The Thin Line Between Confidence And Ego

A single compliment can do two totally different things. It can light a fire under your growth or it can quietly inflate your ego. We sit down and wrestle with the difference between being proud and being prideful, because the line is thinner than most of us want to admit and it shows up in real life fast: sports, music, church, work, and parenting.

We talk about what it looks like to be proud of your accomplishments without turning them into your identity, and how “fake humility” can be just as unhealthy as bragging. We share stories about taking compliments, staying level-headed, and remembering that talent is a gift but skill is built. From a faith-based angle, we keep coming back to gratitude: owning the work you put in while still giving God credit for what you’ve been given.

Parenting gets real too. We dig into how pride in your kids can drift into pressure, comparison, or even idol-making, and why that can shape a child’s sense of worth. We also hit leadership and communication, including a hard truth for anyone leading a team: you can’t expect what you haven’t taught. Then we lighten things up with what we’ve been into lately, from books and shows to games that help us unplug and reset.

If you’ve ever wondered how to be confident without being cocky, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave us a review, then tell us: what keeps you grounded when you’re doing well?

Transcript

Back From The Break

SPEAKER_00 0:39

Oh, I'm saying that.

SPEAKER_04 0:40

What are you saying?

SPEAKER_00 0:41

Was cooking good looking.

SPEAKER_02 0:43

Wait, what are you saying?

SPEAKER_04 0:45

He's been waiting to say that like for a week.

SPEAKER_00 0:48

Yeah, I said it to Richard one day and it just stuck with me.

SPEAKER_04 0:51

Yeah, it's weird that you said it to me.

SPEAKER_03 1:06

What's up? What's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, what's up, everybody. Welcome back to a brand new episode of the Almost Brothers Podcast. After a little bit of a break, 4th of July, you know, you know, times get busy. America. America. As always, Richie Rich.

SPEAKER_04 1:19

What's up, man? How you doing? I am I'm good. I'm I'm real good.

SPEAKER_03 1:24

Real good. Super good.

SPEAKER_04 1:26

Super good. If I had a cape, I'd be super good. That's right. That's right. That's a fact. Ta-ta.

SPEAKER_03 1:35

Exactly. Exactly. And Zigster, how you doing? Good.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

Oh mex way.

SPEAKER_03 1:44

Oh, how y'all doing, man? How was the fourth? I say that like I wasn't, like I wasn't with y'all.

SPEAKER_04 1:51

Right.

SPEAKER_03 1:52

But how was your fourth?

SPEAKER_04 1:54

It was good. It was it was it was very, very good. Now are y'all are y'all fireworks people? Absolutely not. No, no. No.

SPEAKER_00 2:02

I kind of am.

SPEAKER_03 2:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 2:05

Yeah, y'all would y'all did a few, right?

SPEAKER_04 2:07

It is a ginormous waste of money.

SPEAKER_03 2:09

That's what that's how I am. It's like after a couple minutes, it's kind of all the same.

SPEAKER_04 2:12

I'm fine with it as long as it's not my

Fireworks Stories And Hot Takes

SPEAKER_04 2:14

money.

SPEAKER_03 2:14

That's true. That's true. I'm sitting watching somebody else when it's there. That's that's a good point. It's a good point. Good point, man.

SPEAKER_00 2:20

I like running away. Like it's like I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 2:23

What's your favorite?

SPEAKER_00 2:24

Favorite what?

SPEAKER_03 2:25

Firework. You like the big ones? You like like potter rockets or uh I seen I seen some kid that had like what's all the ones from uh uh Joe Dirt? So you're telling me that you don't have no whiskey dixies, no whisker doos, whisker don'ts. Um uh a kid, it was like a bigger um what are the ones? Roman cannon. Roman cannon. But it was a bigger one. He had it outside of a hotel, like by the pool, and he accidentally dropped it and it and it like started shooting inside the hotel. Gosh, yeah, and like they were bigger ones. Yeah, it wasn't good. I feel like that's attempted manslaughter. Right, yeah, and of course it was like a teenager being crazy.

SPEAKER_00 3:08

But see, bottle rockets scare me sometimes because I'd light them in my hand and try to throw them, and sometimes it'd be like on time, and sometimes it'd be like and then it like it goes on the ground. You wait, you wait like three seconds, and then I remember yesterday we waited like three seconds, and it just started, it just like went straight at us, and we had to like hide behind some cars and everything.

SPEAKER_02 3:37

I feel like fireworks is like one of those things like you you just forget how to function, so it's like you light, it's like oh crap, I forgot how to throw. What do I do? What do I do? Forgot how to open my hand.

SPEAKER_04 3:49

Oh my god. I do have a favorite firework, even though I don't like fireworks. Yeah, and it's a really simple one, but it's the Saturn missiles. No idea why. I just really like to watch they're satisfying to pew pew.

SPEAKER_03 4:00

I like the um the parachute guy. Every one of them has a small again. Every one of them has a tiny Richard inside going pew pew.

SPEAKER_04 4:12

I yeah, I uh I wish I had a tiny Richard inside of me. I need to lose weight.

SPEAKER_03 4:17

But yeah, I um I like the parachute guys, though those are pretty cool. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, the kids always like those. Yeah, I don't know why. Those are pretty cool. But man, they they scare me though, man. I've seen these videos, you know, kids blowing off their hands and that just happened this 4th of July.

SPEAKER_04 4:33

Did it? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 4:34

Somewhere around here?

SPEAKER_04 4:35

Shocker. I don't know. Jennifer saw it on Facebook, so it must be true. It must be.

SPEAKER_02 4:40

It has to be true. It's on the internet. My brother's uh firefighter down in uh Jonesboro, and he was working for their fireworks show, and he was saying that they had you know put it out there that this is gonna be their biggest fireworks show ever. Yeah. He was uh telling me and uh the rest of my family they spent about forty thousand dollars on fireworks alone.

SPEAKER_04 5:05

I'm sorry, if I'm a taxpayer in the city of Jonesboro, I'm like, I mean, couldn't we have done something with 40 grand?

SPEAKER_03 5:12

I've seen somebody accidentally set them all off at the same time. One of those big fireworks shows, and it was just a big crazy yeah, craziness. But on today's episode, it's not sponsored. Yeah, it's like yeah, whoa. Um not sponsored by fireworks or black cat fireworks, either or. Um we're gonna be talking about the difference between prideful and proud. Right. It's a tough line to tow.

SPEAKER_01 5:41

Yeah, money.

SPEAKER_03 5:43

You remember I do. I was about to say, yeah, I remember that. Yeah, proud family. Yeah, I remember that one. You know, it's you you want to be proud of the things that you do, like you want to be proud of your accomplishments and the things that you that you can do or that you're blessed with, but you know, you have to be careful not to let that go into pride, and it's just such a hard line to to not cross.

SPEAKER_02 6:03

It's not the pride I thought we were talking about.

SPEAKER_03 6:05

Nah, no, no, no, no, no. Strong podcast. Yep.

Proud Vs Prideful

SPEAKER_03 6:12

So it's been fun. It's been a good time. Um, yeah, but how how so let's first start with just the things that we're blessed at, okay?

SPEAKER_04 6:26

I've got nothing to add to this conversation.

SPEAKER_03 6:29

You do, you do though. So Tali, you're a great musician, great singer. Zeke, you're you're a heck of a basketball player, man. You're a few years. Heck of a heck of a basketball player. Uh Richard, you are you are a such a sir, you have such a servant's heart. Okay. Like such a man.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

He's like, I know, right?

SPEAKER_03 6:53

Okay. Whatever. Oh man. Sure, sure. It it is it really. It really is something that that not a lot of people have. Not not or I feel like people have, but they don't really push into that, you know. But it it it is it is an absolute blessing to have and to be around and to see it, because it encourages even me to be more of a of a servant for others. And man, it is it is just awesome to watch. So it's awesome to watch all three of y'all in your in your element, in your thing. So, how is ways that in that you can be proud? Like even a dad. Even how how do you be proud as a dad without being proud of it? Yeah, you know, like you know, proud, proud of your kids, I feel like can cross the line into idols.

SPEAKER_04 7:42

I I knew a dad that way one time, and he, you know, his son was an athlete. I'm not talking about you. I was like, man, I'm right here, bro.

SPEAKER_03 7:50

His son was an athlete. At the at the elite.

SPEAKER_04 7:54

It's amazing, so his uh he basically lived his life through his son. You know, his son's accomplishments he felt were his accomplishments, and it was it was it was he was so proud of his son that it that it it breached into that prideful area, and it was detrimental to him and his son to to to have that. You know, he not only did he have pride in that, too much pride in that, but he also gave his son that much pride. Right.

SPEAKER_03 8:20

Yeah, and you and and you see it when it's all they talk about. And and that's awesome, but what are you teaching your kid? As long as you're producing in that sport, I love you. Right. You know, so it it is it is such a a thin line to walk, man.

SPEAKER_04 8:34

As a girl dad, I have never let my daughters do pageants.

SPEAKER_03 8:38

Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_04 8:39

And it's for the same reason I don't want I don't want them to have some strangers tell them they're self-worth.

SPEAKER_03 8:46

Yeah, if they're yeah, I could see that. Which no no no harm to any pageant girls out there like that.

SPEAKER_04 8:53

I mean, that's fine for whoever to do it.

SPEAKER_03 8:55

But already turned Esther into a page. Oh man. But but I've I've always thought that too, is like how how do you and and I get it, I I get it to a certain extent, like what they're trying to do. It isn't art, you know, there is there is skill to it. But how do you put on a piece of paper, are they pretty enough? Do they have enough talent? Do they have like it's it's just kind of weird. Yeah, you know, it it it it teeters on that, like you're giving them a score on right their literally their abilities, their how they look, how they I mean it's like I don't know, man.

SPEAKER_04 9:29

It's a it's very much a to each their own kind of thing, you know. I that's just that's just a personal choice that I made. So I'm not saying lives wrong. Yeah, don't tell her that she's karate chopped me.

SPEAKER_03 9:42

But it's that's something, and I think you know, going back to sports, because I'm a sports dad, you know, just watching Zeke and and and coaching him, you you can get to that point to where it's like your kids not going in when they should, and and you you have too much pride in them to where now whoa my kids should be in there. It's like well hold up now, let's let's calm down, you know. So there is there is kind of that that line to toe. But um how how do y'all, so we'll start with Zeke, how do you take compliments? He just physically had to refocus. How do you take compliments without becoming he forgot he was on a podcast? Without becoming prideful. Like when somebody, oh man, that was an awesome game, a great game. How do you, as a 13-year-old, keep from letting that get to you to where you think you're better than you are?

SPEAKER_00 10:36

Well, I know like I know my like skills and where I'm at and where I'm not at. So like if somebody just comes up to me and do does that, I try not to be like, and I I try not to get like a big head and I just say thank you and like move on with my day and stuff like that. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:57

Yeah. Yeah, because you you you almost have to brush it off the good and the bad, and just try to stay level headed to like, hey, I'm I've still got more to advance, like that's awesome. They think I'm I'm there, but I want to be here. Right.

SPEAKER_00 11:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:12

That's pretty good, man. Not bad for a 13-year-old, I guess.

SPEAKER_00 11:16

I was gonna say something, but I forgot what I was gonna say.

SPEAKER_03 11:20

And then he hit the wall. How do y'all how do y'all do that? How Ty Tyler, how do you deal with that when someone goes, Oh man, that was just so good, and you you keep from going, I know. Yeah, thanks. I appreciate

Pride In Kids And Pageants

SPEAKER_03 11:34

it.

SPEAKER_02 11:36

It's literally that. Well, I've uh because of my background, I've gotten so used to it that I I don't think about it. Um I want to say like I've gotten, you know, I've gotten just so used to people confirming. Right, no, it's you said it. It's on there. You know, going back now. But it's like, you know, I put the time and the effort into my craft to where it it's kind of at a point, it's like it's not even subjective anymore. See, that sounds that sounds bad. Yeah, but it's like but it's like I I know what you're trying to get at.

SPEAKER_03 12:08

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:09

It's like I'm so convinced I'm good that can nobody tell me no different.

SPEAKER_03 12:17

Well, okay, go ahead. Uh-huh. Keep on digging.

SPEAKER_02 12:21

Well, uh, so I'm at a point where like whenever I play something, I'm not searching for approval. Yeah, about that. Yeah, that's good. Yeah. Um, you know, I've I've had enough experience and have have had plenty of you know notable people, you know, uh kind of affirm that for me, kind of give me that kind of validation, like you're you're you're like this is what you do and you're good at it. Yeah. To the point where I'd just like a random person, like at church or at a show or whatever comes up, like I don't say it does afface me, because I do uh you know it's it's nice getting complimented, um, but it's you know, I'm able to kind of take it just at a very surface level. Yeah but hey, thanks, appreciate it. And that's and that's a really good to my head.

SPEAKER_04 13:06

That's a really good place to start from is that place of I I'm not doing this for that recognition. You know, it's it's not that's not the purpose of this, that's not the reason I'm doing this. So to to start from there is is probably the best place to be.

SPEAKER_02 13:20

Yeah. We actually had a conversation about this uh at uh our Wednesday rehearsal during the summer when we don't do life groups, we do you know 10, 15, 20 minute um devotional with the worship team. And uh I had uh one of my guitar players late in he was kind of talking about that, you know, being you know, during service, being in a uh having a posture of of worship during service, not trying to quote unquote perform and you know what do you do when people are coming up to you like, oh man, you sound real good and it was all great and yada yada, and he's like he's like, you know, how do you you know I don't know how do y'all and okay, I can and I kind of put my two cents in, like, you know, there's no there's nothing wrong with uh taking ownership of the gifting and the talents that that God's gave you and crafting it. Not saying that you did it without God, but he he gave you that initial ability and he gave you the time, effort, whatever to craft that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 14:29

So you took what God gave you and and and worked on it.

SPEAKER_03 14:32

Right, because you can absolutely take what God gave you and squander it away and not use it and be terrible at it. Right, man, he had so much potential. You know, you we see people like that all the time.

SPEAKER_02 14:42

Yeah. So, you know, I was I was like, you know, so uh I was telling him, I was like, thank God for you because you're able to do this. Thank God for you because you're able to do this, you know.

SPEAKER_03 14:51

Yeah, and you're blessed to do it. Like, man, that because you've taken what God give you, the God given talent, but you still have to do something. You build upon that, you perfect that, you do whatever you can to to, you know, you could have you ever heard somebody who's a great singer, but they don't like actually do it. And you're like, why aren't you what are you doing? Why aren't you using that? All right, you know, or you know, somebody that's good at this or that, you know, somebody that's that's art. That's why I tell Aaliyah. It it's a shame that you're not putting that to use.

SPEAKER_04 15:21

Well, it's it and I know you love talking about American Idol.

SPEAKER_03 15:25

Oh gosh.

SPEAKER_04 15:27

But Hannah Harper, you know, when she first started performing on the show, you could tell that she lacked a lot of confidence, and it was really cool to see her throughout the season just grow in that confidence and and be more assured of what God had given her, and and she's really done something with it.

SPEAKER_03 15:43

So Rich, how's a way that you deal with that?

SPEAKER_04 15:46

So, oh man, you're just and so I'm all over the place on this. That's why I wanted to do this episode because Well, I'll just tell on myself. So this morning you were talking about you know, Wednesday night that everybody was gonna or who always gonna be for performing quote unquote Wednesday night. Yeah. You said everybody but me. So I had Oh, did I oh did I not? It it's fine. No, but that's my point. I had a moment of pride where I was like, he said everybody but me. I'm like, who am I? You know what I mean? And but also at that by that same token, I don't I don't get that very often. Yeah, you know, I don't get that uh the servant's heart thing or or whatever, you know, people don't come up and say, hey, wait a serve. Right. It's not something that people really compliment you on.

SPEAKER_03 16:36

And I think that's a hard one too, is when it's something that's not as to the forefront as as others, you know.

SPEAKER_04 16:42

So it's it's not something that I deal with a lot. Yeah. So like when you say something, it's like I'm almost like shy about it. Like it's it's it's kind of a weird feeling for me.

SPEAKER_03 16:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 16:55

Just because it doesn't get brought up very often.

SPEAKER_03 16:57

And that's not a lot of people, like they just can't take compliments, you know. It's like, oh no, no, no. It's like, no, you are blessed to do that and you do a great job. It it doesn't help by denying what God has has blessed you to do and to be either, you know. So it's like you don't want to go that way either. Where the fake humility, right? Where you act like, oh no, you know, no, I'm not any good. And it's like, no, you are right like it it does no good for you to downplay that. Like be proud that God is using you in that way, you know. And for me, anytime I hear something, it it's hard to even take it because their expectations are never as high as mine. Right. I have huge expectations for myself. So a fault. Right, right. So when somebody's like, hey man, that was a great message, it's like, well, it better be. Right. Like that's the least I could do. I think I think it should have been here, regardless of what you say. So I I kind of go backwards with it where I beat myself up, and even when I hear that I, I go, uh it wasn't as good as what it could have been.

SPEAKER_04 18:01

But it's the same thing as what we talked about with Tyler about that that thing that God gave you and you making it better. You know, you watch YouTube videos and you, you know, about about teaching and and and preaching and and leading, you know, all these leadership podcasts that bore me to tears. Yeah, you you invest in all that stuff, you know, you take what God has given you and you make it better. Yeah, it's the same thing as what Tyler does. It's it's it's working on your craft.

SPEAKER_03 18:29

Yep. Oh yeah. And and watching each of y'all, like I said, all three of y'all, doing that almost naturally is really cool to watch. You know, Zeke can't put a basketball down for 10 seconds. Oh, I know. Because something he's he's passionate about and he he's been gifted that ability, but he wants to make it better. Yeah. He wants to grow, he wants to keep moving forward with it and not just be like, okay, I'll I'm good with where I'm at. Right. You know, and I think that's what really separates people that are blessed and people that are amazing at it, is they they took what they were blessed with and they said, I'm gonna I'm gonna go as far with this as I can. Right. You know, and it's just awesome to to watch. Now, what is something that you wish you were better at or you wish you could do? Start with Zeke.

SPEAKER_00 19:17

Me?

SPEAKER_03 19:18

No, the other Zeke. No, the other Zeke on the show.

SPEAKER_00 19:21

Um I don't really know. Because like the only thing I really do is basketball, so and 2K. Which is basketball.

SPEAKER_04 19:34

The boy lives and breathes basketball. Yeah, I mean, he does, man.

SPEAKER_00 19:38

Well, uh oh wait, I have an answer. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_04 19:40

Here we go.

SPEAKER_03 19:40

All right, all right, here he is.

SPEAKER_00 19:41

Oh, he's back on the podcast. Um, probably um like learning, you know,

Taking Compliments Without A Big Head

SPEAKER_00 19:49

like reading. Because I'm amazing in math, decent at science, but reading is like my lowest thing.

SPEAKER_03 19:59

Yeah, you just want to get better at that.

SPEAKER_00 20:01

Think that has to do with your focus?

SPEAKER_03 20:04

Nah.

SPEAKER_01 20:06

Alright.

SPEAKER_03 20:08

Yeah. Glad we got that figured out for you. Well, and and reading is something you have to make yourself. Nobody is just awesome and and enjoy reading, just all you you kind of have to make yourself get into it. Right. Yeah. You know, so that's definitely a work thing. Rich, what you got?

SPEAKER_04 20:27

Uh so a couple things. I I do wish I were a better singer. I I I love to sing, to, to do praise and worship. I'm not great at it, and I don't know how to get better at it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:41

But vocal lessons.

SPEAKER_04 20:43

Yeah, I can I can afford that and I had lots of time. There you go.

SPEAKER_03 20:46

But uh there you go. Thanks, Ty. Oh man, appreciate it.

SPEAKER_04 20:51

So that's something I want to get better at.

SPEAKER_03 20:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 20:54

And uh and preaching. I I want to be better at preaching the gospel. You know, I I'm a I'm a I'm a good teacher.

SPEAKER_03 21:02

Well, and that's what I was gonna say. It's like your your teaching is phenomenal. Right. You know, you dig in and you are so good at engaging and and making it because t teaching can get boring very quickly. Right. You know, so you you do a good job at keeping people engaged with teaching. Well, and so I can see the preaching part, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 21:21

Because that's God blessed me to do that and I enjoy it. Yeah. So it's it's it's twofold. Yeah. But preaching, I get I get very nervous. Yeah. And I just haven't done it enough to be comfortable with it. And I also don't I feel like God hasn't called me to that specific role as a pastor. However, I think that's part of being a pastor. So I think that I don't know. I think I would like to be better at it.

SPEAKER_03 21:50

Yeah. And it it is definitely a a skill to be worked on. It really is. It's it's another one of those things. You don't just wake up one day and become a good preacher. You have to work on it. It's and it's just the more you do it, the you know, the the more you do it, the better you get, and the the I don't want to say easier, that is not the right word, but the the less stressful it is, and the more you kind of lean into it. Right. You know, Tyler, what's something?

SPEAKER_04 22:18

I would also like to be less good looking. I don't know if it's a good thing.

SPEAKER_03 22:20

I you know, I mean, hey, it's a tough life, you know. You can't leave the house.

SPEAKER_00 22:25

Like it's like all the girls be asking me out, man. They be asking you.

SPEAKER_03 22:30

I'm gonna I'm gonna mute both of them. So Tyler as the bad That's rude. Oh, so what's something you got that? I know one thing. I wish I look was a little bit taller. I wish I was a baller.

SPEAKER_00 22:49

I wish I had a girl and I wish I had a girl who looked good. I would call her. What? Something like that.

SPEAKER_04 22:58

What are you saying about this?

SPEAKER_02 23:00

Something like that. Okay, go on. Sorry. My bad, my bad. One thing I've noticed that I need that needs improving for me is um my ability, which I feel like this sounds um what's the word? I I don't know. I don't even know where in your brain.

SPEAKER_03 23:27

Oh man.

SPEAKER_02 23:29

Do you hear do you hear the rusty gears turn?

SPEAKER_03 23:32

Tumbleweeds.

SPEAKER_02 23:38

Um like as a leader of a team, sound sounds kind of bad, but I think uh one thing I need to work on is uh my ability to work within a team, especially when it comes to communication. Okay. Um one thing that I have noticed about myself is uh figuring out what needs to be communicated because there's been quite a few times where I've noticed, oh crap, I didn't communicate this because I didn't necessarily think I need to. Yeah. Because I it's kind of one of those it's one of those things where it some things become second nature. You don't think about it. So you don't think about needing to communicate it.

SPEAKER_03 24:24

Yeah, it was kind of it's kinda yeah, I talk about this where exact same way. Yeah, where you you expect it out of others because it's natural to you or you've learned it, but you haven't taught it to them. So it's like your expectations are somewhere your teaching hasn't been. That's good. Okay. And I I feel like that's a that's a problem in a lot of leaders, that that they they think that the people around them should think like them, but they haven't taught them to think like them. Yeah, so it's like you can't expect what you haven't taught, you know. So that's good. That my mine a hundred thousand percent is we didn't we didn't ask.

SPEAKER_01 24:58

Is um thank you.

SPEAKER_03 25:06

All right, go ahead, Alan Smith. You go ahead. Um my my my memory and my attention. Yeah, your memory for sure. Yeah. Yeah. Um I I I wish I could memorize memorize important things better than I do. Right. Um I I get very focused on whatever is needed at the moment, and my it's hard to focus on on what I need to do, I focus on what I need to do in the moment more than what needs to be done, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_04 25:43

And normally, for a normal brain, yeah, it would be like, hey, just make a list of the things you need to get done. Yeah. It's not that simple. The man's desk.

SPEAKER_03 25:53

Yeah. It's like his brain.

SPEAKER_04 25:56

It looked just it's bad.

SPEAKER_03 25:58

And it and and I I've really noticed it lately because I'll be on my way to do something, and my brain will be on something else, and I'll stop what I'm doing to go do the other thing, and on the way to the other thing, I'll think of something else. And 30 minutes will go by, and that first thing I was going to do, I still haven't done. I'm like, oh my gosh, man, focus. I need to focus, you know. Um that's a big one for me. I I wish I could memorize and regurgitate scripture a lot easier. Right. You know, it's it's harder for me to remember where stuff is. I can remember what it says, but where it is, I wish I was a little bit better at that. And I think people overestimate the importance of that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 26:41

And I mean it's great if you have that ability, but memory is not something that you just build. Right. It's it's it's something you either have or you don't. Yeah. So you have to make ways to work around it. Right. Yeah. And that's not always an easy thing.

SPEAKER_03 26:58

Yeah, it's and I also I I wish I I wish I was better at turning my brain off when I need to. Yeah. It I feel like it's a huge detriment to my health because I it's hard for me to sleep at night. It's it's it's really wearing on me, especially the past couple weeks, just so much going on, and I can't turn it off. Right. I just wish I had that ability to go. I can I can worry about it tomorrow.

SPEAKER_01 27:23

Right.

SPEAKER_03 27:23

You know, I feel like I could, I could work towards that, but right now it's just it's tough.

SPEAKER_04 27:28

Yeah, there's a lot of irons in the fire.

SPEAKER_03 27:30

Yeah, probably make a make a pill for that. Yeah, maybe.

SPEAKER_04 27:33

A lady HD pill.

SPEAKER_03 27:34

I don't, I don't, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:36

I found out what I was gonna say like 30 minutes ago.

SPEAKER_04 27:40

What do you mean you found out? Did somebody tell you?

SPEAKER_00 27:42

See, I had to reach in my brain.

SPEAKER_02 27:45

A little bug in his brain. He's like, oh shoot, hey, by the way.

SPEAKER_00 27:48

Uh yeah, it's like a light bulb, you know. Yeah. So I was gonna say confidence over being cocky.

SPEAKER_03 27:56

Yeah, that's exactly what we're talking about. Is is knowing you're good at something without knowing you're good at something.

SPEAKER_00 28:04

Yeah, and bro, have y'all watched this guy on like Instagram, YouTube, TikTok. His name's like Julian Newman or something like this. Oh my lord. Yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:17

And he's he's a basketball player, he's a little punk.

SPEAKER_00 28:21

He's the worst example of this. Yes. Because back then, right, he was like a fifth grader, he's doing pretty good, he's playing good. And then

Confidence Over Cocky

SPEAKER_00 28:30

he got humbled by some random kid out of camp.

SPEAKER_03 28:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:33

And everything went downhill from that.

SPEAKER_03 28:35

Yep. Well, and again, that's because you you get to a certain point when you're when you're cocky that you don't think you need to continue to work. Right. So you stop where you're at. Everybody else is building, everybody else is coming after you. There's people right up behind you, and eventually they catch you and they pass you, but because you think that you're the man, you're not moving forward.

SPEAKER_04 28:53

You're not trying to grow or get better, so you get passed up and then Well, and the exact opposite of that would be Michael Jordan, who worked tirelessly. Yeah, and Kobe. Or Kobe.

SPEAKER_03 29:02

Kobe's a big, a big example, man, is just hearing the stories about him behind the scenes where his teammates are out and they're doing all this stuff, and he is at the gym and he is working, and he is doing all these things that it takes to get man. It's like you see it on the course. Like, this man took what he was blessed with and just squeezed every ounce. Tom Brady, same thing. Squeezed every ounce out of the God-given talent. Deflate gate, squeezed it.

SPEAKER_00 29:34

Every time I do good in a basketball game, I try not to like do much because the Bible says, like, if if you like talk smack, then God will bring you down.

SPEAKER_03 29:46

Is that in the tenths? You know that that's not bad though.

SPEAKER_02 29:50

Yeah. Hey, the great philosopher Kendrick Lamar once said, Sit down.

SPEAKER_03 29:55

Sit down, be humble. Yes, be humble. Those that exalt themselves will be humbled. Those that are humble will be exalted. But yes.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

No, my vocabulary ain't that good.

SPEAKER_03 30:04

I got you, man. I got you.

SPEAKER_00 30:05

I told you I'm bad every day. I got you, bro.

SPEAKER_03 30:07

What? Y'all just weird. Yeah. Yeah. That's good, though. Legitimately. That's exactly right. Exactly right. So we're gonna move on to a segment we haven't done in a few weeks. That's what's up. What's up? What's up? That should be the sound effect. I like where your head's at. So this is a segment of things that we've been doing over the past week, past month at this point. We haven't done it in a while. Uh maybe a book you're reading, a song you're listening to, something that you're doing in your life when it comes to all that, maybe even a new movie. All right, so Zeke, what you got going on, man?

SPEAKER_00 30:41

It's always me first.

SPEAKER_03 30:42

Other than 2K.

SPEAKER_00 30:44

Um, so first of all, I've been playing.

SPEAKER_03 30:47

I'm about to say you have to go this next 45 seconds without saying 2K. Okay. This is one day he played 2K.

What We Are Into Lately

SPEAKER_00 30:53

And then the second day I played the other 2K. You can't say 2K. Oh, sorry. Anyway. Um, I've been watching Impractical Jokers. It's so good. It's so good. Okay. I've I've like went to sleep with your tablet. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 31:10

Just like I had to go get it this morning because it was in his room. That's why it's not charged.

SPEAKER_00 31:16

Yeah. And I was watching Impractical Jokers, and you jump scared me when you came in and I woke up. I thought it was a demon walking into my room.

SPEAKER_03 31:24

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00 31:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 31:25

It's a good show. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 31:27

Who's your favorite? Um, probably either Myrrh or um that one dude. Yeah. Ah, one dude. That's what I was thinking. Or or the other dude. Or the four dudes.

SPEAKER_03 31:41

Yeah. Yeah. It it is hard. Like at different times, I have different favorites.

SPEAKER_04 31:46

My favorite's the same Joe. Really? It's your favorite. Yeah. You would you would identify with Sal. Oh, I love man. The crap does that mean, man.

SPEAKER_03 31:57

Oh, he's the only idiot on the show. Right. I love all of them, man. They're just I never saw the movie. It's good. I didn't need that. I never watched it. It's pretty much like. Is it just a longer version of a show? Kind of. So I'll kind of. So they go from from event to event. So it's almost like episode to episode, but in between is like um is written stuff. You know, is actually like um like skits. Yeah. Yeah. So so on their way, but then you have the actual spots where they do it, and it all leads to like one big one. But it's it's pretty cool. It's a it's a cool little thing, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:33

Impractical jokers is so peak. Yes, that's one of the one of the like top three shows of all time.

SPEAKER_02 32:41

I love that when uh when Joe left instead of trying to find a replacement, yeah. They would do you know, some shows, just the three of them, and then they would bring in like guest stars to come in.

SPEAKER_03 32:51

Now I I've heard is he back or he's coming back? I've heard I don't remember. I knew I knew they said something about he's either back or gun or coming back. I do not remember. I'll have to look into that. Okay, yeah. Richie Rich, what you got going on, man?

SPEAKER_04 33:04

Uh so I am in book seven of a 10 book series, and I've never read anything like this. Yeah. I say read y'all, uh it's audiobooks. Right. But he listened. I listened. I've had people call me out on that before. Yes. But anyway, so it's called a lit RPG.

SPEAKER_02 33:22

Oh snap.

SPEAKER_04 33:23

Yeah. So it reads like a video game. Like the characters will can level up and they do quests. And I mean, it is so cool. So not only do you have the storyline, which is phenomenal, but you also have the the gameplay aspect of it where they're leveling up and stuff. It's really cool. It's the Victor of Tucson series. Okay. And it's the same author that wrote my Cyber Dream series. Yeah. Yeah, I really liked it. So it, I mean, it's it's really, really good. That is awesome.

SPEAKER_03 33:54

And uh book seven out of ten. So there's ten out. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 34:00

And I think that's it. I think I think it's a done series. So but um yeah, I think that's all I've got going on right now.

SPEAKER_00 34:08

Nice. I don't read.

SPEAKER_04 34:10

So I don't relate. I don't even know. Kyle, your turn. I listen.

SPEAKER_02 34:16

All right. Um we we've had a fairly busy summer so far. Yeah. Um I don't think I talked about it on the show, you know, all the things that Liv and I are doing. Um see last month we played at CMA Fest in Nashville. That was fun. This past weekend we played at the in Bunker, Missouri at the Mid-American Bash where Hannah Harper was headlining.

SPEAKER_04 34:40

Where it was a hundred thousand degrees.

SPEAKER_02 34:42

It really was.

SPEAKER_04 34:43

It was outside, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:44

Outside played at noon.

SPEAKER_04 34:46

Y'all look miserable on the picture.

SPEAKER_02 34:48

It was pretty the pictures were the pictures were good.

SPEAKER_03 34:51

We weren't, we weren't the pictures were good. We were bad. We were bad.

SPEAKER_02 34:58

Um we're opening for her in October. Yeah. Um, and we um there's a place over, I think it's near Van Buren called uh Big River Outdoors Campground. They have a it's a it's a venue there. They hosted Hannah Harper there last month. They reached out to us today interested in us um playing at a show. They have another country artist coming in. Where's that at? It's uh somewhere near Van Buren. I can't remember. Oh, that's right. Okay, okay, yeah. Um I'll be in September. Um we're hopefully getting close to finishing our second song to put out.

SPEAKER_04 35:41

Um you have babies.

SPEAKER_03 35:45

They're on the verge, man, of crawling. They're Esther Esther's crawling.

SPEAKER_02 35:50

Yeah, she's like, Esther's crawling. Uh Ezra's doing the little rocking thing before he starts taking off. Yeah. He's yeah, well, it's so funny because when he wants to, you see it in his face. He's trying to process like, how do I get from here to there? I want to go there. Yeah. And like you can legit see the wheels turning.

SPEAKER_03 36:11

Was it yesterday he was doing that? And then after a while, he just like laid there. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 36:15

I'm bored out enough. I'm over this. That's so funny because like when Esther was trying to figure that out, she you know, kind of doing the same thing, and she would just get so mad and just whine and just give up. Like just sit back. Yeah, yeah. We're we're working on planning their first birthday in a few months. Oh my god. Nuts, dude. It's flying by, man. It's not possible. Yeah, man. Yeah, well, she's standing up on her, well, not on her own, but she's uh sorry, yeah. Well, she's uh she's at a point where like she'll hold on to our hands and stand up. We won't like lift her, yeah, she'll just push and she'll legit let go. Yeah. And like stand up for a quick split second and then fall on her, but she tried that uh later last week and face plant on the floor.

SPEAKER_04 36:57

Do you ever like push her down because you're not ready? No. No.

SPEAKER_02 37:03

No, I don't need to. She she'll do that on her own. But no, it yeah, it's yeah, it's all very fast. There's uh there's uh a quote from The Office. I love The Office. We know, but it really has helped me in the past few years really kind of be present. It was um what was his name? Nerd Dog. Um crap, I can't remember his name. Anyways, he's he said, uh I wish that his his quote was I wish there was a way to know that you were in the good old days. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yep, yep.

SPEAKER_04 37:43

Yeah, Trace Hatchkins got a song.

SPEAKER_02 37:45

Um Time Marches On.

SPEAKER_04 37:48

No, you're gonna miss these days.

SPEAKER_02 37:51

Yeah. You ever heard it?

SPEAKER_04 37:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 37:54

Man, it hits That's good, man. Yeah. So yeah. That helps me uh kind of stay there. Yeah, stay in that moment, and it kind of hurts a little bit more because it's like regardless of how present I am, time's still going.

SPEAKER_03 38:10

Yep, that's right. So I've got I am on book number one of Dungeon Crawler Carl. It is also a lit RPG, but I am actually reading it. I'm not listening to it.

SPEAKER_04 38:20

That's why it's taking you so long.

SPEAKER_03 38:21

I'm actually reading it. Man, it is fantastic. It is so good I bought the other seven that are out.

SPEAKER_04 38:27

Just ready to go. Yes. Holy.

SPEAKER_03 38:29

So there's ten, there's gonna be ten, but there's eight out right now. Um, so I started that, which I'm gonna jump to Gatsby and um blown some dove. I'm gonna try to read those two and then I'll finish out the the series. But I'm excited. There's some video games coming out. I'm ready for Lego Batman comes out in September. Uh, Persona 6 has been announced, so I went back to Persona 5 playing it a little bit. That's that Switch uh for on Switch 2, dude. I'm so stoked. And then um I pre-ordered, which Tyler would be excited for this. I pre-ordered, they've got um Kingdom Hearts 1 through 3 on a cart for Switch 2. So I'm gonna go back, replay all those because part four is gonna be kind of like I have never played so good. Yeah, so good. It's a lot of story, but it's really, really good.

SPEAKER_02 39:16

I'm not I'm not a gamer by any means, but Kingdom Hearts is by far top three, top five. Really, really five. Yeah, it's yeah, yeah. Well, it's and it's and it's cool because it's like if you if you are you know pretty good big fan of Disney, it's like it incorporates a bunch of all the Disney stories, you know, Aladdin, make you know, Mickey Mouse, and all all of it.

SPEAKER_04 39:40

I don't I don't oh I don't own a Switch anymore. So Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 39:44

Uh it's on it, it should be. I can't I'm trying to remember, it's on Xbox, I'm pretty sure. Yeah, yeah. I'm uh I'm no now. Don't quote me on that. I know it's on PlayStation, but I think it's on it's on that as well. But um so a few games coming out, you know, that I'm excited about. But I've really been trying to gaming and books help me help me refocus and shut my mind off so I can put it on something else. So I've been trying to do a lot more of that. Um I kind of fell back in love with reading uh a few months ago. Um when I was a kid growing up, I read a lot, and then I just kind of um got busy and didn't didn't prioritize that time. So now I'm I'm just back in it. So so now my free time I try to read instead of you know scroll on on uh Instagram or whatever.

SPEAKER_04 40:26

So waste of time.

SPEAKER_03 40:28

Yeah, so man, I I and I started that book, and man, I just fell in love with it, and I just burnt through it pretty quickly, and it's it's just great.

SPEAKER_04 40:36

Yeah, one of these days I'm gonna get you to read Helldivers.

SPEAKER_03 40:39

I want to. I want to. I've got he's waiting for you to give him the books.

SPEAKER_04 40:42

Yeah, you gave Dylan the first one. You can probably get it.

SPEAKER_03 40:45

That's why he hasn't read it yet.

SPEAKER_04 40:46

So I've got 13 books I can't afford.

SPEAKER_03 40:49

I told Jamie I'm wanting I'm wanting to read 10 new books that I haven't read, which Gatsby I've read before, but I'm just rereading. Lonesome Doves 1. I've got the eight um Dungeon Crawler books, I'm reading which there's some language in there, but it's not terrible. It's really, really funny. Um, so I've got that's nine, and then I haven't figured out exactly because the other books I want to read are series, and that you know Diary of Foulson. That's what that's what Zeke said. I was about to say they was reading something. I think it may have been Diary of Woman.

SPEAKER_00 41:20

Have you have y'all ever read Bridge to Terra Bithia? It's a good one. It's a good one.

SPEAKER_03 41:26

Yeah. Oh, that's something too, is it's hard for me. So I wanted to read um Project Hail Mary, but I watched the movie, so it's hard for me to go back and read the book if I've already known what's gonna happen.

SPEAKER_04 41:38

So well, that's what happened to me with the Harry Potter movies. I watched the first movie, didn't want to wait on the second movie to find out what was gonna happen, so I read all the books.

SPEAKER_03 41:46

Yeah. Yeah, so it's that's tough. That was same with Hunger Games. It's hard to kind of go back and read it when they did pretty good with the movies, but they they still cut some stuff out.

SPEAKER_04 41:57

Yeah, I mean they have to. I mean, it'd be an eight-hour movie.

SPEAKER_03 42:02

Yeah, right, right, yeah. But yeah, and I've got uh I've got Between Two Fires is a scary medieval book that I'm gonna read. So October 1st, I'm gonna start reading that.

SPEAKER_04 42:14

That's your Halloween book. That's gonna be my Halloween book. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 42:17

So I'm gonna start reading that, and then uh next year I'm gonna read for Halloween the Shining.

SPEAKER_04 42:21

Ooh, pass. Yeah. Here's Johnny.

SPEAKER_03 42:24

Exactly.

SPEAKER_04 42:26

That Jack Nicholson, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 42:28

Yeah. Yep. So that's the cool. That's what's up, man. That's what's down. What else what else y'all got on your heart?

SPEAKER_00 42:35

Uh hungry. Uh same.

SPEAKER_03 42:37

I literally just texted Liv that I was hungry.

SPEAKER_00 42:40

You know. Okay, wait. It's nine?

SPEAKER_02 42:44

I've got an hour drive home.

SPEAKER_00 42:46

So anyway, like I was saying, um Zeke, I've got an hour drive home.

SPEAKER_03 42:52

You better make it good and make it quick.

SPEAKER_00 42:55

All right. For all the people watching at home, nobody's watching it, huh?

SPEAKER_03 42:59

This is audio. We're already off to a bad start.

SPEAKER_00 43:02

Stay, stay sober.

SPEAKER_03 43:07

All right, all right. Have y'all seen, have y'all seen the two guys

Quick Wrap And Final Word

SPEAKER_03 43:10

on uh the new girl? Where they're like, I think it was the new girl, where they're like, they're like on an interview or whatever, and they're like, all right, can we lead you out? She's like, yes, okay, and go. And he's like, all right, if you're on Beale Street, get off of that street. And she's like, um, we're in Nashville, that's in Memphis. And he's like, oh, oh no. If you're on, she's like, we're on this street. Okay, try again and go. And he's like, if you're on whatever street it was, he's like, get off of that and get home and watch the show at five o'clock tonight. And she's like, well, it'd be central time, so it's six o'clock. He messed it all up. And they're just on there laughing because every part of it he messed up. It's like, oh my gosh, it's so embarrassing. Sounded like something I would do. Yeah, yeah. But you know, stay sober. Stay sober.