What does it really mean to live a meaningful life?

In episode 128 of Talk with Schevig, I sit down with American actor, author and speaker Rodger Halston for a deeply personal conversation about Hollywood, ambition, grief, human connection — and the moments that can change the course of a life.

Rodger grew up on a ranch in Oregon with dreams of becoming an actor. When an opportunity took him to Los Angeles, he was willing to sacrifice almost everything to pursue it — even spending five months homeless, sleeping in a two-man tent.

Eventually, that journey took him from the tent to Hollywood productions and a home overlooking the ocean in Malibu. But behind the glamour, Rodger discovered an industry that could be both exhilarating and brutally unforgiving.

We talk about the shallow and transactional side of Hollywood, rejection, ambition, and why achieving success doesn’t necessarily teach you what really matters.

But this conversation goes much deeper than Hollywood.

Rodger shares the devastating story of losing his father after they had stopped speaking — and the extraordinary event that happened exactly one year later, when his daughter Avalon was born on the same date and within the same 15-minute window as his father’s fatal accident.

We also talk about grief and why trying to suppress emotional pain rarely makes it disappear.

Rodger tells stories about strangers who became friends, encounters that changed his perspective, and an 86-year-old woman he met at Niagara Falls who left him with one unforgettable question:

“What are you waiting for?”

At the heart of Rodger’s philosophy is a simple idea:

Spread love and watch the magic happen.

In a world where we increasingly stare at our phones instead of at each other, perhaps some of the most important moments in our lives are waiting in conversations we haven’t had yet.

We talk about:

• Chasing the Hollywood dream
  • Sleeping homeless in Los Angeles
  • The brutal reality behind the entertainment industry
  • Why rejection doesn’t necessarily mean failure
  • Playing Jesus — and how the role changed Rodger’s life
  • Losing his father with words left unsaid
  • His daughter’s extraordinary birth one year later
  • Suppressed grief and emotional healing
  • Post-traumatic growth
  • Loneliness and our increasingly disconnected society
  • The stranger in Harlem who became one of his closest friends
  • The 86-year-old woman who taught him to stop waiting
  • Love, forgiveness and human connection
  • Why we need to put down our phones and start noticing each other
  • And why it may never be too late to pursue the life you really want

This is a conversation about success — but perhaps even more about being alive.