Forged By Design
This podcast is created for business entrepreneurs with big dreams, bold faith, and a calling to do more. Each episode blends powerful yet practical encouragement to help you grow personally, professionally, and in your ministry. Whether you’re building a business, pursuing purpose, or stepping into what God has placed on your heart, this space is designed to help you align your vision with your faith and move forward with clarity, confidence, and conviction.
Forged By Design
SFC Isaias Laureano - Commitment to excellence, leadership and service
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SFC Isaias Laureano’s story is one of early responsibility, steady growth, and a lifelong commitment to excellence, leadership, and service.
From a young age, Laureano demonstrated an uncommon work ethic and curiosity for technical systems. At just 16 years old, he entered the demanding world of audio, video, and lighting (AVL) production—an environment where precision, timing, and adaptability are essential. While many of his peers were still exploring interests, he was already developing hands-on expertise in live production, learning the intricacies of sound reinforcement, lighting design, and video systems through real-world experience.
By the age of 18 to 19, Laureano’s natural leadership abilities began to emerge. He stepped into roles that required managing teams of technicians—many of whom were twice his age. Despite the potential challenges of leading older, more experienced individuals, he earned respect through competence, consistency, and character. His leadership style was marked not by ego, but by humility and a willingness to learn. He listened, adapted, and grew, fostering collaboration while maintaining high standards. This period laid a critical foundation for his future, shaping both his technical confidence and his relational leadership approach.
As his career progressed, Laureano transitioned into military service, where his technical background and leadership capabilities evolved into a highly specialized and disciplined skill set. Over the course of more than 15 years, he established himself as an AVL Director and Cyber-Enabled Technical Operations Leader, operating at the intersection of live production and advanced technology.
In this role, he became known for delivering mission-critical systems across a wide range of environments, including stadium-scale events, multi-campus churches, conferences, corporate productions, and touring platforms. His expertise extended far beyond traditional AVL responsibilities. He developed a comprehensive understanding of end-to-end production ecosystems—covering front-of-house (FOH) audio, monitor engineering, broadcast systems, LED wall integration, lighting control, RF coordination, and complex AV networking infrastructures.
What distinguished Laureano was his ability to integrate enterprise-level IT and cybersecurity principles into live production environments. Recognizing that modern AVL systems are deeply dependent on network reliability and digital infrastructure, he applied advanced knowledge in networking, redundancy planning, system monitoring, and cyber defense. His work ensured that production systems were not only high-performing but also resilient, secure, and capable of maintaining uptime in high-pressure, no-fail scenarios.
Throughout his career, he built and led high-performing teams, mentoring individuals and creating scalable systems that could adapt to growing organizational needs. He developed a reputation for executing flawlessly under pressure—whether managing large-scale live events or overseeing complex technical operations where failure was not an option. His leadership consistently balanced technical excellence with a people-first mindset, emphasizing growth, accountability, and trust.
Now, Laureano is entering a new phase of life and calling—one centered on ministry and spiritual leadership. Drawing from years of experience leading teams in both civilian and military contexts, he brings a unique blend of discipline, humility, and vision to the church environment. His journey has prepared him not only to build systems, but to build people.
In this season, his leadership is defined by integrity, service, and a deep commitment to guiding others. He approaches ministry with the same excellence he applied to
Daniel Badiggio Podcast.
SPEAKER_02Welcome to the Forge by Design Podcast. This is your host, Daniel Badigio. Thank you so much for all your support for following us through all our social media channels. It means the world to us. We have an amazing guest today. We've been planning this out. I've been calling. I've been behind him. Many other things. But he is just as an intro, because this man is so diverse. This young man, talented man, is so diverse in many talents and abilities that we're gonna try to dissect and many of these things and do uh an autopsy of his life is his career, dreams, aspirations, and future ambitions. He's a director, AVL director. He's also in cyber operations and in the military, which brings a lot of amazing skills, which I already tap into, but I'm always learning from these individuals who bring real world experience. So without further ado, Sergeant Isaias Lauriano, how are you doing? I'm doing amazing. How about yourself? I'm doing great. First of all, I just want to thank you because you know I've been behind you. Uh as I always say, you know, and uh we had some uh some heart-to-heart conversations. Uh we share the same faith. Yes, we have uh similar visions and uh similar fear of God and whatnot, and and that's amazing to connect with someone who you can home into and and and share these uh aspirations in life. So that definitely uh resonates with my spirit to to have transparent conversations, heart-to-heart conversations, and uh I'm I'm delighted that you're here today.
SPEAKER_01Thank you for having me. It's uh it's always good catching up with you, and uh our conversations are always uh always great.
SPEAKER_02Amazing. So, one of the things that uh we were talking off camera was that the fact that your leadership skills, uh your diversity in leading people and managing people started way beyond what I thought it would really was. And um before your military career, you had a specific business that we want to talk about and and how you manage that at such a young age. So that was very impressive. I think at uh if I can share at 18 years old, little little younger than that, actually.
SPEAKER_01It wasn't my own business.
SPEAKER_02How did it all start?
SPEAKER_01So I think since it's a leadership podcast, um, you know, given honor to or honors due, I think um, first off, my my parents and church. Okay, you know, uh growing up, we we grew up in uh uh the same denomination. Sure. Um different different uh different uh uh years, but we grew up similar. Similar environment, yes. And you know that with the denomination that we came out of, they are very uh they're very giving to young people having the ability to lead. Correct. So it started with that leading in church, leading the youth, uh, uh youth fat a youth pastor, uh we call it president of the youth. President, secretary, treasurer, musicians, accountants, everything. I was yeah, I was actually uh uh a subdesorero. A sub treasurer, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, so uh we have a similar uh trajectory. Very much so.
SPEAKER_01And um, you know, it started there, and just the hard work yes started there, and I was about 16 years old when I went to go shadow a friend of mine at an AVL company, and his boss uh just noticed the way that I was working. And AVL stands for for those that don't don't know audio video lighting, audio video and lighting. Yes, so I I'm I'm military and also coming from production, so there's a lot of acronyms that I may shoot out. So just stop.
SPEAKER_02That's that's why I always try to clarify because what what may seem is like the term uh MOS, right? Uh military occupational specialty. Correct. Uh I throw that acronym out there because my all my brothers were military, right? So it comes natural to me. But these acronyms that people that do not know, maybe a different background, uh sometimes we need to clarify.
SPEAKER_01But go ahead. Yeah. So um notice that I was uh that I was just working. I was working free at that point. It was it was uh in the University of Miami, uh big arena, probably about I think uh there was probably about like 40,000 people. Wow, about 30,000 more or less.
SPEAKER_02That's that's an amazing place to have uh such a business.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. So um just started picking up and working and helping out, and he said, hey, just come back next week and just continue.
SPEAKER_02So you're 16, you were in high school. High school. High school. So you were doing this after school.
SPEAKER_01I was just doing it after school on the radic hours, weekends.
SPEAKER_02The hours were crazy. And uh from for my research on AVL, for those that uh are have their own business, uh, these major corporations, you know, they they actually plan their holidays very differently because they need AVL during Christmas season or a conference season or uh uh an organization is having an activity that's very important for the company, and so they have to continuously adjust their schedule and find these contracts uh soon because there's there's competition. Yeah. So did you live through that? So these erratic hours, weekends, all of it.
SPEAKER_01All of it. So I I I mean, I was the weekends were always long. That's usually where our events are. So starting Thursday, Friday, I'll be school going to school, getting picked up, and just wouldn't be home till Sunday. Oh Sunday evening, maybe Monday morning, going back to school, doing it all over again. I would see, I would work 24 to 48 hours straight sometimes, um, with a little nap under a stage at times.
SPEAKER_02But just so you were assembling all the equipment and dismantling, disassembling and disassembling.
SPEAKER_01Dismantling, running the events, okay, uh doing audio, video lighting, all of that. Oh, that's amazing.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, so how many how many were you? You said it was a it was a company.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so within the company, full-time staffers, uh, we were about six to eight. Six to eight. Um, but during events, uh, our team would grow up to 20, 20 to 30. So after at 16, um got hired on as a contractor, then finally got uh hired on full-time. Okay, and I was uh doing college as well as uh that.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_01And from there I just started uh I became the manager of the production company.
SPEAKER_02When uh was it college, what kind of events like uh just uh college foot football games or or uh graduations?
SPEAKER_01Everything from we went from weddings to so his his wife had uh his wife also had a my my my my boss's wife also had they owned a decor company and a marketing company. And a marketing company. So it was uh under the house, it was all in one. So we were doing anything from weddings to major concerts to um to uh church events. Sure.
SPEAKER_02Um that's a that's a lot of equipment. If I if I'm I'm I'm trying to do an inventory in my mind about the cabling, the lighting, the fixtures, uh the racks where you put the the lights on and all that. Uh did they did they have a warehouse? Did they have uh uh commercial place? Yeah, commercial warehouse, huge warehouse, yeah, vans to transport the equipment.
SPEAKER_01Vans, trucks. I was driving, uh I mean I started learning how to drive a 24-foot box truck when I was like 17, 18. We we don't talk about licenses like that.
SPEAKER_02We uh but you were driving the the vehicle uh to those events, yes, and uh that's amazing. Six or seven people. Uh so when you were full-time, this was after high school. So let's say you graduated high school, you were still doing the AVL with this organization. Yes. Okay. How long did you do that before well you ended up with your own business before that? No, no, I don't know.
SPEAKER_01I I I I opened up my own business recently within the last couple of years.
SPEAKER_02Okay, but you were managing this organization, managing the uh production company. So how from from you know you're as a manager, obviously, of this AVL, um having potentially five people under you, whatnot, what leadership skills at that young age does a young man need to have in order to be successful?
SPEAKER_01Humbleness. Humbleness. Humbleness. Okay, and the reason being is at such a young age, got hired on at 16, I knew a little bit, learned so much. Um, so at 18, 19 years old, I'm I'm managing a couple of guys at the warehouse, then going on to shows and events, and I'm now I'm managing 15 to 20 guys. Oh my god, that's that's a huge group.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, so what would like the age range from for for the men? Yes, but so so that's what I'm getting to.
SPEAKER_01What why I needed this skill of humbleness as a leader is you have an 18, 19 year old managing 20 men that have been in this industry for a while, and they're about twice my age. Wow. So we have 20, we have 30-year-olds, 40-year-olds, um, a couple 50-year-olds, yes, and they see me walk in and I'm just barking orders and doing this, driving, and and just you know. My my boss at the time, he still is with the city of Miami. He was a police officer. Okay. And um, so he was working, and I was running everything and just taking care of things for him. He'll show up and we'll go ahead and attack this together. And um, at the time I had to learn how to be humble. Absolutely because you know, these 30-year-olds, 40-year-olds are looking at a 19-year-old that like, what do you know? So I learned quickly, it's okay, I'm going to I'm going to give what it is that needs to be done, and I'm gonna stay in my lane, and eventually they're gonna understand, okay, he knows what he's talking about. Absolutely he's humble enough, sure, and he's confident enough to be able to lead us. Wow, small venues, medium venues, and these are venues.
SPEAKER_02That's amazing. You know, as as as a project manager, um, you know, the initiation stage, these opening meetings, trying to get a a concept of of uh uh a project cycle, uh uh, uh a time cycle, project cycle, looking at resources, uh risk mitigation, looking to see what are what's gonna be the sequence of this event. It can get just the upfront work on the planning side. We have not even executed. We have not even called the uh the supply chain or anything like that, just on the this is what we're going to do. For example, September 23rd, we're gonna have a concert, we need this this equipment, whatnot. And then push comes to shove. We're gonna put Ms. Mr. Isaac Lauriano, Mr. 19-year-old, in charge of a of a massive group of people that are twice his age, yeah. And then they're going to take, I won't say orders, but they're going to take instructions uh on on the what, when, where, how, with whom, and uh how many. And after that, just success will be assembling it, right? Everything's gotta work, first of all, and then you have to disassemble, dismantle that. How did you handle the stress on those events? It it can't be it, it can't be all easy.
SPEAKER_01It was not a rosy road. It wasn't it wasn't easy, but I think you know how some people are just built different. Sure. You think you always built you would build a lot of things? I think I was just built different, uh right. Just um the confidence that my boss gave me. Okay. Um, just the the here's the baton and go with it. Okay. Okay. That's why it's important to for young leaders to learn and and and have the have the space to be able to fail. Sure. To be able to learn. And with that, I had that. Amazing. And I was able to just you know understand, okay, this is stressful, but if I've been charged with it, I can do it. They saw something in it.
SPEAKER_02Sure. I I love the fact that you said um, you know, that you have to be humble because humility or humbleness uh you know makes you more uh a candidate to to receive constructive criticism uh from these older guys, but it's also a soft skill, right? Uh in my industry, we have a lot of people that have hard skills, amazing hard skills. Uh they're top of the line in their industry. We're talking about engineers, designers, process guys, uh, stuff like that. They're really good at what they do, but the interaction with other groups in the the one-to-one, face-to-face, or how they approach other uh uh sets of groups, other companies, yeah, is such lacking uh the soft skills. So they they themselves uh create a barrier where nobody, you know, he's not approachable. We can't talk to him, uh, whether it be arrogance or or just a little bit abrasive, even though they're the best of what they do, uh, and that that sometimes can impede growth and impede better development. So I'm glad that you were you were humble and you did that.
SPEAKER_01So how how many that's that's actually something and going into that leadership and the humbleness, something that I wrote here was authority without humility is toxic. Authority without humility is toxic. Is toxic. And then humility without authority is ineffective.
SPEAKER_02Humility without authority is ineffective. So they have to go hand in hand with it.
SPEAKER_01It has to go hand in hand. Amazing, has to go in hand in hand, and I think yeah, I think um it was important for me at this young age to learn that because I was able to carry that through all the different stages and careers that I've had outstanding and and and uh and tried my best to be humble.
SPEAKER_02So were there there was one failure. I always ask uh our guests, one failure is in that AVL experience where you went home and you sat down and the event is over, things already stored in the warehouse, in that commercial place, vans apart, people went home with their families, and you're at home. I'm assuming living with your parents? At the time, I was yes, I was living with my parents. Okay, so you you're at in your room living with living with your parents, and you and you could have and maybe you said to yourself, Um, I should have handled that differently. Yeah. Were there occasions like that as well? So almost every weekend. Almost every weekend.
SPEAKER_01Almost every weekend, you know, you got a young 19-year-old just in charge of so much. Um, I mean, how many vans or trucks did I not crash or hit? Or um, you know, just equipment that gets forgotten.
SPEAKER_02That's many years ago. Don't don't contact him now. That's been many, many years ago. Very much my boss knows. My boss knows. He saw that extra scratch on the side of the van. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01The statue of the statute of limitation on vehicles and licenses, that's all gone. Amazing, amazing. But yeah, it was you know, just laying laying there at night and and getting getting my butt chewed out by my boss because I forgot something, right? Um, he was he was hard on me. Hopefully, not equipment. You didn't leave a cable. Yes, all you did. Oh, yes, 100%. You just just leaving cables, leaving uh mic stands, right? I remember one time I left the entire case of mic stands. Oh my god. Right? Like how how are we pulling off an event? And um, I remember I don't remember what it was, but we were we were four hours away from Miami to Orlando, and I forgot something crucial. You know, it's just a bad day. Sure. Bad day when that happens, and you know, my my my boss just lost it and just went in on me. And um and I wasn't upset. Sure. Because that's how I learned. I learned by by constructive criticism. I learned by failing, I learned by somebody pulling me aside and saying, hey, you could have done this better. And and it's leadership, right? Right. And um, but yeah, so many times that night I'm like, man, I got I got chewed out because of this. But guess what? Not next time, it didn't happen again. Man, that that's amazing.
SPEAKER_02It didn't happen again. One of one of the things about you know project management, the the different iterations of a project that's very malleable, very fluid, uh, is is the fact that you know the the the importance of process steps. You said that you you failed to maybe that case of microphones or whatnot, uh, that roll call of a checklist to say, do I have this, do I have that? Well, first of all, you gotta find say I went in with so many equipment, so many cases, so many boxes, blah blah blah, inventory, and then you know, doing a roll call about what went in the van, and maybe maybe you could have caught it, maybe who knows? Yeah, you know, sometimes it's the the the the hect the hectic activity to dismantle things and just wrap it up and go home and get paid and tell them, hey, we had a success, and then it was probably a mega success, but man, at the end of the day, you left that case. Yeah, all right. So uh he'll send you the receipt and just in case Sergeant Laureano is gonna do that. So, how do you transition from from that lifestyle from that amazing uh career, uh learning through the trenches, yeah, real uh life experience, not textbook. You're living this, you're uh going through these events, you're uh interacting with a lot of people in charge of a lot of people. How does that transition to a military career?
SPEAKER_01So I'm working, I'm also in school um for criminal justice. Okay. So I had my eyes set on being uh a detective.
SPEAKER_02Where did you study criminal justice?
SPEAKER_01Where? Yeah, where down in South in uh Broward County. Okay, so this is still Miami or is it still in South Florida. Still in South Florida. Okay, still in South Florida. So I live in South Florida, studying criminal justice, got have my eyes set on being a detective. I want to go into the police force. Okay, at the time um Broward County Sheriff's Office was hiring everybody. Everybody, you breathed, okay, you passed that test, you could run. Was it that bad? It was it was bad. They were taking everybody. And uh, so I studied for it, passed past the CJ Bat. Okay. What does that mean? Uh so here comes another appearance. If I could even remember, this has been so long. Um, criminal justice uh basic aptitude test. Oh, you tell me, I'll be no idea. This is this was going on like 15, 20 years almost. How old were you when when when they were reaching out? And so I started reaching out. I was about 20, about 19 to 20 when I when I was really showing interest to start applying. Um 22 to 23 when I was okay, something has to give. Like I have to start this this career path a little sooner rather than later. So I got married. I was about 20, 21 when I when I was married. And um I I I asked my boss, I'm like, hey, you know, I need some uh I need some life insurance. I need uh some dental, some some medical insurance. Like how are we working this? And he said, I'll get back to you. So I'm always looking at different avenues, what we have, and it was it was a God thing because uh while all of this is working out, uh or while he's searching that and I'm just working out other avenues. Um I applied to Broward Sheriff's office where I really wanted to go, where everybody was getting hired. I'm like, I took the test, great scores, and got the letter, denied. Okay. I was taken back. I'm like, I got denied. I didn't understand it. And um knowing now is just God protected me from that. Okay. Um, because I would not be where I am now if I would have taken that career. So you know, uh 2012, 2012, I went into a recruiter's office and I was talking to my then brother-in-law, and he's like, hey man, look look at this cyber uh MOS. Sure. Uh look at the cyber job, it's brand new. So finally I went into that, I talked to them, they're like, We don't have that, we don't know what that is, and I'm like, You have it. Yeah, right. Like, I know you have it.
SPEAKER_02Do some research. So, what did they want to offer you? Because you know, gunner, infantry, they offered a combat medical, they offered me everything but what I wanted. Um, so you know, I I scored high. I scored high on the ASVAP test. And uh for those that don't know, I I I as well, my brothers were in the military, a big influence on my life, like you. Uh there was something more self-serving that I wanted to serve and be of service, and what more to be part of, you know, the the armed forces. And I went there. Uh, they were just like they were recruiting left and right. The um the recruiter had a quota to me, I think it was like 30 soldiers a month, uh Iraqi freedom. We were in Afghanistan, we were in QA, we were everywhere, you know. Uh, this is the the time of the the butches, right? You know, looking for weapons of mass destruction, you know, you know, that period. So I scored high. They offered me uh mechanical engineering, right? Uh off the bat. I'm like, oh, that's great, right? And then uh then I got cold feet. But uh, that's another podcast, Mr. Laureano, Sergeant Laureano is the is the focal point. Yeah, so so they threw everything, nothing stuck with you, and then you told them, hey, yeah, you knew what you wanted. And and and how, I mean, they why were they procrastinating so much?
SPEAKER_01I mean, what were they at the time the job was not available for new assessment or new recruits coming in from the street? Sure. Um, the job was not available for them. The job was only a transitional MOS or a transitional job that for military members that were already in the army. Okay. So I caught wind of it, I did some research and I knew. And the recruiter didn't know what it was. And I'm like, do some research, I'll come back.
SPEAKER_02He did not know what it was. That's very interesting. They normally normally know everything. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_01The brand, it it's rare for the army to create twelve, yeah. New MOSs, yeah. That's very interesting. Yeah, so I I signed up and in two weeks I was out. Okay. No, in two weeks, I was already at basic training.
SPEAKER_02You were at basic training, just like that. Yeah, it was it was a tough two weeks. Okay, you were married. How did that go? Oh, I I mean, moving on. You were newly, right? Almost you know, two years. Yeah, a year and a half, two years. Year and a half uh married. I said, uh, sweetheart, uh, you know, I got accepted, uh cyber, I'm out. We're out, we're going.
SPEAKER_01So yeah. So I was um I packed up our apartment, put it in the storage. Moved her back into her parents' house. Yeah. That's a lot of logistics. A lot. For two weeks, it's a lot. Where was your basic training? So basic training was in Fort Benning, Georgia. Fort Benning, Georgia. Okay.
SPEAKER_02That's uh south of here.
SPEAKER_01Uh more towards the west.
SPEAKER_02So more to the west. Or towards more Macon area.
SPEAKER_01A little further over, uh almost near Alabama, almost.
SPEAKER_02Okay, but it was in Georgia. It was not it was it was not bad. I mean, you weren't you were not in a lot, you know, somewhere remote. It was in the summer. It was in July, so it was hot. It was hot. I'll take that back. In that city, that Georgia Clay wasn't. Oh, yeah, that's uh I I take that back. I know how humid it is. I would prefer that over the cover, though. So this is a brand new MOS. Yes. Brand new to the recruiters, uh, a lot to learn. Maybe in his general, maybe obviously the framework was there uh globally, uh, because it is it is the armed forces, uh, they're very organized in a sense. Um did you did you um take it well, the courses, the material, uh, you know, to to learn this this new technology? And did some of the skill sets as an AVL with cyber is technology, right? So you felt comfortable in that I'm uh I don't want to call it niche, but in that uh MOS?
SPEAKER_01Zero skills that I had in AVL translated into What Zero Zero So now you're behind a monitor sitting down, yeah, uh uh coding? Coding, all of that stuff. So my I I thought I was good at computers until I sat down and went through this course. So at the time the course was six months in Pensacola, Florida. And to put it this way, in six months, you get equivalency of 24 credit hours. Okay, that's how much school is shoved down your brain. Okay, wow. And it it's a lot, it's it's one week of uh course learning, sure, which is about almost a semester hour uh or two semester hours, uh, one week and then test. One week and then test. Yeah. So you were studying that week, take the test. If you failed it, yeah, yep. Usually on Friday, if you failed it, you get a retake. If you fail that, you're out of the course. Oh, wow.
SPEAKER_02Completely. Yeah. I remember when I was taking uh Lean Six Sigma Black Belt. This is back in back in the day, and when age myself back in the day, uh, it was similar. And the pressure, oh my god, we were we're at from the lean manufacturing side, it it came natural to me. Uh machine organization, process flowing, uh, many things, but uh that um Kaizang, Gamba, all that. But from the statistical side, you know, uh going through confidence intervals and and all this math and all the the graphing and the the the capacity that uh like minitap software has and learning all that, it it was it was uh uh a lot of stress because yes, you took all those modules and everything was fine, but then we had to not only present a module and Friday, we also had to take the test. And just like you you said, if you didn't pass that test, you're out. You're out. Alright, so you luckily you pass all those tests.
SPEAKER_01Passed all the tests. How many tests were there total? Ooh. I think there were I don't even want to lie. I think they were maybe 16 modules. Wow, 16 modules, that's amazing.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, not in not including like that. But I think uh, you know, he's he's military and you know this, it's a it's a tight-knit community. You had professors that probably gave you the brain dumps and and you know, gave you all that amazing uh material. I I think when I was at Augusta Tech, because I have a uh uh microcomputer specialist uh degree, uh A plus, A plus plus, N plus. You know, I was I was gonna go into the IT world for a minute, and I did graduate, but luckily for me, uh I think one of the professors uh that was uh teaching the course was also a professor or uh a G9 or G11 in the at Fort Gordon.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_02And he provided the the the brain dumps and he he was he was a bridge to my success. Did you have people like that during those courses?
SPEAKER_01Uh each module had a different instructor. Oh my god. So 16 instructors. You may be comfortable, yes. Yeah, don't quote me on the 16, but I think it was around that 16 or 20. Um each module had a different professor, you would be close to some, close to others. Um there would be some what we would call stomping of the feet, you know. They'll they'll mention something in a certain mod, and you know, okay. You hear that fun stomp, you're like, okay, I need to write that down. Um, you know, that little bit of help. But they were they were pretty strict with what they were allowed to hint at or what they were allowed to just advise us on tests.
SPEAKER_02So in in between interwoven, I I I see uh time management skills that you have to have to to study, yeah uh good organizational skills, and uh just uh absorbing that um volume of material in such a short period of time, literally Monday through Thursday with Friday, you you took a test, and uh you know maybe the first few weeks was a bit daunting, but then you get maybe into mental rhythm, you know, maybe into into that. Uh did everybody that started with you succeeded, or are some people No. No, okay. No, I mean a group of 30. How many we had a very high attrition rate?
SPEAKER_01Okay. At the time our attrition rate was uh about 70 percent. 70 per okay. So 70 percent 70 percent of the people were failing.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, oh that's 70 percent of the people were failing, yeah.
SPEAKER_01And I mean you failed out of that, out of the course, and you were going to be a cook. You were either gonna go be a linguist, you were gonna go into Well, they had an alternate MOS. Uh oh, or they oh they chose for you. No, it it sometimes they would choose for you, other times they were like, hey, we only have these two, or these two. Okay, I'll see whatever's available with. Whatever's available. You know what? And so for me, I'm 24 years old. I'm not this this is the only thing I have right now. Oh wow. Like I I had my mind made up and I'm going to pass this.
SPEAKER_02And one of the things that I always feared, and I think my my brother shared the same thing because they they were in the military. Um uh 82nd Division, Ford Bragg, Jump Master, you know, uh one was in the Navy, then the communications, whatnot. Uh had a brother that was communication, but also combat medic. I mean, there's but the the the fear is where are you going to be deployed to? You know, whether they say, okay, yes, change of MOS, I'll see you in Alaska, you know, I'll see you in somewhere in a base in Kuwait. I'll see you wherever they need you, right? Because, you know, because some uh bases were full, right, to capacity and they were already transitioning people that were leaving, but they already had the new cycle of of soldiers that were going to do that. Um so you graduate from there, and did you go to other nations exercising that cyber operations?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so I've been uh so I've been to Australia. Australia. I was able, I've been able to go to uh uh Colombia. Columbia. I've uh been able to travel uh what we call um uh Conus here within the United States. Different states within the United States. Yes, different states.
SPEAKER_02What's the furthest state you've been to? Maybe like uh New York. California. California, okay. Yeah, that's a that's maybe from here, because we're in Georgia, so that'll be the furthest. Actually, Hawaii. Six hours ahead, six hours from here. Yeah, Hawaii, actually. Oh, you've been to Hawaii. Yeah, that'll be the furthest then. I I went to I went to Oahu, Hawaii. I fell in love. Yeah. Uh I was there, uh actually, I was there preaching, and I was given a leadership conference or one of my books, uh, Renaissance Leadership, and uh it was six hours from from George from Atl to California, and then another six hours from there to to uh Oahu or Honolulu. Yeah. And when you look at it where it's in the map, you you're astonished because it's like a dot in the middle of the entire Pacific Ocean. Yes. Uh so that was that was kind of scary when you look at it through Google Maps. But once you're there, you know, it's it is literally paradise pristine water and whatnot. So how long were you in in these uh deployments?
SPEAKER_01So uh each one would be a couple of weeks. Okay. Um, a couple of months. And did your wife ever go with you? Yeah, so I flew Cynthia out uh to Australia with me uh uh for a couple of weeks when I was there. I was there for about six months.
SPEAKER_02Okay. So once you graduated in cyber operations, you were part of a part of a unit. Uh were how how did you progress through through the ranks? Take me through that journey for you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, um, I mean, by the it by the grace of God, um, and just having having God's God's grace over my life, I was able to find favor in a lot of my leadership. Favor is not fair, they say favor is not fair, and that's uh yeah, my sister-in-law, Carla tells me that she's she's always like, Hey, you have favor over your life, and it's astonishing. Yeah, and I'll take all the favor I could get, right? Yeah, absolutely. But um, I definitely used uh God's favor in uh in my life, and I was able to, like I said, came in at 24. I was a lot older than these other recruits that came in with me, so I had something to prove. Sure. I had I had to be I was put in leadership positions automatically because of my age. So I used that as uh as an advantage. Absolutely. And uh just came in and went through the ranks pretty quick, actually.
SPEAKER_02I think one of the things that we were we were talking about uh is leadership uh as uh it's all about influence, right? You have no influence, you have no positive influence, or the the the desire to see other people succeed and become better and improve uh not only through the trenches, but also people that uh are willing to receive the the uh the instruction, the the work instruction procedures, whatnot, and are able you you see their progression uh and and they they go up the ranks, but that's also a testimony to your leadership because you were part of that journey. And uh in in my career, uh secularly in my career, I've had many professional mentors, but I also had a lot of spiritual mentors, right? Um and and and learning to to go goes back again to to being humble, uh, to being receptive to to God's voice, to to being able to uh to adapt. And sometimes you get the good work, and sometimes you you get to uh clean the bathrooms or do the do all that. But you being in leadership at such a young age, it all all comes back full circle where now you're in the profession as a cyber operations with a a little bit more sensitive, you know, missions, critical uh mission control, yeah, uh and and critical information, sensitive information, the public's on a need-to-know basis. It's uh you're you're conducting all these uh all these activities, uh, but from a different periphery. And I think that uh a lot of people take that for granted because you know, we are also professionals. And when we're uh doing our jobs and and we're in a position of of leadership, you know, you're not only seeing it through a corporal lens, you know, our our human sight, we're also seeing things as there's a purpose in my life through this. Yes, this are seasoned, there's a chapter. And so I always look at it not only again corporally through my uh human sight, but also through God's favor and his provision and and the when I look back in my life and how he connected the dots, knowing or unknowingly, that I knew at the time, but where I'm at today is only a testament to God's love, yes, to his mercy and favor, right? When when uh so that that's that's amazing. Uh what what did you one of one of the things that you learned that you would say this is a very paramount lesson in life? Um again goes back to your failure. Yeah. Did you fail as a cyber operations leader?
SPEAKER_01Or was it a unit failure, more so in that instead of uh uh You know, we all fail, we all fail as uh as individuals. Sure. And that's I think that's part of um being responsible of your failures is part of learning. Um, you know, uh I definitely failed. I definitely failed a lot and as a unit we did as well. But um some some pivotal some pivotal lessons that I learned through all of that was you know not only myself but the leadership that was leading me. Um and what I mean by that is we had great leaders and we had bad leaders. And I think I learned as much as I did with the good leaders and the bad leaders. And the bad leaders because I remember I remember there was a moment where I was uh frustrated with certain decisions that were being made for my career and and the way that my leadership was um treating me and uh and and and how I was being directed that it was frustrating me. And I I took I took I took note of that and I I told myself when I become a leader and I'm in their position, I'm promising myself now that I will not treat my soldiers the same way. Oh that's amazing. And in that that was just a light bulb. I'm like, I I appreciate and I thank God for that leader because now I know how to treat my soldiers. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02Responsibility and accountability. We all we have what's called uh a RASI org chart who's responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed. And I think that's you know, a lot of people when when they they see my my style of leadership is that they don't realize that I have someone to be accounted for, and that's that's got him. So so a lot of times, you know, when they expect you to be a little bit more assertive or abrasive or maybe worldly and and and put people in their place, but in a really foul manner, you know, you really have to catch yourself in check. You know, because uh first of all, you hear uh uh uh leadership is a position of honor. You know, you're a servant leader, whatnot, but you can't in my life, I've never, you know, I can't disassociate my faith with with my career. Very much so. It goes hand in hand. You know, I always admire uh, you know, how God selected Noah to build the ark, uh, a strategic planner, you know, there was there was a mission to blueprint, like we talked about blueprint. So same thing with Joseph, same thing with Daniel, same thing with Nehemiah. Uh they're all they were building, they were constructing, they had a strategy, a plan. There was a blueprint, not only a physical blueprint of uh of erecting a physical building or a tabernacle or an ark, you know, there was also a spiritual blueprint to their lives. Yes, and they were, you know, yes, I'm building this physical thing, yes, I'm building this career, yes, I'm I'm leading, but there's also a building inside of me. Yeah, there's also uh continually uh a renewal of God's presence and and whatnot. And um I have met like like you, many hundreds of soldiers that uh we have fellowship with that are probably in the same boat as you are, probably different MOS, but experiencing those same stresses that uh that you probably uh uh have uh have experienced. So take take me through a a common day in the life of Sergeant Laureano. What's a what's a what's a typical day for you? Now you you are right now uh reserve, is that correct? National Guard, yes. National Guard. So you when they call you, they get they have a uh national emergency, whatnot, or you know, some some ruckus, chaos, uh anywhere that they need you, we're gonna deploy the national.
SPEAKER_01It's so broad. It's so broad. So right now, because of my rank, um in a leadership position. Okay, so I may not be on keyboard. Um, that's administratively. Uh if we go operational, if we are uh deployed, um we I may be on keyboard and that's a different job. Or if there's a catastrophe within uh the United States or in the States or wherever we help, that's uh civil duties.
SPEAKER_02When was your last uh because I I I think a couple of months ago, if I'm not mistaken, you were deployed somewhere. Was it the the natural disaster? Uh so Helene.
SPEAKER_01What I I was I was deployed during Helene. During Helene, okay, Anderson County, South Carolina. That was that that opportunity was uh was a pretty cool opportunity there. I was I was very thankful that I was I was placed in that position.
SPEAKER_02Okay, amazing. So now full circle again, AVL, National Guard, Cyber Operations, which which you still execute and serve, yes, to now a transition into a position of of ministry and leadership. Yes. Take me through that because that that's a that's a entirely different calling. You see, yeah, the the different levels and and uh how God really stretches you to stretches your faith, uh stretches your character, uh puts challenges before you as he told uh you know Joshua, I will go before you. You know, um uh how how what was that transition and how how were you led there? Because a lot of people they they they have the calling or they sense the word or the instructions from above, but they're always procrastinating, not now, not this season, maybe two years from now when I finish ABC D F G. And there's always kind of like a a worldly need that they put before uh our maker. Yeah, but you said, Yes, here I am.
SPEAKER_01Here I am how did that send me. How did that how did that come about? Take me through that journey. Man, I if there's one moment that was pivotal, pivotal for me stepping into ministry. I remember uh being very young and I was helping my pastor out at church, and it was just serving. You know, it was it wasn't I wasn't preaching, I wasn't uh it wasn't during service, it was just being at church serving the kingdom, yes, improving the kingdom, and I said, I want to do this one day, I want to do this one day, and um I tried running from it, tried running from it, and then about 10 years into my military career, successful career. Sure. Love the army, successful army career, and um I was in Pensacola, I was stationed in Pensacola, and I would come home for the weekends and go uh go back uh for a while. I was standing up, uh helping stand up a platoon over there as a drill sergeant. I was a drill sergeant as well. Okay, that's a that's a different leadership topic. It's it was pretty it's pretty cool. But um so I'm there and my I decided to take that position and travel a little bit because we had person we had just purchased a home here in Augusta, and I said, well, let me get ahead of this, try to steer my career a little bit. Uh maybe if I go and I go for six months, they won't PCS me over there, they won't move me over there.
SPEAKER_02So if you would remove it would be they will move you permanently over there.
SPEAKER_01Permanently. Permanently, okay, okay. And um Pensacola's beautiful. Sure, absolutely on the beach. Yeah, who doesn't want it? Yeah, but I was so I was I was I was locked into my community, I was locked into church. My spiritual, my spiritual life, my my my my my relationship with God at the moment was yeah on a high. I was loving it. And um I told uh I told my command, I'll go. And in the hopes that they won't move me over there, and they're like, hey, since you're doing us that favor, we're not gonna move you. I'm like, perfect. So I remember uh going into a four-day weekend, it was a holiday, and my commander over there at the time, she's like, Hey, Loriano, um some some some sad news. They want to PCS you here, they want to move you here. And I said, ma'am, all due respect, that's not gonna happen. She looked at me, she's like, I don't think you have a choice. And I'm like, No, ma'am, it's not gonna happen. I'm getting out. If that happens, I'm getting out. I knew I was bluffing. Yeah, I wasn't getting out. Um my career, my career in the army was flourishing. Sure. I was doing amazing. And um, I was bluffing. I'm like, call him up, tell them I'm getting out. Because my my ETS date, my the date to get out was coming up next, the year following. Okay. And I told him you had a lot to think about at the time, yes. Yeah, yeah. I'm getting a lot of people. All the good stuff, yeah. And and like uh the bonus, you know, not to talk too much about money, but the bonus for me at that moment, they were giving me$70,000. No, eighty thousand dollars. It was eighty thousand dollars. What a temptation, right? What a temptation. I knew I knew I was bluffing. I'm about to get eighty thousand dollars. I'm not getting out of the army, sure. And and I they were just about to give me another rank. Right. And I told her, tell them I'm getting out, I'm going back. And I was bluffing. And I called my pastor at the time, I'm like, hey, this is what's happening. And uh, you know, they they're like, hey, come come work in the ministry. And weeks prior to that, I had God was dealing with me about transition, about um being called about my ministry, absolutely, and I was feeling a tug, but I didn't know how and where things were gonna play out, absolutely, and it was there, yes, it was at that moment, and I and I told him, Let me pray about this because I'm bluffing. I told the army that, but I'm bluffing. I'm not gonna I'm not gonna go, right? So I went home and that weekend I was just put my face to the ground and just seek God and prayed and just just started studying scriptures and and going back to what God had told me. And we were talking about earlier about discerning, discerning and learning. Listening to God's voice. Absolutely. And I always tell people Scripture tells us the sheep know my voice. Right? If our mothers were to scream out our names right now, we know our names, but we know their voice. Absolutely. It's an immediate like that's her. Yes. Right? So many voices are screaming out our names, telling us to go someplace. Absolutely. But if we hear that voice that we recognize, the shepherd's voice, our mother's voice, God's voice, we recognize it. And that's why it's important to discern and know God's voice. Because at that moment, I heard his voice.
SPEAKER_02It's it's amazing because every we were talking about that other voices seem appealing. Yeah. The the the appeal of the voice of a successful career and those that whisper in your ear a new rank, the bonus, maybe a position of leadership, less work, more direction, more of an administrative role, uh, stability, you know. Uh as men, we like toys, right? Maybe the the the car, the whatever your your hobbies are, right? For me, it's mountain biking, you know, better bike and better this uh studio, whatnot. But discerning discerning uh is is one thing when when um our maker puts us at check. Yes. Because it's not just about discerning, the voice merits a response, right? Every time God called his servants, you know, even Samuel, right? He said, Here I am, or or or all the the other prophets, uh and and men of God, it was not just about the calling, it it merited a response. So when did you respond saying this is this is the path that though scary, yeah, though a lot of unanswered questions, uh said, Yes, this is what I'm going to do.
SPEAKER_01So that was on a Wednesday or on a Thursday with whatever that long four-day weekend was. I came back and told them I came back Monday or Tuesday, whatever that was, and I told them I'm out. You're out, I'm out. They didn't believe you. Nobody believed me. Nobody believed me. I got out of the army, and people still didn't believe that I got out. Because it's impossible for Sergeant Loriano to get out with how Wally was doing where he was going. Sure. The promises that he had in the army. It's impossible. Sure. Like logistic, logically, logically, it doesn't make sense, right? But but I knew what God said. Amazing. I knew what God said. So, how did that come about to where you're at today? So I got out of active duty and I love the army so much. So I'm like, you know what? Let me do it part-time. Sure. Let me uh so I joined the National Guard.
SPEAKER_02And and that's very important because that's so you know, I I teach uh well, I teach at advice on different uh revenue streams. You know, you have to God also gives us the ability to create wealth, as as Pastor Brian was actually teaching this Wednesday, and the ability to to uh God gives us wisdom to create wealth, and that's you know, we have to look at our lives strategically. We're we're uh a project in progress. So I'm glad that uh you have that avenue as well. Very much, very much so. So you did you did it part-time now? Well, you know, uh not part-time, but you know, what's the terminology now?
SPEAKER_01So you are so uh a national guard? Yes, so a guardsman.
SPEAKER_02Guardsman, okay.
SPEAKER_01Guardsman, okay.
SPEAKER_02Then you now you have time. You say, okay, now I'm doing this as a guardsman. Yes, I'm not full-time uh in the military. I've got time and I gotta fill up that time.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so what filled up my time was ministry. So I started working for for the church. Okay, uh for the kingdom.
SPEAKER_02Well, how do they approach you? I mean, uh you just didn't show up saying, hey, I'm I'm I'm here. Well, that same weekend.
SPEAKER_01Okay, that same weekend, I was uh uh my best friend still till now. He was on staff and and uh he he had called the lead pastor and lead pastors, Pastor Brian's like, come work. AVL, AVL, A IT and AVL.
SPEAKER_02Look at that. It all came full of skills.
SPEAKER_01What I did when I was young in church, what transitioned into the production company was I was younger, which is AVL. What I learned in the military, all right, which is IT, now comes into the kingdom. Right.
SPEAKER_02So all the audio, all the visual, all the cameras, whatnot. You know, I've I've been, I think, uh, if I'm not mistaken, total time, 10 years. 10 years. We were at the the Best Buy when I first joined uh over there in Wrightsboro Road. A massive building, and we were smaller in group. But uh, and of course, I think even my my daughter Danael participated in rotating the cameras, these massive things. And now when I look today and I sit down, it's unmanned, you know what I mean? And this high-tech thing say, man, I need that for my studio. You know, so uh I'm not saying that I do, but if you have an extra one, you know, I I'll definitely receive it for the k for the kingdom. For the kingdom. But so I I've seen I've seen the um the the massive uh progression and improvement, which you know, God takes us from glory to glory, right? And and I've seen that on the also not only spiritually there, but also on the technological side. You can see the difference, you can see the the quality. And and you were part you are part of that. And uh on the recording and in the world.
SPEAKER_01So I led I led that for for a couple of years. Okay. And uh recently uh I've stepped, I've stepped back, and others have taken uh taken that leadership role in in AVL. I I still assist, so I'm still over IT and I still assist, but man, they've they've taken AVL to to an excellent one. They're doing amazing with it.
SPEAKER_02You know, uh using the example of my daughter, so when when uh she was doing that, uh you you as a leader, knowing that you have sometimes it's volunteer basis, right? Not every there's there's so much work, right? There's so much work and so very few that obviously can be uh full-time in ministry or part of the the staff, yeah, part of the staff. So there's a lot of volunteer work to move can back then to move the cameras to do this and that. And so Danielle, that's all she could do. So how how did you lead those volunteers that were somewhat nervous and moving, yeah, moving around or or focus here or focus there? I'm I'm not sure if they were zooming in or out. I know back then she was just like uh left, right, yeah.
SPEAKER_01I think speaking into volunteers and leading volunteers in church, because now I uh oversee uh I'm the men's director. Correct, yes. I was gonna ask Yeah, I'm the men's director, and I'm I also oversee security and the ushers. And one of my most difficult times in leadership has been within the church, within the kingdom. And I don't mean difficult as in bad, I mean difficult as in learning to where I need to pivot the way that I do things and what I've learned. Sure. And the reason why is because it's volunteer-based. Sure. Oh, absolutely. When I was young and I was directing people, people were getting paid. If you didn't like it, you could go. Right in the military, you're a soldier. Absolutely. You soldier up, lace up your boots, and you go. You do what I say.
SPEAKER_02I can I can I can relate to that because again, coming back from uh I've been in quality a quality manager uh for 21 years with the staff. Not saying that what I say is is, you know, I delegate for you have a role, responsibility, yeah, quality engineers, mechanical, design, PPAF, you know, 14 technicians. You you have a staff and you have a program and this is gonna be done. This is the timeline, that this, and then you have volunteers. Because I've been there as well in in the in the church environment, yeah. Uh the ecclesiastes, that's the big word, uh environment, whereas Joe didn't show up, yeah, and he had a critical role. Yeah. And and and and Susie had an emergency, and Paul's kid is sick, and and then you had a plan. Yeah. And here it is. You know, if you're nerdy as me, you know, you have a project charter, you know, you have a Gantt chart, you have a PDCA, you know, you you know how nerdy I can get with this project management and stuff. So you have that because you want to serve with excellence. Yes. And then you show up all hyped, all all spirit fed. I mean, you're ready to go. Yeah. And 50% of your staff is not there. Yeah. How does Isayas Lauriano handle that?
SPEAKER_01Man, it's still learning. Still learning. Right, still learning, you know, because like we said, it's a volunteer basis. Either, either you can't drink so much coffee. So much coffee. I live off coffee.
SPEAKER_02I've seen that little nook of the church. It's like this, that's his fifth coffee. So it keeps me running. I'll be like, do you need a volunteer? Do I need to do something? Uh what do you need? Yeah, but um what's your learning process look like? When you say learning, that that's such a broad learning in what context? What what what areas of leadership learning?
SPEAKER_01Learning how to lead volunteers. Learning how to lead volunteers. Because leading volunteers is completely different from leading your subordinates in in the commercial area in in business. Um, because you have a you have processes, you have frameworks, you have a culture within your job that everybody has to adhere to. Right. You're there and you and and it's gonna work this way because this is the way that it's set to be. Sure. Uh, within volunteer bases, it's just so many different backgrounds. Um so many different uh so so it's just a dynamic uh group of people that are there serving. You know, they're they're serving their time. Yeah, and it's um it's it's that's the tricky part.
SPEAKER_02You know, you try not not you you try to to infuse people with with your passion, right? I think one of because I've been in that position where I've had to let them know the importance of it, and that you're doing it for the kingdom, and that there has to be responsibilities. I'm I'm the one that uh I love clear communication. Yeah, this is this is why we have the meeting, this is what we're gonna do, how we're gonna do it. These are the expectations, these are the requirements, because not just every volunteer. I'm not just gonna put anybody to volunteer. Has to be someone that has proven to be uh uh um Bible-based and an active leader, has given testimony and whatnot. And then you have your good staff and you see you see the potential in which they can evolve. Uh, but even with even with good communication, even with setting roles, responsibilities, and uh uh conveying in a clear, concise manner you have done your due diligence and saying, these are my expectations for this activity, whether it be a Bible study or uh a weekend event, uh, you know, now uh Resurrection Sunday or whatnot, and then you show up and and again and you have some difficulties in personnel, or maybe someone's attitude changed about their participation in this event. Uh, to me, when when I've I've had these those challenges, I I always I'm always hard on myself. It's like, what could I have done differently? Was my communication channel not clear enough? Uh was the email that I sent, you know, you the these group emails, which probably with new life has has uh 20 or 30 groups, you know, and your men's group, right? You send I get I get your text all the time, right? Did I send it on time? Was it clear? Was it stuff like that? And you go through because I'm overly critical of myself, but then again, you have to say to yourself, I've done the best, and I've done the best I can, and I'm gonna work the best I can with with the resources that I can, and and hopefully uh they you know they would come around next time. Yeah, and if not, it there's always a new group of people that that do that.
SPEAKER_01It's interesting because what what I was referring to also was in the learning and my my leadership and what you just explained and all of that, the dynamics in that with um with different positions that I hold. It went from being in the military and also in the production world to to where I was being driven by execution and mission. Yes, and my and and my leadership's intent to now in the kingdom it's shepherding. Yes. There's a complete difference. So here I'm I am driving mission, driving it my commander's intent, driving what needs to occur for certain events. To now I'm leading, but I have to lead as a shepherd. I have to lead, uh I have to lead with the heart of Christ. Yes. Love, empathy, sympathy, compassion. Very much so. Like where are the fruits of the spirit?
SPEAKER_02Correct. Well, teacher, all of that stuff. All of that. Yeah, and I've seen that uh in the Mensah Fellowship in the breakfast on Saturday, uh, that we do have, and you have given uh uh a mini sermon uh or mini illustration uh Bible base. I I you know I look around in uh the room trying to gauge the room and people's attentiveness uh toward what you uh what you're exposing and illustrating, and uh you've got their attention, you know. So just just as a testimony, when I look around, praise God. At least somebody's paying attention. Yeah, yeah, paying it paying attention. They're not on their phones, maybe one or two kids, but right, because it's kind of like an adult uh adult atmosphere, so to speak, right? You could bring your children and whatnot, but uh you hone in and you and you d deliver the message. And I'm glad you said that you're shepherding them because that's a process in their lives. You know, some people in the Bible says they give 30, and some people give 50, and no, you know, 90, 100. And and though you're giving 90 or 80, if they're giving the 30 that they were called to give, you know, who are you to judge their 30? Yeah, just make sure that you're delivering your 80 or your 90. And and that's the way, that's the way I look at it. You know, as I I I try not to be as hard as I was in my in my earlier days, and my uh, you know, because I was growing in leadership just like you, and just like you, maybe not in the military, but it was all about the project. There's a there's a project cycle. I have to finish here, I have to, there's some milestones in between, there's some checks and balances, there's a closing meeting, there's some lessons learned, and none of that was working in church. And I would go crazy. I would go, you know, whether I was I was a youth pastor, right? And I I supervised 12 youth groups, and I was uh back in in that uh the uh our denomination, um uh it's called Ahic. And the the Association of Youth, Ambassadors of Christ, I don't know, Bahadur de Cristo. So um, you know, and and I supervised 12 youth groups in different churches, different states, whatnot, and and man, I was I was struggling. I was struggling trying to find that uh that leadership trait that would not be overly critical. So now you're shepherding, you're doing it part-time, the audiovisual security. You got five titles. You just mentioned about five or six, and and of course, uh part of the altar care team. I see you uh in the front as well. What does the future hold for you? Not only as you're growing in the leadership, growing in your faith, where fast fl you know, because God may say this is the next season in your life. Um what what what does your heart and and say about the next coming upcoming five years?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. The next upcoming five years, wow. Um are we talking about military? Are we talking about church? Both kingdom. Both of them, yeah, kingdom first and then military. Yeah, I mean kingdom. Just going back to that discernment and hearing God's still voice, just waiting on what the next step is. I wish I knew what five years looked like in the kingdom, right? Um but you know, we lean not on our own understanding. Absolutely. And we trust in God and He's gonna direct all of our paths. So I'm in the I'm in the following of the direction of His path right now. Absolutely. Uh just waiting to hear what the next step is. So just continuing what God has placed in my heart, um, men's ministry. Uh just you know that that that that pastoral care. Sure. Um, the heart for the people. Sure. That's that's what is that's what he's driving me to. Sure.
SPEAKER_02And and I like I said I've seen your you you're being effective in that, and as you grow and expand and and and be of a of a great influence, you know, it's a almost a tight knit. There's there's there's a lot of visitors, and people come and go because some are military, others are are here for a job, a career, and maybe they they move. Uh but then there's the the the heart of the church, right? The the group of people and whatnot. And and I've seen, like I said, it's a it's a it's a church with multiple fruits, constantly growing, always leaders that have vision, have a mission. In my case, I'm you know, I'm always project planning about I'm gonna get this certification, I'm gonna do this and that. But I always give permission to God to take my plans and just you know, just tear them apart, you know, and just align them and be uh discern. I you know, I I navigate in the realm of uh writing books, right? And and I feel that every year God drops uh uh a seed of inspiration and he allocates the not only the time but the resources to do them. And if he places it in your heart, like you said, it's because he knows that you're capable. Yes. That that that you are that though we stumble, you know, he is our strength, uh, he provides wisdom, he's gonna direct us, and we will not fail. Yes. Well, that that we will prosper. Now, in the military, what is Vavier looks like? So that you can't control. Yeah, that that I can drill a little bit.
SPEAKER_01Um I'm gonna be stepping into uh first sergeant position uh and going into having uh leading my own company and then from there uh eventually a sergeant major school. But you're also directing.
SPEAKER_02Uh you have your own uh business that you're trying to the AVL goes back to yes, so L'Oreal's L'Oreal Productions.
SPEAKER_01L'Oreano Productions. Loriano Productions.
SPEAKER_02I I sense he's gonna get busy quick, so uh you know, just uh we'll put that in the comment section in the hyperlink. And uh if you can start getting calls, you know, like I always said, I think I told Swayze I I want some royalties because you know, because I need to fund your brother. I need to fund this podcast somehow. I got your brother. So if you get two or three contracts, like yeah, I saw you on that podcast, and here's uh and you're like, hey Daniel, here's your commission check. Here's that camera you want. Exactly. There you go to the camera. You got an extra camera, a police are bringing bringing my way for the kingdom. Can I throw it in there for the kid? My producer is smiling, he's uh he's smiling ear to ear. Yeah, so uh that that's a message. So uh finishing off your your your thought on the military.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so I mean just that and and uh your rank, eventually, yeah. Uh one to two ranks within those five and um schooling. You you've you've uh you're 14 years already in the military.
SPEAKER_02Yes. You want to do the 20, you want to finish with that 20. Okay, so yeah, absolutely. There's an end goal, yeah. End goal of 20, schooling in between, whatnot. Uh uh some schooling also in in in ministry or or both go hand. Uh completed in parallel.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, uh already school and ministry that's uh about to be completed already. So we're we're wrapping that up.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know, when I was uh at the age of 26, 27, um just to to wrap this up a bit, um, you know, I was uh approached to pastoral church. And at the time uh my kids were small, and uh I was more in in the music evangelistic realm. So I, you know, I was revivals, conferences, uh, you know, and both uh domestically here in the United States, uh all the from New York and Boston all the way down to to Florida, you know. Yeah. Uh and then God opened a lot of doors in in Puerto Rico and whatnot. And then this opportunity came to pass for church. And it seems so at the time, you feel honored, right? That somebody would approach you, see the gifts and talents and abilities, and specifically the calling that was over your life, that which was extremely humbling uh to even be recognized and considered for that. But that voice of discernment, and uh my my wife and I, you know, we we just prayed about and meditated and and asked God, and it wasn't we wouldn't there was no uh that assurance with those hey thank you for this opportunity, but God wants something else, and and I'm glad for that decision because you know what if God is uh calling Mr. Laureano and He says uh you know, yes, you are full-time, but the uh you know how new life is, where it flourishes like a it blooms like a flower and it has all these hubs. Who knows that uh Pastor Brian has a has a dream, has a vision, uh, you know, and uh has you in his heart somehow some way for for this new assignment with that's something that you're receptive to, something that the Lord has placed in your heart, or or do you see yourself in those roles?
SPEAKER_01Um it's a good question. I haven't thought that far out. Okay, sure. Yeah, I mean it's definitely been a thought, uh, nothing that I've uh dug into. Sure. Right? I don't like like like I had mentioned before, you know, lean not on your own understanding. I don't wanna I don't want to limit God, I don't want to create a for a vision for myself that is not for me. Absolutely. Um interesting to what you were just speaking about, where you were offered a church and you you know you didn't take that opportunity because it wasn't what God was leading you to. And we have so many as leaders, we have so many, and as fathers and as husbands, we have so many decisions that we have to take. Right? Uh somebody asked me the other day, man, you do so much, you wear so many hats. You're in charge of so much. Absolutely. How do you do it? Yes, and I told him, like, I could sleep at night. I can sleep at night knowing that it's not my decisions that drive it. I can sleep at night knowing that I'm leading because I'm being led by Christ. If something goes wrong, if something's Something's apparently wrong, right? Or something, you know, is not going well. I can sleep because it's Christ that's directing my path. It's Him that if I'm supposed to be doing something, He told me to do it, and it's not going like I planned, I can sleep because it's God driving this. Sure. Right? And and that's what I talk about. Like, I'm at peace because I'm following His path.
SPEAKER_02Just to wrap it up here, because man, there's so much to talk about. Someone that isn't uh aspiring to be a Sergeant Laureano, uh someone that is going probably through that same path that you have successfully uh gone through. Uh what would you advise that individual? Yeah, whether it be male or female. Yeah, male or female. Um and family, you know, because there's that element of family. You didn't do this by yourself. There's a family there.
SPEAKER_01Correct, and that was just what I was about to touch on. And and and I I'll speak mainly to the men, um, but you know, you know, the women and the wives, and and they could they could glean from this. But it is first and foremost a relationship with Christ that is gonna drive you to success. You know, um, listening to that voice, uh, reading and studying the scriptures and praying, you know, that's where that's where your answers are are are coming from. That's where your leadership truly comes from. And also don't neglect your home. Because you could be successful in the army, you could be successful in ministry, you could be successful at church, you could be successful at work. Yeah, in a career, yes. But if you're not successful at home, you you're a great leader, but if you're not leading correctly at home, all else is a failure.
SPEAKER_02I heard this phrase that said, uh, I'm so poor that the only thing I have is money. And uh, and that that you know, if all you have is money and you don't have a family unit, you don't have shared experiences, yeah, or the the environment where you're creating healthy memories with your loved ones, yeah, and then then your career just robbed your life, robbed your peace. Time flies, three, four years go by so fast, you see your kids grown and you didn't share with them. You do you were not involved in in their lives. And that's one of the things that secularly I advise leaders and professionals uh in the secular realm is that yes, a career is important. The the corner office, the window, the the prestige of a position, of a salary, but if at the end of the day it costs at the expense of not having a relationship with your wife or your family, then you did not succeed. It's not worth it. You just made somebody else wealthy.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, right. It's not worth it. It's not worth it. That's amazing. Good advice. That and also it's just leadership is about people. You know, we we get the mission done, but if you don't have your people's trust, you don't have influence. So it's it's it's about people, and with people comes that communication. Yes, right? Because if you're if you're so far into getting things done with no people skill, there goes a communication, there goes the trust, there goes there goes that that that avenue to where you're able to influence the people because without that, there's no respect. Without that, there's no influence. Without that, there's you're limiting yourself.
SPEAKER_02So well, I just want to say it's been an amazing treat. It's been amazing that uh Sergeant Lauriano, you know, uh uh brother is Isaiah, you know, uh, and I'm glad that you corrected uh some people mentioning my last name's Badijo. Badillo. Badijo. Yes, but yeah, I want to say that I wish you great success. I know you will be successful, not only uh the military ministry, uh personal, your family's blessed. The favor is is is upon you. So I just want to say thank you uh for those that uh want to see this amazing podcast and know about Mr. Isaiah, Sergeant Issayas Laureano, Minister Isaiah Laureano, and all the diversity that he brings on the AVL and all his talents, abilities, and stuff like that. Uh, tune in. Uh we're gonna have this amazing uh podcast to our YouTube channels, social media. We're gonna put some links on how you can contact him for all this new business that he's venturing in. And you talk about time management, he's gonna need some grace, some favor, uh, some uh wife approval too on the time allocated. So it's been a blessing. Uh uh once again, thank you so much, and I will see you on the next episode. Awesome.