Alfranda “Al” Durr | ALD & Associates | Veterans Growing America

In this episode of the Veterans Growing America Podcast, hosts Coach RL Simmons and Donnell Johns sit down with Alfranda “Al” Durr, Army veteran, former lieutenant colonel, and CEO of ALD & Associates. Al shares his remarkable 28-year military journey, his transition into entrepreneurship, and how he now helps organizations strengthen talent, teams, and leadership.

Al talks about serving in both the National Guard and civilian leadership roles, building expertise in recruiting, retention, EEO, sexual assault prevention, suicide prevention, and officer accessions. He explains how those experiences shaped his entrepreneurial mindset and led him to launch ALD & Associates in 2019, with a mission centered on making people and teams better.

This conversation dives into the realities of transitioning from military service into business ownership, the importance of discipline, adaptability, and accountability, and why entrepreneurship is about more than profit. Al also shares lessons on resilience, strategic partnerships, community impact, and the value of creating spaces where others can win.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• Al’s 28-year Army and Army National Guard career
• How military leadership shaped his business approach
• The story behind ALD & Associates
• Why perfection can hold entrepreneurs back
• The importance of building a strong village and support system
• How Veterans Growing America creates opportunities for veteran entrepreneurs
• Al’s powerful perspective on resilience, service, and giving back

If you are a veteran, entrepreneur, leader, or someone navigating transition, this episode is packed with wisdom, encouragement, and practical insight.

Connect with Alfranda “Al” Durr:

• LinkedIn: Alfranda Durr
• Instagram: @ald_associates
• Facebook: Alfranda Durr
• Email: info@aldandassociates.com

Support Veterans Growing America:
Visit veteransgrowingamerica.com to connect with veteran and military spouse entrepreneurs, explore the directory, and support businesses making an impact.

Work with Coach RL Simmons:
Visit yourmoneygoat.com to simplify your finances, mindset, business, and legacy planning.

Like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful conversations with veterans building businesses, communities, and legacy after service.

#VeteransGrowingAmerica #AlfrandaDurr #ALDandAssociates #ArmyVeteran #VeteranEntrepreneur #LeadershipDevelopment #MilitaryTransition #CoachRLSimmons #DonnellJohns #VeteranBusiness #Entrepreneurship #Resilience #TeamBuilding

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:15

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Veterans Grown America podcast. I am Coach R.L. Simmons. I am here with my illustrious co-host, Donnell Johns, and we have another very special guest for you today. We have Mr. Alfranda Aldur. He is the CEO of ALD and Associates, and he's an Army veteran. Welcome to the show, sir. Thank you so much, and it's an honor and pleasure to be here. So, Al.

SPEAKER_00 0:41

Yes, Sergeant Major.

SPEAKER_02 0:43

We we go way back. I know you do. Um, but this is time for my audience to get to know you. Can you tell them about yourself and your military background?

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Thank you for that. First of all, before I get into that, let me give credit where credit's due. Sergeant Major Donnell Johns, I want to acknowledge all the work that you've done since your retirement, but I wanna I don't want to bypass your service, your very highly decorated service, but I want you to know that you are giving hope and opportunity and optimism to those who are leaving the military and transitioning. And I want to thank you for that. And that's why I definitely want to be in your corner. I'll tell stories a little bit later about you. Uh, you know that's coming. But no, seriously, I want to thank you for all that you do. And I and I know that um you are making a difference. Like just like you did in uniform, you're doing it now in your communities. Thank you for your service and thank you for your commitment to serving the veterans and their families of this great country and the Commonwealth of Virginia. So, with all that being said, you can pay me later for that. My name's Al Durr. I'm the CEO of ALD and Associates, uh, 28-year military veteran. Had the opportunity to serve in the National Guard in the state of Washington for a number of years. Uh, prior to coming to D.C., I was what they called a traditional soldier where I worked a full-time job and did some work uh one week in a month and two weeks in the summer. It wasn't until 9-11 had happened that I felt a commitment to come back and serve on a full-time basis. And in doing so, I was the head of recruiting and retention for the state of Washington, actually served as an OSM manager and worked on some, I don't know if I can say this word, DEI efforts to diversify the force and really build a very uh highly competitive and highly competent organization. A general from uh D.C., General Julia Cleckley saw my talent and said, I want you to come work for me. And that was in 2004. I retired from the Army National Guard in 2013 after holding national positions as the EO, EEO diversity officer, chief of sexual assault prevention and response, suicide prevention, substance abuse, and then back to EEO. And then I had an opportunity to do that in a civilian capacity and did that for another nine years, uh, with my career culminating as the head of officer sessions for the um Army National Guard. Um, during one of my training sessions, prior to going to that uh officer sessions role, did a training for a group of general officers, and one of the um one of their chiefs of staffs came back and said, You know, you're really good at this. You might want to take this on the road. And that was the month that ALD and Associates was um started, and we got our LLC, and that was in 2019, and we've been going strong for the last six years working in our community. And just for our value proposition, our mantra is making talented teams better. That's so that was an elevator pitch, but it was uh like a skyscraper. We're good.

SPEAKER_01 3:35

Yeah, that's good. Let's dive a little bit deeper into that um that that influence into entrepreneurship. Well uh tell us a little bit more about, you know, what in in service really led you into entrepreneurship.

SPEAKER_00 3:48

You know, one of the things the Army, the military, I'll make it general, I spoke Army because that's my branch of service, is I really learned how to now I guess uniform taught me discipline, right? But entrepreneurship taught me direction. And those two work hand in hand. So for a large part of my 28 years of service, I had an opportunity to work at a very high level, retired as a lieutenant colonel, but served on general office and staff, and saw how decisions were being made. And for me, it was an opportunity to really share with people who were my mentees or people, even my peers, about how to make strategic decisions and how to engage opportunities to be successful, not only within the organization, but even beyond the walls of who we serve and um who we work for.

SPEAKER_02 4:43

I love that. You said, you know, a a general officer, you know, came to you and was like, you need to take this show on the road. Was entrepreneurship one of those things that you have always wanted to do, or what inspired you to get into business?

SPEAKER_00 4:56

Funny story. I came across an article from a high school newspaper. I played a little bit of basketball a long time ago. And it asked, What did you want to do uh when you graduate high school and college? And I said, I want to own my own business. Didn't even know what that meant, didn't even know. I barely could spell business back then, and I was in senior high school. So I moved on, went to college, got my degree, you know, was always taught to get a good job, work for an organization, serve the military, do your 20 years and have a good pension. For me, the entrepreneurial bug hit a number of times throughout my life because it meant a lot to me to be able to say that when I built it, I nurtured it, basically birthed it, it's like raising a child, right? Without the same amount of expense and um headaches and calls from school. But it was an opportunity to really craft something, but to make a difference. Because I knew that there were things that I did within the military that made a difference. But sometimes I made differences in places that I didn't want to, but now I can decide where I go to make those differences and who I made those differences with. To answer your question, though, was it always there? No, because I wasn't raised with it. My parents weren't entrepreneurs. I didn't know what it meant. I have mentors that I have right now that I call in, I don't call them whining sessions, but I call opportunities to get, for lack of a better term, it was an athmus check, right? To check my compass and my direction. And uh one of my mentors, I'll mention his name, Bobby Long, I I finished doing all this stuff, and Bobby, he was the CEO of longevity consulting, and Bobby said, Are you done? I said, Yes. He said, Okay. If it was easy, everybody would do it. Keep grinding, bruh. But sometimes we need to hear those, that that hard truth. And, you know, being military, we've we've started from the very beginning at basic training, hearing hard truths and being and having thick skin and and being able to um continue to drive on. But also we have a level of resilience that a lot of other people don't have. That, you know, when we think what, you know, in sports, they used to tell us, run till you pass out. I don't think I've ever met anybody who ran until they passed out. I know it wasn't me, right? But I also know that that message was that you can achieve far more than you can see. You just have to push yourself.

SPEAKER_02 7:13

Let me ask you this question. So you've been in business for a little while now, right? Did you is it easier than you thought, or is it harder than you thought?

SPEAKER_00 7:22

So I'm a little different. I absolutely love it. I love it. And here's why I love it. It's what I want to do. Twenty-eight years in the military, I love the military, I love the service, I love the relationships that I had, and I gave the military all I had. And I did so with joy. But there's a different type of joy when you're doing the things that you want to do for the reasons that you want to do it. And then you have these opportunities. And even if you don't get the contract or you don't get the bid, I think you look at it from a different perspective, not a loss, but a lesson. And it's only a loss if you don't go back and learn from that lesson. So if I put in a proposal and I didn't get it, I've learned to ask the formal debrief. What could I have done better? You know, I do the 20 push-ups, you know, like you know, back at basic training. What could I do better? Joe Sardin said, while you're doing 20 push-ups, think about what you can do better. Right? That's where we were conditioned to believe that. When you get passed over for a promotion, we've all had disappointments. But the military has taught us how to one, ask the questions and how to respond, right? And then we may not ever get the total solution right, but the ultimate goal is to get better. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 8:29

I love that. And let's talk a little bit about the business. Let's talk about LD and Associates. Tell us a little bit about the business and its unique business proposition.

SPEAKER_00 8:37

So ALD and Associates has evolved more than I would like to admit to that. Because when we first came out, we did that thing that we don't, those three letters that we don't really talk about anymore. We did a lot of that. But we also infused that with leadership development, workforce development. We looked at strategic planning, we looked at opportunities to address conflict resolution, and we just wanted to have help organizations reach their full potential. So our first clients, believe it or not, I did some work out of um Massachusetts, Mass General Brigham, partnered with another consultant, and I would tell people that it's valuable to make connections and make relationships because you just can't come out of there running and thinking that you have all the answers. So it takes a piece of humility to say, I'm gonna come in, and even though I think I know it all, I know that I don't. And now I need to watch somebody who knows what they're doing and learn from them. And even though I may come in at a lower price point, I'm paying for this, I'm getting paid a little bit for my education. So I did a lot of work with Master and O'Brigham Hospital. Then I did some work with the American Board of Internal Medicine. Look, I would have never been a doctor or a nurse, I can't stand the sight of blood, so me working with hospitals was something surprising. Had an opportunity to teach at George Mason University as an adjunct faculty. Did a lot of work with military organizations around leadership development, did some work with the Virginia Employment Commission around um around biases and how to engage and have effective communication. So our work is kind of rooted in what I call the five P's: people, processes, places, power, and um practices. Now, one thing the military has taught us and is hard to break, is those dang acronyms. And people are like, why you got so many acronyms in your trainings, man? It's like, because that's how I remember all my stuff. But but that's so our so our value proposition is to come in and work with the organization. And our intent is to leave either you, either the individuals or the teams in a better place than where we started. That's amazing.

SPEAKER_02 10:44

That's good. Yeah. I know they appreciate it. I I got the opportunity to work with you, so I know how you do business. And you make you make it fun also in that transition process. Let's talk a little bit about, let's get back into the military and your transition from the military into entrepreneurship. Uh how was that for you? What did you learn and how do you translate that to the business world?

SPEAKER_00 11:07

So, great question. Before I left the military, well, I was fortunate. They wanted me to, they didn't want me to retire, but there's a thing called MRD, right? So I mandatory. I had to leave. So they converted my position from a 05 to GS14. I was very fortunate. I I mean it was a I walked in one day as a on a Friday I had a uniform on, and uh Monday I came back in a suit and tie. Same office, same everything. Did that for a number of years, that was a blessing. But um then I transitioned from that office to the recruiting office, and one of the things that I thought about was there's not enough work right now because uh the the year I started my business was the COVID year. So thank goodness I didn't totally quit and walk out that door, or I'd have been I'd have been hungry. I'd probably been in my suit would probably fit better today, but anyway. I would say that that transition taught me to be strategic. They took me back to my uniform days and saying, you know, when we have to understand the enemy and the enemy's capabilities, right? Do they have do they have uh uh uh chemical uh capabilities? Are they large? Do they have airstrikes? All those things go into the thought process. So I needed to understand who wants my business and who can pay for it. How much will it cost? How do I not make a fool out of myself? Because, you know, we we all at some point in our careers have suffered from what they call this imposter syndrome. I didn't go to I don't have a I don't have a you know, now I do have a master's in business administration organizational development, but that came way after all the stuff that I did in the military. So I had to think about that, and then I have um certifications from Cornell University as well as Georgetown, but it still it still doesn't always show up in spaces where I'm meeting with people, but then I have to remember where I came from and who I represent, but also all the training over those 28 years. I was able to sit in rooms with two and three-star generals and have the floor and have an opportunity to speak. And that wasn't by accident. And I think you as a command sergeant major retired, I know that you've been in those spaces where you speak in and you were very open and you speak up. Sometimes when we don't, sometimes when we didn't want you to, but you still said it. But that was your role, right? And I think as as as entrepreneurs that we have to be you have to be your own champion. If you won't champion yourself, if you don't believe in yourself, then and sometimes I go in there and say, look, you need me. I'm very selective when I say that. You need me, but I want to help you. So how can we both benefit from this relationship? And doors have opened just with that kind of conversation.

SPEAKER_01 13:47

So Al, tell me a little bit about um some lessons that you learned um while you were in the service that you now kind of apply to um your entrepr entrepreneurship. You know, there's there's probably some people out there that maybe walking in your shoes or um have traveled your path and and kind of want to know, hey, what are some some of the nuggets that you've learned that I can can take in and plug and play into entrepreneurship?

SPEAKER_00 14:15

You know, uh I appreciate that question on a couple counts. One, I was fortunate to have that job waiting for me when I transitioned.

unknown 14:23

I did.

SPEAKER_00 14:23

And then there were times where I looked for opportunities to go for the next level up. And then that's when that imposter syndrome would kick in. And I had to ask myself, because I saw so many other veterans that took jobs that were like, you're a star major, you're a major, why are you taking that job? You should be running that whole plan, not working in it. And they're like, well, you know, I think it's a matter of helping and understanding how our work translates in the civilian sector. You know, when we speak about when I think about mission clarity, I think about we know how to define objectives and rally people around them, right? I mean, we learn that. And then we talk about operational discipline, about really understanding system standards and execution. And then I think about accountability. We we have to own our outcomes. There's no excuses, right? We come back and we have to be accountable for that in team building. How do we build people, even people that we may not even like or want to hang out with? But hey, we learn how to work together and we made it happen. And then the biggest thing I think I learned about is risk management, right? You made decisions that maybe weren't perfect or they weren't right, but that's gonna happen in business as well. I've lost so many bids over$500. I overbid by$500 and they said it's going to the lowest bid. Or they said you didn't answer the question. And then adaptability. When things happen, when processes, opportunities change. We know that sometimes we could be on a, I remember road marches and we and somebody, well, I'm not gonna say who it was, it wasn't me. I'll say this to this day, got lost. And everybody said, I don't think we should have turned there. It's like, I got this. And then about about two miles later, yeah, we we might be a little late for the rally point. But you know, I was a transportation officer, you know, and their motto was we get you there. And my motto was we'll get you there eventually. But but but we still got there, right? And I think it's important to remember part of the part of the lesson is the journey and just to embrace that once you get there.

SPEAKER_02 16:22

You hit so many nuggets in that that that was good. That was really good. Share, what what is your what is your business superpower? What is the thing that you think that opens doors for you?

SPEAKER_00 16:32

You know what? I think I hope, and I know hope, I was always told earlier in the military, hope is not a course of action. I want people to believe that I care. I want people to believe that I'm not just doing this for a paycheck. Because sometimes I'll do it for you for free. Right? Let me help you. All I asked in return is that you pay it forward. And then maybe you tell somebody, hey, this guy came in or this organization came in and was phenomenal. And a lot of my greatest opportunities have come from what I call the Costco methodology. You go to Costco, and uh I I recently went to Costco back, I just got back from Seattle, and um Costco started on the West Coast, and I walked to the door and I show my card, and they're like, excuse me, sir, thank you for your 33 years of membership in Costco. It's my pleasure. I worked at Costco in the summers between my junior and senior year while I was in college. And Costco was just starting out. So many people didn't even know about it. But what Costco was really good at was giving out free samples. And this is stuff that you probably weren't even thinking about buying, but you're like, what's a free sample? You get a sample, you're like, it's pretty good. Now you go and buy it. Well, that was my whole, that kind of gave me that vision to say, let me give you a little taste of this. And if you really like it, then you want to come back and buy it. Or at least you want to learn more.

SPEAKER_02 17:51

And that's funny that you said that because um when I did my leadership consulting firm, that was the first venture that I that I did, I would give free samples. We used to hold a workshop and we had I would invite the companies that I wanted wanted to work with into the training so they can get a sample of it. And I let them know that this seat that you have is worth$3,000. And when they brought it back to their organization, I was able to sell my services at a premium because they saw that it added value to their organization.

SPEAKER_00 18:26

Yes, absolutely. And so that's sometimes you give it to them cheap.

SPEAKER_02 18:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:31

Yeah, just sometimes you give it to them cheap, and then they come back and say, can we get another one and say, you know, yesterday's price is a today's price. Just so you know, right? It's inflation, it's everything.

SPEAKER_02 18:40

Yeah, yeah. It's the CPI. All that. If you had to go back and say, I want to say if you started your business over again, what would you do different? But if somebody else was coming into business, what would you tell them to do? How would you how would you guide someone into starting a business?

SPEAKER_00 18:58

That's a great question. Let me think about that for a second. That is really good because what um what I would tell people is this we get so caught up on the concept of perfection. I would tell you that perfection is the enemy of getting it done, perfection is the enemy of good enough. We have people who are so I gotta get my website up, I gotta get the business card, I gotta get a logo. Then you ain't got nothing yet. First find out what the people need and what the people want. And then create your marketing. It's good to do what I call discovery. Go out and meet with folks, have conversations, you know, because that adaptability that I talked about with anybody, I could I could create it. I just need to understand it, but the most important, I need to feel it. Because if I feel it, then I can come back with real raw emotions and have these conversations with you and say, have you thought about this and that? Because in 28 years of military service and even I don't care if you only did four or five or six years, you still understand what passion and commitment represent. And I think that when you think about a website, first of all, when I grew up, we didn't even have it, I mean, we didn't have internet. I'm gonna I'm gonna go ahead and tell my age. Well, maybe I'm a little older than you. You ain't gotta laugh like that. That's all right. Talk about it later. Technology is a great thing, and I would tell people to embrace it. I would tell people to measure twice and cut once. And when you make a mistake, process that. Embrace it. And because there were times where I made a mistake, I got down on myself, I shouldn't have done it, I shouldn't have done that, and I should have been thinking, I won't do it again, and this is what I'm gonna put in place for it not to happen again. These these are my these are my safety, you know, these are my safety measures and my checks and balances that I'm gonna put in place so I know it's so it doesn't happen again. And if it happens again, then I just need to do better risk metrics, risk measures to say that it doesn't happen again. But you just have to get out there and you have to meet with people. I love what I mean with my wife and I, we had a conversation today. She says you you spent eight to nine hours down here. I don't know what I didn't. I love you too, but I love what I I love her very much. But anyway, um But I do. I love making a difference. I love making a difference, and I love seeing people win. And that's an important piece for me.

SPEAKER_02 21:18

Speaking of winning, I just attended this um event at the chamber, and I saw I saw somebody that looked like you on stage.

SPEAKER_00 21:26

Man, yes, sir. We've been fortunate.

SPEAKER_02 21:28

And I think you know somebody's second year in a row that I've been to this, and this is the second year in a row that I seen, actually the third year in a row that I seen you win. So let's talk about them wins.

SPEAKER_00 21:39

Okay, well, so uh look, I don't want to sound cocky, but it was four years in a row. Anyway, but let's get the math right. So, but we've been very fortunate. Here's here's what I would say that the first year was a People's Choice Award, and we were new, we were engaged in the community, we did a lot of free stuff. So I'm happy all those folks had internet. The next year was the small business, and then the next year was the veteran-owned business, and this year was community service. When I talk about commitment and caring, I think that's where that resonates. I'm committed to giving 10% back of all our revenue back to the community. That's a must. And I do so in different ways. Some of it could be in-kind services, some of it's donations, you know, whether it's acts, whether it's the Northern Virginia food organizations, it's important to give back. And I think that um there's an old scripture that with much is given, much is required. And I hold that heart. I tell my wife, I I gotta do this. Right. So we've been very fortunate with that. But I'm not the only one winning stuff because I went to a Northern Virginia blood chamber thing and somebody else walked out of there with a trophy, but you didn't talk about that. But I you know It's not about me. Congratulations to you. Thank you, sir. Yes, congratulations to you as well. And I think, you know, we don't do it for those things. It's nice to be acknowledged. I would ask them not to nominate me anymore for a while. That's why this year I I did a um sponsorship for one of the awards. And I hope that we start a trend that if you win it that year, then the following year, when I presented that um Veteran Owned Business Award, I asked them the expectation now has been set that you will sponsor next year's award. Because I think it's all about giving back. And it's about, you know, we have a concept in in our in our in the ALD world is we have a village. We have strategic partners. I can't do this by myself. I have a lot of people who may not be employees, but they're my partners. They're members of the village. So if I if I fill for something or they get an opportunity and they need my help, I'll be there to help them. And they say, Al, I can't pay you what you normally make. Doesn't matter. I'll still do it for you because it's gonna help the village. And by helping the village, when the everyone in the village can eat, then we all can win.

SPEAKER_02 23:49

I love that. I love that. And you you certainly do it. I see the I see the fruits of your labor within the community. We appreciate that. I'm gonna turn the tables on VGA a little bit, and uh, let's talk a little bit about Veterans Growing America and uh why you support the work that we do.

SPEAKER_00 24:04

Let me tell you something. My wife wants to be an entrepreneur, she's brilliant, and she has a product called Nula. So if you play this, honey, Robin, I gave you a plug. And uh there was one holiday season where she was frustrated, didn't know how she could move her product, and there was a place called Veterans Grown America, and I and you all had a special, and you allowed us to bring her products there and gave her a space that she could be seen and she was able to sell out. And to me, that spoke volumes to the commitment that Veterans Growing America, you provide a platform, a space that entrepreneurs can grow and develop. And I think you may never, you may not be around to see the full fruits of your labor, but I would not be surprised if a multimillion dollar company came out of Veterans Growing America because you gave them that space. So I commend you for that. I said that earlier, I met every word of it, that when I come up there, if I'm up there, I don't get up to that side of the outside where all the rich folks are as off as often as I would like. But when I'm over there and I'm with people, I hope you can attest to this. I make sure I bring them to your spot. Because one, I want them to see it, but two, I'm proud of it. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 25:18

No, thank you. Thank you for all of your support and the stuff that you that you've done for us uh and the opportunities that you've uh given other men. We've done a you you sponsored a men's empowerment event at Veterans Growing America where we brought men together to fellowship, to learn, to grow. Um, and it it was it was awesome. And the thing that I loved most about it is when I called you, you was like, let's make it happen. And you invited everybody that you knew to the event. And so thank you for that, and thank you for your support.

SPEAKER_00 25:48

Cool. And I want to ask, you know, someone in your family is higher ranking than you, not your wife, but it's your uh my son. Yeah, what is he like? Second lieutenant? Second lieutenant. All right. Tell him, you know, he did the right thing.

SPEAKER_02 26:04

Yeah, I I'm I I'm super proud.

SPEAKER_00 26:06

I love my SEO Corps. I don't wanna get in trouble with the SEO Corps, but hey, I'm proud of him. So tell him that's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 26:12

Yeah, I'm super proud of him. Uh meant everything to me to render the salute to him for the first time. You know, that was like passing the torch. While he was in training, he volunteered and became the student first sergeant. Oh, wow. The coolest part was hearing from the other students, you know, telling me that he was the best first sergeant that they had throughout the entire time. And they wasn't blowing smoke. You could tell that they were genuine about what they said. So I'm I'm super proud of him. And uh he loves it. I I'm I'm happy that he loves it.

SPEAKER_00 26:46

Okay. I heard a little froggy. I thought you were about to get emotional, but it's all good. Your boy goes crying the podcast. If he did, your boy would have just, you know, my man, you know, the coach would have just took it out. He would have got rid of it.

SPEAKER_01 26:58

Yeah. Yeah, let me cut that part out real quick. Yeah. Hey, my man's on here like that. Good stuff. Good stuff. I love that. Well, Al, I before we close the show out, I definitely want to give you the floor and let the people know how you feel and and drop some nuggets of wisdom.

SPEAKER_00 27:16

I guess I go back to this story because it's one that I I'm gonna make sure I don't cry on this one and get emotional. I I was an adjunct of George Mason. Prior to doing that, I had a chance to go and be a guest guest speaker. Talked about my story, and you know, talked about military service, and it was all good stuff. And, you know, I did play basketball in college, I ran track, I had a good, great college experience. 28 years in the military, worked in the juvenile justice system, and I finished my lecture like 15 minutes or I didn't want to be that instructor to let everybody leave early, so I asked them. So I said, let's have an AMA moment. And um, AMA moment is ask me anything. So the first question obviously was, Did you think about the NBA? I said, Yes, I did, but the NBA didn't think about me. Next question. And then we went around, and someone said, Did you, you know, when your military service, did you ever go out in the field, shoot weapons, of course? And then I told them about my wife, nurse practitioner. Okay, yep, yes, she is, yep. She's much smarter than I am, got it. And I said, Okay, I burned 10 minutes, I'm good. I had said, I'll take one more question. And the last question hit me at the core, and it said, What is your biggest regret in life? And I knew right away. And I would say that my biggest regret in life was listening to the people that told me that I couldn't, because sometimes I believe. So as you walk into this space of entrepreneurship, I would ask you to regulate who and what you listen to. I would ask you to treat your mind as if you treat what you put in your mouth. You see, you need the same nutrition in your brain. Surround yourself with people who are there to promote your flame, not to put it out. And I would ask you to like if there if and when, because there'll be times where you find moments of weakness, go to a place where you can get support. Go to the place where great things are happening. I enjoy coming into Veterans Grow in America because I see that spirit all through there and I see all the vendors and I see the good quality stuff that's going on. So I would say as an entrepreneur that resiliency is not an individual characteristic, it's a team sport. And that those who are resilient have the ability to seek help and get support from their village. So understand who you are and understand that we're better together. And that's my that's my last thing.

SPEAKER_01 29:34

You already see me taking notes. All right, so next time I got my key notes, speak. Let me let me last two lines. I truly, truly, truly appreciate it. Um before we get out of here, how do people get a hold of you? Uh socials and website and all that good stuff.

SPEAKER_00 29:49

Okay, thanks for asking the question. So people can make contact with me by reaching, hit me up on LinkedIn at Alfranda. Alfranda Alder, excuse me. Uh and they uh I'm I'm the only one, the only parent that had that sense of humor. So Alfranda Alder. You can also hit me up on Instagram at ALD underscore associates. And then I'm also on Facebook at Alfranda Durr on Facebook. And also, if they want to email us, if they want any information, you can email us at info at ALD. Thanks for sharing that.

SPEAKER_01 30:23

Truly appreciate it. Uh how can people continue to support uh Veterans Growing America?

SPEAKER_02 30:28

So I think that they could support us by supporting you and tell them a little bit about what you do. Let's let's start there.

SPEAKER_01 30:35

Yes. Hey, we got the same ringer. I thought that was me. Uh Okay. Go ahead. Defender this time. There you go.

SPEAKER_00 30:41

My I thought I turned it off. I told my wife, don't call me.

SPEAKER_01 30:45

Oh, good. We we got we got a short time, but definitely uh I am coach R.L. Simmons, the money goat, and I help people simplify finances. So what we do is we bring the language to remove that barrier between people in the next level and their finances. Whether you want to talk about life insurance, investing, estate planning, simply just mindset reset, we simplify those things for you so you can get a hold of us at yourmoneygoat.com. That's why E-G. All right.

SPEAKER_02 31:15

All right. And the way that you get in touch with Veterans Growing America, what we do. So we're an organization that spotlights our veteran and military spouse entrepreneurs like these two gentlemen, and we help them showcase and grow their business. If you're in the DC, Maryland, or Virginia area, stop out at our um our pop-up market. We're open seven days a week from 12 to 6 p.m. Did I say 12 days a week? I I think I said 12 to 10.

SPEAKER_00 31:38

That's okay. That's sound, that's hey, that's that, that's that military jargon. That's what we did. We opened 12 days a week. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 31:47

But you could also, if you want to support our community, we have a uh veteran business directory where you can find uh these gentlemen on there and come to our store or go online to our directory and shop, baby.

SPEAKER_01 32:01

So, Mr. Durr, truly, truly, truly appreciate your presence, um, your knowledge, and thanks for sharing your time with us.

SPEAKER_00 32:08

Thank you. I'm humbled for the uh invite, and uh both of you I wish you continued success. And I'm sure our paths will cross many, many more times. I hope to see you in the store next time I'm in there. And you say you have dividends to give out? Well, I got them.

SPEAKER_01 32:21

I got them. They just not coming from my pockets.

SPEAKER_00 32:24

Oh no.

SPEAKER_01 32:25

I got a cousin named Coca-Cola, he can hook you up.

SPEAKER_00 32:27

Okay, I I appreciate that. I'm a right there, Coca-Cola style. Okay, got it.

SPEAKER_01 32:33

All right. We are over and out.