Digital Social Hour - The $10M Crypto Mistake That Changed Everything (Loss Aversion) | David Shands DSH #992

Episode Date: December 18, 2024

💰 $10M crypto mistake that changed everything! 😱 Tune in as Sean Kelly sits down with David Shands to unpack a jaw-dropping story of loss and redemption in the world of cryptocurrency. 🚀 David reveals how he lost a staggering $10 million in crypto and shares the valuable lessons he learned along the way. From sports cards to altcoins, discover the rollercoaster ride of high-stakes investing and the importance of managing risk. 🎙️ This episode of Digital Social Hour is packed with insider insights on: • Overcoming massive financial setbacks • Building sustainable businesses in the podcasting world • The power of community and networking events • Balancing entrepreneurship with personal life Don't miss out on David's candid advice for aspiring entrepreneurs and his journey to building one of the best podcast conferences in the world! 🌟 Watch now and subscribe for more eye-opening stories on the Digital Social Hour with Sean Kelly! 🔔 Hit that subscribe button and join the conversation in the comments below. 👇 #DigitalSocialHour #SeanKelly #Cryptocurrency #Entrepreneurship #PodcastingTips #LossAversion #FinancialMistakes #CryptoInvesting #socialmediamarketing #onlinecommunity #developmentaldisability #gamedevcommunitybuilding #thepowerofcommunity CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Intro 01:40 - How to Get Good Fast: Tips for Improvement 03:20 - Sponsored by BetterHelp: Mental Health Support 05:00 - Losing $10,000,000 in Crypto: Lessons Learned 06:30 - Losing It All on Sports Cards: Investment Risks 09:58 - How to Build a Sustainable Business: Key Strategies 11:39 - Business Opportunities Adam is Excited About: Trends to Watch 13:35 - Why Every Entrepreneur Needs a Podcast: Building Authority 17:35 - Why Most People Quit: Overcoming Challenges 20:33 - Travel Hacks: Tips for Efficient Travel 23:12 - Buy Status: Understanding Social Signals 25:00 - Iconic Entrepreneur Conference: Networking Opportunities 26:20 - The Importance of Your Circle: Building Relationships 30:03 - The Importance of Having a Supportive Partner: Personal Growth 31:40 - Where to Find David and His Events: Staying Connected 33:54 - OUTRO APPLY TO BE ON THE PODCAST: https://www.digitalsocialhour.com/application BUSINESS INQUIRIES/SPONSORS: [e-mail] GUEST: David Shands https://www.instagram.com/dshands/ https://www.instagram.com/sleepis4suckers/ https://www.davidneversleeps.com/ SPONSORS: BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.com/DSH LISTEN ON: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-social-hour/id1676846015 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Jn7LXarRlI8Hc0GtTn759 Sean Kelly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmikekelly/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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If you have any questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you, please contact Connex Ontario at 1-866-531-2600 to speak to an advisor free of charge. BetMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. Built a community around the show. We have a WhatsApp chat for every guest that's been on.

And I muted that joint. It's too crazy, Sean. it's too much going on. 900 people and all. And they are active every day. Did you start a community around your show too? Yeah, but I've been building a community around me period. But I've been doing in-person entrepreneurship workshops since like 2013 or 2014. Wow.

Yeah. Early, yeah, now you have huge conferences too, right? Yeah. or 2014. Yeah. Early, yeah, now you have huge conferences too, right? Yeah. Podcast conferences. Absolutely. How many people were at the last one? Last one, 1,100.

Holy crap. All right guys, finally made it happen from Atlanta. David Shands. We're here. One of the first podcasters I studied, so. Oh wow, thank you man. Thanks for coming on man. Yeah, you were a pioneer in the space I'd say

Thank you, brother. Yeah I've seen you're working you are up. You're out working every single pop in the world. This is incredible That's a nice studio. Thanks. You know, it's like nothing like your 750k studio, but Yeah, but I mean shoot you're doing a thing man, so super proud of you. Yeah props Oh, yeah I made up for the cuz I doing your thing, man, so I'm super proud of you right now. Yeah, props, though. Yeah, I made up for the, because I started late in the game, because you started what, seven years ago? 2017, 18. 18, so, yeah, six, seven years.

So I made up for that time with reps. So 100%. So you're pretty good at this. A thousand episodes in now, so, you know, it makes up for, because a lot of people only film one a week, but it's hard to get good fast if you're only doing one a week. How many do you do?

We're releasing two a week now. Two a week. We're already doing like five a week, but we're doing about two a week now. And you got a couple of shows now, right? You got a, what's the other one you just started? Social Proof and Hot Seat. Hot Seat, yeah.

Yeah, that's my baby. Hot Seat's a fun one, right? Yeah, I'm having a ball, bro. I feel like that can inspire a lot of people. Yeah. That show. It having a ball, bro. I feel like that can inspire a lot of people. Yeah. That show. Yeah, it's different too, man. So when I started, nobody was interviewing

your average successful person from around your way in 2018. Interviews were kind of reserved for athletes or celebrities or Breakfast Club, things of that nature, Oprah. Nobody was like really, I don't want to say nobody, but a lot of people weren't just interviewing their friends. And it was just a unique thing. So I'm getting all these people when we're getting this traffic, but now I notice that the same people that are

on my podcast are like jumping around to other podcasts, which is what they're supposed to do, right? But it's only so many story you have after you do seven interviews. So I think what you're doing with the reps is you're probably finding questions that hopefully they're not being asked, but now that everyone's interviewing successful people,

I thought to myself, well, I'm going to start interviewing unsuccessful people, people who haven't won. And I cook them for like an hour on the hot seat. And that's, it's just fun, it's unique, and it's not, you're not going to find it everywhere. No, it reminds me of that one guy, Caleb Hammer. Oh, I love Caleb.

Financial audit. After I did it, I found Caleb, and I'm like, yo, he's killing it. Where's he out of, you know? I don't know, actually. If I had to guess, Caleb is not an LA guy, though. I want to meet him. I want to meet him, too. I wanted to go on the show,

because I've had some wild financial stories. Really? Tell me one. Lost 10 million. You lost 10 million. 10 million dollars. How do you lose 10 million? Crypto.

Yeah, I got wrecked. All in like a few month period too. What period was this? This was the last bull run, which was when I first moved here I think, so 2021, I think around then. You had 10 million dollars in crypto? Yeah.

It didn't go to zero. It's pretty much zero, yeah, because they were in altcoins. Crypto, and I associate crypto with Bitcoin, but so all the altcoins. Yeah, so crypto encompasses every coin. But you didn't have Bitcoin? I did, I still have Bitcoin in Ethereum,

but I had 10 million in altcoins, which is like, that you never heard of. Yeah. So those are really volatile because they're not as stable as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Wow. Yeah, so I got wiped.

How'd you feel? Pretty lost for a few months. It was right before I started the show actually, I think, or like the year before, yeah. So podcasting helped me get out of that funk to be honest. Wow, I've never lost that type of money. However, we do see these stories of people who do lose lots of money and they end it all.

Damn. I haven't heard those yet. Yeah, like these people that are like super successful but, and they lose a bunch of money, but they're still like, like millionaires. Yeah. But they like jump off a bridge. I never got to that point. Yeah. But I could see if you have like aaires, but they like jump off a bridge. And stuff like that. I never got to that point.

But I could see if you have like a family, like definitely the stakes are higher. And if you lose it all with kids, it's definitely like tougher, you know? But so what was your- Bet MGM is an official sports betting partner of the National Hockey League and has your back all season long.

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of the National Hockey League. BetMGM.com for terms and conditions. Must be 19 years of age or older to wager. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. If you have any questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you, please contact Connex Ontario at 1-866-531-2600

to speak to an advisor free of charge. BenMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. This episode of Digital Social Hour is brought to you by BetterHelp. Making it easy and affordable to access online therapy, give it a try at betterhelp.com slash DSH and get on your way to being your best self. The holidays are a tricky time of the year for a lot of people and I like to stay cozy and warm at home with my favorite movies and a warm blanket and also some BetterHelp. With a lot of time to reflect during the winter months therapy is a great way to embrace what's on our mind and find

comfort that doesn't leave us even as the holidays fade away. Even if you've never tried therapy or always wondered about its effects, BetterHelp's online therapy option can be a helpful tool to learn about positive coping mechanisms and set boundaries that will aid you in years and events to come. It doesn't just take trauma to make therapy worthwhile, as we want to empower everyone to be the best version of themselves. If you're thinking about therapy, give BetterHelp a try with its online platform designed to be convenient and suited to your schedule. All you have to do is fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist with the freedom to switch therapists anytime for no additional charge. Find peace and comfort this December with BetterHelp.

Visit betterhelp.com slash DSH today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp, H-E-L-P dot com slash DSH. Hey, I want to crash out or was it? I didn't want to tell anyone to be honest. I kept it internal. I didn't even tell my girl at first for a bit because it's pretty embarrassing, dude.

You built up all that wealth. You think you could retire, you're set for life, and then you lose it all in a couple months. Super embarrassing. So, but yeah, that happened twice. I lost it all before that too. Tell me. When I first moved to Vegas four years ago,

I lost it all on sports cards. Sports cards? Yeah, I got so excited during that. Did you see that boom? What's a sports card? Like sports cards. Oh, cards, okay gotcha, yeah. There was a boom like five years ago with like Michael Jordan cards and did you see that?

You remember that? I did and I wasn't in the world. Oh, you didn't see that? But no, it was big and I invested, at the time I had a couple hundred thousand dollars and I put it all into sports cards. You're just a go all in type of person. That's how I am a podcast and you see it from the thousand episodes in two years.

That's clear. Yeah. I go all in. Sometimes it's good. Sometimes it's not, you know, this is how I am. That's a great way to be though. Yeah. It's risky. It's risky. I don't know if I could have this mindset later on in life. Yeah, probably not. I think it's good to be safe too. Well maybe, I mean, I think you'll always be a go all in type of person, but you're getting better at managing the risk.

So you might go all in on something you believe in later, but you'll probably take some profits next time. I will, yeah. With crypto this time around, I am. I've already started. So Bitcoin's at 65 K as we're filming this I've already taken some profits. I have to man. Yeah, how do you 27? Yeah? That's so much time bro to learn. Yeah, and you've learned you're learning at a really really fast pace

So that's one of the side effects of podcasting. I'm sure you've met and learned so much. Yeah I've seen some of your guests, you know, yeah, that's incredible Yeah I think the important part is to stay focused because if you are like me and you're an entrepreneur Like you're sitting in front of somebody who's making a whole lot of money And you think that you can make a whole bunch of money and they'll tell you yo, I'll help you You know, I always do it but it kind of takes your eye off the ball You know what I mean of what you're. And especially if you are a trendy entrepreneur

or I'm just trying to figure out like money grabs, you're not building something sustainable, it's gonna be really, really difficult for you to have long-term success. So even as I make money, I go buy some real estate stuff I can't put my hands on, you know what I mean, that doesn't change. Housing market can crash, but it's not like

this $300,000 building is gonna be worth $30,000 tomorrow. It doesn't work that way. Yeah. Right, and if there is a crash, just hold on to it and it just comes back up. It's not like a crypto or it's not like a, I don't know, like sports cards. Yeah, it's not as volatile.

For sure, there's real value. There's no real, I'm not as volatile. For sure. There's real value. There's no real, I'm not going to say there's no real value, because I just don't know the world. But there's NFT values, right? But the NFT itself is only valuable because someone decided that this thing is nice to look at and nice to say that I own.

But a house, you have to own it. It's nice because it keeps you dry when it's raining. Yeah, I lost a lot on NFTs too. Oh, right. So that's what I'm saying. If you go from those types of things, and you're not building a sustainable business, it's always going to be extremely volatile.

What you're doing right now in podcasting, especially if there's a formula that you have where I get this amount of, I do this many episodes, I get this amount of views, I know there's always a company that wants to get in front of this audience. That's business. Well, that's a sustainable business if you keep the formula.

It is, yeah, the past year straight, we've had similar revenue numbers every single month. So I know it's got some sort of like safety net there. Welcome to real entrepreneurship. Yeah, it's slower, but it's more fulfilling. 100%. And it's stable. I'm not chasing those 100 extra turns anymore,

but it's fun. I'm having a blast. You don't go to casinos, do you? I don't gamble. So it's like a Vegas thing. If you live here, you're not really supposed to gamble. Because you know the game. Just over time, you're screwed.

Yeah, 100%. You be gambling out here? No, no, no. You seem pretty reserved, like we were saying, you don't drink or do you do any weed or any drugs? Has that been for a while or? Yeah, I don't think I've like drank or smoked. I think I had, my last drink may have been my wedding Wow

Six years ago, maybe holy crap. I'm a smoke in a very very very long time Gambling is just I kind of cut that out with the drinking too because I get anxiety Mmm, you know me like no voices, but even if it's if we're playing a game and we're playing for dollars, I hate to see that next flip. It's just like some sort of anxiety. Maybe it's just me. So I just stay away from the stuff altogether, no matter the amount.

You know what I mean? So I'm cool. A lot of people in our space are drinking, gambling, smoking, partying. Yeah, I mean, some people are just having a good time. It's just, I'm just at a point where I don't need it and it doesn't seem like it benefits me. If there's not, some people are just having a good time. It's just, I'm just at a point where I don't need it and it doesn't seem like it benefits me.

If there's not, if the thing doesn't benefit me or benefit other people, I'll probably stay away from it. Okay. And I don't see how gambling benefits, I gamble in terms of like business. I'll put $10,000 to partner with this person about this business, I think it's going to work and it doesn't work out, which is cool.

But at least I have a little more control, but I'm not betting on the flip of a card. Makes sense. What business opportunities are you most excited to move about recently? I got a couple, man. Section eight. Say it again.

Section eight. Nah, I'm working with a couple brands where people have paid me to coach them, but there are some people who got something really special and I'm like, let me just build it together with you. Take a little piece. With all of my insight and experience and things of that nature, sometimes some money,

but some, and then watching that grow and watching them grow as entrepreneurs, it's incredible. So that's, I won't share it, but that's, those are a couple things. I feel that. There's a couple people really up and coming right now that if you got a really good product, you know, it's not too hard to market it.

Yeah. 100%. You got the skillset. So you got, and I only do things that are already within the wheelhouse of what I do. So if, if someone has a business and one of the issues is maybe exposure. Well, we can come on the podcast, I can shout you out. I can start doing brand association with you and me, and it works out.

Or if someone, as an entrepreneur, they need some advice, I'm gonna give them advice anyway. So I only get involved in things where I'm already in it. Like one, it's a young lady who has a product which is going to be really, really special. So we create the product, figured out how we're going to make money from the product and we're going to wrap a podcast around it.

We already have a podcast, I already have a studio, I have the cameras, we have the operators, all that kind of stuff. I can put you into this ecosystem that I have already and then it works and I benefit from that. Smart. But I'm not going outside of what I do already. Yeah, it's like a JV, but you're not in an uncomfortable situation.

Correct. Yeah, I've had guests come on the show, message me like, yo, this podcast changed my life. Like it got the snowball rolling. Like it led to sales, it led to meetings. Podcasts are good social proof. Oh yeah, 100%. Absolutely.

And I think everybody needs a podcast. Every single entrepreneur, just mark my words, if you are an entrepreneur and you're building a personal brand, you will not be able to survive without a podcast. Wow. What a statement. Yeah, you just can't. Like, there's so much out there where you can,

people want to connect with a person, right? And you can't build that in 60 second Instagram videos where it's chopped up and it's getting your best angles. If I'm sitting here and talking to you for an hour, you get to know me. And especially if it's over a year or so, or two years, three years, when things happen in my life, you know about it,

because we're talking about it in real time. We'll never ever be able to get the conversation that we just had about you losing everything and not even tell you, and I didn't want to turn this into me interviewing you. No, you're good. Your girlfriend doesn't know that you just lost 10 million.

Where are we going to get that conversation from on Instagram or a 60 second video? There's not enough time to fit it in. But if your audience follows you long enough, they really get to know you. So if you don't have long form, and we started looking at like Twitch, the IRL stuff, oh my gosh.

Those guys are making killing. Right, it was somebody, first of all, they do nothing. It's like they're streaming, not doing anything. But the interesting part is, they got 15,000 people watching. Them do nothing. Because they want to feel like But the interesting part is, they got 15,000 people watching. Them do nothing. Because they want to feel like they know the person

and anything can happen, because this isn't edited. So I'm actually looking of how I can start this IRL thing. Where we got a guest come in, where I've been recording all day, and we get kind of that conversation that we were having before this and you know, we kind of just chop it up and we keep going and then interview and then you leave.

Then we might talk about some stuff after the cameras off and the podcast and you see all that. So I'm just trying to figure out how to incorporate that. But that is just another example of in real life content that people are craving. Yeah. Some of those pre and post convos with podcasts are like gold. I'm like, damn, why didn't you say that on the show? Yeah.

I just started filming at live events. Good. I just did a celebrity poker tournament. And those interviews were just so much more organic. Oh, nice. You get paid to go there? I paid them, actually. So check this out.

I paid $10,000. I got to interview Hayley Welch, Dwight Howard, Javel McGee, Ray J, like 10 others. And I was pretty skeptical. I was like, I've never paid to like do this. That sounds like a good idea. You know, I was like, whatever. And then afterwards it just opened up so many doors.

So I'm not opposed to doing that and recommending that to people watching. I think I would do that. That was a good idea. What doors did it open up? So all those celebrities have friends. So open up doors for guests. Sponsors started approaching me.

The next week we got 75 grand in sponsors to cover those episodes. Oh wow. Because if you have- How long were the interviews? They were like 15 to 20. Cause it was as they were getting knocked out of the tournament.

So they would just come in and do a post game interview. Wow. That's hard. But yeah, when you get Hayley Welch, who's right now a top five podcaster in the world, sponsors are going to knock on your door to sponsor that one. Congratulations, bro.

Congratulations to her, dude, because I'm not going to lie, I didn't think she could keep this momentum. Yeah. Did you? I don't even know who that is. The Hawk Tour girl? Oh!

Oh! Yeah. I thought that was just like a little street interview, like, where she's like, you got to a girl. Oh. Oh. Yeah. I thought that was just like a little street interview, like where she's like, you gotta do this. She's a top five podcaster in the world right now on Spotify. Really? Since that?

Yeah, she started her show, it's called Talk to a. That's her podcast. How long ago was that little, how long ago was that, the little, when she did the interview? Was she doing something back then? No, she didn't even have social media during that. She made it and she blew up

and now she's one of the top podcasters in the world. Insane. Crazy, right? Yeah, congrats to her. Yeah, but a lot of people can't maintain. Yeah, 100%. Like you've been in the game for years. Not a lot of people from when you started are still around today.

What do you think's caused that longevity to stay for you? They're not building a business, they're doing something because everybody else is doing it. Everybody's podcast, I'm gonna start a podcast. But that's not how you build anything sustainable. That's, I mean, it just is one of the, it just is what it is.

And I think some of the reason they quit is because they're not making any money, but they didn't figure out how they're gonna make money first before they even started. So for somebody that's getting ready to start a podcast, figure out how you're going to make money first. Let's think about money first, not just a good concept. Do these interviews and have conversations.

You should really be thinking of how am I going to make money and then wrap the podcast around the way you're going to make money. There should be an intentional way that you promote this product through your podcast. 100%. I think most shows lose money. So 11% of shows quit last month, which is really high.

But I knew going into the podcast, I was probably going to lose money upfront. So I knew that mentally for the first six months, I lost a ton of money because the equipment is pretty expensive. For sure. And I was paying editors, some editors are pretty expensive, clippers. I hired in the US so those are expensive. And yeah, I lost a ton of money at first.

I almost quit. That's how it works. You almost quit. Yeah, financially it was tough. I was down 100K at one point. You say you're down 100K, like, man, you put 100 into it? I put over 100 into it, because I had some revenue.

So I probably put like 150 and made back 50. How much did you have left? Not that much. I mean, like, just personally. I just lost. Let's say you have $250,000. Yeah. Or $200,000, and you put in 100,000.

You have 100 left. So even if you lost that 100, you still had 100. Like, where was you at in terms of your personal income? Yeah, not that much, because I just was coming off that 10 mil loss. So 10 mil was most of my money at the time. I think I maybe had 11 or 12. So I lost like 90% with that loss.

Yeah. But you still had another million or two left. Yeah, but when you got a house, I mean, you know, when you got payments, I spend like 50K a month. You know? It's quite a lot of money, so. A million won't really last you as long as you think with my lifestyle.

What do you be doing? I'm not flashy, it's just like travel. My mortgage is 13K plus utilities. I eat out a good amount. So yeah, I'm spending business expenses. So, a month, man. Yeah, I mean. I mean, you're probably spending more than that.

What are you saying? Yeah, spend a bit. But most of it is like my household bills, of course. My actual house though, isn't a big mortgage. A few thousand bucks. Oh wow. But I do got a bunch of kids. I got three kids.

I have my wife and my in-laws typically stay with us most of the year. They live in Florida but they come back and there's always one of them living in and I got to feed everybody and we do trips and I have a full staff and yeah, it's been a lot. Yeah, you're probably spending a hundred K a month on Yeah, yeah, it's been a lot. You need that black card, baby. I spent a lot But I mean, I think the black card only

It's for a show though, right? Yeah, it's not worth it. Yeah, it's like 10k a year or whatever Yeah, my other cards do more and yeah, I mean't need all that stuff. I'll be stacking points. I have on a lot of credit hackers on the show. Yeah. And you're teaching me all sorts of stuff. Bro, I did a trip to France with my wife and it felt so bad because I think I had like three million Delta points.

Damn. And I had to spend like one and a half. What? On the flights. Oh, you should have used the travel hacks. What's the travel hacks? You could transfer the points and get 5X. What you mean?

So like, where did you have the points? On your MX or in your- Oh, on Delta. Oh, on Delta? I mean, but I accumulate them through Delta MX. Got it, okay. I don't know if it would have worked then, but if you have MX points,

you could transfer it to a hotel or airline for 5x points. You can transfer it to... Well, I just bought them with the points. I don't know if that works with Delta. They just use my points, but use them for 5x points. I don't understand that exactly. So like these hotels and airlines will have once a year, they'll open up a period of time where if you transfer your points from your Amex card to their website. They'll give you a 5x bonus So say you have a million points on amex and you transfer it to delta united american airlines They'll give you five million points really yeah when they doing that next you got to keep an eye on it They run them randomly, but oh wow yeah You could do that for Marriott for Hilton. Yeah, there's some wild oh that makes sense because they just make sure I spend all of my points with them yep yeah so they're making their money too

that's fine I mean what you got I had a million I might be close again I used all mine too you probably have millions man if you're spending I do I do what's your favorite credit card the MX yeah I only have a mix but I like MX Delta I got the platinum the gold You know, you could buy status to really? Yeah. Yeah, I got four million points. Damn You're safe. You if you use that right? I got like 830 on Hilton. I got four million on, this fly the same thing though. But see, I had to use all of my points,

my Delta points for that one trip. So I got like 700. I got like five million points with everything. Yeah, I got some points. Yeah, I'll get you with the right credit people. Yeah, man, I need all the hacks, bro. So I buy status whenever I fly. You buy status.

Yeah, you could buy United 1K status. You could buy Marriott, what is it, platinum status. Oh, I didn't know that. And I only fly with Delta, so it already have the- So you already have the best one. Yeah. But say you're flying somewhere and they don't have Delta,

you could buy the status of that airline. So you're in boarding group one. How much? Like 500. Oh. Yeah, it's not bad. I would say less, yeah. Yeah.

I do it for hotels, because then they'll give you the best room. Mm-hmm. Oh, wow. Yeah. Yeah, see, you's not that I say less. Yeah. Yeah. I do it for hotels because then they'll give you the best room Mm-hmm. Oh Yeah, see you know something bro. That's it. That is another reason. I think everybody needs a podcast because You get so much perspective from other people and I don't even know this but I know this that I'm sure somebody came on Your podcast you made some money with them. That's how it works. For sure. I've done some affiliate stuff. People pay to come on.

Yeah, there's always so many ways to monetize, dude. I have events. I do in-person stuff. I feel like people are getting away from that. Oh yeah, you gotta keep doing in-person stuff. Everyone's trying to live digitally, but in-person is crucial. 100%.

I mean, I built a community around the show. We have a WhatsApp chat for every guest that's been on. And I muted that joint. It's too crazy. Like it's too much going on. 900 people and all. And they are active every day. It's wild, it's too much going on in that chat.

Did you start a community around your show too? Yeah, but I've been building a community around me period since I worked at the Cheesecake Factory and left. And yeah, I've just, building a community is like trendy now but I've been doing in-person entrepreneurial workshops and like since like 2013 or 14. Wow. Yeah.

That's early. Yeah, now you have huge conferences too, right? Yeah. Podcast conference. Absolutely. How many people were at the last one? Last one, 1,100. Holy crap.

1,100. That's impressive, man. A thousand podcasters in one room, I'm sure the value there is massive. 100%, man. So we're going for 2,000 next year. And that is, what's so interesting is, I think most of, first off, our conference is iconic, bro.

It's just so much energy, it's electrifying. I would put our conference up against any other conference and there's really only two other ones, you know I mean, yeah, you're already the biggest right? Well, no or the best Quality over quantity Bro, our joint is those people leave with so much information Because I'm tailoring the information because I'm a teacher in terms of business. So I know what you need to learn,

I know the vibe that needs to be created, I force network where I'm making sure everybody connects with each other. And I think the current model of podcast conferences is like big expo hall, where it's like a bunch of vendors, and it's like a big group of people, I don't know. Not knocking those guys, but I'm saying I think,

and I'm grateful they're there so I was able to see something. Right, you could learn from them. Yeah, let me take this and put my own sauce on it, but we 100% have the best podcast conference in the world. It's called Podcast Summit. Love it. So if you're watching this, podcastsummit.com.

I'll be at the next one, man. It's in Atlanta, right? Absolutely, yeah, man, you speak there. Hell yeah, yeah, I can't wait. I look at the people around you and they're just all podcast summit.com. I'll be at the next one, man. It's in Atlanta, right? Absolutely. Yeah, man. You speak there. Hell yeah. Yeah, I can't wait. I look at the people around you and they're just all killing it, man. So I know you're kind of the mastermind behind some of these names that you see on social media.

Oh, bro. I wouldn't say that. I think we're just a group of people that we all learn from each other. I learned so much from my circle of people that I'm in. And hopefully I can continue to add value so they keep me in the circle. Absolutely.

But if you all keep adding value, you just keep, have a strong group. I noticed Atlanta has that kind of, that circle, right? You guys are tight. Yeah, that's important for people watching this to find that. Yeah, and yeah, it's dope. And I think everybody has an opportunity in their city

to start creating something. Yeah. Where you're bringing people people just bring people together That's it. That was my goal when I moved here Yeah, you know cuz there's a lot of conferences here, but um locals never really had their own events So when I first moved here, I had my networking event only like 40 people came Yeah, but I just had one last week and there was a thousand signups really. Yeah, so 500 people came It was just a networking event just a networking buddy free free

No paid ads 1000 signups what made you do it? I've been having them for five years. I wanted to overcome my well selfishly I wanted to overcome my introvertness shyness awkwardness, but also I wanted to connect people. I've always loved doing that yeah, so Yeah, I've been doing doing it for five years 14 events now Wow congratulations. Yeah. So, yeah, I've been doing it for five years, 14 events now. Wow, congratulations. Yeah, it's been fun, dude. Congratulations.

I love what you're doing, man. You're just so young and you got so much life ahead of you and just so much stuff to figure out. You're just killing it. You look young, man. I can't even tell you're eight. Ah, thank you. Thank you, but I'll be 40 this year.

Wow, congrats. December 8th, I'll be 40. What's that feel like? It feels incredible, man. When I was 27, I looked at 40 as like, you know, that's over the hill. And like, I want to make sure I'm set by then. But I just feel like I have just a wealth of knowledge

and information and so many experiences. And I'm at that point where I'm becoming a responsible father and husband and this is the litest part of life. Wow. So yeah. Beautiful. Oh it's incredible man. You just don't, when you walk, you have kids? Not yet, I want kids though. Right, you're gonna have a big beautiful house and you're gonna have a beautiful wife and you're gonna open the door and you just hear these little feet running

towards you and they say daddy, bro I won. Listen there's a lot of people that make way more money than me but I won bro. I'm winning. I'm at a point where business is good and I have some money and I still have a good relationship and my kids love me. I'm their superhero. I love them. I got something to go home to. I'm very devout in my faith. God's been good, bro. Wow. Yeah.

See, that's success right there. It is. But I thought when I was 25, 26, 27, that success was an amount. But as you know, money comes and goes. It's actually easier to make it than it is to keep it. Keeping it is a responsibility. Way harder.

Oh my gosh, it just slips out of your hands somehow. You get pulled in so many directions. And the more you make, the harder it is to manage it. If you go through your bank account, and I know I do this all the time, you just find stuff like, what the heck? Oh yeah. $3,000, where is it? Yeah, I go through your bank account, and I know I do this all the time, you just find stuff. Like what the heck? $3,000, where is it?

Yeah, I go through my credit cards every few months and I'm like what the fuck? Bro, it's so hard. I'm telling you, if y'all are watching this, please just remember what I'm telling you. Don't rush to make it. As you're making a little bit, manage that little bit.

And then start managing it on the way up. But wealth, success is so elusive. You gotta focus. Absolutely. How important was having your wife by your side throughout the process? Incredible, man. It's incredible for knowing I can go home

and go to someone that I love. But also it's crucial for your focus. Because if you're not married, you're out there chasing stuff. When I was single, you just go, like you're gonna be working all day and you're thinking about what you're gonna do that night. That involves, you know, the type of person,

well, women, whatever you're into, but you spend so much time in that area of your life where you spend a whole evening with a person and then the next day and like, oh, we go on dates and you spend so much money time, you can't focus. So not having to go chase tail, bro, keeps me focused. Oh yeah, dating is a full-time job. I see it with my single friends.

They're like texting for hours a day and then they're meeting up for hours. And then arguing for hours. And I hear about the dating world these days. Holy crap. I want to know part of that. Bro, it's nasty. Damn, I hear the worst stories these days.

You married yet? About to be. Really? Next year. You're engaged? Yeah, seven years in now. Congratulations. So about that time.

Thanks, man. Yeah, no more secrets. If you lose 10 million, you're going to tell her immediately. I'll tell her. We're at a great spot now. I used to withhold a lot of stuff just because of the way I grew up. Very like shy kid, didn't want to tell people anything,

how I was feeling or anything. So I'm working on that. Podcasting has helped me open up socially. Good, good. So many benefits to podcasting. So many, dude. Being able to converse with people is a good skill to have. Oh yeah, absolutely, absolutely.

You're good at it, bro. Thanks, dude. Comes with the reps. Well, dude, where can people find out what you're up to next and find out your events and everything? I have the most electrifying group in the world. It's called the Morning Meetup. And believe it or not, I'm on a call every single morning,

Monday through Friday, with entrepreneurs that want to grow. This is a prerecorded call. It's not just some course. I'm actually on there. We're setting the tone for the month, for the day, for the week, for the year right now. And I don't know when this is going to be released, but we're setting a foundation for the rest of the year

that we can stand on for 2025. So I'm just preparing this group of people. We got a hundred something people on a call every single day, about 700 people that are in the program. But it's a monthly group where I'm literally coaching every day. Every Thursday we do Q&A, Monday through Friday, I'm doing some sort of lesson in helping. We have a book club.

We all read the same book at the same time, the same part. We don't read any more than 10 pages a day so that we can read tonight and then tomorrow morning we discuss what we read and it locks in the information. They're connecting with each other anywhere in the country. You can connect with somebody that's in this community. So that's my major community but December working on December 13 December 12 December 13 I will be 40 in December my co-host Donnie will be 46 so we're doing an event called 40 46 where we're celebrating our birthdays with a one-day all-out conference preparing people to make their first million dollars in 2025. And we're going to have so many testimonials. We're locking in preparing information where

y'all can celebrate with us our birthday, but this is our gift to you all. And the gift that you'd be giving to us, if you follow us and you've been listening to us for years is to come. And a ticket might be like a hundred bucks. We're trying to cover expenses Mm-hmm, but it's not like a $400 thousand $500 ticket. Nothing like that. You can come for 40 bucks Hi David, thanks for coming on man. Thanks for watching guys. Always check out the links below. See you next time