[00:00.3]
The mom wanted to come after me because I put my hands on her child, and I was like, "We are skipping several steps on why my hands even came close to your kid. Like, I don't even know your kid's name." I've had the rug pulled out from under me so many times that I don't have the illusion of a great steady job being safe because I've been let go from a big steady job.
[00:26.1]
One of the hardest things about leaving teaching was realizing. That like I was uprooting everything I thought I was supposed to do, and at one point there was a narrative in my head that like I wasn't tough enough. Welcome to the Think Incursive podcast.
[00:42.9]
I'm Brandon Leonard and I'm so excited to share with you my circle of interesting people and conversation. Please like, subscribe, and share your comments along the way. It helps our little channel more than you know. All right, here we go. What's up? Welcome to Think Incursive. I'm here with my buddy Casey.
[00:59.1]
Baker, longtime friend. I don't even know when we first met. Probably, I can't, probably at the CrossFit gym, right? Yeah. Probably 2014. I was gonna say like 2012 because we were at the old gym together. So that was over a decade ago. Yeah.
[01:14.7]
And you are now a you're a real estate agent. I am. You're a jujitsu purple belt. I am. I don't know how that happened, but I am. And A badass lady that I'm very proud to know. Thanks for coming on this little experiment we call Thinking Cursive and I'm delighted to have you here.
[01:32.7]
Thanks for thinking of me. I was really excited. So I think it'll be it's fun. I like seeing you explore lots of avenues because like we are both people that explore a lot of different things with music and athletics. So it's good to be around like-minded people.
[01:49.1]
Yeah, we both explored our way into jiu-jitsu, which is pretty cool. Yeah, I feel like I Kind of stumbled into it. It was by accident, but that's what happens when someone's like, "Hey, you should try this free women's self-defense glass," and then they bamboozle you into staying for a jujitsu glass, and you have an addictive personality, and now I'm a purple belt.
[02:09.3]
And you said yes, though. I did. You you actually were like, "Yeah, I'll come, I'll show up, I'll give it a shot." Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I like that about you. Thanks. I've had to learn that, though. I don't think I was always someone that was willing to just. Try stuff or see opportunity. I'm a sticker kid, so I I'm very much like, here's the task at hand.
[02:28.9]
I achieved it. Where's my sticker on the chart? So it's taken me years to just see stuff and be like, sure, yeah, let me try it. I see now. You and we get stickers in jiu-jitsu. Yes. They're called stripes. Yes, and that is the most frustrating. But I that's also been great for me to realize that the stripe is not a direct reflection of progress or ability.
[02:51.8]
And that there are certain things that you are learning along the way that the stripe is just an indication that you didn't quit. It's not an indication of your worth on the mat. But that's hard to learn, especially if you go from like, I did the thing and here's my sticker, and now somebody's like, well, they got one.
[03:10.0]
Why didn't I get one? But you learn, I mean, you learn it as you go, and you realize that the process itself is more important, but. Yeah, that's a hard lesson. It's a hard one. Even if you're like I'm in my 30s, that's a hard one to get past, I think. Yeah, well, you've been learning a lot of new things and reinventing yourself along the way, which I like about you.
[03:29.2]
You said you were a sicker kid for a long time in the education system. Yeah, growing up, I was always the one that wanted to be the high achiever. I was very, very typical first daughter, the eldest daughter. I have a a younger sister who is very different than I am and the best way.
[03:46.8]
My sister is the person that you're not going to tell her what to do. She's going to do what she's going to do, and I'm the people pleaser. So that was kind of the pathway, and then went through high school. I was in the marching band. I was drum major.
[04:02.1]
So naturally, I'm going to be a band director. I don't know that pipeline there, but it seems to happen. Wait, did you do like like marching on the line? No, well, so I did indoor drum line at one point, but a drum major of the marching band is the one that conducts and is like. The head leader of the students.
[04:18.6]
Gotcha. So I was that junior and senior year, and then I went to college for music education because I was going to be a band director, and I marched drum corps for three summers, which is a whole intensive thing, and that kind of I think drum corps kind of taught me more grit than anything else I've ever done, which carries into my career, where I graduate and I'm like.
[04:42.5]
I did the thing. Now I get a job, and then I got a job in an area that had a lot more challenges than I was used to in terms of education and support, and did that for a long time. I was a middle school band director for nine years, but I was in the education system for 10 and a half.
[05:01.8]
When you're talking about challenges, you're talking about like like just emotional like personality challenges. I mean middle school is rough. Oh yeah. So about 85 percent of the Kids I taught were on free reduced lunch. Most of them did not look like me, which, you go into not understanding that that dynamic is also a learning process for you as well.
[05:23.2]
And so, how I was raised and even just, little references or things, I had to learn because, coming into a school where no one looks like you, it's my responsibility, to learn about my students. It's not their responsibility to adjust.
[05:39.7]
To me, so that process took a little bit, and then the support at the school was they were doing the best they can. Like I have no qualms about who I was with or what they were trying to achieve. It was just really hard.
[05:55.7]
So the parental support wasn't always there. The support from the county wasn't always there. Admin was doing the best they could with what they had. But just behaviors and stuff that was outside of the classroom.
[06:12.1]
Like I only see those kids for an hour at a time, so I can't, I can't out-teach whatever else is going on in the world. And then socially speaking, there was a lot of hard stuff where they were they were kind of fighting all these things, and they're learning how to be a teenager and all that.
[06:32.2]
So like it was just really difficult. To be in an environment where the support that you would need to help kids that are already going through like the teenage weirdness, just isn't there. And so, I was in that for a while and then got my real estate license and jumped ship and ended up here.
[06:56.3]
But someone across the table was a big motivator in me leaving Tejin. So I blame you for that. Thank you, like thank you, but also I blame you for the drastic life changes. Well, I'm glad I was able to convince you to leave a safe, quote unquote, safe teaching job that you'd just gotten hit in the face by a student.
[07:18.4]
Okay, well, yes. I'm like, wow, that happens. Speaks very highly of my ability to charm and influence people, right? Well, I think when you at that point in my career. I was. Oh, I guess you were you had a pension or retirement or I well that fine so I think we've talked about this outside of this room, but the way things line up and I joke about like be careful what you pray for because you don't always get to dictate the answer.
[07:49.0]
Like you don't get to say this is what I want God and then God says oh here's this beautiful presentation of all the answers. Sometimes that looks like being physically assaulted at school, so that's one of those things that kind of changes it.
[08:05.1]
But the the lineup of changing of career, I had been vested in retirement that year, so like the 10 years prior, once you hit 10 years, you get vested in your CRS retirements, and so that just lined up. And I had my real estate license for about a year before I left teaching.
[08:24.2]
But for context, like I, I was all about it. I had a master's degree. I was planning on getting my specialist, possibly a doctorate, because I'm a sticker kid, right? So the next thing on the chart is like get the degrees. I presented at two different state conferences, and that had always been a goal.
[08:41.7]
And the next goal was to present at a national conference. So I was like applying to these things. And my last year teaching was post-COVID, like the year after COVID, and. This girl, a right right around Thanksgiving, a girl I had never met, came into my classroom, and she came in there to fight another girl.
[09:05.2]
Well, at the school I was at at the time, it's much better now, thank goodness. But fights happened all the time at the school. We were having multiple fights a day pre-COVID, and because I do CrossFit and Jiu Jitsu. Somehow I was always there, and they were like, "Oh, it's cool.
[09:22.4]
Baker's got it." I'm like, no. Like I. To bounce the fights. Yeah, like I should not be breaking up these fights. Girl comes into my room to fight another student, grabs her by her hair and just starts decking her. So naturally, like I'm not gonna stand there and be like, "No, no, don't do that." So I get in the middle of it.
[09:41.7]
In the middle of the fight, she punches and kicks me, which is which is actually kind of fair. I'm in the middle of your fight. I broke up the fight, let the girl go, cause the other girl had gone to the chorus room, and she reared back and called me a name and punched me dead in my face, and I was like, I was in shock one, and then I felt like the Hulk rage, and then a sense of calmness that I I can't explain other than the hand of God, right?
[10:16.5]
And I knew all the kids had their phones out, and I was like, "I'm not built for jail. Like, I'm not, I could do it, but I'm not built for this." And so she started to come at me with a music stand. And thanks to at that time, I'd only been training jujitsu for like six months. So I went in, made sure I couldn't get hit in the face, and I like grabbed the music stand and grabbed her and just held her.
[10:37.6]
I was like, does did anyone call the front office? The principal finally got down there, the AP thought I had lost my mind because. My hands are on a kid, right? Like I'm holding her, and he's like, "What just happened?" Where then I let go, and she goes to like attack me again, and he's like, "Whoa!" He grabs her.
[10:56.3]
She starts flinging around. Got in the hallway. She kicks another principal's laptop out of his hand. She comes back at me, and I was like, "Get this girl, 'cause I'm not, I'm gonna throw her if she touches me again. Get her, and Put her in the office.
[11:14.3]
I was there. I had to write a statement. The mom wanted to come after me because I put my hands on her child, and I was like, "We are skipping several steps on why my hands even came close to your kid." Like, I don't even know your kid's name.
[11:31.0]
I don't even know her name. She punched me in my face. Like, what what are we doing? Oh my gosh. Had to testify at the county and tell them everything and like. It had to be so precise. They couldn't say whatever I wanted to say. I was I was told like, you have to present a certain way.
[11:48.0]
And I was like, okay. And long story long, the whole the whole kids at the school, there were videos circulating of this. My sister saw it, and she's not even in the state. So that was really exciting.
[12:06.4]
I was like, cool. This is gonna be my legacy. It's like not. Not all the things I've done, not the state conferences, not I'm gonna be the teacher that is getting roasted on the internet and like kids were making fun of me. The band kids, however, were very defensive.
[12:22.2]
The band kids did not like when somebody brought it up because they were like, "You don't understand." Like Miss Baker was calm. She could have really hurt that girl and she didn't. Like you don't understand. But the other kids were like, "Remember that time that you got beat up by a seventh grader." I was like, I don't know how you win that though.
[12:39.2]
Like there's no win. Not with middle school kids. No, there's no win. You can't you can't be the teacher that beats up a kid. But then like now you're the teacher that's assaulted by a 12-year-old. There's no win. So the whole year, I thought very deeply about can I do this for 20 more years?
[12:58.5]
Yeah. And when the contracts came out for me to sign, I was like. Okay, and I cried really hard because it was it was the hardest decision I've ever made. And then I I was like, okay, I'm going full send.
[13:14.6]
And you were like, cool, come hang out with me. And yeah, there we go. So like you were constantly chirping in my ear though. You were like, you'd be really good at this. You have this potential. You're limiting yourself here, but it was safe. You know that the safety net of a paycheck, the safety net of what I've known.
[13:34.9]
the safety net of what I had dedicated my life to, right? Because like that's that's hard to fight too when you've like all you've ever known is this one goal and the next steps of these goals and now you're like I'm going to pluck it up and put it over here and now you have an entirely different skill set.
[13:52.3]
Well, it's funny that you you describe it as safe considering that you were punched in the face. Is it that it's familiar. It was yeah well it's familiarity I think more than safety but I get it. Everything feels safe. You got the steady paycheck. It's consistent, right?
[14:09.2]
But it's yeah, it's all a fallacy, right? When I say safe, I think it's because that like high achiever energy, that sticker kid thing that I was talking about, is like I knew the steps I had to take, and they were all laid out in front of me, and I knew what that looked like.
[14:28.1]
So even though I was very unhappy. For me, that was a safe little bubble because it was like I knew all the steps. I knew what to do. I knew the next goals. I knew the next things to to go after. Real estate is much more open-ended.
[14:44.9]
It's much more what you make of it, and you don't always get to dictate the success by going like I'm gonna check this box and then this is gonna happen at all. But it's interesting because you know like neither one of us have ever been afraid of hard work. And so I think just rooting yourself in that grit, and just keeping your head down, like no matter what we choose to do in life, if it's real estate for the rest of our lives or if it's another endeavor, like both of us are going to be fine.
[15:12.8]
Yeah, we're going to be fine, but it takes a while to realize that. It takes jumping into the deep end and being like, I hope I can swim, and you're like grasping at the edge and you're you're just Praying that like you're not gonna let go and then all of a sudden like somebody tosses you a floaty and you're like thank you and then you're finally swimming but both of us will be just fine no matter what we do yeah I think you just realized that sooner than I did.
[15:39.7]
Nah I'm just older and no but I but it's also like your ability to see risk as opportunity and not risk. I I say that in quotation because it's still a risk but like you're seeing it as opportunity You're not seeing it as danger, fight or flight.
[15:56.3]
What what kind of risk do you mean like just in general because I've had to I've had to have a mindset shift of seeing things that make me uncomfortable or scare me as opportunity and I think you have seen that much earlier than I did. Well, I feel like I've had the rug pulled out from under me so many times that I don't have the illusion of a great steady job being safe because I've been let go from a big steady job, you know.
[16:23.9]
And also, I've just never really had fantastic bosses. I mean, I pride myself on being a small business owner and independent, and I love not having to answer to anybody. And I feel like that's part of the American dream. But you know, had I grown up and gotten a good job with a great boss that kind of encouraged me and like didn't squash me or rule through fear, I might sing a totally different tune.
[16:48.8]
I don't really know. I mean. I don't ever really look backwards and say what if, but who knows. But I don't think, and this might be too woo-woo. I know it's not too woo-woo for you, but in general. I'm pretty woo-woo. I yeah, that's what I was like for you. It's not that. But for me, it's looking back and being thankful that what you thought you wanted or what you were told you were supposed to want wasn't what happened.
[17:14.9]
Yeah. And I I look at that with. Yeah. Relationships. I look at that with opportunities that I thought were going to be amazing, and then I look and I'm like, ooh, I'm glad I'm not attached to that. I look at you just happened to walk into the CrossFit gym that I happened to also walk into that was very scary for me to start years before.
[17:32.8]
Those kind of things where I'm like, you are put in positions where you're supposed to be, even if it feels like the rug was being pulled out from under it. It feels heavy in the moment, and then you look back and you're like. Oh, if this didn't like if A didn't happen, B C D E F like that would never happen, and you weren't meant to have a corporate job, and I wasn't meant to stay in education for 30 years.
[17:57.2]
Yeah, and you don't see that when you're starting that process. Like I didn't go into my first year teaching going like, oh I'm gonna quit. Like I'm gonna I'm gonna really just hate this by the end. Like I didn't go into it like that. And you didn't go into Real estate, as the first thing, but like we weren't supposed to stay in that, right?
[18:22.1]
But that's hard to, I mean, how are we supposed to know that? Well, yeah, I mean, when we're you know coming out of high school, we're expected to know what we want to do as a profession, yeah, and then study for that and then get that job and just be content. And for me, every time that I started to figure something out and then just repeat it.
[18:41.4]
I got bored. Yeah, it's like this is it. There's nothing else to learn or grow from. We're just going to keep doing the same thing over and over. And that's that's always been kind of the beginning of the end. So I like complex problems that have a lot of moving parts and maybe a longer cycle. But like once it just starts to feel like repetition, like yeah, yeah.
[19:00.5]
And that's why that's honestly why I started flipping houses is just something looked like I was like well even if I really screwed this up I should still be okay like I just I'd been around construction and rehab enough to know that you know enough to generally oversee and participate in some of the lower stuff and I was like if my estimates are good enough which after helping people buy and sell you kind of start to learn how to estimate costs you know yeah or the return like you'll realize what's worth it what's not yeah you can kind of see that a little easier because I think but not all agents do yeah you know some people you know they go out and buy new appliances or like you know put put a brand new top of the line HVAC system in, which those are nice things to have in a home, but that's not necessarily like a street strategic selling decision.
[19:48.1]
It's also the the yeah, it's knowing the price point. It's knowing who's looking to buy. A lot of times, like, I think that people that sell luxury real estate are great, good for you. That's the only thing you do. Love it.
[20:03.2]
The likelihood that you are doing that. Multiple times a year, there's a very small hand view of people, at least in Atlanta, that are doing tons of luxury. Most of those luxury agents are doing smaller amounts per year. Unless you know what the entire market looks like, I don't know if flipping is a really intelligent decision for a lot of agents.
[20:25.7]
Yeah. Cause like I work with people in all price points. I've worked million dollar homes. I helped someone buy a condo for 118k like 2 months ago. But if you don't know what all of those look like, you don't know like the return on investment on the HVAC. It's not there for someone whose budget is under 300.
[20:43.0]
Like they need a new HVAC. They don't need top of the line. Like the the return's not there. They need to make sure that there's nothing crazy going on in the house. If you're flipping a luxury, then maybe, then maybe. But like if you don't know the market.
[20:58.1]
I don't know how you're supposed to. I don't know how you're suppose to do it and be successful if like you live in one world but you're trying to play in another. Yeah, I don't know how people do it remotely or really how people scale it. I just know the way that I figured out how to do it. Yeah. You know and and yeah I'm like there's better margins a lot of times in regular houses than than you know the higher end stuff and it all just depends on the deal but trying to figure out where to spend the money to actually Add some sizzle to it and some real tangible value.
[21:30.4]
It feels like such a, loosey goose art, you know. And I've done 31 flips now. I've closed 31 flips and sold, I think, around 400 houses total or transactions total. My numbers are are I'll get there. I'll get there.
[21:45.7]
Oh, you will. You will. I to be honest though, I've done very well for the time that I've been in. You've stayed busy when other people are not. Or when other people aren't doing a single, I mean, I think it was like more than three quarters of licensees didn't do a single deal in what 24 25, which is insane.
[22:02.7]
Yeah. Insane. And you've been busy the whole time. Yeah. Like steady. Yeah. But I think that that goes back to that grit thing. Yeah. And that's the same reason that you've been able to flip so many homes and sell so many homes. Like you can tolerate the discomfort. That's probably why we both liked CrossFit.
[22:18.3]
That's probably why we both like Jiu Jitsu. Is like those are not. Comfortable things and like dis- I ripped my hands this morning. I broke this finger last week. That this is CrossFit and Jiu-Jitsu. They're not comfortable at all. No, and like there's something to be said about also being in a position where there's always a bigger fish.
[22:36.4]
Yeah. Like Jiu-Jitsu teaches you. It doesn't. It matters your size. It matters your strength. But sometimes it doesn't. And sometimes like someone's just better than you. And to be able to be under like someone who's smashing you. And like you can feel it all and you're like I'm not dying this is just uncomfortable and that's what we do for fun like imagine how far we go for our jobs right I'm just saying like imagine if we voluntarily train where the objective is to simulate murder you know like we're paying we're paying to have simulated murder and injuries and we're like oh good job see you tomorrow like I hate it here that was really awful Bye.
[23:16.7]
I'll see you tomorrow. You know, and you you love those people. If you can endure that, imagine how hard we work for the the job that we do or for our clients. You know, like that's the thing is like the grit that we have is going to directly translate. Yeah, it it can't not.
[23:33.0]
Like there's not a there's not a world in which that doesn't translate into every facet of our life. The coolest thing about this hustle, I think of you know one of these sales trainings I did. Painted all these different pictures of different successful agents and how they could set up their business and, you know, I remember one guy just had like, like a list of 75 or 100 of his favorite people and he just was diligent about staying in touch with his favorite people.
[24:00.2]
Somebody else was kind of scattered and had a coffee club in the morning and then a workout group and then a book club and she was just like a super active suburban mom yeah and I was like I'm just gonna do the things that I like to do Jiu-jitsu, CrossFit, skateboarding, music, and those are going to be the places that I work.
[24:20.6]
Those that's going to be my my marketing, and it's just by being myself and people knowing that I do this and serving enough people to where maybe they'll remember me one day. But if not, it's okay because I'm still gonna, you know, chase opportunities when they they come and answer my phone when people call.
[24:35.8]
But enough of the grinding in the beginning kind of just got things rolling to where now the phone just rings. I don't knock on doors. I don't I've never paid for leads, you know, and not to say I never will, but I was like, you know, I think I'd rather start a podcast.
[24:51.2]
That sounds more fun. My mom, you know, my mom's like one of the best humans on the planet. She's she's very sweet. I love her. My parent my parents in general are some of the best humans you will ever meet. They're very different personality types and I'm very thankful that I was raised in that house because they're still supportive.
[25:08.1]
Like they show up to everything. But my mom has always Gone with the phrase of like, do what you love and the money will follow. And she's told me that since a young age and like, of course, when you're a teenager or you're starting to build your business, you're like, yeah, but I I need a paycheck and you get all desperate.
[25:25.3]
But it's so true. It's like, do what you love and the money Will follow. As long as you're the work ethic is behind it, right? Like, you can't expect it just to show up. Like you got to do the things, but you're doing the things you love and the opportunities and the money will follow.
[25:41.3]
Because you're doing the things you love, and people will know that they know like you love what you do at all times, and I think having that where you're like skateboarding and music and jiu-jitsu is like you're doing the things you love, And so you're going to connect with people who also love those things, and therefore they trust you.
[25:59.6]
Well, and it makes me a better person in general. Yeah. Like just to have creative ways to blow off steam and regulate without. You know, turn into the bottle or, you know, like medicating with endless data or whatever, you know, that's what this is really all about.
[26:16.7]
You know, is is just trying to make space for mental, creative, super present play. That's why I was saying, you know, jiu-jitsu, skateboarding, all these things, music. You can't be tethered to your phone and do any of those activities. You really can't do anything of substance while you're tethered to the to the phone.
[26:32.7]
You can't really spend amazing time with your kids. While you're looking at your phone. Also, it's been great because anybody that I knew from the gym, and I know this is the same for you, Casey, is that like anybody that knows you from CrossFit or Jiu Jitsu, they're not going to question your work ethic. Yeah.
[26:47.7]
You know, because they already know how you are. Yeah. And that was, and that's former teachers that I worked with too. I've gotten a lot of calls from teachers that I worked with because they just know they know your work ethic. They know who you are. And with CrossFit, with Jiu Jitsu, with education, with Other things too, like music, you face frustrations a lot, and so I think it's so important that those people know what you look like and how you handle frustration.
[27:14.9]
Most people that you meet in a business setting, you don't know like when they are up against the wall or they they're challenging themselves in some way or someone else is challenging them. We rarely get a glance into what like your CPA looks like when they're frustrated.
[27:30.9]
You know, like you're not gonna be like, oh, well, this is how he functions. All those people in the activities we do, and our past, have not only just a baseline for it, but they've seen it firsthand multiple occasions because like when you miss a lift, or when you're the you were never the last person to finish workout, so I shouldn't say that.
[27:49.8]
When I was the last person to finish workout, me truffle shuffling on the run. I made sure everybody got in safe though. You know, bat and cleanup. That was. Or jujitsu where you're you're frustrated because you're just you know there's something there and you can't get it or you just get tapped a million times and then you show up the next day.
[28:06.8]
Those people know how you respond to stress and frustration. Yeah. And that's a way more valuable thing than they just like you or they're like oh I see your Instagram and you do a lot of business. It's like yeah but now you also know when I'm frustrated how I handle that. Yeah I can perform under under pressure.
[28:23.2]
Yeah. Yeah. We know what it takes. To show up daily to some of those things. And so people in those environments also know that feeling, so they trust you. They trust they trust us because we're in the crap together. Like everyone in there knows what it feels like, and they know that the grit it takes to show up every day, like they they know it firsthand.
[28:46.5]
Yeah. So that personality type is someone that they value because not everyone has that. It's wild how many people are in the job that they're in just because they're scared. For me, like the scared thing is true. It's also the concept that like this is what you're supposed to do.
[29:04.2]
I think those even though they're miserable. Yeah, but this the scared is a real thing, but I also think that it's a made-up scared because it's the unknown. Yeah, it also has to do with because when I left teaching, one of the hardest things about leaving teaching was.
[29:21.2]
Realizing that like I was uprooting everything I thought I was supposed to do, and at one point there was a narrative in my head that like I wasn't tough enough, which is insane. Like a middle school band director should not have to feel tough enough to show up to work every day.
[29:36.4]
But I was sitting in my car. I would like sit there and have to like breathe, take it before I went into school, and I would get Sunday scaries. Every Sunday around like 3 or 4 p.m. I just was a nervous, anxious, like it was just, I haven't had a Sunday scary since I left.
[29:55.3]
Atta girl. It's so weird though because my teacher friends still have it and they say it and I'm like, ooh, you don't have to, ooh, you don't have I think too there are certain professions where like some people are there because of fear and some people are there because of expect expectation.
[30:19.8]
There's some creeds where it's like almost a martyr. I think teaching is something that is. I love teachers because I know what they go through. I think there are people when anyone goes into teaching they really want to do the best thing for the kids. The problem is the Stress and borderline abuse that happens in some in some places not everywhere.
[30:41.8]
You're just mentally stuck. Like I was mentally stuck in this place where I was miserable every single day and it wasn't because I didn't like teaching. Had I gotten a different job at a different school, it might have never changed. I don't know if it's always fear. Maybe I'm wrong. I could be wrong, but sometimes like for me, it was the expectation of like, I said I was gonna do this thing, so I have to see it through.
[31:01.1]
And it took me a very long time to realize that I'm allowed to pivot and change my mind anytime I want. Isn't that the most freeing thing ever? Yeah, but it when you're not like that all the time, and then you finally you finally go like, no, I can do whatever I want.
[31:17.2]
It rolls like it it rolls downhill, you know, like the first one's the hardest one, but that was hard, cause you were like, you don't have to do that. I'm like, but I do, Brandon, but I do. I I have to teach. That's who I am. That's my identity. Like you're attaching this, and I think sometimes with people.
[31:34.1]
In their jobs, they're attaching their identity to the job. Sure, but that's so hard to let go of. Whoa. So like, I don't know if there's a fear of losing your identity. Maybe that's what the fear is, is losing your identity because it's all you've ever known. Sometimes it's just fear of change. But yeah, I definitely see it, you know, especially with guys like and thinking about guys that are you know have done the corporate thing and maybe they did stay in the corporate thing for a whole career and then they retire.
[32:00.8]
And then that hat is hung up, and then they realize, I don't really know my wife. Like my kids are gone. Like all my friends are still working, or or maybe you just realize that these relationships are a sham, you know, or maybe they've been drunk the last 30 years and just working.
[32:17.3]
Yeah, and it's all this big identity crisis. Cause and they don't know what to do once they retire either. And that's why so many guys, white guys, 55 to 60, kill themselves right after retiring. I mean, there's like a there's a huge stat on that, and that's really like been a big reason we do the lifters of men is really just to create intentional space to like really just fellowship and serve each other and try to create a culture of people that are serving people around us.
[32:45.0]
Yeah. You know, it's hyper local, and that's the unique thing about this podcast. It's not really designed to be like any kind of global anything. You know, I'm not necessarily. I don't know what you're talking about. I was promised. Fame and riches. The moment I walk through the door, okay, I'm gonna leave.
[33:00.7]
Thanks. Gotcha. I've been bamboozled. It's fine. Bye, Felicia. No, but I I noticed this. So there were some studies done about men versus women, like how they how they relate. Women will get together just to catch up.
[33:16.2]
We'll get together just to hang out. Men typically don't do that. We need a task. There's there's there has to be a reason, and then like it happens organically from there. But it's It's interesting because, you know, in jujitsu, it's a pretty male-dominated thing. But I've realized like the guys in there, that's their group.
[33:34.2]
They all have group like a group chat, and that's how they do it. And when we go to tournaments, they're like, oh, let's go to pizza. Like they would never just hang out if it weren't for jujitsu or if it weren't for the girls in jujitsu that also are like married to them who are like, oh, we're all gonna go do this thing.
[33:52.1]
And then like the boys are off in the corner. And they're talking and they're hanging out, but I don't think men organically are drawn to like, oh, we're just gonna go catch up. Right. Like that's a hard thing. And I think too, you're pretty good about it. And Stacy, mentor and and team lead, he's good about like catching lunch with people kind of thing and being intentional.
[34:14.8]
But I think that's awkward for guys to start sometimes. Yeah. Like it's not weird for me to like ask. A girlfriend if she wants to go to lunch or like hey I haven't seen you all let's go get you know mimosas whatever I don't think men that that first couple times of inviting someone for a meal feels comfortable right and I'm not a dude so I that's just my observation is like guys are weird about being like hello friend would you like to go like they don't do it organically yeah it's way easier to say hey you want to go do Karate in the garage.
[34:49.0]
Do we just become best friends? Like, yeah, and it's funny too because in jiu-jitsu, you know, especially where you train, you know, you'll have like you know, the the stoner the stoner hanging out with the cop. Yeah. And hanging out with the IT guy. Yeah. You know. Well, and it's it's funny too because I was talking to there's a girl that's just graduating.
[35:09.5]
She's going to UGA in a couple weeks, and I love her. She's one of my favorite training partners. And I was like, only in jiu-jitsu can I be like friends with an 18-year-old who her teacher is also one of my friends. Oh, that's funny. Like I helped them buy and sell their house, and I was like, oh, you know, you know them.
[35:27.3]
And she's like, oh, that's my teacher. I'm like, oh, this is weird. But I'm sad she's going to college because there goes one of my favorite training partners. I'm 37. Like I should not in any other world, I should not be hanging out with an 18-year-old.
[35:43.1]
So it sounds weird, but it's the same concept of like jiu-jitsu kind of brings those people together. CrossFit is similar too, but I think it's because whatever stage in life you're in, you're facing those same challenges. So like you know the goal, you know the objective, and so it kind of brings people together.
[35:58.6]
Well, it's crazy because you know we've known each other for a while and and I'm in the season of life where you know I got small kids, so my world has gotten tiny. Yeah. You know like and because my To-do list is so long, and I mean anything from you know wiping butts to doing real estate stuff to this podcast stuff to you know actual work, right?
[36:18.8]
And like taking care of the house and houses and flips and rentals and all this stuff that I'm gifted with the perspective that time is like my remaining time is shrinking rapidly. Like things are happening really really fast, and it's not gonna slow down.
[36:35.5]
Like my kids are getting bigger so fast. You know, and I'm like, if I don't create intentional space for any of this, I'm gonna miss it. And I don't really mourn for like missed months or or years with my best friends that I've known forever, but I do for my kids.
[36:56.1]
You know, like it's something and then I start to realize like that magic is all around us if we make space for it, you know, and just be present. And I don't know. Pry the damn phone out of our hands, you know. At least for me, I'm talking to myself here. Well, no, I think that's all of it because it's it's hard though because that's where we're getting like these hits.
[37:15.9]
And so I I really do think that's why people are so grumpy right now. I don't know. People have they've lost their minds. People have lost their minds. They need to go beat each other up and they'll feel better. Well, you would be surprised. I feel this is a sidebar. A lot of things could be solved if people thought they would get punched in the face.
[37:34.1]
Yeah. Like there are so many people just walking around that oh my god need to be punched in the face just once because then and maybe I shouldn't say that out loud but I'm going to is like you are someone that just you needed to be punched in the face once in your life and you would just straighten right up.
[37:50.1]
But I think that's why I think social media too as much as I love it right it's a great connector the comparison game with that is really hard though. Cause you see somebody else's highlight reels, they're not showing you when they were crying in their car. Yeah. You know, and if you are, then you're judging them for posting themselves crying in their car.
[38:08.3]
You're like, why are you crying on the internet? And so, yeah, I do feel like guys are a little bit better at disqualifying negative feedback than girls. Oh no, yeah. You know, cause I, if somebody tells me something about me that I don't like, I am so quick to discredit their opinion and not even let it remotely bother me.
[38:25.4]
Like, yeah, what have you done? You know, like. Well, my wife, you know, she she could, you know, she could be really hurt by somebody's opinion that I would immediately disqualify. It's interesting because logically, logically, I can separate it and I could have a conversation with someone and tell them like, you shouldn't worry about their opinion.
[38:43.4]
You shouldn't do like I can do that logically, but I do think for women sometimes it's harder because there's a lot more internalizing of for whatever reason, whether that's how you look, what you're doing, people's opinions. Like I think Just our society in general, that pressure that women put on ourselves is there, and now you've got someone from the outside barking at you about stuff that you probably already considered, and you probably already had a little insecurity about, and then they said it, and it just it hits you in the wrong way.
[39:11.2]
And I think men typically have a better time looking at them and be like, okay, whatever, bro. I'm learning that, but like I posted something on social media, and. There were men in the comments arguing with me about something.
[39:26.7]
I'm like, oh man, like what? Why are you arguing with me of this? This is not even something to argue with. And I realized like the more that they are saying these things, the more engagement I'm getting. So baby, keep keep it coming.
[39:44.0]
Call me delusional. Call me anything you want. I don't care because now it's being pushed to a million other people and like. The engagement is up. People start to know who I am, but one of the guys that I teach with for the marching band was reading it and he was like, "Oh, you need to start rage baiting these men." And I was like, "What?" And he's like, "I would just start saying, "Oh, those are big words for Elmo." And I was like, I, and so I started like rage bait at one point.
[40:11.4]
I was like, "Who hurt you?" I said that to one of the guys because he was like just being mean. I was like, "Who hurt You?" Yeah, those are big words for Elmo, and I was like, that was the best, that was the best response. Like, I'm not even engaging with you. I'm just gonna start rage baiting you because that's what you're doing to me.
[40:27.3]
Some rando on the internet. He probably just needed a snack, you know. A good walk and some carbs will do you good. Sometimes a nap. Right. Like a sip of water maybe. Yeah, we're just we're just houseplants that need a little encouragement. You know, we're feeling a little wilted.
[40:42.8]
Maybe you should eat something. Yeah, it's the little things in life that can really reset us. It's so helpful for me, like when somebody comes out of the with a a totally unexpected reaction, you know, to just call that exactly what it is in that moment, like wow, that was a big reaction for that stimulus.
[41:02.7]
Yeah, like that didn't match. Like there's something else going, and just for me to be able to step outside and be like, wow, you you're really struggling with this. Doesn't mean that I'm struggling with it, but I can see that something's going on and there you know usually there's always something else behind you know behind the circumstance that is completely unrelated that's totally magnifying this you know moment of conflict or tension or whatever it is you know.
[41:26.7]
Yeah. Well there's that that saying if you wouldn't take their advice why do you consider their criticism And I think about that a lot, where it's like, would I listen to this person for advice? And if the answer is no, then your criticism's probably not valid.
[41:45.9]
I've never seen someone who was successful in what they were doing that was putting other people down. One, they just don't have time for it. Exactly. They don't have time. Like anyone who's been successful in any industry is never going to put another person down for trying. They don't have time. They also know what it took to get there.
[42:02.3]
And frankly, there's opportunity in that. So like. You're gonna you're gonna try and rage bait me because you have all this time to find some random person on the internet. Like one of the guys called me a scumbag, like of course a scumbag real estate agent.
[42:18.1]
I was like, you don't you don't even know me. Like I I work really hard and I like people. I want them to be successful and you just called me a scumbag and I was like, oh. It's probably like a Russian bought farm or something, you know. Yeah, it's just really funny that my response was like.
[42:34.0]
I'm not a scumbag. Like, I'm a nice person. But you know, I think real estate agents are easy to hate though. Yeah, there's a lot of reasons to. I mean, you know, there's so much mediocrity and there's so much just silliness. The bar for entry is very low. Yes.
[42:50.2]
And also the thought that I think it really bothers people who are stuck in their jobs of you're talking about the fear. I think it really bothers people that we took a step to do something that was. Risky, and they see the success, and so they assume the success means money.
[43:07.7]
And so the envy in that that it's like on a random day I can be here with you doing this podcast, and I'm not sitting behind a desk typing at my keyboard. I think that really bothers people. So they assume they're like, oh, well, you get paid too much, and you're you're these things, and there's so much assumption about what we do.
[43:27.4]
Because they see the opportunities we've had, but they don't see like the first two years when I was in it and I didn't know how I was going to pay my bills and I was getting leftovers from my team lead and from my parents for dinner every night. Like you saw me, but these people that are calling me a scumbag don't realize that or they don't realize like how hard I worked for that client that her budget was 125 and she had cash but she didn't speak English.
[43:55.1]
And so, I'm working so hard because she's a wonderful human, but no other agent is going to take that on. They're not going to take that on because the money's not in it. But for me, it wasn't about the money. It was like, here's this wonderful human, and she needs help. And if anyone can do it, it's me.
[44:10.4]
But they're just gonna, I mean, they're gonna look at us and be like, real estate agents make so much money, and all they do is open a door. And you're like, sure, that's what it is. Yeah. So like the fear of that keeps them locked in, I think, turns into. Hatred towards us, you know, I didn't really think about, you know, when I'm kind of setting up this podcast space, I never really thought about doing it at night, because I have small kids and I love spending time with them at night.
[44:38.6]
And you know, I was like, but I'm gonna do this in the day because that's when I work. And even though it's creative and fun, I'm that's when I do my work stuff. So I didn't realize I'm inadvertently kind of cutting out all the people with regular jobs, but I, but I'm not necessarily cutting them out, but like for the most part, a lot of the people on the list that have come on here and are coming on here are totally not not that they're all totally independent in their career, but like I mean they take they dictate their schedules.
[45:08.2]
Yeah. You know and I realize like none of them are I don't think like any high profile like corporate earners. But even even high profile corporate earners though typically don't work just a nine to five. Think about that. It's usually much more, yeah. Well, it's a, but I'm saying like their schedule is not like I go to the office here and then I leave here and what it's it's a lot more building and meetings and this and that.
[45:31.9]
Like they're slammed, but it's those high profile people are not at the mercy of someone else unless it's a board of directors. Right. You know, like they don't have to answer to Hilda and HR. They don't. That's not the same feeling. So like even if you did have a A high-end corporate person, it is unlikely that they wouldn't be able to say, "I have a meeting from this time to this time." Yeah, well, gosh, I mean, when I worked for the builder or NCR, like those environments were so, I mean, just so lopsided and unsustainable.
[46:06.6]
And that's putting it very kindly, to the expectations that were like, "No, you can't go to the dentist. Like we're working." I didn't take when I was a teacher, I didn't take sick sick leave was harder to take. Than it was to just show up sick. Yeah. And you would feel guilty because you knew it was putting pressure on other teachers when you were gone.
[46:25.6]
But let me ask you this. So now that you're out of that, can you feel stress in your body more when you're in it? Yes and no. I'm kind of like a anxious, high stress person anyway. It's just how I functioned for a very long time.
[46:42.4]
Mine is I am having to learn how to relax. So like I don't necessarily feel the stress in my body more. I feel when I'm supposed to be relaxing, that's when I feel the stress and I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Like pump breaks.
[46:58.3]
You are okay. You're you're allowed to sit and have dinner and enjoy and not be constantly think. So like, yes and no. Mine is more when I am supposed to have downtime. I am having to teach myself because I notice it.
[47:14.3]
When I was teaching, I was. The schedule is so different that like you knew the breaks were coming and so you were supposed to like here's the permission to enjoy your life so I think that's been the struggle but I don't I don't necessarily feel it when it creeps up I'll feel it when I notice I'm supposed to be calm I'm like oh I gotta do all the things yeah but I mean I don't know for you how do you like do you feel it well so I mean there was the stress of being in a you know a tough work environment for a long time where I was just You know nailed to the my office and couldn't leave and then going on my own there was that stress in the beginning beginning but now after going becoming a dad and having like total sleep deprivation that'll change things and and just the challenge of having you know two kids and then also like the postpartum hormones and stuff have been really crazy for my wife and having to learn how to manage all of that I can say Stress manifests itself in my aches and my lower back starts to scream.
[48:16.0]
And it's not directly correlated to you know physical activity. It's just it's manifesting itself in that way. I can feel it. And then when I'm you know we're on vacation and the kids are whatever with the grandparents, like oh I don't have any pain. Oh. You know it's like mine is like getting tired.
[48:32.9]
Yeah. I won't notice that I'm almost exhausted until. I have a day where I don't have anything like that has to be done at a certain time. And you crash. Yeah, it's kind of weird. You're just like, oh, my body needed rest. Well, and I never know when I'm in some kind of totally unsustainable grind until months after I'm out of it.
[48:55.6]
Correct. You know, it's like, oh wow, that was actually that might have just shortened my life. That was miserable, you know. Well, that but that goes back to what we were talking about with like. The keeping your head down in the grit and doing hard things is like we are the type of people who are going to get it done.
[49:12.0]
We're gonna get it done, and it doesn't matter what it is. It doesn't matter if that's working for a client that has a challenging situation or taking care of something in your personal life or taking care of something for your flips. We are going to get the thing done.
[49:28.0]
I see it. And then when we go back, we're like. Oh, that was really hard, you know. Like we look back, but we're not going to sit around and go through the like, well, I'm just I'm tired or I don't feel like it or whatever. Like we don't notice those things because we're full throttle, full throttle and we get it done.
[49:46.6]
But you're right. Like I think we're both the type that don't realize what that took out of us until it's completed and then you're like. Oh, I need to sit. Yeah, and going back to when I was first out of school, I had to like account for every 15, 30 minute block of my time as a as an accounting firm.
[50:07.5]
Yeah, and so I was kind of thinking, all right, I always got to be doing something that's you know payable or you know we could charge for, right? And I've always been aware of how not always, but like starting from then in my early 20s right out of college doing that time blocking.
[50:24.6]
Exercise made me really aware how I'm spending my time, and when I like ditched corporate and went into touring with the band, and now it was my job to book gigs and write music and chase like the mystery of songwriting, like inspiration, try to start to kind of hone it.
[50:44.7]
I never felt any guilt about spending the weekend driving around the state like. Pulling off the side of the road and writing music, you know, by my like that was a glorious pre-kids obviously like pre-COVID and I had to like undo the shame associated with just being able to veg out and explore and be hyper present and yeah I've got a taste of like the artist life, you know, a good taste of it and now I realize like that's just who I am I'm just gonna apply it to whatever environment I'm in and that's gonna be okay and it's not for everybody but That's gonna be okay for me.
[51:21.6]
I think it's interesting that you said that because I, when I am not productive, I'm just like, I say that because I think there's productivity in everything that you do, in terms of rest or cleaning the house or whatever. But when I'm not productive in real estate activities, I feel like I should be doing something.
[51:43.5]
It's like I'm a busybody, and I've had to teach myself, I would say, in the last, probably last year. That it's like, it is important that I vacuum the house. It is important that I make sure I have clean clothes. Is it before other things? Like I need to dedicate this time to do these things and not feel guilty that I'm not just production, production, production because I'm not a good person when my life is disorganized.
[52:07.5]
Yeah. When I'm coming home, like I don't sleep well if the house is mess. I don't feel good in my own space. And I'm just running myself ragged. I had to teach myself that, but it took a long time because I think there are other professions, like you said, where you you're accountable for all these things.
[52:22.9]
And then when you're not, you still have it with yourself, right? Like we're hard workers, but because you don't have anyone to answer to, you feel guilty that you're not like answering to yourself almost. But yeah, it's funny. My wife especially when she was working, she's like, you just don't understand.
[52:41.7]
You don't have to answer to any boss. I'm like. Don't you forget it. No, I said what I said. Like, no, but realistically, the voice inside my head is far less gentle. You know, everybody that has true ownership, and I think of like employee mindset versus employer mindset, and that's what you're saying.
[53:04.2]
You know, we we will get the thing done, and there's that element. If you if you're familiar with like the working genius, like there's that tenacity. Profile that some people have. Some people are great at starting new things, and some people are great at finishing things. And there's elements of greatness in both, right?
[53:21.9]
And really, to do a to do big things, you need all sides of the machine. And I don't know, it's cool to see how I love real estate because everybody can make a living in different ways from whether it's you know, there's appraisers, there's there's rental people, there's people that buy and sell retail, there's wholesale, there's investors, there's flippers, there's Commercial is a whole nother world, you know.
[53:44.5]
Even just in real estate agents, though. Yeah. Like I, you'll know that. Not just in retail. But there's personality types that are going to tell you that you need to be doing these things, or you have to be this way, or you have to do that. But I think the reason that we're good at what we do is because we're just ourselves.
[54:01.3]
Yeah. And I'm not trying to be someone I'm not. And who you see on Instagram is who I am in real life. And how I talk to you in a buyer consultation is going to be how I talk to my friends. And maybe I'm not going to be the person that is in, red bottoms and the, you know, the blowout in front of, you know, the camera all the time.
[54:24.4]
Instead, I'm going to be telling you the crazy story of how the neighbor came out and cussed me out, and I'm in like a cow hoodie, which which is something I posted right but that's who I am, and I think that's why we're Both do a really good job at this career.
[54:40.7]
It's because you're not going to be anyone you're not. Yeah. Like I know you well enough. Like you, but you're just not going to be someone else. Like what's the point of trying to follow you need to do this or you need to do that or real estate agents need to do this? It's like I'm just going to be myself and that's worked out so far.
[54:55.9]
You know and you're talking about that is like trying to fit in these bubbles and I was like no just You enjoy being you, and it's worked out so far. And realistically, so many people will disqualify their ideas because they just don't think it's going to work out for whatever reason.
[55:15.5]
And it's just funny because like, I never aspired to really do a podcast until I started kind of riffing on it with Vaughn one day, and then some other guys, and they're like, "Well, are you going to do it?" And I'm like, "I don't know, really." And they're like, "Well." What are you are you afraid of doing it?
[55:32.2]
I'm like, ooh, maybe I am a little bit afraid of it. You know, maybe I it does make me a little bit uncomfortable. And then I decided I was like, all right, I'm gonna start telling people. And then once I started telling people, those same friends that are like, well, have you done it yet? Like, are you think you're gonna have it done by whatever June?
[55:49.2]
You're gonna have it when's your first podcast? So like that, I need very little external pressure to step up and perform. You know, but a little bit goes a long way. I think it's just we're similar in this way of like we have something in our head, and we might just need a little like just a little nudge.
[56:08.8]
For me, when I have something in my head, I need to talk it out with somebody just to affirm what I already knew, right? Like my gut is telling me this thing. I just need to talk it out real quick, and I need you to affirm that my gut is correct. I know what you're gonna say.
[56:24.2]
But I just I just need it for a second and then I'm it's the same thing like when you decide something though best of luck telling you anything different. I'm very stubborn. I'm just we're the same because I'm stubborn as a mule. Yeah. And it's like you're not gonna tell me what I can and can't do kind of thing.
[56:40.8]
I am a little stubborn. It's one of my best qualities. I don't think there's anything wrong with being stubborn. I think it's very useful. I think it creates the grit. Because if you if you just let the wind blow you any other direction, you'd never get stuck and have to figure out how to get out of the mud.
[56:58.9]
But because you're stubborn, you're like, that's fine. It's just a little mud. And maybe someone's like, well, you could have gone around it, and you're like, I could have. But I went through it, and that was my decision. The stubbornness, some people think it's a negative thing, but they're probably just weak-minded. I I consider it conviction.
[57:14.4]
Yeah. You know. Well, and that's, I mean, I think being a little stubborn. Is how you become successful, especially in real estate though, cause how many times do people tell you no? And if you internalized every no you got, ugh.
[57:30.2]
Dude, I I do have to give credit to that my first sales job really teaching me how to say no to people working for Lennar, and cause they gave me, you know, basically, hey, this is the new neighborhood. You get this amount of incentive, or they can spend it on options or closing costs, and and that's it.
[57:46.8]
I never once thought to go and ask. Or beg management to give me a little bit more so I could get the deal done because the customer said if they do a little bit more I'm like no this is the amount and I didn't have anybody else to teach me that I could you know and it was so funny but because I never went back and tried to haggle management or beg or plead I had the best margins because I never conceded and I just learned how to say no I mean certain You know certain personality types or you know groups will will enforce that and I don't know it I realize now as an adult being able to confidently and competently tell somebody no and like mean it for all the right reasons not not saying just to be a jerk or like impose your will for no value.
[58:36.8]
This is a funny one. I've learned that in jiu-jitsu probably more than almost anything else. And it's because I'm a female who trains and I'm a purple belt and so that, for whatever reason, puts a target on my back with some of the newer people guys or girls mostly the men I the women don't.
[58:57.8]
It's bad to say. It's not the same thing. But like you get you get like a a 24-year-old oh gosh white belt who is just a little crazy and and good they're supposed to be crazy they're supposed to be And I have had to learn that some of those are not the best training partners for me, in that I am allowed to say no to anyone when they ask me to roll.
[59:23.8]
But that's hard because because I'm stubborn, because I'm like no, I can handle it, I can handle it. Oh and you want to be nice. Not in jiu-jitsu. No, I'm just kidding. There are times there are times I wanted a a rash guard that said I could be meaner because apparently my face. Like I just have a look on my face, and so everyone that knows me is cool with me, but like the new guys are like, what is going on with her?
[59:44.7]
Like one of the new guys stared at me for like three days in a row, and he was like, just staring. I was like, can I help you? And I said, no, don't do that. Don't scare him. But being able to say no to something that isn't for you, and it might not be every day.
[60:00.6]
Maybe it's just that day. Maybe that day I don't feel like having to to go as hard. To make sure I'm safe. Yeah. But maybe the next day I'm feeling really good and you know what? All right, come over. You're gonna learn the lesson.
[60:16.8]
You know, like your no's don't always have to be no all the time. And I've had some real estate experiences where I should have said no. I should have said no to clients and it did not go well. And now years later I'm going, when I get this feeling or when I know this, I'm allowed to say no.
[60:35.6]
I don't think we're the best fit. That I had to learn. I had to learn to say no. So I think your experiences saying no in sales, I just had I had to learn that a little later in life. But it's really empowering. It's really empowering where you can look and be like, no, I'm good.
[60:51.9]
I appreciate it though. And you just keep it moving. And for whatever reason, but there's so much freedom in being able to say no to somebody. Yeah. Because for so long, if you only say yes or you're trying to make that like that desperation. People can see right through that.
[61:08.2]
Let's see, you quit education right in COVID, right? The year after. So, 2022 was my first full. So imagine you're talking to Casey back then. Oh Lord. Too afraid, very nervous about leaving this job where you've built up, you know, retirement.
[61:27.4]
You've like you've you've got the all the accreditations and all the the letters and stuff. Yeah. All the stickers. What would you say to Casey back? I mean, think about it. I mean, you're a totally different person. Now you're talking about the freedom to say no. Yeah. And like go and be yourself and and well you you also knew me through a lot of different phases of self-worth and rediscovering that.
[61:51.8]
So that's that's heavier than just a career, you know. That's life, ain't it? I think me now, if I could go back and talk to Casey then would just be like, "You can do hard things.
[62:07.3]
You can do hard things. You know you can do hard things." I would just reiterate that because it was so much fear of like this and that, whatever. But I would also have to say, just because there is silence does not mean the presence of God is not there. That's good.
[62:23.6]
I think I'd have to remind her, like, silence doesn't mean absence. And maybe you should lean into that. I think I'd have to tell her that. That's good. Well, I am super proud of you, who you are, who, where you've come from.
[62:43.2]
I think very highly of you. And if anybody is going to not use me as their agent, I would be so happy if they used you. Thanks. It's funny. You're like the absolute best. Surprise agent on the other end of a deal that I thought I was gonna get.
[62:58.9]
I was like, oh well if Casey got it, like good, good for her. Yeah, I appreciate that because I'm always like, please don't hate me. You're the one that raised me. No, no, not at all. This is your fault, Brandon. This is your fault. You know, there's enough to go around everywhere. Yeah, and that's the cool thing about doing this.
[63:15.2]
I was like, I would love to tell people because it and the cool thing about real estate too is like there's a flavor for everybody and there's enough to go around everywhere and You start realizing that's not how I thought when I first got into general real estate. No, but like death gripping, death gripping opportunity.
[63:32.8]
I've done it. Yeah, it just kills everything else. But it takes so long to learn that because you have to pay bills. Yeah, but then you don't realize like you're holding on to this thing so tightly over here that there's an entire world of opportunity. Yeah, just know this is your fault.
[63:48.9]
Like all of this is. Yeah, right. Yeah, right. Well, Casey Baker, eXp Realty, superstar agent, servicing all of Atlanta. Yeah, probably everywhere. You go all over the place. Yeah. Well, thank you so much for coming and chatting with me.
[64:05.0]
Of course. Proud of you, dude. One of these days, maybe I'll have the privilege of rolling with you, and I'll use all my strength. Not I hope you do, because then I'm going to bow an arrow and choke you into oblivion. So yeah, and then you call your manager. It really beat me down. Oh, you ready for a roll?
[64:20.2]
All right. Well, appreciate you so much, Casey. Thanks for doing this thing and we'll do it again soon. Awesome. Thank you. Cheers. Thanks for checking out the Think Incursive podcast. Please give us a like, subscribe, and your comments along the way. They're so important to us.
[64:36.1]
For all things podcast or real estate, you can find me at begoodbrandon.com. Thanks for checking us out. We'll see you soon.
