We recently had the chance to connect with Albert Lew and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Albert, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
Well, talk about a loaded intro question to jump right in. 🙂 I think in my last interview with you guys (https://boldjourney.com/meet-albert-lew/), I alluded to really living an amazing, incredible life without any self-imposed limits and a majority of that was being an actor/writer/artist in Los Angeles. As part of trying to ease my mind from the ups/downs of that career, I touched upon running marathons as a side quest. So in that sense for this current collaboration, I think it’s running around the world via the Abbott World Marathon Major races!
Looking back with an eye ahead, I think that chase is about sustaining that capability. It’s the sheer enjoyment of maintaining a high-performance system for myself, always ready for the next challenge. If I stopped, I think part of that joy would fade because I’d be wasting what I’ve attempted to build so far. For me, self-preservation is found in continuous, joyful execution, not only in resting on a past achievement.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
First, thanks for approaching me to collaborate with you again!
To briefly recap for the TLDR crowd, my name is Albert (or Al, as friends call me) and I am an actor/writer/artist based in Los Angeles, CA mainly in the San Gabriel Valley. Next to reading scripts, auditioning, acting, and writing/producing my own material, I have a background in engineering which lets me pay the bills and other side quests along my big journey.
All this which, leads to my most recent enormous side quest of long distance running and recently, completing the Sydney Marathon to capture all (so far) 7 world marathon majors. This achievement places me as the first 7-Star Finisher in the San Gabriel Valley area. It’s a moment that felt surreal because, based on the current numbers, this is a feat accomplished as roughly one in every 1.85 million people globally, or about 0.000054% of the world population. If you’d ask me a few years ago if I’d ever have an opportunity and push to do this, I’d roll over laughing because I couldn’t imagine. But here we are and I couldn’t be more grateful for it.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I’m gonna try to answer this backwards. I’ve noticed the world kind of follows this pattern that’s considered “normal” or “mature”:
Take out massive loans and go to college —> Get a 9-5 job with a decent salary and benefits —> Get married —> Have kids —> Take on a mortgage —> Work 30 years in something you’re not terribly passionate about —> Retire, buy workout gear, play golf, and hold up lines at the post office —> Die
This is what’s expected of you and who you “had” to be.
For me, that type of “adulting” buried who I was at an early age: to have that inquisitive and adventurous nature of going against the grain to strive for something more. My father showed me in my teens how he stayed healthy from the sedentary office by daily running. While he didn’t do any races and I didn’t come around to running until I exited my 20s, I think that essence never left me because I started trying to move away from my own office routine and out into the world.
That morphed into the 7-Star Finisher journey. For me, it wasn’t a chore; it was the ultimate, multi-disciplinary hobby. It allowed me to apply my childlike wonder to do something more – in short, to experience the simple pleasure of testing my physical limits on a global stage. This achievement is simply the adult version of that original, boundless excitement for learning and doing.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering (in context of making mistakes or coming up short) has taught me precision and humility. Especially with running long distances like marathons, you only build up your endurance by first tearing down what you think you know about yourself. It’s been said that pain is temporary but suffering is optional.
Having lived some life, I’d say that’s actually wrong – suffering is necessary, because it’s often the best teacher.
You learn nothing from success but without being too much a downer, all that strips away the false face of pride and leaves only grit. I believe it’s that grit which makes use endure better and more consistently. In my case, it was to hold fast as I went around the world to finish each race.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I think I am fundamentally committed to the belief that effort is an investment that always pays a dividend. The 7-Star Finisher journey proved this commitment over years of training, recovery and a self-belief that things would be possible if you take wise actions towards those goals. It wasn’t always easy, but it was always rewarding, and the resulting medals and place in the history books is the greatest possible return on my self-investment.
My current commitment is simply enjoying the freedom and capability that discipline has afforded me. It’s a road with touchstones that still stretches forward, both to rest and to continue to train, perhaps staying ready for the next World Major if it comes.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
What I think I deeply understand that most people don’t, is actually nothing new. I think everyone innately knows this.
A true freedom – one without limits – is actually done through discipline.
Many people see discipline as restrictive or purely serious. When I see it, it’s like an engine that powers my freedom, my ability, and my will to enjoy these exceptional, cool pursuits.
This structure that allows me to be an actor, writer, engineer, a pilot, and a 7-Star Finisher is not a burden; it is the ultimate enabler. That capability allows me to approach every new challenge—and every sunset from a cockpit or a finish line—with a sense of self-directed purpose and profound satisfaction.
To me, it’s not about being the best anywhere and everywhere at everything; it’s about guiding your own life to living without limits.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://imdb.me/albertlew
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thealbertlew/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thealbertlew/
- Twitter: https://www.threads.com/@thealbertlew
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/albertlew
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thealbertlew
- Other: Links: https://bio.site/albertlew
Official Site: https://www.albertlew.com/
Reels: https://vimeo.com/showcase/9125066
Google: https://g.co/kgs/AcFkNkAlbert is repped by Bloom Artists Agency.
Image Credits
Featured Photo: Zaugh Photography; Lombardy photo: Richard Lin, Ricky Yip, Marc Papas; Running in Air photo: Hans Gutknecht, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG; all others are personal photos taken from Tokyo Marathon, London Marathon, Boston Marathon expo, and Sydney Marathon.
