#1680 - The Price Tag For Your Goals

Embarking on the entrepreneurial journey is often romanticized in modern culture, yet the unspoken hardships and raw determination required to scale the formidable peaks of success are rarely discussed. In this episode, hosts Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros dig into the stark realities of the entrepreneurial grind, uncovering the tenacity and sacrifices made to achieve monumental milestones. They also highlight the potential rewards, painting a picture of a future filled with hope and optimism for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Links mentioned:
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Next Level Nation - https://www.facebook.com/groups/459320958216700

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For more information, please check out our website at the link below. 👇

Website 💻  http://www.nextleveluniverse.com

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We love connecting with you guys! Reach out on Instagram, Facebook, or via email. We’re here to support you in your personal and professional development journey.

Instagram 📷
Kevin: https://www.instagram.com/neverquitkid/
Alan: https://www.instagram.com/alazaros88/

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Email 💬
Kevin@nextleveluniverse.com
Alan@nextleveluniverse.com

LinkedIn ✍
Kevin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-palmieri-5b7736160/
Alan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanlazarosllc/

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Show notes:
(2:12) How much?
(4:16) What’s behind the scenes?
(6:54) Kevin’s new frame
(8:41) Meet like-minded people and jumpstart your journey to achieving your dreams while optimizing your life. Join Next Level Group Coaching. https://www.nextlevelun

🎙️ Hosted by Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros

Next Level University is a top-ranked daily podcast for dream chasers and self-improvement lovers. With over 2,100 episodes, we help you level up in life, love, health, and wealth one day at a time. Subscribe for real, honest, no-fluff growth every single day.

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:00

Next Level Nation. Welcome back to another episode of Next Level University, where we help you level up your life, your love, your health and your wealth. We hope you enjoyed yesterday's episode, episode number 1,679, what Are your People Patterns Today. For episode number 1,680, the price tag for your goals. This is going to be weird, might be too much information. I'll throw it out there right now.

Speaker 1 0:26

Some of the best thoughts I have is when I'm going pee. Don't know why, maybe it's just because I'm not really thinking about anything, so my brain is just kind of freestyling. But I was thinking of this last night during a wee, A wee, a wee. In the wee hours of the night. I was going wee, I was going wee, no, we no. Probably about 6 30 pm eastern standard time. I I was thinking of how you and I had the conversation about you can't set goals or you, you can't want an outcome without the process. And this has been a a point of discussion for years, where I said, of course you can, of course you can want an outcome without desiring the process. You just might not get it. And I was thinking of how cool it's going to be in the next couple weeks where we change our bios from 900,000 plus or 975,000, listens to a million plus, and how. In the next couple weeks it might even have already happened, I don't know. We would have earned a million dollars over the lifetime of this business so far.

Speaker 1 1:38

So we're a million dollar business and a million listen podcast.

Speaker 2 1:43

We're going to need you to work on that. Yeah, yeah, I'll work on it. That's going to look really cool on social media.

Speaker 1 1:50

But I don't care that it looks cool. I would rather somebody say how much work did it take to get there? It's really cool, it's credentialed, it's awesome. We like credentials, we all do. It's perception, that's the way it works. It's success, it's shiny, but nobody asks what it took to get there. I think we would be much better served if we did, if we asked that question of what did it take what? What was that like?

Speaker 2 2:21

I feel like I've always asked that I would say so. I've always been that I would say so. I've always been super curious about that.

Speaker 1 2:29

You're a process, you're a process person. You don't care about results, you care about process.

Speaker 2 2:34

In the early days of my life I feel like I cared about results a lot. I always say I wish that my focus was learning and then A's could be a byproduct For me. It was focused on A's, so I cheated on my vocab test, you know. Be a byproduct. For me, it was focused on a's, so I cheated on my vocab test, you know. So I wanted the result and I wish that I had been more process focused. But I do feel like I've always, always was curious. Remember we used to say we pull back the curtain I do. When we used to interview guests, we used to ask what's behind the scenes that no one else knows about?

Speaker 1 3:00

like, yeah, but not everybody told us yeah, I know I remember I was that recently how frustrated I am with some of the answers. Like we would have really good questions Like what was it like when you could barely afford things and people wouldn't go there, like that's the shit. That's what everybody needs to hear. They don't need to hear how you got your seventh business. They need to hear how you survived enough to get the first.

Speaker 2 3:24

Dude, I love it.

Speaker 1 3:25

But there were certain people that would be that guy.

Speaker 2 3:27

Well, I think in hindsight, why don't they go there, Dude? Maybe they did get lucky and they know it somewhere deep down.

Speaker 1 3:34

A lot of them did A lot of them. That was hard for me.

Speaker 2 3:37

It was hard for me to eventually realize I'd bring the listeners on this journey. We interviewed hundreds of people and eventually I got to the point where it's like most of them didn't know they'd get here. That was weird for me, because you and I had reverse engineered most of what we were trying to do yeah, no, I don't.

Speaker 1 3:51

I'll be the guy who said I have no. I say it all the time on interviews. I say I have no idea how I got here. I have no clue. It's wild.

Speaker 2 3:59

I'm going and let's do it. So I pull back the curtain. What is it? So we did a million. I mean, it's this week. It's this week we're going to surpass a million listens and a million dollars, which is wild that it happened in the same week by the way. That is wild, because we've been waiting for that for seven and a half years. Well, yeah, but we've only been talking about it for week, holy crap.

Speaker 1 4:21

All right.

Speaker 2 4:21

So million dollars, million listens, Awesome. Okay, Million dollar business. Million listen podcast. That's a. That's a rare thing. 5 million podcasts out there. What percentage you're the podcast guy? What percentage of podcasts get to that place?

Speaker 1 4:34

I don't know 1% of 1%, of 1% of 1%. Very small amount, all right so pull back the curtain.

Speaker 2 4:41

What? Okay, let's say, I'm interviewing you and I don't know you. All right, awesome. So you did something that almost no one has ever done. Like what's the real answer? How did you do it?

Speaker 1 4:52

What was the process, sacrifice yourself for the cause. That it was. Pretty much put my basic human needs second to everything else we're doing for seven years. Pretty much it that. Pay the business before I pay myself, pay the team before I pay myself. If I don't have enough time to do the work needed for the business and exercise, I just do the work for the business and I don't exercise.

Speaker 1 5:25

That You're going to be the guy Dude one day you'll be the guy who tells it real. I don't know how sad that sounds. Who cares? It's the truth. This is my new frame. I again growing through it. We're growing through it. We're growing through it. I saw something the other day. It I saw something the other day. It was a salary is the amount of money you accept to not go after your dreams, Something like that? Yeah, yeah, Looks really good on a social media post. Yeah, cool. I think that's bullshit. Now more than ever.

Speaker 2 5:57

Yeah, because guess what?

Speaker 1 5:59

There is a vast majority of humans. Do you want health insurance? Stay at your company, because I didn't have health insurance for seven years. Seven years, that's the stuff you got to tell. Now it's my health insurance is $400 a month.

Speaker 2 6:14

It's not cheap.

Speaker 1 6:15

It's honestly brutal.

Speaker 2 6:16

It's a lot of money. As the CFO, it's not nice.

Speaker 1 6:19

Not a fan, it's a lot of money. I know I know a lot of people that have jobs and are super happy.

Speaker 2 6:27

Yeah, I think, and those posts make it seem like they're doing something wrong.

Speaker 1 6:33

I know and I don't think, and honestly, they're doing what they're supposed to do.

Speaker 1 6:36

I think you're probably Now, if you're the type of person that longs for freedom and all that, that's a different conversation. I think I'm really starting to not like social media. Something happened in the last week for me where it's like I don't like social media at all. Good for you, yeah, I don't know, I'm going through it. I'm going through it. It was really cool, like seven years ago, to be an entrepreneur. Now it's almost like people get shamed if they're not, when in reality, statistically, most of you shouldn't be, and that's good. I'm not saying you shouldn't be because you can't handle it or you're not strong enough. It's not in your nature to be fulfilled while doing yeah.

Speaker 2 7:19

I was on a podcast recently Kev and it's a business show, business, okay, it's a business show. So this is a show talking to entrepreneurs. It's a business show, so this is a show talking to entrepreneurs. And there was a question that was something along the lines of how did we do it? What tips can you give that kind of thing? Appreciate it Awesome. I said this verbatim If you absolutely cannot stand even the idea of working for someone else, then you should be an entrepreneur. If it kind of bothers you to have a boss, you do not ever want to be an entrepreneur. You shouldn't be. You and I are going to be the ones who say that Dude, I couldn't the idea. I turned down a million dollars to stay an entrepreneur and not even have an investor. Dude, so sad about think about how unreasonable that is I never used to think that was weird because I'm now understanding that it's weird.

Speaker 2 8:16

But I turned down a half million dollar vp job while broke I'm talking like while living with my mother in my late 20s. That's weird. I didn't know that was weird because to me, someone asked me recently like why would you leave a job? Like seriously, please answer, why would you leave a job making that much money, like you were a one percent global earner, almost two hundred thousand dollars a year? Like how did you? How did you do it when you had no guarantee? And I said the old me would have answered this really poorly and I would have said well, you, you know, you know you got to sacrifice and blah, blah, blah. The new me says honestly, it wasn't really a risk for me because I knew it would work.

Speaker 2 8:55

And I'm scared to say that, but the truth is I could always go back. I could just go work at. I'm fearful this will come off as arrogant, but I want everyone to know the truth. My worst case is like go make a quarter million dollars a year at one of my all my college roommates are at. They're like leaders at companies that are tech companies. So like I have two mentors I can think of right now that would hire me tomorrow, so it's not really a risk for me.

Speaker 1 9:23

They hire me as well, you get a plus one.

Speaker 2 9:27

One of my mentors said dude, why are you?

Speaker 1 9:29

hanging out with him, damn. But I'm sorry to tell you that, but the point is but they, they don't know your value that's they don't know, you're not exactly a tech giant right uh, not yet.

Speaker 2 9:40

No, yeah, I'm working on this space you want to be in the next robotics company. Is that what you're? Are you considering robotics? And, yeah, mechanical engineering? Okay so, but I seriously want people to know this like for me it wasn't actually that risky. I never realized that it wasn't that risky. When, when, when your backup plan is, is that you're? It's not really a risk.

Speaker 2 10:03

You kind of just kevin's watched me turn down money more than anyone he's ever seen. It's offensive, but in the weird I just can't go out of alignment with my calling. I just won't do it. But if I had to, I would. If I had to Dude if Emilia was suffering, I would do it. I would go work for a while. I would go be a consultant. I would go back. I got emails on LinkedIn and stuff. I would go be a consultant. I would go back. I got emails on LinkedIn and stuff. I would go work if I had to. And so, again, to bring this back full circle, if you're out there listening and we are a dream chasing podcast, we are. So it's hard for us to be in this weird spot where we're kind of like, yeah, chase your dreams, but make sure your dreams. Like what if working as a vet tech is your dream?

Speaker 1 10:49

That's what.

Speaker 2 10:49

I'm saying. That's what I'm saying, dude, you and I used to be so naive.

Speaker 1 10:54

Yeah Well, remember at one point we were for entrepreneurs, that was like our brand, and then we said like I don't want to do that, we're going to be a show for just entrepreneurs. Like we're going to have to talk about business all the time.

Speaker 2 11:08

I love business and I love talking about that.

Speaker 1 11:10

But that's not why I started this. I started this to have cool conversations about life. That's why I started this. I want the show to be hyperconscious. I want the show to be hyperconscious. I want awareness and sometimes the awareness is. I know all the other places are saying if your goals aren't massive, you're a coward. I think that's dumb as shit.

Speaker 2 11:34

Yeah, it is dumb, statistically speaking. I think that's stupid. That advice is only good for a very small percentage of the people, 100%.

Speaker 1 11:41

And I don't think that a salary is the fee for you giving up your dreams. I don't believe that at all.

Speaker 2 11:48

A salary could be your dream.

Speaker 1 11:50

I know Right. I mean, if you want health insurance and you want a 401k and you want certainty and you want a home and you want to be able to pay your mortgage.

Speaker 2 12:00

Get a job that's awesome, that's awesome, that's awesome. I knew it. At the beginning we were like screw jobs. And now we're like honestly go get a job.

Speaker 1 12:08

Well, we've grown and I've also worked with a lot of people who thought they wanted to be an entrepreneur and they wanted to be a dream chaser, to the level it was a photocopy of what other people were doing, but their dreams aren't. It was based on social media posts of what they thought it was yeah, yeah, and their dreams.

Speaker 2 12:26

It wasn't based on the reality behind the scenes of how awful it really is.

Speaker 1 12:29

Yeah, yeah. The dreams that they're chasing are just different. The dreams that you're chasing have to be yours, Because they're Again I this will be the last thing I say before we get out of here. I genuinely don't know what's worse Thinking you want something, getting it and realizing you don't, or thinking you want something and never get it.

Speaker 2 12:51

I don't know what's worse and spending the rest of your life thinking that's what you want, yeah, and longing for it. Yeah.

Speaker 1 12:58

Okay.

Speaker 2 12:59

Okay, what's the third one? And then we got to jump. But One of them is thinking that you want something, getting it and realizing you didn't. At least there's some growth in that, some Okay but you might sacrifice things you'll never get back. And then the other one is thinking you want something and never getting it. What's the third alternative? I don't know. Does there have to be three? I think the third alternative is be self-aware enough to go for things that really will fulfill you.

Speaker 1 13:24

Oh yeah, no, I like that one. Okay, nice, I think that's a good one. Nice, I don't usually. Oftentimes I don't solve the problem, I give multiple problems, so solving it, I think is good too. I think that's a good way to look at it.

Speaker 2 13:38

All right.

Speaker 1 13:39

We have Jeffed yet again. We don't know what we're doing for tomorrow's episode, but I kind of like that in a way. I don't know.

Speaker 2 13:46

Because you want to know why. Because we get to talk about things that we're feeling in the moment, I know. That's why we like it this whole planning ahead.

Speaker 1 13:53

Is that sustainable Takes?

Speaker 2 13:54

away the creative process a little bit. Is that sustainable? I like that personally.

Speaker 1 14:01

I do too, but I'm scared. Okay, well, I appreciate your vulnerability Again, see, this is that's not I don't know, that's not vulnerable for me to share. I like sharing that stuff I appreciate your honesty.

Speaker 2 14:15

Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 14:15

It's honest. It's honest. That's the other thing too Like is it? I don't know? Is it arrogant? If it's true, I've been having that thought a lot lately. I that's another episode, I know. I know I'll mark that down. Alright book club every Saturday, 12.30. If you have not gotten your Dreamliner for the next 90 days of goal setting, we have it on Amazon. Next Level Nation a wonderful community of like-minded individuals where you can be yourself, authentic and grow together with us. All those things will be in the show notes. As always, we don't know what we're doing tomorrow. We're out here jeffing. We love you, we appreciate you all. We don't have fans, we have family and we will talk to you all tomorrow. Talk to you soon. Max Level Nation.