Life Unscripted with Kevin Shook
Welcome to 'Life Unscripted with Kevin Shook', a heartening podcast where embracing vulnerability is the key to success. Join your host, Kevin, as he dives into the stories of remarkable individuals who have transformed their lives by opening up, facing challenges, and finding strength in their most vulnerable moments. Each episode features inspiring conversations with guests from various walks of life. Kevin's journey of embracing vulnerability has led him to meet amazing people, and now he brings their wisdom, laughter, and insights to you. Tune in and discover how embracing your vulnerabilities can lead to your greatest victories in life, both personally & professionally.
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Life Unscripted with Kevin Shook
From SNAP/EBT Lines To Small-Biz Lifelines: The System is Broken. The Government Stalled. The Community Served.
Guest Jason Falcone joins host Kevin Shook on Life Unscripted for a raw and unfiltered look at what everyday survival really means in America right now. It starts with an image burned into memory, a line wrapped around the block for food while local restaurants stepped up, feeding hundreds in hours as the government system sputtered. That moment sets the tone for a ground-level conversation about how broken the safety net has become, especially within the SNAP and EBT programs. Healthcare feels like catastrophe-only coverage, self-pay visits cost less than in-network care, and the rising cost of living punishes those working hardest to get by. Together, they unpack who truly holds communities together, small businesses and neighbors, and why supporting them isn’t charity, it’s strategy.
Jason and Kevin go deep on mental health, addiction, and the moment when everything almost ended. Faith plays its part, but so do small, stubborn steps. Micro-wins over manifestos. Promise yourself one thing each morning and keep it. Use the phone in your hand, AI tools, YouTube, and simple prompts to learn, create, and trade your way into something better. Expect rejection. Keep receipts. Let momentum stack until it starts to carry you forward.
They also break down the traps that keep people stuck, stagnant wages, benefit cliffs, childcare math, and taxes that hit the wrong people hardest. Most aren’t gaming the system, they’re surviving the rules they were given. Policy reform takes time, but community doesn’t have to wait. Eat where your neighbors eat. Share their posts. Tip well. Mentor a teen. Hold onto something solid on the worst days, faith, family, or a friend who answers the phone at 2 a.m.
If this conversation resonates, follow Life Unscripted, share it with someone who needs to hear it, and leave a review with the one small win you’ll stack today. Your story might be the breadcrumb someone else needs to find their way out.
Superventricular tachycardia.
SPEAKER_00:Life inscripted with Kevin Shep.
SPEAKER_01:I was thinking of a car dealership in Greenville, Ohio. SVG. The SVG. I bought a Honda Ridge line for them once. It was a good car. It was good.
SPEAKER_02:I see you drive the presidential vehicle today. I did not drive the gas guzzler.
SPEAKER_01:I have learned that I love the Tahoe a little bit more. I love my truck. Like I I love the ability to tow and and haul and it's big, but it it drinks gas. Like how many? How many miles per gallon? Like eight to ten. Like it's got the bigger tires on it. So it guzzles it. So it's enjoyable, but you have to like I'm thinking about getting a smart car and putting it in the bed. And then like just like dispatching it or whatever, releasing it.
SPEAKER_02:Get a one-wheel. I want to see you on a one-wheel. Oh my god, I'm gonna drive in the snow. I mean, you could, but how's your health insurance? Because you can wreck. Expensive. It's cheaper not to have it. Dude, it's okay.
SPEAKER_01:We can go into that too if you want to have a conversation about that, too. We can go into that. It's um tell me about your health insurance. Well, so I actually just got a hold of a um uh or was a former colleague of mine in the cell phone business, and she reached out to me just in a phone call. Um sorry, it was a um Facebook messenger, and um she's selling private health insurance. So she wanted to see, you know, hey, what are you using or whatever? I know you're an independent contractor. So kudos to those that still cold call but aren't obnoxious with it. So that's a good thing. I respect that game, but to a limit. But anyway, so she went and I was like, here's what I got, here's what I can't stand. Um I really didn't save much money, but I did gain the ability to get like some dental and some vision. So that helped, I guess. But sucks. It's like a thousand dollars a month, and then there's a high deductible, not as high as it was, but it's just you know, um I could not do that.
SPEAKER_02:Do you feel like um do you feel like you use your insurance?
SPEAKER_01:No, um it's basically if like my heart were to explode. I hate to be like blunt like that, but it's true. And then like so I went to um a podiatrist and he was like, Look, man, he's like, it's cheaper for what you're doing, but because I told him I was self-pay and got some insoles, so I'm like walking on sunshine, literally. But uh walking on sunshine, yeah, it's good. So but uh it was gonna be 800 bucks if you had insurance, because the way the American healthcare system is, they bill that much, but because your self-pay, I was able to get them for like six hundred dollars off, which is crazy. Um, so like it was 200 bucks.
SPEAKER_02:So what do you think they bill the insurance company? Because I kind of had something similar the the other day with Vision, you know. I'm like freaking out because I'm like, this is gonna be tremendously expensive to go get an eye exam and everything else. So I text Brittany and uh that has OpticVision out here, and I'm like, um what what kind of deal? Because I wanted to because I'm looking into the smart glasses, and uh I'm like, what what would it take to get an exam thinking it'd be like hundreds? And she's like, Oh, it's just$75 if you're out of pocket.
SPEAKER_01:No, see if you're self-pay, it's substantially cheaper. It's just it's just the way it's set up. But if you have to go and have an overnight stay in the ER or anything like that, I mean, I don't know.
SPEAKER_02:That's where it's gonna wrap it up.
SPEAKER_01:Do they give you a menu?
SPEAKER_02:An a la carte. Were they supposed to start listing it? I'd admire.
SPEAKER_01:I don't know if that's if that's dependent on the healthcare provider or whatever, but like I mean, I don't know. It's just it's a major problem. It's not been fixed, it's even worse now. Um, and I feel the pinch being a private contractor or self-employed or whatever you want to call it, um, and the solutions there. Because it's like, okay, well, if you earn a certain amount in your income, you're going to be penalized and pay more health insurance and then a higher deductible and all these things. And there are people are like, well, wait a minute, you're a little obese there, Jason. Your health insurance should be more. I know. But like, I also But they still go by BMI, yeah, which is totally bogus. I know. So it's like, I don't smoke. Um, you know, I don't consume alcohol like it's 1999. Right.
SPEAKER_02:Uh if I smoke meth, I wouldn't be obese. You want me to do that?
SPEAKER_01:But I'm like, okay, well, I'm doing my part, like by contributing to the system essentially. And it's like, um, so now I've got to pay all this extra for just this healthcare. It's just like, can there be something in between? Like, I'm okay paying something. Like, I don't want to get the free ride. I don't want that. I'm willing to do that. And I understand that I'm working and I've got to pay into a system for doing so, but it's just, and I don't have the um, you know, the experience, obviously, in working in that industry to know the specifics of it, but I feel like there could be ways to make it um something where you like, I don't want to go and get checked on anything. I don't want to go to a checkup. I don't have a positive feeling when it comes towards um, you know, going to your your visits. Not because I'm afraid.
SPEAKER_02:Well, I think it I think we called it white coat syndrome. So it's like as soon as you see somebody in a white coat, blood pressure's up, everything's up.
SPEAKER_01:You're like, oh my god. It's if I could go, it's cost for me. That's it. Right. That's the number one thing for me. I'm not afraid. You go and tell me I need to do this, I'll do these things if I need to take some medication or do whatever. But it's it it really to me, it comes down to simply it's just it's almost like a cost-benefit analysis. Right. But then they're like, well, if you don't go, what are you okay? Well, I'm not going to burden my family with these insane medical bills, um, with you know, not paying uh healthcare or paying health care. So I'm just like, I'm gonna I'll have a catastrophe insurance, and that's what it is. I mean, it's ultimately what it is for me, the way I view it. I wish it was different, and hopefully that will be solved at some point in my lifetime. But there's a lot of greed, as we know.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and we'll get into that here in a little bit. Um, so you're a family uh four still in the house?
SPEAKER_01:Uh four. We just had our oldest one just moved into our own place. So three now in the household. But so you can still be on your insurance until she's 26. Whoa. Yeah, really? Yeah, so they can do that, which is nice.
SPEAKER_02:That's a good deal. So and your insurance uh is how much a month?
SPEAKER_01:A thousand, right at a thousand dollars. I think it's like for four of it. Yeah, I think it's actually a thousand twenty-two is what the I think so. Which that's medical, dental, and vision.
SPEAKER_02:You know, if I was a um responsible adult, I would probably have insurance. Um, but obviously I've gone at life a little differently. So it's just me and my cat, you know. Um but he's pretty healthy.
SPEAKER_01:Well, that's good. You can get pet insurance too. I heard that's um uh well, yeah.
SPEAKER_02:But it I think it I I I really think insurance is a scam. Oh no, I think it's a monopoly.
SPEAKER_01:I mean, you know, until you need it, but then it's like I mean Chandra and I had the conversation before we decided to to go with this new private plan was like, do we just risk it?
SPEAKER_02:Right. Is it cheaper? Because a lot of like uh at our local hospital, you know, um many, many, many years ago, um I had I got punched in the eye, right? And uh so you heard about that, yeah. So from back in my drinking days. Um so and it was right before my insurance kicked in, and uh it was crazy. But uh so that you know racked up a little bit of bill because they had to do a CT scan and everything else. Um, and it was right before my new insurance came started. So um, but where I'm getting at is if you communicate with the facility, said facility, wherever you're at, whatever service you provide, there's payment plans. And you can you can pay like very minimal per month as long as you're paying.
SPEAKER_01:I you can but I don't want to be on the hook for anybody with that. I want his I want to be done with that. Well, well, you can pay up front if you got it. That's where I'm like, okay, do I pay this? And um, and I do for for minor stuff, because I'm like, well, you know, do I want to go ahead and contribute to this higher deductible? Do I not? Um, I I you know, it's just we just come to the conclusion, it's like I'm getting ready to turn 45. So I'm like, I've gotta have something because you know, if I don't and something happens, I mean it's it's it's awful, you know. So um it's well and with not cool.
SPEAKER_02:Like I said, with insurance, just my opinion, um, and we all have them, um I think a lot of it is a scam and corporate greed and the insurance companies. So um that being said, that um CEO.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, uh with United Healthcare.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, man, that was terrible.
SPEAKER_02:That's super sad because he had a family and everything else. Um, and then you know, like tonight, this whole show is gonna be about perspectives from all angles, yeah. And they're really not there's really no one solution for any of these issues.
SPEAKER_01:No, because it'd already be figured out if it was. I mean, there's enough smart people in this world that would do that, I think.
SPEAKER_02:But um But I I do think there is a lot of corruptness, and I do think there's a lot of corporate greed. Um, a lot of these insurance companies making millions off the blue-collar workers, billions, probably trillions off blue-collar workers, you know, and then denying claims to save people's lives. So um when you push and push and push and push on someone that is already in severe pain, already has mental health problems, as soon as you hit the ticket, as soon as you start jacking with someone that has mental health problems, um, I'm sure you you've probably faced it. You know I've faced it. Uh in a majority of Americans have faced some type of mental health struggle, but when you're in a really, really, really bad spot, the worst is like the deepest, darkest bottom of the hole that it gets, you're either suicidal or homicidal or both.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:And that's where that dude was. In my opinion. Yeah. Based on everything that you know came out, and you don't know, you you you only know what the media shows you. But based on my opinion, that's where he was at. And that's what he did. You know. And and I think there's a lot more Americans out there in that same spot that's looking at these companies like that.
SPEAKER_01:Well, they are and they're lost. And I mean, you know, yes, I mean, I've I've had pain and dark places that I've been in my life, and you know, everybody has their their way. I mean, mine was finding faith in Jesus. Lid that's you know, without him, I'm cooked. I mean, that's a hundred percent.
SPEAKER_02:And even if you don't believe in God, which I do, but I'm just saying this because there are people that don't, they're atheists or whatnot. Yeah. Um, because I love to dis I love to be able to agree to disagree with people, right? Yeah. So even if you don't believe in God or or a higher uh level of anything, you gotta have faith in something.
SPEAKER_01:I think that's it's a natural human thing for you to be able to pull towards something, and you know, so something's tugging at you. Right. Something you feel that, and whatever it is, whatever that emotion is, and and you have to answer to that. And it like, and you know, I don't know. It goes back to again, like how I feel and just my faith. And like there's always a seat at the table. You have to have something. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Because you right when you're in that deepest, darkest spot, you have to have something in your mind that you can go to that gives you one ounce of hope.
SPEAKER_01:And that that is that is, was, and will always be my hope when it comes to those things. So I mean, that's where people are at. There's somebody out there that's lost right now that's probably thinking, like, oh man, you know, but there is. There's hope, there's an answer. Um, you know, reach out and just ask, you know, and put it out there. Um But there are there's a lot of situations with that with the with the healthcare system where people are um frustrated. They have had a lot, especially the health insurance system. I mean, you know, it's it's not just health insurance, I mean auto insurance, right? Your homeowner's insurance, all these costs have gone up substantially, your property taxes, all that has led to this frustration and feeling of like, okay, there's not this amount of hope that we had before, um, and there's struggle. You know, we've seen that. So I think that um there's a lot of ways that people try to vent that anger in a certain way, and obviously violence isn't the answer. No, it's not um, I think that what we we typically go towards these more often, and as much as a wonderful thing as these are, it isolates us more, and the ability to kind of have a conversation and just talk to somebody um and not feel like you have to um say something where you're not going to be vulnerable about how you feel, you know, just putting it out there.
SPEAKER_02:Like your heart down.
SPEAKER_01:It's hard, man. It is because you don't, you know, everybody's got an ego. We do, even if we don't admit it, we've got something that's like kind of got us this little this way.
SPEAKER_02:So when you mention all of the costs going up, um it's kind of the cost of living, right?
SPEAKER_01:It is, it is. And I mean, everything. It's just you know, what we've I mean, not getting into economics like I did last time when I was on this show, but um the amount of money that we've printed as a country has it's gone nuts. And it's not in the past five years or the past eight years or the past ten. Right. This is a 40-plus year problem.
SPEAKER_02:We need to go back to George Washington. Well, I I mean he said we when when he said the the two-party system wasn't gonna work.
SPEAKER_01:Well, yeah, and and you know, I think once once greed takes over, which again is another human thing that happens, you know, it just causes. I mean, throughout history, you've got that. So um turning more within each other. And then I think the other thing too is like, and I've tried to take more of a role in this myself as I've getting older, is is have conversations with younger people and don't let them feel like they're not worth anything and that there's not any hope. You know, just so just a little bit of encouragement. You don't have to go and give them the old, you know, hey, great job, you know, high five, none of that. I mean, that's fake. No one buys into that stuff, but be real with them. Because at one point, you know, you were an 18 or 19-year-old male that was trying to figure things out and trying to get somewhere and didn't know where you were or had a challenge or tried something and failed and all those things. So I think to have somebody that can have a conversation with you that you can just go into and and just be like, you know what, that guy's pretty real. I mean, you know, having that talk, that means a lot.
SPEAKER_02:So like empowering the youth is big. Basically, it's big. Um, yeah, because our youth is our future.
SPEAKER_01:They are. And and you know, I now I had, you know, I was blessed to have different mentors throughout my life. Obviously, my biggest mentor is I had my father in my life. Um, you know, but to have others that were there to to help through that process, um, you know, that's something that I think we need to lean more into. Because it's like, what kind of legacy do you want to leave? What do you want to put out there for people? How do you want to treat others? You know, just the golden rule.
SPEAKER_02:And you got some you you lucked out. You got two really nice kids.
SPEAKER_01:You did I have wonderful daughters. Chandra and I um were yeah, very blessed. They I'm not sure how they turned out as good as they did, considering how we were uh when we were younger, but um they they are they're great, they're focused, and you know, I sometimes I have to catch myself too because I'm like, okay, you know, they're not doing the same things that I did at 18, 17, 18, 19. But I'm like, do I want them to do the same things that I did? Because that wasn't the right stuff. It was a different world.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, everything, everything changes.
SPEAKER_01:So um, and they have to write their story and walk their walk and do their thing. So, you know, I've I'm more of kind of like instead of like do this, do that, now I'm in that spot where I'm like, you know, I'm here to help you if you need help, ask me. I'm always going to be there. I'm their dad, you know. So just you just have to transition a little bit to a different level of communication and responsibility.
SPEAKER_02:And so did you, as they were much younger, was it kind of um lead by example? Was it a do this, do that? Was it kind of a mix of both within it comes to parenting?
SPEAKER_01:It was definitely a mix. Um, because you know, one of the biggest things that we would always hammer home to both girls is the most important thing you can do in school is be good and learn. Because I wanted to have the behavior set because we know many, many people who are extremely smart, but their behavior it blows it for them, right? So, like you have to understand how to navigate society to an extent, but then also take the time when you're in school and learn. And you know, and I was always a big proponent too of you know, I when people are in high school and they're excelling and they're doing all these things, like is that the end? Did you peak? And you know, I used to use this phrase it's not important what you do in high school, it's important what you do when you get out because the rest of your life is there. So, you know, my kids obviously had to deal with going through COVID when they were in um sixth and eighth grade, and then uh went into starting, you know, uh high school essentially with um a new world, you know, how we communicated and how things were done and all that. So that was a change for them that I never had to experience. So try to to to work the angle of okay, here's what I know, here's the things that I learned. Um, here's the mistakes that I made, you know, here's where I had some success. But then also understanding that, you know, we're not living in the 90s anymore. So um, yeah, that's it's important that that I that I take that ability to adapt as a father. And um I'd say that too.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, it had to be challenging. I I mean it is.
SPEAKER_01:And it and it still is because you know, now they're going into young adulthood. Wait till your grandpa. Well, you know, one day maybe. Ah, look at Channer back there shaking her head now. You never never know.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, that'd be great though. It will be. I mean, it'll see. I see, you know, I have friends that are grandparents. Um that's how old we are, is we have friends that are grandparents. No, but uh and they just it's like a second win for them, I guess you could say.
SPEAKER_01:If it's meant to be, it it'll happen, you know. But in in time, we I mean, I want them to enjoy life. And Chandra and I got married at 20 and 19. So we were we were very young. Um and we're still married, so that's good. And um knock on, right? Knock on wood and all those good things. Beating statistics, she said maybe next week. I don't know. According to a TikTok that we did, I'm I'm the worst guy in the world. I was we made a joke of a TikTok, right? Yeah. So basically, where I was just telling her she spent too much money at Aldi and went and did this shopping or whatever. And it's got like a million views on it right now. Oh way. And like these people are all just going like, you need to do this, do that. It's a joke, first off. Oh, they thought you were serious. So yeah, it's just interesting to see the responses and the dynamic in which people you triggered society with one tick to you can almost tell based off of how things go through. It's it's um it's interesting. Do you do it? And we did it for fun. It was like a five minute, it was her idea. Here's the crazy thing. It's her fault. And she's like, let's do this, and then she's like, make this message to go that route. So we make the message and it works. And it got a million views, and they're there. It's got like a million and a half views right now when we walked in here. And I'm like, I don't it and we're just doing it for fun. Like we had uh a TikTok what last January, I think, that got a lot, and then apparently we didn't do it the right time. Was it the neighborhood group watch or something? Yeah, and sox fired. Yeah, so we we took one that someone else did, which people take the exact same thing and they'll just do their spin. These people threw a fit, started going, um making posts and things like that. So we're like, I I didn't know that's I'm not supposed to do that, right? So like I deleted it because this is the kindness of my heart. I'm like, I don't want to upset you. I'm like, I just wanted to make something for fun. It had like 10 million views, and people are like, why are you doing this? And I'm like, I don't know what I'm doing.
SPEAKER_02:So they were getting mad at you. But here's the thing not every video, it's not and that's that's that's just we're all inspired by something, and we all remash everyone, remix everyone's videos.
SPEAKER_01:Everyone's they handle things differently. As soon as you put it out there, their emotions, their intelligence level. Everybody handles things differently. Some people are entitled, some people have different mindsets. I mean, it's just it's everybody's shaped by their experience with the game.
SPEAKER_02:TikTok, that's a whole social thing. It's not like you're using their logo or using it's infringement.
SPEAKER_01:We we learned our lesson. And um, so when we make stuff, if we if it's an idea that we've created or an idea we've seen and we kind of put a spin on or whatever, you know, sometimes we'll tag the creator, you know, and say, hey, thanks for the inspiration or whatever. But like, you know, just for fun. I mean, this is what we do for fun, because it's like we don't have uh like we're not going to go um do the things we did, you know, 25 years ago. We just it's we don't have the we don't have this, we're tired, we don't do all there's laws against that now. Well, some of those are actually legal now, but um I know in Ohio. Yeah, but anyway, um no, we we go and create TikToks, uh, have fun. And it's just fun with what we do with the business too, because it's you know, you want to brand yourself. Right. Neither one of us have college degrees, all right. We are we we self-started and did what we did. We work with the public, um, and and it took a long time to, you know, get to where we are, and we'll adapt and evolve more. I mean, that's the biggest thing to me that I took away from um working in the corporate world for almost 20 years is is there was a phrase and it was called adapt or die. And it's very true. And it means a lot for life, it means a lot for business. And you know, if you are not adapting throughout your life, throughout every phase, you will. That part of you, it's gonna it's gonna fade. And um, so you have to be able to constantly adjust. But um, you know, going back to what I was saying earlier, I I keep my my center, um, you know, is is my faith.
SPEAKER_02:Humans are the biggest adaptation um organisms.
SPEAKER_01:I think that's the right word. I think in today's world, you know, you've got to adapt to, you know, we're not gonna grow a fat all.
SPEAKER_02:You know, like we we we you know, our body regulates the heat, cool, pain. Like we adapt to atrophy, you know. If we didn't use a muscle, atrophy, if we use a muscle a lot, hypertrophy. We adapt to absolutely everything.
SPEAKER_01:It's survival. I mean, that's a you know and it's not you know living in the jungle anymore, you're living in the modern world. And not everybody gets the same start in life, not everybody gets the uh the same end, but you have to be able to create what you can, roll with things, and um I think it comes down to two is you know what's your influence is, and if your influences are not good, you gotta change your influences.
SPEAKER_02:Like right now we're under the influence of Celsius and look at that. Well, this is good.
SPEAKER_01:We're not sponsored. Whatever the the orange flavor.
SPEAKER_02:So what else is new? Because you haven't been up here in a while. Uh last time was it was it the very last time when you we were talking about presidential candidates? Yeah, it was. It was was it twenty it was twenty twenty four. One of them clips took off, and uh you were talking about um the type of presidential candidate that we really needed.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, yeah, like a JFK style figure or whatever. Man, it's so someone else you mentioned. It's so it's crazy because I mean speaking of adapting, like even when it comes to politics, like my mind, I can adapt to thinking of like, okay, I can see things from a different way. You know, it doesn't have to be this way or that way.
SPEAKER_02:It's just well, I spent all day today trying to see something that we're gonna talk about in like five different perspectives.
SPEAKER_01:And I think that's important to be able to understand perspectives. And and when you have your biggest influence is that uh device that you keep in your hand, you know, that's and someone with an anonymous tag that's saying, I mean, like that's like there's not anything real that's with that. It's like so are you a bot, you know, or are you, you know, I don't you're you're that can make you millions, that can also make you lose everything you own.
SPEAKER_02:It can.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it can. You know, but it can also um lead to you to use it as a tool. Right. I think that's just like anything else, and you can get into the debate about any kind of weapon or whatever, are you using it as a tool, right? Are you using it for bad or for good? And then that kind of gets back into healthcare and mental health, which is obviously a major thing that has not been um handled or attacked in this country in the manner which it should. I hope that a younger generation that steps into leadership in this country, sees, you know, the arguing and fighting and the shutdowns and the older uh presidents and all this that goes in. I hope that there's a big focus that goes on the major problem that we have with mental health. Uh, because I think that will that will go a long way in the school systems, in workplace with a lot of people. It's not a political speech by any stretch. I mean, it's just facts. You see it all day long, and so do I. And any and everybody else does. You know, people need somebody.
SPEAKER_02:What do you think what what would be one of the first changes that would need to be made for a positive shift in mental health? Knowing that there's a bazillion changes that need to be made. But what do you what what are your what is Jason's opinions? That's way above my pay girl. No, it's not. No, it's not. It's just just based on your own life, how old are you? I'll be 45 in December. So 44.75 years on this earth, your life experiences, what do you think are some of the things that contribute to poor mental health? And then what do you think are some things that might contribute to a positive shift in mental health?
SPEAKER_01:Well, I mean, your environment is the number one thing as you're younger, you know, what you're around. Um, and no one's perfect, you know. So that's one. Um your socioeconomical status or socio.
SPEAKER_02:Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_01:I have three words. Socioeconomic status. I think so. Anyway, cut that part out. No, no, I no, no, because I no, you're you're you're okay. So anyway, I think that your environment shapes a large part of it. I think I mean that's for everyone. Um your influences once you get to your teenage years, that's another one. Um, because once you leave the nest, if the nest is solid, right? Um then you've got, you know, you get into, and what I mean by leave it, you're not necessarily leaving home, but you're going into that middle school, um, high school criteria where you, you know, you've got a lot of people there. So I think if you would say what's one thing you could do, I would really hammer down on the focus in public schools with a parent, uh, teacher, staff relationship that is focused on on the the children itself in terms of I guess setting the example, um being able to have a bigger bridge, and that's gonna recruit that's gonna you need funding for that. And that's you know, are we checking boxes? Again, it's above my pay grade, but it seems like there's a lot of box checking.
SPEAKER_02:So school systems.
SPEAKER_01:I would say school systems.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. See, that's the difference between me and you.
SPEAKER_01:But I have kids, so I'm that's exactly what I that's exactly what I was making. But let's start. I mean, you you know, if the kids are in school right now, right? So those are your future leaders, those are your future taxpayers, those are your future, you know, everything. I mean, that's that's what comes in. So they're um they're the future, you know, contributors to society. So if we're not if they're not getting it at home, they can only do so much in school. And then when you have overcrowded schools, you have overcrowded classrooms, you have uh underpaid teachers, significantly underpaid teachers. And I'm this isn't an endorsement of paying anybody more money. I mean, the facts are is like you know, if you had really strong teachers when you were growing up, you know, they they needed to get a pay raise for sure, uh, because they dealt with a lot of knuckleheads themselves. And they and they dealt with good kids too, you know. And I mean, if it wasn't for solid involved teachers, um, you know, that that's an influence that comes outside of the family, so that gives you another perspective, which is what we talked about there. I mean, I I know a um a man now that was a um he was a middle school teacher of mine, and you know, I see him to this day. And like he was an instrumental part in just me growing up and never hung out with him. You know, I was just in class. Like we weren't, we don't, we didn't hang out as adults or anything like that. But just the way he treated me with respect is somebody that was like, you know, I didn't grow up with a lot. Um, but it, you know, just I was never looked upon as like I was I was lesser.
SPEAKER_02:Right. No, that's good. We all have it, we all have that one person in our life. Um, but no, that's what I was gonna I was going to say. The difference between me and you, you have kids, I don't have none that I know of. Um little little kids. Haven't checked the mail yet. But I see it from a different lens. Although you are absolutely correct. Do you need another round? No, I'm good. I got half of that. Um, but you are right. It does start, it starts from the nest. Um, you know, your your household broken, not broken, that type of stuff. Um I'm over here. You're saying like socioeconomics. You said it right. Did I? Yeah. Oh man. Oh man.
SPEAKER_01:That's good.
SPEAKER_02:Wow, I didn't even go to collage either. Um people places things. So I I I was thinking about it from an adult, a broken adult standpoint. Um and that that mental health system, because you know, I've that's all I've witnessed in life. You know, I grew up in it as a kid and everything else, all messed up. But um mental health, it's so there's so many twists and turns and curves and dead ends. Sometimes you have to totally re-retrack life uh to get on the right path. But um it does start with the school systems, and I do think that we just check boxes, and I do think teachers are tremendously underpaid because they're also babysitters, and a lot of times they're babysitters to shithead kids that have broken homes. Um, so they're also having to raise a child, actually, many children, 20-something children, while they're also trying to teach them math. Um, sometimes they're the only person in that kid's life. They go home, parents are addicted, parents are absent, might have one parent, might be a foster home, they don't know when they're gonna have to move again.
SPEAKER_01:Um so you have to get them when they're young. I mean, that's the biggest thing because you can't someone who's set in their ways. I mean, you know, if they're 25 years old, it's very difficult to say, hey, you can still do it, you can still change, and you can change at any point in your life, but like the odds are a little bit uh it gets harder as you get older. You know, if you can go in with someone that's younger and and you can and and not just one person, if you can shape that as hey, look, this is the direction we're going to go. This is the way that you know we need to go because this is the right way to live life, then you have um the peer influence and you can see hey, rewards are happening based off of good behaviors, rewards are happening based off of this, work ethic, but also rewards are happening based off of helping others, and rewards are happen are are if you have somebody that's um that's struggling, you know, help your fellow man or your fellow woman. That's that's important.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, it's um there's just a lot of shifts that that need to happen.
SPEAKER_01:Um gotta start somewhere. Um and and because you're you know, when you get into adults that are set in their ways, that have oh, they're stubborn. We are stubborn. Well, you you have you know uh a lot of a lot of wealth that's very stubborn that wants to keep what they have. And I understand that you work hard and you should you should keep uh you know what you've earned. But I think also there's a way that again, what are you giving back to society that's not necessarily in a financial number, but more in like the equity of just being a good decent human. And and how are you, you know, again legacy leaving and things like that. I think that's something that we've lost um over a generation. You know, to uh is everybody perfect? No. We're an imperfect people that do imperfect things, that's humans.
SPEAKER_02:And you talk about you talk about a buttercrack, a cold one opener. You talk about contributing to society. I think we have it wrong. A menace to society? No, I think we I always think of a movie. I think okay, after what I I seen today. Well, what did you see? Well let's start with let's start with you could probably explain some things of why the government should be shut down.
SPEAKER_01:You sent me a picture of like a a a lot of people that were in line. Yes. Okay. So I did. Um which is obviously those folks are in line to be able to get because there's there's a program out called Snap, right? You have your notes on that. I don't know notes numbers. I guess I'll I Snap slash EBT.
SPEAKER_02:I mean, well, first let's start back and let's start with let's start with the very kind-hearted business owners in this community that opened up their restaurants and shared all of this food to people.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Today was a big day. Um the local restaurants here was Firehouse Barbecue and Blues and Mancinos and Five Arches in Centerville. Sweet blessings. Sweet blessings.
SPEAKER_01:I know that um there's others that we're missing too, I'm sure, but yeah, there was There's a whole list that you posted in the comments.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, there was Wayne County Tourism shared it. Um but they so the the federal government has been shut down for do you know how many days?
SPEAKER_01:I feel like we're between 35 and 40, I think, um, which is one of the longest that we've ever had. So full transparency, I cut cable about uh two weeks ago, um, which is You still had cable. Yeah, I know. I'm crazy. So I was cable television? Yes, I know. I know. Golly, I know you got landline too. I do, and I wear a knit sweater and slippers at home. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I wasn't going that far. No offense to the knit sweater and slipper crew, but you know. Um yeah, so we cut that, and that's actually don't talk about mental health savings. That's saved me a lot of uh anguish over the past couple of weeks. But so you just tune out a lot of the garbage, you know, the same thing.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, you get well, and you can find if you're if you're looking for specific garbage, it's on any Hulu, uh Peacock. No, I'm on YouTube, you know, because you just want to learn things and watch weather, whatever, you know, whatever.
SPEAKER_01:God's boring. You watch the weather all day. Yeah, that's what I do.
SPEAKER_02:There's been so Sheriff Country. It's on Paramount Plus. That's a good show to watch. Because we have to get you have to get you have to lose your mind in something for at least 30 minutes a day. I got a list of what you watch, so no, of some of these uh restaurants that have contributed to.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, let's hear them. So uh Carlos Cuisine, Five Arch Brewing, The Firehouse, Blockhead Records, uh, Mancino's, Lulu's Tacos, Tythara, and Yamato is what I have on what was just sent to me on a list. But uh you know, before we get started on some of the other stuff, small businesses, right? They just so went above and beyond. Well, and these people that that that own these businesses, all right, they pay more taxes than the person that gets a W-2.
SPEAKER_00:All right.
SPEAKER_01:So not only are they paying more taxes, they're paying private health insurance, they're doing these things for the most part, right? They are also, out of the kindness of their heart, pouring their own money, their own work, their own time into helping people. And so, I mean, where are we backwards where you don't and well, okay, well, it's the billionaire's fault. Why does everything have to go? And I'm not a billionaire by any stretch, you know, and I and I'm not a hater towards that. I mean, that's is what it is. That's happened for many years where you've had lots of people that's had humongous amounts of wealth. We're gonna we're gonna narrow our focus on one thing, which is not the answer. Again, it's we need to focus on all of us and come within. And how do you do that? Leadership by little bits of people doing it. And these businesses are leading the way with doing those things. You know, um uh so the Better Homes and Gardens, who Chandry and I are affiliated with, they came to us and they said, Hey, um, you know, we want to contribute some money to some of these businesses that are doing that, and they asked if she and I would go and do that. So Better Homes and Gardens as a collective um contributed um several hundred dollars to a couple of these businesses, right? To do that. So just because you know, we as a um as a real estate brokerage felt it was very important to be able to help out because we're inspired by that, you know. So, you know, we can't go and make meals, but what we can do is we can um you know at least help with some finances and you know and sp and and promote these businesses, and not only that, go in and and patronize these businesses and tell um new people that are coming to the city, hey, check this place out. Um, you know, people that we're working with. So every day-to-day conversations hopefully that helps with building their business, building their brand, um, in the spirit of you know how thoughtful and caring they were to be able to give back.
SPEAKER_02:Uh you you nailed it and anything I would say just piggyback, but um that's all we can do is they set aside politics.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly.
SPEAKER_02:Um, they set aside any type of ill will, ill feelings they have against welfare, you know, um and just did what they felt was right. And it did help. It helped these recipients um that have been out of SNAP or out of EBT.
SPEAKER_01:Um it's happened fast. Um, both of our daughters work at Mancinos, and within the first three hours of them being open, they uh gave out 200 pizzas. And the barbecue was in the barbecue was like 117, I think that was like meals by three o'clock. Yeah, like by three o'clock. And you know, so they're these folks are trying, you know, but they're going to need more help from the public to be able, you know, so if you have it the businesses, yeah. Well, yeah, the the the businesses. So if you as an individual have it, you know, the ability to help go eat there, go either Friday night, go eat it. Spend money there, you know, buy a record, buy something, help them out, uh, share their Facebook post, help them promote their brand. Um, it's important because those are the people they're doing, and that's not a knock to those that are working in some of the you know the the box stores or the chain restaurants or whatever. They can't control that. Well, yeah, and I get it.
SPEAKER_02:It's not and half the time, whenever it's franchise, half the time you're dealing with corporate. Corporate doesn't even know. They're disconnected, they don't even understand, they don't know what's going on, they don't know what's going on locally.
SPEAKER_01:But you and I have had this conversation for years and years about um expanding Richmond from within, and then that will attract from the outside. So it's like if you help these businesses and talk to people and help the people that are inside here now and make this place better, brighter, grow internally, that will be the biggest salesperson that you can ever have without having to go in and do anything else. Oh, absolutely. And that's you know, this is coming from someone who has lived here my entire life. I was personally on food stamps growing up in the 80s with my with my parents. You know, I remember going to Cox's grocery store on the west side of town, and my dad had the uh the colorful, you know, looking dollar bill. I'm like, Dad, that doesn't look like a dollar. I'm like, what is that? He's like, that's gonna help us get a food, Jack. He's like, but we're not gonna do this forever. Right. He made sure to tell me that because my dad had pride and said, you know, we're gonna do and he did, and and he got alpha, we you know, got a new job, got on different places and went there and showed me that there's resilience, even in the the heat of despair and nothing being there. Um, that was important because he could have turned and went a completely different way, and I'm grateful to God he didn't. Um I remember being in school and being on um you know programs where I was able to get reduced lunches and things like that. I mean, that's you know, that's just what you did, but you got out of it to a certain point and you were always trying to do that. So those programs being there are so beneficial and so helpful um to people that need it and that do it, but instead of making it like almost like a lifestyle, I think that's where you can see a lot of people that may be afraid to admit that, but they want to agree, it's like, hey, this cannot be something that is generational, it needs to be something where, you know, get in, get out, and and continue. But there's also um, you know, barriers that go into, you know, hey, gosh, if I'm I quit uh staying on the program and I go get a job, it's going to be worse, and childcare and there's all kinds of things that go into that. So I mean, I'm not um naive to the fact that there's a lot of there's a lot of challenges, there's a lot of details that you have to go in and and really look at how, you know, okay, does this better fit me and how is the system in place?
SPEAKER_02:Right. Well, I mean, when I sent you that picture earlier, I was like kind of angry because I seen somebody there I know personally that that just refuses to work, stays home, consumes a lot of alcohol, consumes a lot of cigarettes, but is raising children. So because of the way the federal government has this structured, yeah, she don't have to work. And so then I go down this rabbit hole online today, looking through all these resources, and of course using Chat GPT to pull from these resources, but then citing it back to make sure this is accurate information, I come up with some notes here. And usually this is life uh unscripted, but I wanted to make sure I get these numbers right because it's pretty alarming. So I almost looking back at this whole line of all these people, I think they're smarter than we are. Because they're not really cheating the system. The system is cheating us that work to contribute to the system, right? So we're actually the ones paying the stupidity tax because we want we think having good work ethic, okay, and we think working really hard to have nice stuff or stuff livable in and it all and and make sure our kids go to college or make sure this and we think that's the right idea, and it sounds like the right idea, but apparently not because we're taxed, tax, tax, tax, tax, tax to provide to this system. And when I say system, I'm not referring to the recipients of these benefits, I'm referring to the federal government. Our federal government. So there's that aspect that we're so stupid because we're contributing to society. So we need to quit doing that. Meanwhile, 2009 is is some is a is a um mark that pull I pulled and our minimum w minimum wage, we go back to corporate greed, okay? So let's go back to corporate greed, not really the insurance industry, but just corporate greed. Think of some local manufacturing facilities, put that in your head. Minimum wage is$7.25. Hasn't changed since 2009, right? But since 2009, the cost of living has gone up roughly 50%. But our minimum wage in Indiana hasn't gone up 50%. So these people just staying at home, not working, and getting these benefits, they're actually kind of smart because if they were to go get a job, and and most likely, um some of my statistics down here, um you know, they're not they don't they don't have degrees, so they're not gonna they're not gonna um slide into a fifty to sixty dollar an hour job. Um so they're gonna go get a minimum wage, if not a little more job, plus so this family particularly is a four people household, two kids, two adults. Um so they would need 17 to 18 hours, which would just be barely sustainable, and but then if there was child care factored into that, now they're back below they're in they're still eligible for the SNAP benefits because of that minimum wage being so low. So instead of legislation putting a law in to bring minimum wage back up, that gap is that SNAP EBT and that in Medicaid, and who's paying that?
SPEAKER_01:So we're paying Well, the businesses, the business owners who are giving free stuff, right? Yeah. And the rest of the taxpaying citizens.
SPEAKER_02:Right. So we're as taxpayers that have to pay a property tax, has to pay a tax on everything tax, tax, tax, tax, tax, tax, tax. We're making up for what the corporate corporations don't want to actually pay their employees. So we're actually the stupid ones in this scenario because we're working too much. I guess I mean and until enough people decide enough of it. Hey, let's stay at home.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Well, I mean, we're getting then there eventually. I mean, if the government's getting shut down all the time, we're there.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. We're there, basically. It's close. It's I mean, I you know, I I try to find it at my heart. Like if if I can help someone, I will, because A, that's the right thing to do, but B, you know, if if you know if I'm in that position, uh, I would hope that I could get help. Um that's and that's the thing, too. It's like, how many are in these positions that can't get the help? Well, and you know, you we talk about younger folks, and you're like, okay, you see some of this, the line is of people, and it's like, okay, we you go back and your first thought is um the food lines of the of the Great Depression, right? That's what it looked like. That's it's like the modern day, and you're it was wrapped around the building. Yes, like and that's you're like, okay, you you think about okay, there's no jobs, there's no opportunities, you know, there's nothing there. And then I look at about is that the truth? I think is that the truth is not the truth.
SPEAKER_02:It it's it because Manpower Richmond, MP Richmond.com, plenty of jobs. I told Michael I was gonna plug that in today. Um, because I've never seen a line like that at Manpower Richmond. That's well, so that's a that's a good point. Um but but but the other side of it, what are those jobs paying? Right, and does the system does it make up? Does it pay enough? Or are they still gonna need that because there's corporate greed?
SPEAKER_01:Well, here's the other thing, too, is like, okay, go to the the senior citizen, yeah, the older person. And I, you know, I'm starting to look at like obviously I don't believe that social security will be there for me or my wife when I'm 65. So in 20 years, I it's it will not be there. I don't believe it. I I just I'm just not expecting that as part of like my plan to be able to re retire. Right. Whatever. So uh the government puts, I think, and I could be wrong on this, but I feel like it's like the cutoff before you start getting taxed on your social security benefits is like 40 or 41,000. And I may be wrong on that, you'll have to check me on that. But uh when I was putting in numbers, you know, you go on AI or anything that you got and you're calculating, okay, you know, I'd like to have this much in retirement, I'd like to do this, what can I do? Build me a plan, you know, you're my financial advisor, create this structure, blah, blah, blah. Um, well, here's what you've got, Jason. You can make this much in retirement off Social Security, but if you make this much, then you have to start paying taxes on your Social Security numb money that you paid taxes on while you were working. So these people that are older right now, if they make more money, then it kicks them out of programs, right? It taxes them. And$41,000, the U.S. says that I think it's like a$1979 amount as like the median income of someone in in literally 40 years ago, 45 years ago. And it's not. I mean,$40,000 is not a lot of money, and people are not getting by with that. No, and it's not.
SPEAKER_02:According to this, a$60,000 to$65,000 to incomes is still eligible. Indiana's portion paying into this SNAP program is$1.5 to$1.8 billion every year, which comes down to$850 to$950 per year per person.
SPEAKER_01:So when you have uh generations with an S of people that have had um hard knocks and not getting opportunities and the and the income gap has spread and spread, it doesn't take a genius to figure out why a lot of people are like, well, maybe I should give something a chance, like what probably is going to happen tomorrow in New York City, where they're going to likely elect an openly communist mayor who is wanting to um do some serious overhauls to a system that, you know, obviously it favors one, um, but it what's it going you know, what's what is the um what's the trade-off going to be to the solution of of electing someone that wants to do that? I mean, if that works in in terms of a he gets elected, and then another thing is that you know the people that are business owners stay with it, that will be something that ripples throughout this country. And we don't know what that looks like. We can say it looks like in Russia or Cuba or whatever, but I'm not saying it's communism is a dangerous thing to uh because then it's like, okay, well, if you're making a certain income and it's going to be taken away no matter what, like are you going to be willing to put in the effort and the energy and time that you do to have 50% of the money that you make taken away? I mean, I don't like what what point do people say, okay, it's not worth it. That's where Yeah, that's where we're getting at here. That's the scary thing about society. So, like I it goes back to that question you asked me is like what would be one thing that you would do. I said, I I think you've got to start at a younger age group. Is like this is not something that you're going to do, you know, for your entire life. Climb out. Find there, you know, your your most valuable resource is again this device. You can go on Google Gemini, right? It's free. You can get a Google account for free and you can ask it questions. But you could probably go in there right now and be like, I have no money, I have no education, um, I have no car. How can I make some money? I do have a cell phone because you got it because there's programs where you can get a cell phone with internet, right? So that's there. And it'll give you a list of different things you can do. I mean, your story, you know, you didn't do this uh by going to ask to be a firefly paramedic all my life. So and now you're running a media company, right? And and you're great at it. So it's like you're doing all these different things. How did you get into uh, you know, what did you do? Because did someone come to you and like, hey Kevin, let me teach you how to to do all the things that you do?
SPEAKER_02:Um no, I just realized like well, for one, I yeah, I was in public safety like all my life firefighter, paramedic, EMT for many years. Um and then I just became passionate about cameras, drones. Um, your wife gave me my very first real estate job with the drone. I remember that on 44 in Liberty. If I remember the numerics, uh 2017. Yeah. That's when I got my LLC. Um, but I've always dabbled in entrepreneurship and stuff like that. So you found it interesting, like it's something that Yeah, I found something that you you have to find something. What gave you that spark? Uh it was a creative outlet. So um, you know, of course I loved public safety uh and being able to serve others and stuff like that. And then I think that also taught me how to um I wouldn't say talk because I'm still like but um how to relate to people and how to be empathetic with people and then how to understand what they need, whether they're dying or you know, from the paramedic side, or um they need a new headshot or something like that, you know. I I understand their needs to provide a solution, right? But uh it was a creative outlet, and then uh times got real dark and addiction, alcohol, and all that good stuff. Um don't recommend it.
SPEAKER_01:Um But it's that's part of your story, and it is, and it's my why. And we don't go in a straight line. No, life is wild.
SPEAKER_02:So if there was like a little chart on this TV, it would go like here, and then you're gonna go down a little bit, and then you wanna your next up needs to be a little higher than you're gonna do. And just when you think you're there, something else. Yeah, and then then you're gonna come all the way down here and get kicked out of the chamber, and then you're gonna woo then you keep climbing though.
SPEAKER_01:So there's somebody that's going to watch this somewhere that's like, like, dude, this is not working for me, whatever.
SPEAKER_02:Well, you can get back in the chamber, like it time heals. Okay. Time and making like the right decisions daily, making the those little deposits, and and knowing you're gonna have going to have bad days, but like how to handle those bad days and stuff like that.
SPEAKER_01:So so time it was, and that was a huge thing right there. So stay in the fight, right? Right. So I don't don't give up.
SPEAKER_02:Don't I could have moved away from here. Like, like when when everything went south for me, um, well, I tell everybody where I really screwed up was transferring to Richmond in 2016. But if I didn't go through all of that suck, then I would we wouldn't be here hanging out. Yeah, it's no, it's just it's the story. But yeah, when I went through all of that and then everything went south, alcohol, all the instant gratification stuff, and uh end up in the lost in some random hotel room, and cops found me, and um I was like uh they could have just drugged me out and pulled me by my ears to the hospital across the street, but instead they just uh they had an officer outside like for 20 almost 30 something hours just to make sure I didn't leave. Um but I realized that that I realized then um I needed to do something, obviously. So then you found an alcoholic. Alcohol was that common denominator. Well, but it went it got better, right? But then it got a whole whole lot worse. Um and I remember it as really crazy. Um trying to see where we're on time, because this is but uh it got really, really, really crazy because like I said, it goes up down. Life goes life is so freaking dynamic, so wild, so many like I said earlier, you might get to a dead end and have to backtrack 20 years and try again, try a different route. But um I was back up and then um alcohol on top of antidepressants, you're up. Yep, you know, because the antidepressants make, you know, they might help you, but then you shouldn't mix alcohol and then try to pop myself in my front yard one day or one night. Um luckily someone was there and all of that. They wrestled me and it was a mess. But that that I should have been dead. I should I shouldn't be here right now. I should be dead. Um that gave me a whole different when I woke up the next day, I was in my bed, my toe was broke, and there was a nine millimeter bullet like laying next to my leg, and I'm like, that was that was it. That was the moment. That was the moment. That was the moment. A lot of people don't live. Don't go to that extreme and get a second chance. No. Um there was a therapist that I had to talk to at Public Safety Medical. Um he was telling me there was like a poll taken of um survival. From the Golden Gate Golden Gate.
SPEAKER_01:I've seen a video of the that one guy that jumped off there. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. So out of like all of them that actually survived, it was like 96-97% of them, because they they pulled a lot of them. Um said that they instantly regretted it as soon as they jumped. So then they had to live in regret for all that time. The whole should so they're now their life is like instantly flashing in front of them. And they're thinking about their kids and their wives and their husbands and everything as they're plummeting to their death.
SPEAKER_01:So it's kind of hard to transition for that, but like you think about, and obviously the rate of suicide is much larger in males, young males. Yeah. Right. So, you know, if you are what is that? Do you think it's it's lack of having a purpose, a mission? I mean, there's things that are there, and that's getting in a subject that again, I'm not um by any stretch uh experienced or educated to speak on. I can only speak on just my experience of being a a younger male, I've never gotten to that level. I've I've gotten in depression like any other person. Um, but I think that just being able to to have you know your mission, what you have, you know, this whole ecosystem of global media enterprise, right? So that's that's giving you something to um you know to the goals to go after and the things to push for and a thing that you have. So if we are um uh you know going back to looking on on AI to find out, okay, what can I do for a job, what can I do, things like that, you know, what do people do? I mean, what what would somebody do that's like, okay, I'm you know, I'm struggling, I could stay and live in this the system, right? Where I'm I'm you know, it's just it's hopeless, it's nothing, and I'm looking at um my son or daughter, and uh, you know, this is what their life is going to be. Like, you know, you want to be that example that shines, says here to do something, but they just don't know where to start. Um, you know, is that where somebody, you know, goes and creates a business, they go and they search things, they go like what what do they do?
SPEAKER_02:You have, like I mentioned earlier. This is gonna be the shittiest of the shittiest times that you're in, personally, professionally, everything. Everything that encompasses your life is just an absolute complete shit show. You have to have faith. I'm serious. Yeah. For sure. You're gonna want to give up. And uh right around the corner from that is success.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. This is hard. Say it, man. It's no, it's it's true. It it it is, it's right, and you are an example of that.
SPEAKER_02:Well, and and so I got a buddy right now that's I don't even know if he's alive because he he doesn't have hope or faith in anything at all whatsoever, except for alcohol. And he has a kid that still loves him and still cares about him and stuff like that. So it's like, do just think about like everything right now tremendously sucks for you, right? In your mind. There's we all have that time where no matter how positive things can be, the negative's just the devil just wants to sit there on your shoulder and just tell you how horrible everything is, and then you're just like bah and just close the blinds and not answer your phone.
SPEAKER_01:You know, I was told a long time ago that nothing good lasts forever, nothing bad lasts forever. Right. And I think that goes into a philosophy that I've tried to take with my life is that you want to have balance. And if you're putting so much time, worry, effort, and energy on this side of something, then you're unbalanced, right? So you've got to be able to to do that. And I think getting into being a resource to be able to help people just stack a day one win. And maybe that's something that you know you could do for shorts or whatever. Um but just like, how do you stack a day one win? Um, what do you I mean it could be as little as a thing as like, hey, look, I'm gonna set my alarm, I'm gonna wake up, I'm going to do this. And even if you don't have success and whatever that thing you're trying to do, you tried. And I think that, you know, when you look at just in a just in the the big picture of, okay, um, whether it be I'm gonna go apply for a job or I'm going to go um, you know, run a pressure washer that I can get, you know, buy somewhere cheaper or whatever, you know, buys from a uh um like a Facebook marketplace or whatever and go do little things, whatever. I mean, just something simple. And if you have to get down that, it where do you you look at like when someone's got the opportunity to just take one step, like what do they do? Um what would you say? Like, what do you think is one thing to do? Um, is it use the phone to go and search to build a plan? Like, do they how do they do that? Like, is it YouTube?
SPEAKER_02:Is it well the first thing is make yourself one promise each day and stick to it?
SPEAKER_01:Okay. So you so then you're building trust that you that you if you like, maybe I'm not a trust.
SPEAKER_02:You're starting to build belief in yourself and love yourself. Because I mean, if you can't love yourself, no one else can love you, and no one I mean, they can, but no one else can help you if you can't learn to love yourself. But like the set alarm, promise yourself you're gonna get up when that alarm goes off, you know, and I'm guilty of five alarms going off. Snooze, snooze, snooze, snooze. Somebody else is sometimes random. Do you ever accidentally like screenshot it too? Because you're just like or I'll drop it on my face when I'm like holding the phone. I got so many screenshots of my alarm button because I like I'm like trying to shut it off. Yeah. Um, but no, making yourself a promise in and these and it's all micro. And I, you know, I'm guilty of not following through with it, but we all are. We're all just start the next day over, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Um one win a day.
SPEAKER_02:How that I think that that's really a way of you know well, I I think it starts with what we put in our bodies. So alcohol obviously is not good, substances, um, substance abuse, um but you're putting your eye in front of your eyes, activities, yeah. Your screen time. Um try to find like today. I was on one today, and I still am, because I actually got ahead on some things that I've been procrastinating, and it felt really good. Yeah, yeah, we get stuff done.
SPEAKER_01:Hey, asshole, quit procrastinating and get shit done. Um we deal with that in in our business, you know. It's like and we get to a point too where we're like, if you're not hearing no or you're not failing forward or just having then you're not doing anything, you're not putting in effort. So it's like, I mean, we get if we get told no more in a day than we get told yes, it's a win. Does that make sense? Yeah, because you're trying. Yeah. So it's like, and and and that's with anything. And you have to, you know, set it in little pieces because if you go back and say, okay, well, I'm gonna make it happen for this entire year, no, you're gonna fail.
SPEAKER_02:You gotta it's like the gym thing. It's like you know, can just jump 100% into the gym, and uh, you know, everyone there a lot of people do the 75 hard and then they turn around and gain all that way back, and then some because they just went really freaking hard for 75 days. It's gotta be a lifestyle. Yeah, you have it in that program's great if you can make it a lifestyle. Dan did, and it changed his life. But he's been able to regulate afterwards and every and adapt and everything else. So I've heard um just drive to the gym, park outside, listen to the radio for a minute, go home. Because you're stamping in these itty little micro changes to invest every day. But no, it's totally what you want. It's your people, places, and things. So it's improving each one of those. So improving who you're hanging out with. Or is it a good example? Are they great influence? Are they bad influence? You can still love people that are bad influences and not fuck with them. You can still send them a Christmas card and not fuck with them. Yeah, so it's people, places, and things. It's am I packed up into legends five nights a week? No, but I'll go down there occasionally and reconnect with some of my people, check on them, play some pull taps.
SPEAKER_01:So so there's people that want to change, and then there's some, and they don't want to.
SPEAKER_02:And it's self-awareness. It starts with self-awareness. It starts with how how are you feeling today in your brain? What can you be around? What can you not be around? What changes do you need to make? But like going back to the cell phones, going back to government existence, you can get a free cell phone. They're handing out free cell phones like hot meals.
SPEAKER_01:You can.
SPEAKER_02:Right? With internet. With internet. So what's crazy is now we're in this era uh where YouTube is the new college for people that can't afford college. So um, you know, I tell everyone when they ask how I learned everything, I say YouTube university.
SPEAKER_01:I know I would walk in here and you've always got something on YouTube going on with YouTube University.
SPEAKER_02:Um because it's an unlimited amount of resources, and unfortunately, the most accurate information gets pushed to the top. So and people are sharing their knowledge for free.
SPEAKER_01:Right. So going back to kind of what I was talking about with you know, share your knowledge, share the things that you have. If if you've got something that you want to say, open up, start a YouTube channel. Just start putting out content, you know, and and and then connect with people and network and do those things there. Uh, I mean, that's one way of getting yourself there. I mean, from the from the smallest level of like, okay, how do I take one step? What do I do? I mean, there's one. Go on YouTube and just ask a couple different things. I mean, you we live in a time where you've got amazing technology. So, yes, we have all these problems, right? And all these issues, but you have the ability to make your own way if you are willing to put the time and the effort and the energy in, and not taking it as this giant monumental task that I'm gonna do this, but like each time, each day at a time until you get something that you can kind of start stacking wins with.
SPEAKER_02:Well, now like I'm pretty sure ChatGPT has free versions. Oh, yeah. So um Chat GPT is AI. AI pulls multiple resources from the internet. Sometimes it's true, sometimes it's false, most likely true if you if you have it cite the information for you, and you click on the link, make sure it's coming from a source. Um but literally, yeah, the phone you're given that has the free internet, that has Chat GPT, you could um you could type in I have twenty dollars. Twenty dollars. What business ideas do you have for me? And Richmond, Indiana. So let's just see what it says. It's a twenty dollar startup. Could you imagine that? I mean it could happen. Boom. Many local businesses don't have strong presence online yet. You could offer a 30-minute promo video plus a social media post service. That's free. That's to me, I what's in my left hand right now gives me everything I need to know about making a promo video in a social media post about any industry. So if I picked the restaurant industry, so let's just go with Smiley's Pub over here. I'm gonna put so I wanna make a 30 second promo video for Smiley's pub. Give me ideas. So I'm I'm I'm making this like I know nothing about video.
SPEAKER_01:You just typing it into your phone.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Using using a free AI search. Or AI Absolutely. So uh it should feel local, lively, and authentic, not like a chain ad. You want to capture what makes smileys a favorite Richmond Hangout spot. Cold drinks, familiar faces, and that small town energy. And then it goes on to say here are a few directions you can take for concept, flow, and shot ideas. So it literally gives me the entire script, storyboard, uh, it should be warm, cinematic, community-driven. It says hook first three seconds. So that's this is all professional standard knowledge that this is giving me for free right now in real time.
SPEAKER_01:So if you were somebody that was like, you know what, I just want to start creating stuff, you could just, hey, I'm a consumer, I'm just making my own little thing. Yeah. And then stay consistent with that.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, because it goes flow. It gives me the flow of all of the shots. Opening shot, neon sign, or beer tap pouring, quick motion of the bar lights coming on, and then it cuts to close-ups of ice hitting the glass, burger sizzling, and laughter, voiceover or text overlay, good food, great people, cold beer. So, I mean, literally, this device in my hand that I could have got for free with a free app gives me free knowledge that I could go film, I could just film this with my phone. Right. Put it on social media. And and and they would probably give me if if I was entry level, like I've never done this before, and I filmed it with my phone, edited it with like Cap Cut or IMovie, they might give me free meal, they might give me 50 bucks for this video, right? But and then I have then I'm starting to build the portfolio. Like I remember when I started with the drone, you know. Um I remember my first interior real estate photo session, complete disaster, everything was blurry, but they still love the picture somehow. But still, I had a something to put in my portfolio that hopefully got me another job that kept growing. So this is just a really great example of you know, you don't have to get stuck in that trap of generational, like, I mean, my parents, they were both hard workers. We were still on government benefits.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, but so are mine. Shout out to government cheese.
SPEAKER_02:The milkhouse. My grandma used to pay with for milk with a food stamp at the milkhouse.
SPEAKER_01:It's not a knock. We're not knocking on the city. Yeah, the people that are here, you know, by the grace of God, I'm not right there. You know, so it's like, and it could be, but it's like there just there's opportunity. I think more than anything, uh just being able to put a message out of that there is hope, there is a way to be able to try to dig yourself out, and there's a way to try to stack wins and build momentum and and go from there. I mean, um, even when I got into uh real estate, you know, what five years ago now, I was on Facebook Messenger. Has it been that long? Yeah, you know, so it's like you know, I had a corporate job, corporate job gone, and I just hey, I'm doing this now, and I stay consistent with it. And that was what I was doing, you know, and it's just and that's how you you know how many times people told me no, you know. I'm like, that's okay. I had people told me, Leave me alone, I'm trying to run my own business. I'm like, okay, well.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, dude, I've been the new bad dads here in town, right? I hear it's really good. I've not been messaged them once in Facebook Messenger, and like, hey, I would love to talk about marketing. We do, you know, we we built a site and everything for firehouse barbecue and blues down the street and everything. And uh they read it, they never replied, and then like a week later, they made a social media post looking for a photographer.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:And then so I get tagged in it. Right. So all the same thing as the comments, and I DM them again, they read it, crickets. But you it but then again, if you don't try.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and you know, just continue to try, keep going after it, and no matter what happens, like Don't be discouraged. What are you doing with the rest of your day anyway? Right. I mean, that's the thing, is like you if you're if you're able to wake up, if you're blessed enough to get up, right, and just and see the light of day, go try something.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:What's the worst that's gonna happen?
SPEAKER_02:You you there comes a time where like my buddy that I don't know if he's alive right now or not, um you gotta get out of your own fucking pity party. You you absolutely have to, because it if you don't want to get out of it, no one can help you out of it. No resource, no amount of free food, no amount of free cell phones, no amount of free anything is gonna get you out of it.
SPEAKER_01:You have to want to get out of it. You have to want to to climb your way and to get out and to build something because there is the ability to do it. Even in today's time, you can do it, and you know, there's there's opportunity, and there'll be future opportunities.
SPEAKER_02:And it it is a mental health, but you have to want to get better. Like, because no no amount, no, here here's ten years ago, there was like zero resources for mental health, especially in public safety. You know what they did? You know what they they they first told me? Call it call the EAP number that's on the back of this door. I called it one time and it was like a please stand by. Please phone call's gonna last longer than me. So that resources are better. Well, but now that but now they're like, yeah, the at least in public safety, there's a tremendous amount of resources. They're still lacking because they don't understand it's always a leadership problem for the most part. It's not what you see, it's usually your dictatorship lack of leadership or whatnot that fucks you up. It's not the dead baby or whatnot. Um But all of those resources, they don't work unless you want them to.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. I mean, I think that's the theme is you've got to want to do it. But if you're, you know, if the opportunity's there, try to take it. You know, you got one life. Try to try to do what you can with this.
SPEAKER_02:Well, and at the end of the day, and and as we as we head down the this ramp, um what's just really cool is they everyone needs to realize like these small businesses today that gave out all that food. And they are paying a ton in tax dollars to the federal government. Yeah. And then the federal government's like, uh, we might be open today, we might not be open today, but we're still gonna take your tax money. Um and then they're the ones that has created this broken corrupt system with this Medicaid and everything else. Um at the end of the day, we just have to remember those people that that can set aside all of their ill feelings, all of their opinions, all of their hatred, um and still give to the community and see the community as a whole. And like you said, support these these small businesses, these small mom and pops, go eat there, you know. Um because a lot of times they're they're struggling because of inflation, food, products, and everything else. So um, and and with inflation and increasing close to 50% since 2009, and and minimum wage staying at 725. I was just like, it's it's it's when I looked this up, yeah, it is mind blowing. And and you know, I so I am like, you know, I sent you these notes. Yeah, uh, I went down a rabbit hole tremendously of like how can people be involved? And um basically you can bug the hell out of your state legislator, um, your state, your Senate. And they've they've all been in the studio too. But uh bug the hell out of them and and get uh policies created in and so this can get into law uh at a local level, uh, because I do think it's state by state, if I'm I might be incorrect on that, but I do think it's state by state the minimum wage. Um but get that law created, and I think that's one great first step. Now, there's a re to every change there's a repercussion. So it's basically going to be like the lesser of the whatnot. Um you will have a lot of core if minimum wage got increased 50% like the cost of living, you know, uh almost fifteen an hour.
SPEAKER_01:Everything else is gonna go.
SPEAKER_02:Then you'll these corporations are just gonna jack everything up and try to move everything out of country, so then federal government needs to come in and scream about tariffs again.
SPEAKER_01:And it's not a simple solution. No, it's not. But and I think, you know, putting your your faith in um uh leaders that are um you know obviously working out for special interest in a lot of occasion occasions. Now there are some that are you know are obviously trying to fight the good fight for those, but you know, put your faith in the good Lord, put your faith in each other, um continue to look for opportunities, you know, try to take care of one another, be kind. I mean, all the little those are all great things, and someone's gonna be sitting back anonymous. Well, you're not doing anything to do. What are you that's but that's can you ignore that? Oh yeah, old number. You have to. It's just that's fine. Look, you're not going to please everybody. You're not going to save everybody that goes through that. It's not going to happen. But what you can do is you can try to speak positive. You can try to put um you know good energy out there into the world when you're around others, um, you know, encourage, you know, have a chance, have a platform. I'm sure, you know, if somebody wants to come up and talk, they could reach out to you and and you know what they want to talk about.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and I like I like being enlightened, I like being educated.
SPEAKER_01:No, I mean, why would you want to do that?
SPEAKER_02:Today wasn't a whole uh huge learning curve curve like the whole day because I'm like researching all of this.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. And this thing is going to change. I mean, if this shutdown continues, you know, we're going to see more and more things. We I mean, we just don't there's going to be more things that that are a ripple effect of it. And it's just um it's the cycle of of life, it's the cycle of the economy, it's the cycle of everything that we're in.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, it is. And and it could get worse before it gets better, especially on the federal level. So I think I think you know, these small businesses and supporting small businesses and building community, and then we have everything downtown that revitalized Richmond, you're you're gonna see a mass influx of apartments and um people and businesses just in this little five-block radius um in the next few years. I think by building community and pulling that pulling us tighter and tighter together and and not not going on rants, battling each other. Right, I think we'll be able to kind of um protect each other and kind of support each other as federal falls apart. Yeah. And then hopefully they could it it gets figured out. But I think I think the two-party system, I I we'll see. We are our own worst enemies.
SPEAKER_01:We'll see changes. I'm optimistic that you know, I'm an eternal optimist in the fact that I think that we'll always something will be better on the horizon. There'll be there'll be more. We've talked about the cycles of life and how things change and in governments and um countries and leadership and things like that. And you know, we're just we're in that. We're in a generational change. We're in a change with um the largest generation is getting older and passing on. You have another generation that's coming in that's um was taught a different way growing up, they collaborate differently. So, you know, that's going to be a big change that comes in.
SPEAKER_00:Life inscripted with Kevin Show.
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