If you have ever wondered:
“How does someone come out of the worst thing that ever happened to them more grateful, not less?”
“What am I supposed to do with myself once I have finally got the thing I was chasing?”
“Why does money stress leak into everything else, even when the numbers are not that bad?”
- this episode is for you.
Tristan Knowles OAM has been given his odds twice. At nine he lost his leg to childhood cancer. At twelve he found out that the 50/50 his parents and his doctor gave him when the cancer came back in his lung was a white lie, and that his real chance of surviving had been closer to 5 per cent. This week he sits down with Layne and Tess to talk about what that does to a person, and what he built out of it.
It runs from a foam cover cut off a prosthetic leg at 17, to gold in Beijing and the email from his coach that was waiting when the team got home, to ranking themselves across 30 separate parts of their sport so that being the best would not make them soft. Six Paralympic Games, a gold medal, back to back world titles, and a definition of success that has nothing to do with winning.
Then it goes somewhere nobody expects a Paralympian to go: money. Tristan has spent more than a decade in financial advice, and he makes the case that how you handle money quietly decides how much energy you have for everything else. Financial stress and mental health run in both directions, and most people never touch either because they think it is complicated.
You will hear about:
● The 50/50 his parents and his doctor agreed on before he ever asked, and the real number he learned at twelve
● Why cutting the foam cover off his prosthetic leg at 17 was the most liberating thing he has done
● The three questions he uses to define success instead of winning, and why the result is not one of them
● The email waiting after Beijing gold, and how ranking themselves on 30 parts of the game kept the team hungry
● What financial stress actually costs, and the simple split he gives people who think money is too complicated
● The question from Tuesdays with Morrie that he put to Layne and Tess live, and why everyone answers it the same way
Tristan Knowles: https://tristanknowles.com.au
Follow Tristan on Instagram @tristanknowles09
Support Australian Paralympians (virtual seat, donations are tax deductible): https://www.paralympic.org.au
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The A Wake Up Call podcast is created for general informational, educational, and inspirational purposes only. The stories, tools, and insights shared are designed to support your wellbeing journey - not to replace professional medical, psychological, or therapeutic advice. In fact, we believe therapy is non-negotiable in life.
If you're experiencing a medical or mental health condition, please seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Never ignore or delay seeking professional advice because of something you've heard on this podcast.
Your wellbeing matters. Take care of yourself, stay curious, and remember the real wake-up call is listening to what your body and mind are trying to tell you.
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