S5:E93🎙️ LIVE with Papa Yaw Quainoo (Multi Tracks Audio)

Hi, I'm John Maxwell. When the top companies in the world are looking for trainers, speakers, and coaches, there's one name that stands above the rest, and that's Maxwell Leadership. Our certified team members have gotten proven results for companies all over the globe, and our reputation, I'm proud to say, is second to none. Some of our members have risen to the top of their profession, including the one you're going to meet today. I proudly introduce you to my friend Bob Fabien Zinga.

Welcome to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ, where we help you lead with purpose and succeed with impact. If you're ready to grow into the kind of leader others want to follow, this podcast is for you. If you're determined to elevate your success and leave a lasting legacy, this podcast is for you. As my mentor, Dr. John C. Maxwell, reminds us, everything rises and falls on leadership. Our goal is simple, to inspire you, challenge you, and equip you with insights that can transform the trajectory of your leadership journey. Welcome aboard to Welcome to another episode of the Leadership and Success Podcast with Coach BZ.

Two reasons why most people fail to build wealth. Number one is the lack of information. Number two is inaction. Oh wait, there's more.

It's like the quickest way to not own the Porsche dealership is if you buy all the Porsches, right? You're never going to be, you know, an elevated level if you're constantly consuming. But I think that just all plays into moderation. And going back to like the education question. Yeah. I think it also comes with a mindset of whatever it might be. And I think you can talk about any journey like fitness, like financial health, you know, your career, any of those things. Yeah. Are going to take 5, 10 years. So just starting like super, super basic was kind of a realization for me that it's going to take a long time.

Guys, I was talking to a good friend the other day and he said, Papa, what do you think the most important financial decision you will ever make is? He said, spoiler alert, it's not about money, it's not about the college you go to, it's who you marry. Because when you're building wealth, building peace, or even building a life, Your spouse isn't a side character. They're your co-founder. So if you choose the wrong one, it's like launching a startup with someone who doesn't believe in your vision. The Bible says two are better than one because they have good reward for their labor. For if one falls, one will uplift the other. That means partnership multiplies impact. It also means your values, your vision, and habits have to align.

All right, we are going to have a very special podcast today. This is Coach Bizzy, your host, and welcome to our second episode of the day. I have a very special guest for you, but before we do, I am reminded of our moment of gratitude. That's something we do every time we meet. We take just one moment to be grateful. And part of the reason is because, as you know, in the military, a lot of service members and veterans commit suicide. Every single day, about 21, 22 veterans every single day. And I believe it's not possible to be suicidal and grateful at the very same time. So you know the drill. If you would maybe close your eyes and put yourself in your happy place and take a deep breath if you must, slow down your nervous system and think about one thing you are grateful for in this moment right now. And today I am really grateful for America. It is a very, very special country, and I believe still the best country in the world in my opinion, right? The home of the brave and the land of the free. And one thing very special about America is when we were founded in 1776, right? Our founding document said, "All men are created equal." That has really never been said in history. In Africa, where I am originally from, we have caste, just like in Europe, either you're part of the nobility or you are a peasant. And if you are, depending on how you are born, that's the way you're gonna be expected to live. But in America, it doesn't matter the color of your skin, your gender, doesn't matter where you come from originally, even if you are at the very bottom of society, you can rise all the way to the top. I have proved this over and over again. I started when I joined the Navy 21 years ago as a seaman recruit, E-1, lowest rank in the military. Today, I am a senior officer in the most powerful Navy in the world, only in America. About 28 years ago, I started my career in IT as a tech assistant, and today I am a chief information security officer in Silicon Valley. So only in America. Again, I am really, really grateful for this country. Okay, so let me see if I can properly, uh, introduce our guest today. And, uh, again, let us know where you are joining us from, what city, what state, and if outside of the US, which country, since we've gone global. Let us know what you are grateful for today. And also, if you have a question for my guest, please type it in the comments on YouTube or LinkedIn, and we will be answering Live. All right, let me do a proper introduction. Today I'm going to be speaking to my brother from another mother, Papa Yoan Kwonu. He is on a mission to democratize wealth intelligence. Originally from Ghana and from working inside the institutional finance engine at Bloomberg to building the Growing Wealth platform, Papa is closing the gap between Wall Street tools and Main Street professionals. He is the creator of a proprietary wealth score, host of the Grow with Papa podcast, and the fintech founder helping everyday professionals take control of their financial future. Toward the end of the podcast, I'm gonna tell you how you can sign up for his amazing newsletter. His belief is quite simple but powerful: the tools that build generational wealth should never have been reserved for the few. One of the things we're going to be learning during this podcast is the number one mindset shift that separates wealth builders from everyone else. So without any further ado, please help me welcome to the Leadership and Success Podcast, Papa. All right, good afternoon. How are you doing today, Papa?

I'm doing great, Coach BZ. Thank you so much for having me on. I'm super excited. I love that we started with gratefulness today. I think that's incredible.

Thank you so much.

It gave me a moment to reflect on what I'm grateful for. And such a beautiful day, even though the rain has been in and out.

We do need the rain in the Bay Area for sure.

Exactly. So it's beautiful to start with gratitude. So thank you.

Yes, I really love to do that. So you already said you are grateful for the rain and for such a beautiful day.

It's—

this is really one of the best places, I think, to live in the US because I used to live on the East Coast, on Tuscaloosa, Alabama. We had tornadoes and all kinds of crazy weather. I've never seen a tornado prior to me going there. It can be quite scary. But yeah, in the Bay Area, I mean, we don't have too much, much snow like they do in New York or New Jersey. So it's pretty much perfect weather all year long, and I really, really love it. So is there something about you, Papa, that most people may not know when they first meet you?

Well, when most people first meet me at the moment, I think the one thing most people don't know is I just had a son. Wow, thank you, thank you. I just had my first son with my wife. God has blessed us with our amazing son. His name is Cyrus. And so most people may not know this. It's not, you know, my close friends know about it, but most people may not know. So that's one thing. Um, the other, the other piece that most people may not know is I was born in Ghana. I grew up there until I was 17, then I moved here. And so came here and, you know, uh, did college and high school, and now, you know, building businesses.

Wow, that is really amazing. I was 17 years old too when I came to the US. I didn't know that about you. That's pretty cool. Do you play any musical instrument by any chance?

I wish I did. I wish I played the piano, but I didn't learn it. And maybe down the line I'd find some time to learn it. But at the moment I don't play any musical instruments. But back in the day when I was in boarding school in Ghana, I did play the drums. But—

oh, nice.

Yeah, I didn't take that too serious.

I'm sure it will come back if you start practicing again. Yeah, I've been playing the piano since I was about 7 years old.

Oh, awesome.

I see the— Yeah, my father forced all of his boys to play it. I didn't like it very much, but then I really got into it. So it's incredible. So let me ask you then, you really have quite a very interesting story. Let me ask you, who are you at your core? Who is Papa?

Yeah, that's a, that's a great question. So at my core, I think the first thing that comes into my mind is, is my core values, right? Yes, core values. So at my core, you know, one, I remember a while back I took a sit down and started to journal asking myself, what are my core values? What are the things that are most important to me? And at the time when I first made that list, I remember things like money and, you know, work was at the top of all that kind of stuff. Then I grew and got wiser, and I realized money and those things should not be the top priority. So I rearranged what my core values are. And so at the core, for me, number one was my relationship with God, right? Making sure that I build that strong relationship with God and, and staying grounded in the word. Spend as much time to be familiar with the word so that when those temptation— temptations come, you have that armor to, to fight it. So that was number one. Number two, what I put on my list was my family, right? So I put family on there because family is everything, you know. And now I have my own family So even more so, it's up there. And then number 3 was health, right? I realized what's the point of building wealth and doing all of this stuff, all the running around, getting everything, and not having the health to find the benefits in, in these things? And so that was, that was health. And then number, uh, that was Number 3. Number 4 was, um, wealth, right? I said, man, wealth is— it's important, you know. If you have health and you can build wealth, you should build wealth. Because again, when you—

when you—

when you're able to build that wealth, especially for people like us that don't come from privileged backgrounds, yeah, the next generation for something different. We don't want them to experience the same things that we experience. We want them to live a better life. We want them to have one leg up in life, not starting from zero. We want them to start at least from one, right? And so that's, that's the, the building wealth aspect. And then finally was relationships, right? Relationships are so critical. You know, your, your, your network, they say, determines your net worth, right? And so relationships are so important, and being intentional about building those relationships is so key. Now, I heard the other day that said the average person can only manage up to 77 relationships at a time, which is a very low number if you think about the amount of people that we interact with from time to time. And even for myself, like, moving from Jersey and then into, you know, San Francisco, so many people I know in— I knew in Jersey, now we don't keep in touch as much as we used to. I keep more in touch with the people that are in close proximity in San Francisco with me. And so being able to build those relationships and being intentional about them, you just never know. You have to treat that relationship almost like you're gonna need that person tomorrow, right? Don't only value the relationship when you need that person, because people are going to read through it and see that you're not real. And so that's me at my core. Those are the core— the 5 core values that I try to live by, and it's not easy, but, you know, that's what life is.

That's really, really beautiful. You said God, family, and then health, wealth, and relationship. That is so key. I love it. So can you take us back to the beginning? What shaped your mindset around money, leadership, and success growing up?

Yeah, so let's, let's start, let's start with, um, money. So like I said, I grew up in Ghana, right, and not from a privileged background. Money was always tight. It was, it was always a point of pressure in, in my family, right? And so when I was, you know, growing up, one of the things that I always wanted to do, especially when I was in high school, for example, was own my own cell phone, right? And that was something that I, I couldn't have. My mom just couldn't provide it for me. And so when I was 17, 18, I was able to get a job, and the first thing I got myself was a cell phone, you know. And that satisfaction where I was like, man, you know, just, just being able to provide this thing for myself felt really good. And I love video games when I was a kid, and so I was able to buy myself a video game. So I started to realize the power, you know, um, not just money, but the power that the access that it gives you right, to be able to create things for yourself. Sometimes it helps you to create the happiness not just for yourself but also for others. So money will solve your problems, but not all of your problems, but it'll solve some of your problems. So I started to realize the power of it being able to do that for me, and I said, well, there are some principles about money that if I learn, I think I can make a lot of it. And so I started to read books and You know, then I started to learn about the credit score and realized, man, my credit score was terrible. It was like 400 when I realized this is a real thing that people need to build. And so, you know, started reading books, learning, understanding the components of the credit score and so on.

Yes.

And of all the information that I was inheriting and learning, I started to ask myself, what about my younger brothers? Like, how are they going to get this information? They're not going to know this stuff, and no one is going to teach them, especially in our community. Yeah, we'll do a pretty good job of teaching that financial literacy. If you don't take it upon yourself to learn it, um, you just fall behind, and then you're always kind of like on the back burner. And so once I started to learn all of these things and then the power that these things can, can provide, you know, I started to change my mindset about money and then from that mindset of scarcity to abundance, right? Because when you're growing up in a community like that where when you want something, your parents are like, we don't— we can't do that, we don't have that, we can't afford that. You're always hearing that, and it builds this kind of muscle in your mind where you think there's not enough to go around. And so the first thing for me was shifting that mindset. And even till this day, to be honest, I'm still shifting that mindset, right? Because when you grow up in an environment like that, you become so ingrained. And so you have to be intentional about changing that mindset. So that was the first thing. That's kind of what shaped my mindset about money and realizing there's enough to go around. And if, you know, if you build yourself up, especially if you build your value as a person, you can access a lot of it.

Wow.

That was the aspect of money. The leadership aspect, though, is I somehow felt like leadership almost came naturally to me. Especially when I was in, um, when I was in boarding school back in Ghana. And I was much younger when I started boarding school. So when I was in boarding school in Ghana, I realized, you know, anytime there was an opportunity to lead something, I would be assigned to it. So at one point I was, you know, if anyone has grown up in these places, what they call the class perfect. So you're kind of like in charge of the class and that kind of stuff. And then eventually I became the school perfect, which means you're in charge of almost all the students, you're kind of the head student at the school. And so I started to realize the responsibility these things came with, right? Because they weren't just accolades. When things go wrong, you have to answer why someone behaved the way they did, even though you had no idea. And so, you know, from there I, I started to, um, build myself into it, right? Just, just lean into the leadership aspect. And so when I was 17 and I came to the US and, and I started working in, and, um, I actually started working in retail. My first job in retail, I was, I was a sales associate. I worked my way up and then I became a stock associate. So working in the back of the store, eventually they made me the, the manager of the back of the store, and that's where I started to lean into the leadership and realize You know, business leadership is a little different from the leadership you get in school or when you're in college and so on. And so I started to having to answer, you know, why is the business performing the way it is? Why is it underperforming? Why is it overperforming? What are the KPIs?

What are the drivers?

Right. Once I was able to understand that, I realized, okay, this is a whole different level of leadership which requires so much learning, but not just learning, but also being humble enough to be able to listen to the people that you're working with so that you always have that information and being well informed, right? And so those, those were things that, that shaped me, I think. And the last thing I think you said was success, right?

Yes.

Yeah. So for me, when it comes to success, I think success is, um, the— in the way I define success is the inherent ability to do something at a really high level multiple times, right? And so it's, it's incredibly difficult because in order to do something incredibly well over a long period of time, it requires patience and it requires grace, right? So Coach, you know, you, you play the piano, you, you're probably very familiar with this. In order to get really well get really good with playing the piano, you have to get used to making mistakes over and over again.

Yeah.

Now when you're making mistakes, you know, sometimes you're being judged, especially when you're in a leadership position. There's no, there's no room for me. Yes, because yes, looking at you like, you're the leader, you can't make mistakes, you know. And so it's the grace that you give to yourself though at the end of the day so that you allow yourself to grow, because as a leader you also have to grow.. And as a leader, when you make these mistakes, I think that's what actually makes you stronger, because then your comrades that are going to make that mistake, you're going to save them a ton of time, right, from, from making, for making that mistake. So that's my, that's my definition of success. And, you know, I try, I try to stick, stick with that.

And, uh, I like that.

Yeah.

And I'm sure from what you said earlier, you had a completely different definition where you were younger. It looks like money was at the very top of your priorities back then, and that has changed now. That's, that's really beautiful to see. And something else that, that you said, I was really shocked that, uh, nobody teaches you about money in college. No one. There is not a single class about how to balance your, your checkbook, credit score, or any of that. Pretty much everybody has to learn it on their own. So I really love that you have a podcast where you talk about fintech and all of those financial issues. And that's the— what do you call it— the Growing Wealth Platform, right? GWP Podcast. It's available everywhere podcasts are. And it's really wonderful that you offer that. I think it's really, really needed. And another thing you said about the prosperity mindset, or at least I think you called it the abundance Yeah, the abundance mindset, which I really love because most people who don't have much, they always say, I cannot have it. I cannot afford it. And in my experience, it's helped for me to say, how can I afford it? Because that opens up the possibility. I may not be able to do it now, but how can I? Because sometimes you don't even have to use your own money and you can be very, uh, uh, I guess, I don't know. Creative and you're gonna find ways to accomplish something that you initially thought was just impossible. So I really love it. And also what you said about success where you have to try and try and try again until you find your way, your path to success. Because it's true, if you do something brand new, no matter who you are, you are a novice, you don't know anything about it, you are going to fail a lot because you are just not good at it. And it takes time, like you say, and effort. They say on average, what, 10,000 hours? It takes about 5 years for anybody to become an expert in anything. And most people just don't have the patience. And it's kind of like the way I like to think about it when you are a father now. I don't know how old is your child. I think he was just born. But when the time will come for your child to start walking, I am 100% sure your child is going to fall. And you're going to say, oh, you cannot walk. You're falling all the time. Okay, let's just forget about it. You're never going to walk. No, he's going to learn how to walk. Something I did with my daughter. Try again, try again. And eventually they get the balance and they walk. Oh, miracle. Same thing with life. And no matter what it is, whether it's artificial intelligence, technology, whatever it is, yeah, you may not know everything there is to know about it now, but if you start working on it and you focus, eventually you are going to become an expert. It's just the law of nature. That's how it works. So I really love that about what you have said. You've also shared that financial literacy wasn't something you were exposed to early. What was the turning point that kind of changed everything for you?

Yeah, that's a very good question. So I think the turning point for me, and I remember it like it was yesterday, the first time I got my first paycheck, it wasn't a lot. I mean, it was less than $100, right? And man, I got that paycheck and I said, This is awesome, you know. But I give, I give that whole paycheck to my mom, that whole paycheck, because, you know, she had been spotting me so long. And then I got the next paycheck and it was gone already. The third paycheck gone. And so I was in this cycle of the moment I get the paycheck, I mean, sometimes the money would be gone before I even got the check. Like, I would have all these plans for the money before the money even hit my account. So the money just comes and it's gone. So I started to realize, I'm like, well, what kind of life am I living? Because I'm just living paycheck to paycheck. And at the time, I didn't even know that was a term. I was just like, every time the paycheck comes, it's gone. So then I started to kind of be a little more conscious about the decisions that I was making and realizing, okay, let me just kind of put some of the money aside, right? And you would think some of this stuff, it's just common knowledge. You should know if you're getting $100, you should put $20 aside. But you know, when, when you're, when you're in that kind of scarcity environment where you feel like everything is lacking, when you, when you, as soon as you get it, you feel like you have to get all the things that you wanted, you know. And so eventually I started, you know, putting a little bit of money aside, like $20 aside, $20, just a little bit. And I remember there was one time, I can't something happened and I had the money to cover it, and it felt so good.

I was just like, wow, that's pretty cool.

I have to go to my mom to go ask her, hey, can I, can I borrow $100 or anything like that, right? I was able to just do it on my own, and that gave me a whole new level of appreciation for kind of being intentional with, with my money.

Wow.

So That was the turning point for me, right? So I started to kind of put money aside, and this is especially my first job, so like I wasn't even a full-time employee. And so fast forward, time goes on, I become a full-time employee still in retail, and I start getting paid, you know, decent amounts and having 401k and all these kind of things. And one time I'm at the store and, you know, one of the guys told one of the employees something about their 401k, and I heard it and I was like, wait, they double your money? That's interesting. I went and looked it up and I saw, I was like, wow. Oh, so if I put money aside, the company is going to, you know, match it, match it and, you know, make my money grow a little faster. But then I also found out that the information the guy had given the other guy was not correct. It wasn't accurate. In my mind, I was like, well, how many people are spreading this kind of misinformation? Even though the guy brought my attention to the fact that if I put money aside, it gets matched, some of the information he gave the other guy was incorrect. And I'm like, this is financial information, it should be as correct as possible. So then I said, no, there has to be a platform, there has to be a way where people are able to get this kind of like accurate information so they can be able to build wealth and things like this.

Yes.

So that planted the seed in my mind. I mean, at that time I didn't take too much action, but you know, what I started doing was putting more money aside and getting my 401k match. And that's, that's how I started building my own financial profile.

That is really wonderful. So as a financial expert, how much money do you think people should put aside from each paycheck, save and not spend?

Yeah, so, you know, there are so many formulas that are out there, you know. Um, some do, you know, maybe you— 60% of everything you make would go to your living expenses, your bills, and all of that. And then, you know, the 40% you want to put it aside. But it's every— everyone's financial situation, Coach BZ, is, is different, right? So You know, if, if the, the starting point really is you need to have an emergency fund. If you don't have an emergency fund, there's no point starting anywhere else, really. The reason is because if you don't have an emergency fund and you start doing anything else, like, you know, putting money aside for your 401k or, you know, any of these long-term investments The moment you have a shock or there's a shock in the market, your, your investment is gone. Because the first place you're gonna run to is, oh, I got that $5,000 I've been saving in that investment account, I'm gonna withdraw it. Well, guess what? That time when you're going to go withdraw that $5,000, it might not be a good time. The markets might be down 20% at that time, and you're going for that money. So not only did you your $5,000 is now maybe $4,200, right? You've lost the value of your money. Your money over time is also losing purchasing power, right, if it's not in the right investment vehicles. And so with inflation and all of that, yeah, yeah, everyone's situation is different, but I think the rule of thumb is at least the, the minimum you can do is put 20% aside. The minimum you can do. Right? And then over time, you just continue to build on top of that, build on top of this. People are very aggressive, right? So there's, there's people that follow the FIRE, right? You know, financially, you know, they want to, they want to retire, they want to retire early. Those people, it might be different. They might only spend 40% and save 60%, or even, you know, spend 30% and save 70%. Very aggressive with saving. Everyone's situation different, you know. But the point is, start with the emergency fund. That's where you want to start.

I, I really like that. So when you say, um, put away 20%, that means you live with 80% of your income and then the other 20% you save. And for the emergency fund, uh, how many, uh, months do you recommend they keep money for? Like, meaning if they lose their job, they're gonna be able to survive for How long? What is the minimum?

Yeah, so then, you know, the industry standard, what people recommend, is 3 to 6 months. I think you need a little more because of where we are right now, right? So if you look at even in Silicon Valley right now, people are getting laid off every other day almost. Now, when, when you're in an environment where such things are happening, I think it is taking longer also for people to get back into work once they lose their jobs, right? Because, you know, hiring is slowing down and so on. And so 6 months might be okay, but it might take you longer. Like, I have friends that have been out of work, and they've been out of work for much longer than they expected, right? So more than 6 months. So the 3 to 6 months benchmark, I think, was for years ago. Now I think that's changed. You need at least a year, right? You need at least a year's worth of emergency, emergency fund. Now that doesn't mean you need up to, you know, a year worth of emergency fund before you can start investing and doing some of these things. I think the moment you hit about 3 months of emergency savings, you can start thinking about other investment vehicles. Yes, like the investing and all those kind of things. Yes, that way you don't, you don't waste too much time.

That is a pretty good plan. So you get your emergency fund up to a year, and then after that you, you can start investing. I really like that. And, uh, what about, uh, people who say, I barely make enough money to cover my bill, I just cannot save, I cannot create this emergency fund you are talking about? What, what do you tell them?

Yeah, you know, and I, and I definitely sympathize with them, right? People who have that sentiment, I agree with you. I— it's, it's really, really hard. The headwinds are real, right? The headwinds we have, you know, your, your inflation, so at an all-time high. Most young adults are coming out of college with, you know, this, uh, student loan debt, and so they're starting from that, not a positive, right? Childcare cost is at an all-time high. If you have a child and you're even trying to work, that's taking almost 30% sometimes of whatever you're making. That's really, really— these headwinds are, they're real. I sympathize. What I would tell people that have that perspective, I would say, is, you know, and I, and I love to always go back to the word of God, is Yeah, I think God has given us so much potential, so much potential to be creators and providers, right? And so if you're in this position, maybe you have a 9-to-5, right, and that's taking care of the bare minimum, and once the bare minimum is taken care of, you can't expand yourself to do anything else. I'd say ask yourself, what are you good at? What other skill sets do you have, right? What, what, what other talents has God blessed you with that right now maybe you're offering it for free or you're not even using the talent? I mean, the story of, you know, the, the, the rich man that was going away and gave the talents to his servants, right?

Yes.

God is giving you the talents. You do have the talents. Maybe you just haven't done the inventory to see what you have in the store.

I like that.

If you did the inventory, you're gonna realize, you know what, I used to be really good at math when I was in— when I was in college. Nowadays I don't even practice math. Well, if you went online, there are kids that are looking for a math tutor, and you might not even have to go to their house. You can just teach them online. And if you did it for 2 hours, 3 hours, that's— and maybe whatever comes out of that, you don't even see that money. Right? You just put it aside. Just put it aside. So that, that's what I would say for people that have that perspective. I, I agree, the headwinds are there, and I think they'll be there for a long time. But look, we're, we're, we're, we're strong. We're, we're built to win, right? We can't let these circumstances, um, stop us from the life that we're supposed to live.

I, I really love your perspective. Really be resourceful. With the gift you've got. And was there maybe like a specific book or mentor or a moment that kind of sparked your obsession with wealth building?

Yeah, I mean, I think there's been a lot of books that have sparked my thinking about wealth building. And, you know, the most basic one is The Rich Dad Poor Dad. Most people mention that book. Yeah, I read that book cover to cover., and that was a game changer for me. That was the first one. Um, another book— I, I see you're looking at your bookshelf. You probably—

yeah, I, I have it here somewhere. Yes.

Yeah. Um, yeah, and then the, the other books that have, you know, shaped my, my perspective about money— there's a book, uh, The Richest Man in Babylon. That was, that was a good one.

Yeah, that's the one I just picked up.

Oh, look at that! I didn't know you were gonna have that book.

I read this every year. It's a great, great parable. I love it.

I just started reading it to my son. My son is only 2 months and I'm reading the book to him.

I am really surprised there is no cartoon about it because I wanted my kids to watch it like a cartoon when they were a kid. But yeah, great, great book.

Well, maybe that could be something you could create with AI now. Like you can just create that cartoon easily.

I guess that's it too, right? If you find a need in the industry and nobody's doing it. So maybe you are called to make it happen. Maybe.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Yes, yes. Um, yeah, so those, those were definitely, definitely the books. And, um, the other thing that also sparked my interest with, with wealth really is, you know, I, I just would come up with ideas of things that I wanted to do and all that kind of stuff. And I started to realize, well, you can have many ideas, but you needed money to move the idea from zero to one.

Yeah, right.

Like, ideas just cost money. That's what it is. If not, then ideas are just cheap. So I started to realize, well, I need to make sure I build my, my finances in a way that allows me to— when I have an idea, I can execute. And that idea could be anything. It could be an idea of, hey, I want to go to Aruba this spring with, with my family and my wife. Well, how are you going to do that? You got to have some finances. Or yes, there's this new business venture that's coming up that, you know, everyone is talking about. I kind of want to start investing into it. We need somebody to be able to do that, you know.

Wow.

And so that was, that was one thing that also, you know, turned my, my thinking.

No, I really love that. And like you say, the economy isn't really great right now. A lot of people being laid off. And some people are kind of losing hope, or at least they are trying. Because now, even if you are very conscientious, you do everything you're supposed to do, you save money, you spend less than you make, and you make proper investment and all of that. But let's say if you've been out of work for like a year, some people 2 or 3 years, I mean, eventually all of your savings is going to go away. And then you are really panicked. What would you say to somebody who is in a crisis situation like that, who's listening to us? Right now?

Yeah, I mean, if you're in a crisis situation right now, and I think a lot of us are, are in that situation, number one is remember you're not alone, okay? You're, you're definitely not alone. Don't try to deal with it alone. Lean on your community. Lean on your community. Look, what I'm hearing these days is, you know, a lot of young adults are going back home actually going back to live with their parents.

Yes.

And if you find yourself in that situation, don't feel bad. Don't, don't feel like you failed or anything like that. We're at a time where, you know, this— the previous generation, when they were at this age, were much richer than we are. Some may argue that, but I think that's, that's the point. Like, we are being priced out of things like real estate.

Yes.

So, you know, the— for the average, not the top, not the top 10% or 1%, but below that, most of these people, their wealth is locked into their homes, right? And, and so these boomers are sitting on their homes and they're not willing to sell their homes.

Yes.

And the value of their homes have skyrocketed because interest rates is also up. So yes, for us, we're being priced out of being able to be even homeowners. We're turning into a renter's generation. Yes, rent is not cheap, especially if you live in the Bay Area. Also, it's not cheap. And so there are these— again, these headwinds started there. And so if you're in this kind of crisis situation, I would say lean on your community. Don't feel like you have to deal with this alone. And when I say lean on your community, what I mean by that is reaching out to Coach Bizzy and say, Coach, you know, I just lost my job. This is, this is the industry I was in. Do you know any people in this industry you can connect me to? Because you, you're, you're more likely to get back in the workforce and back to your goals with the referral than if you try to do it alone. So that's what I mean by don't try to do it alone. Yeah, you need to get creative, right? You need to get really, really creative. You know, you open a job post on LinkedIn and it tells you 250 people already applied. Why do you want to be the 251 person? Yeah, that's going to be incredibly difficult. But for that same job, if Coach Beasy knows the recruiter and says, hey recruiter, this is Papa, he's interested in this role, would you give him a chance?

Yes.

Coach Beasy, you know the recruiter, you're more likely to get a, a response than all of the 250 people that applied for that job. And so you need to get creative. Maybe that previous, um, college professor that you had. Maybe you're looking at his LinkedIn and he's connected to the guy at the one company you want to work at. Just reach out to him. There's no shame in the game at this point. LinkedIn is just one message. Craft a nice message. Yeah, send it out there. And don't, don't, don't, you know, don't overthink it. The worst thing they can say is, I'm sorry, I can't connect you. You move on. Yes, yes. And so if you're in a crisis, that's, that's what I would say. Um, the other aspect of it is the zeitgeist right now is AI. You need to use it to your advantage.

Yes.

I was speaking to a friend who recently started working at a bank, and he was telling me over 80% of the code that the bank uses is generated by AI.

Wow.

80, more than 80% is generated by AI. So what are you waiting for? Banks are using it.

Yes.

And they're using it to make money. Why are you not using it?

Wow, that is amazing. No, I really love what you are sharing. Thank you. And hopefully it's going to help some of the people who are listening right now. I'd like to talk about your Bloomberg experience, which is pretty fabulous. Before I do, we have a couple of questions from the audience. Daniel, From Metland, Florida is asking, uh, discussing intersection of global leadership and personal discipline, what is one non-negotiable habit every academic warrior should adopt to maintain high performance in a shifting career landscape? So, um, what one habit should they adopt?

Yeah, it's, it's hard to pin this down to one habit, Daniel.

Oh, a couple.

Yeah, I think the first one that comes to mind is say no. You have to say no because there, there's what we call shiny bright objects.

Yes.

That distract you from being focused. And so in the world right now, even though I've mentioned all of these headwinds, there's still a lot of opportunity out there. Yes. And so people are going to throw opportunities at you you know, your friends are going to call you to come out and come hang out tonight and all that kind of stuff. You have all these distractions that are happening, and I think as an academic warrior, the one habit is to be able to say no. Because when you say yes to one thing, you're also saying no to another thing. Yes, you need to be able to realize that. So I'd say the first one is, is, is being able to say no and being able to stay focused.

I like that.

Yeah, yeah.

I believe it was Warren Buffett, right, uh, who said part of the reason why at one point he was the richest man in the world is because he learned to say no 99% of the time.

Exactly.

He only focused on 1% of the time that is going to help him achieve his goal. That's, that's quite powerful. It's not that it is bad, sometimes it's actually good, but there is something better, right, that you need to, to be doing with your time.

Absolutely.

I love that. Now, talking about your Bloomberg experience, you worked at Bloomberg in portfolio and risk analytics. What did you learn there that most people will never see?

Oh man, that's such a great question. It was easy.

By the way, you need to stop saying that. It's taking away time from our interview. You always said that like half a dozen times. I'm just kidding. I get you.

I'll skip that part. But it's a great question. I didn't tell you.

That's my sense of humor. But yeah, go ahead. I got you, I got you.

I love it, I love it.

Keep it coming.

Uh, so, you know, Bloomberg, such a great company. They provide information, really. It's, uh, it's an information company. Now, when you really think about information in our world today, I think information, AKA data, yeah, is more— what it's, it's, it's worth more than gold. Data is worth more than gold. Why do I say that? If I'm a portfolio manager, okay, which means I'm managing people's money, or I'm a money manager in, in some form, I need data to make my decisions. And Bloomberg provides that data to help them make decisions that makes them millions and billions of dollars.

Wow.

That's, that's the kind of platform Bloomberg provides. That's one thing that I learned. And so you're working with these, you know, portfolio managers managing, you know, endowments and all of this money and so on, and they're relying on this system to make the next best decision that can make them more money. Wow. And one thing that I learned there is this— the tool is so sophisticated that it, it works. It generates results. Used the right way is like, you know, having a knife. If you use it the right way, you can make a meal.

Yes.

Use the right way, you can make a lot of money.

Wow.

So I started to ask myself, what about the average young adult? What the industry calls the mass affluent, the person making between $75,000 a year to $200,000 and up. What are they doing? Because you're not getting access to this, yes, institutional level intelligence. How are you ever going to make the kind of decisions these portfolio managers are making in order to make money and build wealth? So one thing I learned there was to kind of think from that perspective and started asking myself this question, you know, the power of data. And so I got into this thing where I'm like, my podcast and my platform, the GWP Podcast, one thing we're doing is we're providing people information for people to be able to build wealth.

Yes.

But then I realized that, well, if we're providing them the information, that's good. There's a gap, and the gap is they need to take action in order to be able to make use of that information that we're giving them, which is something that Bloomberg does really end to end, right? They give you the information and then they give you the platform to take action. For example, they give you the research and they give you the execution platform so you can execute what you just read on the research. So you have the whole process end to end.

Mm-hmm.

I start asking myself, I'm like, okay, these people on my platform, I give them the information, then what? Then this part is open, right? I'm not closing that gap. There's a gap there. And so we decided to, you know, create the platform that provides that institutional level intelligence that, that old man just getting from Bloomberg for the mass affluent, the people that we believe they should be able to build wealth and build a better life. So that's something that I learned there, that data is worth more than gold. Data is everything, and people will pay millions of dollars to get data.

That is quite amazing. Wow, you could say that again. And, uh, what do you think is one of the biggest misconceptions everyday professionals have about how wealth is actually built?

Yeah, you know, I think the biggest misconception is high income equals wealth. You could have never been wrong. Yeah, high income does not equal wealth. The fact that you're making $200,000 does not mean you're wealthy. You're not wealthy because when you think about wealth, there's layers to it, right? There's the accumulation phase. So maybe when you're making $200,000, you're in that accumulation phase, that phase where you're, you're making the money. And sometimes that accumulation phase is— that phase is when you make the most amount of money, probably maybe up to your 40s or your 50s, something like that. Once you get out of that phase, you start getting into the distribution phase, right? And in that distribution phase, you don't have the accumulation anymore. You're not making that $200,000 anymore. If you don't— if you, if you haven't built wealth, you're not going to have anything to distribute.

Yes.

And so you find a lot of people having to work past 65, 68, 70. They're still working 80. Sometimes they still have to work because they had this misconception that high income equals wealth. Wow, that's not true, right? And so they kept that, they kept that in their mind for a long time, and by the time they realized it was too late. And when it's too late you have no choice but to stay longer in the workforce even when your time to leave the workforce— yes, already come and passed.

No, that is so true. And I've been so sad, like, even now in our Congress, like, so many people have died in office, senator and congresspeople, when really— you know, I'm sure you, you read the U.S. Constitution too. Really, the idea I think was for people to actually have real jobs, be a doctor, be a lawyer, whatever you do. Go to Congress for one or two terms and then go back to your community, right? But today people are dying in office. They are very, very old. Like even now, I guess we have one of the oldest presidents, right? It's going to be 80 years old this year. And to me, it's like, you know, 60, you should be retired already, right? And, uh, but the thing is, you're right, many people that just cannot afford to retire. So is what you're saying is if you have high income, and many people in the Bay Area do, you should be building assets. This way you make passive income even when you no longer make as much money, all of your needs are still taken care of passively without you having to work another day of your life. Is that what you are referring to?

Exactly, yes, yes. So being intentional about building wealth, right? So not only are you just accumulating, but you're putting your money in the right assets, you're making the right financial decisions, you're talking to the right professionals at the right time. Yeah, you're, you're rebalancing that portfolio before it's too late, right? You know, you're, you're managing that exposure to, to those risky assets, right?

Yes.

Just, just being intentional, right? Building wealth is action-based. You have to be doing something. You might be having to increase your savings rate, you might be having to reduce your debt. You know, you have to be doing something to be able to be— to build wealth. Most especially when you're making that high income, there's more so reason to actually manage that diligently. Yes, because back to the word, there's a time for everything. There's a time to make $200K, and there's a time where you're not making $200K.

Yes.

So when you're in that high income bracket, you need to be making the right decisions, almost like this to could pass.

Yes, yes. Wow, I really love what you are saying. Now, at Bloomberg, you've worked again with institutional investors. They're really tight end of the industry. Many of them make like billions. It's really difficult for an average person to imagine that. But what do you think separates, uh, how institutional investors think from how the average person manages money?

Yeah, I think number one is— I think what we've talked about it a little bit, which is, which is the data, right? There's so much power in the data, and there's so much data out there that before an institutional investor makes a decision, the amount of data that they have to look at is, is a lot, right? And so, and sometimes there's multiple eyes on, on the data, because if you, if you really think about Take an average financial firm, for example. So before this portfolio manager decides to buy Apple, for example— let's just pick Apple as a stock— well, first they have to go through the research process, right? And that research process could be— it could be two-pronged. Most firms are using the top-down approach. So some can do top-down, some can do bottoms up. So the top-down approach, you're— this person is— think of it almost as a funnel. So they, they pick the broad aspect of this whole thing. So in this case, maybe we can pick an economy. So we pick the US economy. It's really broad. So we look at the US economy. How's the economy doing? You know, what kind of— what are, what are the drivers of the economy? What are the indicators telling us? You look at all that at the top of the funnel. Then you come to the middle, let's say, of the funnel, and maybe you might look at the industry, right?

So you—

I look at the tech industry and so on. Then you look at the sector, right, before you even get to the company to look at.

So you—

there's this sort of systematic approach before you actually decide what to invest in. The average investor, the way we're going about it, is some of us are using Reddit. You go to Reddit and this person is like This, this stock just went up 10%. One should buy it, right?

Just listening to your cousin who doesn't have any experience or expertise at all, right?

And then we'll get into it. I think there's nothing— there's not much— I mean, there's, there's a lot wrong with that approach, but I think we can refine it a little better, which is get the information anyway. Because, you know, for these institutional, um, managers to get the information. They're paying lots of money to get that data. So I don't think it's fair to expect the retail investor to have that level of information. But you also have some tools on your fingertip. Again, AI is, is there. Number one is if you get the insight to say, okay, sure, maybe I'm gonna look at Apple, well, you can also start by doing your own deeper analysis, right? Whether you're using AI whether you're talking to people that you know, use the internet, see what the company is talking about, and so on. Yeah, before you make that decision, I think just being systemic, I think that's what the, the average investor gets wrong. Yes, because for, for the institutional investor, they're managing a lot of money. One bad decision is 10x, right? They can lose. And so it makes sense that they go through this rigorous process Yes, they make that decision. Whereas for you, the institutional guy, even though you're not managing millions of dollars of money, you're probably just getting started with your financial journey and you cannot afford big shocks. You just can't afford taking 10 steps back. We just— we don't need that, right? We're better off taking little steps forward than taking huge leaps, especially when it comes to investing. From time to time you might get a huge leap and you should absolutely take those, but you shouldn't go chasing those, right? And one thing that I learned one time, I was talking to, um, you know, one of these institutional investors, and what they said is, you know, Papa, you know, sometimes I don't do anything in the markets, especially during Christmas. They're like, during Christmas I don't trade. December, nothing is happening for me. I just watch the markets, I see what's going on. He's like, because when there's not enough people trading at that time, that I'm less likely to make money.

Yes.

And so this person has realized a time where they've said no, they're not going to be taking any action no matter what. They're not. And for the institutional guy, they always want to go, they're always looking for something to do even when it's not the right time. And that's when they end up losing money and making bad decisions.

Wow, that's a really great, uh, insight. Thank you so much for sharing that. So what do you think is the impact of artificial intelligence, especially for the average person out there?

Man, I, I don't think we've seen the full impact yet. I think we're only seeing the surface. It's going to change the way we live. It's going to change the way we think. It's going to change the way we even work. Awesome. And it's already changing all of that already. So I think the, the impact right now is, you know, I think we're still— we're not at the beginning of it, but we're, we're well into, you know, the, the, the revolution that AI is gonna, is gonna bring. I think the best thing you could do for yourself right now is be part of the change. Right? And what does that look like? That means being aware of what tools are coming out, what the tools are capable of doing. Join communities, attend those conferences, talk to friends that are building these things, that are using them. If you don't understand how to use it, find out how to use it. Right now there's just no excuse to not learn. YouTube is, is ready, willing and ready, and people are just like, here's the information that you didn't know, you know.

Yes, yes.

I think the impact is yet to be felt, to answer your question. But what our listeners can do right now is lean forward. I mean, dive headfirst into this space. This is a gold rush, and you are better off being a part of this revolution than you miss it. I think at any point in our lifetimes there are going to be a few revolutions that are going to happen. The internet happened, and now this is happening. This is ours.

Wow, that is well, well said. So, uh, we are almost running out of time. Uh, let me ask you this one Bloomberg question before I go to my last segment. If you could give our audience one Bloomberg-level insight they can apply today, what would it be?

A Bloomberg-level insight. Wow.

Um, for the peasant, for the regular folks.

Yeah, I think number one is, you know, when you, when you see big successful institutions like Bloomberg, you're always gonna think it's— wow, you have to do something exceptional to, to be that successful. But I think the principles of success are the same where you are and at a place like Bloomberg also.

Yes.

Like, one thing that I learned very early on at Bloomberg was one of my managers always used to say, network to get things done. And I didn't really understand that until now that I'm building my own company, that I realize just to be able to get something done. Sometimes I don't need to know how to do it because someone may have already figured it out.

Yes.

And I'm just one network away from this person telling me what it is. Or maybe I'm trying to get a proposal to a firm, for example, and I'm sitting here and wondering, how am I gonna get in? Maybe I call a friend who used to work at the firm and I say, hey brother, this is what I'm trying to do, could you help me? Could you connect me with someone? He's like, yeah, let me— give me a day or two. Oh, here's a number, call this person, they're expecting your call. Amazing. I just got in, you know. So that, that's, that's one insight. I think just the principles of success, especially that networking to get things done, really, really important. Um, yeah, I think, I think that's, that's the first one. And number 2 is don't be intimidated by people with titles.

Yes, man.

The amount of people that I've met when I was working at Bloomberg, and I'm talking wealthy people, man, wealthy people. I remember I went to go visit this guy in Aspen, Colorado, and this guy's house was up there. Like, it was up there. The guy, he looked at me, he's like, come on up. And I started climbing up and I was like He's like, you like it? I was like, yeah. The guy opens up his thing, and I'm sure it's just one of his portfolios he was showing me. It was like 32 million in that thing.

Wow.

And he's like asking me questions, and in my mind I'm like, this guy's got 32 million and I'm the one giving him the information. How does this work? And so I started to learn, you know, you can be intimidated by these people.

Yes.

So even though, you know, they, they have the money, the influence, and the power You have something special that these people are looking for, and you have to believe in that.

And I know you talk a lot about the wealth gap, and it's true, no, the top 1%, 3% make a lot more money than the rest of us. And part of what you're doing with your podcast is to really help, uh, really democratize, you know, this financial information. Why, why is that so important to you?

Yeah, I mean, you know, if you, if you, if you look at the, the scale, the world scale, the top 10% owns more than, you know. So there's a statistic that I read the other day. Let me go into this. 6, um, for, uh, Millennials and Gen Z, our wealth is growing between 43% and 46%, respectively.

Okay.

Of that 43% and 46% growth, 10% of it belongs to the 1% at the top, and more than 10% belongs to one person, and that person is Mark Zuckerberg.

Wow.

And so if you, if you think about this, you're like, man, only a few, you know, you're hearing, oh, you know, Gen Z and Millennials, the wealth has grown by almost 50%, but that's only a couple of people. You're like, well, I'm looking at my bank account and I don't see that 50%.

Where did it go?

Well, it just went to the top 10, 1%. Yes, right. And so what are these people doing that is so special that we are not doing? And that's what brought me to my last season on GWP, where I was talking to a lot of founders who have built something to use that to build wealth. Because if you really think about it, that's what Zuckerberg— he built something in the form of a company in this case, and then use that to be able to build wealth.

Yeah.

And so if you can build something and use that to build wealth, why don't you do that? That's a blueprint. Success leaves clues. If you look at Zuckerberg's success, he's left the clues. If you look at Buffett, his success, he's left the clues.

Yeah.

And so I started interviewing these founders and picking their brain and figuring out how they build something and how they're using that to be able to build wealth. And so for the average person that's looking to close the wealth gap, I think that's, that's a good place to start. And then we've talked about this a little bit already, is look at the inventory. What are the gifts and talents that God has given you, and which ones are you underutilizing? And don't put down on those.

That's really, really powerful. So we've technically run out of time already. Can you give me 10 more minutes to Yes, of course. Okay. All right, let's, let's do this. I'm gonna try to land this plane soon, so I'm gonna do the very last segment. One of the first questions I want to ask you is, uh, what do you think is one of the greatest lessons you have learned so far, whether in life, in leadership, or just in general?

Yeah, man, the greatest lesson I've learned is humility. Humility, it goes a long way. And I have a story for this one because Just recently, yeah, this week I was at an event and, you know, this, this event was, uh, organized by Speedrun. It's called the Speedrun Cafe. And anyone that knows Speedrun, it's, um, A16Z. It's a big, uh, VC, VC firm. And at the event, and they had this free food and, you know, uh, free food and one drink. So I grabbed the, I grabbed the food And I ended up grabbing one of the boxes and then the plate. And then the guy comes and he's like, you know, you can only grab one plate, right? And I was like, oh, okay, that's fine. So I, I'm putting the other plate back and I was like, why? Honestly, I was just grabbing the box to bring to my wife because usually I want to bring something back to her. And he's like, no, no, it's fine, it's fine, you know, you could, you could, you could just take it. I was like, oh, thank you, man, appreciate it. So then he asked me, he's like, what are you building? What are you doing? And so we start talking and he's like, oh, I'm a venture capital guy. And in my head I was like, this guy does not look like it. And I, I could have been rude to this guy because here's the guy telling me I can't grab the food. Yes, I can't grab the food. But I was humble. I was, I was willing to put it back and just go about my day. And we're talking and we connected. And if I didn't have that humility to just be like, okay, I'm sorry, you know, one plate. I would have missed that opportunity to connect with that guy, and who knows where that relationship can go. But at the end of the night, then the guy tells me, oh, I own the place. And I was like, oh, I was like, wow, yeah, great. I was like, great, it's nice to meet you, you know. But he didn't look like it. The guy didn't— he Like the guy's just walking around nonchalant. Like, yeah, yeah, I wouldn't tell you. So that's the, that's the one lesson that I've learned.

That's quite powerful. It looks like people who are truly wealthy, they don't really show their wealth on them. And people who are poor, they tend to drive, you know, the luxurious car, have all of the threads and everything. But like Warren Buffett, I think he's been driving the same car for the last like 15, 20 years. Very old car. And, uh, you know, he's not— it's just, I mean, I guess that's why he's so wealthy, right? Because he knows how to save his, uh, money. It's— yeah, I think living with humility makes a big, big difference, even the way we live. Thank you for sharing that. Now, you started from nothing. You came to this country 17 years old, but here you are. You've worked for some of the biggest companies in America, and now you are starting your own business, and you have your podcast being successful and so forth.

Why—

what do you think is— and I know you are still building it, but what is the secret of your success so far? Why are you so successful? Because you are definitely not average.

Thank you.

Why, why, why do you think that is?

Thank you. I think that this, the secret really is just persistence. I think that's what it is, just the relentless pursuit to become something that's worthy and not quitting. Because especially when you're trying to build something It's so easy to give up. It's so easy to give up. Today I was recording an episode with my, my CTO, and before we actually recorded that episode, we, we, we had a call with a financial advisor and we demoed the product that we built to the financial advisor. And the financial advisor, the first thing he said is, oh, this looks like this other platform that I've seen. And we're like, yeah. Okay, what else? But the guy started giving us so much insight. He gave us so much information, right? We were, we were open for the information, right? Obviously that's why we demoed the product to, to the advisor. And he even offered, he's like, when you guys have additional questions, reach out. Like, I want to help you guys build this thing, you know? And for us, our ability to be humble and not be hurt and say, what, this looks like some other platform, what are you even talking about, right? Yes, you know, but realizing, yes, there's the competition, but that's why we're also building this thing, right? And, and shifting our perspective— the perspective is so important. That's another thing also that makes you successful, is when you're hearing, okay, there's another company in the space, that doesn't mean you should quit. That probably means you're on the right path. Yeah, if it wasn't the right path, that company that's ahead of you wouldn't have taken that path. And so there might be mindset that you can do that that company might not be doing. And so speaking to the financial advisor, for example, that's what we landed on. Give us all these ideas and what he actually expects and how he would want to use our platform. This is great insight for us. We go back to the drawing board and we continue to build, but we don't quit. Which is being persistent, right? And then, you know, just pursuing this thing, you know? And so I think that's, that's the, that's, that's what's helped a lot.

But it looks like throughout your life you've always been persistent and always moved forward. Now, even like you said at the beginning of the show, you started, you're at the counter, and then you went in the back room, and then you become the manager of the back room. It's like you are always, always moving forward. Where, where do you think that drive comes from for you?

I think maybe, maybe you can relate to this one, could be easy, but I always say we've come a long way. Yeah, we come all the way from Africa. We can't come here and, and just play around, right? Like, we've got to go. So that, that one job didn't work out, great, let's go. We gotta go. We don't have time to sit around to be crying and no.

Yes.

So we've come a long way, and I think that's where the drive comes from, right? And then you get to that point where now you have a family that depends on you, and you know, you're, you're, you're the breadwinner, right? And not only are you the breadwinner, but you're also the leader of the family. They're looking at you. When you fail, they're looking at you. What is he gonna do? Well, he just failed. Someone just said no to him. What is he gonna do? Is he gonna be pissed off, or is he gonna buckle up and find a new, a new route? He just lost that deal. Oh, what is he gonna do? Is he going to find a new deal or is he going to work harder? That's where that comes from.

I like that. Wow, this is really powerful. You reminded me just right now of a gospel song about I can't give up now. I just cannot give up now. I've come too far from where I started from. Nobody told me the road would be easy, but I don't believe it's brought me this far to leave. It's just impossible for me to give up. Wow, that is powerful. Powerful. Okay, so I know leaders are learners. So what are you learning these days?

Just learning to use AI. Yeah, just building with AI. That's what I'm learning these days. So I'm not technical. I don't know how to code and all of this kind of stuff, but my CTO was here today and I showed him what I built. He was impressed.

Yes.

Yeah, he was impressed. So that's what I'm learning nowadays, just using AI to be as efficient as possible, to stress test my ideas, to think about the things that I'm not thinking about when I'm thinking. That's what I'm learning right now. And also learning how to be a father.

Yes, yes. That's definitely life-changing for sure. So what about failure? How has failure shaped your life, man?

I, I've seen failure in so many different ways, you know. Failure to me is a gift, is a gift. It's, it's an opportunity to go back and learn, right? So the first business that I ever started was with a couple of friends of mine back in the East Coast in Jersey. We started this business, it was in the wellness industry, and, you know, we, we started selling CBD and, you know, into wellness. And it was so difficult to start that business because that industry was heavily regulated at the time when we started it, man. I opened— I remember I opened a bank account, the next day the bank called me and said, we can't, we can't bank with you just because of the nature of your business. That's how regulated that industry was. They closed the bank account. We needed a payment processing to be able to process credit cards. Man, I applied to Square 6 times. 6.

Wow.

5 times I was denied. On the 6th time, I closed, I closed the business and I re-registered the business and I changed the description of the business. Then we got accepted. It was, it was so hard. It was so hard. But that failure, those, those multiple failures for me was just learning for me, right? And then eventually the business, we run out of money and we had to close the business. But to me, that wasn't failure, that was learning, because we learned a lot. And I learned how to be resilient and persistent and realizing it's just business, it's not personal. The bank calling us, that was not personal. That was just, hey, the kind of business you guys are doing, we can't do business with you. You got to come remove your money and find a new place to bank. The next thing, we have to find a bank account, and we found a new bank, you know. And, and those, those failures leads you to the next thing and the next thing and the next thing.

That's powerful. And, uh, if you could choose 3 people to have dinner with, that could be alive dead, or even fictitious characters, who would you choose and why?

3 people to have dinner with?

Wow.

Number 1 would be my grandfather.

He's—

he, he was a military man just like you. That man was full of wisdom, and I wonder what kind of wisdom he would have for me, because from time to time he would always call you and tell you, sit down, and then he would start you know, giving you a lecture. Back then we're all like, man, this man talks so much. This man—

but like we say in Africa, right, when an old man dies, an entire library that has been destroyed.

Yeah, seriously. And so I, I— he would be number one. Um, number two, well, I would say I, I definitely admire Barack Obama. I see you have his book. Yeah, I do. The Promised Land. I read that book, loved that book. Yes, um, would definitely love to have dinner with him for sure.

Actually, his presidential library is opening up on June 10th, June 19th, uh, this year in Chicago. Yeah, I am planning, planning to, to go. I think tickets will be available May 26th, so—

oh wow, that's, that's, that's awesome. If I could go, I would. Um, and then the third— wow, the third one is a little hard.

Um, oh, and also, by the way, not only you're gonna meet him, but you're gonna be able to meet the other free, um, president too. Clinton, Bush, and Biden are going to be there also.

Oh really? They're going to be there?

Yeah.

Oh wow, that's a great opportunity.

So I am definitely going.

So yes, yes, yes, yes. Oh, we'll see. You know, my son is only 2 months, so, you know, traveling, like, I understood.

This is going to be quite a historic moment, I think.

Yeah, I think, I think the last one, um, would definitely be, um, I don't know if you know him, uh, Kwame Nkrumah, the man that gained independence. Yeah, would be a great mind to tap into, especially with where our world is today and the things he wanted to stand for.

Yes. Wow, powerful. And, uh, some of the books you have read, you've already mentioned a couple. So you did mention this one, uh, The Richest Man in Babylon. Why should people read this book?

Why should people read The Richest Man in Babylon? Man, I think it's practical. It's such a practical, engaging book. Do not use any jargons or any financial terms. It's just common sense. The book is just about common sense, really. And it's just a common sense approach to the way to think about money.

Yes, it's really amazing how this is ancient Civilization. Yeah, thousands of years ago, but those principles, they still apply today in 2026. Yeah, that's really amazing. Like, from time to time, I, I do a study on the Book of Proverbs on my podcast. It's not religious, but we just look at ancient wisdom and leadership lessons from Proverbs. But again, a book written more than 2,000 years ago, but all of those principles, you apply them today, you're gonna get the same exact effect. It's so relevant still. That really amazes me. Wow. And you've also mentioned this book. Why should we read this, Rich Dad Poor Dad?

Yeah, for me, at the time when I read Rich Dad Poor Dad, I think where I was in life, it really just spoke to that, right? I was at a point where I was living paycheck to paycheck, not really understanding what was going on, and I was falling a victim of my environment, really, like looking at what was happening in my environment and doing the same thing. And so that's, you know, the reason we read books is to get different perspectives, and the book gave me that different perspective that I needed besides the environment that I was in. So that, that's why I would recommend someone to read that book. Um, it's practical also, you know, it makes sense. And chances are, if you open your eyes in your environment, there's a rich dad and there's a poor dad.

True. And also, just so that you know, I actually interview his co-author Sharon Lechter last year for season 4. And yeah, she actually helped Robert Kiyosaki build his empire. I know eventually they fell out, so he took her name off of the book, but she pretty much wrote the book for him. But anyway, quite literally full of—

Yeah, that's so awesome.

You should watch that episode from season 4. Really great, great episode.

That and the one with the Proverbs, the Ancient Wisdom.

I like that.

Check those out.

Yeah, actually I recorded Ancient Wisdom in January, January 1st through 31st. So I took one chapter every single day. So you have like an hour long of each one of those chapters. But what I'm doing now, I'm using AI to give like a 20-minute summary of what I did back in January. So I've done, I think last time I did this, It was chapter 21. Now I need to do 22. Of course, we go up to 31, and then we will be done with that. So is there maybe like a song, a book, or a movie that you would consider like your life's theme or anthem?

Maybe a book. There was a book that I read. It's called The Code to the Extraordinary Mind.

And Extraordinary Man.

Okay, yeah, The Code to the Extraordinary Mind.

Okay.

And I— the, the author, it's called— I think it's Vishen is his name. Um, if you want to find it, Coach, that would be nice.

Um, that book, Vishen Lakhani, right?

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

Yeah, that's pretty cool.

That's— that book is definitely a theme for sure, for sure.

And, uh, man, I've read almost 3,000 books by now. I've never heard of this one.

It's a great book. I think it's a great book. It's, it's well written. Um, it's, it's one of those books that I read at a point in my life where I was like, wow, I needed this. I liked it so much that I started buying it as a gift. And wow. Yeah, I was just—

that is really, really cool. Yeah, you know, I, I feel like part of the reason why I do this podcast, I am a little bit selfish. I, I want to know what's the next book I, I need to read. So thank you for, for sharing that. First, The Code of the Extraordinary Mind by Vishen Lakhani, founder of Mindvalley. Oh, Mindvalley, I know him. Yeah, uh, 10 Unconventional Laws to Redefine Your Life and Succeed on Your Own Terms. Wow, cool. Yeah, he has a lot of personal development type of— Yes, he does. Podcasts. Wow, that is really, really, really cool. Here it is. And for the people watching, because I do have a digital bookshelf, so when you guys recommend books, I add them to the bookshelf of the podcast. I started, I think it was May of last year, and now we have over 300 books. It's pretty amazing. So I'm going to add this one.

There it is.

That's pretty amazing. Wow, cool. Thank you for sharing that. So, uh, if you had one and only one day to live, what would you have liked your final contribution to be?

Final contribution, that's tough. The first thing that comes to my mind is my son. I just, I just want to, want to get living with some wisdom so that you can make a positive impact in the world.

That's really powerful. And if you had the magic wand, you could solve any problem in the world, what is the one problem you'd like to solve first thing tomorrow morning?

Peace. Bring peace to the world. Perfect peace.

Wow. So All good things come to an end. We are toward the end of the show. I could talk to you for hours and hours. What can the audience do to provide value back to you?

Yeah, I would say, you know, for guys in the audience, definitely sign up to my newsletter. Wanna definitely keep in touch with you guys. Let us know how Yeah, how the, how the episode was. So a little bit about the newsletter. This is the Growing Wealth Platform newsletter, and once you, once you complete it, what ends up happening is we ask you to complete an assessment, and based on the assessment, we help you to be able to determine whether you're building wealth or if you're not building wealth, right? Which is the platform we're building for. And so it's a really cool approach to be able to kind of track your wealth, your wealth Um, so definitely check that out. And then also, you know, I have the Grow with Papa GWP podcast where I provide information that can help people to be able to build wealth. It's available on Spotify, um, on all the platforms, right? So Spotify, YouTube, it's there, um, Apple, Google, Amazon, all over the place. So definitely check those out.

Yes. Wow, thank you. Thanks so much for spending time with us. If I may ask you one more question, uh, if, uh, oh, first, before I ask this question, is there a question I should have asked you I didn't get a chance to ask? Anything else you wanted to share?

No, I feel like we've covered a lot of ground, and, uh, yeah, this was very good. I really enjoyed it. I'd say thank you so much, Coach, for having me and giving me the platform to speak with your audience and connect with your people on here. I feel like I'm always on the other side of the podcast side, interviewing people. So it's really amazing to be able to share the platform with you. Would love to have you on the JWP Podcast likewise.

Oh, thank you.

Reverse the roles and keep that going.

Yes. I may not know as much as financing as you do, unless you talk about cybersecurity leadership or national security or something. But yeah, that would be a great pleasure. So one of the last questions I'm going to ask you then is if you could go back, actually, this is going to be perfect for you because that's the age I came to the US. I was 17. You were too. So if you could go back to give a piece of advice to your 17-year-old self, here you are in America, you probably don't know anybody, don't have much, money or anything, but you have those big dreams like I did, but you have no idea how to go from point A to point B. Standing at the edge of this incredible career you've had now, working for Bloomberg, you have your own business, podcast, and all of the good things you are doing, what would you say to your 17-year-old self?

I would say do really hard things. Do things that are really, really hard. The reason I say that is if you ever come to a crossroad, there's one way that leads to the easy path, one way that leads to the hard path. Take the hard path. The easy path is so crowded, there's just too many people there. Everyone wants the easy path. Do really hard things, because when you do really hard things, in the moment it may seem like, why am I even doing this? It's so hard. But when you go through it, you're gonna realize, oh, everyone else quit. I'm the only one here. Yes, that's what I'll tell myself, because I took a lot of easy routes, to be honest, you know, especially when I was in college. I'm like, man, I don't want to do this work, you know. Did you do the work? Can you send it to me? Submit it.

Done.

You know, I would have— if I could do it again, I would take the courses that I really hated I would take, you know, I would major in the one that I was like, man, this is really hard. I'll probably do that one.

Yes. Yes. Wow. Stretch yourself, try new things. And even if you fail, keep learning, don't give up. And you become an expert after 5 years or 10,000 hours eventually. Wow. That is really, really powerful. Okay. To end, can you give me a couple of minutes? We can do like a rapid fire where I ask you a question and you give me an answer really quickly. We are thinking too much. Okay. What is one word that defines great leadership? One word.

Patience.

Okay. Morning routine or practice that keeps you grounded?

Reading my Bible.

What is a book or a quote that changed your life?

Time Changes.

Hmm. Who inspires you most today?

My mother.

And a leadership habit you refuse to compromise on, you will do it no matter what?

Pursuit of excellence.

Hmm. The question every leader should ask themselves frequently?

Oh, what is my impact?

Wow. I like that. What did you want to be when you were a kid? Don't say doctor or lawyer.

Ah, I don't know. I don't know. I need to ask my mom what I was saying when I was a kid.

So you mean your parents, your African parents, didn't tell you to be a doctor or a lawyer?

I don't— I'm sure, I'm sure my mom definitely wanted me to be like a lawyer or something. Um, but at least from the stories they told me, they told me I always wanted to grab the keys to everything. Oh, maybe I just wanted to be a business leader.

Yeah, yeah. Okay, you are a business. Yes. Fantastic. 3 adjectives describing you as a child.

Um, I heard I was stubborn for sure.

Okay, two more.

Um, smart, definitely.

Okay, one more.

And, um, uh, I'll say curious.

Okay, what about as an adult?

As an adult, I would say patient, slow with listening. So listen slowly.

And that's a great skill.

And then I'll say hungry for success.

I like that. So I'd like to end on a positive note. What is something you are feeling optimistic about these days, man?

Right now, what I'm feeling optimistic about is the future of the company that we're building. Definitely, I feel, I feel very optimistic about it. The more I talk to professionals in the industry, the more I feel like we're on the right path, you know.

Good.

A lot of times you hear about successful companies and you don't really know how they started because no one tells you the full, the full story. But sometimes you start from A with a story to say, I'm gonna make A, and then by the time you realize you made B. And kind of that's where, where, where we are, where we're kind of like morphing into so many different things. And it's, it's amazing, it's a beautiful thing to see. And so super excited to continue to do it and, you know, continue to build.

That's fantastic. All right, one word that represents our shared experience on this podcast. This is the last question.

Inspiration.

Inspiration. I love it. I am so, so grateful. All right, Papa, you've been one of our master teachers today. Thank you so much for elevating our financial awareness and, uh, intelligence. So really appreciate that. Absolutely.

Thank you, Coach Bizzy, for giving me the platform. This was awesome.

Absolutely. Thank you so much. All right, everybody, this is one for the books. So make sure to follow Papa, he's on LinkedIn. So you go to Papa-Kwannou and his mailing list grow-with-papa-podcast.kit.com. You give your name and your email address and he's going to be sending you his newsletter. All right, that's all I have for today. I don't believe I am interviewing anybody tomorrow, but on Friday, we're going to go back to our industry guest expert. That's where I have a TEDx-like podcast for like 20 to 30 minutes max. And we're going to have an industry expert. I think the one I'm going to be interviewing, she's been on the podcast before. She's going to talk specifically about cybersecurity leadership. So I am looking forward to that. That's going to be for Friday. I think tomorrow, Thursday, I will probably go ahead and do Proverb chapter 22, the AI recap. So I'm going to use artificial intelligence to give us like a 15 to 20 minute recap of the hour-long presentation we had on January 22nd. All right, that's all I have for today. And this week, as you know, our friend in the spotlight is General Jeffrey West, US Air Force. All right, see you tomorrow. Bye for now. Thank you.

Thank you for tuning in to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ. If today's episode added value to your leadership journey, be sure to subscribe, share, and join us again for more wisdom nuggets on how to lead better and achieve greater success. Remember, leadership is the most critical skill of our time. The world will always need leaders to inspire others, drive innovation, and execute meaningful strategy. So why not count yourself among the bold leaders shaping the 21st century? Until next time, stay inspired, stay committed, and keep leading with excellence.