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No Shortcuts or Fantasies
25 Plays1 month ago
The "Pieces" discuss the shortcuts or fantasies related to podcast success, sports recruiting and building a profitable business.
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Transcript
Dealing with Self-Doubt and Motivation
00:00:07
Speaker
you've You've said you don't care, don't give a shit like three times. I'm pretty excited. and We're live, dude. Yeah, i don't I'm fucking sick of this podcast. I'm fucking sick of thinking about it. Every six months I go, this thing is worthless.
00:00:20
Speaker
I fucking hate certain episodes. But then I go back and listen to a gem and I say, man, we should keep going. We should strive. And usually I'll come around to doing something that like will focus me.
00:00:33
Speaker
But you know I'm in that podcast rut where the last episode, I'm sitting here thinking, oh, did we step overboard? Did we cancel ourselves? And then I get mad and say, fuck that, dude. I don't give a fuck.
00:00:46
Speaker
I give a fuck. And so I have a lot of head games. Have you ever heard Letterman talk about, or any of those guys talk about when they're on it? Like he, for what, 25 years or whatever, he he basically never thought he had a good show.
00:01:02
Speaker
Not once. I like the immediate comparison to Letterman. Yeah, I feel the same. I feel the same, dude. I mean, the only like the only thing in stand-up, I remember when I had a, I don't i don't have it nearly as like as much as with this.
The Struggle with Feedback in Podcasting
00:01:19
Speaker
I mean, I don't know if it's apathy or or it's just a different vibe, but it was so clear when you had a bad show doing stand-up and it was so utterly painful for me. I mean, I did get to a point where i was like,
00:01:31
Speaker
fucking idiots it's their fault not mine but sometimes but uh it's so it's just so painful but we don't have that process we don't have that you don't have that feedback so it's like how do you even know Right.
00:01:43
Speaker
It's the same thing, though, for me. And we've talked about it a multitude of times. You'd think I'd figure something out about it. But it's like I want to do a good thing and be a pseudo-intellectual, pseudo-pundit.
00:01:55
Speaker
And I want to explain something important about society. But then I can't stomach
Identity and Controversial Humor
00:01:59
Speaker
it. So I got to write something so ridiculous.
00:02:09
Speaker
Lately, I've been wondering why people call me cancer dick. What is it about me that causes them to say, hey, cancer dick? Is there something about my face?
00:02:21
Speaker
Is it my narrow jawline or the circles under my eyes? Is it the way I walk now? My friend Jane says I look like an easy target and that people love messing with me.
00:02:34
Speaker
She says no matter what the truth is, people are gonna keep calling me cancer dick. But why? is there something I can do to change that perception? Probably not, buddy, she says.
00:02:48
Speaker
I asked my dad if people ever called him cancer dick. He laughed and said nobody would dare call him that. Why, dad? Is it because they know you'd fight them?
00:03:00
Speaker
No, son. I'm a lover, not a fighter. Besides, I never had childhood cancer.
00:03:09
Speaker
You got your own issues going on, bro. and know. You just gotta let yourself be free. I just want to feed in your apathy. there though i like This is my favorite Lance, actually, when you're kind of like, fuck this this crap, but you're kind of sarcastic about it. It's it's one of my favorites.
00:03:25
Speaker
Well, I go and listen back. I actually laughed at last week's episode, but I questioned whether the premise itself, it's just like, it's it's so you know on the one end, you're like two white guys, but you just shut the fuck up.
00:03:38
Speaker
Why are you talking about this?
Race, Opinions, and Satire
00:03:40
Speaker
this This is so stupid that you're talking about this. And on the other end, it's like, fuck that. It's my right. I should be able to have opinions about race and derogatory words that are about outcast groups or groups that are discriminated against.
00:03:54
Speaker
I should be able to have opinions about that. And I just like, oh. But there's always a conflict with me in every scenario in life. Always a conflict. That show was a contradiction in itself because we started like we became what what you're actually railing. You you thought you were going to rail against this like we're getting too far.
00:04:15
Speaker
it's It's okay to say these horrible things because it's it's a white person's right. And then we went we went down that path. Well, that was part of the satire, though. That's the satire. That piece, I kind of enjoy the fact that we bleeped it out and said, you know, people are saying whatever they want now, but then we bleeped it. I enjoyed that.
00:04:32
Speaker
dynamic But keeping the energy up for this piece of shit, dude, is starting to... No, don't go down this path, dude.
00:04:43
Speaker
Okay, well... How many times have you gone down this path in the last almost two years? Have you been like at the edge? This is the fourth
Podcast Value and Listener Impact
00:04:49
Speaker
time. This is the fourth time. Fourth time you've like, why am I doing this? ah Yeah.
00:04:55
Speaker
And it usually start starts after... I write a skit that I just have to question the value of of my existence on earth. But you seem to be good with this. You just kind of show up and you roll and.
00:05:09
Speaker
Well, I got the easy part in a way. I just have to schedule it. Yeah. Yeah. You don't have any, I don't know, second thoughts? I, it's it's, for me, it's just nice to do. And then I got the, you know, I got the privilege of like, well, you did too. I mean, you heard, you heard what the show meant to our listener, Paul.
00:05:27
Speaker
I got the privilege of hanging out with Marty in St. Louis a little bit. and And so just a few people are like, man, I really enjoy it. It's like, I'm like, oh, that's pretty cool. Especially when they talk about, like Paul's talking about, it was instrumental in some major thing in his life.
00:05:45
Speaker
like And you're like, wow, how did we do that with this dumbass shit? it's it's That's cool. mean, that wasn't my ever my goal in stand-up was not to change someone's life. And it wasn't in this, but if it happens, it's like pretty cool.
00:06:00
Speaker
Yeah, I agree. But we're really only, I think it's only, the only people, and I guess it's kind of like mission accomplished, are Paul and Marty. And then that's it.
00:06:11
Speaker
But I would feel terrible to leave them out there. Wouldn't you? Oh, I'm not talking about shutting
Reinventing Content and Balancing Tone
00:06:17
Speaker
it down. just like I just feel like a constant need to reinvent or get it more serious or get it less serious or whatever.
00:06:24
Speaker
It's all it's just just just like, shut the fuck up, Lance, right? Shut the fuck up. Just shut it. Here's the problem. I don't want to say that. i want to say the more you're like you always do. you're like, we need to have a point. the more you want The more you're like, we should have a point or almost make it seriously, like we're pushing in this, what the fuck's going on with it?
00:06:43
Speaker
modern government stuff, then you have some like instinctual trigger that makes you want to be silly and fucked up. Then you start, then here come the ads. Here comes the miles plan here. It's like, you just have to be like, that's who I am. Who fucking cares? I can be, I can talk, I can talk pretty knowledgeably about finding the, you know, the state of the U S and financial,
00:07:08
Speaker
whatever, financial advice and stuff, and still have shit jokes or weird dick jokes in your head, it's it's okay. what What I wonder, though, with respect to that is when those things come, does it chase the listeners away?
00:07:25
Speaker
I mean, it appears certain episodes have struck a chord. Do you care? like Like, if you know that you're particularly raunchy on a show, do you not...
00:07:37
Speaker
tell like your mom or anyone yeah i don't i would be less i don't know i'd be less motivated to promote it to certain friends yeah for sure especially if we're playing around with words or ideas that we're often in the realm of satire but if we're playing around with those ideas and and it could be offensive i might stay away so what do you do with that I just, if they come across it and they don't like it, that's fine, but I'm not gonna be like, hey, check this one out. You're not you're not pushing it.
00:08:11
Speaker
Yeah, it's uncomfortable. I mean, but I can't resist. I can't resist that This is your conflict. So I just don't tell anybody about the show or I just tell them that you did all that shit. but So if it's like, people are like, what's up with that? I just go, yeah.
00:08:27
Speaker
ah Yeah, but you don't you't have your own things that you say. That you're like, ooh, maybe that was too much. not not Not really, not on this show. You don't, nothing?
00:08:38
Speaker
Come on, I've heard you talk about, well, maybe I shouldn't have said that one or. Like what? You don't have any triggers of things that come out of your mouth. well I'm not saying that I'm so great and that I'm so carefree. I just, I just,
00:08:52
Speaker
Like I, I'm not doing anything on this show that like, I'm not doing anything. Like we're just talking. We're not really pushing the envelope too hard. And in the podcast, I'm not really doing anything that I think would anyone worry about.
00:09:04
Speaker
yeah I mean, it's like, I've turned on the show like a little bit for my kids or something. And then we're talking about even something that's not that, that taboo or ridiculous, but then it's like, it might be where, I don't know, we're talking about sex or something. That's like a little awkward.
00:09:23
Speaker
you know yeah which would probably be the same thing if I was listening to it with my parents or or actually anyone I know. i don't i'm never The worst is listening to it with someone else and I haven't had to do that. Oh, okay.
00:09:35
Speaker
Do you you ever sit there and listen to it with somebody you care about? I mean, I've done the skits in front of families and family members and then i've that early on I forced them to listen to it.
00:09:45
Speaker
But like you're not uncomfortable you know when you you pop in with a few jokes here about those people south of the borderlands. Oh, no. None of that stuff?
00:09:56
Speaker
How about the fat, obese people in America? None of that? That's mostly you. so No, i'm not and I don't think so. I think if if we got we lined up a bunch of fat people, first of all, we couldn't do it in my apartment because it's kind of small and they're kind of big.
00:10:14
Speaker
ah There's one. And we were like, who who is who has offended you more? I think they're going with, well as we say, L-Dog. Fat people, you've you've definitely taken on obesity as you're, it's almost as bad as ah financial, financial, like irresponsibility, obesity.
00:10:34
Speaker
I don't know about that. But if you were sitting there listening to one of your rants about fat people with, ah with like an obese person next to you, would you feel bad or just like, dude, I'm just, I'm just entertaining.
00:10:47
Speaker
Well, my characterization of it to to get on the record here is of American excess and that obesity is a visible outcome of our excess.
00:11:00
Speaker
But I have empathy for old people struggling with their weight, no doubt. And that probably doesn't come through, but mine's about excess. Yours is just direct tax on people's obesity and their thyroid issues. I mean, you are like, ah you should feel uncomfortable.
00:11:19
Speaker
No, but i keep I live down here. and live outside of the U.S., so there's so much less access to so obesity. Yeah. The day-to-day. No, I'm just kidding. they're They're getting, Coastal Americans are getting chunky, dude, as as we pass along some of our our wonderful lifestyles. But I what i was thinking this the other day.
00:11:40
Speaker
i would much rather hang out with a fat person than a, I was thinking this because you you don't You have anyone in your life that's way funnier when they're fat than when they're like super working out and worried about what what they're eating? Everybody.
00:11:52
Speaker
Everybody Exactly. But one thing about skinny people that people don't think about is because
Ambitions and Realities of Influencer Culture
00:11:57
Speaker
they don't eat as much, theyre their breath is bad. ah Yeah, that's that's a turn off.
00:12:03
Speaker
Yeah. you know is that Is that true? In my world, it's true. if you don't If you're skinny, there's a higher rate of, um of ah was it halitosis? Something like that. I'm just saying, if you're not eating ah ah regular diet and drinking water and liquids. Weird shit's going in your body. Your breath is going to be whacked, dude. That's all I'm saying.
00:12:24
Speaker
That's my truth. That's my truth. But let's get in the episode, dude. this is you know Well, part of the episode was to just complain about where we're at. Well, I know, but what I want to say is like,
00:12:37
Speaker
We're still figuring it out. I mean, you might be comfortable with everything. I'm still trying to figure out how to how to tune this up and dial it in. And there are no shortcuts. It's just like you do the fucking thing.
00:12:48
Speaker
Mike, when you're going off, of I'm just thinking of stuff. we actually are The conflict is like, I don't mind, which is some of the, you actually were were very open about it.
00:12:59
Speaker
you don't You don't really like to sit there and listen to these comedian podcasts or just two guys interrupting each other and talking shit. And I don't really like listen to some deep bull nonsense bullshit. Although I did listen to NPR for like three weeks straight in my rental car because I couldn't really figure out how to turn the channel.
00:13:18
Speaker
I got it to NPR. That's all I could do. So that there's some deep shit going on there and it was entertaining. But that's also a lot of production. when they put those pieces together that we're not. Oh yeah. But there is a limit for me where like, what's that show armchair deck, whatever, like you have me listen to.
00:13:31
Speaker
I couldn't listen to that for two episodes of without being like, what, why am I listening this fucking terrible? It's not even terrible. I shouldn't say it. It's good. It's just like, I would never listen to it. It doesn't do anything for me.
00:13:42
Speaker
Right. I agree. it's not But our conflict is like, have a point, which you want to do for me. I'm, I'm, I just think we can carry it with our unique personalities and brilliance. But is there anything that makes your eyes roll where you're just like, here we go again? Because I have, as as you probably saw, I have like, when we get too ripping on Trump or whatever, I'm just like, i' I'll be in the episode going, I don't know because I don't care.
00:14:09
Speaker
you have anything like that where you're just like, I cannot, I just can't do that? ah I like to challenge you on that because like you don't like that because you don't want to have an opinion on it because you don't want to come across as political or I think there's there's somebody's got to have a strong opinion in order to have an interesting podcast. We can't both just be going back and forth like, I'm not sure. i don't know. Although I appreciate that you don't know or maybe don't care as deeply.
00:14:36
Speaker
No, I think it's what we what we were out against is like what we were both against and why we're not really not on social media is like people's opinions about that shit is so tiresome that that's where I'm like, oh, we're go we're becoming, what do you call it? Virtue signaling. We just even we're like against that, those opinions. And then when we sort of speak out against it, then we we're almost becoming what we don't like.
00:14:58
Speaker
Yeah, but it's also- more of the It's also which lens do you want to offer an opinion like that? Because everybody is doing it, no matter what your side. And so if the, I don't know, if the stance is, I just don't care about anything, then we don't talk about, we we don't know what to talk about, but somebody's got to state a strong opinion, which you have done before, by the way, and we talk about, not necessarily political. That may be where you're kind of and like, I don't want to talk about Trump, it's boring.
00:15:25
Speaker
I get that. I don't always either, although there's just been some like monumental. i couldn't go couldn't sit here and have a podcast and not talk about tariffs and some of the dumb shit. so And we we did a good show. It's not like I was off that. But if we went, when we go, well let's we need we're still finding ourselves. And you're like, let's go hard in that direction, which i don't think you ever would. But I'd be like, I couldn't do it.
00:15:47
Speaker
No, I couldn't do it. I would be i'd be completely cool if you were like, let's do what we do with Paul every week. That has a point. And we were clowning in that and got into a little bit of our past. and Finance?
00:16:00
Speaker
Well, that episode was almost like a listener going, hey, dude, you seem like you figured something out or you both did. but Let's figure out how I can do that. So it was it was a lot of shit that we don't like.
00:16:13
Speaker
There was some self-help in it. there was you know like And that ended up being pretty fun and cool. What's funny though is here we've self-disclosed so much interpersonal dysfunction and then to go and play like life coach, which incidentally I think is what most life coaches are, are very unsuccessful, lost, conflicted people giving other people advice.
00:16:37
Speaker
So- Which is like what people sadly say about like college professors or it's like, well you're not out in the real world or you know right whatever. Right, right. So yeah I have a real hard time giving But you walked the walk, though, dude.
00:16:51
Speaker
Oh, and that, i sure, I can walk the walk, but, like, it's still, it's, like, life is so complex. so Yeah,
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00:16:57
Speaker
but, yeah, I don't know. I mean, I thought it was, it if he did his part, too, because he he thought he was coming on here, and he honestly thought, don't he was just doing this to have a great show, was, like,
00:17:08
Speaker
thought you were going to be like, well, all you got to do is get a mutual fund that outpaces your debt. Like he thought there was going to be a magic bullet and you were like, do you know where your money's going? Right. And, and I had a conversation like that with someone in my life recently and everyone's like, yeah, i know where it's going. I don't need to do the budget. And and then you, and then they list it and then you're like,
00:17:28
Speaker
Okay, just listed this, it doesn't add up to this. And so why you telling me that that you're going over this? And it's like, it's pretty pretty basic shit, but i think it I think it came off as pretty good. was like, no, no, you just first, that's the starting point.
00:17:44
Speaker
Yeah, well, I'm glad. And it's another, here's segue alert. It's another example of there being no shortcuts, right? There's no investment that you can just double down on with certainty and and be successful.
00:18:00
Speaker
There's always some major risk when you try something like that. Well, but you could the next step of that risk would be like, oh, that felt good. Let's let's just make that theme because when we went over to POS, we were like, what's our theme? We we even considered doing the sports youth sports. We considered financial advice. We considered I don't remember what else how to pound, I think.
00:18:23
Speaker
Yeah, well, maybe we ah maybe we should have had this conversation off air, but fuck it. I thought that's the point of the show. No, the point of the show but the point of show is no shortcuts, and and and we're going talk about how you get to a deeper ah deeper understanding of what it takes to to reach your goal.
00:18:40
Speaker
But this is having a lot to do with that, this whole, like, you can't just come out and do a podcast and expect it to go well. Yeah.
00:18:51
Speaker
Effectively, there's no shortcut to it being what you want. Life has consequences. Yeah. But the the the where I got the idea for today, outside of bitching about our podcast, was you know i'm just looking at the sports recruiting world that my son is going through currently as a as a burgeoning senior in high school.
00:19:10
Speaker
And he wants to play basketball in college. And he's got some people in contact with him. That's so awesome, dude, first of all. Well, cool. Yeah. And we're going through a process of like, you know emailing different schools and filling out their recruiting questionnaires and doing all the work and even made him call some schools yesterday. And he'll each week call a few schools, so the coaches. All right. Hold on one second. When you say made him, is there any resistance or or is it's just like, you're just kind of like, you guys are game planning together and it's like, you got to Give a couple of people a call. Yeah, I can't. Well, I can't make a 16. I can't expect a 16 year old to like figure everything out and have a plan in a way that an adult might. It's such a huge landscape.
00:19:52
Speaker
So I don't make him. I suggest I say we should probably do this, probably do that based on what I read. And what do you think? And he's he's down. So that's good. OK, sorry. But it ends up at the point. The ultimate point is it ends up being a shitload of work.
00:20:07
Speaker
to to first off narrow down lists of schools, figure out where you could be competitive as an athlete, track the different information that's valid for them, send out emails,
Navigating Sports Recruiting
00:20:19
Speaker
make phone calls. It's a shitload of work.
00:20:21
Speaker
And- Bit a reality check in it. like It's a huge reality check. Like you're not sending out, hey, hey Duke. No. yeah you you First, you got find what what's your ceiling, so to speak, right? You got to find it. And like he's had some people come up to him after games, but smaller schools. It's fine. i don't We don't need to get into that.
00:20:41
Speaker
It's like everything. There's a very small but percentage of people. very, very small percentage of people that the world comes to. It's like if I graduate from Harvard or I graduate from MIT, I'm going have companies that do you know computer science and engineering or law coming after me as a recruit.
00:21:00
Speaker
The rest of us, ah the vast majority of us have to go hit the pavement. do Do your work, so to You have to do the work. Find your opportunity. Yes, but in this space that I'm in here with the sports recruiting, I see families and they're expecting something out of this. And I just wonder if it will ever take shape and like, why should I even care? It's like, why do you even care? Just let them...
00:21:24
Speaker
go through their experience and when it doesn't work, that's on them. But you're talking about people that just not, probably not, they don't have a college athlete and they're and they're pushing as hard as anybody. They're looking for ah how do they, they're going to play club hoops and try to get recruited. And I'm like, you're never going to play in front of coaches first.
00:21:41
Speaker
And then second, if you did, you're probably not going to get enough minutes for them to give a shit. And third, your kid is five foot 11. It's a brutal world, but it's also like stoked my fear about all this stuff in my own life and in the future of my kids. Like it's all a brutal world.
00:22:00
Speaker
And there's no shortcut. Like the only way to get even on the path to one of these goals, you could take your business as an example, is to do the work and it's never the shit you hear on TikTok and and YouTube.
00:22:16
Speaker
It's always harder than that. Is this, but this what you're doing is the way. is the way Like if he did nothing, he played high school, played club ball. We still get looks or is it all you got to do the work? Cause these schools just don't have a budget to find him. So he's got to find them or something like that.
00:22:31
Speaker
Well, his club team actually plays in front of coaches and his high school team plays in front of some coaches last week. And that's where he's gotten some looks. So that would happen. It would have happened. um But you're also in a game where like, you can't just like rely on one rando that saw you.
00:22:48
Speaker
Well, I'm asking because like how, if everyone's doing, even people that don't have the opportunity, they probably don't have the opportunity because they're five eleven not that good.
Challenges in Sports Opportunities
00:22:57
Speaker
You know, what ah what a nightmare for the coaches is they're trying to separate that out because they're going to have that kid and they might have your son. They might even find a diamond in the rough that for whatever reason, even better, let's say.
00:23:09
Speaker
So they're like, it's almost like those people are clogging up the process with with no real chance of of getting through, you know? Well, that's that's exactly what happens. and i and i you know and you know And this is why it's probably a learning process. I mean, i' I'm getting to the point where I feel like the emails specifically are worthless, but it's part of the work.
00:23:29
Speaker
We actually did get ah response, but it's not like, oh yeah, six, four guard, all of a sudden it's like flooded with texts um after we send an email. So anyway, it's a learning process. I guess that's a larger point.
00:23:45
Speaker
is a learning process, but what I'm sensing, the societal point of view here is that like so few people people seem to be willing to do the work. There's just so much shortcutting going on.
00:23:57
Speaker
What's a shortcut in this in this, like what's a shortcut in this process? In this process would to kind of be to live in the fantasy and like show up to showcase camps and pay 350 bucks and there's some coaches there.
00:24:12
Speaker
There aren't a lot of people that are willing to like create their own personal athletic resume, target specific schools that they think they're a good fit for, send out emails, leave voicemails.
00:24:24
Speaker
um That's like the work and be realistic about what kind of player you are. Some just sit and wait and they think they're gonna get a D2, Division II offer, Division I offer.
00:24:36
Speaker
And I can't, I'm not gonna say, I don't know if somebody's taking a shortcut, but like anything, whether it be to improve your game or to get noticed, like it's work. It's fucking work. Is there, within reason, I mean, obviously there's people that have no chance, but like is it, if you're a decent, say you're a decent high school player or you make your varsity team, is it, could you say that there's a school for everyone?
00:25:01
Speaker
Might have to be NAIA. no but not anymore. Religious affiliated or no, because, because there's too much talent and some kids that are good are going to be at that NAIA school. And, or I don't, I don't know what the, what the lowest level is or how you, but like those kids, they're still pretty good.
00:25:20
Speaker
Oh, they're division three division three, they're very good now. And I can't say when it changed and why it changed. I think there's a couple of dynamics. One would be COVID allowed people to have an extra year.
00:25:31
Speaker
So that kind of pushed talent down the ranks. That's one. The other is, more people have gravitated towards basketball over the last 10, 15 years. So the number of people playing.
00:25:43
Speaker
ah now I'm guessing this is, sorry, cut you off again, but this is probably every sport. You mentioned basketball, but like, no, it's not the same stories. why Well, maybe, Well, I think the participation rate in basketball has increased dramatically. the The third being that international, so we're talking across the world. So international players are looking for a place to land. And so they'll come to U.S. universities now more readily.
00:26:07
Speaker
So they take up slots and they push, you know, they take up way more D2 slots than you would, you could imagine. But yeah, it's just more people playing the sport, more people are interested in it. And then of course there's the youth sports craze and the prestige of having a recruited athlete, whether they're recruited with a scholarship or not. Like if you say, yeah, know my kid's gonna go to Colorado School Mines.
00:26:33
Speaker
Cause I know a kid who's gonna go there. He's gonna be on the basketball team, red shirt, but it's not getting any money. But that's still- He's probably dope, right? He's just huge. And it's, but that's like a wonderful thing. not getting any money. No money.
00:26:46
Speaker
That's a wonderful thing for the family. And so it's like it's got ah it's it's a bigger thing than a lot of people who are outside of sports understand. It's like such a prestigious thing.
00:26:57
Speaker
So that big kid at at my son's school was going to go to UCLA for football. I mean, UCLA, that's unbelievable. he sign? Yeah. It's unbelievable, right? like and For people that follow sports, and it's well-deserved. he good?
00:27:15
Speaker
He's huge. Yeah, he's a pro. I don't mean like is he good. I know he's good. I've seen him. kids ah When he was a sophomore, he looked like ah freakin a baby-faced beast, so to speak. But like when you – do you go to the football? I'm just wondering like UCLA is another level where you're like, oh, yeah, this kid's demolishing people when he gets a chance to get the ball. or was it tight end It's not so much as when he catches the ball. I think he just kind of pancakes people from the blocking.
00:27:40
Speaker
and he's ah And he's a physical prototype. Yeah. for a left tackle or a blocking tight end. So he'll do fine. But he would be somebody that didn't have, he's not sending, he wasn't sending emails out to UCLA and Washington. Like, but he was a freak. He was a freshman. He was six, five, two 60 writer and athletic enough to catch a ball.
00:28:03
Speaker
He's the, he is what people look to. And this is where the shortcut piece comes in. They go, Oh, okay. That could happen to me. That could happen to me. And it's like, bro, that was That was done at birth, not at, not at ah right? He was born with some just an amazing body type.
00:28:21
Speaker
He went to some camps early on in middle school, and they saw his footwork, and they're like, yeah, okay. we We love that. But I'll give you an example. of A guy was on our show in the hijacked by U Sports.
00:28:32
Speaker
I don't know if he listens anymore. Probably not because we've gotten too... too political. Probably because you said you said some bad things last episode. But anyway, he said there's a family he knows that they're the kid.
00:28:44
Speaker
I won't say what school or anything, but he's like at a 3A school, which is three levels down from where my kid plays. And the dude thinks he's going to make a college team. And so they're like trying to put together a professional recruiting tape.
The Fantasy vs. Reality in Sports Success
00:28:57
Speaker
And hoops.
00:28:58
Speaker
And hoops. Apparently doesn't do much on the high school team. Play much. But whatever. They can try that. It's just not going to happen. and think Yeah, that's one that I'm like, i would I would be like, why do you care?
00:29:11
Speaker
like it just seems so ridiculous. Yeah, does it bother you? Well, that's why I was just gonna make fun of myself. I don't know why i care. I just think that the i've I've commented frequently on the overemphasis on sports and I've watched people pour barrels of money after this thing.
00:29:27
Speaker
And with a stated goal of, that he'd he'd like to play in college. Oh yeah, yeah, he'd like to play in college. And then there's not a real plan on doing the work to to to make it happen.
00:29:42
Speaker
And i just I guess I'm making a comment about that, but I'm not going to knock anybody that. But it is a I think the broader theme is the shortcuts in society. Like you see the kids now, they want to be an influencer. They want to be on YouTube. They want to like bypass the corporate world because they have this idea that.
00:29:59
Speaker
It was a um little bit of like straight to the top without the without without the road. Yes. Straight to the top. The journey. I'm special. um And I, I, uh, that worries me.
00:30:12
Speaker
Yeah, that's a, but we're so into out there. Like, so into like, if if you dream it, you can do it. And if you, if you believe in yourself, you can do anything. And, and that's simply not true, but like, but it, that's such a message in the U S is like, or are you you can work your, you can work your way into anything.
00:30:32
Speaker
Uh, a three, a bench warmer probably can't work his way end up being like and getting division, division one scholarship. No, for sure. Done it. Maybe a three, a star.
00:30:43
Speaker
Yeah. Like Dalton or somebody, but, but, uh, but then to do that though, you have to be a freak of like, there's freaks like physical, but that, that would have to be the, the, the equivalent of your son's friend is going to UCLA.
00:30:57
Speaker
a mentality of like, I will not fail. You have to be the most mentally strong, most driven person in the world. Yeah, like Rudy. You to be like Rudy. Yeah, you have to be like Rudy. We don't have enough Rudys in this space is, I guess, my comment.
00:31:11
Speaker
Thank God. No, but like people that are like, I will do this. This is what I really want to do. I know I don't have the talent, but I'm going to try to figure it out. I respect that. The fantasy world piece is what I don't respect. You're going to a freak though. I mean, I've seen that in standup. I've seen people like that, but they usually came with a lot of talent and then they went, I'm not turning back. I'm all in. They might've moved to the coast or something, but they're like,
00:31:37
Speaker
this is it. I'll die trying, but I'm, and, but they, but they were already good. So, and it didn't come from, it doesn't come from parents either. That's probably what, what bothers you a little bit. Actually, I think a lot what's, if I'm reading into this, some of your thing is like, this bullshit is coming from the parents. It's not even the kid.
00:31:55
Speaker
And that's what makes it worse, right? These like beliefs and hopes. And it's like, It's you. I'm pretty sure you wanted because at one point you were like, I don't even know if my son wants to play in college. He wasn't sure. this is like years ago.
00:32:09
Speaker
But you had to see him want to do it before you got on board with like, all right, we'll put some effort into this. Like, I don't know if everyone does that. I feel like it was imperative for me to see that he was willing to do work.
00:32:21
Speaker
Yeah. ah Just because I know what the, college you know, you and I know what college sports is about. It's just not a, you know, just roll in and you're not the best player right away, all that shit. ah So I wanted to to him to like come to terms with that. But like really, it's not just about sports to me. yeah I could go on and on.
00:32:39
Speaker
It's about this shortcut mindset. and We could talk about fucking Bitcoin and all this. the kind of so like What you said about Paul coming and thinking, oh, yeah, he could just get me into like figure help figure out how to get a VRBO or or maybe invest in the right thing.
00:32:55
Speaker
That would get us over the edge. And I was trying to, I didn't get into it, but like the financial side of it, yeah the stuff I was doing, bud, was ugly, like ugly, down and dirty. You could pick it apart and be like, dude, you're a sad person.
00:33:10
Speaker
You got into a little bit. You're talking about a $40 electric bill savings was how how to home immediately. And it was, and it wasn't, and it wasn't fat free yogurt or, or something fun. It was an investment account, right. Or something like that. Right. Cause I had, ah i had a like, I had a like big goal.
00:33:27
Speaker
had a big goal that I could, I would be willing to sacrifice for. And I'm, and I think in this shortcut, this idea of taking a shortcut, we miss this like specific goal.
00:33:38
Speaker
And when somebody does have a specific goal that like really resonates with them, they do it. They figure it out. They they do all the work. And I don't see as much of that I guess in my own, I can't speak. Cause you made a good comment about dude, are you just talking about what's happening in the media landscape? or Are you talking about what's happening in the real world?
00:33:58
Speaker
But in this case, I'm kind of talking about what's happening around me in the real world. And people so just have a lot of ideas about what's going to be and what's going to happen. And then then there isn't really any plan or goal there.
00:34:10
Speaker
And I struggle with that. I get it. What I don't get is how is, is the how this I don't understand the shortcut like for these parents that are... like it seems like I guess what I'm hearing is they're they're ambitious in thought, but they're not doing the work of really figuring out what it means to get recruited and what talent level looks like. and They're just like in la-la land. Is that part of the problem? Well, the best part of it, or the shortcut is just I need to get this...
00:34:40
Speaker
kids seen by coaches. And like, no, you need to kind of figure out where this kid's talent fits in. And you might actually find out that even D3 schools will say, no thanks.
00:34:52
Speaker
And so then what? And there just isn't a reality check along along the way that I think maybe embodies this idea of taking shortcuts. But it's it's not for me to criticize that approach. I think a lot of us like to live in fantasy. I mean, there are aspects of my life where I live in fantasy.
00:35:09
Speaker
Oh, I'm going build more community. i'm going to get out and about. and And then most days, like, I'd rather ride my bike by myself. There's so many parallels, though, to, like, what I'm trying to do, you know?
00:35:20
Speaker
you want the shortcut. You just want, like, we want to get to to revenue, but the reality, we just realized, Oh, lot of work. Yeah. get The revenue. And it's also like, for us, it's like, okay, we can get our stuff in front of whatever interior designers or whoever people are going to look at it.
00:35:38
Speaker
But if you're presenting it like in a way that's not right, they're not going to get it. And that's almost the same with it. It's great to get your kid in front of a coach, but if he, if he's, it's not like the whole package where he's,
00:35:50
Speaker
Right. Look, you know, he's he looks like a good teammate on the besides all his athletic ability and basketball knowledge and court vision and everything. Like there's, it's not just about getting in front of a coach because every kid's getting in front of a coach. He's got, even in the games, you got stand out ah in the 10 people that are on the court, which is not that easy.
00:36:09
Speaker
No, it's tough. there There's so many factors, but that's, you're right. Your business, like you probably remember when you're like, man, if we just, you know, some people are killing it in Houston and different places in the country.
00:36:20
Speaker
If we can just make like, 30,000 a month, I'm set. And you're probably now having to set up the showroom going, okay, it's gonna be some work to get to that shit. Yeah, it was.
00:36:31
Speaker
i feel like we're we're working really hard to look, this is the same when you're an entertainer. You're working really hard to look like you took a shortcut. Like you want it to look like it's lightning in a bottle and you got this can't miss product or you you look like you're so smooth.
00:36:46
Speaker
People always used to be like, you look so relaxed and comfortable and not nervous on stage. It's like, first of all, I probably still was nervous, but second of all, like that, that was just time on stage.
00:37:00
Speaker
It's like work. It's like you want, everyone wants to look like everything's under control and that might be, yeah, I want to be the influencer that hit hard when they were 22 years old and everything. But most of the time that you find there's a lot of work behind that or like smoke and mirrors in the case of most influencers, but.
Embracing Self-Awareness and Realistic Expectations
00:37:17
Speaker
But there's gotta to be some kids that are probably working really hard that you know that just don't have college level talent, right? Oh, for sure. Maybe.
00:37:29
Speaker
Give me some names. No. Yeah, I don't know. I don't really know. It's more of, I think there was a point in your business where, You were trying to decide whether to go for it.
00:37:41
Speaker
And our brains move towards this like fantasy of what it's gonna be like. You're like, okay, yeah, we'll just sell some wood, we'll get this stuff going. And I don't know of anything in my life where it's been easier than I thought it would be.
00:37:54
Speaker
ah It's either been worth it or not worth it. yeah And I think this sports recruiting stuff is where, you know, he's in the mix. It seems worth it. He feels like that the work is worth it, and and it feels good.
00:38:11
Speaker
And I just contrast that with, I think, folks that are maybe living in the fantasy world. And you could still be talking about the business you're going to open. So I had a lot of family members working. throw out all these business ideas over the years and get business cards and shit, but never do anything.
00:38:26
Speaker
Yeah. And, uh, we moved past that. Yeah. It always ends up being like, what's your core motivation and what's the work that you're doing? And, and, you know, you may pivot along the way, but it'll always be different and it always feels like it's harder.
00:38:42
Speaker
Yeah. There's a little bit of a, I wonder, did you feel this? which Which is like these the parents that aren't getting it, that's probably not going to happen. Like, is there a little, like the first time a coach showed some interest or there was it was clear that like people are talking to him, were you like, it was there a bit of relief where you're like, oh yeah, people see it.
00:39:01
Speaker
I'm not a lunatic. I'm not one of these lunatic parents or he's not. I don't have a kid who's like completely unrealistic about where he's at. Like, I get a little bit of that when people are coming to our showroom after we got set up and we just like, wow, you could see that they were like,
00:39:16
Speaker
This is great. Like there was a guy who sells like custom closets and he, he came in, he was, he was going to give me some real quick and had to leave. But as he he was leaving, he kept stopping and looking at stuff. I wasn't like, check that out. Check that. And it was, I could tell he was like really impressed.
00:39:31
Speaker
And I, that felt good. I wonder you get that, you get that joy a little bit on, or like, or sort of, it's more like a relief actually that there's some recognition that like, yeah, this could, this could work.
00:39:44
Speaker
You get that? I think I do. I think I probably suppress it because I'm such a negative fuck. I'm a pessimistic. Are you new at that level of talent? ands You're not surprised.
00:39:57
Speaker
Yeah, I think I did in this case, but it's also like more of, um well, it's not a done deal. So there's no time to, you don't celebrate any milestones because it's not done deal. I did that with music all along the way, which really killed the,
00:40:12
Speaker
the joy. i mean, when we were playing some pretty cool theaters and pretty cool out-of-state venues, like I couldn't stop and celebrate at all. It was more of like, well, what's the next thing? We're not where we want to be yet. So I think that's there's a real negative way to to exist. I was that way with the financial stuff as well. It's like, oh, well...
00:40:34
Speaker
You know, you hit a milestone and then, i well, but yeah, I'm only halfway. Fucking pussy. And you're just like, what's, oh yeah, that's great. What's next? Yeah. So I have that.
00:40:45
Speaker
I have that with this a little bit. It's like, well, what do we know about that school? He may hate that school. um Just instead of just being like oh, that's great, man. I think I have the piece that you're talking about.
00:40:57
Speaker
I just kind of like, I don't allow it to flourish very much. It could be a good defense mechanism maybe, but also a painful way to live life. There had to be one moment where like, oh yeah, we're not wasting our time. But I'm more thinking on the flip side, these people that are getting zero, from what you're saying, they're probably, they're getting zero feedback, but they still have that dream.
00:41:17
Speaker
I mean, I saw that so many times in standup. You hate to say it because it sounds like you're just ripping on like open micers and stuff. But you're just like, you're never going to. This ain't. This is not you.
00:41:28
Speaker
It's not. It's not. you No one ever told you you're funny. Doesn't make you a bad person, but this is not you. And they might be grinding out open mics for like 20 years. I felt bad grinding out what I did for 15 years. Like I felt like, what am I doing?
00:41:42
Speaker
Like something, not all the time, but I had an, I get enough feedback. Like you said, Oh, you might've played a theater and you're like, I opened for somebody a cool theater and I'd be like, Oh, that was, that was dope. But still like, it's just funny that some people, I mean, yeah that's back to what I said about that American thing. And like you, you, you gotta, you gotta to work through it. Adverse, you face your adversity. And I think people have that in their heads so much, they lose track with reality.
00:42:06
Speaker
And maybe that's what I'm most annoyed by. It's maybe not just the concept of shortcuts, but it's this. yeah I don't know. i can't figure out how to describe it other than it's idiocy.
00:42:18
Speaker
Do you ever remember the people that legitimately thought on American Idol they were good singers? And it's like they've been in the world. I imagine they've got feedback about their singing before.
00:42:30
Speaker
And some of them, sure, we're were doing a shtick and trying to be a goofy, but there were some legit people that were showing up and doing this audition, audition and they were below average, and they were expecting to kind of move on or to hit it big and be, it all I want to do my whole life is be a singer.
00:42:47
Speaker
ah That has always been weird to me. or ah they they come off as maybe slightly like insane or... it some mental challenges that, you know, where you're like, they they must not know.
00:43:01
Speaker
Well, but don't you think some people don't have, I don't know, whatever the self deprecating gene is where you can kind of see how you fit into the mix. You remember some athletes who like, they just like, dude, you should be playing football.
00:43:13
Speaker
Like really stop. Yeah. And they thought they were going to be better. And they always talked about that they were good and they weren't, and they never were going to be. yeah, But there's some gene that's missing from them to see the reality around them.
00:43:27
Speaker
I have feel the same way about people who think they're going to get rich quick off of something, real estate or Bitcoin or whatever. And I'm just sort of like, what don't you see?
00:43:39
Speaker
and don't get that personality type. They see a unicorn, a path a shortcut. like That's what they see. Yeah, I don't.
00:43:51
Speaker
They see the shortcut. I still don't understand how it works in the and then and the parent recruiting thing. um Every other point I see what you're, I see the- You don't see the sports recruiting as fitting?
00:44:07
Speaker
Well, I don't see how, I don't see, like i see more of the issues more like these parents or these unrealistic dreams for their kids. is Are you saying they're looking at that as a shortcut to like college education?
00:44:19
Speaker
That- and they Instead of like, ah, we got to figure out how to send to college. You're like, we're going to put it on sports as our meal ticket. No, I'm just talking about that there's there's more work to be done and it's like actually harder work that people avoid and don't do in the sports recruiting process. So the the real hard work is to own up to like your talent level and to build an athletic resume that actually – you're thinking about your appeal to programs and to the level that you're potentially able to play at.
00:44:55
Speaker
it it's un It's not unlike the painful process of building a resume and getting ready to sell yourself for a job. It's a lot of work to do it right versus the person that just like puts their shit on LinkedIn and and expects somebody to recruit them.
00:45:10
Speaker
yeah and And it can happen and it does happen if you have one of those resumes That's like, oh yeah, I need a such and such engineer that's in extremely high demand.
00:45:22
Speaker
But for most people, we don't get that luxury. But I think a lot of people desire that. Who doesn't desire that? But they also think that they like living in that fantasy. It's like the lottery ticket.
00:45:34
Speaker
So that's what I would, that's all I would say. Yeah. and And even in that job, it's it probably does happen. ive I mean, i I know a couple of people that have gotten picked up on LinkedIn, but in that one job, there was probably a thousand people that wanted it and they just got it once. to like It just doesn't happen, which is essentially, how many how many scholarships you think? ah D3, do they give scholarships?
00:45:57
Speaker
No, they do merit aid. So it's really based on your grades. And then they have to invite you and they like offer you ah spot. But no, you're still going to pay for college.
00:46:10
Speaker
at At least NCAA. NAIA, they give some money. But it's also more merit aid like. D2, to be honest. i na it in Yeah, very few people in D2 get a full ride. They kind of spread it out.
00:46:23
Speaker
Usually maybe youre your primary rotation will get it and I was just going to ask, like how many like how many how many spots on the team are they are you competing with? so for Just to put these unreal parents even farther away from the dream. like There's not that many spots on basketball, let alone scholarships, right?
00:46:40
Speaker
No. Yeah. It's tough. It's tough. And then you have the second level fantasy of these kids is they're going to show up, which my son, I will say, he's sort of in that camp. He thinks he's going to show up and play right away and be really good and have an opportunity transfer up the ladder and all that. And it could happen.
00:47:01
Speaker
It just doesn't happen very often. Do the work to to make that happen. um I support that. But No, we're all, I get, maybe the shortcut isn't it, but that the fantasy is of really big things happening to us is so strong. We did it with the podcast. Like we thought, oh, we'll just, it'll catch on.
00:47:20
Speaker
It'll catch on and people will just start, they'll just start forwarding it to everybody they know. It'll be that good. I did that with my music. I remember one time I did a like a thousand unit run when I wasn't in the game anymore, a thousand unit CD run thinking, oh yeah, this thing's this thing' good. It's going to take off, you know.
00:47:41
Speaker
Six weeks later, I'm like, I've got 700 units. That's pretty sweet. You moved 300 though, actually. Well, that's just people I know, right? But I think we all do that. And that's kind of, there's a lack of pragmatism. I don't know that everybody does it, but it definitely is appealing to stay in that fantasy and and avoid the work.
00:48:00
Speaker
yeah it's the the thing is i was thinking you're like how does it correlate back to like bitcoin stuff the thing is and same with the hoops like like if your son did uh what's the guy on miami is it robinson who went d3 and then went to michigan or dalton connect his story is pretty crazy too yeah there are these guys are journeymen guys that have been a little like there's enough stories out there that makes you makes everyone think that it's possible for better or worse.
00:48:27
Speaker
And there's like there's a few ah crypto billionaires that like got lucky and that's that's the problem. It's a good thing, but it's like the problem too. yeah Yeah, and there are some yeah some businesses that launch their product on Amazon and it immediately takes off.
00:48:43
Speaker
yeah And most don't though. No, the only people that are getting rich is Amazon. By the way, speaking of Amazon, i I'm getting flyers now.
00:48:54
Speaker
They must know the type of person I am, the kind of person that cancels Prime is like some liberal pro small business guy. Because I got a flyer today that's like, Amazon, did you know 60% of our sellers are small businesses, our vendors, whatever?
00:49:10
Speaker
And I'm like, man. And they've been what you're talking Yeah, they've been wooing me all in my podcast ads. Did it work? like the best. I mean, i I did pause on that. Is it like, did I not consider the fact that- It's somebody like us, right? A bunch of small businesses are on there.
00:49:27
Speaker
And then I also, like I kind of got back to, well, it's probably not the best place for them to sell. I could tell you something that if I list for 385 bucks, they take, don't know, $62 or something like that.
00:49:39
Speaker
sixty two dollars something like that my God. imagine? It's like a 13% referral for e fee or something like that. But everyone just goes, yeah, but your reach is like insane.
00:49:51
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. That's crazy. think I got my frustration out. It's not the shortcuts. It's the fantasy. I think with that with our show, you're talking about, like, I think our shortcut was was we thought,
00:50:07
Speaker
and this is what I'm trying to find this new business. I think we thought if you're, if we were consistent and we did the work for a long enough time, something good would happen. I still feel that way, but like, I I'm like that, that's, that's probably true. But also like, there's a bit of, there has to be like a bit of focus in it for, for both sides of my life or all three sides of my life and a relationship too. Right. Everything like, I think,
00:50:35
Speaker
We've proven that we're not one of those podcast people and that that do have an idea, do three episodes and quit. We're not those people. no With my business, I'm not one of your family members or people that I know are like, you know what what I would do if I had a brewery and then they and then they start to talk about it, maybe get a slideshow together.
00:50:54
Speaker
i got past that, right? I went out and set up the business and we're running and we can fail. So we got all that down we did and I just worked like a bunch of 15 hour days but then, but there's still more work to be done, but then it has to it has to have like a point.
00:51:09
Speaker
It's like, we did all the, we did all the podcasts and that now we, if we wanted to be like, how do you connect with people or get people to listen to it? All we did was the work. That's all we did.
00:51:21
Speaker
It'd be like a a kid who takes a billion foul shots a night and does all the right shit. And then never, never got in front of coaches, I guess would be the next thing for him or something like that. you I think you may be, saying like, what's the goal?
00:51:34
Speaker
Yeah, that's one thing is like you have to have a goal. probably We didn't specify a goal with this. And I think we could. And if I really were to be honest about it, I think I love the name.
00:51:45
Speaker
Yeah, don't be honest. Don't be honest. I hate when people say that, by the way, which I happen to say that a lot. Let me be honest, Are you about to get Frank on me? Are you about to get real Frank? Quite frankly, Matt, quite frankly. i You know, Lance, I'm a guy that it says it like I see it.
00:52:01
Speaker
ah if I'm going to call a curveball if I see one. to call fastball, dude. I'm going fucking, you know, I just like, god I tell the truth, bro. but he's got He's got no filter, Lance. He's got no filter, and that's what makes him great and awesome. Yeah.
00:52:14
Speaker
He's real blunt. No, I like the name and I like what it symbols because the self-deprecating nature of both of us, this idea that we're pieces of shit. I think maybe the men's health piece, it coming back as a central theme because there's a lot in there. You can talk about your feelings related to what's happening in society and in relationships and beyond.
00:52:38
Speaker
I think it fits well. And it's sort of like men in America, like, or men. i don't know what the right subheading is, but it's like everybody's bit of a piece of shit. Even to it even when you have a stated goal or a stated belief,
00:52:56
Speaker
There's always a counter to it. There's always like a realization that you've missed. your Your point of view is so narrow based on your own life experience that you're not going to ever capture it all.
00:53:08
Speaker
And I think that's what makes us all pieces of shit. So I could i could go down this avenue where like Paul, great guy, right? Awesome dude. Good marriage, great kids. And he has this one thing that makes him feel like a piece of shit.
00:53:20
Speaker
He didn't have his finances together the way he wanted to. We all have it. We all have something. And that may be the lens that would get us, like if we wanted to have a goal to be something, not only help people, but like build an audience. I think the show would be great if it was that episode every week. it was just someone saying, I'm a piece of shit.