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Former NFL Players are Top Life Insurance Producers! (Ep. 218)
What is life like after the NFL? Are you a former player looking for your next grind? “This is like ball money but without having to tackle people” says former Baltimore Ravens Cornerback, Denzel Williams. These athletes share their inspiring stories of transitioning from high-energy football careers to finding fulfillment and stability in a profession they had never anticipated.
Former Houston Texans Cornerback, Jacobi Francis, has been focusing on IUL's and pushing life insurance as not only a product, but as a next opportunity for his former teammates. Their experiences underscore the importance of having a backup plan and highlight the surprising parallels between succeeding in sports and thriving in financial planning. John Kabbani also joins to give his professional sales tips and tricks so you get the best information in the insurance industry - listen now!
Hello everybody. Andrew Taylor, here Today we have some special guests with us. We have Denzel Williams. Thank you for coming in.
Speaker 2:How you doing, Andrew.
Speaker 1:How you doing. We got Jacoby Francis what's going on, man, how you doing, good man and we have John Cabani how you doing? So, to give you guys kind of some background, we've had a lot of athletes recently come in and they're they're like we can do this in addition to our other work, which, for you guys is what would you guys, what do you guys do in addition to this?
Speaker 2:so all my life was football and so, like other guys, we talked to all the time like all we know is football. But for me, you know just being the right people. I came across you know insurance and then from there like I'm in and out, you know of playing, um, I know I have this and it's done one of the wonders for me.
Speaker 3:So yeah, pretty much the same as Denzel, uh previous athlete, uh college football player, nfl football player, and now I'm doing insurance.
Speaker 1:So I enjoyed a lot did you ever think you were gonna do insurance? Uh, not at all.
Speaker 3:You know, uh, we joke about it all the time, like I'm in an industry that I never, ever thought about, never crossed my mind, and now I'm doing it. I really like, found a passion in it.
Speaker 1:So it's really good you like it. How old are you guys? I'm 26. 26. Yeah, and you guys played in the NFL. Yeah, what?
Speaker 3:was that I was with the Houston Texans for about two and a half years and then just this previous season, I was with the Minnesota Vikings for a little bit. So yeah, I mean it was fun. You know, I got my time, I was blessed to go play in the NFL and made some really good friendships, networked really well and now, like I said, it's led me to doing what I'm doing now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I went to Villanovas. That was great. That was a good experience. From there I left, I went to the USFL, then I went to Canada this past summer. It's all been a good experience. I'm blessed to have done it. At the end of the day, you can't rest your head on football, it's so in and out. Having this is very securing. It's like, well, if it doesn't work out, I'm not playing, I have this. You know, take care of my bills and you know, live how I want to live.
Speaker 1:to be honest, Now, when you are playing, what is it? Do you make good money?
Speaker 2:Yeah for sure. But like this is like similar to the same money, you know. So I was just like, wait, I don't have to tackle anybody and I can like just like call my phone and just call people and just make the same money. I was like this is a no-brainer. So even when I was like playing, I would like after practice like hop on the phone, like I was like I'm not letting this go, like this is like this is addicting. Now you know, I want to keep doing this NFL. You got to know at least like two spots. So you play safety right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I play safety, you know, like nickel, because I was looking at Sean Merriman yesterday in here.
Speaker 2:I don't want him tackling. He's like a different human freak. He's still an NFL shape, I'm like.
Speaker 1:Bro, he looks like the rock yeah.
Speaker 4:And I was like thinking you were standing next to him.
Speaker 1:So I'm like thinking, like thinking you were standing next to him and he's like twice your size, right Twice my size. So I'm like, thinking like would he hit you.
Speaker 2:I'm going for the legs man, I'm top-locking.
Speaker 3:His nickname was Lights Out. Yeah, it's a reason why you stick to the room, yeah.
Speaker 2:That's why I'm but I don't want to deal with that like yeah, sean Merriman, tackling you. No, I'll do the hitting, you know. I mean I'm good that I never thought about that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, man.
Speaker 3:It's a different. It's a different world, but you know, if you've been doing it for so long, it's kind of natural.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah okay, like you just mentioned, sean, I'm sure like he didn't think twice about doing it was just like like a natural reaction in the day-to-day life. So you've been doing it since. You're probably like kids running around in the yard and you look up and you're at the professional level. I mean, of course a lot of hard work went into it. But once you look up and you're doing it, you just kind of have to remember still being like you're just a big kid at this point in a big business.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what I said about. Uh, someone was like how do you know how to raise kids? And I was like I don't know, I feel like I am still a kid, right, raising kids.
Speaker 3:no, seriously, I mean I guess that keeps it fun, though, because I mean, if you look at yourself as just being like I don't know in one point of view, in just one space of your life, then you know I don't think you will always fulfill what you're supposed to fulfill while you're here. So right, I think that's how I look at it yeah, I love that.
Speaker 1:All right. So how did you guys? Yesterday? You guys had eight people in here and you guys how many were professional athletes? What you had?
Speaker 2:we had four or five of us, yeah, so four or five of you guys were professional athletes.
Speaker 1:How did you tell them about this industry? What'd you say to them and why were you interested?
Speaker 2:yeah, um, we have a few more that just couldn't make it, um, that are on our team, but I think for me, they would kind of just see, like what I was posting on my instagram store, like how much I made, and like our story is pretty similar. Like he was like yo, what are you doing? Like I keep seeing these numbers on your page, like what are you doing? Like this is what I'm doing. Got on the phone, you know, I like yo, this is what I'm doing. This is the proof. Like, look like. And then from there he got licensed, um, took his test, he passed it. And then, when you're not, though, he was about to start and I know where he called me. He was like, uh, yo, I got a call. I'm like okay, he's like, yeah, the vikings called me and he got signed. The vikings, um, this offseason. And um, he's like, yeah, but you know I'll be back, you know when the time is right. And then you know season's over now and he's back and he's killing it. Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean just like denzel said, that's exactly how it was. I remember just like sitting in my living's exactly how it was. I remember just like sitting in my living room one morning and I happen to scroll because I think that may have been like the second and third time I seen him post like the uh, the team is with like the team leaderboard for the monster he had been producing, yeah, and I kept looking like at the time I thought he was doing my sports bed at the time, like this past spring and summer, I just kept seeing everybody's sports bed. So I'm like what is like these large numbers that he's posting and thousands. And so I hit him, like he said, and he was like bro, I'm doing this.
Speaker 3:I think he called me like five minutes after I uh my message to me. He was like, yeah, that's what I'm doing, so forth, so forth, and um, I was like, okay, bet what I have to do, because I was just trying to just find and grow myself outside of just being an athlete at that time. And, um, he introduced it to me and, like he said, it was the same timeline, I had to go leave I play ball. And he told me he's like it'll always be here, bro, like go, do what you do, keep chasing the dream that you always been doing. At the end of the day, this is always going to be here. So back in my mind I'm like cool, I really want to start this though yeah I was still wanting to start it, even while I was playing ball.
Speaker 3:That's why I was so like adamant about getting my license. I kind of studied within like maybe two and a half weeks, took my test and was like yeah, I'm licensed, so he's like okay. But so then we got everything done and been doing it for about uh five, going on six months now. So I mean it pretty much everything kind of like turned over pretty fast for me because I caught on fast and put my head down and worked pretty much so you, what's your biggest month?
Speaker 3:My biggest month was between December and January. And what'd you do Between now and about 40, 45,000,. What then else? Of business that you issued, issued and then I probably issued premium was about yeah, about 40, 45. What'd you get paid on all that? Close to a good 30, almost 28, 30,000.
Speaker 1:Yeah, at 30, almost 28, 38 000, yeah, and then the rest gets, because insurance usually only advances 75 correct, and then at the later on you get the rest. So you're still going to get that money correct if the policy's on the books.
Speaker 3:Yeah for sure.
Speaker 3:So I'll still get those in residuals in months 10, 11, 12.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, I mean it was, um, pretty good months for me because, like I said, I've only been doing at that time for maybe, like that may be like my third month actually just writing my own personal business, and then at that point I was just like studying the products more and actually like working like kind of like a warm market, kind of tapped into the warm market, I know, and reaching out and still, you know, still buying leaves at a time, but it was starting, I was starting to lean more towards more market.
Speaker 3:At that point I understood, like, what I was able to pitch to people and show them and be able to like help them understand, like look, this is something that would be very beneficial for your family and down the road, that's pretty much how it went for me and, um, at the time I wasn't really looking at it in the aspect of like, uh, like the income of. I was looking at it more like producing and wanting to like just be very good at it and just wanting to just be able to, you know, like show everybody on our team. Like you know, I just came in, I've only been writing for about two and a half months. This is how it can be done for you, so let's keep working and building. That's kind of what my mindset was.
Speaker 1:Now. You guys have a Zoom that you guys are on all day working together. Yeah, and you're recruiting people in, you're training them, you're calling with them yeah, now there's something I want to talk about. So you called me the other day and you said I'm writing a case for a hundred hundred and eighty thousand dollars of annual premium. Yeah, to one of my friends in the nfl. Yeah, for sure. So can you talk about how you're, how you're opening up these conversations with people?
Speaker 3:yeah for sure you know previous NFLs. I was in the locker room so I know kind of like the ins and outs of it. I know pretty much like what a lot of as we would say in this industry back office stuff is. So just knowing like the average NFL player is walking when they're done, I think on the low end they may be getting about $25,000, almost $50,000 in life insurance coverage and 25, almost $50,000 in life insurance coverage. And that's just being an NFL player From the NFL. From the NFL Now you get from your vested years.
Speaker 3:You get an add-on about $2,000 for every vested year. But even with that I think you may be only to max out almost maybe $60,000, almost $70,000. So with that thinking I'm like the average person that I know a lot of the clients that I bought from Le, from leads, I get them in way more coverage than that. So I'm just thinking I ask guys, I'm like yo, like, do you have any life insurance? What are your plans? Um, I kind of pitched them pretty much in this universal life policies. I show them that um, and a lot of them don't know, they're not informed on it or some of them just like yeah, let me, let me read on it. So once I pretty much introduce it to them and I'm able to like show them, sit down on the zoom with them, or if I can actually meet them in person, then I'm able to show them like how this will be broken down, I inform them and that's pretty much how it is, and they're pretty much interested after that.
Speaker 1:So then I'm like how do you close them?
Speaker 3:I mean, I think it's really just like showing them the illustrations and something that you can that I trust myself. I think that's what basically like kind of helps them. Okay, cool, if kobe's doing it, then I trust them. And then a lot of the guys have actually like, because I built really good relationships, um, a good handful, and it was like bro, like I trust you, like you just do whatever, yeah, and I don't ever want to just be like I do whatever, but like I, because I'll sit and tell you like no, I want you to know what you're getting.
Speaker 3:I don't want this to just be like a okay, hey, just do whatever and I don't know what's going on. Because I want you to be able to look back and say, yo, kobe, really like helped me down the line for my wife, my kids and my grandkids one day, like that's how I want it to be. I want it to be more than just a. So I think that's really what it is, and I think the biggest thing is just having them understand like look, you have a policy, you're able to access these funds. I mean, you have NFL money, but you can always go back and access this money as well, especially in the NH Universal. And then, if they want something else, like I've written, my good friend of mine is in the league, his wife a policy, his son a policy and his policy.
Speaker 1:So it's just just to be able to like help the whole household out is like very fun, dude, because I mean I have all these policies, but the ones I was the most excited about were the ones I got for my kids For sure I'm like dude those made me the happiest because one day they could use those for something you know, yeah, like you, your kids, they, most people don't know about it.
Speaker 3:So you think, oh, I need to save, save, save, put it in this, put it in this, but little people don't know, just put it in insurance policy, like, let that money do what it needs to do down the road. Your kids will be set when they reach 18 to whatever you put the policy. So I think if you're properly informed and you can up your kid in some way, that's like the best way to go about it.
Speaker 1:I always tell people, because sometimes people will argue with me. They'll be like stocks are better than IUL and I'll be like, okay, but why not do both of them Exactly?
Speaker 3:And I think that's like what we're. I think we talk about this maybe once a week Because, like a lot of guys, they have financial advisors and there's nothing wrong with financial advisors Like I have my own from playing football and great guy, Love him. But a lot of guys are just not informed Mine. He actually informed me a lot. We're very straightforward with things. But a lot of other guys I speak with they don't know a lot of different outlets to be able to put their money into.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I have a financial advisor and he is pro insurance.
Speaker 3:But most aren't, because a lot of time it doesn't benefit them, right.
Speaker 1:Well, the other thing, though, is, like these NFL players, they're going to have these if they are smart with their money, they're going to have these big estates, and you need to use insurance to help replenish taxes and things that happen when you die, so that's another avenue.
Speaker 3:Exactly. Yeah, I show a couple guys, like I said, I think the biggest one I can kind of like inform them right now is on like an iul. They're not in the middle of a conversation. Like I told you, I'll tell you in a couple years let's roll over your nfl 401k, your other market investments, into an annuity policy so we, um, I had, I introduced those options to them early, so they it's like on their mind.
Speaker 3:And then, going from there, they're like okay, cool, I didn't know about that. And then, um, because you'll be amazed, like a lot of my older vet players that I'm talking to, they're like no, I did nothing about this, bro, I'm like cool, so like, let's talk about it, so it makes it a little bit more fun. To like inform. I don't really look at it as like a sale to them. I look at it as more like helping and just giving them another avenue to put their money into.
Speaker 1:Who's your guys' favorite teams?
Speaker 3:I feel like. I think it's kind of like gone yeah.
Speaker 2:I think the older. It's like whoever signs me. It's like whoever pays you.
Speaker 3:Growing up it was more like the Falcons growing up I was a Georgia kid, but outside of that I think you just in your locker room it's just like, oh, I'm here, I'm here, and then this is my team. Yeah, but I mean, you always have favorite players. Growing up I was more of a player type of guy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Who's your team?
Speaker 1:Well, I try to like the Raiders because I live here. You try to like them, but it's hard bro.
Speaker 2:Like.
Speaker 1:I'll games and they'll just get destroyed, yeah. And then I'll like bet against them and they'll win like dude, yeah, the heck can't win with them literally can't win with them. No, but the super bowl. I bet on the eagles because I thought the refs were getting made fun of so much on the internet. Yeah, for all the chiefs calls that they're not going to give them some crazy calls because they'll turn into a meme right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'll be honest, I did not see that like playing out like that. I mean that much of a margin. I was like, wow, I did not see that happening. But it means football, you never know.
Speaker 3:I mean, I did a little bit, you did. I kind of had a feeling it was gonna be a blowout. I just, I don't know, it was just a feeling in me, but the chiefs had it. But no, I did not think that one really. No, not at all.
Speaker 1:Yeah yeah, I don't know, but it's crazy. Yeah, all right, so you guys also you. So you're using your warm market, but you're also using leads, right? So what do you do there? What does that look like?
Speaker 2:yeah, I mean, as you know, you have, like, you know integrity, right, you have, you know their lead source. Um, you know, here and there we try to venture out and try different vendors, but the main ones we're looking at right now it's like mortgage protection and IUL. We're going more towards the IUL approach. I just notice I'm digging to like you can always do both, right, why just do one if you can do both? So I would say, when it comes to IUL, it's great because you know you can buy maybe like 10 or so leads, maybe there are more money, but you're gonna make more right.
Speaker 2:Mortgage protection, I'm probably, oh, it's great because you know you can buy maybe like 10 or so leads, maybe there are more money, but you're going to make more right. Mortgage protection, I'm probably going to buy more volume, right, but it's going to be lesser premium. So I think for us, our approach now like, but our warm market, we're probably just doing, you know, for them IULs, and then you know, but still mixing in work protection because, again, like, the more the better, right, if you want to really hit that next level. I don't think canceling out one thing and just doing one thing is smart, you know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean definitely Denzel and I, and we introduced a lot of the IUL thought process to the team over time. Yeah, Especially like around like mid-November to December they talk about it. They said I was like the IUL came because my brain like just kind of switched. I was like it's something more, we can be doing something more, and I felt like a lot of people weren't doing it. And then, you know, a lot of people were writing IULs especially in the industry. Now everybody's writing IUL. I feel like everybody was talking mortgage protection.
Speaker 1:They were yeah.
Speaker 3:And I'm like and at that point I was just happily like writing the IULs off of just leads because it just made sense for the client and I started realizing, like I said, I started studying the products and really understand, like different carriers, I'm like, okay, iuls is makes a lot more sense, sense especially a long term for anybody. So, yeah, if the client was approved for it and I can get them into it, then that's, that's kind of where I led them to.
Speaker 2:yeah, and to your zoom point from earlier like we're all on zoom, so like we're having these conversations out loud, like everyone's a part of the conversation, like I know for me, I've been on teams where I just felt like I wasn't a part of the conversation. There was, like you know, things that I wasn't aware of. So I feel like our team is different because we're on zoom every day, because the last thing you want to do is have all these agents and I'm not getting that one-on-one help like because you need that. That's what I had, you know. So I know how important it is.
Speaker 2:So for us, like that part, what you were saying, how we'll collaborate, we'll talk like man like, because for me I was kind of like just stuck on mortgage protection. I was like that's what I, what I'm doing. I was like yo, kobe, just do what I'm doing, it works. He was like nah, nah, I'm going to try this. And I'm glad he did, and that opened my mind to different things. And now we're just hitting that approach of doing IULs you know pretty, you know over and over again and just hitting our warm market, and I'm glad I listened.
Speaker 3:Nah, I mean to test it out. We have a lot of great guys on our team. It's not just us two, it's a lot of great guys.
Speaker 3:Even John Sinise was just like his input on a lot of a lot of conversations we have and him just teaching us things from his previous industry which I'm sure we'll talk about yeah, we're going to get into that but you know, just overall, like our team, it's not just Denzel and I, it's a lot of people that it's not sitting at this table right now and some of the guys that was yesterday on the podcast with Sean, but just the input, like our weekly meetings and the discussions. It was like an open floor. So if anybody has a suggestion, anybody has a different.
Speaker 1:What if they don't do nothing and they have a suggestion, because that drives me crazy.
Speaker 3:I mean, I don't know, we haven't really run into that problem yet.
Speaker 1:I'm like bro, sell a policy before you start training everybody the ones who haven't really started.
Speaker 3:They come in with the questions. I think they see like the work that's being put in. They see like the drive and like the discussion, like we'll be in the middle of a day just like yo what y'all think about this Like, and everybody's talking about this like what I need to do. So then you know like a lot of guys are taking the feedback, the conversation. They're really like jotting stuff down and very attentive to like what's being said and what's being done.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's sweet yeah, yeah, I was. I was looking at all the guys in here yesterday. I'm like, dude, you guys could build something crazy.
Speaker 3:We are, we are no we're definitely going to go build a great legacy, a team. You know, I think I don't even say I think I know like the guys we have, they want to do this, they want to be the best at it. Yeah, and just from our conversation yesterday, you know, like you said it, it was just like a lot of the guys come in and we had that drive to want to be great. So I think that's really it and the sky's the limit, as I say.
Speaker 1:That's what people they're like. What have you seen in a good agent? And I'm like dude. The only thing I can identify is they just have this desire to win, no matter what. I can't really identify anything else other than that, because you got people that worked like dude at Wendy's that are killing it. And then you got people with a resume and they're quoting all these good quotes. They look good, smell good and they don't even make a dial.
Speaker 2:And we're competitive, like right now. You're like what? 20k for the month? I'm at 13K. Yeah, I don't like that, do you guys?
Speaker 3:bet. You said no, we bet, no, we just had monthly incentives. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:That's the thing. To make it fun, our team we'll have last month what we do. We did first place was a gift card for Amazon for $500. Second place was $250. Third place was how much $150. This month is leads. That's like 20 leads.
Speaker 3:And we'll get you eight new license dates.
Speaker 2:Yeah, standing desk, yeah, standing desk or a walking pad yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Get leads in a couple of state licenses, standing desk and a walking pad, so we're competing.
Speaker 2:Make it fun. We're coming in like oh you want to get these. Next year we'll hand out cars you know no for sure.
Speaker 3:It just keeps the group competing and make everybody say, look, I want to be number one in this movie.
Speaker 1:When I first started, there was only three of us, okay, okay, and every week whoever wrote the least amount of production had to pay for dinner, and then we would go do something. We'd go out and they had to pay for everything. And it wasn't a lot of money because we didn't have a lot of money. It would be like $100, $200. Right, but it was just the fact that you had to buy, Right? We?
Speaker 3:mentioned that. We mentioned that. I think one week was like whoever wins or whoever loses, somebody has to buy his lunch or something.
Speaker 2:Last week, Owen, I was like, if you get an OTS which is on a spot, like a live dial on the spot, I'll door dash you and move food right now. He did it. I sent him the money and the door dash. Yeah. So it's, what did he get? I didn't ask him that, I got to ask him. I'll get back to you on that, but yeah. But yeah, I think it's like it's in good spirit though it's never, never anything like ill intention.
Speaker 2:So yeah, yeah, I think you need that and, like you know, I feel like that kind of um comes from, like the football right. Like, yeah, you know, we talked, I mean, we were in combine training together that's how I met kobe so like we were out in jersey training for our combine. So we're all doing like our 10 yard sprints, like you know, before you know, getting ready for our 40. We're competing. I'm like, yeah, I just hit a 147. What you hit, yeah, I mean.
Speaker 1:So we oh, you're competing, then oh yeah because you know, we've always like even on our pro days.
Speaker 3:I think we taste each other like an hour or two. I'm gonna run this today, you better run it. But the over two and a half three months we trained together, it was every day, just trying to get the best times, the best results and just doing body pumps. What's?
Speaker 2:your body fat at right now.
Speaker 3:Not good enough. Yeah, it was crazy. So we'll be texting and that's how we really built the relationship, um and like after that, like you know. So we kind of went into our industries, like he had his time with us when I was in Houston and then, um, that's pretty much that we always stayed in contact. Yeah, I mean that's, it was always good spirit between us.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we were always in touch. Like I can see it too happening now, like, as guys kind of go up that high of playing football, we're gonna have a lot more. I mean, we're not just like closing off just to like professional athletes, right, but just kind of go up that high of playing football. We're going to have a lot more. I mean we're not just closing off just to professional athletes, right, but it's just kind of just our network. That's really a lot of our guys we hang out with are all athletes. But I can see this year for sure, when guys kind of stop playing or go up that high, we're going to have a lot more athletes in that room and NFL players, because when you're in the NFL you're on a different kind of high, you know, man, and when you get out it's gotta suck, right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, I think it depends who you are. Um, I know some guys who they played and they are okay with, like, leaving the game and they already know what they want to do after the game. Right, they know it's. They will come in and say I only want to be here for so many years. Then you have some guys that are like I do not know what life is without football. Dude, that's scary. Yeah, it's very scary, and it's not like always a bad thing. Like you have to kind of reset because it's a day-to-day thing that we've been doing.
Speaker 3:Like I said, four or five years old, most guys have been playing this nonstop. Like me myself, I've been playing against us, for I never missed a year football like that's a lot of years just playing it every single day of my life. But I had my time where I was like okay, what I want to do? I knew I wanted to do something productive, but it was more just like okay, you need to be doing something that pretty much helps people. I feel like it was leading towards helping people and like being able to network and be able to socialize and communicate.
Speaker 1:So in the NFL, what's the average length of you working there?
Speaker 3:On paper. Statistically they say it's what? Three, four years. But I mean, you just never know Like most guys deal with injuries. Sometimes it's political, it's business.
Speaker 1:Is it because injuries are high? And then, like young, you got the young crew coming back in.
Speaker 2:It's a high turnover rate and, if you understand, there's a new draft class every year. Yeah, that's what I'm saying there's someone to replace you every year.
Speaker 2:So like they're looking for every reason to let you go right. And so that's why, like for me, I always saw the bigger picture. I was like I'm not going to be defined by football. Like we saw the bigger picture, I was like I'm not going to be defined by football. Like you know, I'm going to hit a billion with or without football, you know. And so I think that that's kind of where. Like for me, when I heard about this, I was like this is a no-brainer, because the last thing I want to be is like at a training camp and I'm worried about getting paid instead of just playing a game. Right, like now, it's like I go into training camp, I get a call, got one, like all right, if I get cut, like I'm good, I have this, you know what I mean. Like I have a backup plan. I have something that's secure for me that I will always do, you know.
Speaker 3:So yeah, I mean, um, I don't know, I had a different viewpoint on it. I was. I was there to be the best, my biggest thing. I was. I just wanted the respect of people around me. Like kobe works or he does what he needs to do. That's pretty much what my output was.
Speaker 3:I think once I got over that initial like high of being there first time around the tunnel what is that high? Like, oh, it's crazy. The first time, like I walked in the locker room and I was like, oh, my name is up there. And then like first you know, it was like it was preseason at the time running out of tunnel, I was like oh, wow. Like in the stadium, like just all the lights at the time, I'm like oh, wow. And then you know like, once you get through that, I'm like oh, okay, and then it's just like normal. So I think once you get over that it's cool.
Speaker 3:But over time it really become like a day-to-day. You learn how to be a pro, you learn how to really just go about your business, you learn routines and it doesn't happen overnight, like it's a long, especially rookie year. It's a long year. Um, you're coming straight out of college, straight into like pro day combine training, yeah, straight into rookie mini camp, to otas, to training camp, to preseason and to the full season of uh like almost 20 weeks.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's a long year for yourself, but after that, like, you just take that off season and reset. But, um, overall, like it's, it's not bad. I think you have to embrace it in the moments when you're there and just be. You know saying, be where your feet are, and then, once your time is, you know saying if you have the time to move on, then you know saying keep working. I'm not, I'm not like against, like somebody always working towards the dream, but you still have to be like consistent in your life and know what's like next for you and keep pursuing to just be great at something yeah, the other part, though, the high is like no one says no to you.
Speaker 2:Like everyone treats you differently, like and I mean I know they like damn well, get it, let's get into it. You know what I mean. Like everyone treats you differently. Like you know, everyone has their hand out, you know. Like you know, lights are always on you and then a lot of guys struggle because when they're done playing, they're not getting that same attention. Yeah Right, and we have a big word. We say how well can you transition? Right, like, are you still you with or without football? And I am, he is. You know what I'm saying. So it's different. Like, everywhere you go, it's just like people are just giving you handouts, and it's just like you come from nothing and now you're just walking until all people.
Speaker 1:Just like walking into restaurants. Yeah, yeah, it's on us.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean. Like man, I was hungry just last year, you know I was like why wasn't on me then? But I get it, you know it's marketing right I understand it's, I don't hate on it, but it does feel weird in, like I think if you're the wrong person like and you like kind of like abuse, that like you know how people treat you and like everyone's just being so nice to you and just like no one's saying no, that could be dangerous dude this funny.
Speaker 1:Well, first of all, I went out with merriman a couple times and I noticed the way I got treated. Yeah, it noticed the way I got treated versus the way he got treated, which I don't care it's all good, but this is a funny story. So I went to a bachelor party with all my friends and one of my friends put this one of his chains on me like a nice one. I don't know, it was like $50,000 or something, bro.
Speaker 4:People started treating me different. All a nice one, I don't know. It was like $50,000 or something.
Speaker 2:He stood out, Bro. People started treating me different all of a sudden, Like I was invisible before I had this chain on me.
Speaker 3:I was like yo, yeah, but it's crazy, right, but like someone like who was like a billionaire, is wearing Skech, you know yeah, like Denzel said, the famous quote, I mean it's not only, it's in you, I mean if it's in you, naturally, if you walk around and people can, if people can, it's on you, it's in you. If people can like, if people whatever, if people can just like, naturally, don't cut that out, can just basically grasp towards your energy and just understand, like if you're just jingling people.
Speaker 1:I mean, I've always been a jingling person, yeah, for sure yeah, so.
Speaker 3:I never walked around and portrayed like yo, I'm just this athlete. Like, treat me as such. A lot of times I never tell people what I did, like if they didn't even know me, I would just joke with them like yeah, what'd you say you do? Funny. I think I led myself to this when I think about, yeah, people was like we got a cell insurance even before, I promise you, I was in a car, my dad back in on like 2023. All right, he came out to Houston, we hung out and we were going to get to the restaurant and we got like in an Uber. Yeah, and the lady was like what do you do? I was like I sell insurance little.
Speaker 2:Do you know years?
Speaker 3:later and circle back to like now it's like it's crazy. So, um, probably led myself to this on accident, almost, but yeah, but I mean, you know, I said, I think, like I said, just with all that being said, the biggest thing know who you are as a person. I think.
Speaker 3:That's just the biggest thing, and that's not just being an athlete, just in general yeah like find your purpose in life and go full head with it and keep going and find a find a passion. Like I said earlier before, I found a real passion in this. So I feel like this is where I'm supposed to really be at and I just each day I wake up like, okay, what can I find something new to get better at? How can I help the team grow? How can I show somebody else on the team okay, tapping this, because everybody has their strengths, Everybody has their weaknesses.
Speaker 3:So I think as far as coming on and having other people who are like 50, 60 people talking all day and being open-minded to taking the advice and all the different criticism that may come with it. It's very beneficial.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and to your point too. It's actually so cool and rewarding to see someone like Kobe that never was in sales, right, and he's just killing it now, right. And to me it's like people who are watching this, it's like you don't have to have any kind of skill, like he was playing football his whole entire life.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And like now he's writing $50,000 and writing policies for over six figures, like you know. And then, like I learned from him I've been doing it a little longer than you, but I'm learning about how to structure IUL differently. I'm learning all these different kind of terms. I'm like where are you learning this from? He's like I just be scrolling on my computer just trying different things. I'm like that's awesome, it's good to hear.
Speaker 1:How much of this is mental, do you think?
Speaker 2:I would say almost like 98%, 98%, like cuz, some days like you maybe don't want to work or you don't want to like get up. But I think what I will say when I look at maybe people in other fields, you got a good. I mean, I can just wake up my pajamas and walk on my walking pad and make a few calls.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if you like can have that perspective. It's easy to lose that perspective, right, yeah, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 3:I feel like, yeah, about 90%, 98% of it is mental. You're waking up each day and nobody's telling you to dial, nobody's telling you you have to do this. It's not like you're clocking into an actual 9 to 5. That's kind of scary to think about it, I mean the work you put in is what you get out of it.
Speaker 3:I think that's why a lot of the athletes that are on our team, they do very well, not just the athletes, but a lot of the guys. There's one, the competitive spirit we have on our team, but two, from everybody's coming from different backgrounds, but you can see, like the team that we have, everybody has something that's driving them. I don't know what it is like, everybody has something that's driving them. Yeah, whether, like, we all have some type of same, uh, interest in life or interest in something.
Speaker 1:So so what were your guys's parents like to get you to that level of in sports?
Speaker 2:good question. My mom just got me into it. Like every sport, I was like in dance class I was wrestling everything, everything, and I thank my mom for that because I think doing the different sports like you know, sports teach you a lot, right, about how hard work, being consistent, showing up on time right, you know doing things you don't want to do, right, sometimes you got to do things that suck, right, um, but yeah, I think sports has definitely, um, made me a better man, and especially, like you know, playing basketball this, you know wrestling this and that, uh, it just shapes you and I feel like you're also around different like personality types and people all day. So now, like I'm on a phone or I'm recruiting somebody, like it's easy to talk to them, right, I've talked to everybody. All you know, you know ways of life, you know yeah, I think um my mom and dad, both just them in general, like both of them, in general they they didn't really like force it on me.
Speaker 3:I think they saw the early age that I just wanted, wanted to be a professional athlete.
Speaker 3:But it was never like, okay, you need to do this, you need to do this. It was never that I kind of openly wanted to go train. At an age of six, seven years I wanted to go do extra practice. Um, my dad, he was basically just like, he always kind of had me around, we always watch. But that's why I said, like michael vick was like me, I wanted to do that word number seven, growing up so much and being able just to just see that um, all the time, and just my dad's very competitive as well.
Speaker 3:So just seeing him and my mom was just always one thing. She always told me to be humble, just always something behind him. I think that's why, like people meet me now like you don't say much, uh, you never like talk about what you really do, you don't boast about anything, and I think that I'm just like kind of reserved because at an early age my mom always told me just be humble, because it could be taken away. Yeah, and you don't really ever think about it that way. But people sometimes misconstrue being humble with being like uh, like not confident, lacking confidence.
Speaker 3:I'm very confident yeah but, I just don't care to talk about everything I do all the time or boast about it, because I mean it's here one day and then it's gone and it's like the wind like it passes through. So, um, I think that's the biggest thing for me. Just, you got siblings, I do. I have a younger brother.
Speaker 2:He's 21. What about you?
Speaker 3:Yeah nice, yeah. So um, I always say, my brother was actually better than me.
Speaker 2:He's actually better than me. Mine too I just happened to make it like they were better than me, like my older one for sure, like I'm telling you that he would not stretch. Just come in right before the game and just crush, crush it. I'm like me. I'm foam rolling, I'm doing my ladder drills, playing my music. He just walks in like yeah and just sports, five touchdowns. He's like fearless.
Speaker 3:I still text him like bro, you used to do stuff that I used to think like.
Speaker 2:I don't know, I don't know about that.
Speaker 3:But he's very fearless, like he'll do things and I always. He stopped playing sports back around COVID happened. But he's very like entrepreneurial. He's very focused. He has like a drive for a 20, 21 year old kid, like he's full head on all the time.
Speaker 1:so I'm always proud of him did you guys see the funny salesman at the conference? Uh, who was that? He's the dude that's on youtube and he's like selling some, some cleaner, and it was in like 2014.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, I did, see, I did see and he would just tell jokes the whole time and like you can't get away from him. Yeah Well, I was talking to him in the back and I was like, dude, why don't you sell insurance? He's like I should. He's like I got a son, he's 18. And we call him Funny Salesman Jr Because he also goes door to door and kills it and people can't tell him no, wow, and he's a senior in high school, so he just got his license. We just sent in his contracting and I'm like dude, this kid, he just got his driver's license and he's still in high school. Dude, oh, wow. And we're going to see what he could do.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's why I feel like the younger you start in the industry the better.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like if I started in college.
Speaker 1:Yeah, dude, I started at 18 man.
Speaker 3:Oh really, yeah, okay I've known about this back like younger, even when I was playing college ball, like this would have just been just for you leaving.
Speaker 2:Just know, I have this I'm like you know, dude.
Speaker 1:But I always tell people I just didn't quit, like a lot of people quit that were probably better, better. I always go sometimes, but I just didn't quit, dude.
Speaker 3:Yeah yeah, for sure. I think even when I first started I was like yo, it's not gonna be pretty in the beginning yeah, nah, I would come on.
Speaker 3:I'm like yo, I'm okay, what is this? What is this? Like? I was kind of like just getting drained out of it. But then I realized like it is a benefit to it and I really had to like, perfect my craft, perfect my conversations with clients and my pitch and the whole script.
Speaker 3:Because it's a big tone thing when you're talking to clients over the phone that you never met in person. They don't know who you are, you're calling from a random number and you know you get those rejections, you get those rebuttals and it's like it crushes you for a second. Like denzel said, I never was in sales, I've never had to sell anything, and just doing that it kind of took me out of my own comfort zone. Yeah, because I was just so used to being able to have a conversation in person. Um, sometimes people knew who I was or whatever. They knew my industry I was in.
Speaker 3:So coming into that and basically just being able to talk to a person on the phone and here no and or here yes, like the yeses became like a high. I was like, oh, I got it yesterday, cool, let's keep going. And then it's like when you get that first yes, it's like you have a glitch. You like, okay, what about doing it? Because you're so used to hearing nose. So when you finally hear that yes, whoa, yeah you're like, oh, wow, you're agreeing to this. Okay, what do I do next?
Speaker 2:so you have to kind of like snap back into reality, and then you just keep going yeah, I feel like too, like one thing I will say if you're gonna be on on and off, like just in general, like you're not gonna do well, no, you will not gonna sit here and be like yeah, man, I cuz our average agent was making like at least well, the 15k like easily.
Speaker 2:But those guys are on Consistently and they're buying leads. They're buying leads, they're investing to yourself. So one thing I learned about this business in general like the more you invest is an easy fun, the more you make. But what I am, it's not, it's not hard, it's not like crazy. Yeah, like when I am my biggest month when I did like not like crazy math like when I am my biggest month when I did like over 40 000, I invested the most amount of money that month compared to other months. And then like, look at, that bothers me sometimes. Like when someone comes on, they're just on, you know, part, part time, or like they don't want to listen at all. It's like, well, like I can't help you, you know. But like, if you're gonna be on like consistently every day, that's important. The first, like month or two. Right To learn just different rebuttals, right To learn about tonality, learn about you know how to handle this, certain situations and learning just what medications is a red flag for certain carriers. It takes time, it's new, you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So when I was 18, 18 people wouldn't listen to me. I was like literally a kid trying to sell insurance, like I look like a high school kid. And I went to this, this dude who was like 21 he was, he was doing way better than I was and I was like how are you getting people to listen to you? And he was like oh, I memorized all the medications. So they think I'm like really know what I'm talking about. So they say they have diabetes. Say, are you on metformin?
Speaker 2:I do that too, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, or they'll be like high blood pressure.
Speaker 2:Cinepro amlodipine yeah.
Speaker 1:But just doing that he said changed the whole thing for him. Yeah, where people were like, oh, this dude knows what he's talking about.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's funny now because I'm like, oh, is that amlodipine? Like yeah, how'd you know? I'm like you know I do insurance. My mom does that all the time. She's like, how do you know about this?
Speaker 1:Yeah, Like endometriosis. I'm like because I sell insurance. We see everything Exactly, you know.
Speaker 3:But she's always saying that she's like man, sounds like you're a doctor sometimes honestly, yeah, basically I remember my first time when I got I started getting really well into it. It was just, like you said, I'll be on the phone with the client from a lead and I'm like, oh yeah, I'm at four man, cool, how long you been taking it, okay, cool. And I'm just I'm not even looking at the script anymore, I'm just running the conversation, basically having a conversation with them I think, that's what made it easy.
Speaker 3:And we tell, like a lot of the new agents that come on um, like, just don't read the script as a robot, read it to understand what you're doing and then, like, actually make a conversation with the client, because the more they feel comfortable, the easier the sale is going to be they just feel like you're just another salesperson calling them off a script.
Speaker 3:You sound very dull and you just like sound very like robotic and monotone. On the phone they're going to be like, okay, no, I don't want this because you just like another basically sales caller yeah so that's huge. Yeah, I think that's the biggest all right.
Speaker 1:So I want to talk about morning routines. Do you guys have one? Has that helped you in football?
Speaker 3:yeah, yeah, I still work out a little bit. Here and there, that's a little bit, but like, my routine of working out has changed. Not like lifting, like football lifts like I used to. I like to just work out to stay in shape. So I still go work out Like do you get up early? Yeah, I'm like up at like 4, 4.30. You get up at 4, 4.30? Yeah, I naturally, like I didn't be, it's like six. The time you go to bed, I can fall asleep around like 10, 10, 30. Yeah, how many hours? Yeah, so I can. I mean, I've always been like that, like just kind of, but my body so used to waking up so you just have a motor.
Speaker 1:You're just, you've always been like that.
Speaker 3:I'm always just up and going and um workout come back. I have the same breakfast every morning. It's just what is it? Uh, four fried eggs, avocados, and I'm good, so so I kind of I'm like a best like my main breakfast, and sometimes I put some spinach with it. But I always have like four or five, uh, fried eggs and I'm good, and then after that that's pretty much my morning routine like do you have toast with it?
Speaker 3:no, I'm not really like a big bread person. You cut it back on bread, that too, but I've never really been a big bread person since I was a kid like. Unless I'm eating a sandwich, but I don't really care for toaster muffins and stuff like that. Okay, yeah, call me weird, I don't know.
Speaker 1:What about like? Okay, what's the rest of your diet like?
Speaker 3:I'm not like just one of those people who has to eat this, this, this, but I eat pretty much. I'm a big fish kind of person, so I love salmon. Yeah, chicago persons, I love salmon. Um, yeah, like when we had cod last night. Yeah, I like cod a lot. Um, that's pretty much that. Um, not like a big health freak, but I've never been like a junk food. I don't like sweets like that. Um, I'm a big, I like real food. I guess you would say portions like rice. I love mediterranean food. Yeah, mediterranean fire, bro.
Speaker 1:So I'm eating a lot of mediterranean food. Yeah, mediterranean is fire bro, so I'm eating a lot of mediterranean food as well.
Speaker 3:Yeah, sometimes italian as well, so that's pretty much my like, my diet pastas and stuff like that mediterranean has to be the fastest growing like desired food.
Speaker 1:So good, I love it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah yeah, my routine's pretty like similar. I mean I get up, no alarm. Actually my body's just different. Like my body every morning I'll probably say 7 am every morning and then I'll read my book first. Like I don't, like you know, um call my phone. I kind of just chill like what book? The alchemist. Right now I'm reading the alchemist. It's a pretty good book. Um, every month I try to like change it up. Um, I took a whole book list, so get that over to you you got a whole book list.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm a passionate reader yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:He got mad at me one morning. He said, bro, I'm trying to read my book yeah, he was touching him.
Speaker 2:I was saying him my business.
Speaker 3:He's like, bro, I'm reading my book, right yeah?
Speaker 2:I would say, like in the morning, like I need, like before I do anything right, I just need like 30, 45 minutes just to read, get my mind right. Then I'll hop in the shower, I'll do cold first, then I'll brush my teeth and then grab some coffee. Right now, what I'm doing is I do a lot of mushroom coffee.
Speaker 1:That's what's helping me a lot, so staying away from a ton of caffeine I try to.
Speaker 2:I mean, I'll have coffee here and there, but I try to do the mushroom coffee instead. And then like a lot of, I use a lot of um. You ever had an mct oil? Yeah, yeah, it's been helping me a lot.
Speaker 1:And then like helping you focus. What is it?
Speaker 2:yeah, sharper, and then what I do is I do one meal a day right now, oh really, one meal a day, and that's helped me a lot. I felt like when I'm not playing right, I feel like before I'm playing, I'll have like two three meals a day, yeah, and. I'm burning it, burning it, but now I'm like, okay, I'm not actually playing right now okay, I'm not actually playing right now, so like I'm actually overeating.
Speaker 1:So yeah, canes. This dude I know was telling me that the raiders order canes and it's like the craziest, it's like a truck, wow canes. And I'm like they could probably eat anything because they're burning so many calories yeah, we had to filet a lot.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I tell people all the time I don't think athletes are just robots.
Speaker 1:All the time, yeah, we still are normal people.
Speaker 3:We eat just what you would go eat. We just burn it off. We go work it out. Some athletes they do eat kind of wild junk food, but it is what it is, but now you're just eating.
Speaker 1:What time do you eat?
Speaker 2:Every day I break my fast at 12 pm okay, and then you only eat once.
Speaker 1:Yeah, press it a day, yeah so you eat lunch and that's it. I said you don't need dinner, huh yeah, he's different.
Speaker 2:I'm starving again and I like feel like much more like clear, more energized. It worked for me. It works for me when I was having like two meals a day or two as a day. I felt kind of like slow, yeah, like yeah foggy, you know. So hold on, let me. Just, what's your one meal? How big, big is it?
Speaker 2:It's big though, like I make sure I'm full, like it's like 2,000 calories or more probably like I'll have like a whole avocado, I'll have like five eggs, like a piece of chicken on the side, I'll like cut up like onions, peppers and like I have like Like a nice, like smoothie on the side and I'm satisfied for the rest of the day.
Speaker 1:What about at night? Are you hungry when you go to bed? So I would have tea at bed.
Speaker 2:Before bed I'd have some tea. What kind of tea? Right now I have dandelion tea and chamomile, and then you guys should try this too. Yeah, I really like it. I mix it. Yeah, I mix it. I'm like a tea enthusiast. Now I have a tea strainer and then I take at night magnesium powder and dude. I sleep so good, y'all get on that legit.
Speaker 3:He has a real nutrition routine. I'm just breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Speaker 2:I'm still three meals a day.
Speaker 1:That's just how my brain is wired to do and I'm just breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Speaker 3:I'm still three meals a day. That's just how my brain is wired to do. I'm probably still eating over 3,000 calories, but I work it off in the mornings.
Speaker 1:What's your guys' workouts? It depends. Now that you're not in season. What's your workouts?
Speaker 2:I'll be honest, working out sometimes is hard with your workouts. Yeah, I'd be. I'll be honest, like working out sometimes is like hard, you know um, but like I would say, I work out four to five times a week, two of those days, a full body lift. You know plyometrics, you know explosive work. I don't only lift heavy, it's more so like explosive functional, and then I'll probably go to the track one of those days. I do some sprints, some stairs, and then I'll probably box, like once a week.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so yeah, and I've always hated like running, even though I played. I was never an advocate for just conditioning, but I like the weight room. So, yeah, um, your normal squats bench. Um, I do a lot olympic lifts as well, like power cleans, hang cleans. I love those, I love olympic lifts.
Speaker 3:So that's pretty much like I still kind of live as far as um how I would like regular training. It's just I don't have the same format as far as like what my goal is for. I'm just kind of doing it still stay in shape and it's kind of like routine at this point yeah, you feel off if you don't do it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like I've had stints where like, okay, I'm not working out right now, but I after a while I'm like, okay, get back to it, because I do let myself get into a reset. I don't just try to over-train myself. I have moments in the year where these four to five months I'm training hard and then the rest of the next month I'm kind of like deloading. So it's not as much heavy lifting, it's more like light plyos and more conditioning and just leaning out at different times of the year, because I've been doing it for so long and I have a trainer as well, so it's not just the same routine.
Speaker 1:You got it, that's cool. All right. So if someone is in sports, they just like this podcast. They want to work with you guys. They're not licensed. How do they reach you guys?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I would say just DM me on Instagram and then we can go from there. I mean, what's your Instagram? Yeah, so it's at thereal__denzel2.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure it would be the same. Mine is Kobe C-O-B-I-I, francis, f-r-a-n-c-i-s, one username and then we actually have, like our group, nfg national financial group. So we have that one it's national financial dot group on Instagram. So you follow, you DM us, let us know that you want to connect and work and we'll go from there and a lot of people don't know we'll pay for their licensing course.
Speaker 1:It's free, yeah, so I think.
Speaker 3:I think that's a good thing. If you like, look, just put the work in. Everything's paid for, for the only thing you pay for is your state test. After that, you're good, so it's not a hard process. I think anybody that wants to reach out and wants to really work whether this is to be like making income on the side or just basically just helping yourself and your family out I think it's very beneficial.
Speaker 2:One thing I'll say too is like, obviously if you have money coming into this business it helps, but like you don't need to. I mean, we have a lead program. So like, if guys are like serious about it, like we'll put them in a lead program to where, like, you're first a scheduling coordinator, so basically just scheduling appointments, and then you get like paid out for each one. That like it's like sold and what that does, it kind of builds you up right. It's going to help you just learn how to be on the phone, handle different rebuttals. So now, when you kind of hit that mark of 20 deals as a scheduling coordinator, we'll then put you in the lead program.
Speaker 2:Now we're giving you leave still and mind you the whole entire time you didn't pay for anything, so it's like there's no excuse if you're watching this, like, just hit us up, let's get you going.
Speaker 1:What's a red flag when, like when someone calls you, says I want to work with you?
Speaker 2:Here's a few, but I would say they'll say all that, I'll send them the course and then, like the course expires, Like they never do their state exam.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think mine is definitely um, like how much are we making? Like, yeah, not even that. I think this is more like they just think it's you just wake up and roll over like it's something you have to like actually be contracted. You have to have a license.
Speaker 3:I think people don't realize, like, I'm actually licensed. Uh, yeah, look us up on government website for our name and license through the state. So, um, it's really going to require some work. Before you get into the work, you have to really study, know what you're talking about, because at the end of the day, you are dealing with people's lives and a little bit of their money. So some people just get eager just to come on and just see a little bit of what we post. Some people reach out what is this? You're really doing this? And I'm like, yeah, this work. And they just go mute like you reach out to me, I don't reach out to you. So if you're serious about it, let's really work. Yeah, at the end of the day, that's, that's my, that's our mindset so you're looking for people.
Speaker 1:No talk, all action.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure it's easy to sit there and be intrigued by something, but like, yeah, I think if you just really want to do it, you'll come do it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we're going to do a thing where, like, we're not going to just like recruit, recruit, we might just do like a month, like maybe just six to eight people, right, like people that are actually worth it. So you'll be super selective.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Because this is also like a brotherhood in a way, like we're all like cool.
Speaker 1:We a red flag or you know it's. It's not really worth it for the team, you know? No, it's not.
Speaker 2:Yeah, mine is like if they demand stuff up front, yeah, and they haven't done nothing, yeah, or act like there's questions that like before they even like first get your license. You know it's, it's steps right. So when you're just doing too much right away, that's a red flag.
Speaker 1:It's like yo just get your test done first yeah, or I got people like they're not even licensed. They'll be like I want to sell my company for millions of dollars. Tell me how I do that. I'm like, bro, you don't even have a license and you work at mcdonald's.
Speaker 3:What's the craziest um night? Request you've ever gotten.
Speaker 1:Well, I've had people tell me like I don't want to buy leads, I want the highest commission. I, oh, I'm only going to work these hours from this time to this time. And it's just like dude, why are you, why are you doing? Okay, so this is what someone taught me early on. Okay, so there'll be.
Speaker 1:Like, all right, draw out a T chart and put on the left what you want, so put on you want, you want a Mercedes, you want to put your kids in private school, you want to do all these things. And on the right, put down all the things you're willing to do. You're not willing to do. So if you're not willing to work until 9 pm, cross the Mercedes off. If you're not working, if you're not willing to buy leads, cross out the private school. Like you have to be realistic. So that's one thing. And then negativity dude, like if someone's looking for something wrong before, I always tell people like let's work together. And then if we give you a reason not to trust us, then ask questions. But if you're going to ask all these crazy questions cause you're looking for problems Like dude, it's all good, yeah, no, yeah, I agree.
Speaker 2:I would say too um, it's all good, yeah, no, yeah, I agree. I would say too, like, just for anyone like coming on, people who just procrastinate, they look for a way out to your point. So like they'll just like say different things or just find little nitpick things just to like be like, yeah, that's why I didn't want to do it. And also, too like this is going to, this is on you. Like I'm too like this is gonna this is on you. Like I'm not like your boss right, like he's not your boss, john's not your boss.
Speaker 2:Like, so, whatever your goals are, to your t-chart point, like you got to put in the necessary hours, right, so, yeah, if you're working one hour a day, like I'm not gonna micromanage you like that's you, like you control your destiny with this. So like you know, if you wanted that mercedes private school, like you might have to work a little later than someone that just wants to. Just you know, make four thousand or ten thousand a month, right, there's levels to this. So you know, choose what you want to do, make you know, put your goals down and I can probably tell you how many hours what you need to do to hit that.
Speaker 1:you know do we have my first t-chart I made from when I first started? I think it's in the storage though, bro. The goals were save $10,000, get 10 people to a conference, win a carrier trip. It was all these things. It's so crazy to think those were so big then.
Speaker 2:That's all checked off. Now You're doing over 200 million annually on your team.
Speaker 4:Now, right, that's where we're trying to get to.
Speaker 1:I think you can, though I've never. I was telling you this yesterday, but for people watching the difference now, then, something that's unique that I've never seen in the industry before is the quality of the people coming in. It's like people that own businesses, professional athletes, people that are entrepreneurs. It's not someone that's just like, oh, I need to make a few dollars and I'm not going to take this serious, so like I've never seen dude. My friend just sent me this girl who's like you got big influencers that are interested. You got. If you break the numbers down and then you show them it's, they can use leads and you don't have to call your friends and family and bug them. Yeah, like whoa, this is crazy, yeah that's the thing too.
Speaker 2:If you're someone that's like you know a big network or you're you know you're entertainer, or even if you're an athlete, like get your license. Like you have that you know um network you know, like that's kind of helping him right now. Like you know outside of the leads, like he's doing policy for six figures because his network so like no matter what what. Like you know occupation you're in, like I think honestly, like everyone should have their license. Like it's so useful. Like you can write your own family, you know, and obviously on top of that you have great leads, right. Like but it's like if I don't care, if you're a truck driver, I don't care, you know you work as a lawyer, whatever the case may be. Like I recommend anyone get your license because it's so powerful once you have it dude.
Speaker 1:Every time at these conferences, the keynote speakers, if I get them for two seconds, I pitch them, dude. Oh, how does that?
Speaker 3:turn out for you, good yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean funny salesman's in, yeah, and that guy's legit dude yeah. He's got, I think, like 50 million people or some crazy number, watching him every month.
Speaker 2:That's crazy. Who was your biggest? I guess your top three biggest keynote speakers.
Speaker 1:We had last year. We had Alex Rodriguez one year, we had David Goggins last year.
Speaker 2:I didn't get to pitch him. I read his book, good book, yeah, how about Goggins we had?
Speaker 1:a bunch of the people on Shark Tank.
Speaker 2:Oh nice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, man, there's been a ton of good ones, but if I get a chance I hit, I ask them right, I just go. Why don't you get your license? Have you seen what this industry can do? Yeah and they'll be like no yeah sometimes they'll just be like dude, I'm way too busy, don't even. And sometimes they'll be, they'll be interested what would you say?
Speaker 2:unlike people like get like a bad, like rep from like uh insurance industry or they don't know about it. Like what's your response to that? Like, oh, like, I always hear bad things about insurance. Like, what's your response to that?
Speaker 1:I usually say, like, if you google anything like you could google the red cross, yeah, and you're gonna find a bunch of crazy stuff in there, right. So I just say, why don't you just factually look at it yourself? Yeah, like, let me show you what I know about it, right, and I'm sure there's bad actors in every industry and I'm sure there is stuff that shouldn't have gone on. That went on, right. But let me show you what we're doing and let me show you my bank statement. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like dude, dude Stephen, I was never even that good of a recruiter, but I sold every week, dude. I did my 30 appointments every single week and these were all in person. So I was never, ever home Right, always running appointments in person, right. And then I would take people in the car they would drive, I would book more appointments to fill in people that no-show me.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And then it would be a new agent, and then I would it would be a new agent, and then I would show him my deposits, yeah, and that would be the recruiting, yeah that's how I got him.
Speaker 2:I was like, listen, man, I don't want to waste your time. This is what I'm doing. Boom, and that's that I was like all right cool. Yeah, worked for me.
Speaker 3:That was his football. I was like yeah. I was like at first I was like what? And then he told me, and now he said he literally screen shared me. Yeah, and uh, he showed me the statement.
Speaker 2:I was like okay cool, I'm not gonna sit here and like beg you because I'm good, like I'm making money. That's the way to roll. You know, like listen, this is what I'm doing, like. And for me it's like people like will watch something, like yeah, it sounds good and but they just never. You know how to do it. But for me it's like I'm not gonna beg you to do it, like I'm eating good, no matter what. Um, one market that I want to get into is. I see a lot of like people, um and different, like uh agencies or like in companies. I'm like man, you're getting how much for commission?
Speaker 1:40.
Speaker 2:I'm like, and they have some brainwashed thing where they say it makes sense. Yeah, I'm like how does that make sense? Like you're getting 50 or 40 commission and you're just like happy with it yeah I don't. I don't get it, like it always my. It was. To me it was just crazy. I'm like you're at a 40. Yeah, I'm like, yeah, I could never yeah, no, yeah, we had a discussion.
Speaker 3:I actually talked like one of a good friend of mine. He plays ball and he actually saw what I was doing and he actually, um, I think he's getting his license.
Speaker 1:He has his license, but he's going to go work for a, a natural, credible company and he's going to be doing like with the company, but it was commission and salary base okay he was telling me he was like yeah, I'll be like at a 40 bro, he'll be, he'll be coming here right, and I told him I was like and it was funny, I'm gonna I think I told you about.
Speaker 3:I was like I'm on the phone with him. I was like, yeah, if I get paid this, this is what I'm gonna get. Yeah, I said you get paid this, this is what you're gonna get. Yeah, I was like yeah, bro, like that's a triple big difference. So, yeah, it's like. I was like I mean, I said, look, you can make a decision, but I think you should come with us. Yeah, he was like I think I'm gonna do that. So I think he said you want to try it out first and yeah, he'll be calling you for sure.
Speaker 3:Yeah, because I think it makes. I said, yeah, you. I said you're on a salary, basically you're probably making it's probably not a salary.
Speaker 1:It's probably a draw right, probably. So you get paid and then your commissions replenish it yeah, that's what I told him.
Speaker 2:I said you'll get paid this and I said I'll probably be double that within the same month that you made yeah, I think what if people are just scared, like they think of it all like it's just commission only, like oh my gosh, I'm just like listen like?
Speaker 1:I love it though bro you go, though bro you go hunt.
Speaker 2:Yeah, think about it, though, with us like you're not even spending any money for the first, like two months, like by the time you're done with the scheduling coordinator and then, like the lead program, you should have well over like a couple thousand dollars in your account, bro.
Speaker 1:The scheduling coordinator is genius with you guys. Yeah, so you could start with no money. They could be a scheduling coordinator.
Speaker 2:You'll pay them right exactly and and we kind of just like we were literally waiting to come, to come to vegas into the studio before we had to launch everything we kind of been just like, yeah, just prepping, but, like you know, like it's all to build up because now, like we're gonna, you know, blast it out, like you know, people who are worthy enough and worth it, like they'll come on and if not, you'll just get left.
Speaker 3:Definitely yeah, the mindset coming in. Like you said, we come in, we want you to win, we want you to basically see the upside in this. So, coming in, we don't want you, even if you don't have any money or basically this in a tight financial situation like, come in, put your head down, learn, learn the system, learn, learn, learn everybody on the team, learn the rebuttals. Just get comfortable dialing and then, like denzel said, within that first month, two months, however long you're doing scheduling coordinator, you should come out with a good yeah thousand you know I'm saying whatever how many you close and then, once you go into that, you should feel comfortable going lead program and then, that's when you start seeing real you you know some good money, good payouts and, off of that, like we have a system yeah, we talk about it, we plan it out, we want it.
Speaker 3:It's for the new agents coming on, for them to win.
Speaker 2:So at the end of the day, coming on, add to his point like for me, anything me and him did was contractual. Anything me and kobe did was always on paper. This is what you're getting. This is that so? Like, when I hear these stories about like people at different agencies or like you know they're doing a different and you know a sales job, a different industry, it's always like crazy to me to like hear their stories oh, I got I gotta, you know, screwed, or this person like owes me money. I'm like really like I don't get. I don't get that.
Speaker 2:So for us, like we put our stuff out there Like this is what we're doing. You know we do a scheduling coordinator program. You know we do a lead program. Like I don't know, for us, it's like it was always confusing hearing like a guy from Solar say, yeah, man, I wasn't paid out my money, that they owe me. I'm like you know, having bad experience. I'm just like that's weird. You know, like for me, we were always in done things contractually. Like this is on paper. This is what I said. Like that's what I meant and that's what I'm going to. You know, make sure that gets done, you know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's not going to be. You just see the paperwork. Hey look, it's what it is right. This is how we do everything this is black and white.
Speaker 1:There's no confusion. Keep it.
Speaker 3:Just keep it simple for yourself and put your head down to work, and then you'll see the bigger results at the end of the day.
Speaker 2:So I think that's the biggest thing for, like what you said, though it's a brotherhood, it's not yeah, you're not just taking everybody yeah, yeah, because I'm I'm not gonna get into that thing and I could where I'm going to post super cars and make it just very, just, like you know. Just I don't know what to word, I don't want to like disrespect anybody, but like listen, you come in, I'm going to make sure that you know. The average age is making 12 to 15 grand, but you can make way more.
Speaker 1:You can also make none if you suck exactly and you're lazy, exactly and like.
Speaker 2:This is what you can make. There's no limit. What I can promise you is that you're gonna be good enough and have everything you need to be great. But if you don't follow the steps and you won't and because a lot of people come in, bro, they're out.
Speaker 2:The turnover rate is insane, oh yeah yeah, and like I suppose we're more so. Like we want like quality over quantity, right. Like I like that, though you know, because I rather agents every month in that are producing, you know, every year over six figures. Right then, just like 20 agents, that's just sitting there doing nothing wasting your time, like you. They're just looking at you on Zoom or like they're on and off, like hey, I'm back, I just had to handle stuff with my family. Like I have stuff I got to handle too and I'm still on Zoom.
Speaker 1:So would you recruit with supercars and stuff like that? No, I've never been a flashy person Me neither.
Speaker 3:I was like I'm very reserved, like I think I think you kind of realized that yesterday, I don't know. It's like I kind of just sit back and you're just watching everyone. Yeah, I watch everybody, but, um, I mean, that's kind of how I've always been since I was a kid. I've always never shot people, get that confused. I'm not shy at all, I just don't say too much. I'm very aware. But the results speak for itself. The flashy cars and and everything like that. If that's what you like, that's what you like. I get it though it works, though Like it does work.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I just it's not me Like I. I'm just more so like. This is what I do. This is my bank account, but like it does work, though In this day and age, like honestly like out, like it works.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I, I can't do it. I just can't do it. I think, like even with it, like I don't know, I think your word is everything, just who you are as a person, as a man, regardless man or woman, just your person, who you are, how you handle yourself, your demeanor how people respect you.
Speaker 3:I think that goes further with me personally for sure I can have a conversation, say, look, this is what I'm doing, um, either you want to do business with me, you don't. And I have a lot of people who respect that and they understand, like, ever since they met me, from the first our first encounter until the last, they know, okay, kobe was always straightforward you do what you say, I do what I said I'm going to do. Um, I've always been focused on business and just being the best at whatever I'm doing. If I have an issue, I'm going to speak on it. I got on shy away from confrontation. I don't have an issue with all of that.
Speaker 3:So, um, I just want to do great business. It's not not just any business, a great business, I just I want to be great, I want everybody around me to be great, um, and that's that's like my biggest key. That's why I say anybody coming on with us, and you really want to do great business, you want to have a networking circle, um, and and meet different people, like I think this, think this is gonna be a great team, not just sitting on Zoom all day and or whatever you know, so just trying to talk, make conversation, like we're gonna have conversation, we have fun, but it's gonna be big Like we all meet up, like everybody on our Zoom is in a different state.
Speaker 3:But, we try to make different offices down the road. We're planning that right now to put it in different states as well, because so many people are in in big states. Yeah, so we can put offices in those big states, like the sky's the limit you heard it here first.
Speaker 2:We'll have have one in New York soon.
Speaker 3:NFL Studio in New York. Yeah, we're definitely going to have one in New York.
Speaker 1:No, everybody here on your team was just like super respectful about business. I was impressed.
Speaker 3:I appreciate that. I appreciate that yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, all right, let's get to John. So something else that's happening in insurance is a lot of people from solar and a lot of people from door-to-door coming because it's better yeah that's really the facts. But you I don't even know. We just met, yeah, but you, you've been here two weeks.
Speaker 4:You did 14k well, I've been here. I've been selling for about two weeks, but I've been here for a little like about a month and a half now. Okay, I thought it right before Christmas, it's almost two months, but yeah, I've been in the solar space for a total like month and a half now. Okay, right before christmas um, it's almost two months, but yeah, I've been in the solar space for a total like three and a half years, all door to door. I've sold in four different states, so I have a pretty good amount of experience there.
Speaker 4:I ran a team for a little over two years and I was a top producer at my company in 2023 in Texas. So, I mean, it's a great space. It's a great opportunity to make money. Like Alex Hermosi mentioned yesterday, posted a video recently where you know, if you're looking to get into sales and you want to make, like you know, two 300, $400,000 a year, you can do that in solar. The problem is, in my opinion my opinion like, or what I found, the reason why I left to just scaling from there, you know, and then just the scalability and so many different aspects. Um, so, yeah, I, I I'm grateful for the transition that I made into this did you start on the program as a setter?
Speaker 1:yep, you did so.
Speaker 4:You ran through their program yeah, so the program that we have is about like 10 or 15 deals closed, um, like appointments that you set get closed by someone else. Um, it kind of just depends on, like, your experience. I got 10 closed in about a week, so I got those closed and then I moved into closing myself nice yeah, but I found that program to be extremely helpful. Like someone's asked me before, you know, because I'm an experienced closer- Like I'm pretty good at like what I do.
Speaker 4:That being said, though, the stepping stones are important, I think, for any industry I like that man?
Speaker 1:Yeah, you need it man. I haven't seen people do that before.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's not common. Yeah, I think it's like, and I think you just promote, you produce and in that process you're able to kind of weave out like who's not cut for it, Cause you ever taken three months to get like 20 deals like for a scouting coordinator. Like probably shouldn't do this, yeah.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. It's like the interview, yeah, so we love it.
Speaker 2:And now, if you can get past the scouting coordinator, all right, you're worthy enough to get in the lead program. Now we'll continue. So that's the thing too. We don't just. I don't want to just say, yeah, I have all these guys in pre-license, or all these guys licensed and they're not producing.
Speaker 1:It doesn't do much so what brought you over to insurance?
Speaker 3:Yeah, real to insurance. Yeah, um real quick. Could I use the restroom?
Speaker 1:before. Sure, yeah, yeah, because I wanna. So I don't wanna have to. Yeah, how'd you guys?
Speaker 2:recruit him. Uh, he was under braden, um, and then he was on a different team. Uh, well, no, yeah, he was in solar for a while and then I forgot when he came over. But braden, one of the guys on our team, um, had him.
Speaker 3:I guess they're close and then he's been killing it. Now he's been doing really good, yeah, yeah, like like john said he was closing his deals. As far as setting, like, I think one day he submit, like, posting and like in our discord, like four or five and like, like in a day. I was like I was like, who is this like? Because I didn't know who was the closer. Uh, what was it?
Speaker 2:was it burden. So sometimes, like we'll just like, let's say, like let's say I have a guy underneath me that I have on a scheduling coordinator, let's say, like I'm not available, he'll book it he'll book it for kobe and he'll just close it, so like it's a collaborative experience yeah, a lot of times you just see a new agent coming on.
Speaker 3:They're just dropping and dropping you're like okay, he's pretty much getting the hang of it.
Speaker 2:You pretty much just let him how many people don't even pass the scheduling coordinator um, I feel like because, like if you're not like and it sounds kind of insensitive but like if you're not really on the board and you're not really producing, I don't even notice if you leave. Like I won't even notice if you know you're no longer there. So, like I don't even I haven't keep track of who's not there. But I would say we've had pretty good luck with, you know, getting the right people, Like, pretty much like everyone. I mean probably like if I had this you know to estimate, like, let's say, you bring in 10 people, Maybe like one or two just won't make it. They'll just like disappear and just like that's going to happen though, dude, what about real estate agents?
Speaker 1:Like we looked this up one time. There was like in Vegas I forgot the exact number, drew could probably look this up but there was like five times the amount of it. No, there was like more agents than houses for sale by like a hundred. No, definitely, yeah, real estate agents is a lot, or a thousand times or some crazy number.
Speaker 3:It's not enough houses to sell, so that's a very competitive market.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm like dude, they're self-employed, commission only Right. Why can't they do this?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think this is a recession proof too, Like this is always going to go anywhere. And also I think it's like I know it's kind of maybe not good to compare, but I think also people in the industry tend to actually like lead by example Because, like, if you're a producer, you probably have your own insurance plan, but a lot of times real estate agents go years and just never, ever really get into real estate. So it's like interesting, I know it's like you know two different worlds, but yeah.
Speaker 1:It's a bigger entry level to go invest in real estate.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, but I still think if, like, you've been doing real estate that long, I mean, and you weren't able to, like, get into a house, probably not that good, you know.
Speaker 1:No, I just meet agents all the time. They're not busy. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:I think insurance and real estate is a really good collaboration. That needs to happen. It does actually. Yeah, but I'm in the works for a lot of that myself, yeah.
Speaker 2:I feel like, even like the mortgage brokers, right Like Southern Mortgage Protection, yeah.
Speaker 1:Interest rates are high. Yeah, southern mortgage protection Interest rates are high, they're not as busy. Looking for a place to go, yeah.
Speaker 3:So I think if you had that relationship with a lot of real estate agents and you're an insurance producer or, like you know, mortgage brokers, it could be a two-in-one Like you close the house, we close the insurance deal for them at the same time yeah.
Speaker 1:And then you said recession proof. I think, if I remember right, national Life Group was 1851. They've been through everything, dude World War I, world War II, the Spanish flu, covid.
Speaker 3:And they had someone on the Titanic, which I still think is crazy. Whoa, I didn't know that.
Speaker 2:They paid a claim on someone on the Titanic and they have international too. Yeah, you can do international business, which is awesome, and they do New York.
Speaker 1:And you got regulations to make sure the insurance companies have enough money to pay claims.
Speaker 2:What other carriers do? New York, I know NLG does, I do that a lot Dude not a lot man.
Speaker 1:Yeah, New York is hard to get carriers in why is that so?
Speaker 2:Why is?
Speaker 1:that. So I mean I have my own opinion, but I'm not going to say it. I think it's some political stuff though, yeah yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Alright so you're back.
Speaker 4:Yeah, my bad, I chugged that chai. It's all good, dude.
Speaker 1:So let's start with what attracted you, from solar to insurance, yeah, um should I start with?
Speaker 4:like, what even got me into door-to-door maybe? Yeah, because I think that might be a little bit more interesting too. Um, but I was pre-med in college so I didn't have like a sports background I'm a lot shorter than these guys even though but, um, yeah, so I was pre-med in college and pre-med in college, and then in my junior year I decided I was like you know what this really isn't for me, and my parents are immigrants. And so it was like, you know, lawyer, doctor, like typical story. I went the doctor route and then I quit. And so junior year I was like, all right, I don't know what I want to do.
Speaker 4:I ended up getting a psychology degree because that was like the easy transition out for me and I knew that I wanted to make money. I was like I want to do something that will actually, you know, give me an. That will, you know, give me an income where I can get the things that I want to do or do the things that I want to do. And so I kind of hustled everything, like I've done construction, I've worked, I've made pizzas've, uh, done moving jobs for like offices, storage units, truck driver, I've done a lot of different jobs. And then it was the last semester of college, it was covid, and I was remote and a friend of a friend was like, hey, if you come out to california, you know we'll fly you out there. You can knock on doors and make ten thousand dollars a week. And I was like, yeah, that's, uh, that's a scam though.
Speaker 4:And then someone else, another friend of a friend, was like, yeah, like I worked with them and like, yeah, you can go and do that. I think I'm going to try and go do it you make. And I was like, all right, bet, let me try. I was like I have nothing to lose, they're paying for everything. So I flew out to california I'm originally from new york city, you know, that's where I was at the time. So I flew out to california, knocked on doors, didn't really know anything, and then, sure enough, I I actually made ten thousand dollars in about three weeks was that commissions deposited?
Speaker 4:yep, yeah, I actually, yeah, I, it was ten thousand dollars like to a t and I was like, wow, I mean, granted that it just happened to work out that way. Uh, I went home for about two weeks, I told my family I was moving, I went back out and then I made like nothing for about a month. Life, yeah, sales, you know I I caught. And I was like, oh, shoot, you know, you start learning a little bit too much. I I've had like I've done like trainings on this, but I feel like there's like a curse of knowledge. Yeah, there, there's like a general flow to it where you kind of you get into it and then you're like I'm never gonna hit, I'm never gonna hit. Then, all of a sudden, you hit.
Speaker 4:I got three deals closed in a day, all on my fourth day of being out there in those first three weeks. So I went the first day, no appointments. Second day, no appointments. Third day, I set four appointments. The fourth day, three of them closed. But, that being said, my journey in solar lasted about that time for nine months. I did it really. I made some here and there and um, I didn't really make it out the hole and I was like you know, this isn't for me. I left for about a year um, lived out in Los Angeles, accrued a ton of credit card debt lost my life savings.
Speaker 2:LA.
Speaker 4:LA and, uh, it was September of 2022. I had $35,000 in debt and someone on LinkedIn DM me that I used to work with in solar and was like hey, are you still in door to door? And I was like nah, and I and up until then the year I took off I was like I'm never going back to door to door, like it's not what I want to do. Um, but I was so desperate, you know, but I was so desperate, I had really hit rock bottom.
Speaker 1:It was like either file bankruptcy or just keep hustling the way I was. Is it just you single?
Speaker 4:in LA. I had a girlfriend at the time. Oh yeah, I did have a girlfriend at the time, but it was pretty much me on my own. It was me on my own out in LA. I had made that move To California for solar and then stuck with it for other reasons. And then I was like, alright, I have nothing to lose. They offered to fly me down to Texas. Let me just try it. I flew down 10 days, made 500 bucks. I was like, alright, this is my only chance, I'm going to give it all. I got Flew down again and this was taking off work hours. That was digging me deeper and deeper into the hole. So I think I actually at that time, was $30,000.
Speaker 4:By my third blitz. Every month it was $35,000 in debt that I had accrued just by being down there and taking time off from work. And then in November I sold a bunch. I recruited four guys. In December I recruited another four guys, so I had about eight guys on my team and by January the check started to hit $10,000, $10,000, $15,000. By March of 2023, I was out of debt completely.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 4:And then I built the team and I did really well that year. I was like, oh shoot, there's a leaderboard in my company. Oh wait, I'm like fifth on the in the company, and then I kept grinding and then I ended up at first place, which was fun. My team was grateful. I had about 15 guys that were knocking doors in our office and so things were going pretty well.
Speaker 4:But I felt like, at least for me, there was so much of the sales process in solar and I had learned so much more in 2024 when I had realized that there was so much of the sales process in door to door in general. But solar being, in my opinion, the best industry to grow in door to door, it's the highest ticket sale there is right. So I've always preached like if you're going to get into salesdoor, it's the highest ticket sale there is right. So I've always preached like if you're going to get into sales, go for the higher ticket sale. That that you know is is an option for you. Um, solar was that for me in the door-to-door space. But the problem was is that there was so much of the process that was outside of my control so I could knock the door, set the appointment, go and close the deal, create crazy rapport, but rapport.
Speaker 4:But then the installer might do something wrong. Customer care might call and say something a little bit off to the customer.
Speaker 1:Roll them the wrong way.
Speaker 4:Roll them the wrong way or just like yeah, use the wrong terminology Installer could no-show Put panels. I've had situations where they put panels on the wrong side of the house multiple times. Design is one side where there's no trees, and then the installer will go in and put it right under a had situations where they put panels on the wrong side of the house multiple times. You know design is one side where there's no trees, and then the installer will go in and put it right under a tree and that's. You know that's a hard thing to one to explain to your customer, but then two to sit with you. You know what I mean. Like you're making good money, um, but how scalable is that? Because you're not getting a great review from that customer, you know? No, you know what I mean. And it's also hard to go and want to sign someone else up for that process.
Speaker 4:I feel like a lot of people in solar it's a tough thing to say, but I feel like a lot of them are just, they have blinders on. Yeah, yeah, yeah, because they can't look to the side and see what they've actually done. They think that they're doing a great service to people, which I believe is always a great thing, but you're really not. You're signing up. I would say most of your customers are signing up for headaches. That's really how it ends up in the industry and I think that's an industry as a whole, because I sold for a total of eight companies, I think over my career, eight or nine companies.
Speaker 1:That's a lot.
Speaker 4:I had experience. How old are you, dude?
Speaker 1:You've had like 50 jobs.
Speaker 4:I'm 25.
Speaker 1:I'm younger than you.
Speaker 4:Younger than me. I don't look it, though.
Speaker 2:I thought you were 32, but now I'm playing. Wait, I have a question, though, for you.
Speaker 4:I always hear these weird stories about guys not getting paid out. Like, how does that happen? Yeah, well, I think I think it goes hand in hand with the issues I was bringing up. So solar has been around for like 30 years, but it's it's become like one of the most saturated industries. Yeah, um, in general. So like there are companies that pop up and do 100 million dollars year one, 200 million dollars year one because there's so much money in it. You know the average ticket sale is roughly around 50 000 dollars because there's so much money in it. You know the average ticket sale is roughly around $50,000.
Speaker 4:That's the average system size that you're signing. And so there's so much money in it, which you know drives people to hey, I want to go start a solar company. But the same drive is like a sense of greed almost, where it's not a passion for what you're doing, it's hey, I want to do this because it's going to make money. But then if you drop the ball at some point, you know it's like, uh oh shit, I owe the installer money, or I owe the financer money, or I owe the rep money, or I can just keep it, you know.
Speaker 4:And so yeah and that's the other thing you're like somebody like that? Yeah, I do too yeah, so many people opt to keep it in their pocket and then, if you're not showing them like, hey, I'm going to continue bringing you value, like they're not going to pay you and they don't have an incentive to pay you, and that's the thing.
Speaker 1:I feel like someone could get killed for that, for not paying like you don't pay the wrong dude.
Speaker 4:I mean, you see, these companies like I haven't seen, I haven't seen, I haven't seen people, I haven't seen that happen just yet, but I have seen, I mean.
Speaker 1:I'm sure you guys have seen on the news.
Speaker 4:Like so many companies going Filing bankruptcy, you know what I mean Doing hundreds of millions of dollars one year and then the next year also filing bankruptcy.
Speaker 1:You want to know a funny story. So when I first started making money, there was this company called Sun Edison. Have you ever heard of it. I've heard of it.
Speaker 1:It was like the biggest solar company ever, and they were buying they were buying SunCity, some other company, huge acquisitions, so I was buying their stock. So I was like, okay, I'm gonna buy this stock. I think I put like 10K in there or something. And then one day they were like, oh, the company's not doing that good, the stock is going down, gets cut in half.
Speaker 1:So I'm like, dude, I'm gonna buy more right, oh, because it's gonna be half off and then, like the next day, like some more news came out that they couldn't pay their bills, so it went down to like even more. I was like dude, I'm gonna buy 10 000 more. And I'm like dude, I'm going to buy 10,000 more.
Speaker 4:And I'm like this thing's going to.
Speaker 1:I was thinking I've seen this story before it goes down, and then it shoots back up. Then the next day they file bankruptcy.
Speaker 3:And then you bought more.
Speaker 4:And I couldn't buy anything. I think it just happens very often. There's a lot of, you know, oversaturation brings in competition, but if you're good at sales, competition doesn't mean anything. But oversaturation also brings in, you know, lack of quality control. So you have companies that are starting that should not be companies. You know guys that are running companies that should not run companies, and that's the unfortunate truth about, I think, solar.
Speaker 4:So what? What brought me to insurance? I mean I Was. I was making good money. Honestly, like when I had left, I was making the most money I'd ever made in my life. But I knew that you know that I had seen it taken away from me Like months on end, waiting for pay up to like six to seven months, and so I was like I don't, I don't want to sign people up for this as a client. I don't want to sign people up for this as recruits who want to change their life financially and just in general. And so I kept. I was looking, I was searching for an another industry that I could bring the same skills that I had into something else. Uh, potentially make more money as a personal, as like my own producer yeah.
Speaker 4:And also scale it to a point where I'm like I'm signing people up for a product that I believe in, but I'm also signing people up for an industry that I think that they can create a career for themselves and their family. So I did a lot of research and I ended up here and. I'm grateful, I think it's going to be the right move. I and I'm grateful, I think it's going to be the right move?
Speaker 1:I think I'm going to yeah. So you've been selling yourself for two weeks. You did 14.
Speaker 4:Yeah, like a little over, like two weeks of fully selling and closing myself and I did 14.
Speaker 1:Nice, what do you think you could do now that you kind of see how it all works?
Speaker 4:I think I mean my goal is to write consistently 50K a month starting this month. I think it's just a matter of working the right hours, working those hours that you're supposed to like spending the time on I guess you know the highest income producing, like efforts and just the right things you know. For me, like for someone like me, buying the lower quality leads doesn't make as much sense Like I'm not going to.
Speaker 4:Why would I spend time dialing for people that aren't going to pick up? You know it makes more sense for me to just spend more money because I know that my objection handling is there my skill set's there. I'm working the right hours. Like I'm going to get. Like, if they can be closed, they will get closed.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:You know, and that's my mentality.
Speaker 1:We had a girl in here. She only spent $100 a week on bronze leads and got like 10 referrals and she crushes.
Speaker 4:But to your point, you're buying your time back.
Speaker 1:She's going through those bronze leads way more than you would if you just get new leads.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I think referrals are huge too. I think that's what's going to maximize the investment.
Speaker 1:But what is happening? Because what's the reason? You're like the third dude in here in the last two weeks that's leaving solar to sell life insurance, like, why is that? And I'm hearing it more and more and more and more and more.
Speaker 4:I think all industries, like you know, have their waves of like people coming in and people moving out, have their, have their waves of like people coming in and people and people moving out. And I think it's like like a lot of people who got into solar probably I know more people, um, just outs like in my circle from before solar getting into solar now over the past two years, like getting into it over the past two years, and I think that's just like the cycle point, like a lot of people give it like a year or two and then they're kind of like out two years, like getting into it over the past two years. And I think that's just like the cycle point, like a lot of people give it like a year or two and then they're kind of like out.
Speaker 4:I just got a text this morning from some a friend of a friend who started in solar three months ago in New York and he just quit.
Speaker 1:This morning and he's going to sell insurance with you.
Speaker 4:Yeah, he scheduled his exam next week.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 4:So that's like. I think it's just the inf. Like people are, companies are filing bankruptcy.
Speaker 1:I think more companies filed bankruptcy last year in solar than ever before so I think comforting, yeah, yeah it's just an industry that's, you know, you're really gonna but it's a good opportunity if you're gonna go bang doors and you can make good money fast.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, you know you can make great money. But it's also about outlasting. Like the same with here. It's like the attrition rate is just so low in solo with the guys who actually stick. But I think the structure in the program that we have in our team Is going to raise that.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah.
Speaker 4:It increases it like significantly yeah so much yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah so much yeah yeah, and we're all on zoom again, like I said it before. But, like I, it was crazy to me like hearing at different teams with, just like, give them a script and say I figure it out. I'm like, oh, like, like, that's hard, like, oh, that's what I did.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's hard. Mm-hmm, that's hard, Bro. That's what I did. Yeah, that's hard. That's hard. Like I don't know if I would have been able to, For me, if I didn't have, like you know, a script or a Zoom, I probably wouldn't be where I'm at now. I think it's so important, but like, I'm sure it could be done.
Speaker 1:I mean, but this was our training. It would go okay here. Go read it 50 times in the mirror out loud. Here's leads Call me after you make 250 phone calls and write down all your objections. Wow.
Speaker 4:That's literally our training. I mean, that probably works.
Speaker 1:It does work. It's just like who's going to stick with it. You might lose we probably lost more people than you guys would, though.
Speaker 4:Yeah, exactly, you know. Yeah, A lot of people are. You know, it's like good and bad but like we're just coddled nowadays.
Speaker 1:You know what?
Speaker 4:I mean, like it's a lot. I feel like I've talked to people. Even my grandfather was like an engineer in like a small town in like Italy, but like no one taught him how to do his job Exactly. You know what I mean. You get your degree, then it's like, oh, you're hired to do this. It's like figure it out, you know, and that's how it used to be. And nowadays everyone like the setter closer model is so common in any industry like the. The transition from a full commission, door to door or our phone sales job into like the you know the typical uh corporate world is being a BDR SDR rep which I know a lot of people are.
Speaker 4:You know, but they have you know you go through the process of six months to a year, maybe even two, where you're setting appointments for the uh account executive, um, and then then that person starts closing the appointments. So why would that not be implemented? You know, in what we do it allows for people to actually like you know before you know you take all the risks before you start investing your own money. You know, get to know the process a bit you know I love it.
Speaker 1:That's legit. So what are some of the pros to insurance that you didn't have before? One thing that everyone tells me coming from real estate loans, solar car sales they're like the ability to get somebody approved right away and get paid right away. Have you noticed that at all?
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah. So that was actually something that didn't hit with me at first, like it wasn't something I was searching for when I was in solar, because at that time, when I first started, I mean, I had all this debt and I was. I was okay with delayed gratification, like I was okay with waiting to get paid as long as I was going to get paid. That was important. But I was okay with waiting to get paid because I was like I know that getting out of this hole or I know that getting myself to the next level that I want to get to is not going to be a quick overnight process. But, that being said, the long payout times when you do the math on kind of what you have to sacrifice to get there. And then Brayden actually talked to me about it. He was like, yeah, I made $60,000 that month, but because it took three or four or five months to make it, I didn't make it that month, like, and also there's the risk of at that point, when it does come in, could be deducted.
Speaker 4:It might not come in, the company might not pay you because maybe you you decided to not work with them anymore. There's some or you know, there's so many different reasons. So so quicker pay has definitely become more of a priority to me and I think that's just um, that allows you to reinvest, you know, that allows you to stay afloat. That'll and um and it doesn't affect, like, the sales process at all in this. So quicker pay, um, obviously, location freedom that was huge for me. Like you know, I had moved out across the country from where all my family was to try and make money, and then from there I moved to texas, which I'm grateful for both those experiences. But now I have the opportunity to move back to new york if I want to, and be close to my family, not have to pay for flights all the time and still make the money that I was making down in Texas and crush on Zoom, yep yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Zoom changed the whole insurance world. Dude, I should have bought that stock a while ago. Seriously, yeah, it changed everything, yeah, dude, and then like something I think we haven't tapped into which I talk about all the time is like let Something I think we haven't tapped into which I talk about all the time is, let's say somebody has a back issue and they can't get around as good as they did at one point in time. They could crush on Zoom. Crush it.
Speaker 2:Definitely my grandma thought.
Speaker 1:I'd do this. I'm so serious. She just laughed.
Speaker 2:Because she was a different company. But she used to go in the office a lot and like she's been on so much choice her whole life and she's like, oh, is this a zoom? I was like, yeah, so she's licensed. Now he's contracted. What's her name?
Speaker 1:ruth cunningham yeah, yeah, you gotta tell me when she's a closer bro, she's a closer I believe it?
Speaker 2:yeah, she's licensed. You'll see, in my back office you'll see ruth cunningham, yeah, she's.
Speaker 1:I got my whole family.
Speaker 2:now my uncle is in the other room, my mother-in-law's licensed. I'm telling everyone, that's the thing too, I think NFL right, you make it Everyone's like this. Now I'm like nah, get your license.
Speaker 1:Wait, is that what?
Speaker 2:it's like you make it and you get paid, and then Because you know for you like I'm sure it probably still happens, but like you can make you know your money, but it's like you're not getting a post on like ESPN.
Speaker 2:Oh, Andrew Taylor, just got signed for a four-year deal for you know, like a quarter mil like you know what I mean. Or like for like $500 million. Like you know, it's not broadcasted right, but like, oh, you got signed to the vikings. Oh, your deal is on google. Oh yeah, I want some of that. Like you know what I mean. Like. So what do they say?
Speaker 1:can I have money?
Speaker 2:yeah, like, hey, uh, you know, like my car's not working right now, like can I borrow a couple thousand dollars? It's just random requests.
Speaker 1:Like now you're saying no, but you can get your license. Yeah, brilliant, so good. You know cause.
Speaker 2:I'm helping you. Like, listen, I can't do that right now, but I can make you money Right, just take your state exam real quick. Right, hop on zoom and we'll get you right. You know, you can go from there and now you'll never need to ask for money anymore. So that's my approach. What's your approach?
Speaker 3:I don't really have an approach as far as that. You say no, nah, I had a point in time where, like it was, it was kind of weird for me because people would go and look up my contract when I first got in. It was weird and people would tell my mom like yeah, kobe makes that.
Speaker 2:I'm like stop, it's weird. Think about it too. They're not counting taxes. Think about this this is tax-free, it's not tax-free, you've got to pay taxes, don.
Speaker 1:Think about this and they think this is tax free. So, like it's not tax free, yeah, you got. You got to pay taxes. Yeah, don't take it out up front. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, but it's just like. But me like, I don't know. We'll talk later about my.
Speaker 1:CPA, if it was tax free, like that, um, but yeah, that's just a whole different conversation.
Speaker 3:Yeah, off camera, but yeah no, for sure.
Speaker 2:But I will say though, like you know, in the nfl you're a w2, you can't write off anything, you know like this like you know you can.
Speaker 1:So, oh, you get your deductions. You're saying yeah yeah, you can take your business. You're not writing like I remember.
Speaker 2:Uh, I think it might have been. I could be wrong, but was. Was it Caleb Williams, maybe when he wanted to put it into?
Speaker 3:LLC. They said no, they wouldn't let him Try to put his money in a business.
Speaker 1:Dude Merriman was saying he got $2.2 million at 21 after taxes his first paycheck. Yeah, my bro.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean you probably watched that Camp Newton podcast. Yeah, my bro, yeah, I mean you probably watched that uh, camp noon podcast, like he talked about all the time. Like he was like making, like at one point every week, like over 700k, right, and like you know, after taxes, but at the same time, like when you're doing the grand scheme of things, like if a person's making 50 mil, let's say a year, it's really 25.
Speaker 1:like that's kind of the general rule of thumb again I felt like you're breaking in half.
Speaker 2:But one thing he said was crazy and like we had a combo the day about it, about how cam's kind of saying, like yo, I made all this money and like I'm kind of like tight, like you know, because it's like for real, yeah, your lifestyle increases, you know what I mean. I mean that's pretty, think about it. All. Right, you have a couple supercars, rose roys, couple houses. What are you gonna do when that game check is not hitting anymore? You have a whole life to live. So I tell you all the time, like yo, like you know, prepare for any day. Like you should start thinking about what you want to do outside of football. And this is an easy like segue because, like I think, in any sport you play athletes, we're competitive, so this like translates so well.
Speaker 3:The sales industry but you're insurance, you know? Nah, definitely. Um, we have plenty. We have a lot of conversations and it's never like a shot at any. I think it's more that we were just blessed to be able to get into this space, as you saw, like the circle and the table that was here yesterday. It's more informing All my guys that still playing, I root for them Like I'm sitting in the locker room with them, but I use this time and this industry I'm in now to inform and kind of show them like look, bro, have your life set up for the next 20 years not just for these.
Speaker 1:It's like the show Ballers Right yeah, literally, exactly. No, literally, like that's real, no, it's actually so real.
Speaker 2:It's a good show.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a window, but as 20 year olds.
Speaker 3:You talk 20 year old about insurance, they're like what? I don't need that right now, but if you can really understand it and see the long-term benefit of it, I think that's the the answer right there, because it's and it's not just about the money, it's about just longevity, it's about everybody talks about the term generational wealth but, like this is the start of everybody thinks that working and being able to have an actual liquid cash flow is generational wealth. No, it's assets and it's insurance policies, trust and everything. How you can get on. It might not be for you right now, but it may be for your kids' kids or whatever so forth.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's a whole other topic how to not ruin your kids.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. One thing I would get a lot too, or bottles, is like, oh, I have a savings. I'd rather just put that to my savings. I'm like, yeah, but your savings doesn't pay out to you if you die, I mean yeah like I don't have a death benefit, doesn't have, you know, living benefits, right? Like so you're just paying yeah to your savings every month. But like what if you were paying that same monthly premium? Um?
Speaker 2:into your policy that's gonna give you that same savings, but just an added death benefit, living benefits and so on. So yeah, not as easy to get out and spin which is good, yeah, which is good. But I mean certain plans like you know, iul, you know that's, that's yours now, borrow from me. I mean obviously a savings like this right there. But I mean IUL, I mean you become your own bank, right?
Speaker 1:yeah, from it, you know, take it out my presentation is always like okay, how much money do you save? You're gonna say 500 bucks a month and I'm like, all right, we're gonna reallocate some of that. That way you're not actually Increasing your monthly expenses, right, but to a different vehicle that's going to give you living benefits, death benefit, and you can still access the money and it can still grow. And then how do you say no to that you?
Speaker 2:can't. Yeah, I think too, when it comes to like, you know, talking to clients on the phone is like, just be a human being, like I think sometimes people come into it and they panic oh my God, I got all these terms. And like, just be a human being. Like I think sometimes people come into it and they panic, like, oh my god, I got all these terms and you don't just just be a human being, yes, read the script as a, as a guy, but just be, just talk, like how we're talking right now, just listen, this is what it does.
Speaker 2:What do you have in place right now that could you know? Pay off your home for you? Or take care of your family? Okay, nothing, I guess. What's stopping you? Okay, affordability, okay, so what's affordable? You know? Just have that conversation with them, break it down to them. You know, because, like everyone that I talk to, the main reason why they don't want to get insurance because it's too expensive, and I even tell you how much it costs. Yet you know, that's the first thing I always hear oh, I don't know is how much does it cost? Is it too much money, like I? No, we can figure out a plan for you, you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, have you guys had any like rock bottom moments where you're like I don't know, like I got to crawl out of a hole, type of situation?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I, feel like if I don't get a sale, like if I go like two days or three without a sale, I get kind of mad Like yo. Three by the sale. I get kind of mad like yo, like it doesn't seem right and that that's not be a big deal. But to me it is. But if I go two days out of the sale, I'm like no, something. Like I gotta get out that slump, try a different morning routine, fix what I'm saying. That's why the zoom critical. I'm unmuting more now. Like alright, like I don't. I'm constantly evolving, right, you never get to a point where you feel like you're just good enough. Right, like I'll still unmute, because when everyone's listening to me I'm going to go harder.
Speaker 1:I'm going to be a lot more sharper, or?
Speaker 2:like you know, like Denzel why'd you say that? I'm like you know what? How I'm in that slump. You know what I mean. There's something that you're just not doing that you were doing before or that you just started to do out of nowhere. That's messing you up. So, like having you know accountability, you know people on zoom that hold you accountable and critique you is so big Like. I think that's so important, because imagine if you weren't on zoom and you're just in this slump and you're doing the same thing over and over and over. That's a scary place to be at.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what about you? Have you had like, uh, even in sports? Have you been down and out.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like I've uh definitely had those in sports plays, db man but one catch.
Speaker 2:Like you can be trapping the whole entire day. Let up one touchdown, one catch you suck. So it's like doing this. I gotta know this is nothing. Imagine being in a stadium and a hundred thousand people are watching you and you're doing good all game. You have one little mistake, you slipped, he scores on you and I was like, oh you suck like what you mean. You messed up the yeah yeah, yeah, everyone wants to give you death threats, oh you suck like man.
Speaker 3:But now, um, over outside of sports, um, I mean, yeah, but I don't look at it as like a downfall, I look at it as like a learning. Like denzel said, if I'm not closing, okay, what am I doing wrong? Um, okay, why am I not saying this? Why didn't I say this? And I think that was really for me in the beginning because I was just coming into the industry and it was more of okay just doing this versus like knowing what I'm really doing.
Speaker 3:And I think once I took the time to study and know what I'm doing because we'll be on zoom and I'm just like quiet and everybody's like, bro, you didn't say anything, did you dial today? And I'm like, uh, I'm like, yeah, I dialed, but I've been muted all day. And then they would just be like, what are you doing? I'm like, oh, yeah, I found this out. I found this out. So I think that was like my getting out of myself, out of a hole is learning more and being able to teach the team. And then once I found that that little learning curve, it was just basically better deals for me, better deals for everybody else. You know, back office and learning. But I mean, if I ever fall into a slump, I just listen to everybody else dial or start competing. I'm like, yeah, I'm losing, I'm slacking, I gotta get back to top spot or something. Nice what?
Speaker 1:about you, dude slump, I mean, or like when you had all that debt, cause there's people watching this, bro, they could be going through it. That's why I'm asking no, definitely.
Speaker 4:I mean at that time was probably like my lowest, like mentally. I felt I felt super cloudy. I felt like everything that I was doing I actually was talking to a friend about this recently felt like I was pretending. You know, and I think a lot of people I know personally, like from high school and college, like are doing that now, where they, you know, they think they're doing something or they think they're being like, you know, progressive in their life, but really they're kind of all over the place like like scattered and pretending and acting like like acting like they're making progress but ignoring the things that they really need to be working on, and I think that's what I was doing. Like I had this like pipe dream of doing of being an artist manager when I was in LA.
Speaker 4:Like that's what I was trying to do, but I wasn't really pursuing it. I was, I was acting you know I was trying to do, but I wasn't really pursuing it. I was acting. You know, I was just a bad actor at the end of the day and that's really what was happening there.
Speaker 4:So that with the debt and then at the time too, my family had been like my parents were like really disappointed in me and they were very vocal about it to my siblings too. So I'm like halfway across, I'm across the country and they were very vocal about it to my siblings too. So I'm like halfway across, I'm across the country and they're telling my siblings like, yeah, don't be like your brother, blah, blah, blah. And so that you know like that was definitely my lowest, but what I did was I mean I just fought. I found something where I wasn't actually pretending and I actually worked towards something, no matter what.
Speaker 4:I remember I closed my first deal, that first Blitz, and I was like sick. I had the flu, I had a fever, like barely making it door-to-door like drinking like hot, like hot water. Well, hot water from not even tea. I didn't have any. I didn't have any money drinking hot water that you can get at gas stations, yeah, and just and just filling up you know a cup of like super hot water. You're going through it, man, yeah. And so, yeah, I mean I just found something where I was actually making progress, like an actual income, producing activity versus pretending. And I got up before everyone else hit the gym. I had that morning routine. I was trying to eat healthy to the best of my abilities and then, yeah, just staying at it.
Speaker 1:If somebody wanted to work with you, how could?
Speaker 4:they reach you Instagram as well. I think that's probably the easiest. My Instagram is just my full name, John J-O-H-N, then Kabani K-A-B-B-A-N-I. You can DM me there and, yeah, I mean, the process is pretty similar. Right now I'm making anyone who wants to potentially work with us. Obviously, I have like a two-step interview process that I have with people. What is that? Can you say it real quick? Well, we got to wrap in two minutes, but I do have them just schedule the exam. The first call is just an introduction, getting to know them. The second call is letting them know what next steps would look like and then schedule the exam.
Speaker 4:If you schedule the exam, I'll send you the course, Otherwise there's no need to talk Cool.
Speaker 1:Thank you guys for coming in, thank you for joining us everybody, and I'm excited to see what you guys are going to do.
Speaker 3:Appreciate you, man. Thank you, Andrew.