Latest / The iAlign Podcast with Flint Mitchell / #19 - Southern Hospitality, Building a Name and Network That You’re Proud of, and Learning from Loss With Brandon Maddox

Transcript

#19 - Southern Hospitality, Building a Name and Network That You’re Proud of, and Learning from Loss With Brandon Maddox · The iAlign Podcast with Flint Mitchell

0:09
SPEAKER_02: What's up y'all?
0:10
SPEAKER_02: Welcome to Seeking Authenticity.
0:12
SPEAKER_02: My name is Flint Mitchell, and I get absolutely psyched by having conversations with authentic people that I admire about the things they value.
0:21
SPEAKER_02: Their stories and perspectives don't just make me smile, laugh, and think.
0:25
SPEAKER_02: They inspire me to wake up earlier, listen better, focus, and work harder, and help make me a better version of myself.
0:32
SPEAKER_02: And it's my hope that sharing these conversations through this podcast might do the same thing for you.
0:40
SPEAKER_02: In this episode, I talk with an incredible dude, Brandon Maddox.
0:44
SPEAKER_02: I'm fortunate enough to know Brandon through my mom.
0:47
SPEAKER_02: He is one of my mom's clients as a personal clothing stylist.
0:50
SPEAKER_02: Just from the several encounters he and I have had over the years, it's easy to see that Brandon goes through life with a perspective of gratitude.
0:57
SPEAKER_02: And that was one of the main reasons I was so stoked to have him on the podcast and why I respect what he has to say.
1:03
SPEAKER_02: In this conversation, we talk about his roots from a small town in Georgia and a bit about the different experiences between there and the Bay Area, California.
1:12
SPEAKER_02: He shares an emotional yet uplifting story, seeing his mother and how she impacted her community.
1:18
SPEAKER_02: We talk about the environment he grew up in and how it shaped who he is today, and how he sees his actions through a lens of personal accountability.
1:26
SPEAKER_02: Likewise, we talk about being an effective salesman by prioritizing building strong relationships over selling.
1:32
SPEAKER_02: And one of my favorite topics, gratefulness.
1:35
SPEAKER_02: I had a lot of fun listening to Brandon, and I know you will too.
1:38
SPEAKER_02: Enjoy.
2:05
SPEAKER_00: Or you may know them for a lifetime and they're in your wedding later.
2:07
SPEAKER_00: Like you don't know, but you embrace it with just like the unknown and just let's see where this goes.
2:14
SPEAKER_00: But some people aren't given that.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: So if you maximize your the 19 years you're given, man, you can really make a difference.
2:21
SPEAKER_00: And if it's not the right product, then I get it.
2:24
SPEAKER_00: I never hear no, I hear not now.
2:27
SPEAKER_00: This you know, this one thing that I can't control, but these other things that I can control that that brings so much like happiness to me.
2:38
SPEAKER_02: Thanks for doing this with me, Brandon.
2:40
SPEAKER_02: I really appreciate it.
2:41
SPEAKER_00: Happy to be here, man.
2:42
SPEAKER_00: And thanks for having me.
2:43
SPEAKER_02: Definitely.
2:44
SPEAKER_02: No, it's uh just to start off, I think something that's so fun for me is I just absolutely love your energy.
2:53
SPEAKER_02: You give off this really, I mean, we've only interacted a couple times, but you're just positive and excited and really grateful.
3:00
SPEAKER_02: I appreciate it.
3:01
SPEAKER_02: And that's a yeah, that's an energy that I feed off of and that I really enjoy.
3:06
SPEAKER_02: Um, so I'm excited to have you on.
3:08
SPEAKER_02: And then kind of likewise, as I was scrolling through your LinkedIn, it's clear that a lot of your success has come or so far, success has come from just a lot of dedicated hard work, right?
3:20
SPEAKER_02: So this combination of grateful for opportunity and a lot of hard work, and I think that's awesome.
3:29
SPEAKER_00: I appreciate it, man.
3:31
SPEAKER_02: And I'd like to talk a bit about that later on, but the first thing I was really interested in is I grew up here in the Bay Area in California, Northern California.
3:39
SPEAKER_02: And I saw that you did you grow up in Georgia?
3:43
SPEAKER_00: 24 years, yeah, yeah.
3:45
SPEAKER_00: LeGrange, Georgia, shout out, right?
3:47
SPEAKER_00: Uh small town uh south of Atlanta.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: Uh good thirty 32,000 people.
3:52
SPEAKER_00: So LeGrange High School, Le Grange College, uh so Georgia Boy Heart, UJ football fan, go dogs, right?
3:59
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, now almost 10 years in California, which has been a blessing.
4:03
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, that's awesome.
4:04
SPEAKER_02: Um, I was wondering if you could tell me a bit about maybe if there are any things that stick in, stick out in your mind about the culture or the environment you grew up in in Georgia that kind of contributed to the way you kind of lead life now.
4:21
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:22
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the South is great, man.
4:24
SPEAKER_00: Um, I think you said you spent some time there.
4:26
SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's definitely different, right?
4:28
SPEAKER_00: From out here.
4:29
SPEAKER_00: Um, that southern hospitality is true.
4:32
unknown: Yeah.
4:32
SPEAKER_00: Like, like for example, you know, I started walking.
4:36
SPEAKER_00: We have like a little loop, it's it's half a mile.
4:39
SPEAKER_00: And and when I when I walk, you know, I see a car drive by or a person also walking out.
4:43
SPEAKER_00: I just wave at them.
4:44
SPEAKER_00: Uh it's a little different because people don't really engage with you like that out here in the south.
4:48
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's it's it's very common wave, hey, how you doing?
4:52
SPEAKER_00: How's your day?
4:53
SPEAKER_00: Um, so so sometimes I miss that, but it's just it's not that they don't like you.
4:58
SPEAKER_00: They just they don't really, it's just not a like a normal thing to do out here, right?
5:02
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, so like we when you go back home and you eat the you know the comfort food and you know everybody's yes, sir, yes, ma'am, hey baby, you know, like all that stuff is real, you know, and you just feel like you're kind of at home and in a different format, right?
5:17
SPEAKER_00: I mean, um for me, you know, trying to get used to more of a melting pot out here, the south, you know, there's really predominant, you know, you know, black and white culture.
5:28
SPEAKER_00: So um trying to understand where you fit in, right, is is what was a little bit of a challenge.
5:33
SPEAKER_00: But no, I mean the South is great.
5:35
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's it's if if if you've never been, you gotta check it out, man, for the food, for the people, for just some down-to-earth, some good history.
5:43
SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's there's a lot of cool things.
5:45
SPEAKER_02: No, absolutely.
5:46
SPEAKER_02: That's actually something.
5:47
SPEAKER_02: So I I went to school in Texas, and the one thing I brought back besides bolo ties was yes, sir, and yes, ma'am.
5:55
SPEAKER_02: I I love it.
5:56
SPEAKER_02: There's something about it, and I don't actually know exactly what it is.
6:01
SPEAKER_02: It's like I found it as just a res, it's just a respectful like greeting, right?
6:07
SPEAKER_02: But out here, there's there's even like I wouldn't call it a stigma against that.
6:12
SPEAKER_02: Do you feel that?
6:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, not a stigma.
6:16
SPEAKER_00: It's just more so I I don't know.
6:20
SPEAKER_00: I I don't know if if right, because I didn't really grow up here, but sure, for whatever reason, there's just not that, and I'm not gonna say it's not respect, but I mean, even even you know, when once you get older, and I I still call somebody Mr.
6:33
SPEAKER_00: and Mrs.
6:33
SPEAKER_00: They're like, hey, call me Lisa.
6:35
SPEAKER_00: It's like you know, Miss Lisa, I've known you forever, so I'm just gonna call you Miss Lisa or Mrs.
6:41
SPEAKER_00: Lisa, right?
6:42
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, it's not really it's just ingrained into you.
6:45
SPEAKER_00: I don't know what it is.
6:46
SPEAKER_00: Like if you didn't say it or didn't have that respect, it was kind of like you know, your parents saw you and you disrespected them by disrespecting their friends or you know, colleagues.
6:54
SPEAKER_00: So I don't know, man.
6:56
SPEAKER_00: It's just something that you just it's just the South.
6:58
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, absolutely.
7:00
SPEAKER_02: And it's and I I like that you brought up that kind of idea of Southern hospitality because I think it's an interesting while it's it's overlooked in in the Bay Area and in Northern California.
7:11
SPEAKER_02: Um, it's so inviting like to be in an environment where people are so welcoming.
7:18
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
7:18
SPEAKER_02: Um yeah, absolutely.
7:22
SPEAKER_02: No, it's it's a great introduction.
7:23
SPEAKER_02: I think that's pretty cool that you kind of grew up around that too, because I was introduced to it, you know, at 18 in college.
7:31
SPEAKER_02: It's not like I got that much.
7:33
SPEAKER_02: Uh no, that's interesting.
7:35
SPEAKER_02: Do you have any kind of experiences or stories that maybe show the importance of that kind of southern hospitality from your childhood?
7:45
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, just kind of more so, you know, when you have your coaches or um you have your teachers, uh, for for whatever, man, you just know to just respect them.
7:55
SPEAKER_00: And so, I mean, if if your coach asks you to do something, you know, you you do it times 10, right?
8:01
SPEAKER_00: Or if if your teacher, you know, tells you to stop, you you stop, right?
8:05
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it is more so I don't know, man.
8:09
SPEAKER_00: It's like you don't want to be that embarrassment for your family.
8:12
SPEAKER_00: Like you always want to have um, you know, all your T's crossed, are your I's dotted, and you you want to be like the best person you can be uh in and out of of class or practice or whatever the case.
8:23
SPEAKER_00: Um so I don't know.
8:24
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I you know, two parents, a brother and sister, you know, small family.
8:28
SPEAKER_00: We we just grew up just kind of, you know, being around our cousins all the time, you know, being closer to our friends and you know, staying within the community, which was just kind of basketball.
8:39
SPEAKER_00: Like we just grew up playing basketball and and having that um respecting your craft, right?
8:44
SPEAKER_00: Like if you're gonna do it, you're gonna do it 110%.
8:47
SPEAKER_00: So you're gonna work your ass off, right?
8:49
SPEAKER_00: Um, I think that's where now, because I always tell people, I'm like, I'm I'm not the most talented, I'm not the smartest person in the room, but I will outwork you.
8:56
SPEAKER_00: And and that to me has been like the grit to kind of have on the court, to kind of have now my you know commercial real estate uh profession.
9:05
SPEAKER_00: And I I enjoy it.
9:06
SPEAKER_00: You know, I enjoy you know waking up earlier than you or having a dinner later than you or putting up more shots than you or you know, studying later, whatever the you know the situation was, but that's that's just that's just kind of how the South is.
9:18
SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
9:19
SPEAKER_00: It's just I love it.
9:22
SPEAKER_02: I love it too, man.
9:23
SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's it's like uh I think it's especially relevant in sports, but I think it's kind of interesting how your perspective on it isn't just sports, right?
9:33
SPEAKER_02: There is the aspect of basketball, but it's really like it was just the culture you were in.
9:37
SPEAKER_02: It was all about kind of also another, I think interesting point is you mentioned it's about this kind of um hospitality and effort.
9:49
SPEAKER_02: I guess it's effort because it reflects on your family too.
9:52
SPEAKER_02: Yep, right.
9:54
SPEAKER_02: Now I think and that's interesting to have that take from such an early age, right?
10:00
SPEAKER_02: Like that the actions you take are reflective of your family.
10:04
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
10:05
SPEAKER_00: You you ever seen um Molly's Game?
10:08
SPEAKER_00: Is it Molly's Game or the poker movie?
10:12
SPEAKER_00: No.
10:12
SPEAKER_00: About um Molly.
10:13
SPEAKER_00: Okay, so I'm not I'm not gonna go into detail.
10:16
SPEAKER_00: No, anyway, yeah, yeah.
10:17
SPEAKER_00: Well, overall, she pretty much ran this gambling, you know, poker night throughout the week in LA and New York for I think eight or 10 years and just hustled a bunch of men, right?
10:28
SPEAKER_00: But within all that, and she was going to court because you know, a lot of things got blown up.
10:32
SPEAKER_00: She got involved with the Russians.
10:34
SPEAKER_00: Um, she had all this intel and knowledge from text messages and emails as far as like, you know, a guy texting her about how he's complaining about his family or his marriage or his kids or whatever case, right?
10:46
SPEAKER_00: His his his his job.
10:48
SPEAKER_00: And her lawyer said, you know, you have all this information, it's on your laptop.
10:52
SPEAKER_00: Just have it clear your name, get your money back, and let's go.
10:56
SPEAKER_00: And she's like, no.
10:57
SPEAKER_00: And he's like, why?
10:58
SPEAKER_00: She's like, I only have my name.
11:00
SPEAKER_00: That's all I have.
11:02
SPEAKER_00: So like you're born with just your first and last name.
11:06
SPEAKER_00: That's it.
11:07
SPEAKER_00: Like, so your brand is your brand.
11:10
SPEAKER_00: Like Brandon Maddox, B Maddox, B Mad, whatever.
11:13
SPEAKER_00: That's my name.
11:14
SPEAKER_00: I get one.
11:16
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
11:16
SPEAKER_00: And so, like, the most respect you want to give to your family, that Maddox name, you also want to give your first name, Brandon.
11:22
SPEAKER_00: Flint, Mitchell, like, like, that's it.
11:26
SPEAKER_00: And so you just don't you don't want to embarrass it.
11:28
SPEAKER_00: It's something about it.
11:29
SPEAKER_02: No, absolutely.
11:30
SPEAKER_02: That actually it makes me remember I played soccer growing up, and I had a uh coach that one time said, every pass has your name on it.
11:39
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
11:41
SPEAKER_02: Right?
11:42
SPEAKER_02: It's like every time you pass the ball, it's got your initials tagged on that ball.
11:46
SPEAKER_02: And if it's a shitty pass, that's a fact, right?
11:50
SPEAKER_02: No, I love that.
11:51
SPEAKER_02: I love that.
11:53
SPEAKER_02: Uh all you have are is your name.
11:55
SPEAKER_00: That's it.
11:57
SPEAKER_00: That's it.
11:58
SPEAKER_02: No, and it's it's true, right?
12:00
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's I think it's something I'm starting to realize as I get older and older is that it's a lot about, I mean, there's a lot of there, there are two kinds of aspects of it.
12:11
SPEAKER_02: There's the internal side where you have to be proud of yourself and you have to be proud of your own actions, but there's then the way that that interacts with the world.
12:17
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
12:17
SPEAKER_02: Right?
12:18
SPEAKER_02: And it's true.
12:19
SPEAKER_02: When you interact with the world, you know, every pass has your name on it, man.
12:23
SPEAKER_00: Every pass, man.
12:24
SPEAKER_00: And and that's why, you know, like you want to make people feel good.
12:28
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's not what you say, it's how you make them feel.
12:31
SPEAKER_00: And so, and so the first time I see somebody, you know, big, big, big smile and pre-COVID, big hug, honestly, right?
12:36
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
12:38
SPEAKER_00: Because I want to embrace you, and whether it's the it's the South or not, like I truly love people.
12:42
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, anytime I can get a chance to meet somebody new, that that's that's that's a new network, that's a new friendship, that's a new, you know, everything happens for a reason, season, or lifetime.
12:52
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, you you may know this person for a season that you needed to know them for, or you may know them for a lifetime and they're in your wedding later, like you don't know, but you embrace it with just like the unknown and just let's see where this goes.
13:05
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, what can I learn from it?
13:07
SPEAKER_00: Good or bad?
13:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, absolutely.
13:10
SPEAKER_02: I think it's a really wonderful mindset to have because it kind of weaves you into the into the into the world and a little more of a it like brings your light into the world a little more.
13:20
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you can be all positive, but unless you connect it with other people, you don't really get to share that with people, right?
13:25
SPEAKER_02: No, no, and I like that comment.
13:27
SPEAKER_02: It's not about it's not about what you say to them, it's how you make them feel.
13:32
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, where where'd you learn that?
13:34
SPEAKER_02: Or is it that's just life?
13:36
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I was about to say that's just life.
13:38
SPEAKER_00: I was supposed to say, I'm not a big feeler, I'm not super empathetic.
13:41
SPEAKER_00: Um, but I love to create great experiences because I love to have great experiences.
13:46
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh, you know, you could I get a bunch of Jay Hilburn uh shirts, you know, shout out uh Trismash.
13:53
SPEAKER_00: You know, and I I can give that gift to a bazillion men, right?
13:56
SPEAKER_00: But um I could go golfing with them and have a really cool experience, you know, because there's there's a golf instructor, or you can have really nice dinner at a Michael Meena restaurant.
14:05
SPEAKER_00: That's really cool experience, right?
14:06
SPEAKER_00: So I think just the way you can make people feel, they remember that much more than just a stand and taken.
14:12
SPEAKER_00: I love giving.
14:13
SPEAKER_00: So I'm I'm a little I'm a little different.
14:15
SPEAKER_00: Like I I get more um fulfillment from giving than from receiving.
14:19
SPEAKER_00: So sure.
14:20
SPEAKER_00: That's also catch 22.
14:22
SPEAKER_02: No, absolutely.
14:23
SPEAKER_02: I I think why why do you say you're not very empathetic then?
14:27
SPEAKER_00: You know, I I'll be honest, man, I just think life's tough.
14:32
SPEAKER_00: Um when I hear other stories, they don't surprise me.
14:36
SPEAKER_00: Um my mother passed away um almost four years next month to this date, right?
14:43
SPEAKER_00: Uh young age was 58.
14:46
SPEAKER_00: Sorry about that.
14:47
SPEAKER_00: And oh yeah, yeah, hey, give give your mom's a big hug for me, you know?
14:51
SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's it sucks, right?
14:54
SPEAKER_00: There's no way around it.
14:55
SPEAKER_00: Like you, you know, losing losing a family member, losing a friend, whatever, losing a pet, right?
15:00
SPEAKER_00: Um, it all sucks.
15:01
SPEAKER_00: Death sucks.
15:02
SPEAKER_00: And so I just think life is tough.
15:04
SPEAKER_00: And I feel like we all go through things that um make us who we are, and and and is is a season that you don't know if you'll come out the other end.
15:16
SPEAKER_00: You don't.
15:17
SPEAKER_00: And so and so sometimes when I hear stories, I'm like, man, like I I'm not surprised.
15:21
SPEAKER_00: Like I I get it, you know.
15:22
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes I can't really relate with you because I haven't been through it myself, but like yeah, if if it's if it's fucking hell right now because it's it's COVID and sheltering place and uh you know it's a pandemic and there's depression, anxiety.
15:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I believe you.
15:35
SPEAKER_00: Like, I'm not disagreeing, you know what I'm saying?
15:38
SPEAKER_00: But like I it it's hard for me just to be like, oh man, like where like like so what are you gonna do because of it now?
15:43
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
15:45
SPEAKER_02: It's it's actually I would I would push back on that and say you are empathetic because you do like that's like the understanding of how the other person's feeling, right?
15:56
SPEAKER_02: Like you, and it's kind of like the you know, you appreciate giving because you want them to feel it, right?
16:02
SPEAKER_02: That's empathy.
16:03
SPEAKER_02: It's just it sounds more like I don't know, you can disagree with me, but a take on personal responsibility or something.
16:11
SPEAKER_00: True.
16:12
SPEAKER_02: It's like uh it's like a I understand what you're going through, but I also know that you can get through it kind of thing.
16:20
SPEAKER_00: Like it happens, it happens, uh uh, uh a thousand percent.
16:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, my my parents were divorced when my mom passed away almost four years ago, and so I remember it, it happened suddenly.
16:31
SPEAKER_00: You know, we it was on the Friday, we flew to Georgia, me and my brother, yeah, separate separate planes, and I remember getting to my dad's house and and just like, oh thank god, like pops, I need you to take care of all the funeral stuff and just everything.
16:44
SPEAKER_00: So I want to be a little kid right now and just cry all day.
16:47
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, he's like, He's like, son, I'm like, I'm remarried, like, you know, you need to do this, you and your brother need to do this.
16:53
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, like how, like, what do you mean?
16:56
SPEAKER_00: And and I'm so thankful to have uh, you know, like a father who who who gave me the courage, like, no, no, you you can man up, you can do this, like like Lord willing, you can do this.
17:05
SPEAKER_00: And and we did it, of course, like planning a funeral within a week.
17:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, geez, you know, I feel like I can do anything now, but yeah, it's in the moment, it's fucking it's tough.
17:14
SPEAKER_02: Dude, that's the way you phrase that is kind of what I I I love about you, man.
17:26
SPEAKER_02: Is it's not it wasn't shit, I have to do this.
17:31
SPEAKER_02: It's like I'm grateful that I had someone who gave me the courage to do it.
17:36
SPEAKER_02: Because that's a heavy I mean like it's hard.
17:43
SPEAKER_02: It's yeah, I can't even imagine, man.
17:46
SPEAKER_02: It's cool also that you kind of came out of it though, going, like, that was one of the hardest experiences I'm gonna go through.
17:52
SPEAKER_02: And I can do anything, right?
17:54
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it it makes you more grateful for right their the relationships um that you that you encounter even more so.
18:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also kind of seeing the celebration of how many people my mom touched.
18:06
SPEAKER_02: Oh, that's cool.
18:08
SPEAKER_00: You know, like the funeral was like it was like being at Michael Jackson's funeral, man.
18:11
SPEAKER_00: It was it was huge, so many people there.
18:14
SPEAKER_00: So it's like, man, like you know, if I can leave a legacy and in 58 years and 48, Kobe, 42.
18:20
SPEAKER_00: Think about how many lives Kobe touched, dude.
18:23
SPEAKER_00: The world, the world.
18:25
SPEAKER_00: So, like if you really like give it your all in life, I mean, you know, of course, everybody wants to live.
18:31
SPEAKER_00: I mean, my grandma, you know, she just turned 89, like she I think will live another 89 years, but some people aren't given that.
18:38
SPEAKER_00: So if you maximize your the 19 years you're given, man, you can really make a difference.
18:43
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
18:45
SPEAKER_02: Do you have a this is kind of a heavy question, like a weird question in my mind, but it sounds like I mean this legacy of your mother and like her funeral was reflectively a very positive kind of experience.
19:00
SPEAKER_01: Yep.
19:01
SPEAKER_02: Do you have any specific memories from that where you looked around and you were like, God, look at what my mom did.
19:07
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
19:08
SPEAKER_00: Um they, I mean, the the the thankful thing is so she worked at a company for 25 years that made flooring, and she she she toughted the flooring, so we had a chance to collaborate on a lot of projects together with me being in California, which is super cool.
19:23
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also the company made a like a product after her and and named it like her favorite colors red, and like so I I love wearing more red these days.
19:33
SPEAKER_00: Um, so they called it Drew Red and stuff like that.
19:36
SPEAKER_00: And um when I look dude, it's it's it's yeah, trust me, it's it's real.
19:45
SPEAKER_00: Um I mean, because for for me, you you never know, right?
19:51
SPEAKER_00: Like you yeah, like I I got the call in June, she was sick, and then you know, August 12th, 2016, right?
20:02
SPEAKER_00: And me and my mom had talked like daily and calls and all that stuff.
20:08
SPEAKER_00: Like I I you know, I still have her text saved, and I think for me was seeing um that last like week with with my with my older brother and her, that was like really cool.
20:21
SPEAKER_00: Like kind of seeing like because it was it was between me and my brother, like, hey, who should go first?
20:26
SPEAKER_00: And I said, Your older brother, you go first, I'll go the second week, right?
20:30
SPEAKER_00: And kind of seeing them just like have that special moment together, you know, like that that to me, I out of like the funeral and like all the love we got from people, like just that they had that time.
20:41
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, it's it's powerful.
20:43
SPEAKER_02: It's it's that it's it it makes sense, right?
20:47
SPEAKER_02: This this value of connection, right?
20:49
SPEAKER_02: You like really and I feel that too, is just like how it's kind of that legacy is what it's not just how big your network is, but it's like how strong those relationships are within it.
21:02
SPEAKER_02: And so it's wonderful to see you know, see the not just your relationship with your mom, but also your brothers and like how strong the entire network is, right?
21:11
SPEAKER_02: That's kind of what it's about.
21:12
SPEAKER_02: It's like the collective whole and how strong we all are together.
21:15
SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, it was powerful, man.
21:18
SPEAKER_00: It was powerful, you know.
21:20
SPEAKER_00: It's it's you start looking at your parents like superheroes, you know, like like like like like for my dad got sick, um, you know, thankfully recovered uh two years before that.
21:31
SPEAKER_00: And my dad is to me like Superman.
21:33
SPEAKER_00: I mean, six, five, two twenty, broad shoulders, like friend has nothing on him, right?
21:40
SPEAKER_02: Linebacker, man.
21:41
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
21:42
SPEAKER_00: So to see him like you know in the hospital because of a heart issue, like, is this even real?
21:48
SPEAKER_00: You know, like or you know, see your mom with can't like man, like there's just no way.
21:53
SPEAKER_02: There's just no way.
21:54
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, no, absolutely.
21:55
SPEAKER_02: And it's something that everyone can can feel because everyone is like.
22:00
SPEAKER_02: you were saying earlier i mean like life happens right these these things happen and they're and they're gonna happen that's a fact like they're gonna continue happening and so it's yeah I mean it's it's it's hard it's really hard but it's and it's also like an important learning experience and I mean the first person I had passed away from my family was my grandmother and like you you remember exactly the moment you remember what couch you're sitting on how your feet are and everything about it right like it was yesterday yeah exactly and then it's a hard it's a transitional experience I mean watching it happen but also coming out of it and what you learn and how you bring that how you reflect and praise that person like you said like your parents are freaking superheroes so you look at those people and you go like yeah that's my legacy man right to build on that what am I gonna learn from that person right um that's so wonderful man yeah I I I I appreciate you telling me that story and I know that's I know that's deep man you you know your family bro like I mean that's you know it it's it's who I am you know it it's um you know I'm very proud of my mother and and and and and what she gave to this world and you know honestly we're in some crazy times right now where you know a lot of people are passing away you know due to COVID or not right you know but it's man you just gotta just be so grateful for the people around you grateful for the time you get with people I mean like like like like I said you know on the LinkedIn post we are truly all in this together you know like this pandemic doesn't see color this pandemic doesn't doesn't know you know Democrat or Republican man like it's it's trying to kill people man there's it's trying to hurt people it's trying to slow us down it's trying like you said divide us it's like man like that's ah man like we gotta even more so really come together.
23:53
SPEAKER_00: The human spirit is strong man absolutely dude it's so strong it's positive man but I mean it's it's easy to get in those circles where you know it feels like the world's coming to an end and I feel like man we have so much more to see and and and and and develop and you know in 2050 will we see nothing but mixed people I I don't know but you I mean on the track it's heading I would I mean yeah it on the track it's heading right it's just I don't know man you know that that's that's why I'm when when when you ask me hi I'm doing I'm blessed man I'm alive I'm well beautiful wife beautiful little puppy you know like we're healthy yeah well hey man fur fur babies are real brother this is a corona corona puppy quarantine puppy man quarantine puppy dog like so funny no so I I'd be interested to see that or hear then how you kind of take that perspective uh you know it's like being in it together and you know forming strong bonds it sounds like that because you're in a industry where it's about making positive relationships how do you kind of take that mindset into your work yeah that's a fact yeah thankfully in in our commercial real estate industry it's really all about relationships you know we can call up the the head of real estate service now or um have a conversation with the design team at Uber like like those are fun man and and yes they're clients but they're friends right and and and and you're one text away from just saying hey man let's hop on a virtual happy hour now in these new norms or just whatever but I mean yeah like I value the the the friendship because I know I always work for companies that have great products.
25:42
SPEAKER_00: So I know I'm not just like trying to sell you whatever just because you know I'm a salesman it's like no I'm I'm really trying to show you value and be a consultant.
25:50
SPEAKER_00: And if it's not the right product then I I get it.
25:53
SPEAKER_00: I never hear no I hear not now.
25:55
SPEAKER_00: Like I hear you know Brandon we don't need any technology furniture in 2020.
25:59
SPEAKER_00: Cool.
26:00
SPEAKER_00: Let's try it back in 2021.
26:01
SPEAKER_00: Who knows?
26:02
SPEAKER_02: You may be in a different position you you may be with a different company but that friendship doesn't get tainted because you told me no or in my mind not now it's just like all right cool yeah we'll just wait but until then we're gonna keep hanging out is that cool like yeah okay then you know yeah absolutely no and I think that's because you know from someone not in the industry people selling people people selling things right and yeah you're already nodding like you already understand right like you get this the the stereotype you know it's it's an interesting one though because it's it seems so obvious that forming strong relationships but maybe it's maybe it's sometimes it's not lucrative like maybe it could be more lucrative to just be the sales guy without forming the bonds you know I I I don't think anybody ever wants to be sold right no nobody wants to feel like I'm trying to think of example I just had I I don't remember exactly what it was but somebody was you know just chasing me chasing me to kind of get my business for whatever program or platform it was you know finally signed up with this company super excited and then crickets like the service has been bad they've been whatever I'm like dude so you just you just wanted you just want the check but you didn't really want to build this relationship together even even if it wasn't a big sell right like the the the point is yeah you came after me to to supposedly form a relationship and at the end of the day I was just another dollar sign.
27:32
SPEAKER_02: Yeah and there goes his name right right right yeah right and and and that's all you got full circle yeah full circle man just saying like change change it up oh absolutely man what I how do you go about selling things like like you say people don't like to be sold yeah so what is the I I have no experience in this what is the methodology of then of of selling to people without selling to them yeah yeah I mean you know you always got to find out it you know if there's a need, right?
28:08
SPEAKER_00: I mean do do you need a certain solution we're trying to offer you know you know what are the employees um looking looking like to collaborate more or to feel more safe you know after a post-COVID workplace so having options that you know there may be a demand for and and you know if we don't then how can we be more innovative for you to have that when you know things are back to normal.
28:30
SPEAKER_00: So it's truly trying to trying to listen you know like we don't have all the answers but we know we we can collaborate together to possibly you know come up with some type of solution.
28:40
SPEAKER_00: Of course we're gonna feel like we we can but there's times like you know we hit a wall like we can't get to that price point.
28:46
SPEAKER_00: We can't but you know here's what we can offer let's do a mock up compare it's not apples to apples because the price point's different but you may like hey I like that Jay Hilburn shirt for you know whatever price because the quality is amazing.
29:00
SPEAKER_00: And I'm gonna have it for 10 years compared to buying it off I don't know whatever rack or whatever flea market and you know you're gonna have it for a couple months and then you got to replace it and it was 20 bucks but doesn't matter pay 120 get 10 years out of it.
29:14
SPEAKER_00: So the value is like it's got to be there.
29:16
SPEAKER_02: Yeah it's kind of like you're it's it's about following up then right it's it's about like that follow up like you're that you're talking about is it's not just the initial this is what I got but it's like this is what I have this is the service I can offer you and if they say no you go well well what can I do for you right what could does this work does this work does this work it it's a long term play right it's a marathon and not a race and if you look at it like that then you you enjoy the process because a lot of people I mean I always tell people um you know if if you're trying to co-call Flint and he's not responding and it's been two emails try again try text try a phone call because usually it takes seven to nine touches before you even respond let alone Flint saying like you know what I got 15 minutes on Friday let's talk.
30:06
SPEAKER_00: Yeah so if you don't enjoy that process of getting to that point like the hunt you know say to me it's like come on man like I know once we talk you're gonna like me so just wait because I'm just like you don't know what you're missing out on right but but some sometimes people just like oh they you know that they're too busy or I I can't get it ah man like you gotta keep going you got to keep going what do you enjoy about the hunt I like that oh man everything yeah everything I I I think well I know you have to be super resilient right I mean just before you hopped on I was uh venting about I I hate losing more than winning yeah it it's true because for me you know everybody can win but a loss man taking the Like oh man that's the worst that's the worst but but winning everybody celebrates it's like nah man like how how and why did I lose so so so the hunt to me is like hearing the no's the not yet the not now um you know come back around see what else you can do it's like all right man I'm I'm I'm gonna give you a solution because once I you know once we work together once or twice that's it yeah you you're you you're a friend for life and you're a client that we collaborate all the time for a long relationship and then if you go somewhere else you you know you remember me oh man you helped me on that one project I tell my team all the time it's not about being the best it's about being available right you know if if Flint called me for some furniture you know 7 30 at night you're working on a project and you're you know you have to talk to your boss Trish tomorrow at 8 a.m and you're like Brandon I I'm it's late I don't have any design options what can you get me and I just I I see the email but I'm like I mean I'm on two drinks he's good I'm watching Netflix that's not cool that's not cool that's easy though you know what I'm saying but because if you come through even if it's just hey here's five links you send it at eight 830 and then it gives you something to talk about in front of your your your manager Trish sure then it showed it gives you value it it helps your name and so now they're like man anytime in I'm in a bind I'm gonna I'm gonna call Brandon I'm gonna call Flint like right this is I know they'll come through I know they'll be available a text or whatever like hey I'm scrambling okay I got you I I'm not at my computer right now but seven o'clock in the morning I'll send you an email I got you sure people remember that absolutely man they're because it's probably becomes like a four part of your character right right but it's hard it is because because you don't naturally just jump to that person you know automatically you're two drinks in here watching Netflix you know but but what you gotta think about it you you start thinking okay well there's there's been somebody who's been at my attention at my headspace for months throw them a bone see if they'll help me out in spine and if you come through to like oh I I got you I got you in the next one like I thank you like that that was huge.
33:10
SPEAKER_00: I remember you like you start building value for them.
33:14
SPEAKER_00: People peep beep you know time time is money man people have a ton of ton of time that hey you you think they don't want to get off the computer watch Netflix of their family too they want to finish this project so we'll help them do that.
33:25
SPEAKER_02: Yeah no absolutely I all I'm saying is like in it's it's kind of this I think it ties back into what you're saying.
33:32
SPEAKER_02: It's less about winning it's more about not losing it's like creating this value that helps you not lose because you form a stronger bond with your colleague or your team or whoever and you know in the end that helps you you know not lose.
33:46
SPEAKER_02: But it's but it once again that time commitment I mean always being available is is tough especially in COVID right where you're always in the office man.
33:54
SPEAKER_00: Man always there's no no boundaries right there's no boundaries it's um and I think once you have those friends you can have those conversations right even if it is a bad time or whatever um you know if you if sometimes if you call me like I have certain responses and one is I'm in a meeting I'll call right back or you know give me 15 minutes.
34:16
SPEAKER_00: So you give them a couple of those and then you do follow back up and call them back or or text them or email them just to check in, make sure you know whatever they needed they had.
34:25
SPEAKER_00: That that that helps man.
34:26
SPEAKER_00: It helps you know it takes a little bit of time.
34:29
SPEAKER_02: So no it's it's one of those things where I'd be interesting to hear your take on how many people then it's it's like you said it's not about being the best it's about being available.
34:42
SPEAKER_00: How many people do you like how wide of the network do you have to be available to though is there like how wide do you spread that network out yeah it's it's it's always 8020 right you get 80% of your business from 20% of your clientslash friends.
34:56
SPEAKER_00: You know I I wish everybody was knocking down my door trying to get my attention and headspace that's not the case but you but you but you end up having that core you know 10 designers five end users that always come back to you because they know you're reliable that you know it it makes it more manageable.
35:12
SPEAKER_00: I asked your mom how many times I've texted her emailed her called her two or three weeks before I had some big event I need a new shirt or suit for yeah she always took the call the text email and came through for me expedited shipping all that yeah and and so now I'm I'm probably I'm probably spoiled because I just know oh wait I'll wait until like you know two days before I know Trisha come through it happens all she's just there joining the screen yeah but I also love that coming kind of flipping the perspective then because we were talking about you being the salesperson I like seeing that from the other side going like I've created this bond she's consistently reliable I know that that's the relationship the connection I formed now like it you're not looking for other options it's like I've got I found my I found this this person I I formed this bond that's my go-to yep that's strong I I got I got a text from a friend on a Saturday hey you know like you know we're we're wedding wedding season right now and you know Scott's looking for a suit do you know if anybody I'm like oh my stylist Trish she'll hook you up and email her right now Saturday two o'clock on a Saturday Trish Scott you gotta gotta meet him connect him meet him I think she saw him that Sunday like it was it was something like you know what I'm saying like like within like she replied back within five minutes saw him that Sunday or Monday and got and he got a suit for his wedding that was like that 100% like that's awesome.
36:43
SPEAKER_00: No I love that do you have any personal experiences with relationships or friendships where you've kept that bond and then they've come back to you is that now yeah you know what I have seven best brothers I don't call them best friends seven best brothers they were in my wedding um we all we still have a group chat right now yeah it's it's the funny I I should add you if if you saw it just for like two days we're just clowning all day yeah um but just you know when when when when you pass away and and and you know you say that you can hold up two hands you know let alone one hand to say five best brothers you know I can hold up two and and say I have seven best brothers that just ride or die.
37:29
SPEAKER_02: Just Iron Sharpens iron you know like I don't man these guys are just great yeah and and and and and taken like I have a lot of friends like I know a lot of people sure um but but when you talk about just like you know you you can't pick your family or or or yeah you can't pick your family but you can pick your friends I'll pick these guys as my brothers all day man 100% um I I I I have I have those seven for sure of course my wife like of course that's that's she trumps everyone but of course for us um yeah man I I just I I really value those relationships are they from childhood is it was it like one group that formed or has this been like that's a mix um so my brother you know right since I'm born um a best friend from kindergarten um another best friend from middle school another best friend no two best friends from college one best friend from um church and one best friend from my uh first job interface wicked so you've collected this this wicked group mm-hmm mm-hmm yeah it's and and and it's all I mean ages from 39 to 30 are all the ages so so so you so you get you get wisdom you get some clowning in between you know what I'm saying like for a man yeah you got your big brothers you got your little brothers you got your brothers the same age like you gotta you gotta have people that keep you serious but also people like keep you fun right man it's we are clowning 247 some sometimes I'm I'm on a zoom call and like they're they're just like talking ish right and I see it I'm on a zoom call I'm like oh man that was a good joke I can't reply back right now you're like they're gonna think I just pumped out you know like no man I'm so I'm I'm working right now but oh I love that man no and I I dude I freaking love the way you speak it's it's uh I'm blessed my best brothers right it's like it's just it's all family man it's all it's all family it's all grateful it's so good man it's it's you know I always I I told my team this too I said just because I say I'm blessed doesn't mean I'm not stressed doesn't mean that you know it you know sheltering place hasn't been hard or like life hasn't been hard like don't don't get that twisted I said but if if you're asking me right now first and foremost what am I I'm blessed because I'm alive yeah I'm breathing air and you know you ask me again like oh yeah day's been crazy you know getting some weeze of it but first initial one man it'll it'll be just that and and I I I got that full disclosure from a mentor he used to say I'm blessed and highly favored so I I don't want to steal his whole tagline but um every time you ask Ken no matter what the situation I'm blessed and highly favored I'm blessed and highly favored never never misses a beat ever that I had this one experience um there was a guy who in in my church um and his mother passed away and it was the service after she passed away and you know it's like the week after this guy's um in a lot of pain and he stood up and he said something along the lines of I was really sad all week but I remembered that my mom was always ecstatic about life even if she was sad.
40:57
SPEAKER_02: So if you asked me how I was doing a week ago I'd say I'm broken.
41:02
SPEAKER_02: But if you asked me how I'm doing right now I'd say I'm broken and I'm ecstatic about life.
41:09
SPEAKER_02: Right?
41:09
SPEAKER_02: It's like that it's like that overarching mentality like you say like I'm but I might be stressed.
41:16
SPEAKER_02: Yeah things might be going wrong but it's like right it's no it's it's powerful right it's this kind of like you said it's the appreciation for you like that you're still breathing.
41:30
SPEAKER_02: Right?
41:30
SPEAKER_00: And it's hard to appreciate that sometimes I I think it is and it's always the little things right so e even for me and I haven't been the best at this I'm not gonna say I'm always perfect man it's effort.
41:43
SPEAKER_00: Miracle morning right like I try to uh dedicate 30 minutes at least to you know do devotional time meditate journal um affirmations and then there's a last portion is uh grateful journal right like so I am grateful I am thankful and as little as I am thankful for cool air through the vents you know I am grateful for food on the table you know I am I am thankful for this this podcast that's fence of you know I'm I'm grateful for a puppy now you know I'm I'm thankful to you know hop in a car and go to Safeway you know tomorrow whatever the case is but those even those little things like people I mean being you know full disclosure same way like you take it for granted yeah take it for granted like I can't wait to put a mask on and go to Target.
42:26
SPEAKER_00: Are you kidding me?
42:26
SPEAKER_00: It's like Disney World What do you think it is that's so powerful about that kind of real like that that even those being grateful for those little things what do you think is so powerful about that that makes you feel better or or more calm about life it it's that reminder I think once you start adding everything up like you know it's like oh man like okay yeah I do have a house and I got a car that runs from point A to point B and I got a healthy wife and healthy children and none of us have gotten COVID like you just start adding you're like man like this list is long I mean five minutes it goes like that.
43:05
SPEAKER_00: Yeah and you're like man what am I stressed what am I tripping over?
43:09
SPEAKER_00: This this you know this one thing that I can't control but these other things that I can control that that brings so much like happiness to me.
43:18
SPEAKER_00: You know I I just think you you can't knock how many things are going well.
43:23
SPEAKER_02: And even for people who feel like it's not you know like really try like just just try it to say I'm grateful for having two arms I'm grateful that I can hear right these are things we take for granted I'm 100% now I had a I had a podcast earlier on with this this guy Michael Saunders he's a fantastic dude and sounds and he had um he's already a very grateful person but he he was trying to be more intentional about so every time he woke up he was he was saying 30 things he was grateful for which I think is excessive but that's fantastic.
43:59
SPEAKER_02: Right And then to be fair, for the past couple weeks after that, I've been doing the same thing.
44:04
SPEAKER_02: But the point was you start saying the same things over and over again.
44:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you wake up and you're like, Oh, I'm thankful for my pillow, I'm thankful for the sun, I'm thankful for my breath.
44:13
SPEAKER_02: And you start, but you start repeating those things, and then after like a couple days, your brain's like, I'm tired of those things.
44:18
SPEAKER_02: Let's find some more things to be grateful for.
44:20
SPEAKER_00: Right.
44:21
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
44:21
SPEAKER_00: That's a fact.
44:22
SPEAKER_00: That's a fact.
44:23
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
44:24
SPEAKER_02: It's like you start like when you it's it's a muscle, you keep working, and it gets stronger, and all of a sudden you start seeing all these other things that you're you are grateful.
44:33
SPEAKER_02: You already were, but now you're kind of it's like you're saying it's the little moments, you realize it.
44:37
SPEAKER_02: It's how'd you say it?
44:38
SPEAKER_02: It's like remembering it was remembering the little moments, maybe.
44:45
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it it it it's it's a reflection of you know the the you know yesterday or you know the the day you're about to experience, or you know, what you have to look forward to in the future.
44:55
SPEAKER_00: You know, there's not a lot for anybody right now during a pandemic, but you know, there there are little little moments that you may have a Zoom call with your grandmother who learned how to you know do Zoom at 89 years old, or you know, your niece just had a you know her birthday and she's like really psyched out because she got some Nike sneakers, right?
45:12
SPEAKER_00: Like I don't know, man.
45:14
SPEAKER_00: This is things to be thankful for.
45:17
SPEAKER_02: And even I think what that's interesting is kind of it's uh it requires a bit of a shift of perspective.
45:25
SPEAKER_02: Like you have all these things that you've established as what you want, even maybe you've established your perspective on what you want to be grateful for.
45:34
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and sometimes you have to shift it a little bit and and see what other things could make you you know happy or fulfilled or proud.
45:43
SPEAKER_02: Right.
45:44
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's easy to be thankful or grateful for huge things, right?
45:49
SPEAKER_00: Oh, I I just got a big order, or um, you know, yeah, you know, when things are normal, we're we're going to the Bahamas like I'm thankful.
45:57
SPEAKER_00: I'm thankful for this backdrop really being Hawaii, right?
46:01
SPEAKER_00: Um But like when you start getting to the the really details of certain things, you know, like I'm I'm thankful that I have enough money to buy a Jay Hilburn shirt, or I'm thankful that I can buy a cup of coffee from Starbucks.
46:11
SPEAKER_00: Like, like, yeah, you should be thankful for that.
46:13
SPEAKER_02: Like, thankful for how good you look in the Jay Hilburn shirt.
46:18
SPEAKER_00: Thank you for uh your mama for that one.
46:23
SPEAKER_02: Oh dude, that's awesome.
46:26
SPEAKER_02: No, I I don't want to take too much of your time.
46:28
SPEAKER_02: I'm absolutely really man.
46:30
SPEAKER_00: This this this fill this filled my bucket, I promise you.
46:33
SPEAKER_00: You know, you know, I was I was a little uh uh cranky in the beginning, but this definitely filled a bucket.
46:39
SPEAKER_00: So thanks for being patient with me on it.
46:41
SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
46:41
SPEAKER_02: I just have kind of one last question, which is looking back over the conversation, right?
46:47
SPEAKER_02: We talked about a lot of pretty powerful things, I think.
46:50
SPEAKER_02: Um is there any sort of message you think that a listener could take out of this or that you would want a listener to take from this conversation?
47:00
SPEAKER_00: I think it falls, you know.
47:01
SPEAKER_00: I I think I said a million times, but you know, life is short.
47:05
SPEAKER_00: Um, appreciate, you know, the the little things in life, appreciate the people around you.
47:10
SPEAKER_00: Um, don't take anything for granted um because we're all guilty of doing it.
47:14
SPEAKER_00: And I I think even more so during a pandemic where you're kind of forced to be with your family, your friends, or roommates, you know, you you want to have those strong relationships, you know, you want to stay connected, um, whether via phone or Zoom with somebody.
47:28
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, you want to check in with people and make sure they truly are okay, and not just like, you know, as far as COVID related, but like their mental health, you know, you you want to make sure that they're taking vitamin C.
47:40
SPEAKER_00: You want to make sure that they're getting, you know, their walks in and working out and not drinking every night like me sometimes, right?
47:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, you truly just want to start caring more about other people, not just yourself.
47:51
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, like you said, it's it's your name, it's how you interact with the world.
47:56
SPEAKER_00: That's it.
47:57
SPEAKER_00: That's all you have, man.
47:59
SPEAKER_00: That's all you have, brother.
48:00
SPEAKER_01: Love it, dude.
48:02
SPEAKER_01: I'll stop right there.
48:18
SPEAKER_02: That story about his mother's funeral is so impactful because it's a clear example of our ability to find the light in any darkness.
48:26
SPEAKER_02: Losing a loved one is one of the hardest things that we go through.
48:30
SPEAKER_02: And Brandon seeing how many people his mother had impacted doesn't make that experience any easier.
48:35
SPEAKER_02: But maybe it makes the experience of finding peace with it a bit more positive.
48:40
SPEAKER_02: Likewise, we talk about connections and gratefulness in this discussion, which is no surprise because those values parallel each other in so many ways.
48:48
SPEAKER_02: In episode 3, I talk about gratefulness with Michael Saunders, which is an energizing and motivating conversation worth listening to.
48:56
SPEAKER_02: But here, Brandon and I build a bit on the topic.
48:59
SPEAKER_02: The perspective of gratitude is one that helps us go through life with a bit more peace and joy.
49:04
SPEAKER_02: But it also helps us look at the small issues or problems in life as opportunities.
49:09
SPEAKER_02: And maybe those opportunities will strengthen our relationships.
49:13
SPEAKER_02: Because it's not just that building strong connections and being appreciative of those people helps you in the short run, maybe by helping you provide a product or connection of value to someone else, or find the things that are actually under your control.
49:25
SPEAKER_02: But it also anchors you more firmly in the web that ties us all together.
49:29
SPEAKER_02: Your actions and your legacy will have the largest impact on those people who you are connected with, and the stronger your network, the stronger and more positive potential there is for your legacy.
49:41
SPEAKER_02: Brandon says it best.
49:47
SPEAKER_02: That's it.
49:48
SPEAKER_02: That's all you got.
49:50
SPEAKER_02: And it makes me wonder what my name might mean when I'm not around, or when I'm gone.
49:56
SPEAKER_02: And maybe it makes you wonder the same thing.
49:58
SPEAKER_02: Thanks for listening.
50:06
SPEAKER_02: If you liked this episode of Seeking Authenticity, that's freaking awesome.
50:11
SPEAKER_02: All I want to ask of you, the listener, in return for the time and effort I put into making it, is that you take a deep breath.
50:19
SPEAKER_02: I mean really breathe.
50:21
SPEAKER_02: Breathe so that it stretches out your shoulders and your back and your chest and pushes out your stomach.
50:26
SPEAKER_02: No more of these shallow, bullshit breaths.
50:28
SPEAKER_02: They're barely keeping you alive, my friend.
50:31
SPEAKER_02: And after you exhale, go out and soak up today.
50:34
SPEAKER_02: Because in the end, your actions and the way they interact with the world and the people around you right now are all you have in this life.
50:42
unknown: Mm-hmm.
50:43
SPEAKER_02: So be authentic with them.
50:44
SPEAKER_02: Peace.