The first question in this KOMO News interview is, “You do not hold back in your new memoir, What Are the Odds? From Crack Addict to CEO. You say your addiction, a 40-year addiction, goes back to early childhood. What did you discover about yourself as you went into some of the dark places and gathered the material for your memoir?”
Mike’s addictions “go all the way back to when my parents divorced”
Mike says that he discovered that his addictions “go all the way back to when my parents divorced when I was 7 years old and when divorces weren’t common.” He was put into a new school where he had a hard time fitting in. He explains that his self-worth became so bad that he was either “very quiet (because “you don’t get rejected if you don’t talk to people”)” or “would do things to show off” just to try to fit in.
Addictions compensated for Mike’s low self-worth
To compensate for his lack of self-esteem, Mike turned to “everything from compulsive gambling to cocaine and alcohol.” During this time, he had a 20-year marriage and went through several businesses.
Then, he “turned to crack cocaine and it caused me so many things.” He lost his marriage and “there was a lot of betrayal because of the addictions. I think they went hand in hand because people thought they could take advantage of me due to my addictions.”
Using his experiences for good now
When asked if he had “done enough rights in your life to remedy all the wrongs you’ve done,” Mike answered that “you can’t ever make up for lost time” and that he wishes he could “turn back time for my children, my relationships, and all the things that I missed because I was in addiction.” But, Mike says that he needs to use his experiences “for good now” and that he has “to let go and forgive myself” and that he’s “done that.” Mike goes on to say that he “wouldn’t change a thing in my life if I would not be where I’m at right now.”
Mike, a vocal supporter of President Trump from the get-go
Mike has been a very vocal supporter of President Trump and his policies from the get-go. Due to his support, he refused to pull his MyPillow ads from the conservative Laura Ingram Show when so many others were boycotting it. So Mike was asked if his convictions cost him anything.
Mike replied, “It hasn’t cost me anything.” He goes on to describe how he went all in for the President during a private meeting with him in 2016. They “talked about the inner cities and about addictions,” and then Trump told Mike about “all the things he was going to do, including bringing jobs back.” Mike “didn’t know anything about politics,” but he “walked out of that room saying, ‘Wow, he’s going to be the greatest president ever.’”
Mike then “prayed about it” and then “went all in and never looked back.” Mike describes how he was attacked due to his vocal support of Trump. “The Better Business Bureau moved me from an A+ to an F.” And when he sent out a press release about his support of Trump after his meeting with him, all he got were “hate emails saying I was a racist and stuff.”
But, Mike “broke through all of that.” And now “my busiest day at MyPillow is always the day we’re in. It is so busy. I’ve sold 46 million pillows, have 1,600 employees, and I advertise on all stations.”
As for the boycotts, Mike quips that he’s heard people say, “Don’t boycott Mike Lindell, he’ll just double his ads, and we see enough of that guy already.”
Mike’s memoir: the improbable tale of how a small-town guy with a dream goes from “the crack house to the White House”
What Are the Odds? From Crack Addict to CEO is “An unvarnished account of the ravages of cocaine, crack, and gambling addiction, What Are the Odds? tells the improbable tale of how a small-town guy with a dream somehow made it a reality. More importantly, Mike opens up about the God who relentlessly chased him down, turning him from a casual believer to a passionate evangelist with an absolute, mathematical certainty that God is real.”
Buy What Are the Odds? From Crack Addict to CEO now and read all about Mike’s amazing journey.