Ep. 54: Unseen Track with Jessi Smith

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jessi Smith, a shining example of courage and commitment, whose transition from high school sports to the military encapsulates the essence of determination. Our conversation takes you through the corridors of Jessi's life, where a simple gesture from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln sparked a profound journey, demonstrating that the smallest acts can leave an indelible mark on our destiny. Join us as we delve into how Jessi's stint at Applebee's unknowingly laid the groundwork for her military success, underscoring the surprising ways our past experiences can shape our future.

Navigating the complex terrain of motivation and emotional intelligence, Jesse and I pull back the curtain on what drives us to excel. We dissect the myriad ways people find encouragement, whether through public recognition or the quiet satisfaction of a job well done. The conversation takes a deeper turn as we explore the fabric of mental toughness, the power of personal choice, and the unyielding support of family and mentors that fortify our resilience. Jessi's candid recollection of her college years offers a vibrant tapestry of growth, giving us a glimpse into the transformative nature of embracing one's innate potential.

Wrapping up our exchange, we wander through the varied landscape of our personal and professional development, from the unexpected joy of discovering sushi in the Midwest to the savory embrace of authentic Japanese cuisine. We pay homage to past leaders whose influence still resonates with us and muse over the paths we've taken, skill sets we've acquired, and even the restaurant menus that remain etched in our memory. Our chat is an invitation to see the value in every chapter of life, understanding that each experience contributes to the mosaic of who we are. Tune in for this heartfelt journey, and if it resonates with you, pass along the inspiration.

Transcript

Passing the Torch With Jesse Smith

Speaker 1 0:00

I've never had to unscrew another woman's light bulb in order to shine. My guest on this episode of Passing the Torch is an amazing young military member who I have the honor of serving alongside with. This person is someone who has a certain presence and maintains a constant poise. Her positive attitude, exemplary values, cannot be denied. Topics discussed in this episode include the importance of small actions in the moment, how waiting tables at a major chain restaurant has helped her in the military, when dealing with people, defining potential versus effort, where her mental toughness comes from and the importance of emotional intelligence at all levels. Those are just a few of the topics, but we cover much, much more Without further ado. Passing the Torch with Jesse Smith starts now. First and foremost, welcome to the show and thank you for joining me.

Speaker 2 1:02

Thank you for having me.

Speaker 1 1:04

I'm really good, I'm excited yeah, what do you think of that?

Speaker 2 1:06

quote. I love that quote. I actually heard that quote very early on in my high school career and it's one I definitely try to live by. It's.

Speaker 1 1:15

I love it what do you remember about high school?

Speaker 2 1:18

high school was a very interesting time. Um, I look back realizing that I probably could have done a lot more, but at the same time, you know, I was a very active athlete and trying to be involved in as many activities as I could, and it was just a really good experience. There were good goods and bads, for sure.

Speaker 1 1:38

You were active because I read that you won 15 medals in high school.

Speaker 2 1:41

I did, yes, yeah, and what sport I ran track and field and cross country.

Speaker 1 1:45

What did that lead to?

Speaker 2 1:46

Post high school I went off to compete at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where I had my pet event in the 800, but I also ran the 600 and a couple of relays.

Speaker 1 1:56

Now I saw the videos and everything, and I mean just booking and stuff. And is it Bayard High School? Is that you went baird baird?

Speaker 2 2:03

yes, sorry, no, that's okay. And most people are like are you from bayard?

Speaker 1 2:07

and I'm like that close no, that's really cool, but yeah, I think it's so impressive. There's a lot that I want to get into right, so we'll get into, like your military background and everything, but I'm just fascinated for, like the college, like just running track and even for I mean, it's nebraska, right, so it's you. It's impressive, I think, at any college level. Oh, absolutely. But Nebraska's a big-time school. What was that pressure like, or maybe like during that? Let's backtrack. What was it like when you first found out Nebraska was interested in you?

Speaker 2 2:35

Yeah. So it was actually a very wild experience. I was looking into a lot of different colleges for a lot of different reasons and when Nebraska I remember Coach David Harris, he had sent me a handwritten letter telling me that they were interested in officially recruiting me. And when I tell I mean I'm Nebraska born and raised that was probably the most exciting letter I've ever gotten, and really quickly in my senior year we ended up going on some visits and it just I mean the facilities there. I don't know if you've seen them. It really is a good seller to somebody from a small, small farm town. So getting?

Speaker 1 3:11

was he the only? Were they the only school that sent you a handwritten note?

Speaker 2 3:14

No, so there was a lot of Nebraska schools that actually reached out. I was also contacted by a few other colleges, but those were more of your less. I would say more formal letters versus the handwritten letters.

Speaker 1 3:28

I just like the idea of the handwritten letters because that's very like yeah. So how did that make you feel in the moment? And how important are like those small actions, like a handwritten note, because you and I have had some random conversations and I was like Smith, let me stop you in the hallway and just give you some words of encouragement. But how important are those moments, those small things in the moment.

Speaker 2 3:45

I would say when you're taking steps to make a big decision for your life, those smaller things have more of an impact than I would say any big I don't know big offers. The handwritten letters really are what were kind of my selling point when I chose the colleges. I had a fantastic college, doan University, about an hour away from Lincoln. They sent me a handwritten letter. He called me. He was one of the most fantastic coaches ever, same with Coach Brady Bonzel at UNK University of Kearney.

Speaker 1 4:19

Yeah.

Speaker 2 4:20

Or University of Nebraska, kearney, and they all sent me handwritten letters and those were my top three colleges that I really was going to look at, so it made all the difference.

Speaker 1 4:29

No, that's really cool. I think it's just a lost art, right, like just handwritten notes or just versus, like a generic email or something right.

Speaker 2 4:35

Well, I can tell they put time into it, and a coach that's going to put time into you for a letter is likely going to do the same thing for your career. And I mean that in all aspects, not just.

Speaker 1 4:44

You know college sports, so we might go back to that. I don't know, but there's uh, there's one question I've been dying to ask you, because we have a very similar background. It looks like something what comes to mind when I say Applebee's?

Speaker 2 4:58

I love Applebee's. Yeah, yeah, I worked at Applebee's.

Speaker 1 5:09

Did you wait?

Speaker 2 5:09

tables and bartend there. I, yeah, that was probably my favorite job, to be honest. So before I joined I used to wait tables at outback. Oh my goodness, yeah, we never had an. Did I have an outback? I don't know if we had an outback in my area.

Speaker 1 5:15

Yeah, so, and coincidentally there were three martins that worked there and so I went by foster and uh back then. I don't even know if it's still a thing, but Foster's Beer used to always have the beer commercials. They say Foster's Australian for beer.

Speaker 2 5:27

Okay, yeah, did not know that, it was just like my way in with the tables. Yeah, you snuck over. You're like hey. By the way, let me encourage you to buy this.

Speaker 1 5:34

So what was working at Applebee's like? And then how?

Speaker 2 5:36

do you think that's a loaded question, because I um my major in college was communication studies and that when, when I worked over summers at Applebee's, I really had a lot of contact with different people. And when I got to college, that was my first real experience of anything outside of small town Nebraska, and so it really impacted the way that I communicate now with individuals. You know I had a supervisor, I had peers that I was working with, that I was helping, and then I had different customer sets and I would say that impacts all the way into the military. I mean it's in everything I do Every day. You're constantly communicating with those people and I would say that it has positively impacted me in every way.

Speaker 1 6:29

I think about. I mean it's customer service, right. I love people. Yeah, but just meeting so many different people and it's helped me like with confidence and all that stuff now.

Speaker 2 6:38

Absolutely, I would say, the best part about working at Applebee's, with where I am in the military now, is when people ask me questions that I don't know the answer to that, being able to fire back anything that comes at you has been very helpful.

Speaker 1 6:52

Yeah, so pre-Applebee's and pre-track in Nebraska. What was life like growing up?

Speaker 2 7:00

So I actually had a very, very good life. I do have separated parents and I have an incredible stepfather who really set the tone for my family. So we grew up in a town of about 1,200. I graduated with 22 people. Wow yeah, it was very small and I never really had any outside experiences. I worked as a waitress at a cafe for my godmother and I mean, that was my life of sports and working and having fun. That was about it.

Speaker 1 7:30

Yeah.

Speaker 2 7:31

But life was good. I mean I have very loving parents. Things were really good. A lot of support in my small town.

Speaker 1 7:38

What drove you to join the military, and especially in Lewis because I know you have your degree.

Speaker 2 7:45

I'm actually three credits short of my bachelor's degree, um, and that actually plays into this. So once I hit my fifth year in college because I did five years and my only goal in college was to compete I didn't really care for academics. It wasn't something that I was super focused on. I look back now wishing I would have, but, but you know, hindsight, 2020, um, covid hit my fifth year and everything shut down and I wasn't competing and I was like I don't want to be in college anymore. So I just stopped, I just quit.

Speaker 2 8:16

And I remember, two days before my 23rd birthday, I woke up, um, I was living in Lincoln at the time and I called my dad. I said, hey, I'm moving back home, set my room up it's an eight hour drive back home, maybe seven but I said also I think I'm joining the military, that's it. That there was no hind like, any thoughts behind. I just woke up and said I need change, um, and I I need something to hold me accountable and the military is the best option. And my dad was prior military. He got honorably discharged. He broke his back, unfortunately. He was security forces, and so he had always encouraged me and I was like no, I'm not for the military, not for me. And two days later, after my 23rd birthday, I moved home, met with a recruiter and signed a month later. And that is just the start of it. I don't know what it was. I woke up one day and said I really want to be held accountable for what I'm doing.

Speaker 2 9:10

And the only way that's going to happen is if I join. I said I'll finish my degree and I'll commission in the future. If that's an option, yeah.

Speaker 1 9:18

And we're lucky to have you. But why the Air Force instead of the Navy Marines Army? I mean, you had your pick, I'd assume.

Speaker 2 9:26

I never really thought about another branch. I have Marine family members who were like I just don't think it's for you. Not anything negative, they're just like I just don't think it was going to suit you. I had Coast Guard family members who really encouraged me to do that, but that didn't. I don't know, it just didn't suit me. And so when I joined I really only talked to an Air Force recruiter. That was it. That was. I said that, yep, this is it I'm going.

Speaker 1 9:58

No, that's cool. And then, how has your experience been over the past?

Speaker 2 9:59

Because you've been in for four years now, right, or about to hit four years For the Air Force? Actually, I just hit my two year over January, about two and a half years in, so I joined in the end of December 2021.

Speaker 1 10:08

Okay, yeah, so how has your experience been to date?

Speaker 2 10:12

It has been wild, all good things. I had very great experiences coming in. I kind of hoped you would ask this question because I thought about it a lot A couple months ago. I realized that I have had the privilege of having such incredible people help me out and I don't mean just military people, I mean our civilians here. But I've always had what's the word I'm looking for. I've always had people who were interested in me doing more and in a good way.

Speaker 2 10:48

And I've never not experienced that since I joined, I mean in BMT I had two master sergeants uh, women, very powerful women, honestly, those were the women I wanted to be like one was going for her blue rope and one was going for senior.

Speaker 1 11:00

Let's give them a shout out what are they Yeahompson and master sergeant earl? Do you know their first names?

Speaker 2 11:06

um, yes, master sergeant holly earl and master sergeant I think it was chantel thompson okay, very phenomenal women really encouraged me and I remember it's master sergeant holly earl wrote on the back of our bmt picture future chief and signed it and that was the only one that she did that for in that room and I remember seeing that and I was like this this was the right move. And ever since then I have been nothing short of encouraged by everybody that I've met in my military experience.

Speaker 1 11:40

I want to kind of jump on that because I think it even goes back to the hidden written note right how important, especially for someone's first line, especially if someone is a first line supervisor, they're setting the tone.

Speaker 2 11:51

Yep.

Speaker 1 11:52

Or first experience, you know, for a brand new airman or even like a brand new, like young officer or anyone joining the military. How important is it for that first line supervisor or someone who is making that, first setting the first impression, the bar for those new people joining the military? Because I feel like that right there, kind of like it builds mojo and momentum right.

Speaker 2 12:11

Absolutely. I think if somebody is showing not only potential but effort and I think that's really hard for a lot of people because you don't know what you're putting effort into and I know my experience has been a lot different than maybe people coming in straight out of college or straight out of high school. You know, I came in at 23. A lot of people that I work with, my peers, are 18. And so it's something that I think when you see somebody giving effort, that is where it is most important to start nurturing that effort. You don't want to. You don't want to be somebody that gets away with anything, but somebody that's held accountable, and I think that when somebody shows that they care enough to be held accountable and still work hard, that first line supervisor is going to make or break their career, and I firmly believe that.

Speaker 1 13:00

So how would you define a difference, like how would you define potential and then how would you define effort, or do you see them as the same thing?

Speaker 2 13:07

I don't see them at the same thing, because some people have a lot of potential to be great, but they just don't care. And I'm going to tie this back to my college career. I loved running for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln but I didn't care. I had a lot of potential to be a fantastic athlete, didn't care. I had a lot of potential to be a fantastic athlete and I was. I wasn't mentally focused enough to reach my potential and that was on me. And so there is a very big difference, I personally think, between potential and effort.

Speaker 1 13:36

What's, what's your advice for someone on how to gain, how to like, sit back and just gain more of a perspective and consider the other person.

Speaker 2 13:50

I would say that to recognize that not everybody has the same goals as you and not everybody grew up the same way as you, and I think that that's really important in finding what motivates somebody. Now, a lot of people aren't really motivated by getting attention. Some people are motivated by just getting their work done, and I'm not that person. I'm motivated by words of encouragement and by awards, and it's not in a way that's, I would say, a bad thing, but I would say everybody has something that they're motivated by, and, as a supervisor, that's your job to find out and to see it through like, okay, maybe I'm motivated by awards, but I know I have a peer, he's not. He just likes to get the job done and know that he did it, and that is what motivates him, and so we've definitely tried to give him more things that are not spotlight but work, and he loves it and he loves it. So I would definitely say that that that that would work best as a supervisor. Find what motivates your people.

Speaker 1 14:49

So I did have a question like and I wrote down, like you, to me it just seems like you have the world in the palm of your hand, like what inspired you or what drove you to enlist, but it was. You know, you shared that. It was just kind of like I'm going to do this right, or what motivated you to enlist, but what continues to motivate you? And and who in, in, who, uh, and who's also like? You talked about your, the two master sergeants from basic training, but who else is motivating you?

Speaker 2 15:16

now. I get motivation from a lot of different things, depending on the topic and in different aspects of my life, so there's not one person or group that motivates me in the military. It's consistent support. I mean, I remember you and I were chatting and we were with Chief Yeager. I had the privilege of talking to you guys in the hallway.

Speaker 1 15:39

Was this like in October or something, or in the fall? Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2 15:41

It was during that little breakfast meeting.

Speaker 2 15:43

And I remember you just had the greatest things to say about me and you said whatever you choose to do, I know you're going to be great out of that, whether it's commissioning or being the next chief master sergeant of the air force, and I have been privileged enough to have that continual support from you, from my family. I the first thing I did was go back home and tell my family and they knew that they, that's what they are supportive of, and so I wouldn't say there's any specific piece driving me. I I want to be better for myself, but also for those who come after me, and that's, I would say, my biggest motivator is I've had the privilege of receiving so much support. I want others to continue to have that as well.

Speaker 1 16:28

No, that's awesome and I love that.

Speaker 2 16:29

So, yeah, no, I definitely called my mom. I said, mom, you'll never believe what she fosters. She's like. First of all, who's she fostering Exactly?

Speaker 1 16:40

I love that. Thanks for sharing that right.

Speaker 2 16:41

So, uh, that's good, uh, I have a couple random questions.

Speaker 1 16:43

I want to kind of so. Absolutely, yeah, we'll just pretend you're back at affabies and someone's trying to switch up their order. Yep, all the time, all the time literally all the time where does your mental toughness come from? Because to me, like it's very you, you're very mentally strong, right, mentally tough, so it's just uh, and it's, it's not necessary, it's something that to me, it's just something that builds over time. But yeah, where do you get it from?

Speaker 2 17:05

I haven't always had it. Um, I've really struggled in college and I've really there was an option for me to go down a path that I wasn't meant for and the path that I'm on now and I I there are very distinct differences between those paths. And my mom she said you have to decide that you don't want to live that way anymore and you have to decide what you want to be. She's like there's everything out there for you. Make the damn decision. And that, honestly, I think it triggered something in me and since then I recognize that my choices are mine alone. I can't control what other people do, and that's the most frustrating thing in the world. It really is. But that really I would say I wasn't really mentally tough until maybe a couple of years ago. I honestly believe that I think that there's things you can be mentally tough about, but to consistently be mentally tough, that doesn't like I just didn't have that all the time, yeah, so Shout out to mom right.

Speaker 2 18:04

Oh my gosh that woman, how many people?

Speaker 1 18:07

this is what happens when you listen to mom right?

Speaker 2 18:09

Oh my gosh. She wishes she could tell me. I told you so, but she doesn't because she knows better that I will be like I don't want to talk to you right now. My mom has been right about so many things. Oh it's crazy the amount of times that my parents have truly just been right and I've been so against listening to them, just because it's them. Shut up, mom, yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1 18:29

So, like you said, when you're mentally weak. Was this like right after COVID, or was this during COVID, or there's been different periods.

Speaker 2 18:36

It was, I would say, throughout my sophomore to junior year of college. I was really mentally weak. I didn't really have a lot of focus. I kind of just liked going and hanging out with my friends and not sleeping and you know, being a college rat basically and I would say that was when I was at my weakest and it really showed me that I had so much more potential than what I was doing.

Speaker 2 18:59

And I think that's really where the mental toughness comes from is. I know what I'm capable of, even if I can't see it, and that's really what I needed to focus on and I did, and I feel like it's done wonders.

Speaker 1 19:13

No, it's great and I think it's all tying in together because there's a certain presence that you have a mental maturity. It's just a poise about you. But overall, how has your background impacted your ability to build a relationship? Because you're in a good way, like you're very infectious, right, like your positivity, but yeah, but how was I have to make sure in a good way you're infectious, you're infectious.

Speaker 2 19:38

Get away.

Speaker 1 19:39

But yeah, how has your background impacted your ability to build relationships?

Speaker 2 19:45

My background being just in general.

Speaker 2 19:48

I purposely asked these like broad, just to kind of just see, like, just leave the door open, however you want to answer, so I would say a lot of my ability to connect with people and have that sort of infectious I don't know, maybe motivation is what I would call it is really started in high school. I had a lot of peers that looked up to me and parents that encouraged me to help their children, and that's really where being supportive of other people has really done wonderful things for me. And when you're supportive of things like I know, I had friends who were so excited, it was prior. I did speech in high school and, yeah, I loved speech. I wish I would have done it sooner, but I had a couple of peers be so excited for speech and I was like that's weird.

Speaker 2 20:36

Like you know. But they were so excited and I realized like, ok, let me take a peek at that. And I built that relationship and it led into far more than just speech, you know. It was any event that I did. They were so supportive of me as well. And you know my parents, my mom especially. She's very emotionally intelligent and her emotional intelligence has rubbed off on me in the best way. You know, reading people and I don't say reading people is like let me study. It's more like read the room, know what's going on, and that helped me connect with a lot of other people when I realized like being happy all the time isn't that's not the way to go. You're not going to rub off on every single people. Sometimes people just need you to be sad with them and I've really recognized that as my. I feel like it's an ability to make people happier around me and want to be around me.

Speaker 1 21:28

That's awesome. I, like you, talked about emotional intelligence just as a young airman, just a young person in the military, but also a young leader. And times have changed a lot, even since since I since when I first joined. But how, from your perspective? How important is emotional intelligence for people at all levels in the present and then also moving forward?

Speaker 2 21:50

Yeah, I love that question because I think emotional intelligence plays a lot into what we can and can't accomplish. I think, especially for people who you don't have to want to lead to be a leader in that aspect of emotional intelligence. But the better you are and I know that there's a lot of opportunities here to go to seminars that talk about emotional intelligence the more aware you are of it. I think, the better off not only you are, but the people around you are. That's cool and it's hard when somebody may think they have emotional intelligence but they really struggle when it's something other than happy or when it's something other than you know feeling pretty even when heightened emotions come up. I do see a lot of people struggle with that and it makes them harder. It makes it harder for them to Accurately manage the situation, whether that's a supervisor, airman role or I've seen it a lot where airmen are very frustrated yeah and not Thinking of the bigger picture, because they're just so.

Speaker 2 22:54

they're really struggling with that emotional intelligence. Why is this person Talking to me this way or reacting this way? They really struggle with it, and so I think emotional intelligence is huge in that aspect.

Speaker 1 23:05

That's amazing. You even talked about, like in high school, people you know. Friends and parents were seeking you out, and even everything you just discussed about. You learned a lot about emotional intelligence from your mom. She's incredible. Again, shout out to mom, yes, always. Yeah, what's mom's name, celeste. What a cool name.

Speaker 2 23:24

Yeah, I know she's, she's incredible.

Speaker 1 23:28

But what's your advice for anyone trying to discover who they are?

Speaker 2 23:33

There's a lot of different versions of yourself, and so when you say who you are self and so when you say who you are you're going to be different all the time, and who I was when I was a senior in college is not who I was the year prior. When you're looking for who you are, you really need to focus not on who you are, but who you want to be, and you can make yourself who you want to be. I firmly believe that, in different ways, I've seen a lot of different versions of myself, and this is the one I'm most proud of. I truly believe that, but I didn't know that this was the version of myself I needed to be until I started taking care of myself, just simple. I don't mean like join the military, no, I mean like waking up and doing what was best for my mind, body and soul, and that didn't come at a, at a thin air.

Speaker 1 24:26

You know, I had to really focus on that the toughest conversations we have that people have are often with themselves yeah, oh, absolutely yeah, and I have a lot of tough conversations with myself, discouraging conversations where it's just.

Speaker 1 24:38

It's just, you know, and I'm not sure how it happens, it just does. We can't control that. But then I try to do my best to give myself positive affirmations. But what's kind of like do you have like a go-to phrase or just something you say to yourself when, when you're just kind of feeling like a little bit in a slump? But then it's just like I'm going to do this and like, make sure I am taking care of, like, like cause I love that we said about taking care of, like your mind, your body and all that.

Speaker 1 25:03

Yeah, and your soul and all that. So, um, yeah, what's kind of like your reset.

Speaker 2 25:18

I don't say I have different mindset tomorrow. There's no. I mean, I guess that would be. My quote is just try again tomorrow.

Speaker 1 25:25

No, that's good. All right, I have some lighter questions.

Speaker 2 25:28

Okay.

Speaker 1 25:29

You referenced a couple of times about your time in college and so, like what was your guilty pleasure, food your junior senior year in college? And then is it still the same? I loved canes I raising canes okay I loved raising canes.

Leadership and Life Experiences

Speaker 2 25:44

That was my guilty pleasure all the time. Um it was. I would say I don't have it as often now. Now I'm I'd never. Okay, I'm from nebraska. Well, we'll take it easy on you, but I never had sushi oh yeah, um, until my middle to late years of college, and now that is my guilty pleasure. I will eat sushi all day, every day, if I can that's cool.

Speaker 1 26:04

Yeah, I'm from oklahoma so I get, like you know, sushi in oklahoma, nebraska. It's just, it's a little little sus it's questionable for sure. But then I see people in california getting sushi from the gas station so yeah, but in their defense I've lived in california, uh, so my first duty assignment was uh in japan, northern japan, oh wow, so like sushi phenomenal yeah, right and that's.

Speaker 1 26:28

And after that I was like candy sushi again, just because it's like the pinnacle. Then I was in california for three years pretty good out there. And then I was even before here in ohio. I was stationed in hawaii for four and a half years, so you had all the good food, yeah, but I was like now I can't do it anymore. Yeah, no, that's fair yeah just like now I can't eat pineapple just because they said In Hawaii like it's grilled pineapples everywhere.

Speaker 2 26:50

So if you go, out to a restaurant.

Speaker 1 26:51

it's like you know, if you go to Applebee's they serve grilled pineapple, right and it it's not the same right? No, it's not. Yeah, when you think of a movie image that depicts leadership, who or what comes to mind?

Speaker 2 27:07

Oh, no it could be anything.

Speaker 1 27:09

I don't watch a lot of movies, okay, or TV shows. I don't watch a lot of TV, yeah. Something that depicts leadership yeah, it could be anything.

Speaker 2 27:18

Yeah, this is so bad. I don't watch TV very often. No, okay.

Speaker 1 27:23

Is there a person that you instantly think of when you hear the word leadership, whether it's a historical figure or a current person?

Speaker 2 27:34

Do you know who? Well, she's a lieutenant now, but technical sergeant McGinnis, sarah McGinnis.

Speaker 1 27:39

Yeah, so her spouse was weinnis. Yeah, so her spouse was we worked together.

Speaker 2 27:43

Yeah.

Speaker 1 27:45

I call her, you know.

Speaker 2 27:46

Yeah, sergeant, daddy, yeah.

Speaker 1 27:48

No, like she's cool.

Speaker 2 27:50

Yeah, mcginnis is yeah, so I was very lucky to have a lot of her leadership and guidance.

Speaker 1 27:56

Yeah.

Speaker 2 27:57

She wasn't my supervisor, but she.

Speaker 1 27:59

She's good people.

Speaker 2 28:00

She paved the way for when I joined here and when I think of leadership and who I want to be like and I try to copy.

Speaker 1 28:11

Is she here? Is she back at Right Back? No, she's.

Speaker 2 28:15

I want to say she's in Florida.

Speaker 1 28:16

Okay.

Speaker 2 28:17

So she's out there doing PA stuff but she's a lieutenant. She went to a commission program but she, that is a person that I would like to embody. Her leadership qualities, she's phenomenal, so huge shout out to her. That's cool.

Speaker 1 28:33

I'm asking you a couple of questions I ask on every single podcast. Do you have like a hidden skill or like something you like besides running and just being overall like an awesome person? But do you have like, uh, like a cool skill or something that you do that for what you're not well known?

Speaker 2 28:49

oh man, um, I am very good at I mean it's, it's hard. That's actually such a hard question because my whole life my personality was sports, my personality was running and that was what I was good at. I can't draw, um, I'm really bad at it. I'm not super like artistic in that way. Um, terrible at skiing. What am I good at? I don't know what? What a hidden skill.

Speaker 1 29:19

That's fine. I have another question for you Okay. How long did you wait?

Speaker 2 29:22

tables at Applebee's for so at Applebee's I was there for three years. Four years, oh, it's a long time, yeah.

Speaker 1 29:28

So do you still have part of that menu memorized?

Speaker 2 29:31

No, okay, the two for 20?. Yeah, yeah, I have that my favorite part of it, because everybody would be like, what's the the bourbon street chicken and shrimp so like pretend?

Speaker 2 29:41

I just asked you that question like what, go ahead and respond like if you're well I'd be confused because I'm like ma'am, it it's bourbon chicken with shrimp, but it's got mashed potatoes. They're garlicky mashed potatoes, phenomenal. Okay. But like people would ask me questions, very, I would say more about the drink menu okay they'd be like oh, can you uh give me something extra? Yeah, for five dollars. I can put a little extra in there for five dollars no, that's cool.

Speaker 1 30:07

So, uh, before outback I also, at the same time, I worked at radio shack oh yeah, that was fun. Yeah, it was and like, even in like 1999. I joined in 2002 okay, okay. But even back then Radio Shack was going out of business. Oh, really. Yeah, but before that I waited tables at a Tex-Mex restaurant and I still have like that lunch menu memorized. Do you really yeah, so I waited tables there for like three or four years, yeah, and I worked every single day, like six days a week, except for Sundays.

Speaker 1 30:38

You just know, and there were seven items and stuff and it's ingrained in me and I still.

Speaker 2 30:44

Oh man, surprisingly I don't, but I started serving tables when I was about 14 back home and I do remember that she had this wonderful. Her name was Brenda, she was the owner and cook and she had something called the Cotador and it was what her son made. And name was Brenda. She was the owner and cook and she had something called the Cotador and it was what her son made and it was two enchiladas with rice and beans, on top, uh, cheese, and what else did she? Oh, in Port Chili, oh, wow, and that was very popular. People loved the Cotador and lettuce. Can't forget the lettuce. Okay, um, and I remember that like the back of my hand. That was my favorite food to eat and serve.

Speaker 1 31:20

No, that's cool.

Speaker 2 31:21

Yeah, random, but that's one of the menus I do remember.

Speaker 1 31:24

No, that's good. I'm going to say a couple names.

Speaker 2 31:26

Oh gosh.

Speaker 1 31:27

And just give me one word responses.

Speaker 2 31:30

Oh, I'm really bad at this. No, this is good, I'm setting you up here, okay.

Speaker 1 31:34

And you're in WM mix right.

Speaker 2 31:36

I am.

Speaker 1 31:36

Okay, colonel Hartstein Phenomenal. What do you like about her?

Speaker 2 31:41

I. She's one of the individuals who's very invested in me and my career, Um, and I love that she's so supportive of it. She scares me in the best way. I don't mean that in a negative way, but because I feel like she truly believes I have something to offer and that is. I just want to make her proud. So, yeah, phenomenal.

Speaker 1 32:01

Yeah, she's always all bubbly and stuff.

Speaker 2 32:04

And even when she isn't, she is. It's very interesting.

Speaker 1 32:08

She's cool Corona gamble Powerful.

Speaker 2 32:13

I've only talked to her a few times and I love that she, when she commands a room, when she walks, in Maybe it's because she's a commander, but yeah.

Speaker 1 32:22

It's genuine, it is.

Speaker 2 32:24

It's not. I don't feel like there's a show or anything Like when she walks in. I want to pay attention.

Speaker 1 32:29

Yeah, she's honest. She also does a great job of asking questions. Yes, yeah, she's great at critical thinking. Last person, Chief D Fran. One word Last person.

Speaker 2 32:39

Chief D Fran. One word. There's a lot of words that come to mind when it comes to him, but I would say a leader.

Speaker 1 32:48

Yeah, yeah. What do you like about his leadership?

Speaker 2 32:51

I like that. He's blunt.

Speaker 1 32:53

Yeah.

Speaker 2 32:53

I think I haven't met a lot of people throughout my life that are super genuine and blunt about it, because he doesn't. He doesn't gloss over the facts. If I am complaining about something, he's going to call me out and say, well, should have done it differently, you know yeah or is responding like responding in a very leadership style. How can I change that?

Speaker 2 33:16

yeah, and he's, he's, he's, very. He's the one that um actually put my senior M and patch on Um when I got to rank up with BTZ. He, he's always been supportive and I just a great person.

Speaker 1 33:30

Yeah, no, I'm a big, I'm glad that you.

Speaker 2 33:32

it's funny that you you ask about him, fran. When it comes to one word, you know I feel like a lot of people. He's very genuine, he's open door. He even as our group SEAL, you know he's there and present and that's from what I've heard from other airmen that aren't at NASIC. That's very unheard of.

Speaker 1 33:55

Yeah, no, it's. All the things you said about him are true. He's just a very genuine guy. Last question yeah, are you ready?

Speaker 2 34:04

Yeah, I think so All right this is how I end every single podcast. Okay.

Speaker 1 34:07

It's my go-to question. I've had it since January of 2018. Okay, yeah, but it's funny because a lot of people tell me, like man, I listen to all your podcast episodes, like, and I'll have them on as a guest, and then I'll ask them this question, like, oh, I've never heard that question before and I'm like that's me no no, I've watched a couple and no, no, it's the

Speaker 1 34:24

same thing if there was a giant billboard with your message on it, for the world to see, what would your message say and where would you place that billboard?

Speaker 2 34:37

I'm gonna go back to the quote quote that you said at the beginning, I've never had to unscrew another person's light to um in order for in order to shine. I think that was the correct way that it was written Um. Do I have to choose one place to put it? It's up to you. It's a really good one. I would put it around colleges.

Speaker 1 35:00

I like that. That's dope yeah.

Speaker 2 35:03

I think that that's an important place for people to learn and to really find what they want to do, what their niche is, yeah, and if they're not in, truthfully, I wouldn't say just colleges, because I don't know, that doesn't include the trade school individuals or people who just don't want to do college, which incredible. That's okay too. Um, I don't think there's any specific place that it needs to be, but I think that it needs to be seen love it.

Speaker 1 35:32

I think that is so perfect and I wouldn't end on that. Hey, uh, any parting shots or parting thoughts that you want to tell people?

Speaker 2 35:39

yeah, thank you. I think this think this is incredible and I think that having a leader such as yourself reach out to even a young airman like myself very new in my career. It is important that we have people like you and opportunities like this and to be able to go back and to look at a podcast and see that a chief has a senior airman who's been in for two years on his podcast. I think that's important.

Speaker 1 36:08

I appreciate that. Thank you, that means a lot to me. All right, that's it.

Speaker 2 36:12

That's a wrap. Thank you, yeah.

Speaker 1 36:16

That concludes another episode of Passing the Torch. Big thanks to my guest, jesse Smith. Jesse, I know you were listening and I hope you enjoyed the conversation. Also, I feel like this outro music fits you For everyone else wow, who's inspired. Let me know what your favorite parts of the episode were.

Speaker 1 36:36

Here's a quick recap of the episode. Takeaway one it's tough to realize in the moment, but past experiences impact communication skills, particularly in dealing with diverse individuals. Takeaway two On your journey of self-discovery, recognize the emphasis of the evolving nature of identity and the influence of various life experiences. Takeaway three when mentoring and inspiring people, two qualities that make a big difference are genuineness and accountability. If you want to support and you enjoy the podcast, the best way to support is to like and share this podcast on Facebook, instagram and LinkedIn. Watching the full video and various clips on YouTube will be greatly appreciated as well. All of this will have an amazing impact for Passing the Torch.

Speaker 1 37:21

If you enjoy the podcast, I would really appreciate if you could follow, rate five stars and leave a positive review on Apple Podcasts. If you are someone who listens on Spotify, please follow and rate five stars on there as well. If you found value in the episode took something away from the conversation and appreciated the insight. Chances are there's someone out there who may as well, so I appreciate it. When you share, you can text episode to a friend and tag me on social media. Let me know what you were able to take away. Thank you so much for spending time with me today. And finally, remember vision, relate, develop, take care everyone, foster out.