Latest / Elevate The Hustle / E34: The Master Connector: How Ricky Brito Built ForgePoint on Relationships, Not Transactions.

Transcript

E34: The Master Connector: How Ricky Brito Built ForgePoint on Relationships, Not Transactions. · Elevate The Hustle

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: But the biggest lesson I think is just uh being you, just being authentic in in your approach to people, being real, being responsive, and being able to take criticism.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_03: Elevate the hustle.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome to Elevate the Hustle, where we break down what it actually means to build teams, scale companies, and lead with intensity.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_02: I'm your host, Stan Mayton.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_03: I'm Don Picharillo, and today we are here with our buddy Ricky Brito, who has spent years becoming one of the most well-connected people in the insurance industry.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_03: And we're excited to hear about your story today.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome, Ricky.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate you guys so much on so many different levels.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh just becoming to know you and to allow me to be a part of this.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um elevate teams and elevate hustle.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, just everything you guys do is amazing.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for giving me this opportunity on your platform.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate it.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: Look at look at that.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Ricky.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_02: Let's get right into it.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_02: Let's talk about let's talk to Ricky.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna ask you the first question I ask everybody.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_02: What does the word hustle mean to you?
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: Uh hustle, I mean, it has a lot of different meanings, and it's all about perspective and your mindset, being resilient, of course, is working hard.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: And most important is what you can do for others.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's just before in my younger days, it was all about how hard I can work.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: Now it's as I'm mature and I'm an entrepreneur for my business.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: How hard can I work for other people?
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: What can I do for your company?
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: How can I elevate you?
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it and for hustle, having a shakable strength to lead and elevate, that is hustle.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_02: Look at look at that.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_02: You you keep work you keep using that word elevate.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_02: We didn't even we didn't even have to pay you to say that.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_03: We see we see it.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't know.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_02: So so let's let's talk about it.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_02: At what point, let's go back to little Ricky.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_02: At what point were you like, I'm a hustler.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, what what what what was the hustle back then?
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_02: What how'd you get into business entrepreneurship?
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_02: Did you always have it in you?
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know what I think I was kind of like um forced into it.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: We we just don't know what we have until we're we're presented it.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: And for me, I started off working on a roof at the age of 10 because my stepdad was starting his own uh roofing company.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: So during during your summer season, when I was out from school, he put me up on a roof.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: So that's how it all started for me working on roofs.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: And then I remember working for pizza places.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: We used to handle flyers.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: So a few of me and my friends would go to a pizza place, they'll give us stacks of flyers, take us all in this band, would be on our bicycles, and we just pass them out on all doors, you know, put them on cars, doors.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, that's where the hustle started for me, being on the roof, and of course, and that's kind of like entrepreneurship, right?
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: You go off on your own and you're trying to find something that works.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: And as a kid at that age, you don't understand that.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, because hard work comes at a cost, and no one really wants to do the hard work until you put it in and just really appreciate it.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_00: So, yeah, that's how it all started for me.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_03: It sounds safe being on a roof at 10.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it was pretty it was pretty scary at times.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there was just certain things you knew that you know, don't ever step on a piece of plywood that's not um uh uh hammered down yet because you will slide off the roof.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Don't step on any cords because they do roll.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: And when it comes to the hot season, standing on roofs and these fell papers and the shingles, it gets really hot.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: So we would have to go up there, start like crack on before the sun comes out because it gets hot up there.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but yeah, no, it was a good experience, and I think that just those were the things that taught me to uh to really appreciate work, you know.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_02: I love it, I love it.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_02: Everybody everybody gets their start somewhere.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, how did you fall into the wonderful world of insurance?
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it was something I never even thought of, you know.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I at the time I was currently working warehousing, so I did it all from landscaping to warehousing, shipping, receiving, all manual labor work.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: And my cousin, her husband is fully licensed, PNC Life and Health.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: And he said, Ricky, you know, you're you're getting too old for this.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: Let me let me introduce you to that's when he introduced me to John.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: He introduced me to Carlos, and at the time, you know, that the IC Insurance Academy.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I was like, yeah, no, anything that's gonna be much more easier for me, especially though getting up in age.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: So that's how the opportunity starts.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: When he introduced me to the insurance industry, I just fell in love with it.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: I liked it, you know.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so a little bit about that, working with John, great opportunity.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate John.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: I always appreciate Carlos for the opportunity that they give me, uh, opening these doors.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: And it was just a good process.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: So I worked with IC Insurance Academy.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: It was a pre-licensed school for anyone who wanted to get licensed in person, that's where you would do it in in California.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: And I was uh office manager, and that's how I started.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: And then from there, John was already doing his conferences, which was formerly known as Big Independent Group.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, I was just hustling when it came to making sure I called people, calling people on the list, let them know the conferences are coming out, reaching out to different companies.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and and part of the thing was for me, I've always understood that education is important and anything that you do.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: If you just don't know, you just don't know.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_00: And for that, I I grown to like the insurance uh insurance industry networking and meeting people.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: That's key.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_00: That's key.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: Like, as you know me, I love talking to everybody.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: I love networking, net networking with everybody, taking pictures, talking to people.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: And again, for me, it always comes to uplifting someone else, right?
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: And and it's a true statement.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_00: That's just how I live by it.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: How can I be of service to others?
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: And that's kind of like where I try to stay in that lane of how can I elevate others?
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_00: What can I do for you to help you become successful and show them what's out there?
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: Because there's a lot of companies, there's a lot of people out there that are great resources, right?
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: That's gonna help them become successful and grow.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I would say just meeting people, talking to them, that's uh that's one of my fun things.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: No, no, not at all.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's all it's all the way you see it.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you know, I've I've had conversations with all kinds of different walks of life on the people on the retail side, the association side, the company side.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: Some some just have a negative, like you gotta really like what you do.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in this business and you don't like what you do, you're in the wrong place.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: Because you have to be sociable.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's no um keeping things in, you gotta be outgoing, you gotta be sociable in order to make things work in this industry because you have to talk to people.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: I think I I think it's kind of ingrained with me, but uh, of course, you gotta adapt to your surroundings, right?
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_00: You gotta know who you're dealing with and understanding kind of like when you go into a business, you gotta you gotta know the foundations, you gotta understand the inner workings.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's where I excelled at is that I went uh I went at a different approach, right?
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I understood what it takes to be a marketer, that there's gonna be no's.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I and I look out, I look at uh I look at those as challenges.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: For me, I like challenges because I'll overcome any challenge that comes against me, right?
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: When I hear no's, that's fine, it's not a problem.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: I just go beyond that person.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe they didn't see the value in it.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_00: I know the value that we bring, I know the value that I bring to the table.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: You might not see it now because I have a vision.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then of course, when companies want to grow, they need to understand that these are the places they need to be, not just align themselves with myself, but other associations that are out there.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, that's key.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and and most important, most importantly, relationships need to go beyond just the the partnerships or the vendor vendor relationships.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_00: They need to develop into something more because if you're just in it for transactional, then that's as far as it's gonna go, right?
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_00: For me, I'm more personal.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I want to always be in people's inboxes, um, you know, through LinkedIn.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_00: And and that's my thing.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: I understood how LinkedIn worked.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: LinkedIn is a great marketing tool.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, my ROI on LinkedIn is like a thousand percent for one, it's free.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, everybody there, everybody there that I connect with, 99% of the people are with the insurance space.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we're all there for the same reason.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_00: And one of the most important parts is personal branding.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_00: You gotta have a personal brand.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like, what are people gonna know you for?
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: Not everybody's gonna like you, not everybody's gonna have a good thing to say, not everybody's gonna understand why is Ricky taking these pictures, why is he smelling, smiling so much?
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: Why is he dressed up in these three-piece suits coming to coming to these events?
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: People don't understand that, but I do.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: I got the vision, right?
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm gonna bring the I got the vision.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_02: That's the most that's the most important part.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_02: So look, let's talk about a little bit, you know, you you go to all these insurance conferences, you have, you know, relationships with all these agency owners, you know, and you said they need to grow, right?
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_02: What are what what are some things that they're lacking, or or what are some things that they haven't experienced yet?
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_02: Like, why are they kind of in this stuck phase?
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: I I think I think the only reason why I believe they're in this stuck phase is because the limitations that they hold from themselves, right?
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: Are they listening to the negative people that say, oh, that's not gonna work, as opposed to going out there and really putting it together.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: In business, we all have to learn how to pivot, right?
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: We have to duck, we have to dodge, we have to learn what direction, and we have to be able to adapt in anything that we do.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_00: We have to move along with the times.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_00: You have people that will talk about AI.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I don't like AI, AI is just some type of uh word that people just throwing around.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: But in fact, it's key.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: You need these things, right?
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_00: You need staffing, you need virtual assistants to grow.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, Elevate Teams is one of the best companies that I can grow with, right?
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, I just want to make sure that they understand these things and try to open their mind because if you're closed mind and you don't have the education for it, they're not gonna grow.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: Some of their pain points might be their systems, some of their pain points might be hiring.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: Where do they go for hire?
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: What can they do?
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so yeah, there's just a lot of different um pain points that they have, but it all depends on the direction of their agency.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_00: Some agencies just want to stay where they're at today, right?
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: They're just stuck and they're not gonna just change.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: So um, and I want to be able to help them get out of that in any way that I can.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: And if it's through an introduction, then I've succeeded.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I've I've did my job, I've done everything that I can to help.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I think we like to ask the question, what if it goes right?
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_03: Like a lot of people sit there and say, Well, what if this doesn't work?
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_03: What if it goes wrong?
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_03: What if I fail?
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_03: What if blah, blah, blah, insert like negative, you know, thought process.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_03: Like, well, what if it goes right?
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_03: Like, what if it does work?
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_03: What if you learn the best lesson you've ever learned because it didn't work?
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_03: There's there's a there's a completely different mindset that people can have that allows you to be uh in like a growth mentality as opposed to you know, negative, nothing's gonna work and everything's gonna fail and whatever, right?
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_03: So I think you're a good example of that.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_02: If you watch the show or if you listen to the show, you you know, we've had dozens and dozens of entrepreneurs, insurance agency owners, and there's a common theme, right?
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_02: Failure is something that that comes up a lot.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_02: Nobody has ever came in and been like, yeah, knocked it out of the park 100%.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_02: It was perfect, and then it continued to 10x.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_02: And like, and if you know, if they did, we would say you're full of shit because that that does not happen, right?
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_02: Like it's up to close.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_00: And again, it's it's a matter of uh your mindset and the way you perceive things.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: You know, a no for someone that tries real hard to get a no can be a failure to them, and that can let them set them back.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: And again, these are just obstacles that we all have to overcome.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's not what happens to you, it's why it happens for you, right?
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: So it all depends on how you reshape what you're looking at.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_00: What was your learning experience from that?
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_00: What are the next steps that I got to take to continue to move forward?
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_00: And for that, you just have to have a tough mind.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, resiliency is key in this business because you're gonna get shot down, you're gonna get told no's.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I've had that throughout the years of putting on events.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: Now, again, I've had the I've had the privilege to to help grow Agent Brokers United.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: So all the way from the contracts, negotiations, the venues, itineraries, um, creating the schedules, making sure everyone was aligned with their booths, uh listening to the different um, you know, complaints, right?
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_00: And and they're all valid.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: They're all they're all valid.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: So I've used this to put everything together into one and to grow what we're getting into forge point, right?
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_00: So um it everything is key.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I don't know what else to say with it.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, the mindset is key.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: Mindset is important for all this.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_02: Uh I love it.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_02: Kobe Bryant, mindset.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_02: Before we get into forge, I do have one question, which I guess you touched on a little bit.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_02: What do you think is the biggest lesson you learn working with ABU and working with you know hundreds of vendors, brokers, carriers, obviously support stuff?
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_02: MBs, yeah.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, what what if you have to bottle it?
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_02: What what's the biggest thing you learn?
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: Being genuine.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: People will appreciate you for being genuine, being genuine, being authentic, being real with people, and of course, most importantly, being responsive.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_00: Like if you send me an email, you send me a text, you give me a call, you want to meet.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's important to be responsive.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um, that's key because for one, it's kind of like being customer service.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: You want to provide the best experience for them when coming to our show.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_00: Does everything always go right?
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_00: No.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_00: But what do you do?
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_00: Do you panic or you just continue to move forward, adapt, and adjust?
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_00: That's all you do.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: Course corrections.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_00: You're always going to have course corrections in life, whether it's relationships, families, businesses, as long as you learn how to course correct and make it happen and not panic, things will be all right.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: It's not the end of the world.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: But the biggest lesson I think is just uh being you, just being authentic in your approach to people, being real, being responsive, and being able to take criticism.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_00: Because I've had some conversations, it was like Ricky, can can we be straightforward and honest with you?
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, you can.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I learned from that.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_00: I don't take that as a setback or a sock in the face.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_00: They're willing, if they feel comfortable enough to tell me this, I'm willing to accept that criticism.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because this is how we grow.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about me, it's not about the companies that we grow, it's about their success and how we help them become successful.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_00: Whether it's on the agent side or the company side.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_02: Talk to us about Forged.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_02: How did the idea come about?
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_02: What is it?
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_02: And what what's what's the vision?
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, so it's all along the same lines, continuing to help people, to elevate people, uh, help them become successful and to connect them with the right people.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's an ecosystem that I'm building, and it's nothing new.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: This is nothing new.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_00: There's plenty of associations out there, and I love them all, and I promote them all.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I just feel that the more people that align themselves with different associations, the more they learn.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: Not to stay in just one box, one area, or be, well, we're loyal to this, or we're gonna stay here and we're already part of the association.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_00: That's when they start closing the dorm and stuff.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_00: They gotta people need to understand that there's more out there.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like there's a much more bigger piece to the insurance industry than one or two, three different associations.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_00: So uh I have a growth mindset, I have a vision, and and as you see, I mean, just you guys alone, aside from you guys being one of our strategic partners, you guys are also a resource partner, right?
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: So we have a lot of resources, resource partners that will we're willing to get back to the community when they can.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_00: And that's one of the things that I'm creating with our with Forge Point.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: I want it to be a place to where where do we start or where do we go?
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: They can be in the insurance industry for a long time.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_00: Who is Ricky?
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: The more attention that I bring towards myself, my businesses, the more attention that I'm able to bring towards elevate teams, uh, more attention I'm bringing toward elevate the hustle.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_00: So um anything to help and grow, that's gonna be key.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_03: What sets Forge apart from you know the other associations or groups that are out there?
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_03: Like, why are you the best?
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: Motherfucking Ricky, that's why he's the best.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna say that I'm the best.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: I learn from somewhere, right?
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_00: I learn from all the different conferences I go to, I learn from talking to people.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's it's my vision that sets it apart.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_00: Aside from having a big board and making all these decisions, I can make all the decisions I'm on, right?
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: Of course, with the help of others, and of course, I take criticism.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_00: If if if you, Dom or you stand, said, hey, we really have an idea that can elevate your business.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_00: I want to know about it.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_00: This is how we learn.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: This is this is this is how people grow.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, and of course, we all have to stay humble and we have to set our pride to the side, because that's going to be important in any business.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, what sets it apart is um me.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like who else is out there doing what I do?
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_00: There's not too many people.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's a few people out there that that do what I do, talk to people, take pictures, always constantly, you know, lifting others up through through through LinkedIn posts or social media or talking about people's companies.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: And I've had these conversations before.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's like, Ricky, why do you promote these companies who are not going to your show, who are not um, you know, being part of ForgePoint?
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_00: Because it's not about me.
• 20:31
  SPEAKER_00: If I can promote someone that's gonna help someone grow somewhere down the line, that they see that post, that they see that picture, they'll know who to connect with.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_00: I did my job.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_02: You see a value in continuing to provide value, and as long as you're continuing to provide value to others, pay it forward, right?
• 20:51
  SPEAKER_02: Is that is that an is that an accurate, accurate statement?
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's exactly what it is.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: That's exactly what it is.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because just because I get no's, I'm not gonna stop being who I am.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_00: This is who I am.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_00: There's nothing, there's nothing that no one that can stop at.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm not gonna stop, I'm gonna continue to move forward, I'm gonna continue to grow this, I'm gonna continue to provide education and value to the insurance community as a whole.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I'm gonna get better at what I do.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I I have a course, but again, things are not always gonna go according to plan.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_00: Nothing is perfect.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: There's gonna be some failures.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: But again, failures are not failures, they're just lessons, and it all depends on how we learn those lessons.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_00: What do we do?
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_00: Do we stay down or we continue to get up?
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: Do we continue to grow?
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: I have a network of people like yourselves that I know that if I have a hard time from not understanding some, I can come to and say, I need help, I need some advice, right?
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what I want to provide to everybody as a whole.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: If I'm willing to do it, I want to be able to provide that for them.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: I want to be able to reach out to uh you guys and Ryan Hanleys of the Worlds and Marcus Hoggins and all these different types of People that are out there to show that, hey, these are the resources.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_00: They also do events.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: They also have these companies.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, again, it's not about me.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: And this is this is the the different type of value that I bring uh to other people.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: And it's and then independent, right?
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not a I'm not tied to any big association.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: You have you have no you have no funding behind you.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_02: But but I'm gonna ask you the second most important question, the first one, or maybe the first one.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_02: What's it like building this company with your daughter who who's running the business?
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_02: Am I correct?
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, she's a president of my company.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: It's an awesome feeling.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: Like I words can I describe how I feel when I when I brought her to her attention.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and she was happy to do this with my daughter means the world to me.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like, if you just know our backstory, uh, she's my angel, she's my princess.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_00: She really she has her own company, she has she has her own staffing agency where she she warehouses uh you know she staffs warehouses, right?
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_00: Not virtual assistants, that type of staffing.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: So she has her own business.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_00: And when I told her when all this came, when all this came to um fruition, I never thought about starting my own company.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_00: When I was working for ABU, there was never a thought.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_00: My whole my whole goal was how am I gonna make this company known?
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_00: How do I elevate this company?
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_00: How do I make it better?
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_00: How do I make it grow?
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then you know, just unfortunately things just didn't work out in the end, which is fine.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then this is what created Forge Point.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_00: We all go through adversity in life, and that's what this is about.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_00: If you ever had to really go through and look at the symbolisms of our website, there's much more layers to just you know me helping companies.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_00: We all go through setbacks, we all go through adversities, and it's what you do.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: Are you gonna use are you gonna use the fire?
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: The fire that's used to burn you is also the fire that's used to forge you, and that's key, and people have to understand that.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_03: What's the biggest adversity you faced?
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_00: Oh man, if I told you, you'd be surprised.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, I've I've faced some I've faced some adversities in my life that that set me back for a long time.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I've came through it.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, look where I'm at today.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_00: I would never thought that I'd be on anyone's podcast.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_00: I would never thought that I would have my own company or the direction where I'm at today, you know.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_00: But now, now, you know, it's kind of like this too.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_00: Someone can open door, someone can open the doors for you, right?
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_00: But it's what you do once you get through those doors.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's how you build, it's the it's the outreaches, it's the relationships.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: And you got to give credit for yourself for that, right?
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you can't you can't use like a lot of people get stuck with whatever they've been through in life, they allow that to set them back.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_00: They they they can't do better or they can't do more, and you can.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, everybody, you guys are business owners, you guys are entrepreneurs, you guys know what it's like, you guys know the struggles.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_00: I know what the struggles are and the good things.
• 25:18
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we do.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you would think like, where's it gonna go?
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's just like things are not always gonna go up to speed as we like it.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_00: I understand that, and the the difference is is that I have experienced that working with another company, so I seen all those things, I've been able to learn from that, and everything that I learned from it, I've been able to bring it and hone it all together, right?
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_00: Because this is a new company, this is a new name, but this is nothing new, right?
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_02: Right, it's something you have ex something you have experience doing, and you're just building doing it better, right?
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_02: You're doing your way, you have you have the control, you're able to you know do it.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_02: You're doing it with your daughter, which is really, really cool.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_02: Talk talk talk to us about momentum.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_02: You're still in momentum.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_02: What is momentum?
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_02: Why, why, you know, let's let's let's give them a little love here too.
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, absolutely.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_00: So, first and foremost, I want to give a shout out to to Peter Dremonov and Michael Labor, Greg McCamin.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be working with momentum.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm the senior business development representative at Momentum.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_00: It's an agency management platform.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, a lot of people know this agency management system.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, and I've been getting this opportunity, and and again, it goes out to help agents, right?
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_00: What people don't know, they don't know.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_00: So my job is to give people demos, go over the basics, um, and just showing them what's different uh and how we're different uh from other companies.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, mobile momentum is the number one agency management platform out there.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_02: What how are you guys different?
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_02: What's what's what's the biggest differentiator in your mind?
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and the the flagship product is now search, right?
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_00: Is that yeah, the flagship is now search.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: So um we've been around since 2009, known as now search, right?
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_00: Specifically for search throughout the years, fast forward, we they've developed this big platform.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: It's an agency management platform that provides everything.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: How we differ is one, uh having a two-way open AIP integration, so that if an agency wants to connect with any agency out there, I mean any vendor tech company out there that's gonna help them be successful, they can as long as they have an open API.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_00: Now we have providers, we have all these things.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_00: If they don't want to use what we have, that's fine.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_00: We're not gonna keep them in a box, so they're independent of what they want to do.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then when it comes to customizations, our customer service, there's just a lot of different things that go into it.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_00: And and we're nimble, right?
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_00: So when we say we're gonna get things done, our developing team really gets it done, right?
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_00: We're not talking about what we're gonna do a year from now.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_00: We're if we talk about it, we're doing it.
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_00: That's that's the big difference.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_03: And so you're competing with the applied and the AMS 360s of the world.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_03: Do you guys see yourselves as an underdog with like a chip on your shoulder?
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_03: Or like what's the like mentality at momentum?
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_00: So, so put it this way with momentum, I see it like this, right?
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: Because I don't think there's a chip on a shoulder.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_00: I think we're the giants of the industry.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think of us as a small guy.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, if if I can take all plides, if I can get all their all their customers, that's what I'm going after.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: Because I want them all, because we do things 100% better.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_00: And all I have to do is just get on a computer, give them a demo, and show them.
• 28:55
  SPEAKER_00: Especially, I mean, just I mean, with our pricing, our pricing alone, uh, compared to the pricing that they pay, it's like people are just getting robbed.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_00: Now, let me let me say this: they're all good companies, right?
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_00: So I just want to be sure that you know they're all great companies, they've been around for a while.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not to knock on them, but I'm competitive and I want to win, right?
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_00: So that's just how that goes.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_02: What what's what's the number one thing in I guess forget about business aside.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_02: You you say you're competitive and you want to win.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_02: What's the number one thing it takes to be a winner?
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_00: Your mindset.
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_00: Mindset is key.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: Thinking you can, you can.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_00: You can achieve anything you've set your mind to, no matter how hard it is.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, and and it's it's kind of like you're gonna come across obstacles in your life, you're gonna have setbacks, you're gonna have downfalls, you're gonna have people that you trusted, you thought you could trust that end up uh turning on you or or or you know, backstabbing, whatever, whatever you go through in life, you just have to be able to overcome it.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_00: And most importantly, don't take nothing personal.
• 30:09
  SPEAKER_00: Don't take nothing personal in life.
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_00: Again, their problem is not your problem, right?
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_00: And you have to understand that, yeah, everybody's in a different place.
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_00: And once you get once you can understand, once you can once you can get a grasp of that, you can move so much more easier in life.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now, again, we're humans, we have emotions, but it's how react.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_00: Someone could say something that initially will get you upset because maybe they're they're just putting some bad stuff on you or whatever it is.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, we want to react, but you know what?
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: In life, we just all have to be professional, we all have to be kind to one another.
• 30:53
  SPEAKER_00: And I believe that goes a much more longer way than just being reactional, right?
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_00: You just can react to everything you see.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_00: When you start doing that, you give the power to people.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: That's one thing you don't ever want to do is give power to people.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_00: You want to be able to have the power in everything that you everything that how you move, you got to move strategically, just like it is in in business.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, if if if I'm watching or listening to the show right now, my mindset is I I I want to join forward just to get the motivational mindset tips from Ricky Brito on a daily basis.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_02: Ricky, you got to start sending this stuff out, weekly newsletter.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_02: Give us some motivational speeches to get us going.
• 31:36
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_00: You know what?
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_00: I I'm my door is always open.
• 31:41
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, you know, my phone number, you guys give me a call, text.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: Anyone out there, I'm I'm I want to be able to communicate with everybody.
• 31:47
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna be able to help as many people as I I have to, but most importantly, if I can, I know whether I have the resources where I can send them, right?
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, so that that's that's gonna be key.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not not having the answers, but I know where to find them.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_02: Ricky, the master connector.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_02: Well, let's get into my favorite part of the show.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_02: Rapid fire.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_03: Rapid fire.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_02: Where we're gonna ask you some personal questions, and uh, yeah, you let us know.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_02: First thing that comes to mind.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_02: Uh favorite meal, Ricky?
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, chicken mole.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_03: Oh chicken mole mole.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_03: All right, chicken mole the other day.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_03: It was very good.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_00: What's the best restaurant in LA?
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_00: Oh man, we have so many different restaurants.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_00: I I couldn't tell you.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I don't have one any any specific restaurant.
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_00: That's a good one.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_01: What's what's your favorite, what's your favorite city to visit?
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I think it would have to be a coastal city, Newport Beach.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, Newport, I mean, it's so peaceful, serene, being by the water, listening to the ocean, um, just the air, the scenery, everything.
• 33:11
  SPEAKER_00: I think that'd probably be uh the perfect city.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: Well, my favorite city.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_03: He's you could tell he's from California, he'll like only we'll pick California town.
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_03: He's like, it's either Balboa Island or Newport Beach.
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_03: You pet.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
• 33:29
  SPEAKER_03: You know?
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_03: Um, what is or give us Forge Point in one word?
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_02: Strength.
• 33:37
  SPEAKER_02: I like that.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_00: What's the best part of being an entrepreneur?
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_00: Being able being able to move independently on your own, but knowing that you're also gonna need others to help you grow.
• 33:49
  SPEAKER_03: I was gonna say it's fun to see something that that started from nothing materialize, and like I think for me that's one of the coolest parts.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_02: I I was actually listening to another podcast.
• 34:00
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, shout out to Cody Sanchez.
• 34:02
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and she had somebody on the shot, I don't recall who it was, but he said, he said, we're being entrepreneurs is being professional.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, how did he say this?
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_02: Basically putting together puzzle business puzzles, right?
• 34:20
  SPEAKER_02: That's what we're doing.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_02: We're trying to solve, put together a business puzzle, and we have to find all the right pieces and put them together to see what the rest of the picture looks like.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_02: And I agree with that, right?
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_02: Like you have to be able to be creative and problem solve and think on your feet and continue to think and think and think and say, hey, maybe I'm missing this piece, right?
• 34:40
  SPEAKER_02: Or maybe I gotta turn this piece around this way.
• 34:43
  SPEAKER_02: There, there, there's there's always there's always a lighter down there, a tunnel.
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_02: It's just up to us to try to figure out how to find it.
• 34:51
  SPEAKER_02: Um, Ricky, we appreciate you coming onto the show.
• 34:55
  SPEAKER_02: Where can people find Ricky Brito?
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_02: How can people reach out to you?
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_02: Learn more about Forge Point, learn more about Moment, or talk to you about motivational messages.
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, absolutely.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_00: You guys can reach out to me on LinkedIn.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_00: I'm all over LinkedIn.
• 35:10
  SPEAKER_00: You can see me at different conferences that I attend.
• 35:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, please visit my website.
• 35:15
  SPEAKER_00: I do have so so I just want to I just want to be clear.
• 35:19
  SPEAKER_00: Membership for our agents is completely free.
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna be the barrier.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna be free.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, memberships for all independent insurance agency owners, agent brokers, any insurance professional that wants to be a part of this movement, wants to be a part of growth, wants to be a part of strength.
• 35:38
  SPEAKER_00: It's all free.
• 35:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um, this I just want to be able to be able to share my knowledge and resources that I have within this community.
• 35:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so yeah, just reach out to me, visit my website, forge-net uh point.net.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_00: Again, forge-point.net.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_00: Please visit my website.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_00: If you have any questions, you guys can email me.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, give me a call.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_00: My door is always open.
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_00: If there's anything I can ever do will be of service for you, please reach out.
• 36:08
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 36:09
  SPEAKER_02: Ricky, you're the man.
• 36:11
  SPEAKER_02: We appreciate coming on.
• 36:12
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I'm sure we'll see you at the next conference.
• 36:15
  SPEAKER_02: Um and we wish you lots of luck on your new venture, and we know you're gonna crush it.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, hope everybody enjoyed the show, and we'll see you guys back next week.
• 36:24
  SPEAKER_02: Thanks, everybody.