Episode 416: Personal Finance Wellness with Blake Allison

Welcome to another episode of the Above the Business podcast. My name is Bradley Hammond, your host. On today's episode, we have Blake Allison. He is the founder and CEO of LifeSense, a leading financial wellness company. Now, we love to talk around business financials. Obviously, Club Capital helps small business owners with that specifically, but we haven't really spent as much time on the personal finance side. And I really was interested and intrigued by this concept of personal wellness. And so if you're one who, you know, you're bringing in a lot of revenue from your business and a lot of, a lot of profit from your business, you're doing well, but maybe you're not where you really want to be on the personal finance side, this episode is for you. Without further ado, here's my conversation with Blake Allison. Blake, welcome to the Above the Business podcast.

Hey Bradley, thanks for having me.

Excited to have you. Love to start with background and origin story. How did people get to where they are today? I mean, I think most of our podcasts that we've had over the years, we probably could just ask that one question and then riff off of it for 30, 45 minutes or so, just that, uh, alone. So once you take our listening audience back wherever you feel is appropriate and bring us to present day.

Yeah, sure. So just starting in the present day just a little bit. So I have a financial wellness, health and wellness business, and that's kind of a data point that will make sense of everything else. So, you know, I've always had a penchant for personal finance. Just really, I've always been interested in it. Back in the day, if you can imagine, I had an Apple IIe computer, if that even rings a bell for you, I don't know. But there was this little stock trading game on there that was just little bar charts and didn't know what I was doing. But very fond memories of that. You know, my, my grandfather, the memories I have, I always remember him reading the Wall Street Journal. Didn't know what that was, but kind of memory stuck with me. But then you contrast that with my upbringing where my mom, my parents divorced when I was very young. So I was raised for a while by my mom with her, you know, we have a brother and sister. So a teacher's salary, 3 kids was kind of a tough thing back in the day. And I'm sure it still is, no doubt. But, you know, she really showed me what was possible with what you have and what you don't have and what's important, what's not important. She did remarry, but even when she remarried my stepfather, who He himself later became an entrepreneur. You know, he, he started out, you know, as entrepreneurs know, it's, you don't start off making the money you want to make. So we, even after she remarried, we still lived a very frugal life. And so that really imprinted on me what was, what was important and how to manage life with limited resources. You fast forward after college, you know, I studied, I studied finance in college. It was investment finance, corporate finance, not personal finance, but I still had this penchant for personal finance. And, you know, that led me to, I actually had several over the years, had several job offers with wealth management firms and financial advisors, etc. And my question to them when I learned more about the responsibilities, I was always like, well, where is the advising. It just sounds like it's a sales position. And so I'm like, well, this is not what I want to do. I want to help people. I want to advise them. I want to guide them, not just go get assets under management. And that's just me, you know, just I have a different spin. But I did get into consulting and I did a lot of consulting with financial services companies. And there are a couple of opportunities that allowed me to live abroad. I lived both in Munich, Germany and Istanbul, Turkey. And working with financial services companies there, I think it was absolutely fascinating. You know, especially in Turkey, you have a, you have a country whose, you know, culture goes back, history goes back hundreds of years, if not millennia, and very steeped in tradition. These banks and other financial services companies were interested in modernizing their financial services markets, but they're limitations like it's a Muslim country. So you have Sharia law. And so how do you bring modern products to market like a mortgage that requires you to charge interest when you can't charge interest under Sharia law? And so it was a fascinating, fascinating opportunity to help develop new products, bring them to market with these constraints. But then what we discovered, Bradley, is that even with the— and there was a lot of, there was a lot of innovation globally. So this was, you know, I think 2004 to 2007, just before the, the world economy blew up. But there was such innovation, but, but consumers' baseline knowledge never changed. So there was all this innovation in products and services, not just in Turkey but around the world, but consumers' baseline knowledge never changed. And so I was like, well, what is, what's happening here? It's like, why all these products that are being brought, you know, being created with, you know, supposedly with the intention of helping people, were not helping people the way everyone thought. And that's because I think people's financial education and financial literacy was lacking. And so I think that was the, you know, combine that with my upbringing and my interest in personal finance. I think that was the catalyst, along with an entrepreneurial spirit that I've had forever. I mean, I had a couple businesses in high school and college just on the side, you know, painting the number, house numbers on curbs. You know, I grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and I discovered that there was a city ordinance that required people to have their house numbers visibly painted on the curb. So emergency vehicles, you know, fire trucks, ambulances, police cars could easily identify, you know, the house and number. And so I, my friend and I went door to door and I mean, we had a close rate essentially of 100%. It was probably the worst thing that could happen for an entrepreneur. Viewpoint is you get this false sense of, of success. Although it was a great business and, you know, this was, you know, summers during high school and college. And so it was, it was pretty cool. So I've had that, I've had the entrepreneurial spirit and then some pretty cool experiences professionally. And then I decided that I need to solve this problem and created the business that I have today.

How much do you think financial literacy, which I'll— I would love for you to— this is a two-part question, but I'd love for you to maybe define what does financial literacy even mean, one. Two, how much is success with our financials, whether it's business financials in running a profitable business, but then also our personal financials. How much of it is nuts and bolts, hard skills, structure, just skills, and how much of it is mindset?

Great question, man. It's like the, the million-dollar question. It's, it's kind of funny too because, uh, Before starting my business, I, I thought I would, I would take all of this knowledge, you know, the experiences and put it into a book. So I actually intended to write a book originally, something akin to The Mindset for Wealth as, as you just, just described, because I, I do think that mindset is, you know, people are more than numbers. And, and when we look at our personal finances and getting on track, I mean, so much of it is behavioral. So we all know, I think, to spend less and save more, just like we know to eat less and walk more. So kind of pretty fundamental rules of thumb that we all could and should live by that would make our lives a lot easier. But we don't do it. And I don't think, you know, and I think it's interesting too, because if you There's a side of this business. It's helping, you know, various underserved communities, maybe low to moderate income communities is one end of the spectrum, and then you have the affluent. But a lot of times there is an ill-conceived notion that, you know, people who are without means, economic means, need help with learning how to budget and saving money. And I'm like, oh no, they are by far the best stewards over the money. They know exactly where every penny is going. And so I, I, I think that realistically, people under— people know what they need to know to, to be responsible with their money. But what not— what we're not good with are behaviors and that mindset, you know, where there are so many things that can distract us from reaching our goals or our financial goals. And is it, I've had a bad day at work and I want to go out and just have dinner and a couple of drinks, you know, and that's not part of the, you know, my plan, or, hey, this is a once in a year vacation, let's just go all out. I mean, there's just so many, there's just, an infinite number of examples, but I think people certainly have this. Most people have the skills and the knowledge and the tools in their toolkit to manage their money well. We just do what humans do when we don't act rationally. So there is, you know, economics is people make rational decisions, and there's a whole discipline called behavioral finance, behavioral economics, which is people do not act rationally, and that is absolutely true. And so that's what we're fighting is human nature.

Okay. So especially when it comes to business financials and the management of that, but then also I think it applies effectively in, let's just say in personal finance around like creating budgets as an example, it's helpful to have benchmarking of like, well, What's normal, right? What do people normally do? What should my mortgage be as a percentage of how much I bring home? Things of that nature that, that becomes helpful. It becomes helpful. So I'm asking this question, which is somewhat around the question I just asked previously, but I think it's a different version of it. How much do you really help people in or How much do you spend the time, I should say, the bulk of your time in helping put together a plan in place for someone versus helping someone have adherence to the plan?

Yeah, another great question. So, uh, you've got to get through one to get to the other, right? So, so first, first of all, I think the first thing that needs to happen is people have to have a mindset. That this is important to them. Otherwise, people will kick the can down the road. Be like, yeah, yeah, I know I need to, I need to save for retirement or I need to pay down debt. Yeah, I know it. I know it. I know it. I think it's, it's actually people taking action is, is the hard part. But a lot of that comes down to the awareness of the need. So does something happen that, that just like a physical, I think physical health is such a great proxy. It's like, yep, I know I should eat better. I know I should exercise. And then I have, you know, a coronary event or, you know, I'm in the hospital for something. I'm like, oh, this is now real. Yeah. So does it take something like that to, to, to get people to want to commit, you know, to have the awareness of what they need to do and then have the, the willingness to commit? And then to answer your question, you know, getting the plan tends to be the easier part. Again, it's, you know, it's, you know, let's create a budget, set spending limits based on these categories, and that's it. Now, going back to your question of, you know, getting people to stick to it is just— that's the— that is always, always the challenge. Yeah. And I think, you know, given the audience here, and I'm delighted to talk to fellow entrepreneurs, you know, one of the things that we do have to take into consideration that very often with smaller businesses, we're relying on personal credit, we're relying on, you know, are we taking out home equity lines of credit against our, you know, our homes as, you know, seed capital, things like that. So I think of, you know, I think it's imperative that, you know, we as entrepreneurs have the knowledge and the skills to make sure we understand how to put budgets together. And I think we do. I think people just need to do it. And then it's ever more important for us to adhere to those budgets because not only is our personal finances at risk, but our business finances as well.

I've, uh, you, you used two words there that I was actually going to ask you about, because I, I will spend a little bit of time, uh, this be a good example. We'll talk about it a minute. Like, I went to Starbucks and bought my $5 Starbucks, okay? So, and I actually thought about it as I was about to get ready for this podcast, but I was like, ah well, whatever.

I'll ring my shame bell. No, that's the whole thing.

Yeah, no, but we'll come, we'll come, come to that in just a second around being behaviors and choices, but I wanted to get to really probably one of the biggest ones. And, and you just used two words there, and it's needs and wants. Okay. And so how do you get— because I can, I can imagine someone listening to this podcast, Blake, whether they're a small business owner, and then they're also just as a small business owner, they can also apply it to their personal finances as well. I think this is really important is because there's this underlying assumption that just because they're a owner that all of a sudden that they got— everybody's got their personal finances all intact. Not true at all. Okay. Okay. So, um, uh, how do we— how do you help people make the shift from, yeah, I, I do need to do that, I do need a budget, I, I do need to be on top of my spending, he's right, He's right. Well, I probably didn't need to buy this coffee for the caloric intake in and of itself is 110 calories. Probably would have been better for my macros today if I had not drank that, had, had bought that coffee. You know what though, Blake, I don't care. I wanted it. I wanted it. And so, um, I, I'm, I'm using that just as a, like a, obviously a joking example, but I think it is one where How do you help people get to a place where they say, I want this, I want to be on top of my financials? Because if we have the desire to want to be on top of it, want to be on top of it, then the feeling that that gives me, I'll go through the pain that it takes to go through the building of the budgets and the adherence of the budget and having to look at the numbers and all those kind of things. But if it's just, if it just sits in a need-to bucket, I don't know if I'm ever going to get there. What are your thoughts?

Yeah, so, so I— so let's look at New Year's resolutions, right? So January 1st, after everyone kind of gets the cobwebs out of their heads, you know, from the night before, they're like, new year, new me, and I'm gonna do all these things, whether it's I'm gonna exercise more, I'm gonna eat better, I'm gonna, you know, be better with my money. What is it? Within 6 weeks, something like 90% of all New Year's resolutions go by the wayside. So it, it's the same, it's the same issue. And I think part of it is people— you brought up a great point, which is, you know, how, you know, earlier in the conversation, like, how am I doing? You know, is this percentage of my, you know, income going to a housing payment the right amount? You know, just how am I doing? Answering that question. So I think that's what we try and do is to give people a perspective of how they're doing to be like, hey, I think what people realize is they're not alone. If If you look at social media, you're going to get a different, people will get a different, have a different opinion about that because it looks like on social media that everyone's a millionaire, everyone's living their best life. And I'm the only person that's not driving around in, you know, a $200,000 sports car and I don't have the mansion on the water, you know, in whatever state you choose. And I think that is doing a disservice because that's obviously just That's just not reality. That's not most people. And that's, that's okay. And so I think if, when people understand, it's like, okay, I'm not alone in this. I'm not the only person that is behind on this. It feels, feels like they're behind on savings or has too much debt. That's a, that's a good starting point. But I think when you start baking in more realistic expectations, just like New Year's resolutions, are you going to, are people going to go to the gym? You know, go from being a couch potato to going to the gym 4 or 5 times a week? Probably not. And that's why people fail. You know, that's why those resolutions fail. So are we going to go from not having, you know, you know, even an emergency fund to being a millionaire in a couple of years? Probably not. So let's, let's just, let's, let's just pause and, and let's just, same kind of thing. Let's, let's set Let's just pick one thing. Just pick one thing. Are you going to pay down one credit card? Are you going to save an extra, you know, X dollars per month? And I don't want to use an actual number because I could say $100. That could be a lot to some people and very little to others. But it's like, but pick a number and just, it's, and just taste the success of that. But I think it's also important to see what that means because it is often overlooked and it is probably the most cliché thing. But when people really understand the power of compound interest, it's compelling. I mean, the idea that your, your money is working for you, it's compelling. And I think if people play with those type calculators, it's like, okay, if I save $100 this month, what if it's $200? What if it— but I think the other thing that is super important is, is setting a budget and saying, okay, if I save this much every month and I'm keeping my debt in check, I'm going to have a certain— I most likely have some money that is, that is purely for fun. And I, and I tell people, set your budget based on the goals you want to reach. And if you are saving towards the house, you're saving towards retirement, and you're paying down your debt, and you've got some extra cash over here, blow it on what you want. Blow it. Don't worry about that because that actually is going to give you just like you wanted to get that, that $5 drink. That's great. What happened with the problem is when people do that every day and they're not working towards other goals. So it's like, I, I do the drink here, I do this here. I, you know, I, I've got the gym membership, I'm this subscription service, that's a subscription service. You're living your best life, but you're not doing anything towards the other. That's where the problem is. And I'm just like, dial it back a little bit. You can do most of those things, but just pick one thing that's gonna allow you to make progress on the good, on the good side.

Yeah.

Don't feel guilty.

Yeah. So, and I guess, look, I mean, my bent for us here with business owners is that, look, I'm going to link— I'm going to think about things and ask these questions kind of around specifically a business owner thought first, because then you've got a business owner who's also is running their personal, his or her personal household as well. Okay.

Right.

By and large, the business owners probably are doing, like, in terms of just overall income levels, are doing, you know, can be doing better than maybe the average. Okay. I would say that's a broad brush comment. Um, but by and large, that said though, they get lifestyle creep, right? That happens with, well, you're driving a nicer car. Okay. That is, that wrong? No, it's not wrong. And then you buy the, the, the, the vacation home and all these kinds of things. And before you know it, then the kids are in private school and all of a sudden it's like, wow, okay, where did the money go? Even though you're bringing in quite a bit. That being said, I teed all of that up to ask this question, which is, and again, I think this is relevant because you have business owners who have more direct control over one aspect of the equation, which is income. Okay. Like, meaning they can go bring in more revenue, whereas people who are just a W-2— and I don't mean that derogatory in any way, nobody takes it that way— but they're not a business owner. They sometimes maybe don't have as direct of an impact to what their income number is unless they're in a sales position. Does this make any sense?

Okay.

So with that being said, how much oftentimes is the equation of like Hey, you know what? Go make more money. Go make more money versus in the other equation is we need to cut some of the fat here. Right. And sometimes it's like, you know what, we, we definitely all have some fat that we could trim back. We could come back some of those, some of those subscriptions. But at the same time, if you're a business owner, your business is doing $1 million in top line, you're bringing home $300,000 just to use a specific number. $15.99 a month subscription service is not going to move the needle. You could go and make an extra $100,000 possibly in the business. That becomes a lot more of a substantial thing than the— you cut $120 out of your budget every single year. So how do we reconcile those two? I know that's a really long-winded question, but I wanted to kind of tee that up for you.

Yeah, it's, it's a, you know, it's a reality. I mean, when when you are running a business, you have greater control over your income and expenses. I think that the trap is not— and this is going to sound very basic, but it is overlooked. If you don't have specific goals, then everything's a moving target. So if you're like, okay, I know that I, you know, I want to retire when I'm 55. And that's going to take me saving X, you know, X dollars per month. Again, as long as you are hitting— if you want to buy that second home, if you want to buy the nicer car, fantastic. As long as, as long as you are— again, I'm like, blow— like, I'm going to use a very, like, inappropriate and irresponsible word. But, you know, if you have money to blow, Good for you. Fantastic. But that is based on the fact that you have, you have, you dotted your I's and crossed your T's and you are taking care of retirement, healthcare. You know, if you have kids that you want to pay for college, that's fine. If you want to send them to private school, that's great. But you cannot, if you have these very specific goals over here, you're not budgeting on that. You're like, okay, well, I wanted to retire when I was 55, but if I want to get the vacation home, I'm going to keep pushing that. It's, if you keep kicking the can down the road, then you're, you're always going to be behind. But if you— but if you're just like, look, you know, I, I'm going to stick to this, I'm going to retire when I'm 55, I want the, the retirement home, I want to make sure my kids' colleges, you know, is paid for, etc., and you're doing that and you decide you're going to go make an extra $50,000, $100,000 a year in income and you don't know where that goes at the end of the year, that's not the worst thing. However, I always say, well, Maybe your lifestyle could be better when you retire at 55 if you didn't blow, you know, if you make an extra $100K and you're taking care of all your goals, do you want to blow that $100K or do you want to put a little bit more towards the retirement so your retirement's a little bit better? Because I think that's also hard for people to get their mind around, which is, you know, once you, once you, once you once your income stops, you don't have that flexibility. You get used to being like, I'll just go work a little bit harder, make a little bit more income.

That's right.

You retire, doesn't happen.

Yeah, that's fair. That's fair. Well, actually, you bring up a really good question. How do you help people to begin to set personal finance goals?

So first and foremost, and, you know, you know, our, our solution is a, is a web-based app where we take people through what we call— we essentially are a primary primary care physician for financial health. So what we want to do is we want to ask the questions. We want to get to know people to understand not just their numbers— how much do you have in the bank account? How much do you have in debt? But we need to, we need to understand who you are as a person. What are your goals? Short term, long term? What keeps you up at night? What are your aspirations? Once you have that information, then you can start putting together a plan of care that's going to be appropriate for the individual, because there is nothing about personal finance that can be a one-size-fits-all approach. So, so I think that's, you know, fundamentally you have to treat each person as an individual. And that sounds again very like common sense. But I think what we see too often is You know, kind of if someone says they have too much debt, treating everyone that says that the same way versus saying, well, what kind of— is that medical debt? Is that debt because you're living beyond your means? Is that debt because you don't have a stable income? That, that those details are what really matter. So I think once you get to know someone in that regard in depth, then you can put people on the right pathway.

What are some of the— what are maybe two or three of the biggest things? Um, it can, it can be, um, mistakes or myths that you've seen, or maybe just over the years. I mean, you've got a wealth of knowledge of helping people to be able to get on top of their, uh, of their finances. What are some of the biggest things and lessons that you've learned over the years from people? Some of the, the common things, um, you know, I love working with small business owners And so there's always these things that tend to come up in running, running a business. And so when you know those, you start to kind of realize like, hey, I— you kind of know what's coming, you know, when you hire your first, your first manager in, in place, like there's going to be your initial challenges and also opportunities that come with those kind of things, um, in, in the business. What are some of the things that you've seen?

Yeah, so I think what I've kind of talked to this a couple times, um, the idea of having actual goals. I mean, setting specific targets and having a plan to get there and putting it on paper, so to speak, whether it's, you know, actual paper, you're using some type of online tool. But I think that's a— there's only so much, you know, especially business owners. I think, you know, there you have so many things that you have to manage anyway. Just adding one more to be like, oh, I can kind of keep in my mind a running list and like, I've got a good idea of what my assets are and how much I'm making. I think until you put it on paper and you kind of map things out and say— and also like, you know, like, what do you want? What do you want that lifestyle to look like? Until you put that on paper, I mean, I can speak from personal experiences. It's like, well, I'm looking outside, I'm like, do we want the pool or do we want to find a You know, do we, do we need a new water filtration system, which sounds crazy, but we're on well water, or do we want, you know, a new SUV? Like, I would love them all. But you gotta, you've gotta prioritize. And it, it's, it sounds very basic, but I think going back to your observation that it's very easy to be like, oh, I'll just make more money. It doesn't change the fact that you, you, you've, you've, you have to be disciplined in reaching those goals. So you've gotta set them and be disciplined, disciplined. And I think the other thing, I think people just tend to kick the can down the road. They're like, I can make up for lost time. You know, I'm going to make more money next year. It's going to be a banner year. But they wind up spending that money on the things, you know, that, that's, you know, like, oh, banner year, I can buy the vacation home. But they haven't solved the problem of, let's say, getting on track for retirement. And so I think that's the other thing that I see is just like kicking the can down the road and going back to what I said before, people really appreciated, you know, compound interest. They would just be chipping away a little bit more than you might imagine, saving a little bit more than you might imagine, because it's, it's, it's stunning.

So I'm actually looking at— if you come to see me glancing off camera here, I, because I was curious about this, I pulled up some notes that I have, digital notes of my, like, like goals, like personal finance goals, right? And so not, not business stuff, personal. So part, part of it, I'm curious how you help people though, because there's the goal but then there's the time frame around it, right? And there's all this like, well, I want a $10 million net worth. I'm just gonna pull that one out of thin air, right? That seems like a popular one. 8-figure net worth. It's like, okay, Well, I mean, is that what you tried to do in the next 12 months, or is it that the next 35 years? And so then you're like, uh, you know, there's these different trains of thought of the time frame associated to give it. You know, some people are like, no, I've set a 25-year, 25-year goal. And then other people are like, no, no, no, that's not how you do it. I have my opinions of how you need to do it in business. How do you do it personally with people?

Yeah, well, I— let's use entrepreneurs as an example because, you know, getting to that $10 million net worth, I mean, is that something where you are— you're planning to grow the business by X percentage each year and you can see a pathway to that? By the way, in doing that, you— again, this is having a good understanding of how the mechanics of how the finances work. So, you know, How are— what type of free cash flow are you going to have to put away towards that $10 million goal if you're looking to save? Or is this something that you're looking for an exit? You know, very, very different pathways. So one, you can be like, okay, for the next 15 years, I'm going to get my business to, you know, $1.5 million. I'm surviving on $1 million right now. I can put away an additional $400,000 over the next 10, 15 years. And with, you know, growth, blah, blah, blah. I mean, you've got to be able to execute against that plan. So, so again, we have to be realistic. But someone else might say, no, heck no, man, I've been already doing this. I want to, I want to exit in 5 years. Well, are you going to be able to drive the valuation that you need for that in 5 years? So can you grow your business? So, so I think, I think I would tie those together, you know, for entrepreneurs, that personal goal is probably very, very closely tied to what someone's doing with the business. Otherwise, it is, you know, for, for people in general, it's working backwards and saying, okay, all right, let's, let's list all the goals you have, retirement being one, that second home, etc. When you're like, when do you want that to happen? And then you, then you run numbers against that, like, okay, well, I want that house in 3 years. I'm going to have to save, you know, for a down payment. Can you save for that? Can you save that, you know, $1,000 a month for a down payment for the next 3 years or whatever the number would be? I'm just making up numbers. Is that— are you still going to be able to put the same amount of money away towards your retirement goal? And so it just— it's limited resources. I mean, we just have to realize it's like we want all these things, but can we do it with the resources? And if you're And, and this is where, going back to your comment, it's like, can you pull that lever of saying, okay, right now, based on my current income, I'm not, not going to be able to get the, the investment property in 3 years. I would have to be 5 unless I increase my income by $50,000 a year for the next 3 years, whatever that means.

Yeah, yeah.

So this is just putting pen to paper and you've just got to be willing. I think the other thing, what people don't do, you have to be willing to put some time in to think through these things and run some scenarios. And it's not, it's not advanced math. It's just saying if I want to save $100,000 in the next 3 years, how much do I need to put away every month, assuming a 6% interest rate or something like that? You know, kind of using a general rule of thumb for the stock market right now. Can I— what do I have to save if I want to get there in 3 years? What happens if it, you know, am I still able to contribute the same amount? To retirement, that is dependent on me knowing how much I need to save for retirement every month. So I think people just have to run these numbers. And the other, going back to 2 questions, 2 or 3 questions, the other thing that people, mistakes people make is assuming that they can do all this themselves. I mean, I think it absolutely makes sense, especially the more common, you know, the, you know, it makes sense to reach out to professionals, whether that's a financial a planner or advisor, even a tax consultant or both. Because I think, you know, there are a lot of ways entrepreneurs can save on taxes. You know, obviously we can— there are a lot of expenses that we can put through, you know, through the business. That's great. But retirement, there are a lot of options for retirement plans as business owners that can really boost retirement. Which will get you farther along than you might expect. Again, freeing up additional cash for these other goals. So I think it's just knowing your options, but you, you, you know, you know, tap out and bring in help when you need.

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, you know, we get coaching in a lot of different areas. I mean, it's super helpful to have somebody else that you get to a place of, you know, confidence that can really speak into it. And, and when you get it outside of you to have somebody else to kind of see it from a from a different perspective, I think is incredibly helpful. I mean, this conversation has had me kind of go back and think through of like, okay, you know, how do— am I, am I clear? Number one, this is kind of some of my biggest takeaways, is, is am I actually really clear on, on my goals that I have personally? Interestingly, I'll just tell you, uh, those that have listened to the podcast for a long time, In, in the business sense, when we're talking about setting business goals, I'm going to use that word because I think it's universal. People can use it, can understand what we mean there. When you set business goals, I actually don't tend to use the word goal, and I like to use things like objective priorities, targets, critical numbers, etc., because for me, like goals, it's just easy to throw around goals because they become synonymous with, with wishes. This is number one. That said, though, in the sense I'm much more apt to use the word goal when it comes to personal things, right? Like a fitness goal, a personal finance goal. I think it makes— I don't know why it resonates. It's easier for me to use the word goal when it's— I'm talking about like personal things versus in the business. I'd rather use priorities, targets, objectives, key results, etc., versus just everything becomes a goal. So, so to speak, a vision, you know, what's my 3-year vision, so on and so forth. So anyway, I say that and it's made me go back and think, okay, am I really clear on what, what it is, what matters? And then do I really have like a plan in place that I'm executing on? Because you kind of really got to have the first part of like, well, where is it? Where are we driving to? Is kind of what I pick up. And I think it's a great reminder for all of us? And then number 2, well, what's the plan in place to kind of keep me accountable to make that happen? Is it— am I actually— do I have something that's giving me adherence to those? I think that's fantastic. Well, before we ask you the last question, if people want to work with you and, and connect with you, um, where would you point them to, Blake, so that they can get to know you and your team? And how can they connect?

Yeah, I appreciate that. I, I, first and foremost, I would say go to our website, uh, www.lifesense.com. So that's L-I-F-E-C-E-N-T-S. Um, and then my email is blake@lifesense.com, and I'd be more than happy to have this conversation, continue this conversation, um, with anyone listening and, you know, just provide any guidance I can, be a resource, and, uh, go from there.

What does working above the business mean to you?

Yeah. So couple, couple things come to mind is I'm very motivated by the work that I do, the kind of work that I'm doing and the opportunity, you know, even here today, I appreciate the opportunity to, you know, hopefully spark some thoughts for people, but I really believe in helping people become better stewards of their finances so they can reach those personal goals and those business targets. And I'm going to steal that, Bradley. I'm going to— I think targets is a much better expression for the business side, but they are especially for entrepreneurs, they're tied together. And I just— so, so for me, helping, helping entrepreneurs achieve their vision, achieve their dream, and in part by addressing this, the building block of personal finances and their, and their overall financial picture is, is to me kind of what drives me above the business.

Yeah, I love that. I love that you can really feel that you're very much mission, mission-driven and purpose-driven in what it is that you do. I already shared, obviously, a couple of my big takeaways from today. The couple other ones— comment you made, people are more than numbers. I love that. That was actually really great. So the second one is just a good reminder: you're not alone. You're not alone. And when people are throwing out— I mean, not even the Lambos and the private jets. That's an extreme version of it. I think a lot of times we can get— we can see other people, our friends, that are maybe just taking a nice lavish vacation, and then they seem to take another one, and you're like, where in the world did this, um, you know, come from? Um, and you, you don't often know the full story behind that. So just know you're, you're, you're not alone. So I love that, Blake. Appreciate you coming on the pod.

Thank you so much.

I want to give a shout out to our podcast sponsor. This is obviously a great one for Club Capital. So if you're a small business owner, you want to get on top of your financials so you can bring home more money to your family, book an obligation demo with Club Capital. One of the best investments you can make is in your own development and the development of your team. You can get both, which is unique with Coach P. Go to coachpconsulting.com, coachpconsulting.com. If you're an insurance agency owner and you're wanting to level up your skills, knowledge, mindset, get around other like-minded business owners to help you learn the actual skills of running a successful insurance agency. Coach P can help you. Go to coachpconsulting.com. I talk about tools a lot, comes up. One of the tools that can really help you is Today App. Go to todayapppro.com. It will obviously sync with your corporate-approved CRM. It's beautiful, easy to use. Your team will love it, and I know you will too. Go to todayapppro.com. Today App Pro .com. I thought that was a really good episode. All right everyone, till next week, lead well and go be great.