John O’Leary – Living a Soul on Fire Life

In 1987, John O’Leary was a curious nine-year-old boy. Playing with fire and gasoline, John created a massive explosion in his home and was burned on 100% of his body. He was given less than a 1% chance to live. 

This epic story of survival was first showcased in Overwhelming Odds, the book his parents wrote in 2006. It was this book that first invited John to embrace his miraculous recovery and share it with the world. 

Today, John inspires tens of thousands of people at more than 100 live and virtual events each year. He partners with companies and organizations across fields, such as sales, healthcare, safety, marketing, finance, faith, education and insurance. 

Consistently described as “the best speaker we’ve ever had,” John’s tireless schedule is a testament to the power of his message. His emotional storytelling, unexpected humor and authenticity make each presentation unforgettable. 

John is a two-time bestselling author of On Fire: The 7 Choices to Ignite a Radically Inspired Life and In Awe: Rediscover Your Childlike Wonder to Unleash Inspiration, Meaning and Joy. 

John’s award-winning Live Inspired Podcast has more than seven million downloads and enjoys world-class guests such as Brené Brown, Mitch Albom, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Bob Costas. 

Amazingly, John’s story is taking on a new form: a full-length feature film starring Joel Courtney, John Corbett, and William H. Macy. SOUL ON FIRE will be released in theaters nationwide on October 10, 2025.

Regardless of his professional accomplishments, John considers his greatest success to be his marriage to his wife Beth, their four children and his relationships with friends and family. 

Takeaways:

1. Life before the accident.  John mentions that life for his family was REALLY good but “we didn’t know it.”  Isn’t this how we all are?  It’s so easy for us to move through life without stopping to take a look around and appreciate all that we have.  John’s story is just another reminder here.  Especially in today’s fast-paced world – we need to MAKE time to stop and appreciate our family, friends, and all of those people and things for which we should be grateful.
2. The instant responses to the fire of John’s siblings.  Like the Navy Seals say, you don’t rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training.  Here’s it’s not so much about training as it is about the seeds of foundation that were planted by John’s family.  As John said in our conversation, the instantaneous, instinctive, and heroic responses  of his siblings at the sight of their brother on fire were all the result of two parents who, as John put it figuratively “sat at the head of the table and insisted that the siblings loved each other.”
3. True, Genuine, Unconditional and sometimes tough love from John’s parents.  From his Dad running after him to tell him he loves him, to, in the movie saying repeatedly “I love you and there’s nothing you can do about it” to his Mom and her tough love, forcing John to find a way to eat on his own from the very beginning, despite the challenges. This is a great example of the REAL love we should all strive for…and, I would say John turned out pretty good, so it worked.
4. Fighting to LIVE.  John’s Mom didn’t give him just any answer when he asked if he was going to die.  She gave him a real one that came with a challenge.  And John more than answered that challenge.  This became one of the main themes of John’s journey – choosing and fighting to not just survive, but to THRIVE.
5. John's job after college – as a real estate developer.  As John said, “It’s one thing to overcome the fire. It’s another to LIVE after it.”  It’s hard to find a better example of the aggressive application of this phrase than this.  Scars over his entire body.  No fingers.  And he chose to go fix up and flip houses.  All he did here, was make a career out of it for 10 years.  Simply amazing.
6. Mission statement for life – why do you choose to thrive?  We talk about companies having mission statements all the time. But, not as much for individuals.  John’s is a pretty strong one – God demands it.  My family deserves it.  The world is starving for it.  Let’s roll.  No excuses – is there any doubt John has lived his mission statement?  What’s yours?  Create one that works for you. Then go live it.
7. Jack Buck.  The amazing way Jack, a hall of fame baseball announcer for John’s favorite team, showed up for John – not only to help him through his situation, but to coach him up along the way, as he did helping John learn to write.  We can all help somebody – and we should strive to pour ourselves out for others like Jack did more often.  
8. Living In Awe.  As we discussed, John’s book, In Awe, is a great reminder to live like we did as kids before “adulting” got in the way.  Not avoiding or ignoring responsibilities, but rather just living on OFFENSE, instead of defense.  Like John’s son, Jack, told him “Dad, I’m playing to win and you’re playing not to lose.”  There’s a difference.  It’s not always easy, but let’s follow Jack’s way.  

Links:

Soul on Fire Movie:

Website: https://soulonfiremovie.com/

Instagram: @SoulOnFireMovie

Facebook: @SoulOnFireMovie

TikTok: @SoulOnFireMovie

Twitter: @SoulOnFireMovie

YouTube: @SoulOnFireMovie

 

John’s Social Media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnoleary.inspires/?hl=en 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JohnOLearyRisingAbove/ 

Website: https://johnolearyinspires.com/johns-story/