Speaker 1: 0:00

The people who give up on their fight when they know somebody said this is what the truth is of you, and you know it's not the truth that they never stop fighting.

Speaker 2: 0:07

I knew if I could survive this. I could survive anything, you know. I could take on the world and not be afraid of what life would throw at me.

Speaker 1: 0:30

Welcome back to another episode of the Burn. I am Ben Newman and you know how we do this. Every single week, we're going to bring you a story of an athlete, an entertainer, a celebrity, somebody from the business world who helps us understand and reminds us that why and purpose is not enough. There's this underlying burn that ignites your why and purpose and causes you to show up on the days you don't feel like it, and especially after you win. I don't know if I've ever said this on the show, but you better listen up and you better be ready, because today is a story like you have never heard. Picture knowing that the things people said, or maybe what ended up happening in your life was not to happen, the way that it ended up happening. And then, all of a sudden, because of a lack of resources, a lack of energy, because of some of the parts of the story where you did not know how to fight, your life changed forever. Imagine that, imagine feeling helpless, imagine not knowing what to do, and imagine just accepting a truth that was not your truth. This story has ups. This story has downs. This story has some very sad realities to it, but it has a burn that is absolutely extraordinary and one that you have never come close to hearing on the burn before.

Speaker 1: 2:19

Alex Donalo has an amazing story, an absolutely incredible story, one that I had the opportunity to hear for the first time when I was in Coeur d'Alene, idaho, with my dear friend, eric Rock our dear friend, eric Rock, and it was Eric's group man on a Mission and they'd come together for one of their events. I had the blessing of being able to speak that day and Alex was being honored that day for his story, for his fight, for his fire, for his passion, for his resilience, and I didn't know who Alex was before that day. And Alex stood up on that stage and shared parts of his story and I said, wow, this guy is amazing. And as he was telling his story, I looked over at his wife, amanda, and I said holy cow. I said look at the love in the eyes she looks at him with, look at the strength of their marriage, what they have been through, the fight they're in every day because of his burn, which is a burn like you have never heard before.

Speaker 1: 3:22

Alex, you have an amazing story, a story that's improbable, a story where people would say how in the world could you have an eight-figure real estate portfolio. How could you now become a titan in the real estate world? How could you have a portfolio that spans the country? How could you now be a recognized, powerful speaker and coach, having been through what you've been through? Well, we're going to uncover those answers right now, as I introduce you to my friend. It is a blessing to have you with us, alex Donalo.

Speaker 2: 3:57

So honored. Thank you for that introduction and just grateful to be here. I love and admire you and everything that you do and you're about, so I'm just grateful for the opportunity to add value to you and your listeners.

Speaker 1: 4:12

I'm so grateful for you to be here and I know we now have people in tree Like what is this story? So I am just going to be quiet. And a kid who grew up in ogden utah, who moved to cordelaine, idaho at six years old, probably didn't envision that you'd go through some of what you went through in your life. But let me be quiet and allow you to tell your story that revealed your burn and became the platform for how you attack life today absolutely Absolutely so.

Speaker 2: 4:47

I guess I'll just start with a little backstory that led up to the tragedy that manifested my burn. I grew up an only child. My parents split when I was young. There was a lot of love in my family, but plenty of dysfunction as well. My dad was really of love in my family, but plenty of dysfunction as well. My dad was really loving, supportive, involved, but he was also strict and old-fashioned, wanted me to get good grades, stay out of trouble and go to college. My mom was a little more free-spirited, adventurous, spontaneous, and that came with its pros and cons. She, spontaneous, and that came with its pros and cons. She, you know we were always going on fun trips and vacations, doing a lot of fun things. But she was also a heavy drinker, heavy partier. She had lots of boyfriends around the house who weren't great role models, and so by the time I was a teenager, you know, rules and boundaries at my mom's house were pretty much non-existent.

Speaker 2: 5:46

By the time I was 14, I was having sex, drinking, smoking pot, and I was essentially living two separate lives that you know, kind of playing the role of goody good at my dad's house and then hoodlum at my mom's house. And you know, fortunately I was smart and athletic, so I was able to keep up appearances with my dad by doing good in sports and getting good grades. I was even in advanced classes. But then by night I was partying at my mom's house and as I got into high school that it got harder and harder to juggle sort of those dual identities. I graduated to harder drugs like psychedelics and ecstasy and cocaine. I was partying all the time at my mom's house. She was buying me and my friends alcohol. She'd even smoke pot with us. I started skipping school. My grades were dropping, I was getting into fights, finding myself in detention and, uh, you know, I really wanted to do good in life. I I had big dreams and aspirations. I didn't feel like I fit in with the crowd I was associating with, but I just honestly, I didn't like school, I didn't like following rules and I enjoyed partying and um, so inevitably, uh, the ultimate tragedy took place when I was 15 and my, my best friend and I were falsely accused and convicted of rape.

Speaker 2: 7:26

So just to kind of go into how all that unfolded, basically I was sitting in spanish class and the school officer and the principal showed up to class and they. They called me to the office. This wasn't really a rare occurrence because, um, you know I was. I was getting in trouble a lot. So I figured maybe they caught us on the security camera smoking weed in the parking lot again or something.

Speaker 2: 7:50

But when we got to the principal's office, the police officer said that he needed me to come to the police station and give a statement on a crime that one of my friends had committed. So I was at that point like shocked and confused, but I agreed to go with him and then when we got to his car, he told me to put my hands on my head, that I was under arrest, and he put me in the back of the car. I asked what I was being charged with. He said we discussed that when we got to the police station. When we arrived at the police station, my mom was already there. She was hysterically crying and screaming at the other officers. She said she told me don't say anything until we get an attorney. So at that point I was freaking out. I had no idea what was going on.

Speaker 2: 8:39

They put me in an interrogation room with these two officers who proceeded to question me about my whereabouts on a specific night that was about a month or two months prior, and I obviously I couldn't remember where I was on that night. They weren't giving me any information, any details, any specifics. They just kept saying where were you on this night? And I said I don't know. You know, I barely remember what I did last week. I don't remember where I was on this date. Can you give me more information? We just kept going back and forth in these circles. They said you don't remember where you were on this night or committing a crime, and I said no, just please tell me what I'm being charged with. And they finally said you're being charged with rape.

Speaker 2: 9:20

At that point I was obviously shocked and confused, but I was also relieved because, you know, I figured, I knew I hadn't raped anybody. So I figured that either they had the wrong person or someone had fabricated a story about me. And you know we'd be able to get to the bottom of this, clear things up, and they'd let me go. So they went back to question me. Okay, so do you remember where you were on this night? Do you remember committing that crime on this night? I said I haven't raped anybody, I'm innocent. I don't know what you're talking about Like. Please give me more information. Who's saying this?

Speaker 2: 9:55

They weren't allowed to tell me her name. They could only give me her initials and her age. They gave me her initials. They said she was 16 years old. I was, you know, more sexually active than I should have been at that time and unfortunately, the initials didn't help at all. I couldn't think of anyone with those initials. I figured they just had the wrong guy and this question just went on and on. We're going in circles, and they just were not giving me any details. They wanted me to fess up to something that you know I hadn't done.

Speaker 2: 10:26

And then I, by happenstance, I threw the window on the door. I saw my best friend's mom in the hallway and she was also crying hysterically. And right then it clicked. I knew what night they were referring to and I told the officers, officers, everything. I told them that my best friend and I, my best friend Chad and I had slept with the same girl at a party and while it was inappropriate, it was completely consensual and we absolutely did not rape anybody. And the next thing I knew they were driving me to juvenile detention.

Speaker 2: 11:04

And so when we got to juvenile detention, when I got to juvenile detention. I saw Chad in the jail cell. He was already there. We spent the night there and then the next morning the officers came and told me I was being charged, that we were being charged as adults and headed to big boy jail. So they transported me at that point to county jail. I spent a few nights there before my parents were able to bail me out and when I exited the jail I was greeted by dozens of reporters flashing lights, news vans. Our faces were all over the front page of the paper, all over the news channels. We even made national news and you know the allegations were pretty serious, that there was excessive force involved and we were facing life in prison. So at that point figured out through the tabloids essentially, that we were facing life in prison.

Speaker 2: 12:22

So my parents hired a hotshot attorney, chad got a public defender. We were tried separately. We both dropped out of months. There were a lot of nuances to the case. For one she had actually made these accusations on seven other occasions. Her story also kept changing throughout the course of the trial. We had witnesses brought in whose testimonies aligned with our side of the story. We passed polygraphs. So odds were obvious that if we went to trial, it would have been very difficult for them to convict us.

Speaker 2: 12:57

But during this long drawn out process, he and I both fell into a spiral of depression and self-sabotage. I pretty much gave up the will to fight. I became suicidal. I ended up getting a misdemeanor possession charge. I got a DUI. My parents sent me to the hospital for suicide prevention and then they sent me to a reform camp in the desert wilderness camp in the desert for three months and then they eventually shipped me off to boarding school because I just I'd given up. I was just continued messing up, throwing my life away.

Speaker 2: 13:38

And then, while I was at boarding school, I heard from my attorney that Chad's public defender had convinced him to testify against me and that he was going to essentially say that I was guilty and he was innocent as a way of hopefully, you know getting him off scot-free. So then he ended up when he got called to the stand, he changed his mind. He pled the fifth, he retracted that statement and you know it was a noble move. But the damage had been done. You know. They just confused the courts even more, giving them reason to doubt us.

Speaker 2: 14:16

So things were pretty nuanced and convoluted and when the prosecution finally offered a plea deal, I was faced with a really tough decision, because at this point we were facing, you know, life in prison, had we gone to trial. The prosecution offered a plea deal that was they were going to lessen the charges to a non-sex offense that carried a maximum of 10 years in prison and they were going to recommend one year probation to the judge. So, even though I wanted desperately to fight for my truth and go to trial, I decided not to risk it. Plus, chad had accepted the plea deal, so I would have been fighting alone at that point. So I accepted the plea deal and then, in his sentencing remarks, the judge basically said you know, even though the events of that night are questionable and unclear, it was obvious that we were headed down the wrong path and needed to be set straight. And he threw the book at us maximum sentence 10 years in prison.

Speaker 2: 15:22

And the worst part of it all was we were only. We were still only 16 at the time, and so, since we were minors, we had to be housed in solitary confinement for the first few months until they could figure out how to integrate us into general population. So you know, solitary confinement, maximum security, 24 hour lockdown. That was pretty terrible, but then general population honestly wasn't much better because even though we weren't in on sex charges, they housed us with the other sex offenders so we were categorized as sex offenders. If you know anything about prison culture, sex offenders are pretty hated in prisons and have a target on their back, and so that came with its own set of difficulties. So I ended up getting released after just one year.

Speaker 2: 16:19

It was a long, excruciating year, the hardest year of my life, but Chad unfortunately took his own life while incarcerated. Yeah, and you know, that only amplified my burn even more. Essentially, I was determined to become successful, to show the world they were wrong about us and, to you know, forge a legacy for the both of us that superseded this dark chapter in our lives. So when I got out, I was on parole for a total of five years. I was struggling with severe depression, anxiety, ptsd, but I did everything I could, to you know, not let that hold me back.

Speaker 2: 17:12

I got heavily involved in recovery groups and became, you know, a mentor and a leader, and inside those recovery groups I started, you know, reading all the books, studying personal development, business and I started my construction company and then I also pursued my childhood passion of becoming an actor. So I had my construction company, but I also got an agent and I had the opportunity to work on several films and television shows and, you know, worked alongside some of the biggest names in Hollywood, attended these red carpet events, even convinced my parole officer and my judge to let me move to New York for a semester to attend the New York Film Academy. And that was all that up leading up to that. I was about 19. And then, when I moved back home to Coeur d'Alene, I had my daughter when I was 20.

Speaker 2: 18:13

And around that time I decided that my passion for business outweighed my passion for being an actor. So my construction company evolved into flipping houses, buying rentals and then eventually buying commercial properties and, like you mentioned, today we have an eight figure portfolio, close to 1000 units nationwide. We buy about 20 million a year. I have a great team around me. My wife helped me, helps me, run the company, she's my COO and we're getting ready to welcome my second daughter into the world in March. And I guess, just to cap it off, you know, and bring us to present times in 2020.

Speaker 1: 18:59

Can I ask just one quick? Question before you get there, you mentioned that living for him and for you became the burn. Was this something that you thought about every day, knowing and I know we're going to get to this part knowing that you were absolutely innocent and one day you believed that you would be cleared?

Speaker 2: 19:22

that's a good question. I mean, I lived every day knowing that I was innocent, but I, like I mentioned before the podcast, I didn't know that I was going to go back and continue to fight to clear my name. My goal was to clear my name through redemption, through my actions, through my accolades.

Speaker 1: 19:43

But during that period of time you were every day thinking of the burn to live for him Absolutely. But you also knew you were innocent.

Speaker 2: 19:52

Yeah, that became my survival mechanism. While I was, you know, preparing to get out was, I was envisioning the life that I was going to create, all the extraordinary things that I was going to do to redeem us 2020, after you know, this was only a few years ago I that was when I finally decided to go back and clear my name officially and I put together a legal team. I had no idea how it was going to go. I had to go back in front of the same judge. It wasn't the same prosecutor, it was a new prosecutor. At the time, the prosecutor contested it. My judge, you know, there was. It all happened very quickly, but my judge spoke very few words. He just immediately approved our motion. He was very stoic back at sentencing. Very stoic, had a very you know, it seemed that he had his mind made up that that I was guilty, essentially, and everything seemed completely different this time around whether it was, you know Everything. He'd seen that I accomplished up to this point, the combination of that and Chad killing himself. But he didn't even hesitate. He approved our motion. They dropped the felony. They sealed my record. He approved our motion. They dropped the felony, they sealed my record.

Speaker 2: 21:29

And then in 2023, was when I had my chance to tell my story on stage for the first time. I was, like you mentioned, a part of Eric Rock's man on a Mission I'm so grateful for him mastermind thinking. It was sort of a business networking incubator. Come to find out it was all about, you know, tapping into purpose and mission. And so everyone sort of got this opportunity to give a TED talk about their life and their story.

Speaker 2: 21:47

And I told my story for the first time and I realized essentially that I'd been running from running from my past up until then, you know, trying to cover it up with success and achievements and put myself in the limelight as a successful real estate investor or Hollywood actor. And it was at that point, after giving my talk for the first time, that I discovered, you know, my true place in the limelight, which is a place of inspiration and impact and using my story for good. And you know, I'd say I'm only just in the beginning phases of of speaking on stage and learning how to turn my pain into purpose, but I've gotten a glimpse at how my darkness can bring light to others, so I'm determined to continue growing my impact and you know, I, I.

Speaker 1: 22:41

This is one of the reasons I wanted you to share your story and it's a very, very powerful thing for me. Many you don't know this many people people have heard me, whether it be on the burn or hearing me speak. I had a very up and down and challenging relationship with my father. You know a dark relationship. There were parts that were great. There were lessons that were always learned, but my father was a trial attorney and my dad was didn't lose a case for 15 straight years. I mean, he was a very successful, prominent trial attorney and did very well as an attorney.

Speaker 1: 23:23

My father always believed in pro bono cases, and a pro bono case for the listeners that don't know are cases when somebody does not have the money to represent themselves. Then, through the aclu, there's attorneys who will say I will represent a certain number of cases and not charge fees. The main individuals that my dad always represented were the wrongfully accused and um, it makes me emotional because of the pain that my dad has, but um it it brings tears to my eyes because of the strength and resilience that you have to fight a fight where you felt like a fight was taken away from you and then to see your best friend lose his fight. Um, my, my dad committed so much of his career on the pro bono side to fighting for individuals like you, and I remember the joy he'd come home and he'd say, well, this person had, this one was a rape case, and this person and my dad would be like there's no way he did this. I heard the facts of the case and it's you know.

Speaker 1: 24:28

A lot of times people stop fighting for themselves.

Speaker 1: 24:32

And the fact that you now carry the burn on for your best friend, who I'm sure there isn't a day that goes by that you don't wish he just would have had that extra fight, and for you to now carry that on through the life that you have, you just you have great strength and I just hope that people are listening, because I'm proud of you for finding the courage to not just know who you are and the truth of who you are, but now to be able to stand on a stage and not have shame in sharing your story, because there are many stories like yours, but there's also people out there that need to hear these tough, challenging stories because, alex, they give up and you're an individual who's going to be a catalyst for stories like this and the more that you share it, and I hope conversations that we've had and things that we've been able to do through our events or, you know, through coach to coaches that you just continue to lean into that more, because the world needs catalysts like you.

Speaker 1: 25:30

So the people who give up on their fight when they know somebody said this is what the truth is of you and you know it's not the truth that they never stopped fighting. So your, your story is so beautiful and powerful.

Speaker 2: 25:42

Absolutely Well. That means the world to me and, um, yeah, you know it was, it was a horrific experience, but it, it forced me to, um, you know, strengthen my, my mind and um, my willpower and my resilience. And obviously, you know, it became my burn, the driving force that pushes me towards greatness. And, honestly, it, it, um, it strengthened my, my confidence in my self, belief in myself, even though I had to overcome the PTSD and the doubt. I also I knew if I could survive this, I could survive anything. You know I could take on the world and not be afraid of what life would throw at me.

Speaker 2: 26:25

So, you know, leading into the to today and expanding my impact, I'm in the process of writing my first book and I'm also in the process of starting my first charity, which is geared towards free mentorship and workshops for teens and adults who are in and out of jail, prison, juvenile detention, transitional housing and lack positive role models, because I actually met a lot of very smart, capable, good-hearted people inside those walls who possessed a lot of potential and potentially make a positive impact on this world with the right support and guidance.

Speaker 2: 27:07

You know, and you and I know better than anyone, that adversity is a prerequisite to you know, greatness. And so to just lock these guys up and, um, you know, treat them like animals and assume that they're destined for failure, I think that's a disservice to society. They might be the next Dan Martell or the next Eric Rock or the Ben Newman, and so that's my mission and my purpose now, and part of my vision for that um program, is to actually go inside the walls and give workshops and talks and develop a jailhouse curriculum for personal development and self-met mastery. I want to raise money and advocate for yoga, meditation, um and breath work and ideally just help to empower these guys to help find their, their hope and purpose you know well I'm.

Speaker 1: 28:00

It's just it's awesome to see you taking the action and so many of these steps were taken. You know, before you know we met and so many of these steps and you know, eric, having you speak for the first time and sharing the story and I heard you share the story when I was there and you received that award as a result of work you were already doing. But I have seen you elevate since going through our coach to coaches program. We really take people behind 19 years of what we've done. It's nothing surfacing. We basically peel back the curtain and teach people everything you know that we've done. But one of the things I want to have fun with and then I want you to talk about, what most excites you about these next chapters is you may not know it, but I believe you're the world record holder for coach to coaches. When you talk about resilience, alex refused to miss a session. I think he attended a session.

Speaker 1: 28:55

You were on an airplane traveling with Amanda, I think. One time your Zoom screen. You were like on a beach in Hawaii. One time you're at the Mavdon that's the name of your company Mavdon headquarters. You've been at your house. I mean it was like every week, it was like it didn't matter the demands of your schedule. You were going to be there and I knew when I saw that I'm like this guy's going to take action, and you know, whether it be the videos and the content and just your relentless pursuit of wanting to help people through the real estate side to coaching and speaking, to mentoring it's really beautiful to watch because it's a it's an honor to be able to coach individuals and to share things that I know work.

Speaker 1: 29:41

But nothing is more gratifying than the individual who takes things that I've learned, other things you've learned from other people, and to watch somebody like you take that consistent action in order to build something of significance. So I just, I just want to say I appreciate watching you continue to take the action that you take, and my last question for you today was when's the book coming out? You stole my thunder. I was going to say to you like you have got to write a book. A book has got to be written. So that's makes me very happy to know that as well.

Speaker 2: 30:16

It's been in the process.

Speaker 2: 30:17

Yeah, the title is convicted from from life in prison to a life of purpose, and so, you know, sometime middle next year I'll have that out.

Speaker 2: 30:28

And yeah, just to touch on what you said, you know it's the growth over this last year, even last six months, is just a testament to, to mentorship and to, you know, learning from you and growing with you and with guys like Eric, and just the validation that you know that my story is where my power lies.

Speaker 2: 30:50

You know, because it's so easy to get caught up in the day to day operations of our, of our business and entrepreneurship. And then, you know, work with someone like you, you know top four rated speaker in the world who reminds me that you know, it's all in my story, it's in my testimony, it's in my burn, and so that's been the catalyst to my content, which is you've probably seen a shift in that lately which has been geared towards um, you know more of the personal development side, instilling hope and inspiration and empowering people, and so I'm just grateful for you. And yeah, in terms of coach to coaches, I just you were delivering the gold and the value every week. I wasn't gonna miss it and I'm, you know I'm on a path to continue working with you and growing with you, and thank you so much for having me on here.

Speaker 1: 31:42

No, it's just, it's a blessing to be able to share your story and you know, one of the reasons, specifically this time and you don't know this, I don't mind saying things live is we're going to get this out before the turn of the year. For, specifically for this reason, there are far too many people that are living captive to restraints that they either create themselves or somebody has told them. There are restraints like were put on you that you knew were restraints that didn't have the power. You know there's things about Alex's stories you've heard. I mean there's instilling hope, purpose, self-belief, resilience. There's values that he stood on and there's values that all of you listening have inside of you.

Speaker 1: 32:32

And if you feel trapped, if you feel captive, you've got to just let it go and you have to lean into being your best and I think it's just such a beautiful time of year to share your story so that people can start that process, so that they can get into next year. Just don't allow anything to hold you back and I think that's so much of the beauty and the power of your story. And I love because you've done so many great things just on the real estate side and teaching people. I mean some of the. I mean you sell out. I mean you sell out the webinars and the things that you do and the in-person workshops and the things to teach the process. I mean it's like you post it and then they're sold out, and so I know you could just do that and be fine.

Speaker 1: 33:16

But I have loved watching you step into this, this voice of hope and this voice to help others. It's just, it's beautiful. So I can't thank you enough. It's a great message for everybody to hear and I'll look forward to seeing you in person really soon, look forward to continuing to attack and grow together and just blessed blessed for your friendship and opportunity to share your story. Thank you so much for coming on the Burn.

Speaker 1: 33:38

Thank you so much Ben we're going to make sure that you have the opportunity to see Alex's Instagram handle Everything will be in the show notes and his personal website, which is alexdonalocom, and so every possible way for you to stay connected so you can receive the messaging, receive the hope, remain resilient. If that resilience is something that you can work on in your life, we're going to give you all the easy, easy ways in the call notes. Make sure you take action on it to stay connected with Alex. What a powerful, powerful story I told you.

Speaker 1: 34:12

You better hang on tight and listen closely, because it's a beautiful story, a powerful story, but it's also a story that is deep rooted in legacy and pain as well, and I hope everybody listened that sometimes individuals the fight that that they can't find in themselves, you know have an opportunity to carry that on for somebody else, and that's a powerful, hard truth of Alex's burn, what he now does for him and for his best friend. So please share this episode with somebody who needs to break through, somebody who needs to break out, somebody who needs to let it go. This episode needs to be shared and we appreciate you joining us every single week to hear stories like Alex's that remind us that why and purpose is not enough. It's that underlying burn that ignites your why and purpose and causes you to show up on the days you don't feel like it, and especially after you win. This has been the Burn and we'll see you next week. I'm a guy.