This week, Danny talked with WWE superstar Mike Kanellis:
(The following conversation took place on Danny’s other podcast, “TAKE A BUMP” with Ring of Honor superstar Matt Taven)
DANNY PICARD: You use a phrase on social media and YouTube, “Process Over Outcome.” Explain to the people what’s next with “Process Over Outcome” and why you have started this hashtag and social media trend.
MIKE KANELLIS: It started as a way to kind of put my energy into a different place. I’m sure everybody who follows wrestling knows that I haven’t actually been setting the world on fire with WWE. So I needed another outlet. And when I wasn’t doing stuff on Smackdown or Raw, and then when I moved to 205 Live, currently all I do is show up on Tuesdays, so I needed a different outlet. So I figured I would take what I learned in my actual life of recovery and overcoming an addiction and try to put a positive on that, because I was getting very bitter and very angry because I couldn’t put my creative energy anywhere else. And as a creative person, that gets very frustrating. So I decided to, hopefully, use my platform and the voice I have and the things I’ve learned over the last two years in recovery to just put a positive spin on life and tell people that even though you’re in a crap situation — and not that I’m really in a crap situation, I get to travel the world with my wife, and the WWE has been absolutely fantastic with us, but I want to wrestle more and I’m not getting to. So, I just wanted to show people that you can find positivity with anything you do in life. I just wanted to use my voice for the good, because there is a lot of negative crap in this industry, and I don’t want to be one of those people.
DP: What is next for Mike Kanellis?
MK: That’s a good question. I wish I had a straightforward answer, but I honestly don’t know. I’m loving doing 205 Live. I think we have one of the most talented and underrated rosters. And I’m not just saying that because I’m there. I’m saying that because I’ve worked with most of these guys on the indies. And then the guys that I haven’t worked with on the indies have been just fantastic. But, I don’t know. I honestly don’t know what the future holds. I’m going to keep working my ass off, keep trying to grab that imaginary brass ring. And then, hopefully something happens. But I’m excited because I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life and I’m doing the best work of my life. If I can just keep that going, I think good things will happen. I’m staying positive. And I think what’s fun for me right now is, for so long, for like the past four years being addicted to drugs, I just kind of went through the motions of matches. And now I actually really want to go out there and kill it. So I’m excited to see what I can do, whether that’s 205 Live, Raw, Smackdown, who knows.
DP: Who is your favorite wrestler of all time? Who’s your guy? Everybody has a guy that they rooted for as a kid. When you go back into the archives, who is your favorite pro wrestler of all time?
MK: I kind of have two answers to this. So before I became a wrestler, it was Mick Foley. Because I just loved the lovable-loser gimmick. I thought he was awesome. Him winning the World Title for the first time is what actually made me decide I was going to be a professional wrestler. And then having met him and been on shows with him, I think even more highly of him. He has a special place in my heart forever. But, as a wrestler, it’s definitely Edge. And it’s actually been cool, ever since I started with WWE, Edge has kind of helped mentor me. Any time I get to pull him aside and talk to him or text him, I’ll be like, “Hey, what do you think about this?” Or, “How do I handle this situation?” And he’s just been fantastic. And to me, he was just the epitome of what a good heel was. At the time where the WWE was struggling to get John Cena to be their top babyface, I don’t think Edge gets enough credit as the heel that propelled him over that last hurdle. And I just think he was awesome.
Listen to the show at PodcastOne. Also available on iTunes, Spotify, and dannypicard.com. Subscribe to Danny’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/dannypicard.
