree was sports science and health science.

[A]

Oh, there you go.

[B]

So my second degree was emergency medicine. I ran a training company for years. I trained people all over the martial arts and in the gym. Like, that was my bread and butter. I lived that. And then tons of injuries, and I'm gonna get stem cells soon, and when I do, look out.

[A]

Yep. So let's go. You know, we talked about the start of the Power Rangers, and we've kind of branched into that entreprene bit. And I would love for everyone listening to understand that bridge. Right. So you did this, you know, acting in the career, but now you're very entrepreneurial. Lots of ventures. Can you kind of talk about finishing there, that transition?

[B]

And first off, in the world of acting, in Hollywood alone, I don't even know about New York when I was there. There had to have been, I heard, numbers around half a million actors. Half a million. When was the last time you competed with half a million of anybody? Yeah. You know what I mean? You do that when you enter the world of business, and you do that in Hollywood. And out of that half a million, this. When the director looked at me and he said, it's feast or famine, out of that half a million, less than maybe 5 or 10,000 are working.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Meaning in the industry as actors, which means they're waiting tables or doing whatever they have to do to pay the bills. He says, so live this up, remember it, and do your best. And I just thought, holy cow. So I knew immediately that acting wasn't. I mean, I had a huge break. I love what I did, but I knew acting at the time wasn't my passion. I love that I was getting paid to do martial arts on tv, But I knew I also needed to develop something. And at 19 and 20, I wasn't really clear on what that was going to be yet, but I knew I needed to develop something because I didn't want to wait tables forever.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And of course, I waited tables and bartended. And, you know, I've been working since I was nine years. I ran my first business at nine. I started a lawn mowing company.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then on the side, I ran and I did a newspaper route. So, I mean, I know what it is to go out and hustle and get the work and then set the reputation and have to follow through because you screw up one yard and all the generals on base and colonels on base are going to talk, and then you have no yards to mow.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

You know, so it's. It's a process, and it's terrifying, but that's where growth happens. You're not. You're not going to turn into the top 1% in the athletic world, the martial arts world, or the business world because you're sitting on your couch in a comfortable place. You have to get uncomfortable real quick and make mistakes and then get up and learn from them. You. And if you can do that, there's. There's nothing. Nothing. How do you defeat a man who never stops getting up?

[A]

Yeah. That's.

[B]

You cannot defeat that man. So that's my mindset.

[A]

I love that. And. And, you know, when you were kind of doing this, obviously you were sort of 18, and then, you know, getting into your 20s, was there like a moment where you're like, okay, I want to go start businesses, or I want to do this and this? Or did you kind of just like, you know, like me? It's just kind of like one thing led to the next and the next, and then like, oh, now I'm here.

[B]

Well, I knew. I knew. The show, in its first year made $1 billion. Wow.

[A]

One billion.

[B]

One billion with a B in its first year. Which Seinfeld didn't do that in its first year.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

That's crazy. You know, it crazy. Crazy. And I knew what I was Getting paid. Because people were whispering in my ear

[A]

on when it was non unions. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Favored nation.

[A]

And you were all young, too.

[B]

It was. Yeah. So I was the perfect guy to take advantage of. And it happens to actors all over Hollywood. So I didn't know, but I learned. And then what I started doing when they were whispering in my ear is I started. I was like, well, who made the billion? And then I started paying attention. What did he do? And then I realized the budget on set was almost nothing. Well, where's this money going? And then I started seeing toys.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then I saw the empire he built. And that's when I first began to clue into. I'm literally the face of someone who is making billions or some portion of billions off of me. I'm doing the grunt work. Not that he didn't develop it, you know, not that he didn't put in his work. I'm not. I'm not getting a percentage of this. Why is that? And then I realized I didn't develop it, I didn't create it, and I wasn't. I didn't have the knowledge with which to put myself in a place of power at the table to negotiate.

[A]

That's really cool that you looked at it that way and that spurred you to go do all the things you've done.

[B]

Since I had a lot of smarter people around me, I really didn't know a lot, but thank God I was around people who were like, hey, Austin, look at this, look at this. Take it from this angle. And I was just smart enough to pay attention. And so that was my first lesson, was the contract never to sign. When you see things like in perpetuity throughout the universe, that's your first clue. Never sign that contract ever. And so I began to learn and understand the mistakes I had made. And then I began to see the profit others were making on my mistakes. It was a hard lesson to learn, and I never forgot it, so. Well, I can't. Well, I can't stand Heim Saban. What he taught me was invaluable, and I've applied that in many other places. And I. And after taking a billionaire to court to win my freedom to get out of the contract, what is there left that's going to intimidate me in my 20s?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You know, and three of us, we had the courage to stand up and fight to get our freedom from the show. And of course, what we wanted was better paychecks and union protection, but we weren't going to get it. And I told him I was like, I'm out. And I walked off set. And that was. I pulled everybody together, everybody agreed, and in the end, three of us had the courage to do it. And I'm proud of that. And I learned that, you know, again, men are forged in fire. Leaders are forged in turmoil and, and sometimes chaos. And as a leader, that doesn't mean you always have to have the answer. In fact, what it means is that if you don't have the answer, you need to find the right people. You know, whether you're a president or whether you're a premier or an emir, you need to surround yourself with people smarter than you. And if you can do that, then you have a balance of power and you can make better decisions. You know, trust but verify. Yeah, that's another one. I failed a few times.

[A]

That's a good rule. I use that all the time on my team and stuff. It's a good rule in business. So, you know, and then fast forward into today. In the last, you know, kind of few years or decade of business, you're very active still. Right. So you have, you know, all the products, the store you're traveling all the time doing. Every week I see you an event and venue and still lines out the door. And you know that nostalgia has lived forever. Right. And you know, you've now got new company. So tell us about, you know, more recent stuff.

[B]

Yeah, so right now I. The thing I'm starting right now, the website is being built as we speak is called Mighty Morning Coffee.

[A]

And great name. I like the name.

[B]

Yeah, it's so it's, it's. I've made it for the world but I want the fans to understand and feel some of the origin of where it came from. And it's going to be a Viking based coffee line and it's going to be manly man. You know, this is why I've grown out the beard. I don't normally wear a beard. So it's going to be, you know, ah. And tough and I'm going to tell Viking Saga stories and, and we're going to have. I'm going to dive into Viking lore really deep and start telling these stories and putting this coffee line out there for people who are tired of, you know, the big three.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And you know, you can go and get Dunkin and Starbucks and that's cool. But I think in today's world there are a lot of people looking for something new. So I've got Mighty Morning Coffee. I have ASJ comics which I've released the first two Books. Book one sold out five times. Book two sold out four times. Both of the Kickstarters I ran on them I made over four times what I asked.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

And I'll be the third book I have written ready to go. I need to get it to an artist and then I'll publish it maybe later this year. And the whole premise is what happens to Jason 30 years after he hangs up the red suit at the end of the world. There's a whole new evil picture. Lord of the Rings meets Mad Max. It is a dark, humongous world, and I intend to build a crazy world. And it is. It's demons, druids, cannibals, scavengers, ancient bloodlines, reincarnation. Just crazy. And I go around the cultures all around the world and I bring in stories like Chupacabras and Manananggal and the Firebird, and I'm going to bring in all these cool things. So it's a, it's. It's a story for the people from cultures around the world that I'm writing, not just for my fans, but for the people. And so as J comics.com I'm having a blast. The. The comic is called Redemption. When I finish book 12, I'm taking it to the networks and I'm going to develop an animated series.

[A]

Nice.

[B]

Because anime is insane right now.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I'll develop that. And then I have leather bag line that I'm developing. I'll talk more about that here very soon. So that's coming. And then I have my main store, Austin St. John B I Z. And that is for the Power Ranger fans. So autographs and photos and paraphernalia.

[A]

Are you amazed how well it still does? You know, that and the expos and the lines, you know, and the.

[B]

Yeah, the conventions. I mean, I'm astounded that. I think this is one of the things that when you hit a TV show, Power Rangers filmed for over 30 years straight. 32 years straight. I think there aren't many shows. I don't know if any other show that's filmed for 32 years straight. I think it's the longest running live action show in history, maybe of any show. We're going into our third generation of fans now and your parents and guys older than you, and then you guys are having your kids, and then the kids are finding new Power Rangers and their parents are going, hold on, you need to watch this. And they take them back and it's a rewind. So I'm coming into my third generation of Fans and I haven't filmed in five, six years, I think was the last episode I did in New Zealand. So I think that watching the fandom continue to grow comes from the love of the message. And the message was number one. There was no politics. There was no, you have to be one way or another. There was no limitation on what you could be. And it taught kindness, but it also taught you not to be afraid, to stand up for yourself.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

And this is, this is a, that is a mixed balance that is hard to get right. And they tried to make the show in the 80s and it failed. They redid it in the 90s and I guess the secret sauce was there and it worked.

[A]

I guess myself and my peers, we were great audiences. You know, we bought it up.

[B]

Well, did you break furniture in the house?

[A]

I'm sure I bought every. Actually, I'm sure I was one of the biggest buyers to begging my parents every weekend to buy me.

[B]

Sometimes, sometimes I meet moms in lines at these conventions. A lot of moms and, and either older moms or younger moms. And they all have what I call the Dear mom story where, you know, they broke the lamp or they did the backflip and broke their arm. I hear all these stories and, you know, this is what boys and girls do. You know, you see something cool and you see Kimberly or Trini doing cool stuff and Jason and Zach.

[A]

Well, I think my only memory of that was I tried to do the flying kick and then hurt my, like when I landed. I was like, oh, this isn't so pleasant. Yeah, this isn't so pleasant. So I do remember that. But you know, and you know, my obviously story of the red and everything, my parents always said, you know, red was always my favorite color.

[B]

Sure.

[A]

So I was always, you know, buying all the red ranges. Yeah, great. You know, so. Yeah. So. And you know it now because everything's red. It still plays a great role in the, you know, the aesthetics. I got the helmet there and stuff. So it really has, you know, impacted and been a fond memory, I think for millions of kids. Right. And you get to meet them still every week or two at the exposure.

[B]

I get to meet the new kids

[A]

and they're my age now passing. Right.

[B]

Mostly the new kids and 25, 35 and 45 year olds. Sometimes I've got gray haired kids.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

That come to my table. I was like, wow. And it just, it never ends. And there's a, there's a romanticism, there's a comfort that comes from the show because it was rated G with extra cheese, had action, had epic guitar, had superheroes that looked a bunch of different ways who could stand alone, but were always better as a team.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And just women were kicking butt. Zach, my buddy, Walter Jones, that's my boy. He'll tell you that he was the first black superhero.

[A]

Oh, wow. Think about that. Yeah.

[B]

He's super proud of it. And each of the characters, in their own way, were one of a kind.

[A]

I also think the franchise is a great example, like Pokemon, too, of building a brand. Right. Like, they built a brand that they respawn. Like, you know, Pokemon. And I think Power Rangers and Pokemon, they went off on all these weird directions. Nothing's as good as the original. But they still. 30 years on, you know, and they probably go for another 30 years and beyond. Right. And they sold every. Everything possible. Right. Like anything you can sell, they figured out how to sell it.

[B]

Underwear, everything sets.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Like literally everything.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. It's crazy.

[A]

Yeah. So, last couple of questions, you know, and you've already talked about it a lot, but life's full of ups and downs, right? And I. I have many acting friends, and you see them on the big screen and you see what Hollywood is, but that's not really what Hollywood is, you know. So what are some life lessons you'd tell your younger self or people out there trying to chase their own goals and dreams?

[B]

Patience. When. When the hype starts rolling in or when you start. When those opportunities come. And let's define opportunity. Opportunity isn't you sit by the phone and wait for somebody to call you for the magic job. Yeah. That's not an opportunity. That's.

[A]

You just got to say, that's a lottery ticket, right?

[B]

Yeah, that's right.

[A]

Yeah. It's not a strategy.

[B]

That's right. Opportunity is what happens when preparation meets the chance. That's what. That's what opportunity is. Luck is preparation, meeting opportunity. So you have to be patient. You cannot be afraid to put in the time, the work and the energy. And I'll tell you, the two greatest heroes in existence, the two greatest, hands down, they're in the Bible. They're on every battlefield. They're in every business. They are everywhere. And they are the only two indisputed, undefeated, never been beat heroes who every time, with 100% accuracy, accomplish their goals. The first one is time, and the second one is patience. And you have to know through trial and error when to use and how to execute with both. And I've seen it so many times in the world of business. And personal life and love and everywhere. And I've made many of them where I got in a hurry, I didn't take the time or I didn't use patience to do one thing or another. And the results are usually catastrophic. And so you have to understand that you must be patient. And the right time doesn't mean when you feel like it's right, it doesn't mean, like you're convinced it's right now. It means you've done the research and then you have prepared and now you have what you need through exercising patience to execute when the time is right.

[A]

I like that.

[B]

And so time and patience, two greatest heroes in the world. And if you don't, if you don't understand them, you're in trouble.

[A]

Good. I like that a lot. And my next question, you know, I get to sit and hang out and I'm friends with and do business with a lot of Olympic athletes and top, you know, people on. On the planet in sport. And I came from a sports background, so I always admire athletes, but I always think acting and athletes. It's interesting because I'm just an entrepreneur, not really an actor or an athlete. So entrepreneurship, you generally go up over time if your business grows. Right. But acting and athletes, you have this massive jump peak, and then you have to fight and keep it going. Right. And some athletes and actors do, and many obviously don't. So I would love you to share. You hit this peak very young too, right? 18. Right. So what about, like, handling failure on the ups and downs? Is there any mindset tips? Because a lot of entrepreneurs listening, they. They have those failures, those moments where they're like, what's next? Or they're lost.

[B]

A mindset is key if. If, number one, don't be a victim.

[A]

Very good.

[B]

Yeah, cut the victim mentality.

[A]

And I think there's so much of that now. Like, it's got way worse in the last 10 years.

[B]

Nobody, everybody. There are people who will tell you, I'm so sorry, blah, blah, blah, and then they're going to go home and drink their Frappuccino and forget about you.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And in the world of business, no one cares. Did you deliver or didn't you?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Period. And did you? And can you do it reliably? And was it on time? Because it's not on time. We're back to time now. You cost money. So I would say learn how to reframe the world. If you're one of these people and we all know someone who everywhere they look, they see the negative.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Oh, this is a problem. That's a problem that can't be done. No way. Blah, blah, blah. Cut those people out.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Get rid of them and be unforgiving about. Doesn't mean you have to be crass or rude, but you got to get rid of them. Yeah, negative.

[A]

That's why I left England. Most I don't know. You've probably toured London and England a lot, but a lot of people are like that. Sadly, that way more than America can't do that.

[B]

My frame of mind is who you surround yourself with, is your trajectory.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I choose. There is a reason the tiger will never be king of the jungle. The tiger is fierce. He hunts. He's an incredible predator. If you go anywhere in India, he strikes fear into the minds of men who go through the jungle. They're looking out for the tiger, but he's never going to be king in the jungle because unlike the lion, he doesn't surround himself with like minded, highly motivated individuals with a common direction. So if you want to be king of the jungle, you have to find these people who want the same things, are just as motivated and are moving in the right directions. And this is why lions will take down hippos, this is why they'll even take down elephants on occasion. Because what they can do together with a focused common goal is mind bending. And so that's, that is my mindset. I do not believe in problems. I have never had a problem that didn't present an opportunity. I focus on the opportunity. If I take a lick and I get knocked down, I get up. I will not be defeated. I will always get up, I will always come back. I've got, I've had countless injuries. I've been dead many times in my life and I'm always rebuilding and coming back. And now I'm going to go get stem cell here soon and I'm going to repair things and that's going to get me back. And then the mindset, I can do things I haven't been able to do. But the point is you're not defeated. You have not failed until you choose not to get back up.

[A]

Love it. And then last question, kind of an extension of that is taking risks. Right. Like I would say, you are at this, you know, pinnacle moment of your life, biggest show in history and you decided to walk away from it. Yeah, that's a big, like, I've never taken a risk that big. How, how do you reflect looking back? Because you were young then, right? How do you reflect on all that

[B]

looking back it was terrifying. It was terrifying. But I had a really important key element that a lot of people don't have when they make a decision. I believed what I was doing was right. I was. I had conviction. I knew what I was doing was right, and that made it okay to stick with it. I knew it might not go my way, and I knew that I was going from the biggest show, arguably, in the world to maybe nothing. Yeah. Yeah. And afterwards, I ended up homeless for six months. I traveled the world. I finished up college, degrees, joined the fire department, became paramedic, went to war in the Middle east for four years. It totally changed my life. But none of that was a problem. It was all opportunities that taught me different things, that taught me what freedom was.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, if you could reflect now, would you have done differently?

[B]

No, I would have done it with even more conviction.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

That's great. I would triple down. I just would have made different. I didn't surround myself with lions.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I surrounded myself with hyenas.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But I was too young to identify.

[A]

We make a lot of mistakes, and that's what, you know, we're young, we look back, and I've lost many millions on deals and stuff. And you're like, how was I so silly.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But you don't know what you don't know, and that's why you want to be around great people, mentors and people smarter and older than you, because they can guide you.

[B]

So you take those lessons. Yeah. And that's how you find greatness.

[A]

And what's great about those, I think the biggest losses is you learn so much and they hopefully don't happen again, or you're much more equipped to handle them when they do or similar things come up. So.

[B]

Yeah. And as you age, you begin to. You begin to come into your own, and that comes through wisdom and experience. And experience is a direct result of success and failure.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And failure is the greatest teacher. Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Definitely. Embrace it.

[A]

Good. Well, last easier question, where do they find you? If they want to explore all these great things, how can they find you?

[B]

Mightymorningcoffee.com that will be launched in a week or two to. By the time you guys see this, it may be up. So you can find the coffee. Austin St. John Biz. Photographs, autographs, videos, paraphernalia. And for the comic called Redemption comics, go to asjcomics.com and you can dive into the world of a Lord of the Rings meets Mad Max sort of story.

[A]

Love it. Well, it's been a pleasure and super cool to take off the layers and hear, you know, the stories, right? And the lessons. That's why we're all here, to be better human beings and entrepreneurs and, you know, it's. It's great. There's so many lessons from. From your Power Ranger days and all the days since, right? So, guys, I hope you enjoyed that episode, especially if you, you know, you were a fan and grew up a fan. I'm sure it was awesome. And even if you were, and you have no clue what the Power Rangers is, somehow I'm sure you still learn a lot. Some great mindset stuff. So I'll see you guys soon. Take care. Keep living the red life.

[B]

Sam.