Latest / The Bold Lounge / Nate Randle: Boldly Human- Genuine Connection in a Digital World

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Nate Randle: Boldly Human- Genuine Connection in a Digital World · The Bold Lounge

• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Bold Lounge Podcast.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: My name is Lee Burgess and I will be your host.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: If you're anything like me, you love hearing inspiring stories of people who have gone on bold journeys and made a positive impact in the world.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: This podcast is all about those kinds of stories.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: Every week, we'll hear from someone who has taken a leap or embarked on an extraordinary journey.
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: In addition to hearing their stories, we'll also learn about their bold growth mindset that they use to make things happen.
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Whether they face challenges or douse along the way, they persisted and ultimately achieved their goals.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: These impactful stories will leave you feeling motivated and inspired to pursue your own bold journey.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: I believe everyone has a bold story waiting to be freed.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: Tune in and get ready to be inspired.
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Bold Lounge.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Today I have Nate Randall.
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: He is the CEO of Gab Wireless.
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: Nate brings an experience and expertise to the nation's leading kids safe tech company, which we'll get in and talk to you a little bit about what that is and what it looks like.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: Nate is also a husband and father of four.
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: He places the highest priorities on people and family.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: His focus on family directly translates into leadership at Gab, while protecting kids and encouraging a stronger connection between families are core to Gab's mission.
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: Thank you so much for joining Hi Lee.
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: Thanks for having me.
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: It's good to be here.
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: So we're going to jump in to being bold.
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: So would love to understand, kind of, as you think about your life and your experiences, what is your definition of bold?
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: Taking action.
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: So when I hear you say be bold, I translate that to taking action, and what I mean by that is, I think, so often we hear a lot of people talk but there aren't enough doers, and I'm drawn to people who proactively take action for the goodness of others.
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: Yeah, walking the talk, right, so not just putting it out there, they're actually taking action, getting at it, whatever it may be that it can be defined by every individual.
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: So once the first time you remember, based on that kind of just taking action and doing it, really moving into, you know, walking the walk.
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: When I was a kid.
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: My mom passed away in a car accident when I was nine and I had a baby sister that was seven and a baby brother that was two, and I had to grow up really fast.
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: You were the oldest, I was the oldest, so I had to help my sweet dad who was so buried in the loss, and the emotions of everything Incredible stepped up for us in a major way.
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: But I had to start helping with clothes washing, ironing, throwing some lunches together for the kids.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: I had no clue what I was doing at nine, but I grew up fast.
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: That's the first time I remember taking a bold step forward to say I'm not just going to let it pass by, I've got to step up and help.
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: So in that moment I can resonate that in a different way.
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: And I don't know if you know this I lost my brother when I was six and he was 10, almost 11, about to turn 11.
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: And it was just a freak accident of plane and falling and I always felt like I needed to fill in, like for my parents, like okay, there's an empty space at the table.
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: There's an empty, like how do I fill it with?
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: Either being gregarious or being silly, or kind of just being out there or kind of just, you know, being by or side, my mom particularly, just wanting to fill the space.
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: And I don't know if I've never thought of myself as bold.
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: I've never, like, walked in.
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: I'm like, you know, I don't even think I introduced myself as bold, I would say big swings of bold, but I never.
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: My whole life I never thought that was bold, but in a way like that was taking action, for sure in a different way, certainly not the same, but in that space that you like knew you had to do something different at such a young age, how did that kind of form itself into the next phase of your life, Like as you went into high school, went into college and taking action and taking charge and helping out.
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: Before I answer that, I'm so sorry to hear about your brother.
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: I have experienced way too much loss in my life and I know it's been a long time, but I can't imagine losing a sibling like that.
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: I had to lose a parent way too soon and that was enough, so I'm sorry to hear that yeah it's different loss and different layers, but definitely, like you remember it to the day, you remember the sounds, you remember like everything it's almost in slow motion when you think about it and then you're like how did we like get through that?
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: I think you also you get the strength that you never thought you could ever have and maybe you never have wanted either.
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: But like it's there and you have it.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: So like how do I use that?
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: How do I help people know they can make it and kind of keep going to.
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: And I think the other thing that comes out you may probably experience this too, especially with your mom is like don't take things for granted, like I learned very early on.
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: Like nobody's wear dated, no one's promised tomorrow.
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: So like, make today count, be kind, take care of yourself, take care of others, because there's no guarantee.
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: And I think people sometimes like I, like you know I kind of get irritated with how people take, you know, their, their sisters or their brothers for granted, or their parents.
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: Or you know, when you see mom flash up on your phone like you should be thankful, you know like not go, oh, my mom's calling again, you know, do you have that ever come up for you?
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: All the time.
• 5:25
  Speaker 2: I'll share something very personal, and I know you asked about how did I become more bold as I went into high school.
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, we can get there.
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: In college, my wife and I lost our second child, full term birth.
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: I went to every doctor's appointment.
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: The doctor was telling us perfectly healthy, baby girl, here's your delivery day.
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: And on that day we were driving to the hospital and my wife felt like something was off and I kept telling her I didn't mean to be insensitive, but hindsight I certainly was said, oh, don't worry about it, you're just, you're ready to deliver.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: It's been nine months and we went into the hospital full nine month experience and they put the monitors on my wife's stomach and they couldn't find a heartbeat.
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: I won't take you through all the details, but we left the hospital that day with an empty car seat.
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: That was, um, sorry.
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: That was almost 18 years ago.
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: My daughter, kate, would be a senior in high school now.
• 6:34
  Speaker 2: So back to the concept of bold.
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: I don't have time to waste.
• 6:39
  Speaker 2: I don't have time to treat people poorly or believe that I'm greater than someone or disregard somebody because of their title or their, their income or their, their status.
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: And I just don't have time for that Because I have had to bury my mom as a nine year old kid and I've had to bury my daughter right next to her.
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: And so I live my life in a way I hope, anyway where it's less about sitting on the sideline and more about being all in, and it's why you and I, prior to jumping on here, we're talking about LinkedIn and why I use my platform for single parents and why I pop in and say hello to strangers and try to rally for the underdog.
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: I've been that underdog, I've been to the bottom, so for me, it's not.
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: It's not a CEO stepping in and using my title to be seen.
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: It's remembering the lowest points of my life and wanting to make sure that, if I have anything to do with it, I don't want anyone to ever feel like I've felt before.
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: Yeah, and no one knows, like no one knows what someone's experienced.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: I think that's another thing I learned from my mom and my experience of loss and kind of overcoming it and my mom saying, you know, she's like not everyone's going to understand that, everyone's going to get it, but what you can do is you know, as best you can use it, channel it, you know, be able to help others kind of with their experiences, and I think that's I don't know, it's kind of this it feels cruel at times, but then when you help someone or when you see someone and you can actually say I know how you feel and it actually is like a direct connect, because one of my biggest things, nate, is like when people say, oh, I know how you feel, like, well, do you really?
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: But kind of just like, how do you help others with that?
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: And, like you said, you just don't have time.
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: It's like life is today and nothing is promised tomorrow.
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: And like, how do I do what I feel I'm meant to do, which I think is to help others and serve others, and how do I do that to the most I can?
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: I think that's sometimes why we, I think, as entrepreneurs, we get tired, or we kind of, you know, we do a lot of hustle, or we, you know whatever people want to name it, but it's for a purpose, like it gets a lot of bad press.
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: You know the word hustle, but I think hustle with purpose and passion, like I'm all in for, like as you kind of went through your life, even in the last couple years, you know, those things don't go away, those feelings of sadness and loss.
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: I always.
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: I always say it's like a little scab and some days it'll get kicked off, and then some other days like I'm good, you know, I got a bandaid on it.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: So like as you think about how you kind of lived your life and as you went through your life and came into where you are now, running a company that helps others, and I do want to talk about that because I think it's a unique platform but, like what happened in between growing up kind of being in charge, being the responsible one, and coming into the role that you have now in running gap, I I try to approach every day.
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: I'm not a CEO.
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: That might be my title, but I don't.
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: I don't view my life as a CEO running a company.
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: I actually work for these incredible people at gap.
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: I get to work for them.
• 9:57
  Speaker 2: I think anytime a leader views everyone else working for them that are already missing a significant step.
• 10:03
  Speaker 2: These people don't show up for me every day.
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: I show up for them and when I view it that way and keep the perspective of it's my job to give them the best experience of their career.
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: And the reason I feel that way is because, through my life experiences, I don't want anyone to be around me or associated with me in a professional setting and feel like I've ever treated them less than we're, like their voice doesn't matter or their opinions not valued, so I don't even call the people I work with employees.
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: There are people.
• 10:36
  Speaker 2: When we're in meetings, I try to pull people in that may be sitting in the corners and not proactively voicing their opinion or concerns, to keep a collective voice moving forward together instead of it being mine and the CEO when I go back to college and my career and becoming a dad and raising kids and being with my incredible wife for 23 plus years.
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: I certainly have made a ton of mistakes and there's been a lot of ups and downs, but my hope, summarized, is that when someone associates with me, they feel like I put them first.
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: That's my hope.
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: So, as you think about the learnings along your life path and like little clicks that come up in the ups and downs, what helps you rebound from a down to an up, like what do you use, what's in the tank for you to kind of keep going?
• 11:29
  Speaker 1: Because even being an entrepreneur, being a dad, being a husband, being a supportive son, all those things have ups and downs and there's moments, like you know, I thought I was doing it or I would land like I thought it would, or I thought that was going to come through and it didn't come through.
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: Like what's in the tank for you, like the ingredients of your pivot tank.
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: When you go from like something didn't work, it's going to be okay, we're going to make it happen and we're going to be okay.
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: I don't know if this is the answer you're anticipating, and I certainly don't want to be too religious or change the tone into a totally different topic, but this is me, so I'm going to share.
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: Well, be genuine.
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: I believe that my mom and daughter are in heaven and I believe that we live after this life and I believe they're watching me and they have expectations of me, and one day I hope to be able to meet my mom again in some form, whatever that is, and I don't want to disappoint her.
• 12:28
  Speaker 2: I also have a daughter who, who has been my daughter for 18 years and although she hasn't been with me, I got to hold her.
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: I know her and I want to be a dad that she's proud of.
• 12:41
  Speaker 2: So when my tank gets low or when I feel like I'm failing or things just aren't going my way, I go back to those lowest points when I lost those two individuals, and I can rally pretty quick and get back to a good place, because I know they would not want me to sit in a negative place.
• 13:01
  Speaker 2: I know my mom would say pick yourself up, dust it off and let's go.
• 13:05
  Speaker 2: And that's that's not that she wouldn't care about my mental health or want me to have self care yeah.
• 13:12
  Speaker 2: But she also say come on, son.
• 13:14
  Speaker 2: Yeah, let's go.
• 13:15
  Speaker 2: And I, knowing my kids who are here with me I have three other kids, they are some of the most bold go, get it impressive humans I've ever been around and I know that my kids now say come on, dad, let's go, let's go do this.
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: So good luck today, dad.
• 13:31
  Speaker 2: I know my daughter, kate, would want the same, and so I can let myself get to some challenging places or have a bad day, but I don't let bad days or challenging days roll into challenging weeks and months.
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: That's what I said.
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: I had a post the other day and it's actually a quote of like a bad day doesn't equal a bad life, and like people understanding that and being able to work through it, so you have some high octane in your tank, I would say from that.
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: So how did you get to GAB?
• 14:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's a great question.
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: I was at a SAS software tech company before GAB.
• 14:08
  Speaker 2: We had just gone public.
• 14:09
  Speaker 2: I was a part of the leadership team that had that had taken the company public and it was a great opportunity.
• 14:16
  Speaker 2: Got my time there.
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: I was at an event in Salt Lake called Silicon Slopes and I had somebody come up to me and in the first 30 seconds of the conversation they asked me if I knew what GABA was.
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: This GABA wireless company, safe Tech Company for Kids.
• 14:35
  Speaker 2: Well, I have four kids and one of my biggest concerns is the dangers and addictions of tech and in the first minute of that conversation I knew that I wanted to be a part of this company.
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: That was three and a half years ago and now fast forward and this has been one of the best personal and career decisions I've ever made.
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: So, as you kind of think about that decision and what it does, tell the folks like what it is, cause I, you know, for example, when my daughter was in elementary, I wanted her to be able to always have an ability to call me, to just check in with me, and selfishly as a mom, I wanted to be able to check in with her.
• 15:13
  Speaker 1: She's almost 27,.
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: Even then, like, it wasn't as bad as it is now, I think.
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: So we still have flip phones and bag phones and that kind of stuff, but I just wanted a way to connect with her and it wasn't so much for the social media aspect.
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: But you know, I know there's great things now with education and things they can do to track their play and activities.
• 15:34
  Speaker 1: But, like, can you explain what it is?
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: Yeah, of course, keeping it super simple.
• 15:39
  Speaker 2: Gaba is a Safe Tech company for kids and teens, so we believe in tech, we're not anti-tech, and we know that there are so many positive things that are happening with technology.
• 15:50
  Speaker 2: The challenge that our kids are facing is that we're giving them way too much technology too soon by taking an adult smartphone that we can't manage.
• 16:01
  Speaker 2: I own that.
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: I have a problem with my smartphone.
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: I have to constantly check myself, get off, put it down, disconnect.
• 16:08
  Speaker 2: If I have a hard time with that and most of your listeners, I'm guessing, would say they have a hard time with it how can we trust and believe that our nine and 10 year old kids can manage these phones?
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: They can't.
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: They're not mature enough, they're not emotionally stable enough.
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: Their brains are still developing.
• 16:24
  Speaker 2: So we're taking these smartphones built for adults, never intended for kids, giving them to kids and then putting parental controls on them and leaving our kids to the wild.
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: What's happening is our kids, when they were born, were smarter with tech than we are now, and they know how to get around those parental controls.
• 16:43
  Speaker 2: The best kids know how to maneuver around parental controls, so they get into these dangers and addiction game rooms with chats and predators, gambling apps, pornography, explicit lyrics all these things that a 10 year old mind does not need.
• 16:58
  Speaker 2: And then we're shocked when we've given them this tech, and our kids are in trouble and their personalities are starting to change and their mood swings are changing and they're becoming more and more depressed.
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: We're wondering why they're withdrawing.
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: It's because of this tech, it's because of way too much screen time, the reason GAB exists.
• 17:20
  Speaker 2: We make safe watches and phones.
• 17:22
  Speaker 2: No internet, no social media, limited screen time.
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: So, just like you stated, lee, our intent is to give a device to a parent and a child for safe connection.
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: Your daughter gets done with dance 15 minutes earlier.
• 17:37
  Speaker 2: She's not standing out in the dark and in the cold On her GAB watch.
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: She can, with one touch, call you and say, hey, mom, I'm done 15 minutes early and you know to go get her and also trust that your daughter is not sitting there on that watch waiting for you for 15 minutes on the internet and often the dangerous apps.
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: So we have built our products from the ground up with kids in mind, not adults, and we've created the safe face experience for them to stay connected to their friends and family.
• 18:05
  Speaker 2: That's the summary of it.
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: So I think that's incredible.
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: I think maybe some adults need it.
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: I'm just gonna say that, yeah, cheers, you know, but I'll buy the first if you ever want to beta an adult version of that, meaning like you just have it from what you need it for.
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: And I think, when it comes to, obviously, you live in this world like there is a necessity to technology.
• 18:27
  Speaker 1: It's incredible, it's wonderful.
• 18:29
  Speaker 1: It's what's at our fingertips now versus what it even was at our fingertips 10 years ago is massive.
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: And throw in AI, like it is just frightening at times for me.
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: But I think sometimes we partake in things we don't need to actually get into or spend time on or become a habit I would say a bad habit, you know of like spending time scrolling versus reading a book or spending time with our family, or like one of our favorite times is sitting around the dinner table, like and there's no phones there and have some conversation and catch up, and but you know people sit in front of a TV or you know, sometimes people are handing their kids their iPhone or their iPad instead of actually talking with them.
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: So, as we think about how to leverage technology to actually increase our ability to socialize and not be so socially awkward.
• 19:19
  Speaker 1: Are there things that we can do better and more of as adults, as parents, as leaders, in your opinion, yes, and I'm certainly not perfect at it.
• 19:30
  Speaker 2: So this doesn't come from the perspective of an expert, it comes from the perspective of a dad.
• 19:36
  Speaker 1: You're a human being, yeah.
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I believe if families, couples, parents and kids don't have a tech plan, you're setting yourself up to fail.
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: And the tech plan doesn't have to be extensive.
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: It doesn't need to be gant charts and spreadsheets and rules all over the house and the dos and don'ts.
• 19:58
  Speaker 2: It needs to be basic respect for the times that matter most to families.
• 20:02
  Speaker 2: So what we say all the time to moms and dads, we'll have parents say well, I've got my kid.
• 20:09
  Speaker 2: It has to have a smartphone or an iPhone or some form of an adult phone, Because I need to be connected to him.
• 20:15
  Speaker 2: And I challenge parents with the counter have you ever thought about connecting with your kids by disconnecting?
• 20:22
  Speaker 2: Stop using tech and screen time and more and more and more to be the way that you stay more connected?
• 20:31
  Speaker 2: It's actually not true.
• 20:32
  Speaker 2: Have to disconnect to connect, and that's where our society is now is.
• 20:39
  Speaker 2: We're all so connected to these devices that.
• 20:42
  Speaker 2: Has it really made us feel more connected as parents and kids and adults and families?
• 20:47
  Speaker 2: I don't think so.
• 20:49
  Speaker 1: I was just in a conversation.
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: We had one of our power hours and we were talking about how the socialization aspect of our worlds we obviously took a hit with the pandemic but it seems to actually not progressed back or even what I would call where we were.
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: It is actually we've stepped even further back from having even the need to talk to people or be in the same room and people are not very good at that sometimes or feel awkward or feel like they can't have that social interaction and sometimes they don't even need to do it.
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: So if we think about what we do as adults, also to model our behavior for our children, I'm at a total fault of like.
• 21:30
  Speaker 1: Until I had my own company, I never went on a vacation and managed my phone correctly.
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: Like it was just I checked it in the morning.
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: I checked it.
• 21:38
  Speaker 1: I had to put in a drawer.
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: Actually, like it was my thing it sounds very soft of more, but I had to manage myself.
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: That way of like it had to go in the drawer.
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: If I had it on me I was going to look at it.
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: Obviously, bad habits established.
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: But like, how do we?
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: I love the idea of a tech plan and saying, between the hours of five and eight, no phones.
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: They go on the kitchen counter or they go wherever.
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: You know.
• 21:59
  Speaker 1: People say phone jails and stuff like that.
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: I know we had those in class so, like in thinking about that, I love that idea.
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: And then, as an adult, even working with other adults, what can we do to connect?
• 22:11
  Speaker 1: More generally, I love what you said to.
• 22:13
  Speaker 1: To connect, we actually need to disconnect, which you know that might make people have a you know bead of sweat.
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: When you say disconnect, what do you mean?
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: I don't have coverage.
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: So, like as an adult, how can we do better?
• 22:23
  Speaker 2: I think it's the same thing I just shared.
• 22:25
  Speaker 2: We have to disconnect to connect again.
• 22:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we are using our phones.
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: I've never gotten to know anyone better by being on my phone.
• 22:32
  Speaker 2: I can't tell you a relationship in my life that matters where I would tell you my relationship is better with that person because of my phone.
• 22:39
  Speaker 2: My relationship is better.
• 22:41
  Speaker 2: We're stronger with the people that matter most to me because I was present with them in the matter in the moments that mattered most to them.
• 22:49
  Speaker 2: I don't want my friends and family to say I was with Nate or I was with someone that mattered to me in a moment and the phone was more important than me, but somehow, because we're all addicted to them, we think that our phones are helping us to stay more personally connected to those that matter most and it may in some sense with a quick birthday text or a I was thinking of you text.
• 23:14
  Speaker 2: I'm not anti that.
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: I do that all the time, but I am leading, I'm part of a tech company and I'm telling people on this podcast.
• 23:21
  Speaker 2: In our conversation we got to disconnect from all that to connect more.
• 23:25
  Speaker 2: That I would hope that would be the takeaway of part of our conversation today that connecting more through digital is not improving our life or society.
• 23:33
  Speaker 2: It's actually setting us back and we've got to go back and reconnect in person, face to face, uninterrupted time, icon time.
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: It's all so important and our kids right now are losing sight of that.
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: We're not showing them the importance of that.
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: So my high school kid thinks that he's hanging out with friends if he's on the couch texting them.
• 23:56
  Speaker 2: That's not hanging out.
• 23:57
  Speaker 2: Go get lost at the soda shop or go to the pizza joint.
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: You've got to go, be present to connect.
• 24:04
  Speaker 2: It's not.
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: Life is not happening over the phone.
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I think as adults, I think we just need to bear in mind it of that as well.
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: One thing that comes through, I think, with actually connecting Person to person and in person Moments as much as possible, or even virtually, like this, like this obviously isn't the same as being in the same room, but it beats a phone it beats.
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: You know like you can see expression, you know Walking through a conversation, kind of emotion, those types of things.
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: But one of the things is just being your authentic self and like being able to be you.
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: And sometimes on social media and you know, even versus texts, like things could be taken the wrong way or taken out of context, and you know so you see comments and things like that through your journey and what you've done in your life to build.
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: You know work for tremendous companies like Nike and Cal Way and Qualtrics, like you've done some tremendous things.
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: But all these are kind of like little bricks of learning.
• 25:01
  Speaker 1: I really feel like when you step into a room and I hope to actually be in a room with you someday in real life but I bet when you step into the room like you're not thinking about I can't be me Like.
• 25:12
  Speaker 1: I feel like you walk in and you are you, regardless of what people may think or what me people or how people will judge you, or, like you said, you're.
• 25:19
  Speaker 1: You lead a tech company.
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: You just said, hey, we need to disconnect, you know.
• 25:23
  Speaker 1: So how do you capture your authenticity and make sure you stay true to it?
• 25:27
  Speaker 2: The first 10 or 15 years my career, I had mentors and leaders Tell me, don't take work personal, don't, don't make any part of business personal.
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: It's cutthroat.
• 25:38
  Speaker 2: You may even have to one-up people or do whatever you got to do to make a name for yourself Because it's it's competitive and it's ruthless out there.
• 25:46
  Speaker 2: And I listened.
• 25:47
  Speaker 2: So for that period in my career I tried to have a workmate and a Personal home mate and it was funky because the workmate wasn't me and I was trying too hard to be that business leader, that business person.
• 26:03
  Speaker 2: And I got so burned out with trying to have two different personalities that I eventually just said I'm going to be me and I'm going to work in some settings and I won't in others.
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: And the ones I don't work in or the ones that I don't click in, why would I want to be there anyway?
• 26:17
  Speaker 2: So yeah, I'm the CEO of a tech company right now.
• 26:20
  Speaker 2: I've got 250 employees.
• 26:22
  Speaker 2: And here's the reality.
• 26:24
  Speaker 2: I listened to rap and R&B, I fly fish, I love sports.
• 26:27
  Speaker 2: I ride a scooter around the office to go check on everybody and say hello.
• 26:32
  Speaker 2: If you don't like that, that's okay.
• 26:34
  Speaker 2: You don't have to work with me and I don't have to work with you.
• 26:36
  Speaker 2: I don't I know longer adjust who I am with, where I'm at.
• 26:43
  Speaker 2: It is what it is and I just want to be as kind and welcoming and personal and authentic and Caring as possible.
• 26:52
  Speaker 2: And I've even had business leaders here in Utah say you're too vulnerable you, you share too much for you.
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: Maybe I might not be for you, but for the single mom who just lost a job and who has been unemployed for three months and she's going to get evicted and I help to find a job, I'll share that vulnerability All day long so she knows she has someone, will support her if it's helping somebody that needs it.
• 27:18
  Speaker 1: Yeah, all day, every day.
• 27:19
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't make adjustments anymore.
• 27:21
  Speaker 2: Now I want to be respectful.
• 27:22
  Speaker 2: I don't want to make people uncomfortable.
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: Of course yeah.
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: I am who I am.
• 27:27
  Speaker 1: Yeah, do you think that comes with age?
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: I wish more people could do it more often, like something about me, like 48.
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: I was like this is enough.
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: Yeah this is not.
• 27:36
  Speaker 1: You know, what I'm hearing I am is not what I am and I'm not sure I'm showing up All of me every day and what I mean, like you said, be respectful, like you're not coming in guns blazing and doing anything that's negative, you know, but you're, you're not compromising who you are for what you're doing.
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: And I feel like I Was like that until early 40s and something was like well, to get the next role, to be in the next level, to To get this huge promotion.
• 28:02
  Speaker 1: Like you got to play the game, you got to do the dance, and At some point I started dancing, then I stopped because I was like this, this really sucks.
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: This isn't me and I'm unhappy and I'm sleeping two hours a night and sure, I have a great job title, but life is not great.
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: So, like, do you think that comes, that knowledge?
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: You got it maybe earlier than I did, but is there a way for people to actually start thinking that way sooner than later?
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: Or do we have to have experience?
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: You know, do we have to do at the level?
• 28:33
  Speaker 2: you'd hope the answer would be yes, starter earlier, but I think my journey from scars and bruises and mistakes and then time, you just gets to this point.
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah you got, you can't take it.
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: It's kind of like for your children, right, you always want to like Prevent things or you know you won't keep them safe.
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: You don't want them to have to go through what you did, but at the same time a little bit of that is good.
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: You have to live it totally agree.
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: So when someone's kind of stepping down, it's like hearing your journey and knowing that you are living your life, aligned with who you are and how you want to live and how you want to serve others and, you know, with some two very important people looking down on you every day, you know, supporting you, cheering you on, saying get back up when you get knocked down, how does someone take that first step, or at least the first couple steps, and just to kind of knowing that being them is Okay, being them is who they're meant to be?
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: well, from personal experience I know that I'm my best when I'm my full self.
• 29:32
  Speaker 2: I am a Short sleeved, button-up shirt and Jordans.
• 29:39
  Speaker 2: Before I am a shirt, tie and and nice loafers.
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: It's me.
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: So if I'm authentically me and whatever I bring that adds value somewhere in a personal or professional setting, I'm gonna be my very best.
• 29:53
  Speaker 2: And so I think if people realize if you were your authentic, with respect, authentic, respectful self, not always pushing your agenda or crazy political wherever you stand, not always causing contention or toxic conversation, but just authentically being who you are and being all in on that, if you're not in a professional setting or a personal setting where people openly want to accept you for that, why would you want to be in that setting anyway?
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: I have people that reach out all the time and say I'm in a work environment when I'm just not accepted.
• 30:28
  Speaker 2: I know it's hard to go get a job, especially in this market, but don't sit in it, don't, don't justify away who you are and apologize.
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: Go find your tribe, go find your group, go be somewhere where they celebrate you, and that's what we focus on so much here at Gab.
• 30:45
  Speaker 2: Is it through the interview process?
• 30:47
  Speaker 2: We're not looking for fits as soon as somebody says I want to fit in where we're looking for the right fit, I stop them every time and say no, I don't want you to come here and fit in.
• 30:55
  Speaker 2: I Want you to come, add everything you bring.
• 30:59
  Speaker 2: Come add your value, come, add you.
• 31:02
  Speaker 2: If we select you to work at Gab, I want you to be you.
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: I don't want you to fit in, so I it's a little bit long-winded way of saying when you get to that point in life when you realize that your authentic self allows you to be at your very best, why would you want to be anything else?
• 31:16
  Speaker 2: Yeah, you got to hold enough to own that.
• 31:19
  Speaker 2: Stay true to it and then Look for the tribe or the group who's willing to let you be that.
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I love ending on that.
• 31:27
  Speaker 1: So, like you know, find your tribe, find where you can stand out and not have to fit in, to be accepted and to be valued and to be loved honestly and To be cared for.
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: So love, that's how we end.
• 31:41
  Speaker 1: So thank you so much, nate, for being on the bold lounge.
• 31:44
  Speaker 1: Everything about Nate, his company and connecting with him as an episode notes, thanks again.
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: Well you, thank you.
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to the bold lounge podcast.
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: Through the continuum of bold stories Vulnerability to taking a leap you will meet more extraordinary people making a positive impact for others through their unique and important story.
• 32:05
  Speaker 1: By highlighting these stories, we hope to inspire others and share the journey of those with a bold mindset.
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: We hope you've enjoyed this podcast and look forward to sharing the next bold journey.