Cody Byrns - International Speaker, Best-Selling Author, Life Coach, and Founder of Cody Byrns' Foundation

 It wasn't until they saw my hand move that they would change their plans and I'm glad that they did
 because come to find out if they didn't see my hand move I would have probably been burned
 alive that day. I believe we live in a world where people have the ability to make choices.
 We have free will and you know our choices have consequences. Epic is an acronym. The East
 ends for embrace challenges and then we have the P which is provide perspective and then we have
 the eye which is implement change and then we have the sea which is celebrate. Celebrate your
 story. Celebrate the fact that you're here that you're alive and you have the day to live and
 out of that celebration we're serving others. You're listening to the radcast. If it's radical,
 we cover it. Here's your host Ryan Alford. Hey guys what's up welcome to the latest edition of
 the radcast and the little extra rad there beginning and you know I felt that's the need to
 today because we've got a radical story that I'm excited to tell. Welcome to the show International
 Speak or bestselling author Cody Burns. What's up brother? Hey man just you are you are I'm glad
 to be here with you. Hey man we're excited to have you. You know sometimes we have guests that
 you know like they've got a great brand they're talking about certain things but maybe the stories
 so so but I think you have an amazing story of inspiration and just overall radicalness that you
 know I'm excited for all of our audience to hear. Thank you man yeah it's quite an interesting
 story I'm an interesting character so I hope that the listeners and viewers enjoy it. Well I'm sure
 they will. Let's just start right down the path man I want to just teet up for you. Let's talk
 about Cody Burns. Let's talk about your background and you know what's led you you know to you
 know why and how you're speaking today how you're guiding people how you're inspiring people
 but let's just talk about that story man. Yeah yeah absolutely so my story kind of begins like
 everyone's story back in childhood and had an amazing family still very close with all of them
 today and I grew up in Southern Indiana right in the middle of a cornfield and so you kind of
 learned and find ways to entertain yourself and I remember as a youngster my family took me to
 a circus now you're wondering what the heck is this going to do with anything going somewhere.
 I went down the carnival in a hurry yeah going down the carnival here we are brace yourself
 vote so I go to the circus and you know they my family was a you know they was enjoying it
 obviously I was it was the first time I ever went but there was one act that really stood out to
 me more than any of them and it was this juggler it was down there doing all these tricks and I
 remember myself wanting to learn how to do that and so as soon as I left the circus I started
 practicing taught myself how to juggle three balls a few years later I would go to a children's
 camp and I seen this speaker up on the platform like because there's activities during the day like
 to swim and so forth but at night that I can't speaker and so all of us kids we were there in
 this big auditorium speakers on stage sharing this message and message of hope but at the same time
 he was doing that he was juggling and so I'm like get out of here this is this is cool to see how
 the two mix so well together and something on the inside of me in that moment said that this is
 what I'm called to do and so from a young age I had a passion to give hope to people and
 doing it along with juggling and comedy and finding creative ways to get the message across
 so I pursued that and time I got out of high school I went to a ministry training program in
 Rockford Illinois and I got my pastoral credentials at the same time of being a pastor I work with
 children I'll go backward on that I work with kids I was a kids pastor the same time working with
 kids on a weekly basis I got the travel to country do motivation of speaking and using juggling
 and comedy spoken kids cams conferences all kinds of fun stuff it was really starting to take off
 internationally up into the point of being 23 years old I had spoken to thousands of children
 across the nation and as well as teenagers and adults but my audience more so at the time was with
 children and so and then in May of 2013 my life took a drastic turn and I was stopped at a red light
 on the highway it was a Friday afternoon southern Indiana and at this red light everything
 goes black almost as if I didn't exist and everything I share with people it's strictly from
 witnesses police reports and the first responders because I don't remember a thing I just remember
 driving that morning and I don't I technically don't even remember being at the red light but I was
 and what I'm told is that I was rear-ended by a refrigerator box truck it did not stop
 and so on impact of the box truck hitting my I was in a Dodge Durango on impact of hitting that my
 Dodge blows up into flames and it pushed my car through the intersection into an embankment
 and when the first responders came to the scene by the looks of it they said it's a fatality so they
 had already called the corner and assumed I was dead and it wasn't until they saw my hand move
 that they would change their plans and I'm glad that they did because come to find out if they
 didn't see my hand move I would have probably been burned alive that day but there's a powerful
 message in that because I think there's a lot of people in today's world COVID world especially
 that have found themselves at stoplights and those stoplights maybe the career is no longer
 what it used to be or maybe there's death in the family or divorce who knows the list goes on
 where life as we know it suddenly comes to a complete stop and we find ourselves in difficult
 circumstances trapped in the heat of life and I certainly was and for those that are interested
 there are images online on Google they type in my name there's photos and videos where it shows
 the actual wreck the sheriff's department took hundreds of pictures that day and I'm inside this
 burning vehicle and it's quite remarkable to really kind of look back and see what I did survive but
 all that to say there's people that have found themselves in tough situations and no different
 than my hand that little bit of movement it changed everything for me and I wonder what a little
 bit of movement can do for many individuals in their life maybe they have found themselves
 trapped but I dare everyone to take a little bit of movement and then see what may happen in
 their life and it made a tremendous difference for me so they got me out of that car taking a
 good hour they didn't let me on a stretcher their life lighting me to the Burr unit in Indiaapolis
 Indiana where I was put into a coma full life support 40% of my body severely burned my face
 did have second degree which really that part isn't a severe burn second degree doesn't scar
 but then I had third and fourth degree burns I never knew there was such a thing as a
 fourth degree burn but they exist and what that does it burns through all your fat cells down
 the bone and muscle in some cases it requires imputation I had a torn ligaments broken vertebrae
 I mean all kinds of things happen I had a blood infection in the unit a lot a lot went down but
 but as I said I was in a coma and I was there for three weeks I'm in a medically induced coma and
 it went until then I would kind of come to and realize what had happened to me and I will pause
 there because I can keep rattling on but I want to let you chime in no man I somewhat still unpack
 there the the impact I mean both literally and physically but I do want to start you know
 it led me to this question Cody and I don't know if you've been asked this you're obviously a
 man of faith I believe is that accurate statement you've been a pastor you work with children and
 when something like that happens when you've you've been helping children you're guiding children
 you're you know involved you know God's guiding you in some way right or a lot or every way
 did it make you what did you ever question your faith coming out of that situation oh man you
 better you better believe it and you know I think that I think we're all human I mean at the end
 of the day we're all human and I don't care if you're if you've got a pastoral degree behind you
 at the end of the day we're not perfect we have our humanity that just comes through and so naturally
 I wondered why and I think as a result of all of this my faith has grew stronger but it took time
 to get to that place I actually have two younger brothers and one of them was on the verge of
 just saying all right screw it I'm becoming an atheist you know I'm how can I love and God allow
 my brother that's trying to do everything right be scarred and burned right and I had an interesting
 conversation with a guy that was he served him Vietnam and him and I we a pastor no one
 always connected us both and we had a great phone conversation I've since met the guy many
 of times and had him on my podcast show and he he shared with me the story of when he was in Vietnam
 he went to throw a hand grenade and when he tried to throw it a sniper had shot it before he
 could release it and it blew up all over his body his face was scarred he had fingers
 amputated and for years he battled with suicidal thoughts and depression and wondered why would God
 allow him to be burned and scarred and it wasn't until he was on TV years later that a lady would
 ask him on live television she said his name is Dave Reaver by the way she said Dave do you know
 why God would allow you to be burned and scarred and he said no I don't and he told me he said Cody
 when she asked me that it frustrated me oh it angered me and he said but her words changed
 changed my life and she said Dave you know God did not do this to you God doesn't do evil
 but he allowed it to happen because he could trust you with the scars and that statement changed
 everything and I kind of look at that story in the same light is that I believe God did not do
 this to me I believe we live in a world where people have the ability to make choices we have free
 will and you know our choices have consequences either good or bad and the driver of the truck
 that day he he walked away fine he walked away fine I on the other hand was in the beginning left
 for dead scarred mangle my life is now drastically changed because of this mass poor decisions
 and so I had to practice forgiveness in that but it wasn't God's fault it was this man
 but at the same time God has taken one of the worst incidents of my life that he's turned it
 around for my good but it boiled down to me making that choice to say that I'm not going to allow
 this to affect me negatively and that's that's powerful because I had to realize I can't change
 can't change what happened to me the only thing I can change is what I do today that's what makes
 the difference and so you know I could really dive in deep on that but I don't want to know I think
 you answered it and I think it's I asked that I ask everything you know has a purpose and a reason
 and it's because I know that there are people out there that have probably might be relating
 to the story different cells and others and you know I think it's important to hear perspective for
 how people kind of got over that moment and I think you and catflies that perfectly talking
 with Cody Burns international speaker bill selling author so Cody let's let's transition a bit
 you know you you go through something that no one can ever imagine going through you you you battle
 the the natural I'm sure the inconceivable amount of of grief combined with you know like getting
 over it and then coming back to this place of deciding you want to make something you know out of
 this what let's talk about that period and kind of where you went from you know recovery to now
 today maybe yeah yeah so as I had shared I was in that coma for life support for three weeks
 and coming to was was quite difficult but I remember my family being there and more specifically
 my mother and she told me everything that went down Cody you know you've been severely burned you
 was hit by a driver that fell to stop at a red light your recovery it's not going to be an easy
 journey but no matter what don't lose sight of your vision and those words stuck with me and they
 still did it this day and I think about how a lot of us in life it's important that we have
 individuals to remind us of what is most important to not lose sight of our vision and I needed that
 reminder because it was certainly tempting to give up and play the victim and there's many people
 in today's world that they may have they may have every right I certainly did but my mom she
 believed that there was something greater on the other side of her son and just as she believed
 in me I believe in people today that no matter what life has brought them there is there is hope
 and there is a better tomorrow so but it took time it took time I had my moments where one day I'm
 grateful to be alive and the next day I wonder why and all motions are all over the place my parents
 you know they're Christian people I think my father the funniest example is one minute he's in
 the waiting room he's praying and asking God to heal his son the next minute he's cursing he's mad
 he's he's irritated that he couldn't be there for his son that day at that red light but
 can't control certain things things just happen but I was in the burn unit for a total of two and a
 half months and then I had to go to a rehabilitation center I had to relearn to walk had to
 relearn to use my hands all the basics I was in there for another six weeks then I had to do
 almost two years of non-stop outpatient physical and occupational therapy where I could just get
 to a point where I could be somewhat self-sustainable again and many surgeries my fingers they want
 to amputate three of my fingers actually in the burn unit and as I had shared with you guys
 earlier I'm a juggler a juggler before all this went down and so my family they was said
 no do it every can to save his fingers he juggles and of course you could imagine the surgeon's face
 I would like really you're kidding yeah I'm trying to save this guy's life so you're worried about
 his juggling skills yeah you're worried about his juggling skills and yeah yeah so they were able
 to save him they don't move like they used to but I have adapted and I make the most of what I
 can do and that in itself is a message but it was a lot a long road to recovering but
 through all of that I learned a lot about myself and life and I think pain is one of our greatest
 teachers and one of the most empowering moments for me was when I was in and say rehab I had gotten
 this garbage bag full of get well cards from all these kids that I had spoken to prior a couple
 years prior to the wreck and it was Oklahoma City and everyone's get well get well Cody and
 because news about this wreck spread like wildfire social media picked it up TV shows and so I had
 started gathering they're getting this following on social media my family's posting things and
 so people were watching my response to this tragedy and these children these children were watching
 and it dawned on me I was like oh my gosh you know all these little lies they're watching they're
 watching me and you know at the end of the day we can all talk a good talk when life was going great
 we can preach a good message it sounds good it tickles people's ears but then when tragedy strikes
 and rubber hits the road our faith our message everything that we're we're about is put to the test
 and my faith in that moment just as I shared earlier it was put to the test but I had to practice
 what I preach and more so than words our actions is what makes the difference and so I had to think
 to myself what am I going to act out in this moment how am I going to be an example to these little
 lies children watch us they watch us we can tell them to do something but at the end of the day
 it's how we're acting they learn from our actions and so I had to practice what I preach
 and that hit home with me and still does to this day and so what example do I want to set
 why am I doing the very thing that I'm doing to begin with why am I speaking why was I speaking
 before it was to give hope it was to give hope and what better opportunity to give hope than to
 utilize such a traumatic event to my advantage what do you further share that message all the more
 do you think and I'm excited to get to you know where you've gone with that is what do you think
 differentiates people that become and embrace the victim versus people that become and embrace
 the other side of taking a choice and putting action in their own hand I mean if you
 haven't gone through that now maybe you ever distilled that or do you know what what separates
 one from the other yeah I think it's just at the end of the day it's when you get when you
 grasp that reality of how life is short and at the end of the day life isn't fair for anyone
 we all have our ups and our downs and there's many people that have and I've got to talk with a lot
 of folks it's all this has happened and some of the stories that I've heard I mean they just baffle
 they baffle you and naturally you're just man I don't know how this person is living how could
 they be functioning in life they've gone through such traumatic events anywhere from rape victims to
 individuals that were born with physical deformities I mean the list goes on and at the end of
 the day I think it all boils down to their willpower their choice and because I think
 all of us we could set back and we can play that victim card it's certainly easy but
 at the end of the day pity it can only get you so far and at some point you got to put on your
 big boy pants and realize that this is my life how am I going to live it and what example do I
 want to set to others do I want to be a Debbie Downer how do I want to be remembered somebody that
 give up that you complained and bickered and was bitter at the world or somebody that you know what
 I'm going to get it back up and I'm going to keep pressing forward and I'm going to make something
 of myself and of my life and I have more respect for people that have gone through traumatic events
 and they still keep pressing in they still keep taking on somebody that has gone through
 something in their life and they just give up my respect for them doesn't go very far even though
 I know they have a story they gone through pain but pain is inevitable everybody at some point
 their life will face it it's just get back up press forward it's your life it's your life we all
 have a choice and so I just choose to live my life in a positive way and get back up and make
 something of myself so transitioning you you know you've made that choice with the guidance of
 both your parents and your mother your own willpower what was like step one like you know once you
 were at a place of recovery like where did it where did kind of the you know building to the
 foundation and everything's like that but like what what was kind of phase one for you
 yeah I think well there's there's many steps in getting to the other side of something traumatic
 and I tell you my support group made a tremendous difference obviously I
 spoke in churches and I had a lot of pastors and leaders that were surrounding me a family that
 supported me and there's many people they always say to me well Cody what if I didn't have a family
 that loved me and was there for me during my traumatic experience and I think to myself well the
 moment you turn 18 years out you were in charge of putting your support system in place there is
 people out there in your life out there in this world that care about you it's just a matter of
 finding those individuals reaching out and forming that relationship with them and a lot of these
 people these pastors leaders mentors I had formed that prior before all this happened and it made
 a big difference and so our surroundings have a powerful impact on our lives and I had to
 put myself in a good environment a good environment an environment that would encourage me
 support me I had to listen to good podcasts read good books watch good television shows not
 negative stuff Lord knows there's a lot of negative in today's world and also there was people
 that I had relationships with before the wreck and they came to me and they wanted to talk down to
 me and really down and be Debbie Downers with me you know misery loves company and so I had to
 remove myself from some of those individuals it doesn't mean I'm better than them but it certainly
 just means that I'm wanting something better with my life and so if you want good results to come
 about find those individuals that are producing good results and and grab a hold of them communicate
 with them go do activities with them because you need that we need each other and so but I always
 talk about the epic steps and I actually am going to be releasing a coaching program online
 where we're going to dive into these steps a little bit deeper but even whenever I go speaking for
 corporate events colleges I mean the list was on I will share these things and there's a free
 PDF that I make available to all listeners of viewers it's epiclifegameplan.com epiclifegameplan.com
 if they go in there they type their name or email they can download these steps and utilize them
 in their own lives but epic is an acronym if you want to live an epic life you apply these steps
 so the ee stands for embrace challenges challenges will always present themselves at one level
 or another it's just something we have to embrace and then we have the p which is provide perspective
 how can I look at this situation differently what are the lessons I can learn through my pain
 and then we have the i which is implement change applying those lessons to our lives and then we
 have the c which is celebrate celebrate your story celebrate the fact that you're here that you're
 alive and you have the day to live and out of that celebration we're serving others we're serving
 others and making a positive impact on the wall around us and for me these are steps that I
 learned through this event and steps that I continue to live out on a daily basis because they do
 they apply not only in our personal lives but they can also apply in our professions our businesses
 and so it's certainly something that I encourage everybody to grab a hold of and take action
 I like it man I love I love having marketing I love a good acronym
 hopefully you remember things and as I heard you say that I was like thinking it from both a
 personal level and a business level and I was like I see a lot of business practice there
 as I was listening I know you've been fortunate enough to and I should say the audiences where
 you've spoke have been fortunate enough to hear your story and hear you speak can you talk about
 any of those or memorable moments you know since the accident where in you know any what do they
 say favorite moments from from some of those speaking opportunities oh yeah I mean that there's
 so many I mean this this story I've been so fortunate since all this has happened and this was
 a bag in 2013 here we are in 2021 and it's been remarkable to see all that has happened you know I
 released the book scar release breaking free of less of these troubles that's made a huge impact
 on people's lives and the speaking has really transformed into not so much working with children
 I mean I'll still do some kids events but those are rare nowadays mostly it's teenagers adults
 corporate audiences colleges even correctional facilities prisons and you know I've
 spoken of one back in 2019 a lot of men that have you know their their whole lives have been
 dramatically changed because of their poor choices and you know I think the nature of my story
 it hits home with a lot of folks because you know I was scarred because of somebody else's poor
 choice and I had to practice forgiveness but then like in places like correctional facilities they
 are scarred because of their own poor choices so now I'm not only do they have to well practice
 forgiveness but practice forgiveness on themselves they have to forgive themselves and so it really
 it it it it hits home I think the the metaphor of scars whether they are physical or emotional
 really connects and really in my book that's something that I address um scar release is actually
 named after a surgical procedure that they do on burn survivors and as a burn survivor I have
 contracture scars and when a contracture scar occurs over the top of the joint it can limit the
 mobility of that joint and so for example with my hands my hands had contracted to the point where
 I couldn't even hold onto a bottle of water my joints were very immobile it was very challenging
 to function and do things so I was there with the occupational therapist and she said go to you
 need surgery so I went up to the burn unit there's surgeons there are also plastic surgeons they
 begin to assess me and they said we're gonna need to do a surgical contracture release otherwise
 known as a scar release and during that procedure they go in they cut the scar at its root and it
 frees you up it allows you to be mobile but a scar release procedure doesn't remove the appearance of
 a scar it allows the mobility to move with the scar and so that's really what I would try to teach
 people is that everyone at some point in their life they have been burned divorce
 loss of a job loved one this goes on and those burning moments create scars and if we're not careful
 those scars if they're over the top of different joints in our lives for example business
 relationships being apparent there's different joints if they're if the problem is not addressed
 minute minutes on mobility and how we function in those areas and the key to freeing up that scar
 is you know finding the root of the problem and for many people it's just setting with themselves
 and thinking why am I affected in this area what is the root cause and a lot of folks don't want to
 take the time not to really examine themselves because it brings a past pain and hurt and surgery
 a scar release is certainly not a walk in the park still hurts but in the long run it frees me up
 and I still have the scars scars are permanent whether they are physical or emotional it's just
 I'm not allowing those scars to limit me and my mobility and how I function in life I love and
 so that really has hit home with a lot of people a lot of people college students corporate I mean
 it's been quite remarkable to hear some of the conversations and some of the people that
 have shared with me their own personal stories and so it's this is the most rewarding job
 ever I love it that's I you know here you talk about that it kind of almost like some of the
 questions I've asked been building towards that because I think back to like what different
 changes those that get over in the don't and maybe they need to read your book first and foremost
 but but like plug yes but actually very serious the the difference is I think if they've
 because again I mean I think if things I've been through I think of friends I think everybody's
 had these moments that we all have scar tissue you know but the ones that are able to
 create some kind of relief but it's both relief um release whatever it is
 because I think that's the difference is the people that get over that the ones that don't you know
 like and it's it's so crazy how the the analogy between what you know the the surgery
 and how it relates to life in so many ways it's crazy how all this builds but you know it goes
 back to me I think every I believe everything happens for a purpose it's just something I've
 always believed in I do have faith but I've also just kind of been wired that way and I hear your
 story and it feels like just you know whether it's a higher power or you know intestinal fortitude
 or whatever but it feels like it's also purposeful in telling the story and what you've done with
 the book what you're doing with the foundation and all those things it's amazing man
 thank you yeah uh there's and it really is I you know I I look at you know life it truly is a gift
 and when you go through something so traumatic at a young age you learn to appreciate life
 and you find out what is most important at the end of the day and back whenever I was at my younger
 20s it was life some of the things I was worried about really on worth my time and energy so I tried
 to examine my life and if there's things I'm getting frustrated over I'm like is this really worth it
 and most of the time it's not and so I just focus on what is the overall good of what I'm looking
 to achieve in my life and that is to bring hope so I try to lead every area of my life by that
 there's a powerful quote that I love sharing and I was given this quote by actually one of my mentors
 who ended up passing back in 2019 Dr. Sean Stevenson an amazing speaker author did a lot in his life
 and his big thing was I mean I he was actually well I'll say this he was born with a physical deformity
 he's only three foot tall three foot tall living in a wheelchair just turned four years old
 and he was trying out a wheelchair and he has a fragile bonus order trying out a new wheelchair
 and I guess the wheelchair had tipped over he broke his skull and he had bleeding on the brain he
 was in surgery and unfortunately he did not make it but he lived his life by that actually his last
 words he told his wife he said this is happening for me and not to me and he lived his entire career
 with that he was born with his injury and he had to look at it and this is happening for me not to
 change everything but there's this quote that he shared with me and I love and I'll share it with
 all of you it's actually by I think a lady by name the Caitlin Walsh and it says the key to success
 is playing the hand you were dealt like it was the hand that you wanted and I think it's just a
 matter of how are we going to play our cards and I played my cards and the way that I wanted to
 and it has served me in every area of my life and I'm super grateful I love it man
 where where can everyone learn more about your story let's give them the the website for
 downloading the piece again where can everybody kind of fall along with everything that's going on
 with Cody Burns these days yeah so my website Cody Burns dot com CODY BY RNS dot com they can
 google me there's all kinds of videos and articles out there but I'm mostly active on social
 media I would say more than any of them it's Instagram at the Cody Burns I'm also on Facebook
 Twitter I'm not much of a Twitter guy but I do have an account for those that are interested
 kind of like me yeah it's like Twitter you know it is what it is and then there's a LinkedIn
 but I also have my email info at Cody Burns dot com and if anybody would like to reach out to
 me directly just send me a message if you weren't happy to connect I love it man very motivational
 I encourage everyone to go check out score release I'm sure on Amazon anywhere on your website we
 can use yeah here's here's what it looks like and so it's digital and paperback it is available
 so everybody go check that out go fall along with Cody Burns I really appreciate it brother
 having you on the show telling your story I think we've just scratched the surface I know they
 can learn more about the book on your site but so appreciative you coming on today oh man it's
 my pleasure I'm glad to be here thank you for having my pleasure hey man you know where to find
 us we're at the radcast dot com search for Cody Burns search first score release you'll find all
 the content from today's episode you know where to find me I'm at Ryan Alfred on all the platforms
 we'll see you next time the radcast