The Power of One: Why Impact Beats Attention (And How Relationships Change Everything)
He walked away from the dream people spend their whole lives chasing. And it led him straight to the life he was actually meant to live.
In this deeply emotional and wildly honest episode of Quick Before You Forget, host Ty Schmidt learns from Jason Fitz, a Juilliard-trained violinist, former touring musician with platinum records, and now one of the most respected voices in sports media, to talk about what it really takes to build a life that feels like yours.
This is a conversation about betting on yourself before you have proof, following curiosity when the path makes no sense, choosing purpose over applause, and learning that the people who change your life are often the ones who simply make you feel seen.
Jason shares the nonlinear story of going from classical violin and country music stages to ESPN and Yahoo Sports, but this episode is about so much more than career reinvention. It’s about self-belief, identity, gratitude, grief, presence, emotional honesty, and the kind of impact that lasts longer than fame ever could.
If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s too late to pivot, whether your path makes sense, whether your struggle has shaped you for something greater, or whether relationships still matter in a world obsessed with overnight success, this one is for you.
In this episode, we talk about:
How Jason Fitz went from Juilliard to national sports media
Why the most powerful career moves rarely look logical at first
The truth about self-belief when nobody else understands your vision
Why your why has to be stronger than your fear
How real relationships create the “benefit of the doubt” that changes everything
What gratitude can do in your darkest moments
The power of being emotional, honest, and fully human
Why presence matters more than chasing the next thing
How to stop living for one version of yourself and embrace the fullness of who you are
This episode is for the dreamers, the feelers, the builders, the pivoters, the people with a complicated story, and the ones trying to remember who they are while becoming who they’re meant to be.
00:00 Why relationships still matter more than virality
01:21 Meet Jason Fitz
03:39 From child violin prodigy to Juilliard
08:19 How music became his first career
10:39 The moment success stopped feeling fulfilling
11:54 Starting a sports podcast before it was cool
13:01 “I don’t need 40,000 listeners. I need one.”
13:35 The DM that changed his life
15:34 How ESPN finally noticed him
17:54 Quitting the band and betting on himself
20:18 Belief, fear, and the courage to keep going
22:38 Why your why has to be your drug
29:48 The mentor who changed everything
34:32 Benefit of the doubt changes everything
36:58 The power of being seen
39:18 Don’t just look for help — become it
41:38 Getting cut by ESPN and responding with gratitude
45:57 Perspective can be power or prison
48:13 Gratitude in the middle of real life
50:32 Family pain, healing, and honesty
52:50 How to stay grounded in the present
55:12 Stop chasing the next thing
57:33 The songs that bring him back to himself
58:20 What Turn the Page really meant to him
01:00:25 The magic of building something new
01:00:58 Why he’ll never let go of his emotions
01:02:40 You are allowed to be more than one thing
01:03:35 What matters most right now
01:05:03 Jason’s final message to the world
01:06:14 Where to find Jason Fitz
01:06:54 Outro Quick before you forget: You do not need a straight line.
You need courage, clarity, and the willingness to trust what keeps calling you.
Follow Jason Fitz: @jasonfitz Watch and listen via Yahoo Sports, Fox Sports Radio, and Yahoo Sports TV.