The Blue Collar Multi-Millionaire: More Money Won’t Solve Your Problems

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Gary Mizell is the founder of Kore Systems, a systems integration company specializing in mission-critical infrastructure for the federal government, municipalities, pharmaceutical compounding facilities, and data centers. Over the last 18 years, he has grown the company into a multi-million-dollar operation generating approximately $6 million in annual revenue while leading a team of 15 employees. In addition to his legacy business, Gary is also a partner in a new data center venture and has worked on major international infrastructure projects involving nuclear nonproliferation with the Department of Energy.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Building a $6M infrastructure company from the ground up
 • The transition from employee to entrepreneur and knowing when to take the leap
 • Why relationships and integrity are the foundation of long-term business success
 • The hidden cost of hustle culture on family, health, and emotional wellbeing
 • Leadership lessons from scaling a company without burning out
 • How emotional health directly impacts decision making and business performance
 • The role of meditation, breathwork, and self-awareness in entrepreneurship
 • Creating a legacy that extends beyond money and professional success

The Legacy & Wealth Podcast, hosted by Mitchell Clark and presented by The Standard, features conversations with entrepreneurs, executives, and high-performing men building wealth, leadership, and legacy. Each episode explores the mindset, discipline, and strategies required to grow successful businesses while navigating responsibility, family, faith, and long-term impact.

Timestamps

00:00 The cost of hustle culture and burnout
 01:07 Introduction to Gary Mizell
 01:42 Building Core Systems and mission-critical infrastructure
 03:02 Launching a new data center venture
 03:20 Growing a $6M company over 18 years
 04:22 Learning the trades and discovering entrepreneurship
 07:14 Why skilled trades are making a comeback
 09:23 Transitioning from employee to entrepreneur
 11:17 Choosing independence over security
 14:54 Working internationally on nuclear nonproliferation projects
 17:53 Balancing entrepreneurship and family life
 18:20 When Gary’s daughter told him, “Dad, you look dead”
 20:06 Replacing yourself as the bottleneck in business
 22:03 Creating meaningful memories with family
 26:01 The challenges of entrepreneurship and fatherhood
 30:47 Why long-term client relationships matter
 36:44 Integrity, trust, and difficult business relationships
 44:17 The power of referrals and strategic partnerships
 46:15 Why hustle culture eventually breaks people down
 49:02 Why Gary joined The Standard
 53:54 How emotional health impacts business performance
 59:24 Meditation, breathwork, and managing stress
 01:03:23 Aligning family vision, business, and personal growth
 01:07:01 “All my dreams have come true”
 01:08:07 Building a retreat center focused on healing and leadership
 01:10:56 Defining legacy beyond money and success

The Standard is a private, in-person membership community for six-figure men who want to grow in their wealth, health, and relationships by surrounding themselves with other high-performing men operating at their level or above. It is designed for men who have outgrown their current environment and need a structured system of proximity, personalized strategy, and accountability to continue growing across every area of life.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

All my dreams have come true. So I'm stacking on top of old dreams. How does that feel? It's it's amazing, okay, wonderful, and scary. I came home from work one day when my youngest was about two or three, but put her in the car seat and she looked at him, she goes, Dad, you look dead.

SPEAKER_00 0:21

What a great thing to hear from a kid, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 0:24

But that really kind of stuck with me. How much revenue roughly does your legacy company do right now? Uh about six million. So I think that that is a real challenge and a misconception that just grinding it down is gonna get you somewhere. It'll get you somewhere on a short play. Sure. But it's not the long play. What we see is people that literally wake up, work all day, barely eat, do not nourish your body with food, do not meditate, do not pray, and just go to sleep and wake up the next day. Sure. And the the problem is.

SPEAKER_00 1:01

Welcome to the Legacy and Wealth Podcast, a show for proven high-earning men who value wealth, character, and a lasting legacy. Brought to you by the standard, a private membership community for high performers. My name is Mitchell Clark, and today I'm joined by fellow Standard member Gary Mizel. Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. I'm excited to be this too. You're actually one of the first men that I met in the standard, I think at like one of the dinners we had in Prime about a year ago. Yeah, I remember that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I remember when I went to the dinner, I was like, man, these are some really cool individuals. And when I saw your name pop up, I was very excited to have you on here. So we'll get straight into it. Today, how do you currently make money?

SPEAKER_02 1:39

So I have a company, I call it my legacy company. I started 18 years ago, Core Systems. We do back-end infrastructure for uh technology for the federal government, municipalities. Um, so example scenario, I mean, the word systems integration can be a little obscure. Um, example scenario, take like City of Dallas, they're not our customer, but take City of Dallas water treatment, for example. Um we uh automate all the pumps, tanks, levels, pressures to make all the systems run 24-7. So mission critical infrastructure, um, turn everything on and off, collect all the data. Uh so we do primarily our most of our revenue comes from the federal government water treatment and pharmaceutical compounding and data centers.

SPEAKER_00 2:28

That's really interesting because I also work pretty close to the pharmaceutical compounding area. So we'll we'll have some good conversations there. Is it primarily with the government that you work though? It is.

SPEAKER_02 2:38

So I'm my that is my legacy company. Um we have 15 employees. Um it's pretty it's a smooth sailing ship aside from you know the normal business affairs, ups and downs of business. But um, I'm also a third partner in a data center company. That's my new venture that I'm really excited about. Um is it all kind of under the same umbrella though, or is it not advanced? So I'm okay. I'm a third partner in the company called Infrascale, and it's a startup. We've been in business about a year. Um, we have our first data center off the ground now.

SPEAKER_00 3:12

So um, yeah. Okay. Well, just to give an idea scale, how much revenue roughly does your legacy company do right now? Uh about six million. About six million. Okay. And you've built that up over the course of most of your lifetime. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. That's a very impressive venture. I know um I was doing a little bit of research, and my understanding is that if you have a company that is in the green doing over a million, you're in the top one percent. So you do quite well. I don't want to talk to you, you're a very humble, like, I may not be as great as others. Mike, you're doing pretty well for yourself. Thank you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 3:47

I I I I like to stay humble. Um, and uh, you know, I give it all to my employees. There was a time when I had two, three employees, and we were getting close to a million, but nowadays I have a lot of the right people that that are amazing. I have an amazing team. So amazing people around me. What made you want to get into that field? I uh after high school, I went to work with a friend of mine and his dad worked out at Eastman Kodak for a company called Browner Root, which is um a division of Halliburton, they're a construction company, I believe. And uh so I I was doing electrical work and instrumentation work, big chemical plant, and he put us through some trade schools, and it was 92, and really there was a technology, you know, revolution uh around around how we were going from a lot of relay logic in the control systems industry to a lot of computer logic, if you will. We're really in that transition phase. So I was able to learn a lot of that, and it really I had a gift in making it work, understanding the logic, whether it was physical wiring or whether it was computer programming. So um my career just kind of took off around that. So I'm in and when you find your gift, like you're like, yay, this is this feels good, you know. This still gives.

SPEAKER_00 5:10

Yeah. I heard you describe it as managing the central nervous system of a municipal system. Is that an accurate way of describing it? It is.

SPEAKER_02 5:18

It is. It's like uh, you know, it's pennies on the dollar like capital investment for one of these uh manufacturing facilities or water treatment plants, but it is the brains and the spinal cord. So you have all your physical assets, tanks, pumps, physical infrastructure, but making the brains and the spinal cord work is what turns all that, all the physical assets on and makes them perform. So it's it's it's a it's a fun place to be.

SPEAKER_00 5:45

Okay. We have a pretty wide and varied career. So I want to start from the beginning. Was there anyone in your family that was doing anything like this? Or what was childhood like in that regard?

SPEAKER_02 5:55

Uh, childhood, so my dad um worked in the automotive industry. He was uh a service writer and managed the parts department and service department at a dealership. And I remember I used to go to work with my dad when I was younger. I'd go in sometimes at five in the morning with him and he'd be like doing payroll at the end of the month or whatever. And uh I'd try to like, hey dad, let me let me work, you know. And he'd give me stuff to do. And I'm like, Dad, I want to be like you, you know, I want to work in the automotive industry. And he's like, No, you don't. He said, Do don't get into the automotive industry, do something different. I think that was good advice. Um, so yeah, no one in my family has done this. So kind of went off on my own. Would did you go to college before doing that, or did you just go straight into this industry? I went straight from high school into my industry, trade school with the company I work for, and then some college after.

SPEAKER_00 6:54

Okay. I one thing that has kind of come up recently that I feel like is worth talking about is that the trades are starting to become very popular again, which I think is a really cool thing. Um, have you heard of a guy named Justin Waller? His name sounds familiar. Yeah, he's a business owner, but he got his start hanging steel, essentially. So he's a big fan of the trades, as I am as well, my brothers in the trades. And it seems to me that everyone was kind of manubering over to these more soft skills where you know you're working with computers and everything else, which is great and it's important, but it left this gap in people that knew how to work with their hands and actually build something from the ground up. Um, and it sounds like that's something that you gravitate towards building cars with adding all that kind of stuff.

SPEAKER_02 7:38

Yeah, I'm an electrical contractor in California and Texas, um, hold my license. Um I I love to work with my hands. I don't do it as much anymore. Um, you know, I still have I have uh a couple of classic cars. I've always worked on cars, stuff like that. Um, but I do, I really I I like the physical world. And I really I did gravitate towards the intangible world, you know, and it's it seems like it's easier to sell the physical world when you when you deploy or build an electrical system and people can see it physically. It's easy. What did you do? I installed this conduit, this cable, and this is what it costs. When you build software programs, it's a little trickier to sell it. But I I do I do really believe in the craft, and I I think that craft labor is coming back in a big way.

SPEAKER_00 8:30

I think is a big reason why real estate has always been a very lucrative investment, because it's a real physical asset you can see on the ground. And much like what you're working in, you're building up a real system. Granted, there's some software components from what you described, but uh let's go into when you started that. So you started working in this area. Tell us how you started working at the lower levels and how you gradually started building your business.

SPEAKER_02 8:56

So I I started Eastman Kodak, and then I in the late 90s, I started traveling around. It was dot-com time, and uh the economy was booming, construction was booming, and every project I would show up on, I I I seemed to know more than everyone else and be able to get more done, had more energy. I was very motivated at that time, um, still motivated, but I was I had just I was just, you know, ready to go. And I had the ability to like really organize all the details and data to pull everything together. So literally I'd show up on a project and I would just be an electrician or an instrument tech, and then I would get promoted to project manager, running the project and working with the engineers, um, finalizing drawings, things like that. So um from there, I my my last project, I was in New Jersey, ended up moving to California in 01, and ended up on a project, and you know, it was around this time that I I was I was happy working. You know, I'd I'd been entrepreneurial in my life, worked at body shops, um, done my own auto body repair and stuff for people. But uh the company I was working for, they said, Hey, can you give us a price? I had I'd left my, let me correct that. I'd left my the company I was working for, and I was unemployed at the time. I was like in an in-between phase. The customer called me back and they said, Hey, can you give us a price to do another project? And I said, Well, I'm not working with them anymore. They said, that's fine. They said, we don't have the work anyway. We just want to propose it to the Army Corps. And I said, Okay, I can put a price together. And so I put a price together six months down the road, they called me back and said, Hey, we got the project. And they said, Do you want to be an employee or independent contractor? And I said, independent contractor, and the rest is kind of history. That's what that's where it started. There's still a customer of mine today, and that was in 03.

SPEAKER_00 11:11

Um that seems like a bit of a pivotal point because you said that they offered you either W-2 or as an independent contractor. Yeah. Why one versus the other? I feel like in your position, it could have been tempting to be like, yeah, I'd like to go work for your company, but it seems like you almost wanted to take a little bit of that risk on yourself. I maybe I'm misreading it.

SPEAKER_02 11:28

No, I did. I was I was kind of at this in-between phase uh where I always believed in the entrepreneurial spirit. Um, but I I kind of wanted some more security in my you know late 20s, just job, paycheck. And but I was hearing a lot from the universe, people around me, like, hey, Gary, you should start your own business. And you know, I was hearing a lot of that, getting a lot of good feedback, and I'm like, no, this is a great opportunity, you know.

SPEAKER_00 11:57

So I did. Okay. When you start doing that, do you feel like some of the experience you had, because you've been building this up in your 20s quite a bit, did you feel prepared to take that on at that time, or were you just like, the opportunity's here, let's just close.

SPEAKER_02 12:11

So it it's so that's the interesting part about a systems integration company is we are an a niche between electrical contracting, the physical world, and we even do like engineering and design. So it's a pretty broad scope. I like to say we are you know electricians with soft hands. Um so we can get stuck with anything. You know, uh, we can get I could get stuck with electrical work or I could get, I could, I could get an opportunity to do um uh programming or design work. So I actually wasn't a hundred percent prepared, but I knew that I had the resources in queue to help me with anything I couldn't do.

SPEAKER_00 12:52

So you're like a general contractor for these projects in the same way as for a house, you're like a general contractor for these projects.

SPEAKER_02 12:58

In a sense, I in a sense, um it's it's a it's a smaller niche, you know. So um in a sense, there was 80% of it out I could do, but there may be, you know, 20% that I need may need to bring in a resource to help me with. How'd that first project go? Went great. Yeah, yeah. Tell me about it. Uh, I think the first project, I got a purchase order for I think it was about sixty or seventy thousand dollars, and it had uh components of electrical work, components of programming at a uh a site I hadn't worked at before. And so I there were some challenges, you know. I I I didn't know how to do everything, hadn't done it all before, but it took me a little extra time, but I closed it all out and made money and I was pretty happy.

SPEAKER_00 13:49

How did you find the help to fill in the gaps that you didn't know how to do? Or did you have those to do the re I already had those relationships, so it's network, net worth stuff, you know? So this is really great. I actually want to take a pause here because a lot of people in our listening audience are in some core of a corporate role where they want to switch to entrepreneurial endeavors, but they don't know when. So I've heard a couple of philosophies. Some people say just go in as soon as possible. There's a lot of there's a lot of money you're leaving on the table by waiting. There's some others that would say going to the corporate world can give you this relationships and experience that you can leverage when you want to go out on your own. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:29

Were you thinking that way at the time? I can really expand on that. So um so I started my first company in 04, um, pre-core systems. Uh and I had an opportunity, I had a pretty good network then. I had an opportunity to go work uh internationally on this program uh entitled the second line of defense. It was nuclear non-proliferation to stop the movement of nuclear materials around the world post-9-11. And that was with the Department of Energy. And that I I put my company on pause. I went to work with this program, and you know, when you're working overseas, I was working with overseas with some of the biggest engineering firms in the US and really expanded my network. And some of those people I'm still working with today. And that was uh I it wasn't a conscious decision at that time about building my network, but it was I it it allowed me to kind of double down and build an even deeper network that still supports me today in a very big way. So I would say uh, you know, when you're when you look at making a transition, people do uh it's interesting. I uh when you leave corporate, uh there's a group of people that I wish they had left too, and they may not support you. You know what I'm saying? So you need a pr you need you perhaps need a network that is going to support you for a long time until you can transition from your dependency on that network to building new business, which can depending on your industry, can take time because there's a lot of industries out there that are a very small world.

SPEAKER_00 16:23

And I would imagine the smaller the world, the more dependent on those relationships you get. Yeah. So you went from corporate to uh 1099 almost back to corporate, and then yeah, okay, so you kind of went back and forth. Which I went back and forth, yeah. Which makes a lot of sense because if you're you know trying to take on a new project, you need a new set of skills. So you went somewhere else, took a new set of skills, new relationships, and then kept going. Were you able to take those? You said you had that network.

SPEAKER_02 16:50

It was just it was my primary customer. So I was working independent for them. Uh primarily had a couple other customers, but they called me and they said, Hey, we have this massive project overseas, and we would like for you to be one of in a lead role supporting us, and you have to be an employee. Um, so uh they kind of called me back and yeah, that's that's that's how I ended up with them. So it was it was favorable. It was in in, you know, it was graceful, a graceful move. And I think that's another key is you got to make a lot of graceful, elegant moves when you're in between, you know, and and not burn bridges.

SPEAKER_00 17:28

One thing that we've been talking a lot on this show is how do you incorporate the family life and balance it with the work parameters. Because I know you said that, you know, at a point in your past, you know, there's a point where you're just go, go, go. Not that you're not go go go anymore, but you have a little bit more wisdom now on how to balance everything with the you want to be a whole rounded person where you want to be able to invest in family, into your fitness, into your spirituality, and everything else. So let's start with the family first. How did that balance? First off, was there a balance? No, no.

SPEAKER_01 18:00

Let's go into that. Let's talk about that. No, let's talk about that because that's a thumb that a lot of people struggle with. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:05

So I was like, you know, um uh full throttle. Yep, you know, 16 hours a day. Um I remember my my wife would uh I would be programming in the we had a weight room in the backyard. I would go back there and I would be programming because I didn't want to wake anybody up at like 3 a.m. working on either um operations technology for the company or a project. And uh, you know, I came home from work one day when my youngest was about two or three, and I was putting them in the putting her in the car seat in the truck. We're going to dinner. And I, you know, I was kind of like right in her face. I'd put her in the car seat, and she looked at him, she goes, Dad, you look dead. And I thought, what a great thing to hear from a kid. Yeah. I feel dead. Yeah. I probably had like three or four hours of sleep, you know, every night for the last three or four nights. And uh the but that really kind of stuck with me. I'm like, I gotta, I've gotta improve my quality of life. You know, I've got to get everything in balance, and I can't do it right now. I can't do it today, but it's something that's really important to me.

SPEAKER_00 19:15

We've talked about um on the show areas of seasons in our life, and there's a season where you're sprinting, and then an other seasons we're trying to invest into the family. Were you able to maintain any of those seasons whatsoever? Or is that a lesson you kind of learned a little bit later on?

SPEAKER_02 19:30

I had to gather the resources. So at that point, I had built my business. I've never had partners before my data center venture, which is new, I've never had partners. Um and I really did. I'm I'm not trying to um be arrogant, um, but I did it all by myself. Sure. You know, and I I was as most entrepreneurs do in the beginning. Yeah, yeah. And I didn't know how to it's not that I was disempowering people. I had some amazing people that were smarter than me working with me. Um a lot of times they were young, their interns, they didn't stay, they had they moved on, you know. So at the end of the day, I still had to do it by myself. Um, so I had to, I had to figure out a way to grow the company to replace myself. And that that I would say I'm there now. It's it's it's 15 people, we've grown, uh, but it's taken me years of hiring the right people that match, that can understand my vision, understand my core values and the energy and how to interface with customers and how to build systems. So it's it's taken some time uh to do it. Also, I would say personal development, like understanding that you I in a sense there that that part of my life I was forcing matters. You know, how much can how much can one man do in the physical world? I had reached that point. Um but then I kind of transitioned over time more into into leadership and and and uh how you can grow a culture and how you can motivate people to buy into your vision. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:20

Um in a very positive way. So when you were able to kind of get those under wraps, what were some things that you did to try to invest more time to your family? Because it sounds like at that point in life, that was a little bit, I want to say on neglect, but maybe underdeveloped area. So what were some things that you did to kind of strengthen up that pillar in your life?

SPEAKER_02 21:38

Uh I would say, you know, there was a time in in the neglect period um where I had family vacations booked with, you know, um and with the in laws, and I would be stuck on a project and not go.

unknown 21:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:57

So uh there's a couple of Hawaii nice Hawaii vacations I missed, you know, um family went and I didn't go. Um and so now, nowadays, I try to take my kids on more vacations. I think memories and shared experiences, um, we we go to the ranch, spending time together, um, road trips, you know, nature, all of those things.

SPEAKER_00 22:21

And you have three girls, is that correct? Three girls. Okay. So uh when you grew up, did you have sisters growing up? I did. You did? Okay. Well, now having three girls, what are some where are some, I don't want to say challenges that come from it? But like, you know, I think most of the people we've had on here have had like either a good mix or what have you. But since you had three girls, what are some things that you look for to make sure that, you know, to make sure that they're well set up for life, whether it comes to dating or careers, anything else? Like what do you, what have you done to kind of invest in their lives to set them up for success?

SPEAKER_02 22:54

Um it's tricky, you know, it's tricky to invest in someone's life, a child's life that's not really interesting, you know. Like that's the tricky part about children, right? Yeah, yeah. Um, so I I believe in like just modeling the behavior, you know, like my they they're gonna learn a lot more from the things I do than the things I say. So the things I say, I try to just be in love, you know, like all out of love. I love you, you're amazing, you know, affirmations. Um, also listening to my kids, but primarily just living my life um as I want them to learn about me. Um and additionally, the tricky part about being an entrepreneur and a business owner is once the money's flowing and you're in a position of abundance and prosperity, it's it's very hard not to throw money at all your problems and your children's problems.

SPEAKER_00 23:57

Yeah, you were talking about that where it's you know, it's a temptation to just attempt to appease them. You're just trying to give them everything that you could possibly want to give them. How do you balance giving them as much as you want to give them, but also trying to make sure that they are in a position where they have some sort of self-reliance and all those different things. How do you balance that?

SPEAKER_02 24:20

Uh I'm working on it. Okay, yeah, fair enough. I could say that. But I my kids all so I don't believe everyone needs to be an entrepreneur. Sure. Um, I believe, you know, our our role here, uh the word education is comes from the Greek word idoku to draw out of. So I want to draw out of my children their own creative gifts and abilities. Um, so in doing that, um, you know, I don't want to force on them my lifestyle or what I've signed up for. So I'm I'm sensitive to that. Um, but I do believe that, you know, one or more of my kids is entrepreneurial. So um, and but I do sit, I I'm really be aside from entrepreneurial ship, I I believe in um self-reliance. So I want my children to be self-reliant, and that's something I I do talk to them about is like, hey, you know, you need to be creative, you need to be able to support yourself. Um and I I try to teach that and teach them about money.

unknown 25:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:32

So going through, because you have a pretty wide career with family and everything else, what was a particularly tough time in your life as you were going through all these transitions? If you can pinpoint one of the toughest times, what do you think that would be?

SPEAKER_02 25:47

Um, I think it was when my kids were, you know, when I was a new dad, you know, and uh trying to navigate in balance, like there wasn't enough time in the day, you know. And and it's it's easy. I don't know. I think it's for the traditional man, it's easy to go hunt, right?

SPEAKER_00 26:13

And um well, and I asked this because I'm in this boat right now. So right now, this is actually one of the catalysts for me joining the standard was uh my wife told me she was pregnant, and I knew that was coming around the corner. And I saw that a lot of people, well, one of two things, either they would have kids and just kind of neglect them to keep focusing on their on all their business expense, or once the family came in, that was such a priority that all of their dreams and everything else were just on complete backhold until they were, you know, the kids that left the house and now you can chase after dreams. Yeah, not it's never too late to chase your dreams, but you are losing a lot of years on the streets. Yeah, the lunar fake shit. Yeah. So that was something I was trying to negotiate. Like, how do I be well-rounded in all these different endeavors? And we, you and I were kind of talking about that a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 26:59

The mother of my children was uh an amazing mom and is an amazing mom, and uh, she had it all covered. Okay, everything was the only thing missing was me. You know, so um, other than that, all bases were covered, and I think that's a real partnership that works. Okay. Um uh so that's that's one method, you know. Um, I I know people where both uh the husband and wife are both entrepreneurs and they're working in the same business. Um uh that's tough. That's really tough. Um but it's all it's all doable. The other another uh alternative that I think a lot of people um steer away from is like having nannies and getting getting support structure in place. It's about quality of time with your children. Quantity's cool, but you know, if you if you kind of let go of how everyone perceives you, it's truly quality of time with the children and the memories you're creating and the experiences you're creating. Sometimes quantity is is not great time, you know?

SPEAKER_00 28:08

That is an interesting thought because one thing that me and my wife are a little convicted of is sometimes when we're hanging out with our kid, we're just sitting down watching T. Yeah, there is a quantity of time, but it's not exactly high quality. It could be going to the park, going on a walk, going on a trip or something else like that. What are some things you do to ensure like higher quality?

SPEAKER_02 28:28

When you get a small window to hang out with your family and develop those bonds, would you like to I think I think all of the above, you know, you need the time where you just having dinner or watching a show or are talking and not lecturing, unplanned conversation. But I really love trapping my kids in the car, and I love taking them in nature, and I love taking them on trips. I have found I just experientially and experimentally, I have found that's that's where I get the most. They are so happy, they get all the picks and all the memories, and it's the best time of their life going on trips and being in nature. You know, a lot of times they'll fight me. We went to the ranch this weekend, and and I'm like, hey, are we going to the ranch? I don't want to go. I'm like, and I'm thinking, like, what are you gonna do? Sit here on your phone, you know? And the answer was yes. But um, I'm like, we're going anyway. We're we're wrapping up the ranch after sunset, you know, and my daughter's like, hey dad, I'm really glad that I came out here. I had the best time. And she goes, I know I told you I didn't want to go. And this is totally unsolicited.

SPEAKER_00 29:35

Sure. She goes, but I had a had a great time. If you want to connect with high performers like today's and previous guests, I want to invite you to apply to join the standard. We are a private membership community that improves the health, wealth, and relationships for six-figure earners who perform at the highest level physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially, and financially. What we offer is simple. We will give you a vetted local brotherhood of men on your level or above. We will give you a customized plan to build true generational wealth. We will give you a personal liaison to achieve all of your goals. If you are tired of being the most successful person in your circle, frustrated with always pouring into others and not having anyone to pour into you, or you want to have conversations like the ones you're hearing today in person, on a weekly basis with fellow higher performers, go to thestandardmen.com to apply. That's thestandardmen.com. Hit the link in the description below. Now back to the episode. So one thing I wanted to ask you about when we're talking about building more clientele is you said you have a lot of people that you've worked with for many, many years, spending all the way back to you know, your first contracts when you came out of your W-2 and then you went back to another W-2. And it seems like in your world, those core relationships have kind of been your recipe for success. What is the value of building relationships in the business in a world where people just want to get the next client and the next client and the next client? Is there any value in just trying to, you know, in a world where people are trying to make retention also a key factor? What are your thoughts and philosophies with that?

SPEAKER_02 31:06

Um, it's a great question. I it's both. The answer is both. Um and it the answer is both is you want to build strong relationships with your clients and customers. You also want to continue to hustle new work. Um and the one of the reasons you want to build a long relationship with your customer is we spend so much time working and and hustling. And if you can have a relationship with a client where you're hustling together for a common goal, you know, and you like this person and you have common interests and you do things together. I mean, I go, I go fishing with my clients, I go to dinners, I go to conferences, um, our kids are the same age, you know, we text each other not about work, how you doing, you know, we've we've helped each other through hard times. Um we do yoga together, you know, all kinds of stuff. So it's it's uh they're they've become my friends, you know, and we also fight, you know, and disagree, you know, you know, what's up? They've they become like family, you know, and uh uh that's that is you said what's the value that is invaluable because I spent I've these people have they are my some of my customers are my family, like literally, they feel the same way. And they are my mentors or my family. Um and I don't need another order from them. They've done enough, and I've done enough for them, you know. But it's it's it's uh it's it's that's where the relationship goes. You know, I think some people talk about how you separate family and business and friends and business and all this. Uh and you sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. You know, when you when you have the right people um and you're hustling together, it it's it's invaluable what you can do.

SPEAKER_00 33:08

So it's unique what you were able to accomplish because for most people, they're they're not really good friends with their clients. But it sounds like you've developed a deeper relationship than just that, that even goes beyond just the economical. Where's some value that you've seen in that besides just the economical benefit from that? Like you said, you've had mentors, yeah. You have people like do you do you talk to them about things that are personal outside of business? All the time.

SPEAKER_02 33:32

I mean, yeah, all I mean, I I I don't want to go into it too much to share other people's stories, but um, we talk about relationships, you know, our our marital relationships, we talk about dating, we talk about our kids, you know, um, all types of things, you know. So um, and yeah, it's it's it's uh it's they're they're great friends of mine. So and they the the relationship started out as business, you know?

SPEAKER_00 34:03

Yeah. So well, for me and my line of work, and this has happened to me a couple of times where I I had a customer and we grew pretty tight, but for one reason or another, just we weren't gonna be able to work together for whatever reason. But they were always in my back pocket and we always thought fondly of each other, where like a year later they think, wait a second, I know I know this guy Mitchell, he's a really great guy. I should get plugged in. So either we end up doing business later or they recommend new business to me. Have you ever found that sort of thing happening in your workplace as well? I have I have so interesting.

SPEAKER_02 34:35

That's a great, that's another great question that that brought up a memory that I'd forgot. Um, one of my first projects, um I met a guy on a project, and um a couple of years went by. He called me. We we had lost contact and we we really liked each other, had a lot of residents, would totally hang out as bros. But we just we, you know, we were living in the Bay Area, big city. We never made the effort, you know. But he called me back and he's like, hey Gary, he goes, We really they really need someone like you on this project. He goes, There's a big treatment system that needs to be designed, a lot of problems with what's existing. You really need to come up here and meet these people, and they really need you. So I I I drove up there, and uh, this guy's Tim Dowing, and um he he's a great guy. And so he brought me into this new customer, became my first customer for Core Systems. Um it was uh Republic Services, the dumpster company, actually. But um, and then Tim and I, after that, we got time to work together, and he still comes out from California and visits me and called me the other day. And you know, we're we're we're more friends. He's moved on. We don't work together. He worked for me twice um as an employee. Um actually he is a subcontractor of mine now. So I don't remember everything. Sure no, I got so many things going on. But um Tim is his company's a subcontractor for me now. Um, but we're more friends than then we we do business together now. So the relationship can kind of go any way, but you know, that's the thing is Tim knows if he sends me out to a customer or makes an introduction, it's gonna be to his standard or above. And I know the same thing about Tim. If if if I make an introduction to Tim, it's gonna be delivered to my standard or above. And that's the really cool thing when you have resonance with someone and you know that person kind of like you know yourself, you're like, they're gonna deliver.

SPEAKER_00 36:46

I wonder on your take on this, because one thing that I've seen is when you start off in business, like let's say you have a good working partnership, there's also this element that you're kind of building trust with each other, where if you've been working tight for two years, you've never let them down, you've always given a good product, even when it parts ways, it's because of that like demonstration of integrity that's why that relationship kind of makes it as tight. Do you think that's do you think that's reasonable? Or do you think that's a reason why maybe some of these work relationships get a little bit deeper than that is because just by the nature of work, you have to establish that trust to begin with.

SPEAKER_02 37:21

I think, I think for sure it is. So you've you've had the time to establish the trust. And then also I think one of the things I've experienced in, you know, say past two years, um, or maybe not, but the longer the relationship goes, you have opportunities to fight. And and that that's the whether it's business, family, you you being able to have a healthy disagreement and work through it is gonna take your relationship to the next level.

SPEAKER_00 37:54

Period. What is the worst, and you have to name any names, but what is the worst fight that you've had with a client outside of work? I I have fights that are still going on. All right.

SPEAKER_02 38:05

Give me your worst one. Um I nothing really comes to mind, I mean, directly, that I w want to share, but uh you know, typically it's around uh broken promises. Okay, you know, or uh and and where where they're like, I'm like, hey, you you did not honor your word. And they're like, Yeah, but um I needed to make a change, you know, and I'm like, well, I've got five other people that I have to break my word to because you broke your word. Okay. And they're like, sorry, you know, so that's really the most difficult and frustrating situation. So then I have to call these people and say, hey, I know we had this situation or opportunity and everyone's invested, but we've had a shift and a change and we're going in a different direction. And because they broke their word, I have to break my word. That's that honor is a big a big core value for me and my company.

SPEAKER_00 39:17

And things change. Well, that's what I mean with that integrity element, which is if you're gonna break a promise to me in a work environment, it's not just it's not just business. There is a little bit of uh, okay, now I know what kind of person I'm working with. And you know, it's not, I'm sure it hurt your business, but it probably just hurt you because, like you said, now you're being forced to have to break your promise. And now your integrity is being compromised in front of other people.

SPEAKER_02 39:43

Yeah. And and I you have to be forgiving. I think we give, you have to be understanding and forgiving. I have to, you know, the data centers that we're working in, we we're quadruple stacked in debt. We've got banks and loans and and private equity, and so they all have leverage. Right. And they all want to have an opinion. And so sometimes you the the words, the the agreements get broken and change because of that, you know. So um I think that you do have to give people grace and mercy, but when it's repetitive, you know, and when they're taking value and taking for us, it's taking designs, taking budgets, taking pricing, taking task list and moving a project forward, and we're cut out. That's you know, when it's repetitive, we're like, okay, this person is of low moral integrity, and you just don't want those people in your circle.

SPEAKER_00 40:42

Well, and I I think it applies to me as well because in the previous jobs I left, I always tried to make sure I had a really good exit. And by good, I mean a warm, as cordial an exit as possible. Because, like for in my current role, I have a lot of contacts that are translated also to the job I had beforehand. So if my breakup with the previous company was nasty, it would compromise a lot of these working relationships I would have in my current role. Um, and even that goes further back. Because I mean, the medical realm is is pretty small. So if your integrity is compromised in one area, everyone's gonna find out relatively quickly. And I imagine in your field, even though it's fairly broad, yeah, there's probably it's probably small enough where if one person's a bad apple, word will probably get around relatively quickly.

SPEAKER_02 41:30

It does. I'd say I'd put it in two buckets. I'd say there's there's always the haters, you know. Yeah, yeah. So they're gonna they're gonna play their game and they're gonna lose, and you're gonna win, you know, and but they're gonna keep playing, and it it might have a small effect on you. And uh, but that's one part of it. The other part is yes, it's very important. Um, and I think some of the the heckling or hinpecking comes from the haters, and it's not real, or it's highly marginal, you know, they're trying to nitpick. Um, but having a an exit that's aligned with high moral integrity and elegance and grace is everything. And some people are gonna make it impossible, and that's the challenge. I've still got those people in my life today, you know. So they're trying to make it impossible.

SPEAKER_00 42:26

With some of these fights you've had, has that ever compromised your business, or are you guys able to I wanna say kind of resolve it in a way that enables you all to continue business moving forward? Like, have you ever had a lot of fights where it's like nope, it's all kaiz are taught off, or are you able to resolve it pretty much?

SPEAKER_02 42:45

I mean, you know, uh I I would say, you know, we've never been sued. That's good.

SPEAKER_01 42:55

So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 42:57

Never had to file any insurance claims. Um uh so uh we've had we've had ch many challenging relationships in in business where we just don't want to work with that customer again. Uh they basically make it so difficult, we're like, you know, we'll pass. Okay, we'll pass on the next one. So I think that is, and I think it's you know, how do you deal with a difficult customer? Is a lot of you there's a lot to learn from a difficult customer. It's just uh can you find a customer that's less difficult and let that most difficult customer go? I think that's that's one of the ways to deal with it. Um you do want to let some of your most difficult customers go, especially when it's a lot of the difficult customers are of low dollar value anyway.

SPEAKER_00 43:49

You know, so I've noticed that in my business as well. It's usually the ones that complain the most are also the ones that are doing the least volume with you somehow where 80% of your effort is on. The business that's doing like maybe 20% of the overall volume. It's so funny how that how that ends up being the case. Um, one thing I also wanted to talk to you about, too, since we were kind of talking about you know new clients versus old clients. I've in my current role, I have found that I've gained more business by word of mouth than I have by just cold calling prospecting. I've gotten a few by like reaching out, handing out flyers, phone calls, and all that sort of stuff. But I would say more than half has come because someone gave me a call like, hey, so-and-so said that you did really good by him. So I just want to look more into your product. Now it's like a warm link coming into it. Oh, 100%.

SPEAKER_02 44:36

Yeah. Having a having a third-party introduction is always the best. I agree. That is the best. So I have a uh friend of mine that I was overseas with working on the uh with the Department of Energy. He and I work together. He's a civil engineer, so I do more of the electrical work. Um, so we're not competitive in any any realm. We do a lot of introductions for each other because of that. And uh even when it's not necessary, like um we will we will just practice at introducing each other because it's way better than introducing yourself.

SPEAKER_00 45:09

Yeah. So no, that's something I found too, is finding other partners that you're not like maybe it's complementary, but not upon not opposing with each other. And it does help because like I've introduced some clients to one guy, he's introducing me to his other. So it's like a very mutual benefiting relationship, and it just feels good too. I don't know, it feels good knowing that because you won your trust with somebody else, that now they're willing to like refer more people to you. It's kind of like just getting friends in general, right? Like it is, yeah. Hey, I want to invite you out to a party that I have because you know I I like you, I think my friends like you too. It just feels good in general. So it does.

SPEAKER_02 45:47

That is that is the best way to get new customers is to be introduced. So for sure.

SPEAKER_00 45:53

I want to pivot a little bit because I want to talk about something that's been coming up in our group a lot, because I know that you hustled really hard for many, many years. Um, one topic that's been coming up on our show is this kind of mindset that in order to be successful, you have to burn all the bridges and make this your one and only priority forever and ever until whatever. That's this it's a hustle culture for entrepreneurs, and yeah, which is fine and all well, Dandy. But I know having conversations with you, you have chosen to invest yourself more into the emotional side of things, the social, the spiritual, and everything else. Why do you think this hustle culture has taken off as much as it has? And do you think that's do you think that's healthy? Do you subscribe to it? Like what's your philosophy about it?

SPEAKER_02 46:40

I, you know, I I know a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs that are caught up in that. And it takes everyone to make the world go around. So I truly believe in that. It takes employees, it takes unemployed, it takes entrepreneurs. It's just sad to me to see I I do believe there's a a better life. And I I I I I I don't necessarily I think the you know, maybe France has taken a little a little far with their work ethic, you know, they're pretty lax. Um I don't really believe in that. Sure. Yeah. But there's gotta be a little fire in your life. I think I think that an entrepreneur they can work more than everyone else, but still have some some buckets or some time that are dedicated to their family and their personal life. I think it's very important. I what I s what what you're talking about, and what we see is people that literally wake up, work all day, barely eat, do not nourish their body with food, do not meditate, do not pray, and just go to sleep and wake up the next day. And the the problem is I just I don't believe that they are in the right brain brainwave frequency, you know, alpha brain waves, they're in high beta typically. And if you're in high beta or beta brain waves, you're not really gonna be that magnetic to the people who are making decisions with money. So you're typically going to attract people that are in the same brainwave frequency or people that know they can manipulate you because you're in a lower frequency. So I think that that is a real challenge and a misconception that just grinding it down is going to get you somewhere. I it'll get you somewhere on a short play, sure, but it's not the long play.

SPEAKER_00 48:39

Well, now we've found a link where being a whole person also lends itself to creating really good relationships, which is what you've based basically your business model on. If that if I'm correct in saying this, your ability to create and foster relationships is probably what's giving you the most success in your in your career thus far. Would that be an accurate statement?

SPEAKER_02 48:58

I think so. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 48:59

Yeah. What made you want to invest in the standard or what made you want to join it in the first place?

SPEAKER_02 49:05

I I reached a point um where I realized that I needed high-quality men in my life that were on a similar mission um to have a well-balanced life uh around the pillars of health, like uh fitness, finance, spirituality, relationships. Um not just to be a part of a group that was just all about one hustle. And that was very important to me, and and the standard came along and it it aligned. And yeah, it's been amazing. I I love spending time with the group and so many amazing people in the group. How long have you been in the standard? Uh joined in I think April of 25. So almost a year.

SPEAKER_00 50:01

Okay, so you joined just like a little bit. Actually, it's about the same time because my kid was being born in May of 25. Okay. So I think you and I joined. I met you in June, I think. Yes, yeah. Yes, at that dinner. Yes, that's right.

unknown 50:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:13

So of all the things that that kind of come with the standard, what were some things that initially popped out to you that you were able to kind of glean from? I mean, there's so many good things in the standard.

SPEAKER_02 50:25

The the Hafiz pops out big. Sure. He's amazing. So can't say enough good things about him. Um uh the the coaching that's available, you know. Um the the the speakers, the connections, you know, I feel like all the speakers that we've met, they're like, I feel like they they be they make it very personal. They're like, call me, email me if you need something, you know. So you almost become friends with these speakers, you know, automatically. So it's it's just an amazing group. Then to have all the curated events, like, especially if you're, you know, you you you're already asking me, like, how do you balance like the hustle, your family, and this, like one of the most difficult things for guys, women seem to be so good at it, is like getting their friends' groups together, all this guys were terrible at it. So having that all kind of curated and packaged where Huffies, you know, they're just gonna send out an email and say, hey, here's an event, here's an event, here's an event. And you just pick them and go, you know, and everybody's there and it's a good time. And and that's really, I think, what men need is a space to hang out, to connect with people who are on the same path. And uh it's all here, you know. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 51:51

Okay. Yeah. Of the events, what kind of the events that are going on there do you get the most value from?

SPEAKER_02 51:57

Uh I I've I get value from every event I've been to. Um, I think summer, you know, I mean, Fourth of July party. Uh it was just it was just social events. Was that the one at Howard's house? Or uh no, no, no. That was at the airport. Frisco, yeah. Yes. Yeah, yeah. Frisco. So that that event was just social, you know. So, but I actually didn't have any plans, you know?

SPEAKER_00 52:20

So I got a lot of value out of it. Uh that was actually the first time me and my wife left the house. If I'm thinking about, yeah, because we had our kid in May and then June and July. And that was like the first time that we like left our kid with our our her mother uh for a few hours and were like, let's go out and that was actually the first time that she also got to meet some of the other women um like in the standards. Yeah. So she could kind of get exposed to like, you know, this sort of group of men. Cause at that point, she's like, What is this group that you've been hanging out with? And then she's like, Oh, they're like real people. Like, yes, they are real people.

SPEAKER_02 52:52

They are. Um, the other, I mean, the other events is the Gala was amazing. Yes. That was uh just an amazing event. The speakers, the the party after everything was just perfect. Um, I got so much out of that. Um and then the dinners. The dinners are amazing. I mean, they're all productive and fun. It's like a blend of social and coaching, I guess if you will. There's always a challenge. And um, the other thing about the standard that I I have to mention is my experience. I I've been in a lot of different groups. You know, I'm in, I'm in entrepreneurs organization, um, been on yoga retreats, just a mix. And this is the warmest, most welcoming group that I've ever been in. I I feel like I can be the person I can walk up to any circle of men talking, interrupt, off topic. Hey, I'm Gary, and everybody's like welcoming me. Yeah, no, and it's it's amazing. It's it's really a very warm, welcoming group. That's that's one of the things I really love about it. I always feel welcome.

SPEAKER_00 54:05

Let's talk about whenever some of the pillars are failing. We'll we'll take them one at a time. Let's say um, let's say the emotional one. If the emotional pillar is kind of failing, how do you see that degrading both your business performance and all the other areas in your life?

SPEAKER_02 54:19

If your emotional pillar is failing, um you can't make good decisions. You know? So your decisions, your decision-making ability, and I mean it if something escalates in the conference room with a customer, you know, you're not gonna be in the same mindset to respond. Right. You're gonna be reactive.

SPEAKER_00 54:43

Let me rephrase a little bit. Let's let's make it more concrete. Give me an example of your time where your emotional pillar was down more than usual, and what were some of the consequences of that happening in all the other areas in your life?

SPEAKER_02 54:54

Uh, the time would be, let's say, 2012. Um and I 2012, 2015 time frame. Um, I was more reactive. And I I do think you know it's chapters. You know, we we all there's all the there's a really good book I read, um uh Power versus Force, uh, David Hawkins. He puts all of the emotional states, a numeric value to all the emotional states. Okay. And um we all he he frames it out as we all have our own dominant state, and then we can kind of shift lower to higher. So the middle state is courage of the value, numeric value of 200. And at that point, we get into an upward vortex. Below courage is pride, anger, fear, apathy, grief. Those are all negative vortexes. So um, I do believe anger has a purpose. If you're angry, it's a form of energy, a short burst of energy to get you through something. It's just you got to get through it. Is it always a bad thing? No. No, as long as no one gets hurt, you know. I mean, hopefully not. Yeah. And so I have been in those states where I I used that energy to get through something and I made it through. Maybe it took me longer than I wanted to. I didn't feel good. Um, and I think that all of my decisions were more of a scarcity mindset, and that's the consequence. It's not a mindset of prosperity and abundance. And that's really, yes, life throws you curveballs. You're gonna, you're, you're going to get in a negative vortex uh of energy at some point. But it's it's how quickly you can recover and get back into that prosperity mindset to make decisions in alpha brain waves that are not affected by scarcity. What happened during that time frame that put you in a scarcity mindset? Uh I just I felt like I wasn't, I think I was triggered by some childhood things that happened in my childhood with my mom. And uh I felt like I was not supported in my domestic situation. Okay. Um, as I felt like I was unsafe long term.

SPEAKER_00 57:25

And so without getting too crazy into that or getting too deep, so I'm assuming that probably impacted the marriage a little bit. Did that also impact the business? Were you able to keep those pretty separate or did you find that kind of bleeding into the other areas of life? I don't everything impacts, yeah. It's all connected.

SPEAKER_02 57:41

Um, it it uh it did it did impact it. Yeah, it does. Um it didn't kill it, you know. Sure. Um, but yeah, there were there were some and it I think it it's kind of it went the business went down and then back up higher than it was before.

SPEAKER_00 57:59

So do you subscribe to the idea that the business will only grow as high as the leader, owner, what have you, um as developed as they are? Do you believe that the business is always capped by the capabilities of the owner?

SPEAKER_02 58:16

No. Um I think it's can be capped by the the capabilities of the team. Um so you know, for example, I would I would love to hire someone on the spectrum. Interesting. Uh, because I think they're the smartest people out there. I'd agree with that. Um and not saying that I haven't already done that. So uh um my point is that person may not be the best leader, but they are the maybe the strongest creative on the team that can create amazing technology faster than anyone else. Um so you want someone that can think outside the bubble a little bit. I believe the smartest humans have already walked the face of the earth. Okay. The next wave is the smartest groups of people, and that is balance between IQ and EQ. And that's the thing to create.

SPEAKER_00 59:20

Okay. Well, so we're talking about on the emotional side, you know, and I know you have some elements of your faith too that kind of help. What tools do you employ whenever you find yourself kind of compromise that emotional state to kind of bring you back into a sense of balance?

SPEAKER_02 59:36

Um, yoga, okay, meditation, journaling, bre I mean, breath work. When I say that, just taking deep breaths.

SPEAKER_00 59:46

People find that funny. I'll I'll tell you what. So in the military, um, we did have uh like breathing techniques, like it is a very useful tool. So we had this, we had this training exercise, and you might appreciate this, where we did like a one-mile run and like full kit and you know, rifle, and then we do an obstacle course, and at the tail end of it, then we had to shoot the targets. Well, I don't know if we ever tried shooting after going through something like that, but you're and your weapons going all over the place. And they taught us breathing techniques of like, you know, when your brain's going all over the place, how to kind of re-center, get back in that zone, and kind of refocus back on that target. And it was just something as simple as deliberate breathing, timing, focusing on a single, on a kind of a single variable to kind of bring your center back into place. It sounds a little, you know, whatever, but it really did work.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:37

I would say it's highly metaphorical in life.

unknown 1:00:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:41

The more modalities you do that bring you into, let's call it, alpha brainwaves or a point of stability, the more that will become your norm. So that's why I try to stay there more often than not. Because, you know, if you if you let's just be dramatic, if you did breath work 23 hours a day, sure that 24th hour, you're gonna be breathing the same way you were the rest of the time. You know what I'm saying? So that's that's really the the ideal way to to shift yourself from a scarcity or beta or high beta brain waves into like alpha and higher brainwave states and higher functioning is is through a set of modalities that get you there over the long term.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:31

Okay. When you meditate, are you trying to clear your mind or are you trying to focus on something in material?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:36

I do a couple of different meditations. So I do uh kundalini meditation, which is um squeezing the pelvic floor um and breathing the air up through my chakras and ideally activating the pineal gland, um, which is a crystal in your head um that is a radio transmitter receiver um to your intuition, let's say. Okay. Um uh which I think that's very important. Um and there's been a lot of studies about all of the effects around that. Um I started out, that's one of that's one of the primary, so I'm I'm I'm not thinking, trying to not think. Thoughts come. Sure. I let them go. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:25

Sure. Sometimes I don't. I've heard someone say you can't control what thoughts come into your brain, but you can choose which thoughts to entertain.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:32

And that's everything. Again, highly metaphorical is you know, something bad happens. You know, you you check your email on a Saturday before dinner, you know, how long till you, and it's a it's a bad email. How long are you gonna stew on that? How long till you can let it go? So that is terrible about that. That is the metaphorical thought not to think. Yeah. You know, how in in in training ourselves to let things go that we can't deal with at the moment, you know?

SPEAKER_00 1:03:00

So, you know, kind of going back to what we were just talking about of like the counter hustle, because obviously you still want to have the drive to accomplish what you want to your life. Do you think these other things have to necessarily hold you back? Because I one one thought that I've always had is why do we have to think of these things as like holding us back from achieving our dreams? Well, I can't say what do you mean by things? Well, so let's say this. I, you know, I want to start a business, I want to make money, entrepreneur, and all that sort of stuff. But then I also want to be involved in my faith, be a good father, husband. Um, I want to be physically fit. And my thought is like, why does that have why do they have to be their own separate categories?

SPEAKER_01 1:03:38

They should be separate.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:39

They're in competition, yeah. Yeah, there's like a little bit where they're in competition, but I also want to think that they can be in synergy with each other, right? Like one one thing can kind of help feed to the other. I don't know. I don't know what your thought process is on that.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:51

Or I I I think it's so entrepreneurship and the hustle, a lot of times it has to be a sprint. And that that comes at the sacrifice of other components or other pillars. I I think it's important if if your support structure people support you, and then it's easy. Um they and if if you reciprocate that support and and everything is aligned, it can work very well. I think when things are misaligned, then the vision, you know, the shared vision of the future with your with the pillars, you know, what is the shared vision of the future with your family? What is the shared vision of the future in your entrepreneurship? Is having those shared visions align, the sub the support structure works very synergistically. When when there's misalignment, it doesn't. And that's the tricky part is getting everyone aligned.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:52

Yeah, align on the vision. I like that. Because if it's all pointed in the right direction, you can kind of get all of your different initiatives to kind of complement each other. That's what I'm working on right now, which is I want all the things I'm doing to somewhat complement each other. Like for instance, I don't feel my fitness and my business at competition with each other because like I need to get up and work out in the morning to be productive the rest of the day, just the way I'm wired.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:16

Before we move on, I'd like to underscore that I think that's where meditation and journaling come in. Okay. So you can have the ability to communicate this to your support structure. Okay. That is key. If you have to communicate your vision and allow them to communicate to you. Sorry to interrupt.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:35

No, no, no. I no, I I like what you said because I think a lot of people don't understand their why. And so everyone's just obsessed with what to do, what to do, what's the task thing. But if you get your whys kind of aligned uh with the family, I think it can make I think that's something that a lot of people miss.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:53

And I think some people are scared that they signed up for relationships that may not support. their vision. And they don't wanna they don't want to face that. But you you're gonna face it. Yeah. It's just how long you want to wait. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:10

So best to get those whys in order quickly. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:14

No, I um I remember I used to be in the Boy Scouts way back in the day. And uh that there was something that the you know what what's the vision board of a 14 year old, right? You've barely experienced any of the world. But it was interesting to think about okay it was my first time sort of thinking like okay what do I want my future to look like 20 years from now. If I were to compare my vision board then to what it is now I'm sure they'd be miles and miles apart. But it does change right like I mean I'm assuming your vision for your life has changed fairly dramatically in the last yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:46

It it has it has changed but I I will say that a lot of it's because I've achieved all my dreams have come true. Okay. So I'm stacking on top of old dreams. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:03

How does that feel it's it's amazing okay wonderful and scary you know it's like what no but this is this is a really great thing to talk about because I I've heard the story of like let's say you're going to the Olympics and you get the gold medal yeah that there's sort of this depression that a lot of athletes get after the fact like what do I do now? And I'm like I would imagine you'd still be on cloud nine like yeah there's a question of what you're gonna do afterwards but you still accomplished a really big thing. Yeah I don't know like from your mindset once you did start achieving these big visions that you set out for yourself what did you do afterwards?

SPEAKER_02 1:07:40

Did you feel happy marinate you marinate for a while. Yeah okay good that's I think that's what you should do. Sure. Uh but I think you know life goes on you you you have to have new dreams and new passions. So okay and and uh that's that's the the tricky part um I have those um and um yeah do you feel those passions enriched because you've already accomplished certain metrics before in the past where you just feel more emboldened to chase after the new passions you have I do I'm cautious uh I don't want to just chase after the hustle you know and I don't want to just compare myself and say my next hustle needs to be bigger than my last hustle so I can say that I did more. I'm very cautious about not doing that. Um one of my new passion projects is I have this ranch um out in West Texas uh west of Weatherford and I'm building like a retreat center um executive spiritual retreat I'd love to have a standard retreat out there someday that that's my passion project I want to like I love I love nature um um I love all the healing modalities that are out there coaching all that stuff so to create a space for that is something that's in my heart you know so so I think my passions have changed if you want to look at the the chakra perspective so the solar plexus chakra is um uh kind of like money and power you know so I I say my my last venture was more money power and I'd say my next passion venture is more from the heart.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:18

Okay. I I like that particular and then giving back to people you know no I like that because that's one thing that I've thought of you know worded slightly differently is at some point I would like to think once I've achieved some of these some of these areas in my life where I want to make enough money, you know, put all these things on my resume. Like one thing for me I'm a big fan of like uh theology and apologetics and stuff like that. And it just excites me. It doesn't make me any money. What's it just it's just something I like just for the sake. Yeah it's it's just a thing I like to be the exact opposite it's you know you're not making any money from it. But uh like my wife got me this book called like Thomas Aquinas which is like like 1300s medieval scholastic theology. It's just it's just weird but it's fun you know it's just stuff that excites me. And so I think for a lot of people you know I think the problem is once they achieve their dreams and that's all that their life was centered around it can feel a little empty after the fact. But it sounds like your solution to that is and find a new dream. And it doesn't have to be money. It could be with your family it could be spiritual it could be whatever it is.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:23

I like the idea though on a surprise when's that opening up uh maybe about two years from now I I've a lot of things are coming into place. Um doing a lot of land clearing the next step is water and then utilities and looking to build 10 structures out there in a multipurpose center. That's that'll probably take a couple years.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:45

So okay all right once it's done I will be a cold plunge out there sure okay I like cold plunges that's all I'd say okay yeah yeah um well you know we're talking about you know looking to the future and legacy which is one of the pillars of the standard um and so for you and your family and everything else what kind of a le legacy do you want to leave behind? Uh great question um I think to be remembered is cool um uh uh as someone who was a creationist and built things and and not just built things in my lifetime but built things that transcended my lifetime you know that that others can benefit from uh beyond that very importantly for my family to be healthy and happy and um to be productive and be a net positive to society and feel good about that you know for people that want to reach out to you let's say I'm opening up a water treatment plant and I need to I need to hit you up because I need someone to integrate everything in there. How can they get a hold of you and how can they reach out to you? My email um it's Gary.mizell at core systems.net core with a K and personally uh Instagram it's Gary E mizel okay sorry I thought you were done um that threw me off no Gary I really appreciate this conversation and uh let's see my gosh sorry I lost my train of thought was there something else you're in here why don't you tell the weather yes yes sorry I knew I was missing something okay why don't you start off asking them how they can contact me again then we'll go into yeah no I like that I like that okay all right Gary I appreciate this conversation for people that are watching this that want to start up their own water treatment plant they need someone to talk to how can they get a hold of you uh my email is Gary.myzel at core systems.net that's core with the K Myzel with two L's and then uh personally my Instagram is Gary E Mizell. Okay. Well first off I really appreciate you coming and also you know I appreciate us talking about the breath work. It's one of those few things that I like I remember learning about it a long time ago and then I just never use it. I feel like I have all these tools in my toolkit that I'm like oh yeah someone reminded me of that I should really use that one of these days.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:24

Yeah it's I think I I've had so much fun. Thank you I mean this was amazing. Um my I would say on the breath work thing is that's why it's so important to have good people in your life because so many of us know these things. We just forget and we need to be reminded.

SPEAKER_00 1:13:43

So yeah that's what uh an amazing peer group's all about yeah I've heard that from a lot of other leaners that we often need to be reminded more than taught something new. So which is absolutely truth. It's a frustrating truth but nonetheless. Yeah. But yeah I appreciate your time and uh I'll look forward to seeing you at the next event. Awesome.