Music and Marketing with Matthew Pryce

Speaker A: Or, uh, look for heated conversations, episode two coming out. Actually, by the time this airs, it'll definitely have been out. So probably look for episode three, which we haven't filmed yet at time of filming. That's all right.

Speaker B: Throw it over here.

Speaker A: We're uh, we're, we're squeezing chickens. I probably overloaded the volume. I'm gonna put it right into the microphone. Oh, my go. This episode of behind the Mindset is brought to you by. We Supply trades. For more info, visit we supplytrades.com Matthew

Speaker B: Price welcome to Behind the Mindset.

Speaker A: It's been, ah, I've been a fan of the series for a while, so it's nice to be on, uh, the other side of the view screen now.

Speaker B: Yeah, it's um, you know, just taking a different approach to H Vac. Podcast, right?

Speaker A: Sure.

Speaker B: I want to know more about the person, not so much about the trade.

Speaker A: Perfect. Because I don't know shit about the trade. So it's good you asked me some technical questions.

Speaker B: Wait a minute, you don't work on air conditioners?

Speaker A: Um, no, but I'm a huge fan of them.

Speaker B: I've noticed hanging out today, all you've been talking about is how hot it is.

Speaker A: Here we are in upstate New York, which is kind of known for its, uh, humidity during the summer, but mostly, you know, in the foothills of the Adirondacks. It snows a good bit here. It gets a little chilly. July. I'm sweaty. Please crank up the air conditioning. Please make sure that those things are functioning at high, high efficiency. And it is. I want to see my breath when I walk into your store or my own home, which I can only control.

Speaker B: One of those you've expressed, verbally expressed, your distaste for walking outside since I've been here.

Speaker A: It's really the general outdoors that I'm not into, but I really don't like it when it's hot.

Speaker B: Some people are just that way. Do you and your wife have thermostat wars?

Speaker A: We do, but they're pretty one sided. She, uh, loses them. Um, there's no question about that. That's one. I mean, marriage is a compromise. No question. I do not compromise on the thermostat. That stays frosty. And what's.

Speaker B: What's frosty to you? So what does that number look like?

Speaker A: So as I understand it, I say I don't know anything about H Vac, but I know a little bit. As I understand it, air conditioner is only good for about 20 degrees. Is that, is that accurate or. I Mean, it's not like refrigeration. I mean it only if it's like super, super hot out. A general residential air conditioner isn't going to take your house down to 55 degrees, like ever. Right?

Speaker B: Yeah, basically an air conditioner. Asking an air conditioner to go below 70 is probably not the best idea.

Speaker A: Okay, so I do keep mine at 70, so. So we are walking the line right there at maximum effectiveness.

Speaker B: You know what would, uh, enhance your comfort inside the house?

Speaker A: Please tell me.

Speaker B: A dehumidifier.

Speaker A: So I have one of those too. Actually, I have one on each level of my house.

Speaker B: Oh, interesting.

Speaker A: Oh yeah. Gotta have to listen. I don't want any moisture. I'm a sweaty man. Humidity is my mortal enemy. Uh, it's actually air conditioned nicely in here, but the pressure of the atmosphere, uh, is leading to some personal corporeal discomfort here. That's my day to day living in this sweaty prison.

Speaker B: Interesting. Well, I'm glad, uh, guys like me and other guys in the trade, I'm keeping you in business, help assist you

Speaker A: take all my money. Take all of it. To make sure that I am, um, freezing cold. I want to, uh. It's summertime. It is hot out here right now. I mean, It's a good 87 degrees out there in the sun, obviously a little bit more. But I mean, yesterday was even hot. Hotter. Uh, yeah, keep it at 70. I want to be wearing, uh, a blanket when I'm sitting on the couch over there. I do want to see my breath, if possible. 70 doesn't quite get there, but, uh.

Speaker B: So, uh, speaking of your wife, uh, I've had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Uh, funtime several times. Um, how long have you been married?

Speaker A: It'll be nine years. Uh, August 5th. Officially. It was just around the corner. Just around the corner. You actually were there in my house yesterday. I gave her an anniversary present, uh, that came in the mail while we were switching cars and whatnot. So you witnessed that. Here you go. Here's your present. Happy anniversary. So nine. Nine years. We've been together since 2011 though, so that's what, 14 years? So we were together for about eight before we.

Speaker B: No kids.

Speaker A: No kids. One vasectomy.

Speaker B: So. Which equals zero kids for anybody who's bad at math.

Speaker A: That's it. Yeah, I don't think they could, uh, children wouldn't survive in the, in the ice planet Hoth that I keep my house at. So just for a Health. Health hazards. We, you know, we decided none of them because they would just dive.

Speaker B: But you do a lot of traveling?

Speaker A: I do, yeah.

Speaker B: It's hard to do that with kids.

Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, we.

Speaker B: How many times a year do you go to Europe?

Speaker A: This year will be four or five. And I've been on about a, uh, three to four to five times for the last several years because there are a couple of annual things I do with the day job. My wife's company is additionally based in Ireland, so I get the pleasure of going there. I'm very much looking forward to going back. Ireland is a magical country. Uh, but, uh, we've done some incentive trips for people that I get to go on. Um, there's some corporate meetings that I have to attend that I usually tack on a couple extra days and just general vacationing, I suppose. Uh, so Europe isn't the only one. Earlier this year, we did go to Brazil. So that was my first, uh, my first foray into South America. So going the complete different direction, where it was super blazing hot down there as well. But if you're by the beach, that's a complete, completely different story. Um, my outfits were seasonally appropriate down there, of course. So.

Speaker B: Yeah, I can imagine.

Speaker A: Well, I don't think you need to imagine because anybody follows my Instagram knows. Knows a lot about the tattoos that I have in places that you can't see right now. So. Yeah. But, uh, no, I get to. I do get to travel, uh, a good bit for. Well, I like to travel, so it's nice that there are some elements, uh, of that that I get to do here. Um, I'm very much looking forward to some trips to Canada coming up because I will get to see some people that I don't see too often. Specifically when I go to Alberta, I'm gonna go see, uh, hopefully I'll see Clint. Hopefully I'll see Robbie Kaye, uh, all the fellas at Pro West Alberta, Matt Jorphy. Love those guys. His wife. He's just became a dad, you know. Love you guys. Um, Baker. And Dan Smith, who is very close to my heart. He's another central therm guy who you've met before. He's an Alberta tie. You know, it's. It's a fertile area. There's a lot of great people out there. Did I forget anybody? I hope not. Um, probably did. Sorry to the person I forgot. Um, but, uh, yeah, so, you know, go out there for a couple of days. Uh, there's a trade show that I'm going to, but of course I'm gonna try to get down to Mr. Ryland Schaefer's. Pop Shop, which is on the U.S. canada border. So he's got a soda, uh, establishment as part of his, like, shop, and he sells, like, his own craft soda. So I'm a fan of that.

Speaker B: I actually looked that up one time, I think, on Google Maps, and I was, like, just verifying this is the address, and it was like. It looked like almost like a convenience store. Yeah.

Speaker A: Yeah. I actually think he has two locations now. So Rylan and Jay, obviously, they work for Shaffer Plumbing and Heating. They've been at the awards and whatnot, and they're the mainstays at ahr. Rylan actually told me he got his tickets already for Vegas. He's already set up. Uh, those are some of my favorite, favorite people in this industry. And, uh, it's nice that I can correlate some trade show stuff that I have to be at and man the booth, let's say, with visitation to some of people who I've become very close friends with.

Speaker B: Uh, you know, one of the things that I've noticed about you, um, in particular is that your ability to build relationships with people at such a depth, um, across the entire industry, um, and it's kind of like, uh, I mean, you obviously know more people than I do, right? And, like, I know so who some people are. And you're like, oh, yeah, that's so and so. And his wife's name is so and so, and they got three kids. And like, I'm just like, man, how do you retain all.

Speaker A: I do think it is a bit of a memory thing. You know, I'm. People are usually saying, oh, I'm so terrible with names. I'm pretty good with names. I'm pretty good with faces. Um, I'm pretty good with, like, Instagram handles, too. And some. I don't know how my brain is wired exactly, but it's sort of like, you know, you just keep a fucking file, and it's. If that kind of makes it sound less personal than it really is, because, you know, someone like, Rylan is someone who. I love this man. Like, I love this guy. He is someone who is. It's not like a file. It's like, he's my buddy. I know about him. I know about his family, because what he said, you know, what he tells me. And I guess that's probably the critical thing is when someone talks to me, I'm listening to what they have to say. I know Ryland's struggles. I know about his. You know, I know that he. I know about his trips. I know About a little bit about his family. I know his daughter, uh, was doing a mission in Louisiana. So when I see him, we're scheduling this around because he's gonna go pick up his daughter, uh, and bring her back home, I assume. So. Trying to coordinate calendar stuff and all that sort of stuff. Just despite some of my extracurricular activities, which are known to shorten one's memories, I've been able to keep it pretty sharp. So I think that's part of it. Right. Um. And, um, I am interested in people. I'm a people person. So I'm looking over your shoulder and I see Buddy and I see Roberto and I see Joey from, uh, you know, from First Choice. And these are all people who I'd like to think that, you know, when I chat with them, um, you know, we're having non. Superficial conversation. And I try to retain as much of that as I can. I'm curious about, you know, some, you know, what people remember about me, let's say. I mean, there's certainly superficial stuff. Oh, he's the, you know, he used to be the asshole with the long hair. Now he's just the asshole with all the tattoos or whatever.

Speaker B: So now he just has short hair.

Speaker A: Yeah, right. Exactly. So, I mean, those are the superficial things. Right. Um, but I'm sure these people know that I play guitar and that I have albums out and that I work with the magazine with you, and that we're friends. And certainly mutuals in this sort of thing also bridge that gap as well. And you kind of get an endorsement. Like people. People who know you and are your friends. If you say, hey, this is Matt. And he, uh, he does this and this with the magazine. And he's this guy over at Central Therm. And, you know, he does XYZ or whatever, you know, I mean, then that's how I become friends with that person.

Speaker B: Instant access card.

Speaker A: Pretty much like you've. It's almost like you're vouching for me a little bit and vice versa. Right. So I, uh. You know, and that's how networking works. You too, are a people person. Right. And I think some of the same things that I'm saying about myself, I think, you know, you don't give yourself enough credit, but I think you have that too. Um, and when people like that, it becomes just sort of a ripple effect, I think. And, uh, you know, it just becomes sort of natural. Right. So I see another sticker over there. I'd like to, you know, Cooper. Right. So Cooper was a guy who kind of just found him. He was a guy in Tennessee doing some good installations. Brought him to Miami. He meets you in Miami. Next thing you know, he's volunteering at the Tactical Awards.

Speaker B: Cooper Campbell.

Speaker A: Yeah. Lovely guy, Great guy. Him and I chat. Uh, you know, super quiet, very introvert,

Speaker B: but a great dude.

Speaker A: Not in the DMs, my friend. Um, him and I. And this is one of the things that also I really, really value with these relationships is. So I'm not a technical person. Uh, I'm sure there are plenty of people who have very, very rich relationships that, by and large, just sort of orbit the trade, whether it's helping each other out with tech support stuff or discussing brands that they like, things like that. I don't know anything about that stuff, and I honestly don't care. So, um, I want to know about where you're going on vacation. So when I was chatting with Rachel, she told me all about her European trips. I can't really ask on an intelligent level about her understanding of air conditioner coils, uh, or what chemicals you pour on them to make it work. I assume you're pouring chemicals onto an air conditioner. I don't know. Um, but I can relate to her on some of that stuff. Her husband's from Brazil. I just came back from Brazil. So these are the kind of neural connections that become. That certainly, um, help, uh, meet, uh, on a. On a playing field that we can both discuss. Right. I can't really talk.

Speaker B: Common denominator.

Speaker A: Exactly. You know, things in common. I mean, and we're all overall more alike than we are different. It's finding out those sort of things that make us all click, uh, and sort of, you know, remembering them, I suppose. Um, or engaging in that way.

Speaker B: Yeah. I've met more people in this, in general, but also in this industry over the last five years. Right. Than I have in any other point in time in my life, because I'm plugged into the social media community, traveling and doing all this other stuff. Going to.

Speaker A: Going to show.

Speaker B: Trade shows.

Speaker A: Sure. Biggest speaker at places, you know. Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker B: Um, so let's rewind back. Uh, you know, what shaped, uh, Matthew Price into being a people person? What shaped Matthew Price into being a musician? Like, where are you from?

Speaker A: So I am from. I was born in the Bronx. Um, my wife sometimes says, and so do some of my European colleagues, that they can detect a little New York in my voice. I don't know that that's that true. I don't know. Do I sound like I'm from New York?

Speaker B: I don't think so.

Speaker A: Not exactly like a, you know, Staten island kind of thing. You know, I certainly don't have that. My wife would certainly say when I was around my grandfather, who definitely did sound like that, that it would kind of come out more naturally. Um, so I'm from New York City. Uh, I grew up there basically on the outskirts of New York City in a town called New Rochelle. It's the southernmost city in Westchester County. It borders New York City, so it shares a border with the Bronx. So it is literally like New York City, which is. Bronx is a borough of New York City. And, uh, you know, so. So right around there, I grew up going to Yankee Stadium and also enjoying things like the museums and all the concerts and stuff like that, you know, that are. That are available in the biggest city in the world, basically. So certainly I think New York City plays a little bit of role in who I am, because it's a bit of a different breed than Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It's a little bit of a different breed than Portland, Oregon or Winnipeg or anything like that. There is certainly a slice of New York that kind of defines a little bit of my personality. You have to be a little bit thicker skin. You have to be a little bit more, uh, direct to kind of get things done.

Speaker B: Yeah. I think what the average person in America would consider rude is just kind of almost like a normal way of. And what I mean by that is like the way that you speak to somebody.

Speaker A: Right, sure.

Speaker B: Whereas that directness comes across as I might say.

Speaker A: I might say straightforward, not rude. Um, rudeness implies a bit of impoliteness. And there is that, of course, but there's impoliteness. Regardless of geography, there is a. To the pointness, a straightforwardness that I think is unique to some. Not even. Not just New York City, but cities in general. There's a lot going on. You know, you can get lost in the sauce pretty easily in a big metropolis. So kind of have to be a

Speaker B: little bit New York, New Jersey in general. Like, I've noticed before I was ever really introduced to the culture of New York in general. Jersey. Right. Which over the last couple years, I have been. Uh, prior to that, if I met somebody, I'd just be like, dude, what is your problem? You know, I mean, like, why are you so angry at life? You know?

Speaker A: Well, I get that. I get that, too.

Speaker B: And they're just like, what are you talking about? You know what I mean? It's like they're. They're not that's just, it's just the way that, it's just a fast paced life and they're on a mission. People are in their way, they're like, get out of the way. You know what I mean? So yeah, they're not trying to be any type of way.

Speaker A: They're just being who they are, you know, that's it. Um, I mean people like me, I mean everybody. New York is certainly a melting pot for sure. And there's, there's truly every walk of life for every person that's like me walking directly. There's a guy who just hangs out.

Speaker B: I was in Times Square two days ago and I can't tell you how many different languages I heard.

Speaker A: Well that's another different, that's a bit of a different thing because that is a true huge epicenter of tourism. So those are, a lot of those people are maybe not from New York City who are there as well, but they come to experience that sort of thing too. Times Square specifically is like the heart of all that. And you know, if you walk along in Times Square, you will hear every language on the earth at one time or another, which is another magical part of New York City. And I think that diversity that I grew up with when I went uh, at my high school, when you walked into the let's. I'm not sure what you call it, it's not really a foyer at a high school, but like the first place you get into at my high school, which is Neuroshel High School. Go Huguenots. They called it the embassy because they had flags of every nation that was, was represented by the student body hanging up in the, you know, the entryway let's say. And it's like 78 flags or 100 plus flags. Right. So I grew up with exposure to pretty much all walks of life and I think that helps round you out as a person. Certainly not a whole perspective homogeneous mixture. It is not, it's an incredibly heterogeneous uh, collection of people there who come from all different stories, from the poorest nothing immigrants coming to America to make it to long standing people whose families have been here for centuries. Like my wife's family for example. Uh, I mean her forebears came to the US like pre Revolutionary war times. Right. That she can trace some of her lineage back to the center 1700s. I can't go back that far. My grandparents came over here on a boat, you know, so my great grandparents. But you know, in this sentence, I guess last century we're in 20, no longer in the 1990s. Uh, so one minute. Yeah, exactly. So, uh, you know, but. But my Italian heritage in this country is about a century old, let's say, so not 300 years like my wife, you know, you know, so. So I think that helps define, uh, or shape who I am as a person as well.

Speaker B: The high school that you went to, is that public school or private school?

Speaker A: It is a public school.

Speaker B: Public school.

Speaker A: It was a public school.

Speaker B: So what happened after high school? You graduated high school. I'm assuming you graduated.

Speaker A: Oh, I made through.

Speaker B: Okay.

Speaker A: No, I had.

Speaker B: You seem fairly educated.

Speaker A: Well, so my education is an interesting one because I do have three college degrees also. Uh, so, yes, I graduated high school. I was unfortunately, you know, I can believe this. I was. My class ranking 83.

Speaker B: Class ranking 83 out of how many people?

Speaker A: Like 1200 or something like that. But the point is, my average at

Speaker B: the end, I think the entire audience right now just went, boo. Freaking who, man?

Speaker A: Well, no, no. Well, I was gonna go. You didn't. Let me get to it. I'm gonna brag, right? Uh, because my. My grade point average in high school was, like, 99, and I was still 83rd in my class because there was that many people with, like, 103 weighted in a huge, huge school. So, um, you know, I was nowhere near the valedictorian, even with, like, a near perfect marks, what have you. But then I went to St. John's University for graduate school, uh, and undergraduate before that. That is in Queens, New York, where I spent a lot of time, you know, in a different borough of New York City. So I spent a great deal of time in jamaica, queens, where St. John's is go Red Storm. Um, I really don't care about these sports either. Those are just the nicknames, you know, so whether they do well or not, it doesn't affect me at all.

Speaker B: It's like a code or a law. Ah. Like, you have to plug. You have to plug them.

Speaker A: Well, you know, it's fun because, uh, you know, both of those. Both of those nicknames are a little racially charged, I guess. You know, Neuroshel nickname was the Huguenots, French pilgrims, essentially, who fled France because of religious persecution. And they settled in my town. Right. Uh, and became La Rochelle is a city that is still in France, and New Rochelle is where they settled, and then St. John's very famously, for many, many years, including their final, uh, four heyday with Chris Mullen during the 80s and stuff. They were the Red Men, which is a bit of a Epithet towards Native American people. So they became the Red Storm in the early, like in their late 90s or something like that. So, uh, so yeah, I went to, uh, I have a degree in English, creative writing, literature type stuff from St. John's and then a graduate degree in the same stuff, uh, right after that. And then when I moved up here to new upstate, I got a bachelor's degree in music also. So I have three college degrees, um, that. They're all in a nice frame together. I bought a custom frame that shows them. It's like a dental office down in my studio.

Speaker B: And obviously you're a very creative individual, uh, with the marketing and, um, a writer. Right. Um, there's no shortage of ideas and creation, uh, inside your mind. But, uh, you're also. And part of being creative and being an artist is being an artist, right? In the music, uh, stuff. And so you. You do a lot of music?

Speaker A: I do a lot of music. Uh, I do a lot of music.

Speaker B: So how many instruments do you play?

Speaker A: I think, like, well, or exceptionally. I play like probably like five or six instruments exceptionally well. And I play like an additional three or four. Like I could pass on it. And then I mess around with like another three or four. Right. So as, uh, I was saying at lunch just a minute ago, I have my 10,000 hours in on guitar and, uh, and probably separately. $10,000. 10,000 hours on. On acoustic guitar. And then electric guitar is completely, you know, different animal. But also bass guitar and piano. Uh, but I also play mandolin and banjo and I play a little bit of accordion. Uh, I can play drums. You know, keyboards is one thing. Synthesizers, guitar kind of follow the same keyboard harmony. So I can do that. Uh, I have a bazooki that I like to play a little bit. That's a Greek guitar, essentially. Um, I have some Irish whistles that are fascinating to play.

Speaker B: No bagpipes.

Speaker A: No bagpipes. That is a drone instrument. I'm not really a huge, uh, I'm not a huge bagpipes guy. That's a drone instrument. That is also diatonic. And that is to say it sort of just like plays in one key. It's kind of a one dimension instrument. So my create that limits my creativity. Uh, but, uh, yeah, I mean, I play a bunch of stuff. Um, and I'm always looking for more. I wish I had more time. If I had more time, I would take accordion lessons, you know, twice a week. Because that is a really interesting and unique instrument to play. And it's hard. The one I have is incredibly Heavy. So I really need like, like an old, fat German guy to be like, you gotta hold it like this young man and then, you know, go through some exercise. And basically, if he could teach me to walk, then I can run. Right now I can kind of like jog my own path because I know how to play piano. And it's got like. So this is an accordion tattoo, right. So I know how to play the keyboard. So I can form chord shapes and I can do melody and stuff like that. But the mechanics of marrying them all together with the stops and the keyboard, it's a. It's a big thing. If you know how to play accordion exceptionally well, you don't really need a band because you're your own percussion, bass, melody or, you know, or chordal harmony too. It's an amazing instrument. Um, and I really do enjoy polka music and other things that involve the accordion. It is a funny goofball instrument, but I do love it.

Speaker B: Can you play the harmonica?

Speaker A: I can play the harmonica, yes. I can play the harmonica. I probably, like. That's the one I have the most of. I have like nine guitars, but I probably have like 15 harmonicas because they all go in a different key. Right. So you're playing, uh. You know, if you're playing in the key of E, you may pull out a key of a harmonica. It's called cross harp, when you marry different key signatures together in that way. Right. So, uh, not to get too technical, probably the only time we've mentioned that E major has four sharps in it and, uh, a major has three. So they're close in terms of key signatures. And you can, uh. It sounds very interesting when you mix those type of things. And that comes with a little bit of theory knowledge as well.

Speaker B: So rewinding back. When did you start. Start first getting involved in music.

Speaker A: So I can actually think of the exact moment when I decided that guitar, uh, was going to be it for me. I. I like. If I close my eyes, I can immediately go to the back seat of the car where my mother is driving us to. I want to say, like, seventh grade, sixth grade, seventh grade. I was probably like. I picked up guitar for the first time when I was like 15. So right around, you know, 13, 14 is when I kind of got this inkling, whatever. So driving to middle school and we're listening to, like, the classic rock station. And, uh, a particular song came on the radio. And that song was Voodoo Child. Slight Return by Jimi Hendrix, this guy. Um, and I just thought that it was the most badass sound that I have ever heard in my whole life. I don't know if you know that song. Um, it is. It was the Black Panther national anthem for a little while. And I'm not a particular fan of Hollywood Hogan, you know, but, uh, it was his song in wcw. He would come out to it. Um, but, uh, so it's. I think you would know it if you. If you heard it. Uh, do you know the song or no?

Speaker B: Uh, I probably do.

Speaker A: I think. I think you would recognize it. It starts with this really interesting wah pedal sort of intro. And it's really unique and especially for the time when it was, you know, like late 60s, just groundbreaking stuff. I mean, Hendrix remains one of the most influential guitar players, uh, you know, of all time. And when I heard this, I thought it was just. I was just blown away. I had never heard anything like that. And my thought was like, this dude is such a badass. What? Like, how could he make this music? And if I could do that, maybe I would be badass too. So, I mean, it didn't really work out that way. But I can't play that song.

Speaker B: I think you are in your own right, so.

Speaker A: But that is literally the moment when I was like, oh, I think I want to play guitar. Like, that seems interesting and cool. Or, uh, or fascinating, let's say. I mean, I do think there are some people that get into guitar for some of the wrong reasons. Meaning, uh, like they think that they'll get chicks or something like that because it's like a, like, you know, a cool thing to do. Um, I mean, it was always for me, um, don't, you know, the lead

Speaker B: guitarist always gets the girl.

Speaker A: Usually it's like the front man, the lead singer. Which is interesting things because I'm not like a good singer. So, you know, that's like one of my one weaknesses is I. I don't. I'm not a good vocalist. So when you listen to this new album that's coming out pretty soon, I've auto tuned the crap out of my voice. So a lot of pitch correction going on here, um, which actually lean into. It's kind of funny. It's like the white T pain.

Speaker B: Sure.

Speaker A: Um, but, uh, uh, I mean, it was always interesting to me and that, uh, to make these sounds. And of course, once you get into it, you understand that, you know, Hendrix used, um, some groundbreaking electronics in addition to stuff. And he played with feedback in a way that nobody really did. And he innovated far beyond like fretboard harmony. But he was certainly A very uh, adept guitarist as well, in addition to being someone who is, you know, innovative in terms of using new and emerging technology. And that is something that I also do. Right. So actually I just got back in touch with a fellow who used to sponsor me, um, on a YouTube channel. And we used to do gear reviews essentially. And I might start doing that again because it was a lot of fun. It gives me a good excuse to make content. You know, I really enjoy filming, I really enjoy editing, I really enjoy making stuff. Whether it's a magazine, whether it's a song, whether it's ah, an Instagram post or a video or whatever. Um, I like making stuff.

Speaker B: And yeah, there's a creation, uh, element to certain, uh, people where it doesn't matter what it is you're doing as long as you're being creative and that you have that creative outlet, if you will.

Speaker A: Absolutely.

Speaker B: So.

Speaker A: Absolutely.

Speaker B: I'm the same way memes, you know,

Speaker A: I mean you, if you follow the center, serm, Instagram, you know that I do all kinds of weird, uh, meme offshoot stuff, um, just because it's sort of, it's fun, it's interesting. Obviously it's very different than what goes on, generally speaking in the industry. But it also gives me an opportunity to be funny, be cheeky about stuff, and make photoshops of Bob Baker and Adam Gordon flying on a private jet together or whatever.

Speaker B: Uh, oh yes, the Bob Baker and Adam Gordon debacle.

Speaker A: Two people who I consider friends. So it's funny how that works, you know, and I said this to each of them, that the other one is a very sweet person and I feel strongly about the both of that. So, you know, funsies on the Internet aside, they're both lovely, lovely folks.

Speaker B: That's funny. Um, so how did you end up at Centrotherm?

Speaker A: So I worked for NPR for uh, a couple years.

Speaker B: The radio.

Speaker A: The radio. I was a segment producer making stuff. Right. So I did this thing for quite some, about a year and a half, two years called the Academic Minute. I was a.

Speaker B: Pause that for a second. What did you do before npr?

Speaker A: I was in school.

Speaker B: Okay, so you went from school into npr.

Speaker A: So, so yeah, so I mean I, I, I've had a couple of, a bunch of weird jobs, you know, going back. I used to work at a staffing agency. It was really fascinating to interview people. Uh, we did a lot of placement of people who had just come out of prison. So I was interviewing groups of people and putting them into like warehouse roles and stuff like that. That was Interesting. Um, I didn't love it. Uh, I would walk down the street to Sam Ash on my lunch break every, every day and slap basses, you know, in the, in the music store and then be like I gotta go back and do this shit again. Uh, but I've been a tutor a uh, bunch of different subjects. I've tutored Spanish, history, uh, I was a college professor for a couple of semesters and then I got the job at uh, wamc, Northeast Public Radio. Wamc, that's it, wamc. And uh, so that's downtown Albany. That is the NPR affiliate here in upstate New York covering you know uh, basically the north country western mass into Vermont and going out uh, towards uh, like Rochester, Buffalo, you know. And I was a segment producer doing that stuff, uh, creating a two minute module that aired uh, at 7:34 and 4:56 every day. Uh, so I had to make five segments a week. And it uh, was fascinating. We would always have college professors on talking about the research. That was the essential thing. Basically it would be uh, something like, we welcome in Joe so and so from the University of Toronto and we're going to hear a little bit about him, discuss uh, you know, uh, sleep science or something like that. And then the next day it would be this person does research on monkeys in Madagascar and is learning that they know how to do math or something like that, you know. So I would do five of those a week. But public uh, radio probably actually paid better back then given what's uh, you know, in the news today because that funding is gone. So how uh, I came to Central Therm was I want to buy a house, I needed a better job, you know. Sure. So I started looking around and I uh, came here because, and they hired me and this is no joke because I could spell. Yep, truly, truly, truly. Uh, the former vp, uh, his mother was an English professor for her career. Let's say he sees that I have master's graduate degree in English and that's, I mean there's probably not too many of us in H Vac, probably not zero, but not too many people have like a literature degree and read a lot of like James Joyce as their, you know, precursor to working in the trades. So. But I can spell, I can write. And my uh, predecessor could not do those things. So when they were looking for somebody else, they wanted somebody to kind of like professionalize some of the communications here. And you know, as I learned about the industry and I see what's interesting and fun for myself, it becomes a bit more of A communications role where social media played a much larger role and now we have a much bigger department. Jordan, on the other side of the glass was our second uh, add on to the, to the marketing department. Now we have Aisling and Brian. So what used to be just me doing 100% of it and other stuff too, you know, sales and customer service and HR a little bit, you know, now we've got a pretty robust team. We've kind of divided a little bit of swim lanes a little bit and now I focus on much uh, more communications and social media, relationship management events, things like that.

Speaker B: Interesting. Yeah.

Speaker A: So it's evolved quite a bit and I have been here now I'm going on a decade at Central therm. It'll be 10 years in August. I'll never forget getting the call from that former vp. I uh, was in San Francisco actually at the time, uh, on a trip with my wife and you know I was, look, you know, I was applying to places and what have you and it turned into a very celebratory trip because it was like ah, good, I'm going home.

Speaker B: When I get home, I get a job.

Speaker A: Got a new job.

Speaker B: Yeah, that's cool.

Speaker A: And I've been here ever since. Two different buildings, bunch of, you know, I mean my employee number I think is like 18 or something. Something. So I'm the old hand at this one here. The old rancher on the farm. There's only two other people who have been here longer than me and uh, one of them is the CEO.

Speaker B: So um, obviously you're stepping into a new role here lately and uh, doing a lot more social media stuff seems like a little bit more heavy handed in that uh. Anyway, um, what's next for Centrotherm?

Speaker A: Well actually, I mean, so let's see, we're embarking upon some new product launches and whatnot. I'm just gonna grab over some samples and things here and stroke these pipes. Um, we have some, some new stuff on the horizon here. So we are launching not only a whole product line, you know, soon, uh, it's kind of hard to say, is it launched already? We, we have soft launched it with some meetings with our reps who I think are out there, you know, spreading the word now. Uh, but this is a whole other thing compared to the gray stuff. And there's some factors that make it a little more price competitive than the gray stuff. And then um, this guy over here is the individual component that actually forms the, you know, the, the seal. It's our octo clamp. So we've been doing some, some real interesting product, um, evolution and new product development here, which is pretty exciting because for the most part in my 10 years we have not done a lot of this. We've been the vent solutions provider specializing in this and really kind of being the market leaders in a lot of way. There's uh, a great deal of our competitors are really not designed for the same application that they're often used on and often put in illegally. Uh, but as we've grown we've certainly um, expanded, expanded our market share and certainly our brand presence and things like that. And now we're making another interesting play to get into some more spaces that we've had struggles with because, uh, you know, barren entry on price has been uh, one of the primary obstacles.

Speaker B: Sure.

Speaker A: So we're erasing that. And there's actually fascinating, um, you know, are you familiar with the. I think it's called the project management triangle, in which you can pick two sides. You can have it fast and cheap. So fast and shitty. You can have it fast and quick, but not cheap. You can have it cheap and quick.

Speaker B: It's two out of three.

Speaker A: Let's pick two. So our effort here, uh, is really centered, uh, around trying to find that utopia of all three sides of the triangle. And this part is, is like that. It is. Well, we've opened up a bunch of different warehouses throughout North America. So now we have functional logistics centers in Nashville, in Salt Lake and Vancouver, in addition to headquarters here in Waterford. So we're going to jam those warehouses full of inventory. So that means you should be able to get it quickly because we're covering geography that way. Um, and the whole idea of this is it's price competitive, but we've done it in such a way that we retain the quality of the original product line as well. So we're really trying to hit that triangle. Um, and I think it's going to be a very interesting product for some people who basically the price immediately put a roadblock, uh, before them. So now we erase the price, uh, friction and uh, I think there's some more people who will be willing to give it a shot. And once they do, they're going to, they're gonna stay with it because it is actually, it is a good product. That's one of the things that's nice about working here is, um, you know, I don't have to be a sleazebag liar and sell a shitty product. We have a really good.

Speaker B: It's kind of an important thing.

Speaker A: It is. I mean I do feel like I could probably sell almost anything, whether it's good or bad. But in order to sell something that is not good, you gotta employ some other strategies. As it turns out, people actually do like the products when they use them. I know you know that in your network a great many people, um, you know, swear by this stuff. We had Chris in here yesterday. He's one of the long standing users. Right. And that's outside of the price competitive element. He uses the, the full body and a flu stuff for, for years now because he understands the features and the safety elements and that sort of stuff. So, so this is going to be an even better one because you can undercut the price of some of the competitors and erase that obstacle which has been historically the number one reason why people, or the number one obstacle, I suppose, that people say, towards why they don't, why they can't start with us.

Speaker B: Sure. Yeah. I mean, it's always exciting to roll out a new product. Yeah. Uh, especially something that's different and unique.

Speaker A: Especially because I don't have to do any of the real like nitty gritty of the product stuff. So I just get to talk about how great it is.

Speaker B: Well, when you have a team of people like that makes all the difference in the world.

Speaker A: Indeed. And I credit to Jordan who's over there. Uh, I mean he and Ashley and Brian have, uh, they've done a of lot of stuff that's sort of parallel to what I've been doing now to get this stuff ready. And it all looks spectacular. The catalogs that Jordan's put together are way better than what I used to do by myself. Um, he's a better graphic designer than I am. He's a better video editor than I am too. So we lean on those skills. That's why he's here. That's why we do it every day. Getting better too. I mean. And look for, uh, look for heated conversations, episode two coming out. Actually, by the time this airs, it'll definitely have been out. So probably look for episode three, which we haven't filmed yet at time of filming. That's all right.

Speaker B: Throw it over here.

Speaker A: We're uh, we're, we're squeezing chickens. I probably overloaded the volume. I'm gonna put right into the microphone. Oh my God.

Speaker B: Always, uh, always a show, right?

Speaker A: We keep it zany, that's for sure. Uh, if you're not having fun, I mean, what do you do, you know? Exactly, exactly. You know, that's one of the things is we work hard, we play Hard. We are always laughing. Or at least I am sometimes inappropriately

Speaker B: or at inappropriate stuff.

Speaker A: Right, Exactly.

Speaker B: Awesome, man. Uh, so what does your future hold? Uh, from a career standpoint? Are you going to spend forever here?

Speaker A: The sky's the limit over here. Yeah, but we'll see. I mean, I mean Joel's got how many years till retirement?

Speaker B: I don't know.

Speaker A: Probably slides that CEO.

Speaker B: How old are you now?

Speaker A: How old do you think I am? I'm 42.

Speaker B: Um, so I would have guessed, I would have guessed late 30s.

Speaker A: 42. I was born in 1983 on a 3am on a February night in uh, Bronx, New York. Um, that's right.

Speaker B: Your birthday is actually my dad's birthday.

Speaker A: That's right. That's right. So what does the future hold? I'm not sure. But uh, you know, I mean again, I have my hands in lots of pots. What would be wonderful is I released this album and all of a sudden I got like streams like crazy. And then it's me and Jake, uh, Jake Drake on a private jet. And I, I don't know why I chose him. I don't like him. Um, but he's probably gotten like an awesome jet, so. Oh, m. I'm sure. So, so me and Drake and I guess I'll put up with his bullshit to get on this plane. Um, but um, so you know, one of my songs goes, you know, super, super viral. Well, I'm not sure you know how long you'll see me in the trades at that point because I guess I'll just be jamming it, popping bottles and Ibiza and what have you. That'd be ideal, right? I think. Um, so the likelihood of that happening pretty well. So I am incredibly proud of what I've been able to do in the trades already. Not being um, a technical person, a hands on tools person, uh, which really does show that there is opportunity that goes beyond the, you know, the actual installation service thing. There, there, there is a role in this huge industry for pretty much everybody. I mean one of the things that I like to do on the social, on the central, central media, the central therm social media is showcase all the people that are here. Right? So to many people we are this, we are some gasketed pipe system and they buy it at a, you know, at Ferguson and then they walk out and then they do whatever they gotta do. But I'm really uh, compelled to show that when you put an order in, there's something. There's a human being out there, her name is Isabella, who types that order into the computer. Right. She's lovely. Um, and when we send out a bill to the wholesale supplier, there's a whole team of folks over there in the finance department, Michael and Brenda and Nick, who do a great job processing, pushing that paper to make sure that everything goes on and everybody gets paid. Right. This pipe gets shipped out by Gavin and his team out there, the warehouse, Right. Without them, you don't get this stuff we have. You know, that's why I try to really show who's around in the building, because we have inside sales, we have outside sales, we have finance, we have engineers, we have, uh, operational guys, we have process engineers, we have extrusion operators, we have hand tooling guys, we have forklift people, material handlers, you know, product manager, you name it. We are a company of 70ish people right now. And that's as when I started, we were. We were a company of 11 people or something like that, you know, we're 70 now. Uh, we've grown a great deal. And that's one of the things that I do that I really do like to show is that sort of thing. So there's future for me in the trades, even though I don't. You know, I've never read, um, you know, Mr. Silverstein. I was gonna say Silverstein's books, you know, stuff. Although I have a great autographed copy of his latest one. Thank you so much, Eugene. Um, I tried to read it and it might as well be Mandarin. Um, yeah. Oh, yeah. I was like, these are words, right? Um, and I look at the graphs and the schematics, and I do a lot better with, like, sheet music, you know, And I don't know, he's got all kinds of stuff in there that I do not know. And we'll never know. But I don't really need to know that to understand that that guy's an expert. Listen when he talks, or at least connect him to people who will benefit from what he says. Exactly. And he's obviously like, a lovely guy. Super funny, too. Um, I'm a big fan of Eugene Silverstein. Um, and I mean, his knowledge is on a lot of shelves for sure, you know, so, um, well, if you

Speaker B: could go back in time, back to any point in time in your life, would you change anything? Would you pivot?

Speaker A: Oh, I have made a lot of mistakes in my life, so, yeah, I've changed shitload of stuff. Give me an example. Let's see, there's, uh, a couple ones. I'll tell you when we turn the Cameras off.

Speaker B: That's what the behind the mindset's all about.

Speaker A: Well, yeah, indeed, indeed. Uh, but I mean, there are a couple things that I probably would do, maybe even on, not even like, career wise necessarily. I guess I would probably a good thing that I might say to myself, this is probably a good answer is, is for a long time I was. I like, didn't want to have a job really at all. And I achieved certain things, you know, made money in various ways, uh, to survive, but not really thrive, I guess you could say. You know, it's sort of a lame cliche to say that sort of thing, but, I mean, I wasted a lot of time. Um, if I had been a little bit more serious about stuff, uh, I might be a little further along in my career than I am today now. I don't know that I would necessarily trade some of the times that I had super, super amounts of fun and saw a lot of the country. And I mean, when I look back on, you know, say, the concerts that I, that I traveled to go see, I mean, a lot of people were like, oh, my God, you were at that thing. I was like, yeah, I saw that person come out with this person at Bonnaroo, the first Bonnaroo, you know, which, you know, I mean, it's 20 years ago at this point now, you know. So, I mean, uh, some of the experiences that I had are kind of irreplaceable, one of a kind type of things. But I certainly was sacrificing professional life, I guess you could say. I mean, I was a tutor and I was working sort of part time, and I was able to take like, weird amounts of time off to go do weird stuff too, but certainly treading, uh, water a bit. I really credit my wife with forcing me, uh, to grow up and to also letting me know that, um, and. Or encouraging me in a way that said that the skills that I have actually are, um, you know, like marketable, uh, because I did a lot of stuff with my skills that, you know, didn't make me any money or do or anything or advance me in any sort of way. So, you know, she helped me channel my like, goofy. Some semi fame on Twitter, baking Photoshops of people into like a graphic design career in some respects, you know, so something as silly as that of, uh, like, why don't you actually like, you know, focus this in a way that's not ridiculous, you know, I mean, like, go playing for clout on Twitter, you know, and get you so far, right? And you know, I was Like a semi celebrity on Twitter. Like, uh, I would get, you know, I had a good bit of followers and I had a bunch of, like, people would repost me. So I. Celebrities and stuff like that. If I made some interesting stuff, and it was a fascinating world. That's all very, very long ago at this point. Um, you know, and. And for the better. I've changed and become, you know, an adult.

Speaker B: You know, the man that you are today.

Speaker A: Yeah, the man that I'm becoming today.

Speaker B: That's funny. Um, when you think of your childhood, what smell comes to mind?

Speaker A: Uh, really, it's gonna be my grandmother's cooking for sure. For sure. So, uh, when I. They lived four blocks away, my grandmother, rest in peace, Victoria Marie Acacella. You m. Know, her maid name was Mandorano. My. My wonderful nanny, who is, uh, one of my favorite people. And if my cousins are watching this, which they probably aren't, but, uh, just FYI, I was 100 nanny's favorite, not Poppy's favorite. But Poppy always thought I was gay. Uh, which is fine. I mean, I would bring my. I would show him, like, hey, this is my girlfriend. He didn't really understand. I had painted nails and, like, gauged earrings, and I played guitar. He was like a mason. So he's like a very man's man, for sure, you know? Yeah, exactly. He didn't be like, no matter how many girlfriends I would introduce him to, he definitely just thought I was.

Speaker B: And he's like, I don't know why he's bringing girls around. The boys.

Speaker A: Yeah, he's like, uh, I don't know. I don't buy this young man. You know, whatever. Uh, I'm sort of kidding. I don't, I don't. I. But I certainly was. I was not my Poppy's favorite. I love him and he was great, great man. And, you know, I have. Kidding. Of course. He's wonderful person. And I know he loved me as well. One of my favorite, favorite people. Rest, uh, in peace, both of these people. Um, but without doubt, I was nanny's favorite. Uh, like, no doubt about it. Guys, if you're. If you're watching this, I hope you see it. Nanny loved me the most. Like, there's like, no. No doubt about it. Like, I can't stress this enough. If you think you were your favorite, you're wrong. I'm speaking to you cousins, so I don't talk to anymore. Um, and my sister and my brother too.

Speaker B: Some ominous music in the background.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, no, we gotta play like, the tarantella. My sweet. So. So to answer your question, my grandmother's cooking was, uh, you know, comes. Comes to mind. She, uh, she had a way of making. So she made French fries like in the pan. You know, that was like a real treat. When we go over there and she would cut the potatoes up and like actually fry them in the pan, you know, like put like a little like salt over the top of them. I mean, just amazing. Infusing all the wonderful fry oil into them as opposed to open up the pack and put them in the, you know, in the oven, you know, so that's one of them. But like really the Italian stuff, you know, eggplant parm and uh, you know, making Sunday sauce and going and having pasta and all that, you know, all the holidays went over there and that kind of thing. So really that's an associated smell. Another one I would say would be like, actually, this one comes to mind too. The smell of, uh, the leather of my baseball glove. So little known fact, before I was like a hippie, uh, I was the MVP of my high school baseball team.

Speaker B: Really? Yeah.

Speaker A: I know it's kind of surprising. I'm kind of a short guy, you know, I don't think I give athlete vibes really, but I mean, I can do a shitload of pull ups. But, um, I was the MVP of the baseball team in high school. For the Huguenots. I played third base. I pitched. I usually bat second or fifth. I've hit. I don't, I can't tell you how many home runs in my life. Like tons of them over the years. You know, Little League and beyond. But, um, I mean, as a kid, I did nothing but play baseball all the time. Um, actually, there's an interesting change. Go circle back to a different question. Right? So my mom would always ask me, you know, do I want guitar lessons or do I want to play? Do I want piano lessons? And at fourth grade I'm like, what? I'm gonna go play football with my friends. Piano, like, please. You know, little did I know that I would spend so many hours later doing that. But, uh, no, all I did was play baseball when I was young. So that baseball glove was on my left hand constantly when I, you know, played shortstop. You know, sliding around in the dirt, diving for balls and, you know, hit a quick double RBIs. Loved it. I mean, that was all that I did up until I was about 16 or 17. Travel teams the high school took us to, we would play base, we would. During the winter we'd go to North Carolina and Florida. The weather is a little nicer down there, so we would do some, uh, spring training, if you will. And, um, yeah, I mean, that was a fascinating thing. Completely like. Honestly, it feels like a lifetime ago and a different life ago because that's, uh, a whole group of friends that I do not really speak to anymore, really. Um, there was a bit of a transition when I picked up the guitar and started growing my hair. The baseball clique doesn't really understand that. Uh, well, they were kind of nasty to me. Honestly. I was different now. I was different. I wasn't the same as them. So there was some animosity, I suppose, and people who were my friends were more distant at that point. And to be honest, when I started making these. I'm hesitant to say artistic type friends, but playing in bands with people, jamming with, you know, a buddy of mine, um, you know, I, you know, he's. I can't tell you how many times he sat there, played drums, and we just, you know, played guitar and what have you. You know, these are the people who are still my friends 20 years later now, too. Which means that it was the right choice, I suppose.

Speaker B: Well, dealing with friends in general, like, that's a. That's a huge thing in. In life. Right. Like, a lot of people will, um, become offended by something, right. And then they just decide, oh, this 10 years of relationship that we've had, it's done.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Yeah. And, you know, is there's something to be said for being able to have thick skin. Uh, sure, sure. But then there's also something to be said for being able to find out who your real friends are.

Speaker A: Yeah. No question about it.

Speaker B: So.

Speaker A: No question about it. I mean, I've had a guy reach out to me years later on. He hasn't quite apologized exactly, but I can tell. I think it weighs on him a little bit because we had been. We were best friends from let's ride the bus together to elementary school. So, like, from kindergarten, first grade until I started being a little bit not the same as the baseball crew. Uh, you know, we stopped talking to each other over the course of like a week and a half after, like, 11 years.

Speaker B: Wow.

Speaker A: So I was really hurtful, um, a really weird time. I mean, I had a different friends I could go lean on too, but, like, I was inseparable with this guy for a very long time, you know, I mean, I knew his family, you know, the whole nine yards. And, uh, you know, very quickly, we were just, like, not friends anymore. It was very weird. And, um, you Know, I mean, certainly something I obviously, I still think about a little bit. Uh, not so much anymore. But I mean, at the time it was incredibly, you know, painful. Uh, but it did push me towards other friends. Alex, who, you know, part of that group, who's been now my best friend now, you know, for 20 plus years. Like, that's the transition I went to. So different people who certainly were more encouraging and more welcoming and allowed me to be who I am. So to even go back to even a further question, some of those people helped define who I am because they accepted my quirks and encouraged them, perhaps. And, you know, there was never a. The baseball guys were all the same person in the crew of weirdos where this guy plays the bass, but this. And this one's a painter, and this one does this and this one does that and writes poetry or whatever the hell. Everybody's really different in that group, you know, and those differences are where the beauty comes in and that wider expanse and diversity of a friend group. And those are the people that I, uh, still maintain contact with and would say are some of my absolute best friends 20 plus years on at this point.

Speaker B: Yeah. You know, they say that you are the sum of your five closest friends.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: And, um, so, you know, and whatever it is you want to achieve in life, like whoever's in your inner circle makes all the difference in the world.

Speaker A: Yeah, absolutely. If you put bad out, you get bad in. I mean, that's, uh. I believe, I believe that, you know, and of course you're, you know, everybody influences one another and, you know. Yeah. So, like, it's Alex's birthday today, and one of the things I'm incredibly grateful to him for is he's a very positive person. Uh, and I am not. So, uh, he one absorbs a lot of the vileness and vitriol. Like we have like a standing morning conversation. Like I call him on the way to work, basically. I just complain about stuff, basically. And he just absorbs it so I could try to. So no one else has to. He does a great service to the world. He's like, uh, a sponge that soaks up my negativ and then. And then, you know, spares pretty much everybody else. Right. But he's like an incredibly positive person most of the time. You know, we all have our moments, but, like, he's upbeat and positive and, uh, and I need that type of thing around me because despite my outward happy, go lucky jokeiness, uh, I am kind of a pessimist person. I am kind of a negative person, and that is one of my struggles, for sure. So try to surround myself with people who are positive, like you.

Speaker B: I appreciate that.

Speaker A: Well, I've told you that before, too. That is. That shouldn't be news to you, because I've thanked you for that type of thing, uh, you know, in the past. Um, because like, like, just like Alex, you. You have a positivity as well, and I feed off of that. I'm a very, um, empathetic person, I think. So your positivity kind of influences me, just like Alex does to him. And hopefully you guys can. Are shielded from my negativity.

Speaker B: Yeah, I'm definitely not a half glass empty kind of.

Speaker A: No, you're not.

Speaker B: Yeah.

Speaker A: So you're not. And I appreciate that. I need. I. I need m. More of that.

Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. Life is gonna throw all kinds of crazy things at you, man, and crazy people at you, you know, and chickens and, uh. And what you do with that is 100% up to you. Like, you have the choice of how you're going to react to whatever's happening around you.

Speaker A: Totally. Yeah. And that's why, you know, if you want to talk about regret stuff.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: Um, I don't. I don't know. I guess I could probably come up with specifics, but there are definitely times where it was, like, a positive spin on something would have been a better avenue to go down, as opposed to the anger or darkness, depression or sadness. That was the path in, you know, that I took, let's say.

Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. In all things, there's a lesson to be learned.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And it's just a matter of, are you willing to accept that and learn it right? Or you just went, oh, man, this is ridiculous. I can't believe this. And, you know, so it's all choice.

Speaker A: Yeah, it is.

Speaker B: And I had a situation not that long ago. I made a comment about this guy that I was. Wasn't happy with. And, uh, my. My buddy looks at me and he goes, you're the only one thinking about that. You know? Uh, and I just looked at him and he goes, I'm just saying. He goes, he's not thinking about that situation. I'm not thinking about that situation, but you're the only one. And I was like, dude, you're absolutely right, dude. And I had to change in that moment. But it took having the right friend in my circle to be like, hey, dude, you need to pull your head out of your butt and stop. Just stop putting energy into this thing that you think is a thing, because nobody else is thinking about it. Except for you.

Speaker A: So earlier yesterday we were talking about Internet trolls a little bit. It's like sort of an example of trolling yourself almost, you know, And I think everybody says you're your own worst critic. I know I am. You know, that kind of thing that, like trolling yourself with that mentality is, uh, you know, it's hard to get out of sometimes.

Speaker B: So.

Speaker A: Yeah, I thank you for doing that to me sometimes, you know, pulling me out of it and being. And showing the glasses half full because, you know, it is and. Or it can be, or you should focus on what it is.

Speaker B: Yeah, I think it's funny too because like, you and I have, uh, on certain topics, have like, completely polar opposite views. Right. Um, and normally in my. Earlier in my life, like, I would just not even hang out with somebody like that, you know, I mean, but what I've come to appreciate is that you and I have a lot in common in a lot of different topics. Then we have some stuff that we don't have in common on a lot of different topics. Right. But, uh, but I feel like the good outweighs the bad totally.

Speaker A: And we're more the same than we're different. And that's. That's every person 100.

Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. People would get their head out of their butts. Right.

Speaker A: Well, I think we just like you're saying, uh, sometimes the focus goes to the smaller detail that creates the digression or the diversion where the focal point on something that's a little bit more uniform, uh, might meet in the middle and have a better outcome. And that's like a lot of like therapy speak that I'm just saying right there. Uh, but it's totally true, you know, and absolutely, uh, your lived life experience is component. Completely different than mine. And uh, but there is the Venn diagram of. You know, I think we have similar dispositions. I think our personalities are the same in a lot of ways. Uh, which. Which I think has made us be easy friends and easy friends to get along together and work together and whatnot. Um, despite, you know, the lived experiences being different, forming different views on various. Various things. You know what I mean? So, um, and again, we're more the same than we are different. And, and there are lessons to be learned from opposing viewpoints or whatever. Whatever. There's value in hearing each other out and understanding why we think about certain things the way that we do. And I mean, I think that's the mark of a good friendship and a good partnership is to be able to have that Conversation just sort of in general without any animus and without it getting weird or shutting down or whatever. Because I think that's a big part of what happens and drives wedges between people is the focus on the differences, uh, and the dwelling on that sort of thing too. And also the approach, uh, being sort of prickly and not open, uh, minded, let's say.

Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, it's um. Man, life is a journey, right. And uh, you have a choice of how you interact it and how you deal with it and how you live.

Speaker A: Totally.

Speaker B: So. So, um, where are we at on time, Jordan?

Speaker A: We are at.

Speaker B: Cool. So if you could leave the audience with a piece of advice, whether that be personal, just life in general, spiritually, professionally, whatever it may be. If you could just leave some listeners. Sorry, Leave some listeners with a piece of advice, um, what would that be?

Speaker A: I mean, I think I have to take this advice myself also a little bit, but I. And this is going to be almost cliche, but, um, be kind, I think is maybe a good thing. We're, we're in a weird, you know, we're in a business. Everybody's trying to make money. Everybody's got a, you know, got struggles of their own, um, by and large that the other person that you deal with has no idea about potentially. And no one, really, no one is only you are between your own ears, let's say so. And you know, in your own heart as well. So, uh, just being outwardly kind and accepting is probably the best first step towards any kind of thing. I don't even talk about like conflict resolution or anything like that, but just like, don't be a dick, you know, I mean, and I need to take that advice myself. Um, I mean, this should ask me what advice I give to myself, you know, because I'm guilty of that too. I can be petty and I can be, um, nasty about stuff as well. Uh, but also I, you know, can be kind too. And I should try to focus on that myself. So actually that was more advice to my own self.

Speaker B: Yeah, don't confuse, uh, you know, people are out in the world doing their own thing, right. They're not thinking about you. Uh, so don't confuse, you know, the, their. Maybe their lack of attention to what's happening around them with malice. Like they're not trying to.

Speaker A: I mean, don't misinterpret as well, because there is malice in the world too. So, you know, protect yourself. But, uh, I mean, maybe don't cast the first stone. Right? He is. Who is out, uh, he who is without sin should not cast the first. Or he is without sin, cast the first stone. Right. Obviously, we all have our flaws. Um, so, uh, you know, yeah, be nice to people. Don't be an asshole. Which again, I'm super guilty of that too.

Speaker B: So it reminds me of Dumb, uh, and Dumber when he says, huh. So it is true what they say. Old people, those slow and dangerous behind the wheel, still can't serve a purpose.

Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. That's really funny.

Speaker B: Uh, well, I appreciate you being here, dude, man.

Speaker A: I appreciate you coming up to here.

Speaker B: Always a blast. Uh, thanks for hosting us and letting us use your blue room.

Speaker A: Oh, yeah. Where would you like this podcast to take place from? The rodeo? The, uh, space station? The, um, I m. Mean, we could turn this into pretty much anything. So, uh, pickleball court. Um, we're gonna have a space battle happening behind us. Or we should just do a combination of interesting blue things. Yeah. So actually, here's another one of my proudest achievements. So, uh, we did a team building here thing here at Central Therm. And you play pickleball. Um, uh, well, really, Jordan plays pickleball, and I sort of just wrote his coattails. But let's just say we, we, we annihilated the rest of this company when, when we were, when we were coming up with the idea for it. It really was Jordan's idea. Uh, and he managed the whole thing. And he's actually the employee of the month this month here at Central Thurm. So, you know, love that, love that guy. Um, he's a big pickleball guy. I played with him. You know, we went to, you know, I played, uh, at courts and stuff and whatever coordinated person, like I said baseball and stuff. And you know, I, I, I have good hand eye coordination. But, uh, when we were, when we were like, let's be a team, I think we looked at each other, we were like, yeah, nobody's gonna even come close to. We smoked everybody. We beat the first game. We won 11, nothing. And then we didn't, we didn't face a match point for the entire tournament. That is to say that you played 11. Do, uh, you have to win by two? No, it's just first to 11. Right? Okay, so, well, we never faced that because nobody made it to 10. I think the closest game we had was, was, uh, like 11, 8 or something like that. And it was the last game where we had won, so, so, well, that we hadn't played in like an hour and 40 minutes. So we're like, coming off the bench cold against the team that had like won a couple to get to the finals, let's say. And so they're warmed up and they're like in the zone. And they came out to an early lead, but it was incredibly short lived. Uh, and we just, we obliterated them after that. I, um, mean, that was the first game. It was the best of three. First, uh, game was like 11, eight. And then we just like massacred in the second game. It was close. And now we have these awesome pickleball championship trophies that I definitely walk around the office with sometimes and just like show to people. I just like to say, well, and

Speaker B: obliterating people in a competition game is, uh, sometimes that's just the way it be.

Speaker A: Well, yeah, I mean, what can I say? I mean, there was no mercy. Uh, did you have. At one point, I think Jordan asked me if he would be like, you know, should we, like, you know, he didn't say this, but like, should we patty cake it a little bit? I was like, no, no, Show a little mercy. Absolutely not. No, no. Literally no mercy was the. Was my line. Like, absolutely not. We, we go hard.

Speaker B: So much for being kind.

Speaker A: Well, I mean, nobody I know animals were hurt in the making of that, you know, so it has nothing to do with kindness. There might have been a little shit talking going on, but I mean, that's part of the fun too. It was all in good fun, actually. We had a great day here at Central Thurm with that stuff too. You know, get some food and there was a corn hole going on in addition to multiple courts happening. Um, there was some fun costumes. It was a great day and, uh, certainly capped off with a deserted and, um, decisive victory by the best team in the tournament.

Speaker B: Very nice being us. Awesome, man. Well, I appreciate you letting me hang out and do what we do.

Speaker A: The door's open, my friend. Anytime.

Speaker B: We will see you guys next time.

Speaker A: This episode of behind the Mindset is brought to you by. We supply trades. For more info, visit we supplytrades.com.