The Truth About Entrepreneurship No One Talks About

Entrepreneurship looks like freedom from the outside, but what does it really cost? In this episode of the Love and Leadership Podcast, Trent and Star Postell pull back the curtain on the raw realities of building a business from scratch. From selling plasma to pay the light bill to watching their daughter dig through couch cushions for spare change, they share the moments that tested everything they believed about their calling.

With over a decade of experience as entrepreneurs who have built multiple businesses, employed nearly 100 people, and served over 400 families, Trent and Star break down the myths that set new entrepreneurs up for failure, the personal sacrifices nobody warns you about, and the healthy habits that kept them from burning out. They also share an incredible testimony of how faith, mentorship, and perseverance turned their darkest financial season into a breakthrough they never saw coming.

Whether you are thinking about starting a business, in the trenches of building one right now, or a seasoned entrepreneur looking for encouragement, this episode delivers the honest conversation you need to hear.

Topics covered in this episode: Why 80% of businesses fail within the first 18 months to three years The mental health challenges facing over 70% of entrepreneurs Myths about entrepreneurship including instant wealth, total freedom, and overnight success The real personal and financial cost of going all in Lessons in sustainability including consistency, communication, and collaboration Healthy habits to avoid burnout as an entrepreneur How faith and mentorship can carry you through the hardest seasons Building a legacy that goes beyond the bottom line

Love well. Lead with purpose. Steward what matters.

#LoveAndLeadership #Entrepreneurship #FaithAndBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #EntrepreneurLife #BusinessPodcast #MarriageAndBusiness #Leadership

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

What does it look like to love well at home and lead with purpose in the boardroom? Welcome to the Love and Leadership Podcast, where faith, family, marriage, and business come together to build leaders who last. Hosted by Trent and Star Postel. Love well, lead with purpose, steward what matters.

SPEAKER_02 0:22

Welcome to the Love and Leadership Podcast. I'm Star, and this is my husband, life partner, business partner, Trent. And our topic for today is the truth of entrepreneurship that no one talks about.

SPEAKER_04 0:35

So entrepreneurship from the outside often looks like freedom. But inside there's so much pressure. So, what are some things that people misunderstand about it? That's what we're going to be talking about in today's episode. So today we're going to talk about the realities, we're going to talk about the responsibilities of actually building something and trying to sustain it at the same time. And I think we got a little bit of experience of that, right?

SPEAKER_02 0:57

Oh, we got about a decade or two.

SPEAKER_04 0:59

About a decade, a little bit, yes, absolutely. So we're going to dive into the myths, but also give you guys also too the things that you need to sustain it. Because at the end of the day, we want to win at this uh entrepreneurship journey. So let's get started.

SPEAKER_02 1:13

Absolutely. Um, so I have a couple of uh stats here for us to kind of base the conversation around. Um, so one thing that it says is research summers indicate that over 70% of entrepreneurs report mental health challenges. Wow. So that's a lot if you think about it. 70%. That's the most majority of them are struggling. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:34

And then also you think about how many challenges are already out there right now with people's mental health. And we talk about so many more people experiencing anxiety and different things like that. So just imagine the pressure of entrepreneurship, like going on your own, trying to build something that now it's not as secure as having a regular nine to five job, right? And so uh so that pressure financially and also with all the people that you have to please, and uh, you were now responsible for that puts a lot of extra pressure and anxiety and things that can come along with that.

SPEAKER_02 2:01

Yeah, absolutely. Um, and then the other one that I have here, it says founders report higher stress and emotional strain than traditional employees.

SPEAKER_03 2:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:11

So those are uh, you know, some sobering statistics for us to think about as we get into this conversation today.

SPEAKER_04 2:17

Yeah, and we we have felt that all these things right here, right? And so when you're responsible for other people, then that pressure just ratches up just a little bit more. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:28

Okay. So you ready to get into it?

SPEAKER_04 2:30

Yeah, let's go.

SPEAKER_02 2:30

All right. Um, so I'm gonna ask you the first question that I have here, and that is what do people not see behind the scenes when it comes to building something new?

SPEAKER_04 2:41

Great question. Um, because I think that that's one of the keys uh to helping someone who's new in entrepreneurship. Um, so so take notes uh with this answer here. I think one of the biggest things behind the scenes people understand is was kind of going back to what we just talked about, is the immense pressure and the mental grind that it takes to actually do something like this. Um, again, a lot of us think it's freedom and that we can now work for myself and nobody else, or I don't have to answer to anybody else. And so now I can work at my own pace and do things that my way, but that's a lot of pressure when you have to realize that there's so many steps involved in just opening a business, right? And so not only the structure uh that you have to have as far as, you know, whether it's the piece where you have to open with the city and the government documents and things, but then also to having a good business plan, right? And then having to please your customers and all those things that go into it. And so it's bigger than just freedom. And really, it's not freedom. It's actually you're kind of constrained a lot more because of the fact that just because you're working at your own pace, you're now still a slave to everybody else in your product, right? And so, because so that's not really freedom. That's actually, you know, more constrained than actually I think that it is even on a nine to five. And so, uh, because a nine to five, you have your own little, hey, these are my duties. I clock in, I go home, right? It's done. As an entrepreneur, it's 24-7. And so you don't have to do it. I'm turning it on and off. Um, and so I think that's probably one of the biggest things when it comes to having to one sustain something like this. Um, but a lot of times people don't really think about the the the vastness of that that's coming up when it comes to, hey, how do I sustain it or what do I mentally need to put into to doing something like this?

SPEAKER_02 4:23

Yeah, and I think the other thing that people don't normally see uh behind the scenes is just how much uh time, energy, effort it takes and how it affects everybody around you. So, you know, your your family, uh, you know, before if you had a traditional job, they know that they're gonna see you at least in the evening after a certain time, or maybe they're gonna see you on the weekends. And I think with entrepreneurship, it's one of those things that it never quite turns off. So even when you're not actively, you know, in in mode, um, it's always in the back of your mind, okay, what do I need to do to make it bigger? What do I need to do to make it better? And in the beginning stages, what do I need to do to just make sure we're surviving?

SPEAKER_03 5:01

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 5:02

So it's definitely a lot that um that people, you know, really don't see behind the scenes when when that journey is starting and then also what it takes to continue to sustain it.

SPEAKER_04 5:12

Yeah, and what you put in is what you're gonna get out. And so in the beginning, you have to put so much in because you want to get a greater return out of it because you're new, it's starting. You have to unveil yourself not to yourself, but the people that you're doing this for. And so uh, so because you have to put so much in time into it, you know, it can be very, very taxing, you know. And then that's why I say over eight 80% of businesses fail within the first you know, 18 months, the three years of even opening, you know. And that's because it is a lot of pressure. And sometimes people, hey, it's not worth it. Let me just go back to that security blanket I had where I know I'm gonna get paid every two weeks because for the work that I did, you know, 40, sometimes 50 hours a week, right? But as an entrepreneur, you're putting 80, 90 hours a week in sometimes, right? And are is the return worth it in the end? And so you got to make sure your purpose, and this is another thing I would say, you gotta make sure your purpose that you're doing something for is far greater than the work you're doing. Because if it's not, then it's not even worth, you know, you trying to do something that doesn't have a purpose in the end, if it's if it's only about money, because you're not gonna make a lot of money in the very beginning. So uh unless you got this, you know, just crazy idea or it just blows up, and that's you know, one in a million here, sir, and there. But most entrepreneurs, you know, we have to, you know, go through the grind, the process of starting from something, starting in the the the red and trying to figure out how do we get to the black, right? And that's a process in itself.

SPEAKER_02 6:26

Yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_04 6:28

Um, so let's talk about the myths, right? Um, what are some of the myths uh people, you know, you say think about entrepreneurship going into it that maybe are not totally what it looks like in the end?

SPEAKER_02 6:42

Um so I think there's probably uh a couple of things that come to mind, but uh on the one hand, there's people that think of their, you know, that this entrepreneurial is gonna start and they're super optimistic about it. So they're thinking they're gonna have immediate wealth, immediate freedom. You know, being an entrepreneur means I get to do what I want. I can sleep in to whatever time, I can tell everybody else what to do. You know, all my dreams are gonna come true. So I feel like there's people in that camp, and then there's people in the opposite camp that really take uh reverence for that journey and they do the opposite. So they they end up never starting because they're making it out to be too big. So they're thinking, okay, I have to have all this money, I have to have all this, you know, these resources in this specific place, or you know, like their ideas are um so big that they're wanting to make it all perfect from day one. And so they never even start because, you know, it's there's never the perfect conditions that they're waiting for.

SPEAKER_04 7:39

Absolutely. And having big dreams, there's nothing wrong with that. I mean, that's that's a whole part of it. You have a big vision, you want to do something really amazing and great, but then there's a practicality of the steps it takes to get there, right? And so uh, so those steps sometimes get lost when you have such a big dream and goals because all the dreams and goals, that's kind of the la la land, the dream land, right? But when you have to start doing the grind work, then it's like, ooh, man, that's a lot more than I thought was going to go into. And it's always much more than you think. Yes. That it's so much more. Like, I mean, I think about even when we first started uh our childcare centers, right? So you were obviously a director and and uh oversaw multiple different locations and centers. And I'd worked with kids before and children and teenagers. So I'm like, it's a perfect match. I worked in finances and business, but yet because we had the framework, we had no clue going into it what it really was going to take to sustain the level of excellence that we were trying to portray uh portray, you know, when it comes to what we wanted to see in our business.

SPEAKER_02 8:34

Yeah. And I think also the personal sacrifice is something that people truly underestimate because, you know, a lot of times when you're creating that business plan, you're looking at your budget and saying, okay, you know, let's say you have to, you know, um uh secure a location. All right, this is how much money it's gonna take to get the place that I want. Okay, we have to hire staff. How much for the staff? You know, how much for the equipment? So there's certain tangible things that people are weighing. Um, but a lot of times they think they don't think about the personal costs. So they're not thinking, okay, if I was making a hundred thousand a year at my last job and now I'm giving that up, not only do I have to calculate the cost of the staff, the location, the equipment, you know, maybe the advertising and the marketing, but now I also have to go ahead and add that hundred thousand because my bills, you know, my home bills have already been, you know, have reached that that level to where I have a mortgage. I have a car payment, I have, you know, this, that, and the other. Or, you know, maybe it's a a family where there's one main provider, you know, or even if there's two. So there's just all these things that you're not even thinking about before you go into it that creep up on you. And then there's so many variables. So even when you think you know what it's gonna take and you've put it all on paper, it rarely goes that way. It rarely looks like the paper and the plan and the strategic, you know, uh goals that you've set out. It it never looks that way.

SPEAKER_04 9:59

Yeah, the blueprints are more like a framework, it's not really a A, B, C, D, all the way to Z type thing. A lot of times you're filling in P through Z, right? Because we think we know what it looks like in the end, but we really don't. Um, and I would say too, sometimes, like you said, going back to the cost of things, you know, I mean, there's a there's a point where I literally, you know, we thought we had our little 401k, we had a little savings and things, and the money dries up. I mean, it just goes so quick because there's so much involved. I mean, I I I had to I had to go sell blood, you know, yeah, plasma. Yeah. So my family. You know, and you know, and and so to pay tithes and then also to make sure we had our lights. And I still remember the story of our daughter, you know, just you know, I was walking around like stressed and she could see it, and I actually had the JAA light bill in my hand at the time.

SPEAKER_02 10:45

Yeah, you're like, God, how are we gonna pay this bill?

SPEAKER_04 10:47

And my daughter literally was like going, she was in the couch and then she pulls out. Looking for change and a couple of dollars. This may not actually, you know, but hope this helps. And I just started crying, you know. I just moved crying because you think about and I go back and think about those stories of the sacrifice that it takes. You know, when you're in it, you almost have to have a blind sense of just devotion and faith that no matter what, you're gonna actually go through it. Because if you had to go back and say, hey, this is part of the business plan, you're gonna be giving blood, you're not gonna know when your next bill's gonna come, the next meal is gonna come.

SPEAKER_02 11:20

It for us looking back, it almost was foolishly irresponsible the way that we start started. And I think, you know, obviously for us as believers, it was different. You know, it's it's almost like I can't even give people, you know, a ABC one, two, three format of how to start a business without talking about God and without talking about our faith, because that was the reason we stepped out, is because we did feel that strong unction that God was telling us to. So I think our our faith, knowing that we were doing something bigger than ourselves and that this was a plan, that that there was going to be something better at the end, sustained us through that hard journey. So we we did fast, we prayed. So we we worked um on things spiritually just as much as we worked on things physically and financially.

SPEAKER_04 12:11

Yep. So and if you really think about it, you know, any entrepreneur you talk to, uh whether you believe it or not, this is the common story, you know, the sacrifice, like the money or didn't have this, and you have to have a lot of things. And so finally, you know, you just have to keep grinding and keep grinding and keep believing and just hope that that belief that you have in what you're doing is gonna far outweigh and it will pay off. You know, you can't, you can't a farmer is gonna get his harvest if he properly sows seeds, if he properly waters it, and tends to his harvest, like he spoke to it.

SPEAKER_02 12:40

And if he waits long enough, I mean there's patience is there's certain plants and trees that are not gonna have any fruit or sustainability or anything to show for it for years. Absolutely. So I think that's that's something to think about.

SPEAKER_04 12:52

So that was kind of just a little bit of a reality, you know. Now we want to kind of talk about some lessons because one of the things what we don't want to do is discourage entrepreneurs, like, hey, it's so hard, don't do it, right? And everyone's journey is gonna be different. Ours was one of faith, one ours was one of the tenacity and grit because I believe that's what God's testimony wanted us to be, yeah, so that we can inspire others that we're gonna go through the same thing, right? But there's so many great things about entrepreneurship too, as well, that we want to talk about. But but there's also some lessons as well. So um, I want to um ask you a question, you know, more of a lesson, you know, on something we can learn from entrepreneurship. So, what does it actually take to build something that's sustainable? What are some of the lessons you could say that you've learned or and and dealt with over the years that you say, hey, you know what? This is what I've learned about sustainability of a business.

SPEAKER_02 13:36

Um, so I mean, before I answer that, I just sorry, I just I'm just laughing inside because of something that you just said. So, you know, over the last couple of years, when we talk about, you know, uh getting to a place where we feel like we can impart into others, we can mentor, we can help others. Um, we always joke about how I would be a terrible motivational speaker, right? Because there's so many times where people have told me their big dreams and I'm like, oh my goodness. Well, did you consider this, this, this? Like, it's gonna be hard. It's gonna be so hard. And we always joke about like I would be the worst person to talk to if you want to start a business because I'm telling you too much of what what the realness is and what you don't want to know. So sorry, I'm I'm just like laughing in the back of my mind, thinking about that.

SPEAKER_04 14:23

But before you answer that question, though, but that's reality because I think sometimes, you know, for me, I'm such an optimistic person. I'm like, yes, you can go do it. You can do all things through Christ, you strengthen you. If you got a purpose, you got a dream, yeah, let's do it. But also, too, it set you up for failure if you don't understand the back end of those things. So, and that's what makes our balance so good.

SPEAKER_02 14:39

I was gonna say, I think that was the blessing that of our partnership is it, yes, your, you know, your your dreams, your aspirations were huge, and maybe your head was in the clouds, you know, half of the time. But then, you know, I I was able to also keep my feet on the floor and stay grounded. And so on the moments when I didn't have enough faith, you were able to to kind of show me and bring me along um with where you were. And then on those days where, you know, you had all the faith, but we needed to really just figure out the details, you know, I was able to bridge that gap. So I mean, I'm I'm grateful that we went into it together because I feel like there's so much that that you added and that I added that people need. And um, and so I mean, I think partnership is is something to really consider along the journey because it is so hard, because it takes a lot of faith and it takes, you know, seeing things from different angles. And a lot of times, you know, like I said, you you have the camp of people that are too optimistic, and then you have the camp that's too pessimistic, and those those pessimists are probably not gonna make it to the end because they're gonna give up too soon, and then those optimists are gonna go too soon and they're not gonna, you know, wait for the right timing and the right resources.

SPEAKER_04 15:49

So the balance is definitely key. And so that's that's another key to sustainability, which we were talking about, right? Yeah, and uh, and just how that you know just plays a big part of it. You staff your weakness, what you're not weak at, either you have to outsource, find partnership, or guess what, you're gonna have to figure out how to do that yourself. And a lot of times when you can find someone you can partner with or staff around you those things you can't do well, then you can find yourself in a better place, right? So what are what are some other things?

SPEAKER_02 16:13

Uh yeah, I was gonna say, so now I'm gonna go back and answer your original question, which I think we touched on a couple of things. So you were asking me, you know, what it actually takes uh to build something, you know, sustainably. Um, I think consistency, communication, and collaboration, I would say are the main things. So um consistency, as we mentioned, you know, it's basically just getting back up every single day, doing the work, doing the work, even when you don't see the results, you know, being uh being that person that is going to act the same way with one customer as they would with a thousand, you know, being the the one that has one employee and they're they're motivating, you know, they're sending out uh, you know, like positive memes or something on the group chat, even if it's only one person on the group chat, you know. So I think just the consistency of just acting as if you're walking into the room with your whole vision being realized will help you get to the place where it is, you know? And um, and then when it comes to communication, we gotta constantly put that vision in front of the people. We, you know, I remember when we were um giving tours at our first center. So we opened our our first uh childcare center with six students, one employee, and just the two of us, you know? And we were doing everything. We're running around, like just making it all work. And people would come into the building. We didn't even have enough money to have a sign on the outside. Right. The building was gray. It looked it looked like a jailhouse. It looked terrible. We always joked in it. Listen, it looked more like a juvenile uh facility. A juvenile detention facility than a preschool center.

SPEAKER_04 17:51

Okay, don't tell them too much because then they're not even gonna be revealing all the secrets.

SPEAKER_02 17:56

Let's get it. It was pretty big. Um it was, yeah, it was not what we we wanted our very first center to look like, but it was what we could afford in that moment, and we had to start somewhere. But I said all that to say, despite what it looked like on the outside, when people came in the inside, the classrooms were set up nice, we were able to, you know, paint and we were able to buy some stuff secondhand. We went to the school board auction, we're buying tables that normally cost, you know, uh $200 for $5. But everything that we could do up front, we did. And when people came in and took a tour, we didn't give five-minute tours, we gave like 30-minute tours because we were pouring our heart out. We were not showing them what they, we weren't talking about what they saw, we were talking about what we saw, you know, not the vision with the eyes, but you know, the vision with the soul. And by the end of the tour, people would literally be in tears, you know, and we would be in tears, and then all of a sudden this person's our best friend, and they're bringing their own kids, they're bringing, you know, their family, their friends. And we went from those six kids to 60 kids in six months.

SPEAKER_01 19:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:05

And after that, it just kept going and going, you know, and then every two years we opened up another location and eventually 400 students, 50 full-time employees. And this was within those six years, you know. So it wasn't day one, but it also didn't, you know, wasn't year 20. So somewhere in between there, we just, you know, we we just kept that vision at the forefront and did everything we could in the moments that we could, and God was able to, to, to do something with it, you know.

SPEAKER_04 19:34

And just keep what you said, being faithful over little and being then getting rule over much. But you know, our faithfulness was at the small level. I still remember our first, you know, staff event was our one employee. And one employee brought our family over. We got Thanksgiving dinner, and but we had activities for the kids and our kids, and we just pour into them and we just loved on them. And they they I remember just how much they just appreciated just the fact that, hey, yeah, we're a small company, heck, but you took the time to say, you know what, come to my house and let's let's celebrate something as significant as Thanksgiving, right? And so uh so I just remember how we were faithful with our employees at the smaller, and then it allowed for us to start doing bigger events and having this consistency of every quarter, celebrating our employees in a large level and keeping that, you know, consistency going. And I think all those little things we did in the very beginning, like say even the tours and things, those are still some of the things that are happening today that people are still getting excited about. And so it's not like you said, just you do it for the beginning, and when the money starts rolling in, you kind of no, you got to consistently do it to stay where you want to be and be sustainable because that's what we want to see. You don't want to just have your business and open it for a couple of years and then fall off and be gone. You you're building something so it can be la lasting for life, right? For life, you what's your legacy? Does it go beyond yourself? That's what most of us want. And so sustainability has to happen with consistency and making sure you're doing the small things right early and continuing those things as you continue to grow and scale.

SPEAKER_02 20:59

Yeah, absolutely. Um, but no, I just um I love going back down memory lane and thinking about these things because, you know, when we think about 12 years ago and we when we opened our doors for the first time and you know, it was it was hard work and and we were, you know, like we we didn't know what was gonna happen. We didn't know if we were gonna work hard, fight, do what we had to do, and then still close down a year later. You know what I mean? But we we just treated every day with the value that it deserved and every customer and every child and you know, just every moment we were we were at functioning at a level 10, like all day, every day, 10 out of 10, because we had no choice. You know, it was like we don't want this thing to die on account of us. Like if it dies, let it die, knowing that we put everything into it. Like we left everything on the field and it still didn't work out, then at least we can go to bed with clear conscience. And I think, you know, um, I love just even These conversations having to remember back because now, you know, we we've had over eight businesses at one time and different industries. And, you know, we've we've had um almost a hundred employees at, you know, full-time employees at one time. Um, and you know, just the multiple uh things that we've been able to be involved in because of that very first business that we started and and that very first location that wasn't what we wanted it to be.

SPEAKER_04 22:29

And the barbed wire fences, yes, that's where we started. I gotta get the reality out there for the people, right? So um, but one thing you talked about, and I want to, you know, as we segue into this next question, because there's balance that needs to happen, right? Not just, I say, the what you were talking about with the starting and and and and grinding and making sure that man, we didn't know uh man, is the faith gonna be enough? Or, but also two, we actually had our business plans, all the everything was well rounded. We had the the the technical aspect of things in order, but then you had the grit part of just the faith and the perseverance, right? But then there's another balance that we got to talk about health, right?

SPEAKER_03 23:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 23:06

So I want you to talk about what are some separate habits or healthy habits for entrepreneurs so that we can avoid burnout. Because I think that's one of the hardest things to that to come across as an entrepreneur is that we get to these places of burnout. How do how what are some healthy habits that that you put in? Because I know and watched you do this for years now. Like, what are some healthy things we can do to keep from getting to burnout?

SPEAKER_02 23:28

Yeah, so um, so I I love everything about health. I feel like, you know, we are well-rounded beings. God made us mind, body, soul, spirit, and we can't ignore any of those parts because if we ignore one but work on just the others, then, you know, eventually everything's gonna crumble. So it's all interdependent and interconnected. Um, so I feel like, you know, some of the very practical things is, you know, let's take care of ourselves first. You know, people talk about self-care. Yes, it's cliche, but my goodness, we can't do anything for anybody else if we are not okay. So, you know, what does self-care look like to you? And also what does sustainability look like to you, right? Like I, you and I talk about this all the time. I say, hey, babe, if if you if we're gonna be married for the next 50 years, I need you to eat healthy. I need you to work out with me. I need you to this, I need to do that. You know, like we need to, we need to go to the dentist because, you know, God forbid, you know, 20 years from now, one of us is losing our teeth. Okay. So I want us to have success in the moment, but I really want us to have success long term. So, you know, the basic things of us physically, you know, the eating, the exercising, the sleeping. Sleeping is huge. And especially with entrepreneurs, a lot of times when we are working sunup, sundown, and then we're still having dreams about our work, and then we're, you know, up in the middle of the night writing notes about that thing that we're dreaming about, you know, like we have to learn how to shut it off.

SPEAKER_04 24:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:55

And to have that balance as well.

SPEAKER_04 24:57

That was a hard thing for me because, you know, like uh, you know, I mean, I'll I'll I'll go through the burning late hours till two, three in the morning and get right back up at seven or eight if I have to, whatever the case may be. And then what does that cost sometimes? Sometimes it'll be in the middle of a day and I'm knocked out on the couch. So he can fall asleep in a second. In a second, right? And so it's crazy.

SPEAKER_02 25:16

We could be mid-conversation and then I do something real quick and all of a sudden I go back and he's done.

SPEAKER_04 25:20

I'm like, right. And so, but but what I realized though is that over the years of just you know burning that midnight oil, yeah, a lot of times I got better work out of the times where I stopped and went to sleep and woke up early and said, Hey, I got my rest. Now my mind's sharp, man. I can do so much more when my mind's sharp. Like a lot of times we think, oh, there's not enough hours in the day, right? The 24 hours is not gonna change. It's been like that forever. It's gonna be like that when we die. So we we're not gonna get any more time, right? So we have to make sure we use our time wisely. And honestly, building healthy habits for yourself, if you start that early, what happens is when as you get busier, you just feel like there's not enough time. So you just keep doing more work, more work. But building healthy habits from the beginning, that's that's a hard thing to do. But it's it's the good thing to do. Because I like this new saying I do is I choose your hard, right? Like it's hard to stay healthy, but it's also hard being stressed and and not healthy. Yeah. So what each of them are hard, but which one do you want? And so those healthy habits, I would say, as you're beginning as entrepreneurship, train your body, train your mind, train your spirituality, your meditation, your prayer life in the beginning before you get your day going, do all those things because it does matter. And we've seen so much more growth. I feel like that's why we were able to scale is because we got that piece of our life, you know, in a lot more order.

SPEAKER_02 26:35

Yeah, for sure. And then don't underestimate the power of relationships, you know, not just your business partner and the people that you're building this entrepreneurial dream with, but you know, who are the people that feed into you? Like who are the people that that feed your soul, you know, whether it's a best friend, you know, I love to go on walks, I love hiking, anything that has to do outdoors, the beach, the, you know, the state parks, whatever. But I have several girlfriends where I just call them, like, hey, what are you doing next Saturday? And we will just go on a, you know, three, four mile hike. And the whole time we're just chit-chatting. And I'm getting in, you know, my emotional health, you know, I'm getting in my mental health, I'm getting in my physical health. And, you know, I just love that we can encourage and inspire each other. But, you know, whether it's um your significant other, those friendships, you know, maybe um you have like a spiritual mentor or pastor that, you know, that that you listen to or that you can, you know, fellowship with. And I think um, you know, God made us as relational beings. So we need to make sure that that that is something we don't neglect when we're just building, you know, that that journey. You don't want to get up to the mountaintop and look around and you're all alone.

SPEAKER_04 27:46

Wow. That's good.

SPEAKER_02 27:47

You don't want that. That's good, you know?

SPEAKER_04 27:48

And and actually, I was actually about to get into this question. How do you stay grounded in these times of uncertainty? And you just gave us gold right there, like having those things that you can use and do when you're not, you know, like doing anything. Like, hey, I like to go hiking. Like I want like you got other people that can pour into your friendships and those types of things. That's how you stay grounded. I love the fish, you know. Like, I get me out there in the some water and some poles, give me a couple of friends around me and the piece. Like that keeps me grounded, being able to be human. You know, as an entrepreneur, you have to be this robotic, like, like, oh my God, you got to keep going for the you got to be this ultra superhuman, right? Like you got to be superman, superwoman.

SPEAKER_02 28:24

And I feel like a lot of times, especially when you're beginning that entrepreneur journey, you feel like you're in performance mode all the time. Yeah. So it's not until you get home and you're like, okay, let me take these earrings off, you know, and kick these heels off. And even still, how hard is that?

SPEAKER_04 28:37

How hard is that to do sometimes? Because when you come home, you're like, oh, don't bring your work with you. But when you're an entrepreneur, your work stays with you all the time. And so the nine to five, you can figure out turn it on, turn it off if you want to, right? Or even if you're a leader. And and it's and even most leaders that are in executive roles, it's hard to turn off things, right? Because you have so much responsibility. And so, so you're almost like self-employed as you get higher up into your, you know, your ranks when it comes to you know your companies and things of that nature. Um, even as a parent, right? Parents are, you know, we're parents 100% of the time. You can't turn off being a parent or not, right? If your kid gets sick while you're at work, guess what? Bye-bye work, gotta go get my kid, right? So it's just one of those things that dude, you have to have some things that are helping you stay grounded in all those roles. And the more you can focus on your health and also some of that self-care, I think those are the things that help you stay grounded the most in these times. So, um, so let's kind of you know turn this into a faith talk a little bit. Um, you know, we talked about, you know, hey, how do you stay grounded in some of these times? Um, you know, what do you how do you think, you know, entrepreneurship has stretched you as a leader and how has it helped you stretch your faith and to believe more than what you ever have when you maybe started, you know, this faith journey.

SPEAKER_02 29:42

Yeah, um, I mean, for us, I think we're so blessed that we've seen God move for us in a in very tangible ways, you know? And I, you know, you're probably thinking what I'm thinking. Like it's it's funny when you've been married this long and been together. You can like look into each other's eyes and you you both remember the same story at the same time. But um, you know, just to share a quick little testimony, when we first started out, you know, we we didn't have many, we didn't have a lot of funds because God gave us the vision uh when we did not expect it. So we didn't prepare for it. You know, we were um, you know, Trent uh left his job and within, I think it was like 10 months later is when we when we first uh opened the business. So for 10 months, you know, he's making over six figures, he's doing well, he's supporting our family, and then I'm I'm doing well at a large nonprofit organization. So we have both those salaries. And then with him just basically quitting his job, saying, Hey, babe, I feel like this is what God called me to do, and then not having his salary for a whole 10 months before we opened the business. I mean, we liquidated our 401ks. We were living off of our savings. So it wasn't like we're putting any money in, we're taking money out.

SPEAKER_04 30:55

You and you left your job like like three, four months right after I did, right? So literally we're both unemployed. It's zero coming in. It's literally whatever we can scrum over.

SPEAKER_02 31:06

It's just going right yeah, towards um the negative. And um, so I mean, it definitely took a lot of faith during that season, a lot of praying, a lot of fasting, you know, just being very creative, but um also just remembering like what the vision was. And um, oh, anyway, so I I said all that to say by the time we opened, when I say there was like zero left in those accounts, I mean we were in the negative in every sense of it.

SPEAKER_04 31:32

I got those basic years still. It reminds me of where we came from, right?

SPEAKER_02 31:35

But the resources that God gave us were invaluable, and I'm not just talking money, which I will get to that part of the testimony in a second. But Trent um had an organization that he used to volunteer with called Young Life, which was, you know, for teenagers and just kind of, you know, just sharing the good news with them, but then also just offering a safe place for them to, you know, to be young, to have fun, to have um more seasoned mentors. And through that journey, he met a gentleman who was the one that kind of funded um, you know, that the local program at the school he was at. And so years later, as we opened this, our first center, come to find out that gentleman, his multi uh billion, I think.

SPEAKER_04 32:16

Multi-million million at the time. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02 32:18

Company company, their main office was down the street from our first center. And so Trent ended up running into him and asking him, would he be his mentor? And so now you have this person that is mentoring us weekly for free, um, but also has a uh, you know, shares our same faith and our same vision for helping children and families. So not only do we have that resource, which you know, people underestimate how valuable a resource of a of a good mentor is, but then um throughout those visits, at one point when again our account was in the negative, um, after they had met, you know, he he turns out, gets his checkbook, writes a check, you know, hands it to Trent, and he's like, um, this is not a loan, this is a gift. And, you know, I don't know if you want to say the amount.

SPEAKER_04 33:06

We're gonna be real, because I think I think sometimes people need to hear some of the realities because it it boosts your faith. And, you know, at the time, and here's the other part I think the key of that I was very transparent. Like I had my books, like we were negative in our books, right? And but I had I knew every dollar that was being spent in and out, how much we needed, it matched the business plans from before. And so that's one of the things that he was very impressed with was the fact that we were so organized when it came to hey, our vision, what we were doing.

SPEAKER_02 33:30

We did what we could with what we had.

SPEAKER_04 33:32

Absolutely, right? And then all of a sudden it's like here's here's our books, this is what's happening. And I remember the time before he ended up blessing us, he goes, But this is normal. This is what it's supposed to be. You know, it was like he helped me to normalize the thing.

SPEAKER_02 33:44

The beauty of a mentor, somebody to say, Hey, you're on the right path. Don't get off of it. Right. Like, stay on. If you stay on long enough, you're gonna absolutely it's gonna produce.

SPEAKER_04 33:52

Absolutely. And so I I so part of the testimony was just, you know, the the uh month, there was about a couple weeks' stretch where he couldn't meet with us because he was really, really busy. And at that point, we were busy too as well. So, but it was a frustration that came in me where I was like, man, this is just not working. We we were about a couple months down on rent. We were just communicating with the landlord, okay, it's coming, we know it's gonna happen. And this was a season of prayer that we were doing at our church, and usually it's at nighttime. But that morning, I just could not wait to get to church because tonight to prayer. I was like, what's in? And so I got to the church that morning and I just went into the sanctuary crying, like just begging God, like God, like I'm doing all I can, like, yeah, like just help. Like I'm I'm putting my faith out here, saying that I can't do anything else, right? And there's this peace that just came on me. And I had a friend of mine that was over all the media at the time, his name, uh Byron, and uh, shout out to Byron Taylor. And so um uh hopefully you'll see this and you know, but um I remember those words he came and he's like, he's I kind of like wiped my tears before he got there. And he's like, Man, you okay? I was like, Man, it's gonna be okay. God's got me. And he stopped and he prayed with me. He said, You know what, God, I don't know what's going on, but I just pray that you're gonna do exceedingly abundantly above all you can ever ask, think, or imagine in his life. And when he said that, that just brought my spirits up. And I just heard a whisper say, you know what, go back to the basics. And so I got this piece of paper, which I still have today, right? And um, I split it in half and I said, You know what? I'm gonna do these things. So I said, I'm gonna get my books back in order because like for like a month I had stopped. Yeah, he just got depressed.

SPEAKER_02 35:20

He was like, I don't even want to do it. I don't even want to look at the book.

SPEAKER_04 35:23

So if I had a meeting with Skip, I wouldn't have my books ready, right? So I said, I'm gonna get my books back ready. Um, I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna apply for a loan, even though if I know that I'm not gonna get approved, right? I'm gonna put my faith out there, I'm gonna apply for a loan. Um, I'm gonna I it's brought all these things, like 10 different things I'm gonna do. And on this side said, you know what, God, I believe that you're gonna give us the 25 kids because we need 25 times to uh start um uh a program, right? And we're gonna have just enough money to get that insurance we needed so that we can get the grants for the other programs we needed, right? And then we're gonna get a Head Start grant, which we know that was almost impossible at the time, especially our building.

SPEAKER_02 35:52

At the time, they wouldn't partner with anybody that hadn't been open at least a year. Yeah, and we were like six months.

SPEAKER_04 35:57

Six months, right? But I was like, you know what, God, I believe we're gonna get a Head Start grant. And I just said all this stuff, and and then I said, You're gonna provide the funding we need. Now, so the next two days later, um, Skip calls me and said, Hey, sorry, I've been busy, love to meet with you. So I and I had got my books ready the day before. And so the next day we met and we continue talking, and he's like, and he tells me, like, well, I got a chance to talk to um the president of Snova's Bank, who used to be my CFO, and uh and it's like, hey, um, they're gonna help you with some business stuff. I already connected with them, and I'm gonna help put some guarantees behind it. And I was like, Man, that's awesome! And I was feeling really good. And he's like, But I'm gonna do something else for you. Like I say, took out the checkbook, and literally he writes one check in my name for $10,000. Uh-huh. And then he writes a second check for a star's name and $10,000 because you know, just through rules of business and things. And he gives this to us and said, This is not a loan, this is us investing in you because I believe what you're doing and I know that this is something that God's gonna do really well in your life. And the crazy part, that is almost the exact amount that we're behind in our personal life and also in our business life. And I don't know if he remembered that based off the books that we were showing him this, or that was just the vine thing where he just like gave me that exact amount. But whatever it is, from that day, our business never saw any issues like that, you know, no lack, no anything. Yeah, and all those things I asked God for, right? The programs we wanted. And the hardest thing that Head Start grant, literally a month later, we were called by Head Start and said, Hey, we had a grantee that, you know, we had we're losing. We got to, we have about 40 kids that are displaced, and we need to put them in immediately. And so they came, they paid for our playground equipment, they helped us spruce up our place so it can be ready for Head Start. And when I tell you that those families loved us, we hit all the stuff we were doing, all the heart care and the and the tours and all that loving atmosphere we created was the atmosphere that was needed for those parents to come into our center and began to thrive.

SPEAKER_02 37:52

Yeah. Um, and Mark, Mark Batterson um has this quote and he says, you know, we have to um work like it depends on us and pray like it depends on God. And I think, you know, during that season, opening that first business that basically, you know, launched everything else and gave us all these other opportunities, you know, that was our strategy. We did everything that we could do, but then we also had the faith to believe that God would bridge the gap on those things that we couldn't help. And and to finish off this, the the testimony of what we just shared, um, when we got that Head Start grant, we went from 25 kids on a Friday to 60 kids on that Monday. So, you know, a certain amount was from Head Start, but then uh, you know, some of other students was just, you know, regular students enrolling. And so if you can imagine doubling in size in one weekend, yes, there was a heck of a lot of work that we had to do. You know, we were interviewing, hiring, you know, training, like just doing all the setting up classrooms.

SPEAKER_01 38:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 38:50

Um, but then, you know, it was it was the faith. It was God. It was, you know, people that were that were rallying around us. So I mean, it, you know, it's just it's been a journey. It's been amazing. I, you know, we, I mean, we could sit here and tell you story after story after story of ways that God provided, but then also things that we we were able to do um to steward well what God was entrusting us with. Absolutely. So, but um, but we're I think we're we're getting a little over time, so we can probably wrap up. That's right. This is what people want the application.

SPEAKER_04 39:21

Right. So, but but I'm I'm really glad that you said that because like I said, uh the practical, there's a part that we have to do as you know, as as humans and entrepreneurs and business leaders, and you know, to make our dreams come true. There's a practical steps that you have to do. You can't you can't get out of that. There's a process, you can't get uh past that. But then there is, I believe, a divine favor when you have a purpose that you have and and you do the right things and you're pouring all into it, like something's gonna come out. You cannot reap unless you sow. And one of my favorite scriptures, Galatians 6 and 9, you know, don't grow weary and well doing. Yeah, for in due season, if you'll reap a harvest if you faint not. Don't get tired, don't get of doing the hard work, just keep crying, keep doing it. I literally have chills. I literally have chills.

SPEAKER_02 40:08

But yeah, God has been good.

SPEAKER_04 40:10

He has, yeah, he's been good all the time. So as we leave uh the episode, you know, there's a couple application questions. I just want to leave you guys with, just for your own self, to, you know, as you're whatever you are in your entrepreneur jury, where you're thinking about becoming an entrepreneur, whether you're just starting, or you're even seasoned, because even as seasoned entrepreneurs, there's still levels we can continue to go. And all these things that we're talking about, these basics, you can't stop doing. You just have to be more consistent and actually be better at them as you grow. And so the first question I'm gonna ask: are you building something that aligns with your values? Right. What are you trying to achieve in the end? Right? What is your purpose? A lot of times they talk about your mission statement or your culture, whatever you're trying to build. Is it something that's other than my bottom line? You know, money. There's the thing the financial world is up and down, the stock market, the government, everything. Finances come and go. Like our journey, you know, our finances have been up and down, but it's our purpose that's kept us going. It's the fact that our goal is to impact the world one life at a time. It started with childcare, and now that's the same thing for any of our businesses, affecting people one life at a time to make sure that we have purpose and impact in them. So, what are the values your business or you're trying to do as an entrepreneur? And does it go beyond just what you're doing today, or is it go beyond just the pocketbook, right?

SPEAKER_02 41:21

Yeah, that's a really good question. Um, and then the second question that we have for you guys to really, you know, consider and and digest and think of those answers for yourself is what are you sacrificing that may not be worth it? So we have to also look at the cons as we're looking at all these pros. But what are what might you be sacrificing that's not worth it?

SPEAKER_04 41:42

Absolutely. And the last thing we want to leave you for as questions is how can you pursue success without losing what matters the most? Right. We talked about some of those things already, you know, your faith, right? Your your family, your friendships, your friendships, yeah, those human aspects of things. But you don't have to be the superhero all the time trying to strive after success. Make sure that you also remember that those little small things around you that support all you're doing really matter in the end. So as we come to a close, I hope this episode was uh enlightening to you. It was enlightening to me as we went back down memory lane and got to talk about so many things. But we're gonna be coming back with so many more episodes like this. Uh, really soon we're gonna have a couple of guests that are gonna be coming on that are also big in the entrepreneurial space and also the love and leadership space, right? Because we want to continue to give you guys the things that you need and also the things that, as a culture, we need to continue to get better at these things we do. So make sure you join us again next time on the Love and Leadership podcast. My beautiful co host Star, and I'm Trent. But always remember that you love well, lead with purpose, and make sure you steward what matters.