BeTempered Episode 94 - Redefining Wealth Through Service with Brett Guiley

What if the most important thing you steward isn’t wealth, but identity? Dan Schmidt and Ben Spahr sit down with financial planner and community builder Brett Guiley to unpack a journey rooted in small town values, deep curiosity, and the courage to step away from comfort to chase purpose. Brett reflects on how watching his dad make a bold career change and his mom return to school shaped his understanding of sacrifice, and how early days of cold calling taught him humility, persistence, and respect for every no. Over time, conversations with local business owners became the education that truly formed his approach to service and leadership.

From his time at Merrill and Raymond James to launching Vista Investment Partners, Brett shares why independence mattered and how betting on people others overlooked became a defining theme. In conversation with Dan and Ben, he opens up about confronting labels he carried for years like fear, guilt, and impostor syndrome, and how faith helped him embrace a new identity as a connector. That shift reshaped the way he leads, mentors, and serves clients. We also talk about the launch of Orange Horizon Wealth and his vision for helping clients understand emerging assets like Bitcoin with clarity and responsibility.

At the heart of it all is family. Regular Sunday dinners and yearly trips to Lake Michigan remind Brett that legacy is built in the moments that repeat, not the ones that impress. His reflections on his grandfather in law offer a powerful picture of wisdom, intentional listening, and the kind of presence that leaves a lasting mark.

You’ll walk away with practical insight on building relationships with humility, growing a business through service, listening for your calling, and taking risks that align with faith. If you are navigating a career pivot, leadership pressure, or the tension between ambition and purpose, this conversation will meet you where you are.

Subscribe, share it with someone who needs it, and leave a quick review to help more people discover stories that build resilience and real wealth.

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Transcript

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I want to share something that's become a big part of the BTempered mission. Patreon. Now, if you've never used it before, Patreon is a platform where we can build community together. It's not just about supporting the podcast, it's about having a space where we can connect on a deeper level, encourage one another, and walk this journey of faith, resilience, and perseverance side by side. Here's how it works. You can join as a free member and get access to daily posts, behind-the-scenes updates, encouragement, and some things I don't always put out on other platforms. And if you feel called to support the mission financially, there are different levels where you can do that too. That support helps us keep producing the podcasts, creating gear, hosting events, and sharing stories that we believe can truly impact lives. And here's the cool part Patreon has a free app you can download right on your phone. It works just like Facebook or Instagram, but it's built specifically for our community. You'll be able to scroll through posts, watch videos, listen to content, and interact with others who are on the same journey. At the end of the day, this isn't just about content, it's about connection. It's about building something together. Not just me and men putting out episodes, but a family of people committed to growing stronger through real stories and real faith. So whether you just want to hop on as a free member or you feel called to support in a bigger way, Patreon is the door into that community. Because at the heart of Be Tempered has always been simple real stories, raw truth, resilient faith, so that even one person out there that hears what they need to hear, and Patreon helps make that possible.

SPEAKER_05 2:09

Welcome to the Be Tempered Podcast, where we explore the art of finding balance in a chaotic world.

SPEAKER_01 2:14

Join us as we delve into insightful conversations, practical tips, and inspiring stories to help you navigate life's ups and downs with grace and resilience.

SPEAKER_05 2:22

We're your host, Dan Schmidt, and Ben Sparr. Let's embark on a journey to live our best lives.

SPEAKER_01 2:28

This is Be Tempered.

Introducing Guest Brett Guiley

SPEAKER_05 2:30

What's up, everybody? Welcome to the Be Tempered Podcast, episode number 94. Sure?

SPEAKER_01 2:36

Yep.

SPEAKER_05 2:38

Hey, today on the podcast, I'm honored to welcome a man who embodies integrity, intentionality, and service in every day of his life. Brett Guiley. Brett is a devoted husband to Shannon and a proud father of three, a man whose faith is foundational and evident in the way he shows up each day for his family, his community, and his clients. As a business owner and certified financial planner, Brett has dedicated more than two decades to helping individuals and families build financial confidence and clarity. He's the managing partner and portfolio manager at Vista Investment Partners in Richmond, Indiana, where he brings both wisdom and heart to guiding people towards stability and purpose in their financial lives. But Brett is more than his professional title. He's someone who consistently finds the good in people, works intentionally to become the man God is calling him to be, and takes meaningful risks. Not just to grow his business, but to serve and positively impact others along the way. He's deeply involved in his community, serving on volunteer boards and investing in organizations that strengthen health, relationships, and well-being. And if that weren't enough, Brett is also a pretty good singer. Using his gifts to uplift others and reflect the joy that comes from living a life grounded in faith and purpose. Through his journey of growth, faith, leadership, and service, Brett's story reflects what truly means to live intentionally and to help others become who they are called to be. Brett, welcome to the Be Tempered Podcast.

SPEAKER_02 4:15

Thank you.

SPEAKER_05 4:16

That's quite the introduction. Yeah. Wouldn't you like to wake up to that every day? Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 4:21

An alarm with Dan's voice. That's what everybody wants to wake up to.

Small-Town Roots And Faith Foundations

SPEAKER_05 4:25

You know, as you we've been sitting here earlier and I'm getting destroyed. Now this is for real. Now we have to be serious, right? Correct. 100%. All right, who knows where this is going? Well, Brett, we've known each other for quite some time. We were just discussing, you know, your brother-in-law, Brad Van Vliet, and I were at uh University Dayton together, and um we've been discussing some memories from back in those days when you would come around and and uh we would go to the library and read books together and have have good times. Um studious. So we were just reminiscing, but we're not here for that. We're here to learn about you, about your story, about your family, all the things you do in our community. And so, you know how we like to start every podcast is talk about what life was like for you growing up as a kid.

SPEAKER_02 5:24

Great, yeah. Well, thank you for having me today. I'm honored to be on the 94th episode, and I've had the opportunity to listen to a lot of the other guests you've had, and so just to be mentioned in their company is is an honor. So thank you. And I'm uh really uh excited for what you guys are doing at Be Tempered. And um my story is probably not as exciting or as uh filled with tragedy as some of the other guests that I've heard you talk about, but I was born in St. Louis, Missouri, uh 1976. So that makes me coming up on 50.

SPEAKER_01 6:04

There we go.

Early Work Ethic And First Jobs

SPEAKER_02 6:05

Yeah, a big one. And um born to uh Terry and Barbara Guiley, my dad was a family physician. He was going through uh residency in St. Louis when I was born. And when I was uh a baby, we moved uh about an hour south of there to a town called Farmington, Missouri, aptly named because it was a farming community, uh about 70 miles south of St. Louis. And that's where I grew up and uh spent my youth until I went off to college. Um after uh after I was born, my my folks uh also had three other children, my sister Erica, um, my brother Grant, and my youngest sister Laurel. And so there were four of us, which was a pretty good sized family. Um, so I'm the oldest of four, and um my my siblings and I are still all pretty close. Um my two sisters live in the St. Louis area, which is now where my folks reside, and uh my brother lives in the state of Washington. Um so growing up in Farmington um was was quite a uh quite an idyllic childhood in many ways. Um my parents were very involved in in church, um, which put a lot of the foundational beliefs that I have. And my parents actually met um serving as uh as um ambassadors for an organization that's still around today called Campus Crusade for Christ. And so they were on staff with Crusade at different college campuses, and that's how they they got to know each other. And so my my parents have always had missionary hearts and uh and godly um uh faith, and they wanted to instill that in us. And so we got involved in um in a church in Farmington called St. Paul's Lutheran Church, and they had a school associated with it that went from uh preschool to to eighth grade. And so that's where my siblings and I attended um growing up, and it was a small school. Um, for those in the local community, uh, I would compare it to Seton Catholic here. Um I went through almost the entire um my entire childhood with the same kids, um, and there were about 24 of us in a class. Um the there were a couple years where the class ahead of us didn't have enough kids in their class, so they actually would combine our classes. So we would have maybe 30, 35 in a class. And um so Farmington is a rural community. Um my uh my dad was a local family doctor and had um, from what I found out later, a very wonderful reputation for treating patients. My mom was a uh by trade, she was a school teacher. And um she stopped that and did more subbing uh to raise the the four kids uh at home. And then actually after we um we were on our own, my uh or after we were older, uh she went back and started teaching uh full time and then uh went into administration. So she actually retired. Um this will come in later in my story. My my mother, um, I believe she was in her 40s, maybe her early 50s, um, went back to school, started teaching, and then decided to um go back to school and get her master's degree and then her administrator license, um, which was pretty awe-inspiring with four kids, three of them still at home after I was in college. And the reason she had to do that is because my dad, who had been a family doctor for a long time, decided after a number of years in practice to close down his practice and go into uh psychiatric residency to become a psychiatrist. So he actually um moved to St. Louis and rented an apartment and uh would drive back and forth and we would see him on the weekends. Um, but his his pay went uh down quite dramatically when I was a teenager, and uh my mom had to go back to work to help support us. And at that time I was 15, 16 years old. And so that, you know, and talking about that with my brother a couple of months ago, that really impacted me because I remember my dad making me go out and look for jobs at 15. And and he said, you need to go out and look for a job today. So I would go out and I would apply begrudgingly. I did not want to go out and work, and I was always able to find work. So that instilled in me the, you know, uh, in I've done this with my own kids. I've made them go out and get jobs and work for other people, but it was very uncomfortable for me to get out of my comfort zone and walk into a business because you couldn't apply online at the time, and ask for a resume and fill it out and then hand it in and hope that they would call you, or go back and ask them, hey, have you looked at my application yet? So I really started working a formal job at about 15, um, down the road from my house at a restaurant busing tables at a place called the Plantation House. And I remember being 15 and and I remember the interview because I walked in, I interviewed for a busboy position. And I remember the it was a new restaurant just opening up. The manager and the cook were sitting there, and they said, Well, how old are you, son? And I said, Well, I'm 15 and a half. And they both started laughing because I had to throw the half in there because I mean to me, that was a big deal. To them, it was just funny. So I worked as a busboy. Um, I also was able to find jobs doing things such as mowing grass and uh landscaping, and uh then later became a lifeguard growing up. But I always had a job and I always felt like I had to have a job and earn money because I had to stay out of my parents' hair as the oldest one. I had to be self-sufficient, I had to put gas in my car because they were trying to provide for the younger kids. And um, and I I just needed to to stay out of the way. And that's kind of how I felt. Um in reality, maybe it wasn't that way, but um it definitely impacted me growing up and feeling like I had to uh to to provide for myself.

SPEAKER_05 12:28

So um were you able to did you play any sports or anything in school?

SPEAKER_02 12:35

So at the the small parochial school, we had the opportunity to play, you know, sports like most kids, um soccer. Um I got into swimming. Um that was more of a summer thing, but I I was really uh pretty good at swimming and met some of my uh best friends in growing up uh through swimming. And then I also played baseball. That was my first love. Um I played baseball from the time I was about eight until um till all the way through high school. Um, and you know, looking back on it, I lived near St. Louis. The St. Louis Cardinals were a pretty good team in the when I was growing up in the 80s. They went to three World World Series. And I always thought, well, I I want to be a professional baseball player. Um I also thought um playing basketball as a kid that um it was just a matter of time before I would be able to dunk. Um and I remember riding home from basketball practice with my dad when I was a seventh grader, and I was probably all of about five foot two at the time, and him kind of letting me know, you know, I don't know if that's necessarily going to happen, and you know, squashing my my dreams that someday I was gonna be able to dunk a basketball. So um I did I uh played a a year in high school, and then um, you know, as stance would have it, uh or as as circumstances would have it, I was trying out for basketball my sophomore year of high school. And um, you know, I I was a pretty good kid, but I I could get in some trouble too. And I was in the wrong place, wrong time, and uh was in a car with two other kids uh during basketball tryouts that we had a week long, and the next day on a Saturday was the last day of basketball tryouts, and I was in a car wreck on Friday night and couldn't make the tryout on Saturday and didn't show up, and that was before you could text. So uh couldn't get a hold or leave a message, and so my two friends and I that didn't show up to practice got cut, and that was the end of my basketball career. So um, but baseball was my first love. Um, had an opportunity um to play division three uh baseball, decided not to, could have probably played at the junior college level. That wasn't something I wanted to do, but ultimately uh um played a lot of intramurals uh then growing up.

SPEAKER_05 14:52

Okay. Any influential coaches you can remember back in those days as a young kid?

Sports, Coaches, And Confidence

SPEAKER_02 14:57

Yeah. Uh my my father, um Terry, he's a wonderful man, um, was not super athletic growing up. He was very intellectual, read a lot of books, um, and was uh worked quite a bit. So I had a group of neighbor boys that I played outside with. Again, I grew up out in the country. And when I say out in the country, there was not a lot of technology. We had a rural route box that was before you had a street address. My neighbors down the street, the Hanes, didn't have indoor plumbing when we moved in. They had an outhouse. And we had a party line, which, if you don't know what a party line is, we had one phone line for the street. And literally for the first couple of years, I remember being on that street, you'd pick up the phone line and there might be somebody from from up the road that was on it, and you had to wait until they were done. The only reason we got a private line is because my dad, being a doctor, had to be on call and they had he had to be reached. So finally we were able to get our own phone line. And I remember uh down the road where the neighbors lived, I thought it was cool as a four or five-year-old that they didn't have indoor plumbing. So I would run down the street to use the outhouse. So that's did you know what a party line was?

SPEAKER_01 16:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 16:14

Okay, I didn't know what a party line was. I mean, you're always people.

SPEAKER_01 16:16

Well, I had customers in West Virginia, they still have party lines.

SPEAKER_05 16:18

Yeah, really?

SPEAKER_01 16:20

And the rule route still.

SPEAKER_05 16:21

Yeah. We used to go well early on when I would go on our uh Canada fishing trips. If you wanted to call home, there was different um, you know, the the the fishing lodges all shared a party line. And I had to I grew up with the old phones, but not a party line. And I remember the first time I'm picking it up and it'd be like, get off this phone. I can't imagine a young kid, you know, trying to call your girlfriend or something and you know, or somebody coming in while you're talking.

SPEAKER_02 16:52

Yeah. Yeah. We we did not have cable, um, which was probably a blessing in disguise. We had an antenna, and when we got one that rotated automatically with electric, that was that was a big deal. Uh that way I could tune in the St. Louis Cardinals games. Yeah. So, so where I grew up, um, I could ride my bike to the ballpark. The the neighbors um on both sides of me had sons that were around my age. And so we would play outside, we would throw the ball, hit. Um, and uh one of the dads, uh Wayne Province, who who just recently passed, he he worked with me a lot in baseball um with him and his sons. And um that was that was really um wonderful. Um he he helped develop my skills and he he just taught me things about the game that I didn't know and built built my confidence. I I remember him taking me to and from practice and games and and whatnot. Um and then in in basketball, so back to the school, uh we had a boys' basketball team that was pretty good. Um, and we played uh middle school, and we would play all the other Lutheran and Catholic schools within about an hour radius of us. And the the team that we had, um we had we had some pretty good talent. We had a uh in eighth grade, we had a kid that was six five and a couple kids that were six feet tall. Um I was a I was a guard and we had a coach um that was actually the janitor of the school. And uh his name was was Joe. And Joe knew basketball, and he he taught us the system and we bought into it as as these kids. And you know, we didn't as a sixth, seventh, eighth grader, you don't really know. Like Joe was a janitor. I I don't know what his education level was, but he we loved him and he loved us, and and we bought into whatever he was he was his discipline. Um, we bought into his his conditioning, we bought into the the plays that he created. And so he had a huge impact on on the boys in our school to the point that we we won quite a bit, and we ended up going to uh a national Lutheran youth tournament. In um, we took a charter bus from Farmington, Missouri up to Valparais, Indiana in eighth grade and played these teams that were unbelievable. I remember the first time we played a team from uh Peoria, Illinois. Um, and uh let's just say it's a little more inner city than where I grew up. And they had won the national tournament the year before. And I remember one of one of our players went up for a jump shot, and uh the the player on the other team took the ball out of the air and slammed it into the sideline and hit a metal folding chair and buckled it and it fell over. And the whole game stopped and just looked, and we're like, okay, we're in it, we're playing a different level of competition now. Um, so so Joe had a really big impact on on uh on me growing up. And uh so you graduate high school, what's next for you? So went to the University of Evansville. Um the reason I went to University of Evansville was about three and a half hours away from home. Um, and it it was again when I was looking for colleges, they sent you brochures in the mail that you didn't have couldn't search online. And uh one of my uh friends a year earlier had gone to that school, and um they seemed to have everything that that I uh wanted in a school, including a strong study abroad program, which I was able to take advantage of. So I studied business administration. Um and I had always been, you know, back to the working, I had always been a saver and always been kind of interested in in money and investing, which has shaped my uh career and vocation now. And um so I went there to to study business. Um that was a wonderful place for me to grow up, a very small school. And um, that is where I met my wife, Shannon. Shannon and I were both uh what are called orientation leaders. So I remember walking in as a freshman, and she would have been a year older than me, and and standing in a line to register for classes and and kind of seeing her off to the side. And uh, and I remember my dad was in the back of the room and he was he was waiting until I got my my schedule or whatever. And uh I remember he said something to him, he goes, Oh, that that girl's that girl over there's kind of cute. And then fast forward three years later, and um we uh we started dating. So um met some of my uh my best friends, some that uh are here locally. Um uh Will Bruce is somebody that uh that I know that you know that is a good friend of mine. Um he was a fraternity brother of mine at University of Evansville. And um one of the things I wanted to talk to you about today was um was one of the things that uh that has been put on my heart and mind, and that's connecting people. And I was able to help connect. Will um to his wife Ann Bruce, who happens to be my wife's one of my wife's best friends that she grew up with. Yeah, that's pretty cool.

unknown 22:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 22:09

I remember when all that went down. That's right. Yeah. Yeah, that's it's pretty neat. Good people, good families. It's neat to make that connection. So you meet Shannon in college. What's what's next for you coming out of school?

College, Meeting Shannon, And Connecting People

SPEAKER_02 22:23

So Shannon was in a five-year program. I graduated in four years. So we fortunately graduated at the same time. Um, we were both trying to figure out life, figure out jobs as adults. So when she got done with uh her physical therapy school, um, the market was saturated with PTs. And so she sent out over 200 resumes to try to get a job. Um as a business major, it was a little easier for me. I had taken an internship with a lending institution called Norwest Financial, which is now part of Wells Fargo. Um, and I had been doing that most of my senior year in Evansville. And so I was able to take a job uh with them permanently in Bloomington, Indiana, uh doing subprime lending. And if you don't know what subprime lending is, we can get into that. Um sounds exhilarating. Well, at one time, I don't know what it is now, but the state maximum interest rate for loans was 36% um in the state of Indiana. And uh there are people that will actually take out loans at at much higher interest rates than than are are comfortable, and especially when it comes to buying things uh quickly and on demand. Um so maybe another subject for another day.

SPEAKER_05 23:41

Yeah, that is a high interest rate.

SPEAKER_02 23:43

Yes. Uh so Shannon ended up getting a job at Riverview Hospital in uh Noblesville, um, part-time. And uh and I was living in Bloomington, um, Indiana, working, and we were engaged. We got engaged uh February of uh the year before I graduated. And um, so we were starting to plan a wedding. We're like, we really want to be in the same city. That would be kind of helpful if we're gonna get married. Um, so that brought us to Richmond, Indiana. I uh was able to um apply and get on with Merrill Lynch here locally at Richmond. Shannon was able to get a job at Reed Hospital, now called Reed Health, as a physical therapist in pediatrics, um, which was her specialty for a long time until just recent. Um so with Merrill Lynch, I had done some interning in that field in college through prudential securities and actually with an advisor at Merrill Lynch, but that was a big name in the industry. Um, I'll call it a blue blood um firm on Wall Street. And I remember driving up when I was considering getting in that industry full time to uh an open interview in the north side of Indianapolis when I was probably 22, 23 years old, thinking, I might want to do this. And I remember walking in, getting there a minute or two before the event started, and there were probably a hundred people in suits and ties, most of them older and looked looked more the part than me, who just had come out of college. And I remember sitting in the back and they described this program like, we'll hire you. Um, you can become a financial advisor, you can make, you can make a great living. And and if you sign up now, um, we'll give you a$100,000 bonus if you basically make it through the program. And I was like, there's no way I can do this. They they laid out the requirements. And so I didn't even like after the session, I just got up and walked out. I didn't didn't go up, I didn't talk to anybody because I I didn't believe that I had what it took to uh to compete with that room.

SPEAKER_05 25:58

What just because of the the what you viewed in the room, that was the reason. Yes, and because I didn't know anybody.

First Careers, Engagement, And Move To Richmond

SPEAKER_02 26:05

Um so the reason I got on here at at Merrill Lynch, I actually sent my resume over to the branch manager who became my uh manager here and business partner later, Pete Bartle. And Pete was uh the manager of the satellite office for Dayton, Ohio. And so he forwarded my resume to a gentleman in Dayton in the Dayton Complex. Um, that gentleman's name was uh Fred Shum. Fred has since passed. Um, so I remember going from Richmond, uh interviewing with Pete, and he sent me over to interview with Mr. Shrum in the Mead Tower, downtown Dayton. And I remember going in there, uh wet behind the ears, 22, 23 years old. And um he he gets my resume out and he goes, Oh yeah. And it was all crumbled up. He goes, When I first got this off the fax machine, I looked at it and I threw it away. That's how my interview started because I was very cutthroat. And I thought, okay, he's just trying to throw me on this. But um, fortunately, I was able to get hired as a rookie advisor with with Merrill Lynch. And um, I got hired in with a class of about 20 advisors and only about 25% success rate in that type of an environment. Um, they had they had some pretty high requirements at the time where you have to bring in so much in assets and you have to do so much in in revenue, and you have two years, 24 months to do it, and you have to get licensed. So it was a fairly cutthroat process. And um, that was very intimidating to me, but I believed at that point that I could do it because I was in a smaller town, um, similar to the one I grew up in. And so that uh that started my career as a financial advisor. Um, I just told my wife earlier today, um, I remember that 24 months and thinking and doubting myself and thinking, is there any way I can bring in these assets that I can get people to trust me at 23, 24 years old now with their life savings and actually do what's responsible with it? And and I had a lot of self-doubt about that. Um, and I would see people that I thought were doing great that would then quit a couple weeks, um a month later. And it was only by raising my hands up and saying, God, I can't do this myself, that he intervened and helped me get through that program. And there were some things that only God I knew had done that uh that allowed me to survive that program. I mean, just mysterious numbers that that didn't make sense to me that all of a sudden would count for me in my goals. And what I saw is that uh, you know, I was being taken care of, that this was the path I was supposed to go on. Um so that that was a really eye-opening experience as a young man.

SPEAKER_05 29:12

Well, and how'd that do, you know, for your psyche, you know, you you have all this self self-doubt and and see all these people quitting and and I mean I I would imagine for you as you're starting to see these things, but as a young, as a young man, I don't know that I would have seen those. Like how how do you how do you see that and then be like, okay, I see what's going on here. I I mean that's just faith.

SPEAKER_02 29:35

It it is. And I remember the story you talked about um about getting the loan to start the business. And that resonated with me for that same reason. Because there were people that, including the hiring manager, uh, Mr. Shum, didn't think that I could do it. I was wet behind the ears, so to speak. Um, but that resolved that, okay, I'm gonna show you that that I actually can do this. I can work outwork everybody else. And the way I did it, um, there's an old saying, uh, everything works, nothing works great when it comes to building a business like that. So I would literally buy qualified lists of uh prospective clients that I think came out of magazines that people had signed up for that gave an average household income and suggested net worth, and I would send letters out. So I might send 25 or 50 letters a week out. And this is when in working in Richmond, Indiana, Ohio was an hour ahead of us. So they were on a different time zone than Indiana. So I would send out letters to Ohio, and then I would also send letters to Indiana. And so at 4 o'clock PM, when I knew people from Ohio were getting home from work, I would call those people that I had sent letters to the week before as a cold call and say, hey, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, this is Brett Guiley from Merrill Lynch. Did you get the letter that I sent? Oh, what are you talking about? And so it would start some conversations. Um, so I did that for for years. Um, and then at five o'clock, when I was done with the Ohio calls, I would then call Indiana because I'd sent letters to Indiana when they were getting home at five o'clock. And and so it didn't work great, but I did get some some relationships out of that that I still have today.

SPEAKER_05 31:21

There's not much more difficult in business than cold calling people. That's that is a uh that is a lost art. I don't know that there's many of these young kids that fully understand how challenging that. I mean, how many times you get hung up on? Yeah. Or how many times who are you, you know, whatever, not even answer the phone, you know. It's it's one of those things that teaches persistence, but then maybe you get, you know, you have a connection with somebody and maybe it leads to maybe out of those 50, it led to one. Right. Right. But that one may have been with you for forever. You know, you just you just don't know where those relationships will go. So uh cold calling.

SPEAKER_02 32:01

Have you ever done cold calling?

SPEAKER_01 32:03

Oh, yeah.

Breaking Into Finance And Beating Self-Doubt

SPEAKER_02 32:03

Yeah, it's a very humbling uh experience, and you get told no a lot, but at the same time, you just have to change your mindset that it's a little bit of a game, a gamesmanship. The one big advantage I had to building my career and business here is I did marry into a family that was was here. So as I mentioned, my wife Shannon, her maiden name was Van Vliet. So uh my father-in-law and mother-in-law, Eric and Linda, are are here and have raised their their family, and my brother-in-law, Brad. Um, and they're all they're all still here, which is what brought me into to uh get to know the Schmidt family early on because Shannon and I got married, uh, we're coming up on 26 years. Um, so we got married in 2000. Good chance you might have been at my wedding, Dan. Um so I I had I had family here that that knew people. Um, and I remember, and I know you've had Eric on this show before. And one of the things that that he's always said, and and one of the things I want to tell you guys is a lot of the things that I'm gonna say today, there's a word that I use called an amalgamation. And I had to look that up to make sure I knew what that meant. It's a combination of things people have told me. So, some very little of what I'm I'm going to say is actually original. It comes from other people. But I remember when I started building a business here, um, Eric always said, entrepreneurship is the last great American adventure. And that has always stuck with me because I I realized that, you know, you can be the master of your own domain, so to speak. And if you can create a business, not only can you do well for your family and your community, but you can you can do well for others. And that's really, you know, early on, I didn't think I could even help myself, but you know, little by little, you know, God opens those doors and and all of a sudden um you've you've built a business. And I I say it's a little bit like paying off a mortgage. Um, when you get a buy a house and you and you go to the bank and you borrow money or buy a business and borrow money, you think, man, 30 years, that's a really long time to borrow money and make payments. But little by little you pay it off. And all of a sudden you wake up and you're like, I I don't have a mortgage anymore. And that's that's a little bit like what building a business is like.

SPEAKER_05 34:34

That's a very good analogy because I mean, I I I don't know that I have the conversation daily, but a lot of times that's that's my conversation with people when running a business is the burden of of owning and running a business that I put on myself is is all those people. You know, is is I don't, you know, we do we do what we do to serve our customers, but the burden that I feel is making sure that I'm doing what I'm supposed to do every day, what's right for my employees. Right. Because they have families, you know, they rely on these jobs, uh, you know, working at Catron's Glass or or wherever it is, working with you. Um, that's not something that I take lightly. And it is a it is a heavy burden. And Eric is right. I mean, it's uh man, it's an advent entrepreneurship is an adventure. There's you know the highs are high and the lows are low. I mean, it's uh you know, it's it's it's a challenge for sure. But you're right that there is freedom in it. Um sometimes I wonder when the freedom's gonna come back, but but it is, it is good. That's a very good statement. And Eric uh I steal a lot of his um quotes and and all the the uh the things that he talks about. He's he's a uh definitely a mentor to me.

unknown 35:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 36:00

But the the other thing that he told me, and he may have told you this when you got started in business. He said one of the things you should do is you should make a list of people in the community that are business owners or community leaders, and you should call them up and see if you can take them to lunch. So I came up with a list. Some of them he introduced me to, others I just knew from having lived here for a little bit. And I I would email them, give them a call, and say, hey, you've been successful at your particular endeavor. I would really like to pick your brain and get some advice because I'm a young entrepreneur here in town and I don't know anybody. And um I'd like to see how what it's taken for you to be successful. And that by far um was one of the best pieces of advice I could have gotten because number one, everybody has to eat lunch. And number two, people love to talk about themselves and their successes. And it wasn't reverse psychology, but I actually got to know some of those people and they wanted to invest in me then because they're like they whether they saw something in me or whether they uh they just resonated with the the journey of of trying to start a business. Um so I did that countless times with with a number of people, and some of them I'm I'm still in contact with, some of them have since moved or passed on. Um, but that was a a really powerful um thing. And if there's young people that are listening here thinking about getting into business, I would highly recommend doing the same thing.

SPEAKER_05 37:37

I as you're saying that, I he said the exact same thing to me. In fact, I remember when we were, you know, in the process of buying Catron's glass. I remember sitting on their back deck and uh and him and Linda, we were all we were all talking about the business and you know, we're talking about uh, you know, you're gonna live it. Like it's not something you can get away from. You have to understand that. And and he was right, but that recommending going to other successful people. I've I vividly, as you're talking, I remember sitting in Keith Wiesenhunt's office, who is a local contractor. Business is still around, owned by a different man now. Um, the Ballinger family. But I remember specifically meeting Keith for the first time and sitting down and introducing myself and saying, hey, you know, you've you've been successful. You know, I'm I don't know what I'm doing. Can you give me some advice and this community and and things I should look out for? And he did, and I we probably sat there for an hour and you know, and he gave me, you know, a wealth of knowledge and we built a relationship and he was a great customer. And um, yeah, I hadn't thought about that in a while. But that I I would highly, again, same thing, recommend to any young people out there, even if you're not in business, even if it's just trying to get to know whatever industry you're in or if you're in sales, just you know sit down with someone and and ask them, hey, you've been successful. Tell me how, give me some advice, you know. Great, great advice. Yeah, yeah. Thanks for that reminder. Yeah, that's good. Absolutely. So you're you're at Merrill Lynch. Family started yet? Any kids?

Cold Calling, Mentors, And Building A Book

SPEAKER_02 39:15

Yep. So um Shannon and I were married a couple years, and then uh Jack came along. Jack is now 23 years old, uh, just graduated from DePaul University this past May, and he is a working man, uh, took his first job working in municipal finance. Um, not exactly like what I do, but fairly similar. He's got a great economic mind. And so he works for a company out of Indianapolis called Baker Tilly. It's an accounting firm and puts together municipal bonds on a team for uh cities and townships and schools and things like that. Um, a couple years after that, Lauren came along. Lauren uh is now just turned 21, um, and she is a uh going to graduate this May from Valparaiso University up in northern Indiana. Um she is following in her mother's footsteps a bit. She will graduate with a pre-occupational therapy degree, and then in the fall, we'll start a doctorate program in uh occupational therapy at Valparaiso Using University as well. She, um, like your daughter Allie, is running um at the university level. So she's been running uh cross-country indoor and outdoor track. And then um in 2007, um, my youngest Addie, Addy Giley, came along, and she is now 19, and she is a freshman at Western Kentucky University and studying to become a speech pathologist. So we've got my wife, physical therapy, my uh middle daughter Lauren, occupational, and then Addy is going to be a speech therapist. So we've got all the disciplines covered in the therapy world, possibly. And Addy actually took a different path. She ran uh competitively at Eaton High School along with her sister uh Lauren, but she decided not to do that in college and instead um stroked a passion a couple years ago with horses, and she's riding um on the equestrian team for Western Kentucky.

unknown 41:19

Wow.

SPEAKER_05 41:20

Wow. Riding horses. I saw a picture the other day on Facebook. That's pretty cool. Yeah. That's a definitely a different path from being the uh the athletes and and uh competing all those years and running and doing all that stuff. It's good neat to see finding a new passion. That's good. So those are the kids. Um, you know, at some point in time, you leave Merrill Lynch and you decide to do your own thing. Kind of talk about that leap of faith, that transition, and how that transpired.

Entrepreneurship As Adventure

SPEAKER_02 41:50

So I mentioned that Merrill, while it was a is a great firm, is a very buttoned-down uh blue blood uh Wall Street firm. Um after six years there, I decided to transition um along with some of my business partners to another firm called Raymond James. Uh so that was in 2006. I'm still associated with Raymond James today. I was an employee for them as an advisor for a number of years and then moved into management. So I was the branch manager of the local branch here for a while. Um, and that was a that was a great experience. And then in 2000, um, into 2017, beginning of 2018, uh left uh being an employee of Raymond James and became a private business owner working as an independent advisor, um, still using Raymond James. So we became, instead of an employee of Raymond James, became a big customer of Raymond James and formed Vista Investment Partners two. And the reason there's we're two is because uh a friend and mentor of mine, Ron Richardson in Oklahoma City is Vista Investment Partners one, and we partnered together to uh manage portfolios. I've been doing that with him since 2011. And and so we we shared a lot of uh uh marketing and compliance type of expenses, but are are two separate entities. Um so one of the reasons that I I tended to move away from being an employee is and more independent. I think that's happened throughout my life, where I've actually um I started to ask questions. Um and I started to God put in me an intuition um that I needed to go with my gut more often. Um, that what I was being told was not always uh what I what what I should take at face value. And I think that came because of my upbringing with my parents. I'll I'll go back to my my dad for a moment. My dad, Terry, um, we he we were raised Lutheran. Um and a number of years ago, my my dad is uh started in in seminary, uh To possibly become a pastor, a Lutheran pastor, decided ultimately not to do that, but he's always been a seeker, a seeker of faith and a seeker of truth. And he taught myself and my siblings not to take things always at face value. In fact, he's continued down his faith journey and he sat us down about 10 years ago with uh with my mother and said, Um, I've studied this and I want to become Catholic. And what do you guys think about that? And my siblings and I all said, Well, that mom, are you becoming Catholic? No, mom's gonna stay Lutheran. Well, we don't know if that's necessarily a good idea for you guys not to be um, you know, going to the same church. And lo and behold, even though we said that, he still had conviction and went ahead and took instruction in and is Catholic. And I my parents who, who I'm very blessed to have, um, both my parents still with me in a great relationship, they they have modeled something that I've seen very few other people do. So many times they will go to the Catholic Mass together on Saturday night, and then they'll both go to the Lutheran church together on Sunday. And they have multiple uh religious groups that they attend uh separate, but also together, and they'll also bring those groups into their home. And so that that's something that you know, that seeking and that that questioning, um, that's something that is is deep in my my upbringing. And and so as a business owner and in even as a youth, one of the things I have always done is ask questions. And I was listening to um a podcast actually this morning that talked about curiosity is uh is where a lot of great thinkers start. And I remember growing up in that parochial school when I was in third grade, um, there was a uh uh on my report card that came home, there was a comment that said, Brett is very inquisitive. And and that has that is uh is something that has been a hallmark for uh my whole life. I've always asked a lot of questions. Um sometimes I've I I ask a question, get an answer, and I ask the same question again, which can be very annoying. I actually got made fun of quite a bit as a kid and and and growing up in in a small school. Um, you know, you you can you can get labeled certain ways. And I wouldn't say that uh, you know, if I if I had some strife as a kid, it was in middle school. I've always said I would never go back to middle school. You know, that's when the at times kids are growing at different uh sizes. I was on the smaller end. Um, I would never want to go back to middle school because I I got picked on, partially because I asked a lot of questions, partially because I just thought a little differently um about the world. And and and there was a naivety of about me, I would say. And um that that was that was something that um other people placed labels on me, um, and and I owned those. Um, I thought of myself um as somebody that was just a little different, a little little strange. And and I was a little bit sad as a as a middle schooler. And and that I I replaced that because I got to a bigger high school. Um, I went to the public high school and and met a whole different group of friends. So there wasn't that pecking order in that small, that small class. But I I would even label that some of what happened to me as a youth was was being bullied. Um and and so I I always sought other people that had gifts and talents and and things about them that made them unique. And I tried to see, as you mentioned in the introduction, the the good in other people, the gold in other people. And so fast forward to being in the corporate world. And as a manager at Raymond James, there were some advisor prospect or prospective people that I wanted to hire, and and corporate said no. And I said, but I see something in them. No. And this would happen over and over again. And so I I finally got uh fed up and I said, I'm I'm not I'm at the point in my career where I I believe for my market and what I'm seeing that I'm correct and you're not. And so that's one of the reasons I went out on and formed Vista Investment Partners and was able to hire a couple of the people um that are still with me today that um were not given opportunities by by that firm. So you were right. I believe so. Um John Meredith is a good friend of mine, somebody I would highly recommend you have on this show at some point. He once told me God honors risk. And I've thought a lot about that. Um, but it's true. Um, if you are in alignment with God's will, and it might seem risky to the world, but um the the world, and we talked a little bit about this before, Dan. Um the the worldview is different than God's view. Um the the world view is that there's scarcity, there's only so many jobs, there's only so much money, there's only so much opportunity. Where uh that's that's the separation view. We're separated from from God in that view, where God says, you are enough. God says, I will create the opportunity for you. Um we do the same thing with time. Um people say, well, there's there's not enough time to do things. That's that's not there's Kairos and uh Kronos time, and God's time is totally different than our timeline. And we see that all over the Bible. Um, and where I'm going with this is I think as a society, we we want to label people, um, whether that be from our youth, and then that gets internalized in them, or we want to we want to limit uh people based on our view of them. Um and that's not necessarily what God says. He says that you are enough just the way you are. And it took me a long time and a lot of internal work to to really realize that some of the labels I got as a kid, um, those were the world's labels. Those were not God's labels for me. So the last six, seven months or so, I've been going through um a process called identity exchange. There's an author named Jamie Winship that uh wrote a book called Living Fearless that I would highly recommend any of the viewers or listeners pick up. And that that was a really eye-opening um experience and and change for me because I realized that the the things that that I believed about myself and the fear, guilt, and shame that I I had, I had to get rid of and I had to put that aside. And you have to do that in order for God to replace your actual identity. So I went through a process to do that, um, which which we can get into if you want. But that that that is really back to the business thing. That is that is filtered into my business and me taking risks. So I've been able to hire uh nine people now in my business. We just opened another office location in Rockford, Illinois in November, and we created a subsidiary called Orange Horizon Wealth, um, which is uh which is focused at uh clients that um want to uh to have Bitcoin in their portfolios and and have a team that understands it.

Family Life And Kids’ Paths

SPEAKER_05 51:49

Um so I saw a passion in you right there that I've never seen. That's pretty cool, man. Uh I mean I've known you a long time, but I I haven't I haven't seen that passion.

SPEAKER_01 52:01

I think you should dig into it. Dan and I talk about that a lot, what you just talked about. I mean, we call it um oh shoot. What is um I just had it and I just thought of it or forgot it.

SPEAKER_06 52:12

Brain fart.

SPEAKER_01 52:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 52:14

God rewards those who take risks.

SPEAKER_01 52:16

No, no, not that part. The identity part. Where people put limits, so you people are putting limits on you. Yep. They put labels on you, those labels limit you. Yep. And it's um oh man, I can't think of it. Here's one of our good moments going back to mammograms. I do have a passion for that. Yeah, so no, but yeah, because we we always talk about it where we let the devil win. Yeah, yeah. And let him do our, you know, through those labels and through those limits that that's our identity and it's not. So I would like you to dig into what you just talked about about ripping the those limits and those labels off you, yeah, and finding your identity, replacing it with that. So imposter syndrome.

Leaving Big Firms For Independence

SPEAKER_02 52:58

Imposter syndrome imposter syndrome, yeah, absolutely. So I I know uh I was asked to give my title for this podcast, and I I I dug into that a little bit and said, I I don't I don't love titles. I've got I've got several hats that I wear, and then you are hitting something big here. Go ahead. So my titles at work or managing partner uh with Orange Horizon CEO. I hate the oh an hour before I came here, I was picking up trash in the parking lot. I'm not too proud to do those types of things. And I tell my employees that all the time. They're like, hey, boss man, and I'm like, you can call me that, but I don't it it it it's not it, it makes me feel weird, I guess, because I'm just I'm just a guy. Um, I don't put myself up on this pedestal. And God it God creates all of us with special talents and special unique identities that is our gift to the world. And that's what what I've I've found that we're supposed to be here to do. And so through the identity exchange process, you strip all of that away and you figure out who you are. And and you have to get you have to get quiet with God. It's in the God prepares for private in private what he wants to do publicly. Let me repeat that. God prepares privately what he wants to do publicly. And it's in studying the word and in uh doing devotions and in that quiet time that I try to have um every day, that you can actually hear the voice of God. And he talks to us. And what we have to do is we have to turn down the voice of the world and turn up God's voice. And if you haven't trained yourself to do that, it's it's very difficult to do. So in this process, um about six months ago, I was able to actually hear what God calls me and the name that he calls me and the gift that he calls me that he knitted me in the womb to become. And that was that name that he gave me in the in the private time and was transformative connector. And and I sat with that and I was like, transformative connector? What does that even mean? And so I had to, I started studying what that meant. And I found out there's all sorts of uh connectors that are in in the Bible, in in history. And that doesn't mean I always have the answer for somebody, but what I've always been good at is putting pieces together for people, circumstances, networking, and um, you know, even in my vocation, I realized I do that. I help people tell me what your goals are, and then I help connect them to something that I think will get them there. Um, with my friends, um, I mentioned I've I've introduced people that have gotten married. Um, I I have uh been fortunate enough to give some people some opportunities that have led them to careers or or introduce people that uh they were able to get jobs with. And I was realized, realizing that's my gift, to be a connector for other people. Um and I believe God continue will continue to honor that as as He's revealed that in me now. And I thought, well, does that mean I need to change jobs or or occupations? And that's not necessarily what God always wants. He just wants us to realize that our job really is a vocation and you you grow where you're planted. And right now I'm planted in in this leadership role in my own business, and I'm trying to help other people. Um in and if I take risks, it's gonna give other people opportunities. So the fact that I've started a couple joint ventures and the fact that we started a couple of subsidiaries, it's giving other people opportunities that uh that wouldn't have had opportunities if if God hadn't hadn't honored those risks.

SPEAKER_05 57:04

Man, you um you uh I don't know. There's there's so many times here in the past six months for me where there's been some God moments and uh everything you just said there like we've been going through, you know, with with our business, with employees, you know, we've we've seen a lot of growth in the past couple years, especially in the last two years. And that's a um challenging thing to manage as an owner when you know you've had this small business for all these years, and then all of a sudden, you know, like you said, before you know it, your mortgage has paid off, right? Right. You know, before you know it, you know, there's there's me and three employees, and now there's there's almost 20 of us, you know, and it's like, how did we get here? Well, then there's all these processes that I have to learn because I've not, you know, it just it seems like it's it seems like it's taken forever, but then it seems like it's happened that quick, you know, you just don't just don't understand it. And you talk about titles, we're we're in the middle of of that. Uh, you talk about being called boss man, like Dan's favorite thing. His favorite thing. I probably should have said it on here. Now I'm gonna get hammered.

SPEAKER_01 58:23

Uh I love love saying it. And he smiles at me and just what do I say back? Uh you call me a peasant.

SPEAKER_05 58:31

You're gonna call me a boss, like you're a peasant. I I just don't like any of that stuff. Like it, I'm like you, it just makes my skin crawl. But the biggest thing that you said is that we got to get quiet with God. And I didn't realize it at the time three years ago when I started the 75 Heart and going through, you know, trying to get my body and my mind right, but I spent a lot of time at the Arboretum, you know, and in different um parks and and things quietly, you know, and that that has been the most comforting place I've had in my life to where I've heard things, um, came up with different ideas, um, relieved a lot of stress, you know, and and I I think we just get so busy in our lives and we're constantly the music's playing or a podcast is going or we're at a game or we're on the phone or we're on social media, and there's just so many distractions. And when you physically, mentally take the time to just be quiet, be alone, take your watch off, take your phone off, whatever, you know, just get away from it. It's amazing what you can come up with and the relief that you can get and the ideas. I mean, that's it's just I mean, you just hit so many things uh nails on the head with what you just said. And um I couldn't agree more. And I would encourage anyone out there just to take that time, you know, 20 minutes a day, an hour a day, whatever it is. It doesn't have to be strenuous, right? It can be maybe you have a room at your home, you go in the basement where it's quiet, away from the kids, and you just sit quiet and be with your thoughts. Don't take your phone, don't take anything. Maybe it's going out, you know. For me, it's being in the woods in the wilderness and going for that walk and just breathing in that fresh air. I I I cannot stress it enough how important it is with everything we have going on.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:37

Then you talk about the time, you know. You heard the guy, the voice of God tell you about your transformative connector. Is that right? Yes. And then it's like, do I quit my job? Well, God gives us his gifts. So when you're in your workplace, whether you're wherever you're at, you can have those gifts, right? Right. Whether it's a friend, a family member, wherever you're at, you that's your gift. And it's just looking for those opportunities and being still enough to realize when it is, then that Holy Spirit will kind of get going in you and you your gut feeling that you've talked about. That when you're at, you know, Merrill Lynch and everywhere where they're telling you not not to follow it. And now here you are owning your own business and following your gut.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:15

And I've realized that gut is really the Holy Spirit where you're gonna be able to do that.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:18

That's what I always think. Yeah.

Curiosity, Labels, And Identity

SPEAKER_02 1:01:19

If you're in tune with them, I I believe that wholeheartedly. That's who you're hearing from.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:25

And then I agree too. Like when you follow it, when I look back, and every time I followed what people call their gut, or what I what I view is the Holy Spirit stirring in me, like it's never led me astray. Right. You know what I mean? Like, and you go with it with such confidence that every time you you take that step, it's like, okay, that's what it was. And then you keep growing in your faith, growing in in the Lord, and I just feel like that's the way that we're supposed to live.

SPEAKER_05 1:01:48

Yeah, that's good stuff. One thing I want to hit on with you that that is unique, um is is your family, you know, your extended family, your parents. Um, the thing with with the Gilies and the Van Vliet, um, you guys are very close. Very, very close. And you take vacations together um as entire extended families. It it's it's kind of cool to see you've been doing it forever. Talk about that relationship, talk about what it means, maybe not even necessarily to you, but I know to your kids building those memories. Talk about um talk about that relationship with not only your immediate family, but that extended family.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:33

Yeah. Take you back just a little bit. So the day Shannon and I got married, I always say was the best day of my life. Not only because I got to marry my best friend, but because when I stood at the front of the church and I looked in the first two pews of the the church, I saw my parents, I saw Shannon's parents, and I saw all eight of our grandparents, my four grandparents and her four grandparents, all there in the first two rows. And it dawned on me, my parents had been married over 25 years, so had hers. And all four of her grandparents and all four of mine had been married over 50 years. So we had over 250 years of marriage sitting in the first two rows. And I was, I was like, the odds of that happening are minuscule now in today's today's age. And that was, I have that picture ingrained in my mind because I was like, I am so blessed that I had that history and what a what a wonderful um legacy that I get to carry on with my new wife, um, who we've now been married over 25 years. And and so the we had a great foundation for our families. Um, I mentioned my my my family growing up, you know, four kids, uh very busy life. We didn't take a ton of vacations growing up. And if we did, it was usually around uh uh going to a grandparent's house or going to a medical conference. And that was fine. I I had fun doing that. But so when we got married, I said, we're gonna take we're gonna start taking family vacations. And so I decided to start planning them. Um my two of my siblings went um to college up at Calvin College in in Michigan. So we kind of knew the Michigan area. And um, when we started having young kids, like we tried to go to North Carolina, fly flying a plane with diaper bags and strollers and car seats, and it was a disaster. Um, we were the last one off the plane with poopy diapers, that type of thing. So um we decided we needed to drive. So we started going to Lake Michigan to a little town called South Haven. Um, and we've been going up there now for I think this will be our 19th year in a row. Um, and it is in-laws, outlaws, cousins, nieces, nephews. So um at the top, it's probably been about close to 30 people. Um at the at the low end, it's in the teens from year to year. And not everybody comes for the whole week, but we get a couple of places that we rent, and uh everybody just kind of knows the drill and everybody automatically relaxes because we know the whole area really well. Um, so that that's been a really neat legacy. And my, it's my if you ask my kids if they would rather go to Hawaii for a week or or Lake Michigan, they'd pick Lake Michigan hands down. Um, and and the dynamics are just hilarious. So um my sister-in-law Kelly Van Vliet, who I know you're good friends with, um, so Kelly and I are very close. We're like brother and sister um in the Sea of Van Vliet here in Richmond. Um and Kelly's parents and my parents get a place together and they they rent it and they room together and have for years. And they're so I can literally walk down the street in the morning and they're all four on the uh front porch drinking coffee together, and it's just so surreal to me because. Because they're of like, how does this work? And you tell other people, and they're like, you mean your sister-in-law's parents and your parents are like hanging out and friends? It's like, yeah. And they have similar birthdays, so they're like celebrate birthdays together. Just, it's just kind of fun.

SPEAKER_05 1:06:13

It's amazing. And I, you know, the memories for those kids, it's just, you know, obviously we've we've known each other for for many years and watching your kids and Brad and Kelly's kids grow up and then watching these vacations and and you know, seeing the photos over the years. There's no doubt those, those memories for your kids, you know, those will those will last a lifetime. And it is a very unique um setting with with all those in-laws, outlaws, anybody and everybody. It's it's uh it's very unique. And you know, you know, your mother-in-law, Linda, always did the uh the Sunday night dinner thing, and that was something that my mom had picked up on. And so that's something we've been doing now for for many, many years as a family is the Sunday night dinners. And um, you know, we've talked about it on here. It's it's important, you know, for our family to get together again because of how busy we are in our lives. I mean, even though we all live very close together, there could be a month's time where we don't see each other. So that Sunday night, we know that's a time where you know, my kids and my brother's kids can get together. We have dinner and talk about whatever's going on. It's it's um it's a special time, which um, you know, my kids, my kids cherish and and and Kim and I cherish as well. So absolutely that all started from that that Van Vliet uh pool there. So um well, good man. Well, last question. If you could sit on a park bench and have a conversation with someone living or deceased, who would it be and why?

God Honors Risk: Vista And New Ventures

SPEAKER_02 1:07:42

That's a great question, and one that I knew was coming. And um talked to you about this a little bit before. So in those grandparents that were sitting in those first two rows, the two of them lived here in in Richmond um almost the whole time that Shannon and I were married, uh Art and Doris Van Vliet. And I became very close with them. Um they've they've since both passed, but um, my grandparents growing up, they all they lived you know hours away. So I would see them a couple of times, two, three, four times a year, but and had a great relationship with them. But um, Art Van Vliet became a uh not only a uh a family member, but really became a mentor and a friend, um, and like a grandpa to me. And and that would be the one that I would I would choose to sit on a park bench with. He he passed away. I just looked it up, uh, it'd be nine years ago next month. And um, you know, he he was he was one of those uh guys that he was a Cornell engineer, and um I was not uh blessed with uh being handy growing up. And um anytime I had uh uh something that was broken or uh needed a hand with a tool, he was always there and and he was quick witted, uh helped me uh learn the game of golf a little bit. Um and he he's just somebody that always had um a lot of wisdom when when you sat down with him. And um real quick story on art. And this is why I want to sit next to him on a bench and talk to him. Art was uh in his final days, he was at a a local um assisted living facility and he kind of called the whole family locally together. Um and it was on a Thursday or a Friday. And and uh we knew that it was getting close to the end for him, most likely. And he said to us, he said, um, well, I'm checking out.

unknown 1:09:38

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:46

Not not home in in the literal sense here in Richmond. And and we were we were kind of shocked by that. But we we had a final day with him where we had to watch some home movies and he was uh able to watch them. And and I knew I needed to have the conversation with him. I said, Art, you know, where where's your heart and and where's your faith? And the answer I was able to actually uh I I remembered this, and I was able, I gave a sermon at my church a couple of years ago, and and I told this story. Art looked at me with a gleam in his eye when he was a couple days from dying, and he said, I am see myself walking on a beach, and there's two sets of footprints, and I I look up and I can't see the face of the person holding my hand, but I know it's Jesus. And three days later, Art passed away. And I would love to sit on a park bench and ask him about walking with Jesus now.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:49

Man, you know, art, uh I feel the same. We talked about it. He the thing about art was is he was always so intentional with with his with his time. Like if you talk to Art, you he was focused on you and um just always you know he he was jovial, he was loud, he was kind hearted. But when I think of Art Van Vliet, that's I think of a man who was intentional. If you if you were talking to him or he saw you, you had his full attention. Absolutely. And uh man, I I do I take that from him and his mentorship, um, you know, to me as well. Yeah, just man, I mean, he was uh I think it was at Brad's um bachelor party. He was we were snow skiing, and he was, I don't know, he was in his late 80s, early 90s, then I don't remember how old he was, at least 80s, and he's out there snow skiing with a bunch of 20-year-old drunk college, you know, fresh out of college kids. And I just uh you're right, it's just an amazing man. I I'd forgotten that's who you were when we had talked earlier, but yeah, great guy, great, great man. Um raised a great family for sure. And uh yeah, pretty special. Absolutely, for sure, great story, too. All right, Ben, you got anything?

SPEAKER_01 1:12:16

I just can't thank you enough for coming on. Like Dan said. We talk about God's time sometimes and that whole conversation that we weren't ready for, kinda I feel like that was a God's time.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:28

No, absolutely, yeah, especially right now. Right. All right, everybody. Uh thank you uh for listening. And Brett, thank you for coming up here and sharing your story, man. Absolutely it's powerful and and um you know, I like I said, I I haven't seen that fire in you, and uh, and it's neat to see and uh you know continue to to grow and learn from each other. So thanks, thanks for coming up here. Thanks for having me. All right. Continue to like and share and subscribe and do all those things. Until next time, go out and be tempered.

SPEAKER_00 1:13:02

Hi, my name is Allie Schmidt. This is my dad Dan. He owns Catrin's Glass.

SPEAKER_04 1:13:06

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SPEAKER_00 1:13:28

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Hearing “Transformative Connector”

SPEAKER_03 1:13:31

I want to share something that's become a big part of the Be Tempered mission: Patreon. Now, if you've never used it before, Patreon is a platform where we can build community together. It's not just about supporting the podcast, it's about having a space where we can connect on a deeper level, encourage one another, and walk this journey of faith, resilience, and perseverance side by side. Here's how it works. You can join as a free member and get access to daily posts, behind-the-scenes updates, encouragement, and some things I don't always put out on other platforms. And if you feel called to support the mission financially, there are different levels where you can do that too. That support helps us keep producing the podcasts, creating gear, hosting events, and sharing stories that we believe can truly impact lives. And here's the cool part. Patreon has a free app you can download right on your phone. It works just like Facebook or Instagram, but it's built specifically for our community. You'll be able to scroll through posts, watch videos, listen to content, and interact with others who are on the same journey. At the end of the day, this isn't just about content, it's about connection. It's about building something together. Not just me and men putting out episodes, but a family of people committed to growing stronger through real stories and real faith. So whether you just want to hop on as a free member or you feel called to support in a bigger way, Patreon is the door into that community. Because at the heart of Be Tempered has always been simple real stories, raw truth, resilient faith, so that even one person out there that hears what they need to hear, and Patreon helps make that possible.