Financial Audit - 29-Year-Old Comedian Refuses To Grow Up

Episode Date: June 14, 2023

Check out these fun things: Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/calebhammer⁠  My socials: ⁠https://linktr.ee/calebhammer⁠  Do you want to be in a Financial Audit and you're in the Austin area?... Email castingcalebhammer@gmail.com Sponsorship and business inquiries: calebhammer@creatorsagency.co  _______________________  Timestamps: 00:00 Unemployed 02:05 leaning on others to afford life 05:03 How long are you going to accept this life? 08:58 $100 a week before all of this 10:00 Checking account and runway... 14:15 TERRIBLE view of life 18:15 YOU ARE BEING IMMATURE 21:50 STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT WORK!!! 27:00 He refuses to do anything besides be a comedian... 28:45 Student loans from a SCAM school 31:20 How long until you GROW UP? 32:45 You're throwing away your ENTIRE financial future! 39:19 You're putting yourself over your children... 45:44 You actually have to work!!! 43:45 YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!! 59:44 Good luck dude... 01:02:10 Hammer Financial Score --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/calebhammer/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:14 Restrictions apply. C-Bass Matar 29 based out of Austin and this is financial audit. What do you do for a living? So right now, currently unemployed. I was a bartender working the service industry for about 10 years. and as less than a month ago, I left my job. So right now. Okay.
Starting point is 00:00:33 Yeah, I left my job. No, no, no, no. God, I've never been fired from any of my jobs. Why do you leave a job? It was a little bit of a lot. I've been with the company for like 10 years. So I've pretty much had my ups and downs with them. I've kind of low-key built a career there that I didn't want to do.
Starting point is 00:00:49 I didn't want to serve tables forever. And I had been through like over the course of 10 years, maybe like five different rebuilds and different teams and different store. locations, all within the same company. And I kind of just started to see what was coming down the pipeline as far as like a new general manager was in the picture, a new head chef was in the picture, regional was breathing down the necks, and I was like, all right, you know, my boss who, since I'm actually from Miami, so I transferred from Miami to Austin, my boss who got me the transfer, ended up leaving
Starting point is 00:01:20 the company for another company that paid him more. And then the boss who accepted me and took the transfer in Austin, she left the company as well for another company. Okay. So once I saw I had no ties anymore and I didn't have to make sure I looked good for anybody. I put my two weeks in. I wrote them a nice letter of resignation thanking them. And yeah, you know, and I was like, all right, I'm out.
Starting point is 00:01:41 I'm going to figure this thing out. I'm in a new city. You know, I do stand-up comedy. That's the other thing that I'm really trying to do. I make some money off a comedy, but definitely not enough to like cover consistent bills month to month. Well, if you want to help me cover consistent bills, and bills month the month, please consider subscribing because we're really close to 100,000 subscribers.
Starting point is 00:02:00 Everyone is awesome. Thank you so much. So that's cool. Yes. What do you bring in? What do you think now from comedy? From comedy? Oh, God.
Starting point is 00:02:09 Jesus. I mean, I can tell you in the past 12 months, I've done probably maybe $1,000 off a comedy, possibly. But that's the... Okay, so how were you eating? Well, again, this is... I've only not been had...
Starting point is 00:02:26 a job for about a month now. So before that, I was probably bringing in on the books somewhere like 30,000. Well, how have you, okay, a year? Yeah. She's even, I mean, in Austin, that's hard, but how are you eating now? Well, my wife, now wife, she's got a pretty stable job and we've always been like half and half with everything. So we've always like rent's been half, bills have been half, groceries or whatever. Oh, she's, so she's helped subsidizing, pursuing the dream. Yeah, yeah, yeah. She's like not a sugar mama, but like a Splenda mama. She's like, I'll give you a little bit to you figure it out. But.
Starting point is 00:03:00 No. What does she do? She's a wedding planner and an event coordinator. She brings in how much of year? I would probably say somewhere north of like 60, but I could be, I'm not entirely 100% on that. It's still 15,000 hours below the Austin median household income. Yeah. She knows.
Starting point is 00:03:18 She's definitely like, I got to get to 100K. Like that's where I need. That's where she wants to be. and that's what she's... It's definitely more livable than the zero. I thought you were at for a second. Sure, no, no, no, no, no. So, married, so now we have combined finances.
Starting point is 00:03:32 Yes. Okay, so that definitely changes the picture a bit. So this comedy pursuing 29 career change going into an incredibly competitive field. Right, absolutely. Austin might be a town to do that in coming up with Joe Rogan and everything. I mean, I think it's kind of just the luck of the drive. Not really luck of the draw, but like anybody can make it anywhere.
Starting point is 00:03:57 Like I started out seven years ago in Miami and I saw, you know, people leave Miami, make it somewhere else. I saw people from Miami kind of bubble up and make it in Miami. So I've seen different. And then, of course, listening to different comedians and podcasts and listening to books, you hear everyone has like this really weird way of just making it. So, I mean, I don't bet all my marbles on Austin, but I know it definitely doesn't hurt to be able to be in front of a new crowd. Well, so comedy is one of those things, kind of like a musician, right, where you don't make money until you're one of the very few who make it, right? Right, right. What is your plan for the remaining decades of your life?
Starting point is 00:04:35 Have you thought about that? So primarily with comedy, the good thing about it, it's kind of like you pick how far you want to take it. You know, you can do the Kevin Hart route and sell out arenas night in, night out, and, you know, make millions. or you can do like a logo club comedy scene, you know, make a few thousand bucks on the weekend. You do four weekend spots. You got four to six thousand dollars depending on your club. I mean, I've heard of clubs that people make a deal with the club and they end up making like, you know, close to 10,000 a weekend. And these aren't even like you most likely have not heard of these comedians, you know, and they're making close to 50,000 in a month just off a club.
Starting point is 00:05:15 Well, making a thousand hours in the last 12 months, how far are you allowed? yourself to take it before we're like all right regroup time to go to her career i think i also don't go into it thinking like this is solely going to be my bread and butter i mean i've been doing it for so long that i kind of know that it's not it's a side hustle yeah like it's not it's not not even so much a side hustle it's like the primary one but i know it's not the one bringing in the money but that's like how i ended up getting on backstage was was through that where i was like okay let me chop around and look at what like other people need as far as like voice over work and as far as like production crew work i've done i haven't done production crew uh per se but i have
Starting point is 00:05:55 done like a lot of the manual labor stuff and things like that of different productions um so not looking at comedy ever be my main source of income at least not to like the 10 12 year mark where it's a little different now that's where you kind of got to let it it's got to sit a while before you start getting you know ROI on it so what are you plan to do for the monies uh production work You know, trying to do the voice server, the commercials, the, okay, so you're not choosing something that's not overly, highly competitive. I mean, I think, yeah, the short answer is yes, because at the end of the day, that's, like, the thing I've been working on for seven years.
Starting point is 00:06:37 I haven't been working on commercials or working on these things. I have the capabilities in the skill set to do other things. So, you've been doing it for the last month. How has that gone? Well, thankfully, I was able to save up a lot of. of money before I made the move. You know, I didn't just up and, you know. How much did you save up?
Starting point is 00:06:52 I'd probably say like, give or take like $2,000. Nothing crazy. Just enough to hold me down for a few months, you know, figure it out. If that. I think that, I mean, the marriage is what's keeping her up. Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, I lived on my own for three and a half years running pretty much that same schedule, like running that.
Starting point is 00:07:09 The reason why that I'm making like $30,000 is because. Even if we're talking in three years, the Austin's essentially doubled and cost. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Like Miami was expensive and like we have these. things called deficiencies, which are like not heard of here. They might be called something else. But essentially what it is super illegal, somebody has a house with an extra room that they don't use.
Starting point is 00:07:28 They make, they break down the wall, make a private entrance. And you pay that person, in my case, was $600 bucks a month. And you give them $600 a month and you have utilities and you have everything included. But, and they come in all shapes and sizes. And mine didn't have like a kitchen. So I had to kind of like, you know, hot plate, toast or oven. I had no kitchen sink. So I had to wash my dishes in the shower or wash my dishes in, you know, the bathroom sink and stuff like that.
Starting point is 00:07:54 There was no living room. It was all one space with everything in it. And I lived there for three and a half years. But what I pretty much would do would, yeah, I got by just pretty much like I got a pen and paper and said like, all right, how much are my bills? And how much do I need to make month to month? And I sat down with my boss and I told them like, I'm pursuing this comedy thing. So, and I was at this point, me and my boss had created a reputation where we both knew how we worked with each other. I was reliable.
Starting point is 00:08:20 I was one of the hardest workers. And like in the ranking system, I was a first ranked server. So I went up to him, like after him seeing what I can do and being like, this is what I want to do. And he was like, dude, no question. Like, I see how much you hustle. So whatever schedule you need, just write it down. And I'll make it happen. But now, of course, you're in a partnership.
Starting point is 00:08:37 Right, right, right. So can't just be full on your own hot play. Yeah, no, no, no, for sure. What is your current living situation? In what sense? Where you live and stuff. Like, I live in a 2-1. Not too far from here.
Starting point is 00:08:50 I'm like in South Austin. And she essentially just takes care of the rent then? As of now, like she right now takes more care of like the going out stuff. Like we want to go out and have a drink or we want to go out. Because I'm the first one to be like, yo, we can just stay home. You know what I mean? Like we don't need to go out and do this. So she's like, all right, bro.
Starting point is 00:09:09 Like I'm with you and I want to enjoy your company. Like I don't care. Have you guys done the full combining money thing like yet? Or like your money is her money. Her money is your money? Yeah, yeah. We have, so we have, and I didn't want to use her numbers or anything. So these are strictly my numbers.
Starting point is 00:09:23 Yeah. But before we moved here, we had talked about moving to Austin for a few years. And finally, the last year, what we were doing was putting away a hundred bucks a week, both of us. So over the course of a year, you know, we made a nice little cushion to move over here because we knew all the stuff we weren't going to bring and we're going to have to buy new stuff and all that. And then right before, not right before, but four or five months before we left. left. I proposed to her. So we had an engagement party and then people that combined the engagement party with the goodbye party. They gave us some money as well. So we had that money stashed away. And yeah, we do have like she has her money that she handles. I got my money
Starting point is 00:10:04 that I handle. And then we have a joint account where we both put in what we can or like when we're paying rent, we take from there or we put money back from there or whatever the case may be. All right. So we'll loop back to the career thing in a second. But we have a couple of counsel. Okay. Let's go. How much is it in a checking account? Because it doesn't have a balance on it. My checking account, I believe as of yesterday, it's probably like $2,500. Okay, and you both manage separate checking accounts at this point?
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Starting point is 00:10:51 slash free for life to find out how. Restrictions apply. Service is not available in all areas. So, $2,500. Yeah, that's a comfortable balance to have in there. We had $5,536 come in, which is mostly payroll, which does not exist anymore. Exactly. But $4,932 went out. How were we going to have anything similar to that coming out when no money's coming in um i think a big part of it is like and not not thousands of dollars but i know a big part of it is like going out to comedy shows and like having a beer and you have one beer and that's seven bucks and you have two 14 you tip on that you're walking 17 18 bucks and then you're doing four or five shows you know what i mean so you multiply that you're losing you're not losing i
Starting point is 00:11:39 wouldn't say i was losing but spending hundreds of dollars on like going out drinking things like that whereas now it's a little more before i knew i was going to get the money especially working as a bartender you get cash in hand i'm kind of like ah i barely feel this you know like the 30 bucks i'm going to spend on drinks you know um i'm not going to feel it so that's another thing too having cash directly in your hands is completely different from like having a wait for a paycheck every two weeks and like i got you so lots of zels going out lots of zels and venmo and then paying off cards as well yes i always pay my card off every month Well, that's good.
Starting point is 00:12:15 My wife taught me that. She got my credit score up. Again, how do we pay off credit? Every month without money. Now you guys are combined, so I guess she could, but. No, I mean, I still. I did this with a game plan of like, I'm going to have three months of figuring this out and doing this and doing that. Like, worst case scenario, bartending is not rocket science.
Starting point is 00:12:38 What is this? That is my savings account. Okay, you said $2,000. I see $5,000. I thought you said checkings. What's in my checking? When you couldn't see that total. I asked how much it was saved up.
Starting point is 00:12:47 Oh. You said 2000. Before I made the jump to leave the company. That's what I meant. But it's 5,000 now. Yeah, yeah, it's 5,000. But the cushion I gave myself before is that $2,500 that's in the checking. Where did the money come from?
Starting point is 00:13:01 Just the remaining paychecks? Yeah, hourly. You know, hourly. And then I have like, I always start. So I have a long history with this company. But long story short, I always save up my PTO and I don't use it. Yeah. So when this does happen, I can cash it out.
Starting point is 00:13:15 Oh, sure. And I can count on that money coming in. So when was your last day? The 16th of December. Okay, so leading up to right before then, you know, salt traders, Amazon, Nordstrom, Nordstrom, Audible, Apple subscription, Nordstrom, Nordstrom, Joanne's, Blue Finn, sushi, Torchee, Spotify subscription, native hostel, native hostel, Lyft, Nordstrom, Wendy's, GoPuff, Amazon order, Amazon order, Amazon order, Amazon Order Nordstrom
Starting point is 00:13:42 Waterburger Nordstrom Slackers Brewing Company McDonald's Anderson milk gopuff Nordstrom Lavaca Street Uber
Starting point is 00:13:50 Oh this is a postmates Amazon's payment Amazon order Nordstrom Ordstrom That's something that can't even come
Starting point is 00:13:59 close to continuing Well I mean The Nordstrom stuff won't Because that's where I ate That's why Nordstrom was there Then there's big spends on Nordstrom Because of gifts
Starting point is 00:14:09 Yeah Nordstrom has restaurants I was a bartender and server at their restaurants Over three locations Okay But yeah that's where a lot of the Nordstrom spending came from And then The Amazon stuff was a lot of like the last minute
Starting point is 00:14:24 Gift shopping Oh sorry, can you curse on here? Sure No You know gift shopping and stuff like that And trying to get the holidays ready So like a last minute of all that between But I did I definitely did go to Nordstrom
Starting point is 00:14:36 And go buy some gifts But for the most part Nordstrom is food American consumer is Yes. That's fine. Even though you're preparing for a whole career change and makes another money,
Starting point is 00:14:45 we're still spending, spending, spending, spending on those holidays. Spending, spending. Yeah, man, you got to make them people happy. So what's the hustle to collect now? What is the day to day in your life? Right now, I'm just doing, you know, going on backstage,
Starting point is 00:14:56 sending out cover letters, sending out auditions and applying to different, you know, weird gigs. I've always come up on some weird gigs. That's just been my... What has the response been like so far? I mean, I got one here with, yourself. I got another hit with another lady that I'm working on a, she's, she's trying to
Starting point is 00:15:16 launch some sort of service and she kind of wants some like test dummies, I would say. So, you know, making a few hundred bucks there with her doing that. And then there's another website. I've looked into it. I haven't really applied to anything, but it's an ambassador website. So they freelance ambassadors and I did a lot of work with the dolphins and the Marlins back in Miami. So I have that ambassador side of me and like that skill set. How many hours a day are you working right now? Right now. I mean, technically I'm not making any money. Yeah, but working or trying to get work. Trying to get work. Probably I would say like let's say five, five hours, give or take, whether it's me writing comedy, me sending my clips out to comedy clubs. And why don't you get
Starting point is 00:16:01 another job? Five hours is not a lot of day. Right. And you only have five thousand. And of course, this will prolong the runway. If you had another job that was bringing in something, it would prolong the runway of you being able to bring in more money before your savings was, you're married, but before your savings was drained. Yeah. Right now I'm just, I kind of have like this bohemian outlook
Starting point is 00:16:24 where I'm just kind of like, you know, I'm not from the standard school of thought or anything like that. So I just look at it like I left Miami for a reason and I came to a new. city and I'm not going to do the same things or look for the same opportunities that I had in Miami in a new city. Luckily money doesn't care about schools of thought. No it doesn't absolutely not absolutely not um but for the most part that's that's what I'm looking at is just kind of like you know working on stuff there's also it's a bunch you know it's writing the comedy it's going
Starting point is 00:16:58 out to do comedy and how do you walk into a company and go hey uh because this is pretty much what I did when I moved here. Uber eats and stuff. You're ordering a lot of Uber. Yeah. Things where you make your own hours. I used to do postmates as well before a few years ago. I think the real, the best scenario for like those sort of things would be ride sharing.
Starting point is 00:17:17 Like Uber is going to be the best bang for your buck and all that. Sure. But again, not my car. I'm sharing it with my wife, which I'm sure she wouldn't mind. I didn't know that. Yeah. But that's why I'm like, nah, I don't like using other people's cars for those sort of stuff. Like I barely like driving to gigs with her car.
Starting point is 00:17:33 Any reason you don't have a car? Because, you know, it's a car infrastructure place, so you kind of have to have one. Yeah, I really wanted. So when I moved here, I had my car. But due to, like, the state inspections, my car wasn't going to pass it. The emissions. It was that bad. Yeah, it was pretty bad.
Starting point is 00:17:48 I had it checked in Miami by a mechanic. And I told them, like, you know, is this going to pass the, because we don't have emissions test over there or anything. And the guy was like, I mean, it will if you put like $3,000 in it. And I've had this car for 10 years. And I was like, all right. Like I'm definitely not dropping $3,000 on this. And then my fiance was like, yo, let's just share my car.
Starting point is 00:18:09 She works from home. Yeah. So I was like, all right, that works. I mean, it took, it's still taking some. Drive her job while she's working then. Huh? Well, not. She can work.
Starting point is 00:18:17 Like, she can work from her car, but she needs a reliable, like, Wi-Fi. No, you work in her car while she's working from home. Yeah, no, I'm not going to take her car like that. What? It's not taking. Well, not taking. No, no, no. But, like, I don't like unnecessary driving in her car.
Starting point is 00:18:33 Although she's the one that goes like, yo, this is our car. Yeah, but again, just the school of thought where I'm from, it's kind of like,
Starting point is 00:18:43 I'm going to try to do this first before I kind of, like I've never put money first. Money's never been a motive of mine. It's the reason why I've been doing comedy for seven years. Yeah, and I know that for a fact in comedy,
Starting point is 00:18:55 if you do it well enough, there is that. Well, we don't bank on that. I mean, that's like trying to bank on that. I bank on that. I've invested seven years of my,
Starting point is 00:19:03 Realistic humans don't think on that. That's why. I'm not from that. Like, you know, it's not every day that you tell somebody like, yo, I'm not going to go to school and I'm going to pursue stand-up comedy. People look at you sideways. I've done it long enough. I've had enough conversations where people where they're kind of like, and then they don't know that you can make 10 G's in a weekend at a mediocre club. Well, yeah, but what if, but that's such a what if there's like a million people who want to make it.
Starting point is 00:19:31 What do you mean? There's like a million people who want to make it. and all these different things. We hear about the stories of the people who do make it. What happens when statistically... Right, right, right. It's just like someone doesn't make it. What do they do?
Starting point is 00:19:44 They're not able to retire because they put all the time into this. Granted, I don't want to sound like these little gurus and whatnot, but like I don't think of like what if I don't make it. Like I genuinely don't have that thought in my head. That's not a healthy way of thinking, though, is it? Because it's not realistic. It's not in the real world. It is.
Starting point is 00:20:02 That's not in the real world. Kevin Hart? You don't think so much told him like, what if? No, of course. Of course. Absolutely, of course. But what about the 99% who don't? Again, we only hear about the people who do make it.
Starting point is 00:20:13 That's what I just said. For sure. I mean, I think I'm part of that 1% that does. That will make it? A thousand percent. Isn't it more mature to be prepared for the statistical likelihood of not? I think that's safe. And I've never played it.
Starting point is 00:20:26 Immature. Isn't it mature? No. What are you saying? People who do things that are reckless are immature? Yes. Like Tony Hawk is immature? What do you mean?
Starting point is 00:20:34 That's his career. I mean, that's an mature. But that's right. This is it not? He's throwing his life out there. I bet you he has all these insurances on and all these measures. Before he did all that, though. I bet.
Starting point is 00:20:44 So when he first got into it? You think he was like, man, I got to stay at this McDonald's because like, no. Like, I'm sure when Tony Hawk was like, I'm going to do this. I'm going to do this. And that's the type of mentality he had. I don't think he was thinking about what if this happens and what I genuinely don't like well not necessarily we don't know he could have been working he could have he could have been working during that whole thing and okay if he was going through a situation where he uh
Starting point is 00:21:13 was making no money and he was just jumping into something like that that could you know put his life in danger i would say of course that is an immature choice but he just became well it's not just luck because it came from talent but he became one of those where he did get lucky to make it. That doesn't make it a mature choice necessarily. I mean, I just see it as like playing it safe isn't always the best bet. Like yes, you can have for sure you can have the money and you can do that. For a short time, I work for Tesla. I worked for Tesla for four months. I was a sales associate or a sales whatever. It's not associated. It's something else. No commission, no nothing hourly. And I mean, I was working doing the grown-up nine of five, the real mature thing. And I was
Starting point is 00:22:00 miserable and I was like this is no and everyone around me was miserable too because we would talk about it at the lunchroom like there's no way I'm doing this tomorrow right like yeah and and I'm like you're you're gonna do and and you'll hear people and this is that I was on the lower tier I didn't even have half the responsibilities the big heads had and those guys weren't even that big head and I would just be like no man like I'm not gonna trade in um my my liberty, my way of feeling good, again, I'm also coming from an aspect of like, I went up to my manager and told him I need a work weekdays only, no weekends, no nights. I'm only working days.
Starting point is 00:22:44 Well, that's fine. There's nothing wrong with that. Do you understand how those are two polar opposite ends that are middle grounds there between someone who is miserable. For sure. And to them, the person who is absolutely miserable, the job that show up to that job every day and they say, oh my goodness, I'm so miserable at this job, then they go home and they don't apply to a single job.
Starting point is 00:23:03 I say they're essentially acting like a child. If they are miserable in that situation, now there are times where you are busting your butt to get another job, and if you're not getting that other job, then, okay, fine. Yeah, I would complain about it too, because they're at least putting in the work to get that other thing. But the vast majority of people who are just complaining, we've all worked with them.
Starting point is 00:23:22 I've worked in the service industry for years. Right. If they just complain about the job, and then they don't do anything to actually fix it. Right, absolutely. Like, I don't take that to heart very well. Right. That in that Tesla situation.
Starting point is 00:23:34 I mean, I also saw, I also see, not just saw, but I also see the handcuffs people put themselves in when they're like, where you're going to make $70,000 a year. And if you do X, Y, Z, not only are you going to make your 70, but you're going to get another 20 on top of that. And on top of that 20 you're getting, you're going to get stocks. And you're going to be able to buy in at half price. And you're going to be able to do all this. So now people are going, oh, man, like, I want to leave.
Starting point is 00:23:58 But I'm so tied up here. I'm so tied up to this job that I can't afford to leave it. Everyone puts themselves, not everyone. A lot of people that I've met have put themselves in positions where now they can't move because if they move, there's too much at risk. And that over the course of my life, I've put myself in positions where I can kind of bounce in and out,
Starting point is 00:24:20 figure it out. I mean, I've washed cars. I've sold products at Walmarts, Tesla, Marlins, dolphins, radio, bartending, serving, I've done all that, but I've never put myself in a situation where I'm like confined and I can't make a move because I know they offered me an assistant manager position many years ago early into my comedy career. And I was like, okay, so you want me to go on salary to get paid for $40, I mean for 40 hours, but work 60, not have my nights, not have my weekends, and what would happen to my
Starting point is 00:24:51 comedy? It slowly starts trickling away because now, and then being in the service industry, working with so many managers, the higher up you go, the more contained you are in that place, the harder it is for you to break away from it. Because now you're the GM. Now you got to handle the front of the house. You got to handle the back of house. You got to handle the head chef.
Starting point is 00:25:11 I mean, no one's first to take a job. For sure. I mean, there's priorities. But we're also talking about. Nobody walks into a... That versus working zero hours a week. For sure. A thousand percent.
Starting point is 00:25:20 But I do see the way people put themselves into this corner. And I just kind of go like, I'm not. A lot of that mindset, though, they're just kind of uneducated about the job market in general. Like, they could find a position at a competing company or within the overall marketplace that could, you know, maybe they'll start a little lower, but they'll be able to accelerate in a position they care about and actually enjoy. Now there's always caveats to that. It could be the, you know, 2008, 2009 all over again.
Starting point is 00:25:46 Then that's much harder to leave a job. Right, right. But that is not the vast majority of the history since the Industrial Revolution in the country. Right, right. So I didn't know that. They're just wrong. about them locking themselves in. It's just what I see.
Starting point is 00:25:59 It's the, you know, you got family. They're just uneducated. Could be 100%. It could also just be like they don't want to start at zero. Like, you know, how many companies are hiring GMs off the rip, you know? Exactly. That's why I said it's situational to the overall economy. So it's like now you have kids, right?
Starting point is 00:26:15 Because let's just use my example. I was 10 years with the same company on and off every now and then. But overall, 10 years with the same company. I started when I was 19. I'm 29 now. My life has gone so different than what I thought of in the first, you know, what I could have thought when I was 19. Now, you take those same 10 years and you apply it to somebody who was 29 and is now 39,
Starting point is 00:26:37 who at 29 had no kids, 39's got three kids, now they got health insurance, they got a wife or a husband depending on it, they got their kids depending on it, they got that income depending on it. Now, how do you tell that person just bounce, just look for something else when you've built what you've built at this company? Because there's also like non-tangibles. I don't even know if I'm saying that right. But things you can't measure of like the people you work with, the manager you have,
Starting point is 00:27:01 the situation you're in, how close his job is to you. Like, yeah, I've seen people who maybe take a less pay cut, but now the job is so much further. And it's so much more inconvenient for them because there were certain perks that you couldn't necessarily measure. Then they chose the worst job. That doesn't make sense. But again, scenarios change. Then they're not doing their research and asking the right questions in the interviews and lots of things.
Starting point is 00:27:20 I don't know if that's all the way true. Further, if it's further, then use Google Maps before you take the job. Yeah, but I still don't think that that's, uh... There's always caveats. You can always get a place and have a bad manager that you don't know. That's 100% true. Yeah. But if, if anyone feels they're 100% locked in a position that if they go to another company,
Starting point is 00:27:40 that they're going to lose everything, then they're just wrong. I mean, for sure. I totally get that. But not from my experience, I'm not talking about anybody else. From my experience, from what I've seen, I've had those conversations where people where they're kind of like, man, I hate this job. I hate coming here.
Starting point is 00:27:55 But I just have so much tied up into it that I really can't just bounce. And again, me, thankfully, got, you know, I do want kids, but not right now. I don't have any kids. I don't have any major debt over my head. I don't have, you know, when I got my car, I paid it off in seven months. So I wouldn't have to pay a car note. And I knew that I was going to take this weird, I did I know it was going to be a comedian? No, but I knew it was going to be in the entertainment industry.
Starting point is 00:28:21 I wanted to do radio. wanted to do that sort of thing. And ignorance to not knowing that I could go to, at that point I was going to the community college of Miami. I didn't know that I could go into the production department. I had no idea that was a thing. I thought like, well, if you don't go to school for science or math or social studies, like, or English, you're not going to get anything.
Starting point is 00:28:42 Like I didn't know that. And I went to a technical school called Miami Media School. Yeah. I don't regret it because the people I've met, the lessons I learned, I was young and naive. but I definitely would have done it over by doing it through a college program and then moving into the university realm. But that wasn't the way that the cards fell in my favorite. You know, I took a more rogue route where I was a basketball announcer at the college than I was
Starting point is 00:29:11 I would do like pep rallies from my old school and like voiceover work for them when I graduate. And it was just like these weird, very weird way of doing stuff. No, we do a really bad job in this country and preparing people post high school of what they're all avenues are? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Do you have any debts from that community college? Right now, I do, but it's up in debate.
Starting point is 00:29:34 7,500. What's in debate? The forgiveness? No, no, no, no. There was something else before that. Another one of my classmates told me about it. It was a, it's a specific application where they, you give them, like, what, you tell them exactly what happened to you in your scenario and, like, the school.
Starting point is 00:29:51 and if they find that you were misled or something. But this was a community college. No, no, no, no, no. This was a technical. Oh, sorry. This was a private? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Private technical.
Starting point is 00:30:02 Okay. So you get certificates. You don't get a degree. You get a certificate. You get a diploma. And one of my former classmates told me that he submitted this application and it went up for dispute and he won and he got it taken off. So right now. Have you pursued that yet?
Starting point is 00:30:18 I have and I've checked on it and they still, it still said. as pending and it's been going on three years. Yeah. And I tell them like, but do you have a response yet? And they're like, no, all I can say is like, I see what you see. This is what's on my end. And it's just pending under review. Definitely wouldn't bank at that.
Starting point is 00:30:34 But if you were led astray, I know there's lots of things like that. And then those colleges, everyone has had their debt forgiven for those kind of colleges. If anything like that actually didn't happen, then I hope that gets forgiven. Because obviously that's praying upon young people. It's Miami, man. It's a city built off cocaine. What do you think? You know, like, who do you think is going to rise to the top, which is why I wanted to get out of there.
Starting point is 00:30:55 I just felt so misrepresented. So I just kind of see it like it's another one of these schemes they do, man. They sell you dreams and go like, oh, you want to be the next radio person? Like, here you go. Read this script. And then you do this little demo. And then they're like, you're great. So $7,500.
Starting point is 00:31:11 Is that private debt or federal? I believe it is federal. If I'm not mistaken. Good, because that's what would be forgiven. I don't know if you'd be able to get private debt. Yeah, no, no, no. I got a grant and then I got a federal loan. Okay.
Starting point is 00:31:25 Yeah, so I have that with a federal. Any other debts? No. But you'll want to get a car at some point, probably. Yeah, absolutely. That's one of my goals. Written that, wrote that in my goals journal. A goal for how long?
Starting point is 00:31:39 Within 12 months. I mean, I don't think in December I'm going to get a car. Absolutely not. But, like, I think somewhere along the lines of, like, June, August, I'll have a better understanding of, like, what my family. finances are looking like, I don't get me wrong. June comes around. I still ain't bringing no money.
Starting point is 00:31:55 My wife ain't going to be like, well, go out there and, you know, meet Joe Rogan. Like, that's not going to be the play. Like I told her, we both came into agreement. Like, at the end of the day, I know how to bartend. I know how to wait tables and. Well, how long are you giving yourself before you like real world scenario? I'm saying three months. I'm saying three months.
Starting point is 00:32:12 Three months isn't bad. Yeah, no, no, I'm giving it three months because at the same time I'm reinvesting like, you know, with those $1,000 that I made from comedy this past year. I reinvested it in building my website. I bought, you know, a little bit of merchandise, nothing crazy, just some T-shirts I had made. I reinvested that money into headshots. And then ultimately invested some of that,
Starting point is 00:32:36 reinvested some of that money into backstage, where I was looking for these sorts of weird gigs. This is Euphoria Calvin Klein, the new Elixir Collection, featuring three perfume intense scents, inspired by a unique orchid accord paired with vanilla, each with its own distinct attitude, each with its own universe, bold elixir, sensual, woody, addictive, magnetic elixir, sweet and romantic like a lingering touch, solar elixir, a radiant expression of joy, ultra-concentrated for amplified impact and lasting power. Find your euphoria. Discover the euphoria elixir collection
Starting point is 00:33:12 by Calvin Klein. Jobs and things like that. So three months is what I'm giving myself. If I can break even, And that's, you know, not horrible. But again, definitely not the goal. Okay. I appreciate that. I think that's a relatively mature way to look at this. For sure. That's okay.
Starting point is 00:33:31 I'm glad you're giving yourself that. And I'm totally good with pursuing this as a side hustle. There's nothing wrong with that. Please don't take anything I've said with like, don't pursue this at all. I'm just like going 100% in when we have nothing and, you know. For sure. It doesn't make sense on paper. But I'm okay with testing it out for a few months since you have to
Starting point is 00:33:49 support of the wife. And if she, like, literally supports you, like, in a way where, like, she says, like, okay, this is good. Then we're good. Big reason why we got married was because I had that backing from her for years. Okay. So that was good. But you want to retire? A thousand percent. Let's talk about the statistical likelihood that you won't retire off of comedy money, which is fine. You could still be a comedian, but you're not retiring off of that by getting a million dollar check or something like that. Right, right, right. Do you have anything invested in retirement? I do. I have 401k. And if I told you how much I have, I'd be lying. Any guess?
Starting point is 00:34:21 Are we below 10,000? Yeah, I'm pretty sure below 10,000. If not close to 10. Do you know compound growth in the overall marketplace? I do not. Okay. So it's like if you put money in, it starts to grow with the S&P 500, as an example. Right, right.
Starting point is 00:34:40 The index fund, S&P 500, that will grow on average about 10% a year. So $1 will go up 10%. Right. But now that $1.10 will grow 10%. Right. And then it continues to compound and compound and compound. Yes. The longer you wait to actually do anything and put it into retirement,
Starting point is 00:35:01 the less likely you'll have to actually be able to retire accurately. Right. Because at 20, what do you think that dollar is worth? If you were to invest it in the S&P 500, $1 at the age of 20 to retirement at 65, I think I've heard or seen a number where it's like, what, somewhere north of a million? Am I making that up? No, $1, $1, a single dollar. A single dollar.
Starting point is 00:35:26 A single dollar. A single dollar. A single dollar. Until you're 65 from 20. I'm not good at math, bro. You're going to have to give me the answer to this. $88. $88.
Starting point is 00:35:37 So for every dollar you put in at $20 because $88. It's showing you the value of compound growth from an early age. Yes. If you start that at $30, every dollar. by the time it turns into retirement, $32, down from $88 to $32. And you're approaching that 30, only one year off. So you've already lost that decade of the best compound growth of your life, of not investing to potentially have the money needed for retirement.
Starting point is 00:36:07 If you wait another decade, just testing this thing out and we're not working a lot, goes down from $32 to $12. Still an incredible return on a dollar. A dollar, $12, still great. But now we've gone from $88 to $12 just for a single dollar putting in. That is what we are losing when we just mess around at an early age. We're good with pursuing things that are passions that we want to do on the side while we're contributing to our future, our likely future selves, just to make sure that you're able to actually survive.
Starting point is 00:36:42 And then when that side hustle that you want to do as a passion becomes full time, then we can switch it over to full time. Right, right. That makes sense. We all want that to happen. Right. But more than anything, I want to make sure you're not dying on the Walmart floor in your 80s. Right, right. Absolutely.
Starting point is 00:37:01 A hundred percent. Does that math make sense? Of course. So what are your thoughts around this whole thing? Has that changed any perspective? Honestly, no, man. I mean, I agree. I know the math and the facts you're throwing at me,
Starting point is 00:37:15 but let me ask you this, did you go to college? Yes. Did you go to university? Yes. How many years did you spend the combined five? Five. I didn't do any of that. I took a whole different route.
Starting point is 00:37:29 So like mentally how we view things, how we see things. Why doesn't change my perspective is because I haven't been betting on statistics or numbers for a long time now for over seven years even before that i wasn't betting on being a company man and making and retirement and things it's literally been like and i and i get it i totally understand where you're coming from as far as like the side hustle is a side hustle till it becomes the main thing i don't like the word bet it's not like at a casino this is basic math for sure for sure but at the end of the day what you do is you make a decision You either go 100% this route or you go 100% that.
Starting point is 00:38:13 No. Well, in this, in the very vague, in a very vague scenario. There are many, many things in between those two options. What I'm saying is, in my scenario, I bet on, all right, this isn't going to be pretty. It's not going to be traditional. Doesn't come with a manual where you go like, well, it's not like baseball, where you go rookie ball, single A, double A, triple A, MLB. There's none of that in comedy or in. acting or anything and i'm very much into like that hippie mentality like i was saying i'm bohemian where i kind of
Starting point is 00:38:46 like yeah i roll with the universe i have learned over the years over the seven years of pursuing something i'm passionate about have you ever read the book the alchemist okay well there's a book called the alchemist and essentially it's like a fictional book about this young boy who's like journey for a treasure and along the way of thousand and one things happen to him but essentially it's like the universal the language of the universe and understanding the language of the universe. And that's the way I've always felt like. The more I've been involved in comedy, the more I've pursued it.
Starting point is 00:39:17 It's put me in situations that never in a million years would I walk into this random bar in New York at a five o'clock to meet these people from a complete different walk of life to sit in. It's an unnatural hour. It's too early for anyone to be up. Too late for anyone to be. Being a comedian, you're running into it all, bro. You'd be surprised. I'm doing mics at 12 p.m. in New York. And there's someone drunk, not me.
Starting point is 00:39:40 there already. So, but again, this is just like you, it's not just so like black and white or, you know, you got to make this much money to do this. It's me just for a long time betting on myself, betting on what I want to do. And then also having this being this hippie, bohemian mentality I have, I have over the years of doing comedy have also built this weird connection with the universe as far as like, feeling when something's right, doing things that you typically wouldn't do, having faith, I think to me the biggest thing.
Starting point is 00:40:19 And I know to some people it's like, well, you know, you can't measure faith. You can't put a number on faith, 1,000%. But my school of thought and the way I've like just fed my brain over the years. What if your school thought was wrong, though? But it's, I have too many examples around me to think that. Just as many examples as there are of like, Like, you know, if you do this, step by step. The what?
Starting point is 00:40:43 So they're not anecdotal? Hold on. What do you mean about anecdotal? I'm not the smartest. I'm not the smartest. I'm not the box, right? In what sense? In what sense, like, you know, they're not anecdotal.
Starting point is 00:40:53 Let me put this in another way. Because I can tell that since it's just you, that we can just be more bohemian and all this stuff. And even with the wife, if she vibes with it, that's fine. Right, right, right. kids in the future? Absolutely. A thousand percent. How many kids? When? I say three, but my wife says, you know, if I have one and done, then it's one and done,
Starting point is 00:41:19 and I said in it. One to three then. One to three. And how many years? Somewhere along the next, you know, within the next 10 years easy. I mean, I don't want to have my first kid when I'm 40. So let's say within the next five years for at least the first, let's say. It is irresponsible of a parent to not be 100.
Starting point is 00:41:39 percent set up for retirement if they have kids because then it forces them to be financially responsible for their parents yes i don't believe because they're not going to allow their parents to just die on the street what do you mean you don't believe that i don't believe that i don't yeah yeah yeah yeah say why oh i just i don't i don't believe that it's i think that's parenting if you grow up to tell your kid you got to take care of me you know then yeah you your kid's going to feel guilty into taking care of you because they don't have that much money or your parents don't have that much money. But I never would tell my kid like it's your responsibility. No, no, no. I'm not saying you're telling them.
Starting point is 00:42:21 But I'm saying if you're not able to afford to retire because you never saved up any money to retire, which at this point, we're not saving up any money to tire. They are going to feel morally obligated to take care of you and put certain things of their life on hold because of that. No, I don't believe that. I believe that because that's my job to tell them whether I'm working just because someone doesn't want to work. So you think they're just going to allow you to die on the street. But I wouldn't allow myself to do it. I don't have a problem with working until, you know, 50, 60, 70s, like just because... Better to 50s and 60s.
Starting point is 00:42:51 I mean, how many people are retired and get bored and go like, bro, I need to do something. Yes, yes. But there are things outside of our control. Completely different. If you're in a medical situation where you cannot work, Social Security might not even be a thing by the time we retire. Who knows what Medicaid, Medicare will be like. You can't rely on those things because they're... at least at this point, on the verge of being broken?
Starting point is 00:43:12 And then what if your own body is broken? There are health issues, things like this. You cannot guarantee that you're able to work into your 80s and 90s. True. Very true. Thousand percent. So then you put the pressure on your children. I don't believe that, man.
Starting point is 00:43:26 Tell me how. I have family. I got other people, whether it's being a burden on other people. Then, yeah, okay, for sure. But not my kids. You're okay putting a burden on other people. I want to see it as a burden. What do you mean?
Starting point is 00:43:38 If they're forced to do something because they're more obligated because they don't want to see you die on the street. Yeah, no, but I just feel like that's not a... Because you were irresponsible in your life leading up to that. No, I wouldn't believe that. I wouldn't say it's being irresponsible. I think that's the wrong word for you. Not being able to sustain your own life and take care of yourself.
Starting point is 00:43:55 It's not irresponsible. Yeah, but I have not done that. No one's ever... No, no, no. So far you have not done that. Right, right, right. That's what I'm saying. And I still plan on that not being the case.
Starting point is 00:44:05 Like, don't get me wrong. Guns to my head, someone goes like, Hey, homie, you're 32. You got to figure the shit out. You got to get out there and you got to get a $60,000 job or whatever the case may be. No question. And whatever I got to put, whatever I can put away, I put away, you know what I mean? The reason I bring that up is because you've already admitted that the 88 to 32 to 12 doesn't matter to you when it comes to each decade passing.
Starting point is 00:44:29 It doesn't matter to you. So in that case, that is being irresponsible for the future you taking care of yourself. From your perspective. From the perspective of math in the United States capitalistic society. From your perspective is responsible. From the society of reality and personal finances. From my perspective, from the examples that I'm using and going off of, yes, doing $50,000 at a show as much as you want to say like that's a big what if.
Starting point is 00:44:55 Yes. I don't have that what if. So that's why from my perspective, you have financial insight, right? I have worldly insight. I have different insight that doesn't come into a play of money. or value or quantity. Well, shocker, when it comes to retirement, money and personal finances is what wins.
Starting point is 00:45:14 Say that to every comedian who has been successful. Again, I said we don't need to think about them because that's the only people we think about. We don't think about the 99% who don't make it. Because why think about the people I don't relate to? How do you know you don't relate? Okay, let's talk about the word you already mentioned. Let's talk about the word bet.
Starting point is 00:45:31 You said you don't bet on the 80-3212. That's not bad. That's just math. But you say, say let's let's just forget the that might or might not happen when it comes to getting a $50,000 show that is a legit bet you are betting your future on that this is not bet this is finance basic math reality that is bet reality bet reality right so my reality was never to pursue that that's my reality I never pursued that no but you talked about this is a bet what you're doing
Starting point is 00:46:03 is a literal bet yeah yeah I get I get what you're saying like yeah for sure that's numbers, that's facts, you can't negate that. There's no negating that for sure. But what I'm saying by bet is my approach to retirement isn't that way. My compound of interest, of my savings and all that isn't that way. It's never been that way. So you're okay with being at the casino just all on black, all on black, all on black constantly. No, no, no, I bet I do the roulette, I love the roulette, I space out my bets, you know, I don't put it all on one. I kind of bet the quadrants. I'll bet pairs, I'll bet colors. So not going all in on black. Not my style.
Starting point is 00:46:38 So you're not going all in on comedy? Oh, no, that's different. You said gambling. You said gambling in the casino. You are gambling your financial future. I'm absolutely going all in on comedy. Not going all in on black. I'm going all in on comedy.
Starting point is 00:46:50 99% chance to lose, 1% chance to win. We are going 100% on the 1%. Absolutely. So let me ask you this. Sure. What did you do as far as like hobbies were concerned when you were younger or even now? Like music, make videos. Okay.
Starting point is 00:47:06 I always make, I was always. I've always made videos in different. So production. There was a YouTube channel when I was in high school that my friends made and then also making music. Okay, so had there been a way to someone tell you, like, listen, you can make money off of it. We don't know how much money you're going to make,
Starting point is 00:47:23 but it was looking promising. You got, you know, not the whole year. You're not crushing that all year, but you're getting those little, you rub elbows with this person. You go do this with that person. And you rub elbows around these people, these individuals you recognize in your industry, let's say the music or production industry,
Starting point is 00:47:40 and you saw a glimmer of hope of like, I can do something with this. I can make this happen, right? Would you not want to pursue that? I mean, maybe not. Maybe in your philosophy you like the safer, more secure route. You got numbers, facts. Things you can't really negate. Well, it's not about that.
Starting point is 00:47:58 I would say I would 100% do what you were doing before I understood anything about personal finances. Right. But once me and the braid inside of me were confronted with facts and reality, then that's when you're forced to admit to yourself, do I stay ignorant to reality or do I accept reality? And I chose to accept the reality. And that reality is, okay, and the music was the side hustle for the longest time. Right.
Starting point is 00:48:24 Never expected to make money off the videos. But I was like, okay, so I'm going to be working and always work during that, saving for my retirement, saving from my first home. well, I pursue musical activities on the side that are side hustles. And if that gets to a point where I can make it, then I will pursue that full time, as I've recommended here. Right. So that is what I did. If we, if anything we believe in the world, we just sit on it and think that we're right no matter what when new perspectives, especially perspectives with more reality on its side, we just block them out no matter what, then we're doing our to self a disaver.
Starting point is 00:49:00 For sure, for sure. Like to a certain extent, I definitely agree with you. Like, and I'm not, I'm not trying to say like, oh, well, you know, that I'm not going to, that doesn't make any sense to me. Like, no, it absolutely makes sense. What you're saying is 100% factual. But what I'm saying is just that my philosophy, my way of thinking, it's not so much that I'm pushing that out the way, but it's, I'm focused on another avenue. I'm focused on another way of getting to where I want to be. That doesn't have to be this way.
Starting point is 00:49:29 Like, and again, I know you're saying, well, you're the. You're talking about the 1% who've made it. Absolutely. Why would I look at the 99% of people who didn't make it? The lessons I look at the 99% for would be how to not make it. I've seen people, and this is solely off my experience around comedians that I've been with that, they've been doing it. Let's say we have been doing it for three years.
Starting point is 00:49:51 And they go, well, I'm not making enough money. If they're not going to book me for money, I'm not going to do this. And like right off rip, if you're doing it for the money, you're in it for the wrong reason. Like every comedian or any artist that's pursuing the artistry industry. Seriously, we'll tell you if you're doing it for the money, 99% of the time you're doing it for the wrong reason. And I've seen comedians that fall off because they don't get the money they want right away. So they're like, no, you know, this, I'm out.
Starting point is 00:50:16 I've seen comedians that eagles get big and they think they should be headlining every show when they barely got a 20-minute set down and they want to do 45. And their ego knocks them out. I've seen comedians that don't want to put the work of going night in and night out to dive bar. You know, like I've crushed in a 350 theater. Very next day I go bomb and die at a dive bar. It's very humbling. So, yeah, I'll look at the 99% of the people who didn't make it to see what they lacked that I don't lack.
Starting point is 00:50:46 Like, does that mean that I don't get frustrated that I'm not making money? Oh, 1,000%. I mean, I'm literally typing up emails at home to send to bookers explaining to them like, yo, there's people who I feel like don't deserve these. opportunities to get paid because they're not treating this job with the level of professionalism that I treat it with. And it's all, you know, and, uh, those sort of things are the ones that I'm just kind of like, you know, uh, I'm, I'm avoiding those pitfalls. I'm, I'm checking my ego. I'm, I'm looking in the mirror and I do all that corn. David Goggins and all these guys
Starting point is 00:51:19 talk about about look at yourself in the mirror and talk to yourself. Check in with yourself. You know, what, where is it? And you know, it's so funny because I was listening to a podcast today with Kevin Hart where he's like, you know, and it's referring. to hear these individuals say thoughts that are in my head through their mouth where he was like, you're going to get frustrated. You're going to feel like I'm not getting the opportunity. Why is this person they're getting the opportunity that I'm not? So over the course of those years, you kind of put the blinders on and you focus on like, this is my goal.
Starting point is 00:51:51 This is what I need to do. If I can get a thousand seats, no matter where I go in this country, it's for me, just to kind of put it into like layman terms. For me, it's more important to have a solid group of individuals on my social media networking aspects to put in seats than it is to worry about making $100,000 killing myself at a job I'm miserable going to. There are so many in-between. You always do the extremes. But like, why do $50,000? How do you get to the $100,000? You ain't going to make.
Starting point is 00:52:28 In a job? Yeah. You're not going to get to 100,000 work in three days a week. I did in sales. Well, three days a week? In five days a week. No nights? No nights.
Starting point is 00:52:36 All days. Three days a week. Yeah, nine to five. Nine to five. I made over 100,000. Where you went? Okay, now here's my next question. Did you have to wake up or go out to do other gigs at night?
Starting point is 00:52:46 No. That was a thing. But I did my music stuff at night. But you clear, and I'm not trying to make, I'm not trying to be offensive or anything by no stretch. Uh-huh. But what I'm saying is that you made. I made well more than the $1,000 dollars you've ever made. For sure.
Starting point is 00:52:58 Well, first of all, no need to say that with that attitude. Sorry, I thought you were going to bring up, did you, well, did you make money from? No, no, no. What I'm saying is you took the approach of like, let me be less aggressive on this and treat this more like a side hustle. And let me treat the bread and butter, like the money I'm making at my job at the office of sales. Let me hone in on that because that's going to be the more revenue bringing. And it's going to let you meet the goals you want to meet because you're bringing in more money. I see what you're saying.
Starting point is 00:53:26 I slightly disagree because in my mind, the way I did it is what I wanted to be was a composer. And then here is what sent me up for financial success. Instead of saying, okay, I had a side hustle that I just hope works and then I have the real job. What I said is I have two jobs and I will just work until I fall. And now you're not doing music no more. Well, I still do music on the side, but YouTube has become my passion. Okay, so YouTube is your passion. It is.
Starting point is 00:53:53 And are you making more money from that? Yes. You're making most of your money from YouTube. I've gotten lucky where I can do this full time. I don't think you've gotten lucky, bro. I think you've worked your stuff. I don't think you've gotten lucky. I don't think it just landed in your life.
Starting point is 00:54:04 Like you were just talking about other projects you've worked on, you know? But I would have never done this until I knew I could sustain myself. For sure. But again, it was the route you took. It was the route that played out for you. It was the way that you were able to see things and go. Like me having a $50,000 job because of my mentality, I know it was there.
Starting point is 00:54:26 Don't get me. Now as an adult, I can look at it and say it was there. But from what my belief system, what I knew at 18, 17, what I thought of, what I valued, wasn't what it is now at 29, where now I look at things different. And I kind of see like, oh, I could have done this. But now I'm just like, okay, but this is the route. This is big, because there always goes like, the what is. And what if I would have gotten this job?
Starting point is 00:54:48 And what if I would have become an assistant manager? Maybe in a parallel universe, for sure. But at the end of the day, I live this reality. my only reality and these decisions I've taken over the years right or wrong, failures ultimately lead into successes, it has brought me here where I go like, okay, now I'm in too deep to take my foot off the gas. Because think about it, like you said, I went from 88 to 32. Why, why kick it in now when I'm going to make 12?
Starting point is 00:55:17 You know what I mean? Like, why now, why switch, why throw away the seven years of times that I, the seven years of time I've put into my entertainment industry. No one's talking about throwing it away. You're just doing, you're doing the extreme of not bringing in any money now. Right, right, right, right. For sure. But I'm not against this being a hustle that you're grinding.
Starting point is 00:55:35 Right, but I don't see it as, and I don't want to make it as the side hustle. No, make it your second full-time job. If I have, I mean. You're working five hours a day, you said. Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure. Yeah, working five hours a day. There are 19 more. Yeah, and not a lot, but like, let's say take off the seven for sleeping.
Starting point is 00:55:59 Let's make it eight. Let's make it eight. And then let's say two to three hours are when I'm not writing and doing stuff, two to three of those hours, because I'm out of show. Oh, okay. So I either waiting for it to get on the show. Marker research. Right.
Starting point is 00:56:12 And then like, don't get me wrong. Like I brought my laptop now and I'm doing a show. The sign up is in like another hour or two. But then there's another show after that. So like, technically I'll be at one. spot 630 and I'll be at another spot at 930 and by the time I get home give or take and I like that I'm all good for that right right right but that's that's why I'm going like I'm looking at rather than working two full-time jobs like what you're saying which makes total sense I'm looking at like
Starting point is 00:56:37 and again this kind of where the waters get a little murky but I'm a big believer of God I'm not religious in the sense I'm like I'm reading the Bible every day I'm not that guy I'm not going to church I have my own relationship with my God and the universe and what I believe in and the way I see it is just I believe that this is there's no there's no what if for me because I see it as this is a calling
Starting point is 00:57:04 it's something special that I can't put into words that when I tell people like well when I go on stage this feels perfect and then getting paid after you do that becomes almost intoxicating to know it makes going to the nine of five that much harder it does I know I get that.
Starting point is 00:57:23 Because they hit you with $800. I get that it's harder, but that's why we're mature adults. For sure. For sure. And I think the more mature thing would have been to just be like, I'm just going to make it and I'm going to make it because I'm going to make it. As opposed to this time around when I left, I mean, every time I've left my prior company, I've always had another job or something lined up.
Starting point is 00:57:46 It's never been on a whim. You don't even have to have a job. Just drive Uber. I don't even care. Oh, wait. Yeah, yeah. And when I did want to drive Uber, the first. We haven't even gotten into the car and you've been able to buy a car, but I don't see it happening
Starting point is 00:57:56 in a good economical way. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, that's your wife, why, is it? Maybe. Who knows? I mean, married. Who knows, bro? You never know. I literally have my godmother, somebody, some guy, she just happened to be nice to. She gave food to him every now and then, checked on him, knocked on his door, ended up going home, and his daughter came up to my godmother and handed her the key to the house to the apartment and said, this is yours. Yeah. This is your house now. Now, I don't base my life on luck. For sure, for sure. But that's what I'm saying.
Starting point is 00:58:25 Like, you're, the possibilities and the reality of what is a possibility to me and my brain, I think is very more, um, uh, fictional, right? It's more, it's more hoping and fingers crossed and praying, you know, and that's my belief. My belief is like me going on stage, doing what you love. They say, do what you love and you'll never work another day in your life. And I can't tell you how many times I felt like that doing comedy. And I know that this is a thing where it's... Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life until you can't afford rent. Then you'll have to work or a little too.
Starting point is 00:59:02 It'll be homeless on the street. Yeah, but that's if that's your philosophy and that's who you believe in. I mean, rent's not a philosophy. It's not. It's not. But who's how are you more right and me saying, or am I more right in saying tomorrow I can get booked for a $500 gig? Do it. Next week, I can get booked for a $1,500.
Starting point is 00:59:22 dollar gig. Do it. That's what I'm saying. So there's no, that can't happen. No. Of course. You would think that's ridiculous. If you can do that, then you can make this your full-time job.
Starting point is 00:59:32 And too many times it's happened where, of course, it's not 500 bucks or 1,500 bucks. But it's, hey, come down to this studio. I don't know if you ever heard of the podcast Drink Champs. Nope. All right. Very popular podcast in the hip-hop world. Very, a lot of accolades behind it in the whole nine. And I got a call one day because I was not working where I was working.
Starting point is 00:59:57 I was pursuing something else. And they said, hey, we got Marlon Wayne's coming into the studio. Like you want to come sit down and meet them and do this. And for sure, you want to sit? Of course. Aries Spears, another one of my favorite comedians going up. These sort of events have happened to me over the course of this battle of like, do the thing where you have this financial stability.
Starting point is 01:00:21 Because I know I would have not been able to do this had I been where I was. Why? If you were doing a job where you worked the hours you want to work through like Uber, you could have gone done this. It's not an extreme either or. It's not black or white. But you got to understand that Uber and all that jobs didn't exist the way it did. And even if I could do it, I couldn't.
Starting point is 01:00:41 Because my car didn't fit the qualifications of it. I see what you're saying. Well, that's an example, of course. Right, right, right. But I get what you're saying. I totally agree. but at the end of the day. Or pull the classic, oh crap, I'm having
Starting point is 01:00:54 diary. I'm not coming into work. Right, right, which I've never done that. I've always showed up sick. I've done that. And I've let them see me and then they go yeah, you can't be here, bro. Go home. And I was like, all right, cool. As long as you know, I'm not bull-fitting you. Like, that's my biggest thing. Okay. I think this conversation's gone
Starting point is 01:01:11 like as far as I can, you know, we're just kind of going in circles and that's like. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm good with you pursuing. I'll give my final thoughts and you can have your final thoughts. Absolutely. I'm good with you pursuing this. I don't want any of this to come across like I'm not. I just want you to be able to put yourself in a place where you're not forcefully putting on family members and children that need to be taking care of you
Starting point is 01:01:28 and you're getting rid of the best decades of your life in order to pursue essentially gambling your career. Do this. I would do it as a second full-time job as it is the passion. Hopefully it becomes the full-time job and you can pursue a full-time and then everything becomes good. Let's also be responsible adults and prepare for the worst. Let's also be responsible adults and make some money now so that you can get it. get a car this year of $10,000 in cash and not having to go into debt. Let's just be adults and make sure that we are accepting that maybe everything we think
Starting point is 01:01:59 and wish is not reality at all times. That is my final thoughts. I wish the best. I'm very curious to see where you land. I hope it's that you made it because then I can say I met a famous community. That would be awesome. Absolutely. But final thoughts.
Starting point is 01:02:14 I think, yeah, I definitely hear what you're saying. I think you're coming with a lot of logic behind it. There's no opinion here. It's all facts. You know what I mean? You're showing numbers. You're telling things like they are. I think just because of my personal belief and my philosophy and the way I think and I view the world kind of has a different perspective on it.
Starting point is 01:02:35 And I do for a fact, I'm going to say it. I'm going to say it here on this podcast for the first time you heard it here. Use this clip when I'm famous. Definitely going to be making that money. maybe not hundreds of thousands but if I could cool you know a cool $80,000 within the next two years
Starting point is 01:02:52 just doing comedy you know everything else is extra man so as long as I haven't covered my bills pay my rent you know put something extra in the savings make sure the kids are set up just through comedy that would be the biggest blessing
Starting point is 01:03:04 and I just want to be a messenger to what the universe allows you to do when you believe in the universe and it believes in you you know so that's my final little wrap up do you have any sets on YouTube or anything Yeah, I got my website. Everything's on my website. All right, it's linked in the description below. Check it out.
Starting point is 01:03:19 There you got. Seabassmatar.com. All my stuff's there. So, yeah, check it out. Absolutely. All right, for Seabas and his Hammer financial score. You know, actually, he does have savings. He's not bringing any money, but he doesn't have any bad debts.
Starting point is 01:03:32 $7,500 of student loans I wish we could have talked about. But some of that does hang up on. Will it get forgiven for going to something that was kind of spammy? I don't know. But his overall life score. the bet he's taking on all this stuff and future retirement being prepared for that, it's going to drastically lower the score.
Starting point is 01:03:50 But because he doesn't really have that many bad debts or anything like that, I does need to buy a new car, though, crap. Hammer Financial Score 4 out of 10. Make sure to check out all the fun things in the description, including my Instagram and Twitter and his website to check out some of his comedy. Don't forget to subscribe.
Starting point is 01:04:06 Thanks.

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