EP 209 | 4am in Arizona | How Business Changed My Life

Motherhood is a journey of constant change, but you can always count on little bellies. Little bellies snacks are made with simple organic ingredients, so you can focus on the giggles instead of the labels. Not only made for every age and stage, our wholesome snack range is growing, just like your little one, from first tastes to toddler adventures. Discover our range at your local Loblaws, Walmart, and other major retailers with more shapes, textures, and flavors coming soon.

Learn more at littlebellies.com today. Little bellies, do what's natural. Travel in Arizona. That's about 7 a.m.

now, actually, even though I'm titling this for you in Arizona. Why? Because I've been up since 4 a.m. Let me open the window, matter of fact.

You know, even though y'all can't see me, this is audio. I give a visual to the podcast and make myself feel like I'm really in the zone. You know, got a nice view today. Looking at the mountains.

Got a golf course. Yeah, you know, it's actually drizzling a little bit, which is probably needed here. It was 100 degrees yesterday. So, man, today, I want to kick it with you all about, you know, how business changed my life.

And, you know, that's part of the reason why I have a faith and business podcast. You know what I mean? Because I believe there's this dope intersection between faith and business that a lot of people don't talk about or address in like how business principles and how following them actually in my mind and in my belief really aligns you closer with God in his call on your life. Because I believe that successful businesses, even if they aren't believers, they draw from the principles of the Bible.

I believe that. I believe a lot of successful people in life, even evil people, sometimes execute biblical principles better than Christians, right? And that's part of the reason why, like, you know, I'm looking outside in this reigning, right? It's raining, whether you saved, whether you not saved, whether you an animal, a plant, a human being, if it's raining, it's raining.

You feel what I'm saying? So, anybody can go out there and soak up, you know what I'm saying, a rain. Plants, if I have plants and my neighbor has plants and they get water, they're going to grow, even if I'm a believer and they are not. And I think sometimes, as Christians, we kind of walk through the world as if like, oh, because I'm saved, God is going to grow my plant, even if I don't water it.

You know, and I think that's how things like poverty, I'm really going to hold a people in manipulation as well. And that's why, you know, people can go to certain churches and get manipulated. Like, if you take care of me, God is going to bless you, because I am your podcast of God. No, that doesn't mean that yes, given is better than receiving, you can't be blessed by giving the people.

But for me to make it exclusive to me of like, give me something so that God can do this thing for you. Like, that's where we get caught up in manipulation. And if I'm being real, a lot of times is because we don't actually know business. When you learn business, you learn money, you learn character, networking, relationships, there is so much process, operations, marketing, presentation, like there are so many elements to business that I believe just like I said, when properly studied in context are beneficial to believers.

So we're going to talk a little bit about that today. Yeah, let me just again, this is audio. I guess, you know, you can call these kinds of special edition audio only podcasts that I'm literally just recording on my iPhone, no studio, no special effects, no anything. And I typically do these episodes for those of y'all who have rock with the show for years, there's a few of these sprinkled throughout my business travels.

A lot of times is because, hey, I'm busy, I'm in Arizona from Monday to Friday this week, two different kind of business events kind of overlapped. So I got a couple days in Tucson, a couple days in Scottsdale for different business activities, events, all type of stuff going on, got some fun stuff, some interesting stuff, I talk about that. But yeah, so I'll be here and having been able to record a podcast because of it. And I do get inspired when I travel, getting different sceneries, sometimes on places I've never been, you know what I mean?

And so a lot of times really on places I've never been nice views, different things that just kind of inspire you, see God in a different way. And so I like to be able to kind of bring that inspiration to y'all as I'm experiencing it, because it may not be the same once I get home. So what do we got? 4 a.m.

Arizona, how business changed my life? So yeah, like one of the crazy things about business travel, you know, you got the flights, you up early, the preparation, what am I going to wear? And believe me, like what you going to wear is a big deal. And I say that because I'm a person that believes that I believe in presentation.

I believe that, you know, I've a you look better, you feel better, I do believe that, but also believe it matters how you come off to people. So, you know, if you met me for the first time after listening to my podcast, and let's just say as an example, like you come across me and I'm dirty, I got a funny smell or it's like, wait a minute, this is the dude I'll be talking about how business changed my life and you know, so on and so forth. I do think that matters. Sometimes people smell you before they hear you.

No, keep in mind, this is in context, you know what I'm saying? You don't go walking around judging a homeless person or a person in need. That's not what I'm saying. I'm specifically saying I have presented myself a certain way.

And if I'm in business as an example, working where I work in a corporation, I work at the level I work at, you should be showing up, right? You know what I'm saying? Like, I don't work at a level where you could show up and not look the part, you know, and if you do, that's going to only hurt yourself. So for me with business, business travel in particular, it creates a lot of opportunities.

Now the question is, why do I talk about this, right? I'm not talking about this to like, oh, look at me. I'm old businessman. First of all, it's a lot of people killing the game in business way more than I am.

I'm aware of that. You know, I came across a young lady last night at this dinner out here and she used to work at the company I work at and some years ago, she left and like, she's just been sprouting, like, she's been going. She's like a VP of sales in this whole region at the company she's at and we were just talking and I was soaking in some advice and some information from her as well, just about navigating different companies and things like that because I've been at the same company for 17 years. There's pros and cons to that.

And so again, you come on business travel, you see someone, you connect with people, we talk about being presentable. Now, you know, she's at a higher level than me at the company. She's at this is a hypothetical. Now let's say I would have saw her and I act funny, or I'm not even, you know, I don't even speak or whatever it is because I'm, you know, whatever.

Look, you could be killing a future opportunity. One of the things she said to me, actually, when we were talking, she was like, man, I'm still connected to this guy, this guy, this guy. And she said, like, you know, you never know when people that know you might want to pull you into something else. So I'm hoping you can grab some of the principles even as I'm talking and kind of like, like the game is free.

You know what I'm saying? I'm giving you free game with this podcast all the time. Now, you know what I'm saying? Like certain things, the strategy might be so separate, like, you know, certain things might be so separate.

You know what I'm saying? I'm just talking to you. But I'm giving you free game. At the end of the day, that's the way I view this podcast.

I have these experiences and for me, they're life changing. And I go out and I'm like, like, God, like other people need this. Now keep in mind, you know, I know people who listen to this show, I, you know, shout out to my listeners, you know, in all various countries, I get messages from people all around the world literally who listen to the podcast or follow me online and maybe new to the podcast. And so I understand like this hits people in different cultures, white, black, you know, Hispanic, different things, it might hit you differently based on your personal life.

So but just from my personal perspective and sharing this is like, I came up in the inner city of Detroit. I don't believe that I just was like, you're just guaranteed to make it out, right? So I have this level of appreciation and gratefulness and I try to be aware of where I came from. I try to stay connected to this mindset of being aware, like, yo, remember, you don't even have a car in college, and all your roommates had cars and you were just like, all right, I need to figure out how to get a car.

You know, remember when I stayed in a one bedroom apartment and I turned around, I'm in the kitchen, spinning backwards, I'm in the bathroom, like, because it was so small. And I remember my credit card was credit score was 535. And, you know, just different things. I remember when I wasn't disciplined.

I remember when I wasn't getting up with purpose when I wasn't that grateful when I took things for granted, maybe took people for granted. So the reason that I share the way I share on this podcast is because in my mind, I'm like, yo, I just experienced this life change of stuff. Who am I number one? I don't want to keep this to myself.

I don't. It's like, I can't keep this to myself because I'm just this regular dude from Detroit and have had to learn how to navigate corporate America, how to become a businessman and truly become a businessman because I'm not type of person. I don't like to talk something that I'm really not. Now that doesn't mean I'm perfect.

That doesn't mean that, you know, every aspect of me is just so polished or whatever. I'm still growing. I'm still learning. What it does mean is I do try my best to be authentic to what I'm saying.

So if I say I'm a businessman, I want to look like a businessman, I want to address like a businessman, I want to act like a businessman, I want to be authentic to envision who I want to become, any and working on the ways to become that. Now, how do you do it? Well, you listen to podcasts like this, you know, that's the value of it is you can wake up in the morning and you kind of start your day with your mindset. Do you pray?

Do you think about the things that a Lord and what God has done for you? And in that might set you on this path of gratefulness through the day. So now you've kind of like planted the seed of gratefulness in the morning, you've taken your life, your purpose, your dreams, your goals, your thoughts before the Lord acts for guidance and wisdom and peace and all those things. So now you like, bro, you, you didn't start it on the right track, right?

And so now as you go throughout the day, you're experiencing life based on the mindset that you have. You feel what I'm saying? And so as you now carve this new mindset that is starting with a biblical foundation of who God created you to be, you're going to realize when you wake up and you're on your drive to work and you have an option between you. Do I want to listen to inspire guys, people that's going to teach me, give me free gain on how to find my purpose and discover who I'm really created to be in life, who God called me to be, or do I want to listen to this podcast that's talking about, you know, the last celebrity that slept with the other celebrity that cheated on such and such and whatever, and then you start realizing just you start gravitating towards purpose when you are more focused on self development and becoming something.

And this is what business has done for me. And the reason I say this is because, you know, I've been, I've been saying this thing for years is one of the things I believe in is envisioning who you want to become, like writing it all down, having what you want to smell like, what you want to look like, what do you want people to feel when they are in your presence, like all these things, and then working on the ways to become that. That's a powerful thing for my life. So like, let me think of like, what's the most trivial example I can try to try to give.

Okay, I'll give you all since I'm talking about presentation and stuff. I've had this thing that every time I get a job promotion, I improve or enhance my business wardrobe. And I'll tell you what started this or what at least what I remember sometimes your memory on stuff could be a little fuzzy at least my I can. What I remember is that there was this Christmas party for work back somewhere between, let's call it 2011 and 2015.

I don't, it was probably 2011 and 2013. So let's just say it was 2013 just to be kind of guessing on the timeline. And I remember back then, you know, I didn't really, you know, I was, I was obviously a lower level in business than I am now. I would say that was the beginning of me kind of coming into the real corporate side of business before that I was really, I was still in a field, but I was now entering back then kind of the business side versus just the labor side of like being, you know, a merchandiser type stock person or, you know, like just a kind of a lower level sales person that's not really selling anything that's more so just executing what people tell me to execute.

And that was the first time, you know, really in my life and in business that now I had a more entrepreneurial job where I could actually influence it and I was dealing with small businesses, mom and pop businesses, but nonetheless in a different way for me. And it was a more professional. That was when I got my first company car, right? So I, at that Christmas party, I remember I had on like these checker dress pants, like, I don't know what, I don't know if I was just picking like, if I was looking at the size or the fit or nothing, I was just like, you know, I really, I guess maybe would just start dressing like that or something.

And then I had on the sweater, I remember being hot. And I just remember the patterns clashing. But it wasn't until I saw a picture like a year later, let's say, sometime later, I saw a picture from that event. And I was like, bro, you don't look like a businessman.

Like, I'm like, you look like you got on your daddy clothes. You know what I'm saying? Like, you look like, like, I just, I wasn't feeling how I looked. I didn't, I didn't believe what I saw when I looked at myself.

And so I came up with this thing. I'm like, okay, every time you get a job promotion, you know, got a little more money, maybe I started off shopping at JCPenia or something, graduate to H&M. And then you know, you just keep graduating from there of like the quality of clothes that I was willing to invest in for business. And I think this is a key part of this.

For a lot of us, we know how to be fly. If we going out with our friends, or we trying to impress our family, you're gonna buy the Gucci, you're gonna buy the Louis, you're gonna spend, you know, all the money that it takes, the Yeezys, the J's, two, $300 for shoes. But then you start skimping on the work stuff, you're going to job interviews, looking like you just bought that outfit, looking like you're playing costume. And that's what I was looking like.

I wasn't believing myself. I wasn't believing that every day I knew how to dress or present myself as a businessman, or that I had even figured out what is my business style? What do I dress like as a businessman, right? What kind of shoes or what kind of sit?

Different things. So I like, so that's when I started doing that. And I started every job just tweaking my investment, investing, I'm used to word investing in my business wardrobe. I'm using that specifically because that's what I believe it is.

I genuinely believe it's an investment in that because if I look the part, if I become the part, if I grow as a businessman, then these shoes I'm wearing, this shirt I'm wearing, these pants that I got tailored, like they are going to help me get the next promotion or they're going to help me sign this deal, right? Because one of the things that happens when you leave outside of your bubble and get outside of your neighborhood, your community of people who think just like you or from where you from and kind of feeds your mind a certain way, if you're from poverty, this poverty is always reinforced around people who are poor. It's just constantly reinforcing every little thing, how you watch the news, you watch it like a poor person, how you drive your car, you drive poor, and that's just what happens sometimes and you don't realize it when you're in it but then for me, again, how business changed my life, I started traveling and I started seeing the people who were more successful than me or higher up in business than me, I'm like, dang, what's the difference between his pants look clean, why his pants and his shoes look clean? It might not, I mean, I went, this is a decent brand and then I started realizing, I'm like, oh, look at how his pants fit.

He didn't just go to the store and buy them boys. He took them to a tailor, I could tell. He took that suit to a tailor, so I started going to the tailor, I go to the tailor a lot. I'd be going to the tailor really all my clothes for anything.

And why is that? Because as I traveled in business and I saw the difference between the successful people and the people who weren't and I started asking myself, was making this person more successful? Was there communication? Was there presentation?

They spoke with clarity, right? They're confidence. I saw their dress and I was like, okay, I'm not going to lie to myself and say how you dress doesn't matter because that's what some of us do. But we only do it with stuff that we don't want to pay for or invest in, right?

You don't tell yourself how you dress, no matter if you go to the club. You just don't, you try to impress people and you do it. So I started bringing in some of these things in business, investing in my clothing, investing in my presentation, because again, hey, I believe you look better, you feel better. But also, I believe that you speak to people with your presentation.

So, I'm not always a super talkative person, believer or not, depending on the environment. I'm not the most talkative person all the time. But I understand that the nonverbal cues can speak volumes, especially in this digital world where we're not used to seeing people all the time. And so, there's a lot of value when you do get out in business.

So we're talking about how business changed my life to hopefully allow you to be able to grab some nuggets regardless of where you're out of business. You may be further than I am. Hopefully you can still see some value on what I'm talking about. And if you're not, then you can definitely, well, I'm gonna say definitely, but hopefully you can find value as well.

And hearing about these things and the goal is for you to think about, how can business change your life? So in your everyday journey, what is it that you can do a little better? Again, something that's trivial as enhancing the quality of what you wear for work. And don't get me wrong.

I'm not talking about going out and doing broke. I'm not talking about going out and buying designer brands. A lot of the brands I buy for work, even if they're a little more expensive, they don't have a logo on them. It's about quality.

It's about fit, right? It's about comfort, function. You know, those are things that make me feel good when I'm in a business meeting. And when I believe you look better, you feel better, you do better.

So now if I'm in a negotiation, or I'm in a meeting, I got to present and I feel like a business man. I know I look like a business man, everyone else. And then I put in a work to know what I'm presenting. And I know the business, then now I can be more confident, which helps me communicate clearly.

So these are all things, man, that for me, as I've gone throughout life, and then made these changes, but then also see the result of the changes. Because that's a big thing. You got to keep score. You got to see what is the result of the action that I took.

And some of us don't take enough time to actually review our results and see what's producing and what's not. Right? And so for me, I started seeing that this really does actually produce something. Again, I look better, I feel better, and I do better.

So let's keep doing that. And so every time I get a promotion, I spend money on clothes, shoes, whatever be business stuff, right? And then over time, the more I've tweaked that, to have my own style, my own way of expression, right? And really being and becoming who I believe God called me to be.

Now, what are some other things that business has done for me? You know, I believe that a huge part of business is authenticity. Motherhood is a journey of constant change, but you can always count on little bellies. Little bellies snacks are made with simple organic ingredients.

So you can focus on the giggles instead of the labels, not fully made for every age and stage. Our wholesome snack range is growing, just like your little one from first tastes to toddler adventures. Discover our range at your local Loblaws, Walmart, and other major retailers with more shapes, textures, and flavors coming soon. Learn more at littlebellies.com today.

Little bellies do what's natural. And this is something that a lot of people struggle with. Think about a job interview. You go into a job interview and you're trying to convince people to hire you.

Okay, great. You want these people to hire you. So you go in this interview and say a bunch of stuff, right? That is not necessarily true to who you are.

I am always on time. I really want this job. You talking away that's not true. And then you get the job.

And then what do you do? Complain about the job, show up late. I'm telling you, it happens all the time. I just saw a post, a meme this morning on Facebook that says something like, it was that cat that's like, it's a video that cat that they got driving or something that's funny to me.

But it was like, me going driving into work today, knowing I ain't gonna do a thing. And that is people's mentality. People's mentality is that I'm gonna go into work and they're gonna pay me, but I'm gonna shortcut, shortcut, I can talk. I'm gonna shortcut myself, them on the job and really you're shortcutting yourself.

Why? Because you should be working, the Bible says work as unto the Lord. Now, if I'm working as unto the Lord, I mean, my job becomes now a part of my life ministry. It's a part of my purpose.

It's not just somewhere I go to randomly waste time or just to make money to cash a check. Now, again, if I'm a person like myself who grew up in poverty, that is typically the only way you learn to view a job. You never really learn to view a job through purpose unless you make it be a basketball player, make it to be a singer. Those are the only jobs really when you grow up poor, that you hear people talking about in a way that has purpose or working in a church.

And then, you know, people just want to overwork you in a church or make you feel like the only way you even have value is the work you do in a church. You feel what I'm saying? So then it becomes like, yeah, I'm like, like, that's the only way I could please God. It's to just do stuff for the church.

And a lot of times that doesn't pay. And so then it's like you're giving your whole life to something I'm not going to go down that path. Hopefully you can understand, you know, where I'm trying to go there. There's some nuance to what I'm saying, but just generally speaking, I'm saying we do ourselves at this service when we don't view our jobs as something we should be doing as unto the Lord.

And that's something that is a part of our life ministry. Now, what do I mean about that? Do I mean that you're at work laying hands on people praying and speaking to sons? No, I don't.

What I do mean is that if I'm working as unto the Lord, then now I'm going to work. And I'm trying to better myself, meaning let's keep something as simple as I take pride in interviewing. I take pride in the things I say in the interview. If I say I'm going to do something in the interview, I want to deliver on it.

Because then, as I'm working for this person, so I'm going to talk about my current job, this was I got this job a year and a half ago. And I remember this was maybe one of the harder interviews that I had ever done in my life. My current boss had me do it. He has you do a case study.

And I'm like, man, like, while it was happening, I'm like a case study. And it's very in depth. And he's doing that because he knows this job is hard. And he was telling, he was almost discouraging you in the job interview.

This was the first job interview I've ever had where to do this, like, almost telling you, like, I don't know if you want to do this because, you know, this job, you're responsible for a lot of stuff. Like, you know, you got to know how to prioritize and manage a lot of people as it relates to not direct reports. But a lot of people are going to want your time because your managing this large customer that's important to the organization and it touches a lot of people across the country. And people are just going to be like, you know, trying to meet with you constantly.

They're going to want information from me. And as you do this case study, now remember, telling him, I said, you will never question my work ethic. I'm not a fast learner. I'm a great learner.

Now, that's something I'll almost say in every job interview. Why do I say that? Because I don't think an interview is about saying what people want to hear so that I can get a job. I believe an interview is about truly vetting an opportunity to see if it is right for me.

I'm interviewing you as much as you're interviewing me. If I'm right for it, and most importantly, that we all can deliver on what we're saying. See, a lot of people go in the job interviews, and they don't even have no intention on delivering on the stuff they're talking about. And like I said earlier, the importance of keeping score, nobody even keeps score.

So you can't even come back and say, remember what I said in the interview, I did this. Now, I was with my boss in Nashville a couple of weeks ago, and we were just randomly just talking. We were at dinner or something. It was just me and him for a minute.

This one, we were in a country music hall of fame. That's what we were doing. We were walking through the country music hall of fame together. We weren't at dinner.

It was like a cocktail dinner. That's like a strolling reception type dinner. I guess that's why I kind of started with dinner. But a part of that was this tour of the country music hall of fame.

So we're walking through there, just me and him talking. And I remember he had kind of randomly said, he said, you have delivered on everything you said you were going to do. And man, when I tell you, that meant a lot to me, because I said in that interview, and I told him those things, I said you would never question my work ethic. I'm going to bring a certain energy to the team, a dynamic to the team that adds value.

And it's going to grow this business. And we've grown a business tremendously. I'm not taking all the credit for that, but I have managed it as it's grown, right? A lot of people touch the business, a lot of people do a lot of work.

But I have led what I lead. And so most importantly for me though, when I told you I'm not a great learner, I'm not a fast learner, but I'm a great learner. What I'm trying to communicate to people is that we may get in this job in the first two months. It could be rough depending on what I have to learn or what I have to process or download into my brain in my mind, because I like observe things and almost download them how a computer does.

I don't walk in a lot of times trying to just talk a lot or do a lot, a lot of times I walk in and try to learn. And so what am I saying? I'm going to come in. It may be a little rough, a little rocky, but then you're going to realize I'm learning it better than an average person.

And so what does that do over time? Over time I become an expert over maybe someone else comes in and they try to fast learn it in one month and then they start halfway doing it from there because they think they know it so well. Me, I spend the first two to three months downloading learning and studying so much information that it allows me to become an actual expert in the area. And then now I can lead and make decisions and be creative.

And that has happened in this job. I've made, I've had ideas that's been executed and helped with other people that execute that have generated, you know, whatever, whatever I'm on somebody, I'm not going to get into that. My point is that this is a way that working as unto the Lord, right, having this mindset that this job is about my life and my life purpose. It can help me become who God wants me to be.

Now I start becoming more of a man in my word. Now I don't just say things that I don't intend to deliver on. Now I have more credibility and I'm speaking, I'm speaking, yes, truly about my experience, but I'm not saying like, I, me, me, this, I'm standing in the way for any of us, right? For any of us who go through this process of saying, I want to become a better business person.

And you start engaging and doing business. It is going to make you a better Christian. You're going to have a different mindset about things, mostly because what I love about business is business allows you to see what's valuable and what's not. Again, example, we all know business is about the bottom line delivering results to the P&L.

Like you, you look at your profit and law statement, you want to see profit, you want to see, you know, more profit than loss at the end of the day, right? When everything balances out, it's really about that top line growth, like, what did you deliver to the P&L? What I love about that is it causes you to say, if this thing isn't valuable, let's move on from it. So let me make it practical.

Let's say I come out with two products. I'm just making this up randomly. I got two different headphones. One is a headphone that wraps around your ear.

Another is a headphone product that sits in your ear. And then now that I have these two headphone products, what ends up happening is I release them both to the market. And maybe my favorite one was around the ear thing. And in my personal mind, I thought, this the one, this the one going to make it, right?

Because some of us are stubborn. We have things in our mind that we are set on and we're not willing to look at what the truth is about the situation because we never put it out there to be judged truly by something black and white like a bottom line. I put these two products out in a year goes by six months go by, let's say not even a year, six months go by, no, let's say a year, a year goes by, you gave them a whole year. And at the end of the day, the one that was your favorite one did not sell that well.

The one that you didn't like that much, consumers decided, hey, this one sold three times as much for every for every three of these that you sell, you only sell one of the ones you like. What does that cause you to do? It causes you to eliminate potentially the one that didn't sell, or at the very least, deprioritize it and say, all right, this one doesn't have as much value, this one isn't going to deliver as much to the bottom line. So let's move on from it.

Why am I pointing that out as it relates to business and self development? I'm a person that says, all right, let's say in 2019, I had a certain mentality. Let's say no, let's say 2020, because 2020 was such a triggered year for everybody with politics and race and everything. And I know it's still that way, but it was crazy in 2020.

I advise you to go listen to the shows. And if you're enjoying this, please do like, share, subscribe, also check out Inspire Guys, people on YouTube. That is where I try to post a lot of daily inspiration and shorts and things like that. So check it out, man, share the content, tell somebody about Inspire Guys, people, and how it is balanced and faith in business to guide you to your purpose and it can do the same for them.

So that's our little commercial. Now back to your regular schedule program. So at the end of the day, now that you have this kind of black and white mentality about understanding the bottom line and what delivers, now, if I'm looking at my personal behaviors or your personal behaviors and you're saying, in 2020, I had this mindset, of maybe I had let the world convince me that, you know, as a black man, I have it so hard in America, right? Okay, that's a common one right there.

So that might trigger you. I ain't trying to trigger you on any side of it, right? But let's say that's your mindset. What ends up happening is that's a seed that you're planting in your mind.

Now, outside of the fact that whether it's true, false or anything, you have to understand, we have to understand the power of the seeds that we plant in our mind. So once I tell myself and convince myself that life is harder because I'm a black man, everything I experience is through that lens. I'm going to the store and life is harder as a black man. I'm getting pulled over for running a real light and life is harder as a black man.

You know, I'm at work and life is harder as a black man. Everywhere you go, you're going to see life through that lens and I believe it's going to reciprocate because I do, I genuinely believe like if I go out into the world and I'm grateful and I'm displaying grateful and people are feeling grateful in my presence, they're feeling that I'm, I care or whatever, like you're going to reciprocate that. Like, so if I go out and I'm like, I'm already like yo trigger like, it's hard being a black man, dog is hard and in, now what happens, that shakes my whole life experience. But this is the part we often overlook.

I start producing the results of life being hard as a black man. Now let's say in 2020, I started listening to Inspire Guys people in 2021. I changed that mindset and I decided 2021, what we were saying on Inspire Guys people podcast, if you go back and listen to our old episodes from that year, you'll hear that a lot of what we were saying in 2021 was don't leave the pandemic empty handed. I can talk.

I had this mindset and this philosophy that the world is going through a lot of trouble and turmoil and problems always create opportunities. That was my mindset that's still my mindset because I think we're still in it to some extent. And I had this mindset that although things are blowing up around me, I'm going to focus on the rebuilding because if something has been torn down and messed up, that means there's an opportunity to rebuild and that when we look in five to seven years, the people who focused on the rebuilding are going to be the ones that have the big buildings. You get what I'm saying?

And the people who focused on the demolition are going to be the ones who have nothing. Once the new thing is built in the old place. So let's say you started listening to Inspire Guys people and now you got this mindset like, yo, problems create opportunities. Like don't leave the pandemic empty handed.

I could do anything whether I'm black, white, whatever, like I can do anything like God, as long as I got God guiding me, I'm going to do it his way. I'm not going to do anything literally mean just go out here and try to manipulate or become successful by any means necessary. I want to do it the right way. I want to please God.

But I believe that problems create opportunities. Now you start going out, you've planted this seed in your mind and you start going out in believe it or not trying to find the opportunity in every problem. This simple mindset shift can change your life. I'm telling you this simple thing right here.

I genuinely believe can change your life if you allow it if you receive it. What am I saying now? So now you're going to start noticing, man, why am I getting more opportunities? Why do I get that promotion?

Why did this thing just seem to work out in my favor for no, it's like God is blessing that mindset. You are now reciprocating opportunity because you're going out into the world. And when people get in your presence instead of sensing that you think it's hard being you, they're sensing like, yo, this guy, this girl, like they just feel like they see the opportunity and everything. This is the person I want leading my business because they're going to go up and get up in the morning.

I don't have to worry about whether or not they're trying to work and get paid or get paid without work. This is a person that I know has a lot of character has integrity and the work that they do. And this is a person that's going out even at work looking for opportunity, looking for opportunities to grow the business, looking for opportunity to provide good service to customers, Indian, now you see how that starts shaping not just how you view yourself and view life, but how other people view you. Now you're going to always have people that's going to spend a whole life arguing with you about everything that's wrong.

Here is the toughest part about what I'm going to tell you all today. Even if they are right and it really is that wrong, they're still going to reproduce bad fruit. That's crazy, bro. Like see, when I read the Bible, I see gratefulness.

I don't see when Daniel was in the lines, then him complaining. I don't see when the Hebrew boys were in the fiery furnace, them complaining. I don't see when Joseph was in prison him complaining. I see the children of Israel complaining when they were in the wilderness and then I see that time frame that they were there being extended.

I saw that generation that complaining, not be able to actually receive the fruit of the promised land. It was actually Joshua generation. It was their kids. It was the next group that got the blessing because the first group, although we could agree that their life was challenging, right?

Not going to argue with you that being a slave, literally being a slave, a Hebrew slave, being free and going out into the wilderness, you had a hard life. But the problem is this is, man, this is crazy. Even if that's the truth and you accept that as your life and your mindset, you're going to stay there because the only seeds that can grow is the seeds that you plant. Man, I know that's tough because what you want to do is focus on the fact, but you don't get it all like, it's tough.

It's this. It's this. I get it. I didn't make life this way, or I didn't make this up.

This is just how it is. Again, when I look at the bottom line, I see that this is the mentality that produces resource. Every successful podcast I listen to, and I'm selective, I don't just listen to people who got money or something. I listen to specific types of content, audio books, all the stuff I have read and listened to.

There's this one consistent fabric that's laced throughout it, and it is that they had a mindset of an overcomer. There are people, I've read so many stories. We've had people on this podcast. Again, I advise you, go and listen to the old podcast on look at inspire guys, people on Apple podcast.

We got a bunch of interviews. We got some on Instagram, I meant one YouTube more are coming. But if you listen to these interviews, we've interviewed people on this show who have been shot, who've been in who've been human traffic, who've been in a trap house to prison. We have interviewed so many people, and when I interview them, I'm seeing a consistent mindset of being an overcomer.

How did this person escape a house from being a sex slave? How did this person get released from prison after 28 years and is now walking out freaking out as a leader and has programs helping the youth and speaking at churches? How does this happen? It's because that's a person that didn't spend 28 years saying this is who I am.

That was in ministry even while they were in prison. That person happens to be my cousin and we have an episode on that one. That's Derral Woods. So check out the episode that we interviewed Derral Woods.

What is my point with all this? My point is that the mindset that produces results is that the mindset of an overcomer, the mindset of an intentional person that says, I'm about my father's business. But the mindset that doesn't produce that continues to produce, it does produce, but it produces negativity. It produces bad fruit, poverty, hurt, pain, depression.

Those are the complainers. Those are the people who water the seeds of doubt versus the seeds of faith. Now, I know this is kind of tough to hear. I'm just sharing with you how business changed my life, how it allowed me to be able to see the bottom line.

Look at the results. Do the thing that produces results. If I put out those two products, I'm going to invest more in the one that actually produced and sold something and the one that didn't sell is discontinued regardless of how I feel about it. Regardless of your emotional attachment to your poverty, to your past, to the pain that was done to you, it is not going to be until you divorce that and invest into a mindset of gratefulness, a mindset that will allow God to bless you and deliver you and heal you and move forward and forgive you, you forgive yourself, you forgive other people.

That's what business is about to me. Now, I know business is super evil as well. I know there's a bunch of things that can be negatively said about it, but I'm telling you how business changed my life, how it allowed me to continue to grow, to produce results and to become who God called me to be. And then now I can bring those experiences, that knowledge, that credibility into my podcast, guiding people to their purpose, inspiring God's people.

I can kick free game. I can become an asset to my family, to my people around me, to mentor other people. And then this is how seeds work. Then you start mentoring other people.

I'm mentoring other people now and then I'm seeing seeds grow in their life. I'm seeing people get blessed with things they didn't believe they could get blessed with previously. I'm not taking all the credit. What I'm seeing is that that's how business changed my life because I love it.

I love the growth, thought. I love the growth. I love the opportunity to become better. That's the other thing I'll say is like, and that's something I don't know if I've said it as much interviews or just said it to bosses, I've worked with people.

It's a huge difference with me is that the person I am in an interview, I'm going to be better than that when I'm in a job. Now, what is most people? That's be real. Most people become worse than that.

Most people, they show to the interview, they look nice, they talk nice, whatever they get on the job. They come to work high, dirty, all kinds of stuff. Why? Because we have this mindset.

When we don't understand business, we have a twisted mindset about how even life works. Business also helps you keep things in perspective. I don't worship celebrities or somebody throwing things or money in your face or they drive a nice car, they got a big house and you think that just mean they got money. They mean a smitman.

You know what I'm saying? You start understanding the business, everything that's shiny doesn't really have value. That allows you to start processing things differently or your regular life where most people are just, they think anything that somebody showed them, you know, he does or she that and they worship and people and you're like, that person barely making it because their life has become about pleasing y'all. So they're mis-managing, they're millions.

You understand the business, money mismanagement is money mismanagement whether you have a lot or a little. That's where there's a lot of stories out there about people who've had millions blown in and lost it off. But those aren't the stories that we're watching. We're watching who slept with who broke up with who lied to who all of those things and then now those things are the things you're living out because those are seeds planted in your mind and I know a lot of people will argue with you.

I can watch this, I can listen to this. It don't affect me. It don't affect me. So you the ground, your mind is a ground.

These thoughts, these songs, these movies, these ideas, these podcasts, these books are seeds planted and you telling me that oh you superman, you superwoman, you somebody can plant a seed and it won't grow in you. I don't be believing stuff like that. I think everything affects me. I'm just being real.

Right now talking to y'all and looking at the mountains and the cactus and the golf course, it affects me. It inspires me. I see mountains. I literally just see the hand of God.

I think about the flood when I see mountains. I start thinking about how I could see how things would have been shaped. I could see the impact of that. But we're walking through and we just ignoring things that are happening right before us.

The sky is a miracle that we see every day. If I try to explain the sky to you and you never seen it before, you would think I was out of my mind. Like here's this thing. It's up above us.

It's mostly blue but then these white things come sometimes and covered these like pillow type things and like water comes from it and then ice can come from it. And man, even like if you ain't careful some lightning like boats come like man, the sky is a whole miracle, bro. And we walking around I believe in God and it's a whole miracle happening above your head every day if you pay attention to it. Listen y'all, I've been up since 4am in Arizona.

I didn't know what we did today. Went to the gym and prayed. I ain't closed and stuff for multiple days. I'll be having so many activities when I'm traveling for business.

I think I'm going to like a salon or something like some western type thing. I'll be all kind of stuff that business trips to take you to different events for conferences and activities and stuff. So I got a lot on the plate this week. But I really want to be productive man and continue to grow this podcast.

And if I'm being honest, it is a challenge because I have so much to do in the business world, so much to do at work trying to continue to grow my career. Yeah, and it's not easy. If I'm being honest, and that's why I try to have these type of episodes where hopefully you get some real value from it. Because everything that's shining ain't valuable man.

People can make stuff look great and it's not really adding substance to your life. It's kind of like going viral or something like, I don't need to go viral or anything. It ain't for nothing for real. Anyway, what I'm going viral for?

What value does it bring to me? We just want attention. Attention is like, I don't know, it's overrated. I'm good on that.

I just want to be who God called me to be. If I got his attention, I'm good. My family's attention. My wife, I'm just trying to grow and really trying to have unnecessary attention for real, for real, just to have it for what?

I said this recently, did I say this? Or am I saying it or did I think it? But anyway, whatever it may be, I believe that some of us are spending so much time trying to convince everybody else of our value that we don't actually believe in ourselves. We post things or talk about things, just to prove the people that we are something.

This is a way that business changed my life. Business helped me to see that I can produce results. When I was leading a team, as an example, and we had a $10.6 million goal for that year in 2021. Then we produced $12.2 million or $12.4 million to the bottom line.

I was leading that team. I saw how my team worked for me. I had a quote in my meeting. I started every meeting where it could be a business quote, could be an inspiring quote or whatever, from different people.

Martin Luther King, Eric Thomas, Warren Buffett, whoever I would find that I liked and I would have them. It was set the tone of our meeting, but that produced results. And then that made, I believe in myself. I didn't talk about it while it was happening.

I didn't post a lot of stuff. I'm talking about stuff in this context because this is a Faith and Business podcast. I believe the reason you're listening is because you want to be guided to your purpose by balancing faith and business. There's context that we're talking about and purpose behind it.

I don't go around like, I don't have to convince somebody of something that I actually am doing. I think that's one of the challenges I see today is that people are more concerned about seeming successful and seeming like something and being accepted by other people than being successful. And once you actually experience levels of success for yourself, it doesn't mean by far, let me just say this, I am not the most successful person at my company, in my small circle. I'm not the most successful person.

Again, it's perspective and context. In the context of where I come from, who I am, my personal life and where I am now, I'm grateful. I'm like, man, God has blessed me with so much. I'm still growing though, but I never have to be the richest.

I never have to be the most successful. That's not the goal. My goal isn't to be a richest person in a world or the most successful because I'm viewing life through the lens of my life, not in comparison to your life or the next person. And I think that's part of all of this is like, so then now, I don't have to go out and try to create my value based on the comparison to you or the next person.

And that's something that I practice more and more. And I think I need more and more and more and more success you actually have because it's easier to lose yourself, forget your way, lose your way, whatever it may be. And that's easy, right? You know, you start having access to more resources, ability to do more things.

You start maybe separating from certain people around you, gravitating to others. There's a lot of things that happen. And you want to say, hey, I might have to separate from this person because they don't add value to my life and meaning like I don't feel inspired. They're not helping me become who God created me to be, but then I got to balance that with not looking down on them because of wherever that they're at in their life and still maybe trying to provide some value to them so that they too can maybe when they get it for themselves, but I have to give them the freedom to never want to get it, or never need to get it for themselves.

So a lot of things that business taught me and it's teaching me is based on my foundational belief in the Bible in Jesus Christ is my savior. And hopefully this podcast is added value to your life. Please do like, subscribe, share this. This is an audio only.

I don't know if this is episode 209 or something. I got to look before I upload it. Maybe this is 208 tool. Now I think it's 12 now, but look, man, again, to my people who listen on audio, I appreciate you.

You all are have been a foundation of this show for what is coming up on five years now, even though I think I said five years last year is really for, I think I said it on the anniversary episode, but it's coming on five years. You all have been so valuable to me and helped me to grow and hopefully you're growing with me. That's the purpose of this show is to grow together as we look back. There should be black and white results, tangible results that are easily, easily seen and felt that we've grown together.

So I should be a little different than my first episode while still maintaining the consistency of who I am. And hopefully the same for you. I love seeing you all when love, seeing you grow. We're about to start having some repeat guests.

There's somebody I reached out to today. And I remember she was on the episode talking about this business that she wanted to start. And like the last year or so she has that business got the building like it's I reached out today. I'm like, Oh, we got to have you back on the show because we talked about this.

This is about results like truly convincing you that you can change your life, whether you are a business professional and entrepreneur, a creator, a minister, whatever it may be on the guy has a purpose for your life. And I believe that if you allow these seeds to be planted, I told you all on the panda tree effect show that there are neurons in your brain that literally grow like trees. So you're not going to convince me that your thoughts are not seeds that grow those trees. Look, man, I hope you all have an amazing, amazing, amazing day and find yourself being inspired by this podcast.

Please do check us out on YouTube. I'm trying to grow that we're on on the road path to 1000 subscribers right now. I think we're at 838 if I'm not mistaken as of this morning. And look, it is now 750 AM in Arizona.

And when I tell you I got a lone day ahead of me, I had to check up on some emails. Well, take a shower, get dressed emails. What else? I got a showcase today, we got a booth at this conference.

So people can be coming up to that. Then there's some type of charity event that I heard is like actually a physical event like they like wear gym clothes, wear workout clothes. I don't know what that mean. So I got to do that event.

Then I think there's some lunch or dinner after that. Many days be long yesterday. I started my day at 430 Eastern Standard Time, ended it around two o'clock Eastern Standard Time. So that was no, no, no, three o'clock Eastern Standard.

I went to sleep about midnight here. I woke up at 4 from being up at 430. So again, you can see like, look, man, the last thing I really say is like, one thing business teaches me is how to continue to cut the fat. Like, you don't, when you're working on something, especially when it's producing results, you don't have a lot of time to waste.

I can't, I can't watch every Netflix special. Like, I don't, the time that I spend with people, if you a person that I'm talking to messaging, texting, whatever, like you're valuable to me, you know what I'm saying? Like, like you are. That's why I don't, I don't stay on hold.

When people put me on hold to check the other line, I hang up. Now, I'll let you like my mama or something, but for most people on the hang up on you. And I'm not doing that to be rude. I'm doing that because my time is valuable.

And if I'm giving you time, but you're putting me on hold, I give you a good 20 seconds, 15 seconds. After that, like, I'm just sitting here wasting time. I don't have time to waste because the time I was giving you, I could have been doing something else. Time we're giving each other.

I don't want to make it like only my time is valuable. But if you don't view your time that way, you won't live that way. I do, I do, I live my life in a way where like everything I do, my time is valuable. So it's like, if I got to give up a Saturday to come to your event or whatever, like, and I hope we about to have a good time.

I hope that you about to be cool because I don't have time to be coming to some of y'all got drama. Like, you get what I'm saying, like business, you know, when David cheated with Bathsheba, it literally says in the Bible in Samuel that this was during the time that the Kings would be at war, David was the king. So it was during the time that the Kings were at war that he was walking on a roof board and lazy and saw a woman taking a bath in that lid to a chain of events that was simple. And so what I'm saying is like, I don't have time to be walking on a roof lazy.

Like, I don't want to put myself in those situations. So I need to be up if I'm up at 4am. Now again, it's 4am Arizona, 7am at home. So that I mean, I usually am up at 6, 6, 30 anyway.

So that's right on par. So the difference is just that I'm here all week in West Coast time. And so now, like today is going to just be a long day because I'm up at 4am Arizona. I mean, I make it back to bed after all these events and dinner or whatever else to midnight.

I don't know. So I had a long week of this. And then when I get back home, you know what I'm saying? These are all the things you kind of balance in business.

But what I love about it, it makes me appreciate things and take things more serious. Because I know when I was treating my job like nothing or your job ain't nothing, just got a random job and your friends random. Like when you live your life that way, nothing seems important. Like, nothing seems important except fun stuff like going out to parties or clubs and drinking that type of stuff is the only things that people value sometimes because they haven't created value in any other aspect of their lives.

That's your choice. You know, I choose to view things in that way. So if I'm gonna be up at 4am, I'm gonna knock out our podcast, we gonna work out. You know what I'm saying?

We gonna do what we gotta do, get the work, be on emails, go to the meeting. It's a full day. It's fun though. In a way, it's busy and fun.

You know, and tomorrow I think I got like a different, this one, I go to Scottsdale, different group, whole different meeting. We got a morning meeting or afternoon, then a white party tomorrow night, a corporate white party. So we'll see how that goes. But man, my point with all of this is just I'm doing a lot.

So hopefully y'all appreciate the content I'm giving here. I'm trying to make sure that it's valuable. I'm trying to grow too, even as a podcast, even in a way I present it, whatever I talk about, I'm constantly trying to grow. So that's my mindset.

It's a growth mindset. That's how business changed my life. It allowed me to see things because in business, especially when you're dealing with it, right now I manage a $150 million account. It was around 120 last year.

We still growing. It's like I manage a $150 million portfolio. You don't have a lot of time just to be frivolously doing things because you could be doing something frivolous that's a million dollar situation. So it's like, you gotta pay attention to everything.

All the money, all the programming, all the marketing, all of the initiatives that you strategize and try to push out. If I come up with an initiative or something or work through with another team that is presenting an initiative to me, then I need to vet that. And then it's always so tough to like, man, it's one thing to have an idea. You can look at some on paper, but then to actually execute that to go through the logistics, the operations, that stuff is challenging.

That's another episode. But my point is, again, business changed my life. So I don't just see things for what they are on the surface. I try to look and say, what did it take to achieve that?

There's a lot of moving parts behind the scenes that people tend to ignore. But not us, baby, inspire guys. People, this is what we do. Yo, please subscribe at Inspire Guys, people on YouTube.

Please share this with somebody to hopefully change their life and inspire them. Follow me on Instagram at Inspire Guys, people also personally at Inspire J will. That's Inspire J W I L altogether, no spaces and Inspire Guys, people on Facebook as well, man. Just Google Inspire Guys, people at the end of the day, and hopefully you'll find some level of content from this podcast.

Listen, God bless you all love y'all man. Y'all have a great day.