Kevin Harvick has revealed how a conversation with Chase Elliott at the annual Chili Bowl Nationals helped completely shift his post-retirement perspective, allowing him to race for enjoyment rather than results.

Harvick, 50, called time on his full-time NASCAR Cup Series career at the conclusion of the 2023 season, bringing to an end a 23-season run that yielded 826 starts, 60 victories, and the Cup Series Championship in 2014.

The former Stewart-Haas Racing star, who is set to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in January, however, was left feeling he never wanted to race again after calling time on his career, having been deeply burnt out.

Speaking on "The Dale Jr. Download" this week, Harvick referenced the relentless pressure, responsibility, and constant public critique that came with NASCAR racing that made him feel this way.

However, a piece of advice from Elliott changed his entire mental approach to grassroots and Late Model racing, in which he continues to compete in select races to this day, allowing him to race for enjoyment rather than results.

"One thing that really struck me a few years ago was Chase Elliott at the Chili Bowl," Harvick began. "He's like, 'I felt like I needed to step outside of my comfort zone and not worry about my result.'

"It took me several months to get over the fact that I needed to go to the racetrack and not worry about the result. But that conversation was really, really good for me to hear.

"It just took me a little while to get myself to the point where I was like, 'All right, well, I might go to the racetrack this week and get lapped,' and I did.

"I was kind of p----- and then I got out and I drank a beer and I thought about that conversation and I was like, 'You know what? I had a hell of a time.'

"I can go to the racetrack now and I don't even have to worry about where I finish anymore. Yeah, it'd be really cool to win some. We won some of those races and ran up front in some and got our a-- kicked in some, but they are all pretty fun."

Harvick drives the iconic No. 29 car for Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) on a select, part-time schedule that focuses heavily on the CARS Tour West series, including races at venues such as Tucson Speedway, Kern Raceway, and the Las Vegas Bullring.

Alongside his part-time racing duties, Harvick also works in the FOX Sports broadcast booth as a color commentator for the network's NASCAR broadcasts, with the 2026 season being his third year in the role.

Elsewhere, Harvick stays busy as a co-owner of the zMAX CARS Tour series alongside Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton, and Justin Marks, actively working to unify rulebooks and grow short-track racing across the country, and also operates his own Raceway in Bakersfield, California.