Be Your Own Boss? The Truth No One Tells You About Entrepreneurship

Speaker 2 (00:00) Hey everybody, welcome back to another episode of Sugar Spice and Spirits podcast. I'm one of your hosts. This is Kelly Williams and this is... And Natalie Pilkinton And we are coming live... Speaker 1 (00:08) Mindy Price and Speaker 3 (00:10) I'm Pilkington. Speaker 2 (00:14) today from Surfside, Texas. We're kind of by the beach. I don't think you really tell behind us a little bit, but we are at Sharky's Bar and Grill, great outdoor patio. We were going to go inside, but they're doing all the renovations, getting ready for spring break and summertime. And as you can tell, the weather is beautiful. So we are taking advantage of that. And before we get started in today's episode, we want to do our sip of the day, which is What did you end up deciding on? had so many different... Ocean water. Ocean water, okay, because we had ocean water and we had limeade, anyway. So this is an ocean water and it's really refreshing from what I hear. From what I hear. have not yet, so it's kind of a bluish color. anyway, but cheers to you guys with the ocean water and thank you to Sharkies for the... I'll see if it's a great taste. that is good. It's good. It's little sweet, but it's good. It's nice, it's great, refreshing for a beautiful hot day. So today's episode is going to be a little bit of a combination between serious and fun. Because if you don't know, obviously today's a Monday for us and you know, it doesn't suck. So today's episode is being your own boss. getting the opportunity to make your own schedule, decide where you want to go and meet and have fun and be your own personal self and your own professional self. You get the opportunity to choose where you want to do that and today we chose the beach. But with that being said, it is... not always beaches and great times. There's a lot of seriousness that goes into being your own entrepreneur. You have a lot of responsibility. There's a lot of ups and downs. So you've got three women here who each are successful in their own businesses and in their past endeavors. And I think our plan is to just maybe kind of talk about some of those ups and downs. Would you do it again? Would you not? Would you rather work? you know, the eight hour day, punch the clock, go home, have all the benefits. I guess it all depends on what your benefits are. Sometimes your benefits are being able to be out in the sunshine, and sometimes the benefits are just knowing that your responsibility is to show up, punch the clock, do your job, punch out, go home. So with that being said, I own a business in Louisiana. It's a non-medical home health agency. Been in business for about 27 years. My father and I started it. in the very beginning and it's quite successful. I've got a fantastic staff that helps me run things over there and it's not been without its ups and downs. It's a lot of responsibility and a lot of fear knowing that you're responsible for other people's food on their tables. So it's been kind of scary. It's been much of a learning experience. There are times that I did work the eight to five as a physical therapist. did that and got my paycheck and got my benefits and I was happy with that. But I think as I got a little bit older, I appreciate the freedom of my time, especially my kids are grown, but there was a time when I had younger kids that did softball and soccer and I loved being able to travel and follow them and not miss out on a lot of those very important milestones in their life. So with that being said, I mean, I know you guys have both done the same thing. both, you're head gurus of your own companies at this point, but we've all done the eight to five. So what are your takes and thoughts on just biting off the, you know, the big pickle and say, Hey, let's go for this. We want to be our own boss and take those chances and invest in ourselves. Speaker 3 (03:51) Is that a real analogy biting on a big pickle? No. Is that a Kellyism? I like pickles. Speaker 2 (03:58) Well, started to say bite off more than you can chew and sometimes that's what you do. Sometimes you do that. We make mistakes. It's sweet gherkin, I got the, so. But no, it's not always what you expect it to be. any entrepreneur is gonna tell you that if you think you're gonna put in 40 hours, you're wrong. Speaker 1 (04:03) It's it's sour, like- Speaker 3 (04:06) How are they? Speaker 1 (04:19) You know what's so funny is though I am new to being an entrepreneur a year this month I am celebrating and no regrets or Speaker 3 (04:26) Cheers to Speaker 2 (04:28) And man, way to go. Speaker 1 (04:31) But when you're saying the 8 to 5 clock in clock out, I've never had an 8 to 5 clock in clock out since I was probably 19 years old and just diving right in and always wanting to be so focused on where I'm at and probably sometimes putting in more hours. So haven't had that. The thing that always kept me in the more corporate environment was the stability. The insurance, you know, and growing within the paycheck and salary and the commission and the bonus and the things that I was able to do with my team. And so that being something that I absolutely love, then taking the big leap of faith and starting my own company. And one of the reasons I always said I wouldn't because I was so happy where I was at and what I was doing. Like it was easy. But then deciding to bet on myself and say, I'm going to do this, that's really scary. And as we joke around because we're like, of course, every entrepreneur day is out at the beach. No, it's not. No, it's not. How many times do you get emails from me at 11 o'clock at night for something and you're like, stop. And I get up super early in the morning and just, but it is my own schedule. And so I've scheduled time around us being here and what I need to get done. And I understand that, but it's really nice to be able to have that kind of schedule. to be able to say, I can run this in a way where if I want to schedule a Monday with these lovely ladies and record some podcasts and have a good time or go on vacation. Those of you that know me know that if I don't vacation several times a year, not real happy. So doing this, there are things about it that are so much harder. than whenever I worked for somebody versus working on my own. You you mentioned because your company has been around for 27 years and the employees that you have and what would happen if the business did not do what it needed to do in order to be successful. For me, there's this thing called Keyman Risk and Keyman, I am the key person. If I don't produce, if I don't book the speaking engagements, if I don't have my clients that I work with on consulting and advising, and if I don't have my executive coaching clients, Guess what? No money's coming in. And it has been wonderful. It has been super scary at times. And there have been times when I've gone, my gosh, why don't I just go back and get a... great job, I know that I can in the industry that loves me so much, even though I've branched outside of it, like maybe that would be easier. But I also know how important it is for me right now to focus where I'm at. And I'm finally at that point sitting here today, a year later going, my gosh, this is happening. It's working. And I'm exactly where I need to be. And that is. That is wonderful. Again, not without ups and downs, but I think in any nine to five job, there are those ups and downs and you wonder, do I want to stay here, do I not? But the person that I'm betting on right now is me and the company that I plan to build with other speakers and bringing other people in. We're going to do it. And I could not be more happy about that. Speaker 2 (07:29) Yeah, well we recently did a podcast with Eddie Wilson and he, one of the things that he said is that when you've got, and I'm sure it's not exactly like this, but when he said when you've got an idea, you pursue it with reckless abandon. Because once you get there, you may realize it's not exactly where you wanna be, but you may... you may get there and you're like, this is exactly where I want to be. And I remember, because I've not known Natalie as long as I've known Mindy, but I remember conversations that you and I have had in the past about where we want to be, what we want to be doing. One of our goals was the podcast. I know conversations with you two because you guys have known each other for a while, was the same conversation. Where are we going to be? What are we going to be doing? Let's do a podcast. And we all ended up working for the same employer at the time, at one time. And... As result, we all ended up leaving the employer for one reason or another and all decided that it was funny because we all had the same dream and aspiration of being our own boss, even though we're in three completely different career paths, that we brought it together. And that's why we're here, because we're bringing it together, because you've got three different people who have been in three different, I'm not gonna say three, we've been in so many different avenues of employment and... we've got success stories and we're here to share it because there may be that person that is afraid to bite the pickle and jump out there and take your chances. And so glad that I did, so glad my father and I did. mean, he was definitely the one that led me into it because I don't know back at that time if I would have, Speaker 3 (09:03) So there's a lot of value and beauty in pursuing your dreams. There's a lot of fear, like you mentioned fear. I know I've heard on the floor before, like if you have not met a payroll as a politician, how can you be here speaking about it? Because there's a different level of fear when other people are relying on you, just your family, but you've got payroll to meet, you have employees to pay, you've got those assistants, you've got contractors, whatever. It's a whole different ballgame. It's a different level. It's a pucker factor you don't want to have. So, and it's not the dill pickle pucker. But it is one of those things that's a reality. And as you're growing and building, it's, it's tough. You are stuffing that pipeline. Like I tell my kids, like, what's your pipeline? Like, what are you doing? Like how many leads? It's about leads. It's about this. It's about growth. How are you following up? You can't just sit back and hang out at the beach and think that everything's going to happen. I was up till 1130, 12 o'clock last night. working on evaluating for properties to send to somebody who was buying an investment property in a new home community where I've Spent all this time and effort to go find other properties. So whenever I'm out talking to new builds, hey, do you take investors? What are you looking for like that? It's not something that happens overnight. You've been working on getting lined up and getting speaking, your calendar's getting full. But it didn't just, you didn't wake up getting it full. I didn't just wake up and say, I want to be a realtor. I've enjoyed my nine to fives. I've enjoyed my eight to fives. That's been one of those things that I have just truly enjoyed helping people and growing and doing. Through that process, I like helping people. That's why you and I have talked about like, I like the real estate side of dealing with a homeowner. I like the personal feel satisfaction that I get whenever there's... offers coming and there's different things that are going on. It's just a whole different level versus when you're dealing with an investor, it's transactional. It's more sterile. It's like, hey, do the numbers make sense? What's your cash on cash? You know, so for me, as long as I'm helping people, I'm feeling a certain level of satisfaction that's just unparalleled. for, so whether it's for myself or someone else, as long as I'm helping people and the time, like time value of money, right? So you've got your risk reward. Eddie talked about this. on one of our other podcasts. It's, it's, you don't want to be chasing something that you forget and leave the family at home. didn't realize this kid had a basketball game. You want to be diligent and realistic with your family and realistic with yourself. When you're building, when you're in that building phase, it's like Alex Hormozi you're all in, you're not. And Gary V says during that, you know, nine to, nine to 12. 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. is when you get your work in. Because all the other time is family, like, because when my kid is home, I try to be home, I try to be present, but also I'm in real estate. I'm out on the weekends, I'm driving, I'm like cross-country queen, but being present when you are with them. And then taking that intentional time once I tuck him in, because he's really big, we like to do our prayers and tuck in at night. And so from 8.30 to 12 is when I get to do my extra work. It's like you got to find and make the time if you're going to do it, but it's so rewarding. You're getting to write your own and do it your way. And it's almost like that Frank Sinatra song. Frank Sinatra song where we're here doing it our way. We're at the beach doing our podcast, having a beverage with great company and hopefully inspiring you to do more and be more. But how do you do it wisely? Not just coming to the beach without working. think we've all worked. Yeah, it's in between filming like, hey, but it's done with a passion. It's done because we're choosing and we want to do this. It's not like, God, my phone's ringing. I have a pissed off client. No, it's my phone's ringing. How can I help you? How can I serve you? And even tough conversations. It's like, let's go. Let's let's have this conversation. Like, I need you to move out. When can I get the property back? How's this going to go? You don't want to have an eviction on your record. Like, what does that look like for you? But those are necessary in the business. And it's just part of providing a service when somebody's not happy, somebody else isn't happy, how do we get to a common ground in that relationship? Speaker 1 (13:13) Not everybody's meant to be an entrepreneur at I can remember years ago when there were so many people that encouraged me to start my own business and I was very happy being the W2 employee running a business for somebody and making everyone successful and then I finally was like I want to do it myself. But what I also want to mention is entrepreneurship isn't for everyone and if you are an incredibly successful W2 employees and I've got amazing friends that are, Going after something like on your own, don't have to have it. However, what you do have to do if you say, I don't want to be an entrepreneur, but I want to have more flex time. I want to have more control over my schedule. Then how are you running your current schedule? What are you currently doing that can set yourself up for success? So. You don't have your boss wondering where you're at. You're making sure your numbers are where they need to be. You're not worried about AI taking over your job. And there's a lot of you out there right now that need to be thinking about this and learning more about AI. There's another episode that we'll do because of all the coaching and different things that I'm learning with AI. But you truly can be an entrepreneur. as a W-2 person, it's your mindset, it's the way you run your business, it's the way you run your schedule, it's the way you run your team, and you can have the flexibility, but you just have sacrifices in different areas. You talked about Gary Vee saying 9 p.m. 12 a.m. That's your time that you get a lot of work done. if being... there for your family is something that's really important. As I grew in my career, whenever I was young, I did sacrifice a lot. And thank goodness my husband was amazing and he was a great father. And when I wasn't there for the kids things, he was. And then I tried very much to schedule my time around that. Whether you're an entrepreneur or a W-2, you can still find flexibility. It's how you run your schedule and being efficient with it. What's nice for the three of us, because the three of us are our bosses, We make it or we fail because of each other. And so we do have to be very strategic in the way that we run our schedules and what we're doing, because we have nobody else to blame but ourselves if we're not successful. But think about that if you're a W-2, the exact same thing. You have nobody else, no excuse. You have a terrible boss, that's on you. That's on you. You have a terrible schedule, that's on you. all of the things you can control, but it's how you communicate. It's the way you present yourself on how you can be successful. You can be your own entrepreneur as a W-2. It's just a little different than where we're at. We're in a different place. Speaker 2 (15:45) And on that note, sometimes some of the most successful entrepreneurs started out with their business as a side hustle. maybe they weren't happy, or maybe they had this idea. Cheers to Cheers to little dance move. I know I had that grip thing. But no, a lot of entrepreneurs started out where maybe they weren't completely convinced or very secure in their thought processes or their business plan, whatever, what have you, that they could not or would not walk away from their nine to five career or their W-2. And they put things on the back burner and they finally started dabbling in their side hustle. And next thing you know, it takes off and now they've got all of this. Because I know that's a lot of where I started. mean, even though I had my business in Louisiana, I was still doing my physical therapy. So I was making great money. And then I kind of semi-retired from the therapy side of things to focus primarily on the the home health agency that I've got. And yeah, I took a dip in my salary and everything, but I'm happy. And Eddie talks about there's a difference in what makes you happy, whether it's a financial happiness or it's happiness with your family or it's happiness with yourself. So you have to find that comfort zone for you. And one of my good friends, was a mortgage broker for years and she'd always wanted to do her own thing. And one of our friends had a wine review in Lake Jackson that came up for sale. And she decided she was going to purchase it. And we ran into her the other day. As matter of fact, we were going to do one of our podcasts from there, but it was raining and something came up and we weren't able to do it. I ran into her one day and she said, my gosh, had I known? I don't know if I would have done this. I'm like, and it was packed. There was not an empty seat in the room. And you would think that it was just like, oh yeah, this is great. I mean, must be making such great money. But there's a lot of stress. There's a lot, I mean, you're a manager. Is your inventory up? Do you have your, I mean, for her, she's got wine. Do you have your liquor license? mean, are the cooks, do the cooks show up when they make your little food? There's so much that goes into it. And you have to consider that. when you decide to go and be an entrepreneur, whether it's just you and your own business or heaven forbid a restaurant or whatever, you have to have a good business plan because if you don't, it can be the most devastating financially and emotionally and financially frustrating path that you ever take. And you have to depend on those that can educate you. I knew nothing about real estate when I met these two. and I'd gone into a real estate investment property that was a complete freaking disaster. learning what I learned from you guys and the company that we worked for and our boss, of course, I turned it around. And now in process of selling it. And once I sell it, I've got enough equity in it that I'm going to sell it. And I'm thinking about going out and purchasing two more smaller properties that I can use for rental property and have a little easy money cash you know, and those are things that I never would have thought about had I not surrounded myself with the right people, had that fire and that desire to be my own boss and just and take that leap of faith. But it was not without if I didn't have my spouse with me, it would be a lot a lot more difficult. And it's just it's a huge undertaking. Speaker 3 (19:20) That's what I wanted to talk about. you have a spouse, you have a spouse. I don't have a spouse. I have an LTV. with a LTB Speaker 1 (19:28) long-term boyfriend. I had to think about it. Speaker 2 (19:33) thing. Speaker 1 (19:39) We don't know what podcast you've listened to. The very first time we had Kelly on the radio show that Natalie and I had, Natalie couldn't be there. So Kelly was coming in and I was like, gosh, let's just bring you in. I know you have a medical background. Let's talk about. Speaker 2 (19:54) Medical background on a real estate talk show. like, where do I fit in? Speaker 1 (19:59) So she brought in her acronyms and I brought in mine and I would ask her, the easiest one for you all to understand, and I was like, well, what does ARM mean to you? And she was like, arm the thing from here to here. all those things. And I was like, adjustable rate mortgage was where I was going. And so we had so much fun. But LTB, long-term boyfriend. Speaker 2 (20:10) range of motion. We have. Speaker 3 (20:20) choice. Like I could go get a nine-to-five job again. However, I feel like I have been failed. I don't know if failed because I don't, I'm not a victim, but I feel like I misplaced some loyalty I think or misplaced my time when I should have and it was like three in a row. One was very, very short that we don't talk about. So then from there I'm just like... I'm going to bet on everybody else. Why don't I bet on myself? Because I've got 20, 30 years of 20, 20, years of experience. went back, see what I did there. I have a lot of experience in my industry and I have a lot of value to add to people. And I see a discrepancy and a deficiency in the market where I can step in. And so for me, it was like, well, why don't I bet on myself for once versus betting on everyone else? But I can tell you. It is a whole different ballgame when you're all in on yourself and you're having to, you know, pay your mortgage and pay, pay your assistant and pay people. And it's just you paying the bills and bringing it in. It's like, that is a whole different level of, I don't have a choice, but I have to make it work. There is no other option. And when your back is against a wall, that's when sometimes you're your best and your fiercest. But I think it's one of those things too, you can't get desperate and just take things or do things because it's like, it's a paycheck or it's a job or it's a, like I'm going to take on a client that's going to be a pain or, know, like different things like that. I still think that it's important you remember who you are and your self-worth so that you. You can get there. I've said no on a couple of things recently that I'm like, that's not the way it's the way you think it's going to go is not the way that's going to go. Here's market data. Here's information. Here's where we're at. Here's realistically where we're going to be at. So you can make a best decision for you and your family what you need to do, whether you rent the property, whether you sell the property, whether you whatever it is, you rehab the property or sell it as is. But by having honest conversations with people and tough conversations. you're getting more clients. I'm telling people no. okay. No on that. Great. Let me let's talk on that. But hey, I have this other property over here. Can you look at this one? you list it? Speaker 1 (22:38) The power of no is amazing. And when you learn the power of no, it's incredible. Speaker 2 (22:43) Yes. so, and one of the things that listening to everything that you've got going on, it's one of those things where for both of these ladies, they are so dynamic and they are so fabulous in each of their little niches. And, know, we've got real estate, you've got this one who does public speaking and business coaching and everything. Where we are now, and we've been at this podcasting Speaker 1 (23:04) Five months Speaker 2 (23:05) Six, more than that. But you started your business a year and you've been, I almost can't imagine you guys not being your own business owners because you are so dynamic. I almost, it's almost difficult for me to imagine you guys confined to four walls that limit you. I mean, I know it's not limited because we all made great Speaker 1 (23:27) We were making other people money. And we decided to bet on us! Speaker 3 (23:31) Your C-suite is different too though, like you write your own. Right. You write your own when you're C-suite. Speaker 2 (23:36) Right. but for the, I guess building on what you guys said is that if you are not that person who can handle the stress that goes into being your own boss and being your own entrepreneur and knowing the risks that you take, it may not be for everyone. I mean, of course my husband works for a major company. He's the vice president of the company and he'll come in and he'll say, my God, it was my stressful day. I thought when I moved up. it would be less stressful. And then he stopped and he said, but you know what? I don't do as well when I'm not in that stressful situation because it is a motivator. When you're, like you said, when you're backs against the wall and you know you've got A, C, and D depending on you, you just put it in high gear and you go. And sometimes it's not for your success. It's to make sure that you please everyone else. And when you are a company that depends on referrals and you depend on your ability to go out and just fight and seek out and beat bids. It's very stressful and you constantly question yourself, why didn't I get, why didn't they call me? Why didn't they want me? And you can't do that, but it's so hard not to be your own worst critic. Speaker 3 (24:49) happens as an entrepreneur and being the expert in the field people come to you for free advice and there's only like we know a lot and it's hard not to pour into people and pour into businesses and coach them and advise them on the ways they should do things and sometimes that's a detriment so like setting those boundaries like I would love to chat more with you I just limited time like my calendar is full and it's getting fuller and fuller with appointments and listings and different things and and also classes like the things that I do I'm filling it with my stuff that I want. And I'd love to help you, but I can't just keep helping you for free. It's I can help you grow your company. can help. I was talking to a guy. He's like, I'm doing this and I'm doing this and I bought this and I bought this. But what I'm looking for, I'm looking for this customer. And I'm like, what you're looking for. I've been there, done that. Here's how you get to that. You already have everything to get what you're looking for elsewhere. You already have it within your whole system. And when I'm talking to him, he's just not It's not registering and it's like. Speaker 2 (25:51) you Speaker 3 (25:53) It's not my place to make them register, you know? like I... Speaker 1 (25:56) It is, if he would invest in you and he would hire you as a coach and he would pay you, then they'd take it seriously. And that's one thing that it was really hard for me to stop taking the free lunches and to, you know, meeting with people. But now there's a cost associated with it. Not to say every single one because of very long-term relationships, but there is a point where I draw a line in the sand and say, okay, now we understand what you need. Here's where I can fit in. If you want to continue this conversation, then it's going to cost money. And I'll tell you, there's a gentleman, Kirk Downey, in the industry that I came from, he... told me, he said, I can't keep having these meetings for free. can't keep doing that. My time is valuable, but the information and y'all there is something that happens when somebody is paying you. So I've been asked the question, Mindy, of course you're speaking, get you more coaching gigs, get you more consulting gigs with other companies. Are you worried about AI? If I wasn't learning about AI and all the things that I understand that it can do for my business and my clients business, I would be worried about it. But they're like, yeah, anybody can go online and they can talk to AI and it's replacing therapists and counselors and this, that and the other. I'm like, yeah, but it's not gonna replace me. It's not gonna replace you. It's not gonna replace you for the information that you have. And there is something that happens when somebody pays an amount, a dollar amount, they're invested in it. They're going to take those steps and those actions. If there's no accountability or somebody holding them accountable, I've got this client right now that at first I was like, they're a lot of work. I don't know. And it took some time and we finally got some systems and practices in place. And I truly believe had I kept giving just nicely because of how much I cared for them and believed in them, if it was just a free advice, they would not be where they're at. The transformation over the last 90 days to 120 days is incredible because they're paying that money. So giving away that advice for free, there is that line we have to draw because then, hey, nobody's gonna take care of me. Like, you can't just keep giving it away. I do believe in paying it forward. There's a lot of volunteer stuff that I do. But when it comes to different things in business, here we are. And if it's not right right now, that's okay. Remember me. And it's so funny. I don't know which one of you said it. was like, no, we were talking about the power of no. You said it. All of a sudden, they start telling you about these other things. And it's like, my gosh. Anyway, this is getting to be more about our businesses than what we actually wanted this to be about. But the thing is, entrepreneurship is... Speaker 3 (28:15) We can do it! Speaker 1 (28:19) But entrepreneurship, it's not for everyone. But I do want to go back to saying, even as a W2 amazing, incredible employee, I hope that you're working for a company that appreciates you. And the more control you take over your schedule and you run it like it is your own business, and you look at every single person, whether they are lateral to you, whether they're somebody that works for you or somebody that is in a different department than you, and you look at them as if they were an employee that worked with you. on your team as an entrepreneur, how would you want to best position yourself to make them successful? And how would you position yourself to make yourself successful? Not over them, not above them, just everybody's here. And then being that leader within you, that's how you become an entrepreneur. And all of sudden, the opportunities are going to present themselves. Whether you ever start your own company. Speaker 3 (29:08) you add value and that's job security too. If you can look at it from the investor perspective or the owner's perspective like that and granted your vision may be separate than theirs and you may care more than they care because they're off vacationing but the fact that you care is important and they'll see that but being able to dial it back if they say your vision might be a little different that's why you have vision and mission statements and conversations with your team but having that care and compassion is so important that adds value and that differentiates you from your other Speaker 2 (29:35) So, and this is funny because there are so many different means of motivation and the connections that these two ladies have had throughout the years. We recently got invited to a very prestigious dinner. Speaker 3 (29:37) And I'm sorry. Speaker 2 (29:52) because of Natalie's relationship with Eddie Wilson, which we were fortunate to fly to Florida and do a podcast with him. He was gracious enough to come on the podcast with us. And fast forward, there's an amazing event, the Aspire Tour that's coming to Houston next week that we're all going to, that we're going to. And we got invited to a VIP dinner thanks to that, thanks to those relationships. And we showed up. And thank goodness we're in Mindy's BMW. And I laugh about this, but y'all, it really resonates. We pulled up in Houston, by the Galleria, we pulled up to this restaurant and there were no less than five or six Ferraris and Lamborghinis. And we were pulled up and like, thank God we're in the BMW, because now we're looking good today. You we didn't pull up in the trucks and stuff, but. Speaker 3 (30:42) So sorry. Speaker 2 (30:43) And we're proud of that truck. you know what? talking about? We're proud of Texas. And I'm not belittling that. Speaker 1 (30:48) some very big and nice trucks. Speaker 2 (30:49) And let me tell you, those trucks would have gone right over those Lamborghinis. Anyway, just saying. But the thing is that was so funny was that we walked into this VIP dinner and everyone that was driving those Lamborghinis and Ferraris were at that VIP dinner. And... And so anyone can, I could go out and buy one of those cars. I could finance one of those cars. I have enough credit for that. Do I want to? No. Would I have to stay home and probably sit in it and eat from it? Yes. I'm getting realistic. But I think what resonated with me was the fact that I'm 59 and I'm semi-retired of my business in this podcast and I'm ready to kind of start chillaxing a little bit. When the dinner was over, and the dinner was amazing, but there was a lot of, just a good variety. We met a ton of different people. They're all very, very influential people in Houston, very successful. But when we walked out, every single one at that dinner, all those Ferraris and Lamarias belonged to everyone at that dinner. And something that I noticed that not one of those people were over 50 years old. And probably less than 45 years old. and they were in finance, they were in insurance, they were, one was a record producer, who had his own record label, and you, and one was a pharmacist and had her own business and, and, and it's just kind of one those things where you look at their successes and whether or not, I they may have lived in a shack and drove a Lamborghini, who knows, but they went for their dream. They became successful. They're big influencers. And whether or not you want to be that successful, whether or not you just want to be a philanthropist, I mean, that's one of the biggest things about Eddie Wilson is that that resonated with me, all his philanthropic things that he did. I think we all want to be rich, whether it's in our bank account or whether it's in our personal life or our spiritual life. But whatever it is, you still have to pursue that goal. If you want to be financially rich, you want to drive that Lamborghini or that G-Wagon or whatever, fine. Let that be your goal. But you have to be able to align yourself and educate yourself and be ready for that and know that it does not come without challenges and potential failures. And you can't give up. You cannot give up. mean, and that's kind of where we are. older than them and thank goodness for my father setting me up in a business that I may or may not have been able to have started that business and made it as successful because I was a medical background, he was a business background. We combined those together and now it's become a very successful story. Whereas you two have like jumping in with both feet and becoming very successful and there's just a lot to be learned from that because there's a lot of people who are just too afraid. It's jumping with both feet. Speaker 3 (33:46) watching to see what you do with the business too, because you're at a crossroad. Speaker 2 (33:50) I am. I am. I'm at a crossroads because I'm ready to retire. I don't know if my staff is ready to retire and my company is out of state. And my daughter at one point got her degree and was going to take it over because she was from Louisiana. Well, now she's just about to purchase her first house in Texas. And I'm like, well, who's going to run the business in Louisiana? So there's a lot to be done. Do you build it up? Do you sell it? Do you do it? There's a lot of things to be considered when you go into this avenue. I depend on these ladies to help coach me and bring me those objective things that I don't see. Speaker 1 (34:27) Sometimes. So, you one of the things that you said, and I wish I could think of the words that Eddie used, but reckless abandonment. Reckless abandonment, yep. He said, if you want the jet, not had, you know, flown in the private jets, done the different things, and if that's something you want, go with it with reckless abandonment, because what you find oftentimes, and we're not saying that the people she was talking about don't have this, so please know that this is a general statement that I'm about to make. Speaker 2 (34:34) BANG Speaker 1 (34:51) But go after all of those things and what you find is when you're taking that selfie on the jet, whenever you're over there by your Rolls Royce, you often find that, is this it or is there something more? So in my opinion, and there is a difference between being rich and being wealthy. And being wealthy is something that is something I am still pursuing as successful as I've been in my career and setbacks and anything that's happened. What I have found and I even talked about it on the episode. that you had been mentioning was I went through this self-worth crisis, like this identity crisis, because I had the big titles, I had the big salary, I had all these things, the big corner office, and then all of sudden when I decided to bet on me, and literally when I say I made 10 % of what I'm used to making last year, I did, I'm getting real with you. it was all. I do have a home office, but. Speaker 2 (35:38) This is a laptop on the kitchen table. Yeah, so or it's out here at the beach. Yeah, yes Speaker 1 (35:48) But that was a big, big thing. And then just realizing how much happiness there is and getting back. And maybe it's the time in life that I am right now and my age and where I want to be. I'm not ancient. I'm still young. That's what I'm saying. It's a story and I'm sticking to it anyway. But you know, having a kid that just graduated college, one just graduated high school, now he's pursuing his endeavors after high school. and being more present because I was always in the air. I was always traveling. I always doing these things. And it's like, okay, I'm going to bet on myself. And because I found so much identity in wanting to go after being rich and having all these things and being able to travel and, you know, the nice cars and the shoes and the purses and the this and the that and realizing that's not what life is all about. and the place that I'm in right now. I'm not saying I don't appreciate those things by no stretch of the imagination, but it's like by investing in me and where I'm at right now, I am not wealthy. I want to get there y'all. I'm working on it. And it's going to happen. It's going to happen. But I am wealthy in my heart. I'm wealthy in my mind. I'm wealthy where I'm at. And there are so many individuals that I've talked to and I've seen. I've seen failed marriages. I've seen failed friendships. I've seen. I've parenthood. I've seen children try to grow up too fast and have too much and fail and go down the wrong paths because they're so focused on money. Instead of what is your true passion? My company's called Inside the WHY What is your true passion? What is it that really drives you and when you can focus on that and if part of that is helping others, which is my big thing, who can I make better? How can I help? How can I pay it forward? All of a sudden, So many things can open up to you and it's a really, really big difference. we equate sometimes success to money. Some of the most wealthy people in the world are super, super miserable. We're not super wealthy, we're not super rich, but this is a Monday for us and here we are. Speaker 3 (37:54) comparing wealth to vehicles. Like for me, like I was a millionaire next door kind of gal, like the pickup truck and the, you know, that's, that's the way it is the paid off vehicle. Like I love the fact that my vehicle's paid off. However, I've hit a little too many curbs and I've like done a ran over some things in the freeway, like the things that come up off the ground that you hit, slap my car a little bit. I'm starting to look for a new vehicle. I don't want that payment. I'm not looking forward to that. But with that being said, for me, like titles have never done anything. Big offices don't do it. Like, I don't care where I'm at. Like, I can work anywhere. I can make it happen. It's a nose to the grindstone kind of thing for me. It's that grit. But whenever we talk about companion passes and when we talk about mileage and traveling and hotel points. Speaker 1 (38:41) I just had to remove her as my companion and put my husband back. Speaker 3 (38:45) I had a companion pass and I enjoyed that, but I don't have it anymore. So there's certain things that you have because you travel for work and you do and it's nice to have the companion pass. However, Like I want to get back to that, but right now, like that's not a focus. Cars, like not a focus. I'm a horrible driver. I realize my weakness. I'll admit it. driving is not my thing. And as a realtor, I drive. you know, however, maybe I need a Tesla, maybe, but I don't like the electric car. I'm just doomed. So yeah, no, I get it. For me, I think that the status is a companion pass. Just being able to travel and just be free, I think. Speaker 1 (39:23) I think anybody and everybody, you have your thing or you think you know your thing. So let's say what Eddie said, go after it with reckless abandonment. And if you get there and it is that thing, then hopefully it's on your heart to give back and to pay it forward and find what thing makes you happy with philanthropy. I hope that you find that. Or if you get there and you realize, I'm still miserable. Okay, then think about where you're at and what you've invested in and then what would make you happy because there's so much more to life. I mean, there's so much more to life than just money and just working these crazy, crazy hours. There has to be a give in between, but it first takes you taking control of your schedule and believing in you, not running over people, not just thinking you're number one, but who is around you? And instead of main character energy, we did a podcast on that. But not thinking that, okay, I'm, you here I am and all these people report to me. It's like, here I am. Actually, I'm at every single level. and how can I help every single person on this level? And then when you can put yourself in that situation as a W-2 person, you can have the best life. And if the company you're at right now isn't giving that to you and you know that you're bringing it, then look for another one. Or if there's something that you can do and you have a niche, I do believe right now with all the changes that are happening with AI, with the different opportunities that are out there, there are niches that you can get in and be really successful. really focus and think about whatever it is that you want to do. I have zero regrets. I have had regrets. It has been an open-down roller coaster. I have zero regrets about becoming an entrepreneur and betting on me and doing the things that I'm doing right now. It took me a long time and you said earlier, would you change anything? Maybe it was a podcast before that. Would you change anything and go back? I think I would not because I wouldn't be here right now. And so my life would be really different. And another thing, we keep quoting Eddie, he said, so many people want that shortcut. They want to know, well, what would you do to get there faster? And it's kind of like, well, you got to make mistakes too, to learn from that so that you can be stronger, more resilient and better. So you don't want to skip all of the things. And there's a lot of mistakes I've made on this entrepreneur journey, but it's made me better. And I've got a lot of incredible people in my corner. It just starts with believing in yourself. Speaker 2 (41:38) Well, and you know, we talk about how much we love being our own boss and how much we love the freedom and the sun. But if you're happy where you are, then don't feel like you have to make a change because the whole pressure of being your own boss, if you like your W-2 and if you like doing what you want to do, then stay. Stay there, but don't be afraid to branch out. And so, you know, on that note, we took the chance. We've been in the W2 and the nine to five or seven to 11 or whatever it is. it was just a, it was personal and professional choice of each of us. Speaker 1 (42:13) That's 27 of 7. Speaker 2 (42:23) And again, not saying that if you have a great career and you've been invested in that career and you've got great benefits and stuff, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. And so we're not saying that what you do is not, if it's right for you, it's right for you. But if you have that little bit of, don't be afraid to try it out. You know, don't be scared to take that leap of faith. You may not want to take the full leap, maybe a half leap. Keep your job and try the side hustle and see what works. Have the support of your spouses. I my spouse, you know, I took a huge pay and cut, cut and pay, not pay and cut, cut and pay when I left the real estate investing company. and thankfully my husband kind of picked up the slack. Your husband's picked up the slack. You've got your LTB who kind of helps pick up the slack a little bit. you need to evaluate your circumstances and decide what's right for you. if being an entrepreneur is not and you want to be that W-2, be happy about Speaker 1 (43:15) Fine, know what? Speaker 2 (43:17) You said something that made me think about this. So if you are happy where you're at and you are a W2, the one thing that Natalie and I, the company we worked before and then the company we worked for before that, when we were competitors, know, a long time ago, was we've always said, love what you do, but have a backup plan. And so if you are somebody that loves what you do, you're like, what would happen if something happened to me personally, if you couldn't go to work tomorrow? You may have a great pension, but a lot of those are from the wayside. You may have a nice 401k, but right now, if you have that entrepreneurial spirit, but you love where you're at. So for instance, the one thing that I can speak to is understanding the passive income on the real estate side. We know a great guy. If it's somebody that you'd like to invest with in apartments, we can say, hey, go talk to them and you know, see what he's Before you Speaker 1 (44:08) apartments talk to me please talk to me well lots of bad out there Speaker 2 (44:12) Well, lots of bad out there. Lots of great on the single family side. And you understand flipping and you understand wholesaling. You understand long term rentals. You understand the difference between like the lady that we had on our podcast before where she was like, you want to make your first house your first rental might make more sense to sell it. But not to get in the weeds, but just to say having a form of passive income, whatever type of investment you want to get into. That is a piece of the entrepreneurial security. That's not relying on social security. So there's so many things that you can do to position yourself in a way and then all of sudden let's say you do get involved in real estate. You're working with Natalie or you're working with somebody like a Natalie and you have this nest egg and you realize, okay, I'm in a position where I can go off. I have always wanted to have this business. Whatever it is, you've put yourself in a better position to be able to do it. And so I just wanted to bring that up because you can be really happy as a W-2. But then what happens tomorrow if you unfortunately were in a car accident or you had to take care of an aging parent or don't even want to go into those negative situations and you have passive income or you have a nice nest egg that allows you to do these things. So I did want to bring that up. Speaker 3 (45:26) What about those folks, and I had, we're from Houston, what about those folks that several years ago, and I had, I can list five or six that all worked for Enron. And they walked in one day and everything they had was gone. And you think- Speaker 1 (45:42) at the Wells Fargo building, downtown, looking out at the Enron building as they're packing up boxes and pulling out. And Ken Lay said, corporate stocks doing good, keep doing the ESP, we're growing and going. Speaker 3 (45:50) Yeah. Yeah, and you you think that particular entrepreneur who had this big big company You think you're safe and everything and all of a sudden you walk in one day and everything you've worked for For 20 30 years is just gone. Yeah, well that that's a scare. That is a I can't even imagine That's why Speaker 1 (46:16) plan. I mean as a... you're a hustler. You figure it out. You got a plan A, a plan B, and a plan C. Speaker 2 (46:23) As a married mom, as a married father, as a person that wants to take care of your family. Single? Not single. Speaker 3 (46:31) as a widow, suddenly waking up one day and thinking, my gosh, I don't have the income that I shared with my spouse and he made more money than I did. But fortunately through some decisions he set me up good, but had I not had education and a backup plan, I don't know where me and my kids would have been. You expect the unexpected and you plan for things that you don't know are gonna happen. And when he had cancer, when Lance had cancer and I was on a support group, I can't tell you how many women in that support group, and it was called We Are the Wives of Glioblastoma, I finally had to get out of it because it was so sad because I saw so many women who had never been a primary breadwinner. They were always dependent on their husbands. And they went through their kids' college education. They went through their insurance. They went through everything they had. And all of sudden they were like, how do I make it? What do do? Some were in shelters. And it was like, you've got to plan for the unexpected and be ready for something detrimental to happen and just have some sort of minor backup plan. I mean, sometimes it's not that extreme, but still. Speaker 1 (47:42) But the investors that I work with, they're employed. Most of them are employed. One of them, they're self-employed. They've got about 100 houses. But they're just living on their houses, certain homes are paid for and everything else. But the investor I met yesterday, he's sitting there. He has his full-time corporate job, and he's just plugging in, trying to build his portfolio back up. So we're looking at new homes and we're considering cash on cash. What's the rent? But that's him plugging in to set himself up. And the next set in five years, that's the plan. Of course, market dictates what you do. But that's his plan so that he can set himself up and he'll retire. But it's like that, but he's full time. Speaker 3 (48:17) And for you guys, I don't think we've launched it yet, but we also had the opportunity to sit down and do a podcast with Andrew Cordel He was not prepared for it. He totally was like, why am I here? You're gonna love us by the time it's over. I hope we leave that in there. And he did, and he did, because he was like, I don't do podcasts. I'm like, well, you're doing it today. But in the amount of time that we sat and talked to him, And he had this retirement calculator that he set up. And we plugged our kids and even our numbers into it and said, if you just do this and this. And it was amazing. Hey, Drew. Yeah. Hey, if you if you just get out there and educate yourself and learn the different things that you can do and and the resources are endless. It's Facebook. It's TikTok. It is. it's you know the name whatever you know Andrew and Eddie and all these people that we've had the blessings to to Be introduced to and have learned so much The minute we let that I said that my gosh Macy my daughter Look if you just put this much every year look where you'll be and then you can take care of me But it's about just being educated and knowing where to look and if you're not happy where you are Make a move educate yourself and then decide what you need to do. Starting your own business, jumping out on your own, it may not be for you. Staying in your W-2, that might be exactly what you want to do and that's okay. But follow your heart, follow your dreams and just don't be afraid to take that leap of faith. If it works out, great. If it doesn't, okay. You're not one of the big things we say. Don't wake up with regrets of what you did. It's worse to wake up with regrets of things that you didn't do. So take that chance. So on that, three chicas here who took the chance and lived on our own terms and hopefully before too long we'll be, now I'm not gonna drive a Ferrari. I like my Bronco. my. Cheers to that. If you like what you heard, tune in and subscribe to our podcast at Sugar Spirits and Spice. Speaker 2 (50:17) Do you like what you heard? She never can get it. Speaker 3 (50:29) Sugar Spice and Spirits dot com. I'm so sorry. Spill the tea. Spill the tea. Give us, you know, if you have any topics that you want to talk about, if you want us to expand on some of our other topics, let us know. I mean, we would love to hear your opinions and your feedback and yeah, so just tune in and hopefully we can give you some insight and some great education and we'd love to hear back from you. You just spilled. Speaker 2 (50:52) Cheers to you. Cheers you. Speaker 3 (50:55) That's alcohol, Deez.