160. Chad Hufford | Forging Financial Freedom

Hello, Book Thinkers family, and welcome to our personal development podcast, Book Thinkers Life-Changing Books. During each episode, we interview one of the world's top authors, and as a listener, you can expect to discover new books, new mentors, and new resources that you can use to achieve more and live better. In today's In today's episode, we have the pleasure to interview Chad Hufford, author of Forging Financial Freedom. Chad is the father of 6 and lives in Anchorage, Alaska with his wife Tiffany, where she homeschools their kids. He is also an athlete, an entrepreneur, and the founder and owner of Veritas Alaska, where he helps people create a work-optional lifestyle. Chad went to college where he studied biochemistry, but soon realized he wanted to start a family and felt that being a doctor would take him away from his family for long periods of time. Growing up with a father who was in finances, he realized that he could create a lot more freedom by being in the financial world. Fast forward to today, he is now helping oilfield professionals create a sustainable way to live through their wealth, health, relationships, and mindset. In this episode, you'll learn why there's a need to move beyond average and create sustainable habits that align with your future goals, why reframing budgeting as a positive action ensures that the most valuable things happen. Chad also highlights the significance of having a greater purpose and pursuing meaningful goals and shares his personal experience with mortality and the role of faith in his life. He encourages listeners to embrace change, cultivate purpose, and make choices that shape the trajectory of their life. Now, get ready to learn and enjoy this incredible conversation with Chad Hufford. Chad, welcome to the Book Thinkers Life-Changing Books Podcast. We are so excited to finally have you on our show, to introduce you to our listeners, and to talk about your soon-to-be— soon-to-release new book, Forging Financial Freedom. Now, before we get into the book, I'd love to start with asking why you decided to get into finances in the first place. That wasn't the original path you went on. In fact, you have a degree in biochemistry, if I'm not mistaken. So what change happened to make you dive into the world of finances?

So I was actually just asked this question yesterday. A couple of the professors from the University of Alaska were sitting down with me and they were curious about my history and they didn't know me as students. They're actually— they were both history professors, but they're like, yeah, the university? So, you did finance? I was like, no, it was biochemistry. And, my mission in life, I thought, was to be a surgeon. And, I was really interested in medicine. I still am. I still nerd out on that stuff. In fact, Nick, I was watching your cold plunge thing the other day and I was like, that's something I need to research more. Of course, here in Alaska, a cold plunge just means you go outside and hop in the snow. But, I'm fascinated with how the body works, and I've always had a desire to help people become a better version of themselves, whether that was putting them back together or coaching them in athletics, helping them grow stronger and fitter. But, I thought medicine was going to be my way to do that. And, I was hell-bent on medicine. The biggest areas I was interested was endocrinology, the study interaction of hormones, but also surgery. And, I just thought trauma surgery would be amazing. The excrements have hit the oscillator, the stress is on, the pressure's on, and you have the opportunity to save somebody's life. And then, halfway through my senior year, I met Tiffany, the woman who is now my wife, mother of my 6 kids. And, I realized that she wanted a family, she wanted a husband, she wanted to have kids, and she wanted a father or she wanted a husband to be a father of those kids, not a hotshot surgeon. And, it was really a struggle for me because a lot of my identity was wrapped up into this Chad Hufford, this student, the biochemistry guy, the pre-med. And, I was stacking my resume with all these different things. But, what it really boiled down to, guys, is— What's your identity? I wanted to own a business. I didn't want to have a business that owned me. And I really doubted my ability to have balance. And not that you can't be a phenomenal surgeon, a phenomenal physician, and have a great family life and be a good husband, a good wife, a good mother, good father. I just know how I'm wired. And I really doubted my ability to have that balance because as a single guy, I was excited to hit medical school, to go do 5 years of surgery residency, working 100 hours a week. And I wasn't worried about anybody else. And then thinking about life, sharing it with my new wife, and I had to change my perspective. And this profession gave me the opportunity to still make a huge impact in people's lives. And arguably, in some cases, even more because it's a long-term relationship and we're guiding people, we're coaching people through their behavior, their habits, their decisions, and those spill over so much more than just finances. So it's, it's really been a blessing, uh, to have been able to make that shift. And I'm grateful for the biochemistry. It kept me out of a lot of trouble in college, but happy to be where I'm at right now.

Well, the biochemistry has kept you in good shape. As you're talking there, it's very clear that impact, service to others, helping people is a big part of your mission. So you're not helping people from a surgeon or physician's perspective, helping their health, but you are helping their financial health. And what's interesting about the state of America today, the United States, is that most people are not healthy physically, but most people are not healthy financially. So do you think the average person should pick up a copy of this book when it comes out and use it to improve their financial health? Is that one of your missions here?

It is.

And my hope would be that the book impacts more than just their financial health. A lot of the book is about mindset. It's about perspective. And to your point, Nick, unfortunately, in our society, in this country, we have normalized unhealthy behavior, not just in finances, but in relationships, in our fitness. We were just— I was just talking with my pastor this morning about an advertisement. And we're trying to take people who are unhealthy and overweight. And celebrate that. And I get it, like, that everybody's valuable, everybody's important, but we need to be careful that we, that we don't call what is destructive and unhealthy wonderful and beautiful and acceptable. And in finances, we've done that. We have normalized being in debt. We've normalized being broke. We've— the average retiree that's 65 years or older in this country relies on Social Security for over half of their income. Out of that subset, 90% of their— or sorry, out of that subset, half of those rely on Social Security as 90% or more of their income. So even though they are 65, 70 years old, they're still dependent on somebody else to be able to keep them afloat, to keep them off the street. That's not, that's not freedom. And, you look at obesity statistics, you look at diabetes, metabolic condition, 50% of marriages end in divorce. We have skyrocketing rates of depression. We have normalized unhealthy behavior. So, my hope for this book is by changing and shifting mindsets, helping people create better habits, really a lot of it is just becoming more future-focused, having a better relationship with the future versions of themselves. that the discipline, the patience, the perspective, the gratitude that they can gain, uh, by implementing some of the strategies we talk about that spill over into way more than just finances.

I saw a crazy statistic recently that 25 years ago, the average adult male in the US weighed about 175 pounds. Here we are 25 years later, and the average adult male weighs 200 pounds. And so when you do see a physician and they say, hey, Good work. You're average. That doesn't mean what it used to mean, right? So I'm curious, when you're sitting down, Chad, with somebody and you're talking about their financial health and they're not doing well, right? They are that retiree with nothing saved. Do you tell them, okay, it's fine, you're average, right? Because that is the average today. Or do you give them a stern talking to? And what does that look like?

So Brené Brown, said it very concisely that we are the most obese, in-debt, heavily medicated society that's ever existed. And, average in this country is broke, desperate, stupid, and probably obese. And, when I say stupid, I'm not talking intellectually stupid, I'm talking about behavioral health where we make bad decisions that steal from the future versions of ourselves instead of serving The future versions of ourselves. So average is not acceptable. And people will often ask me, well, what does average look like? Am I average? And I've actually told people this, I'm not even going to answer that question because we're not even addressing average. I have no desire to get you or keep you at a place where you are average because average is in dysfunctional relationships. It's living paycheck to paycheck. It's drowning in debt. It's, it's being unhealthy. So we want to get past average right away and not even keep that as part of the conversation.

What are some of the things that you are telling people in the financial world specifically, but also maybe in the physical and spiritual as well? What are some of the first things that, you know, somebody comes to you and they're broken, they're overweight, their finances are a mess. Like, what are the first steps that you're telling them to, to take to start changing their lives?

The first thing is kind of what we've already been talking about. It's daring to be different. It's being willing to do things that other people aren't doing and be willing to do things that they haven't been doing themselves. And a lot of that means that there has to be an identity shift there. They have to look at themselves differently. We've all read the book Atomic Habits, and it's looking at the person they wish to become and starting to vote for that person. And it starts with small little things. And there's a pressure to try to get it all figured out before we step forward into any new venture, right? And I've heard people say, like, I got to get in better shape before I join a gym, or I got to work on myself before I start going to church. I'm not wealthy enough to save for retirement. And it's getting those things out of order, and it's being willing to start small, to start doing the little things and James Clear has a quote. He says, we have to be willing to standardize before we optimize. And, the way I look at that is we have to worry about sustainable before we look at optimal. So, if you're somebody who's never worked out in 20 years and January is rolling around and you're like, okay, I'm getting in shape this year, don't download a Navy SEAL workout. That's probably not the right place to start. It might be a great workout, But you might not be ready for it. You might be able to do it for 2 days, for 5 days, maybe for 2 weeks. But if it's not sustainable for 20 years, it's the wrong workout. Now, maybe you can build up to it. And the same thing goes in finance. If somebody's never saved for their future ever before and they need to be saving $1,000 a month to hit their long-term goals, that's probably too big of a switch. So, it's creating the habit of the action. Maybe it's $50 a month. Maybe it's $100 a month. Maybe they can save $2,000 a month, but it's the action of saving, just like it's the action of going to the gym. Today, it might just be walking on a treadmill. 6 months from now, you might be doing squats, lunges, snatches, CrossFit classes, all that great stuff. But it's creating the habit of the right action, even if that action seems small in the moment.

Such good stuff. You're right. And I'm curious, What are you doing right now for your future self? I mean, we had the privilege to go witness you do a workout, which I remember coming home to my wife and being like, I have never worked out that hard in my entire life. And it really, like, it lit a fire under my butt. And I've, for the last, like, 6 months, I've really, really been pushing myself. And so, I'm curious, what are the things that you're doing to kind of vote for that future version of you?

Well, one of the things is this book, stretching me out of my comfort zone. So, my practice has been in place for about 16 years. I've got a great team around me. You guys met some of them. And we've been blessed to have great clients. And if I'm not careful, that can become a comfort zone. And I don't want my business to be a comfort zone. I've told people before that we talk about getting in a groove. So-and-so, they're really in a groove. Everything's cooking. Everything's happening. The only difference between being stuck in a rut And being in the groove is how long you stay there. So creating this book has stretched me out of that. It's a brand new world. Nick, I know you've gone through this recently. And I thought the hard part was going to be writing the book, but it's the publishing and the editing and the promotion and all these different things I did not expect. And I'm glad I didn't know because it would have been intimidating. I might not have stepped forward. But it's getting all these ideas and these concepts and these stories and these metaphors out of my head and something I can share with not just people around me and not just our current clients, but even our team where they can take some of my experiences and I can duplicate myself a little bit. Because it ultimately will give me more freedom, even though it is— it's a lot of work today. It's a lot of effort today. But ultimately, it gives me more freedom where I can have more conversations like this that are one-to-many and put my ideas out there. And work on my business, not so much in it, which gives me more freedom and flexibility with my family and to grow our mission, to grow our vision.

Chad, you're reminding me of a conversation we had recently where you challenged me on one of the concepts in my book in a healthy way for the audience. And we talked about how I do believe discipline equals freedom, which is the subject that you're talking about right now. But I did make a comment in my book that budgeting isn't for everybody. And you said, hey, I think that budgeting creates freedom in the same way that discipline creates freedom. Budgeting is a form of discipline. And so I think that word budgeting, it has a bad— I don't know, there are some misconceptions about it because a budget can create freedom. Could you talk about that for a little bit? Because— I think you're onto something there. And I think you might even be able to brand it if we come up with a fun and creative way to talk about what you're about to say. Hello, Book Thinkers family. A quick word from today's podcast sponsor. Today's episode is sponsored by Audible. Audible is the leading provider of spoken word entertainment and audiobooks ranging from bestsellers to celebrity memoirs, business, and my favorite, personal development. And as part of Audible's partnership with us, we're actually offering listeners a free 30-day trial. This trial includes 1 credit good for any Premium Selection titles you'd like on the whole platform. So that's pretty much any book, including the one we're talking about today. That book is yours to keep even after the trial is over. Now, this trial also includes access to Audible's Plus catalog of podcasts, audiobooks, guided wellness programs, and Audible Originals. You can listen all you want, no credits needed. Now, everyone on the Book Thinkers Instagram knows that I love physical paper books. There's nothing better than having a book in your hand Scribbling notes everywhere in the margins. I kind of tear those things up, but I've been completing an additional 20 to 30 books every single year using Audible by listening when I'm in the car, doing chores around the house, or while I'm on my morning walks or runs. You could take advantage of this free trial by clicking the link in today's show notes or going to www.bookthinkers.com/audibletrial. You will not regret it. Now back to today's episode.

Well, so I'd never used this analogy before, but when I was talking to you, and I appreciate your willingness and your openness to feedback, and that both of you guys, I've just been so impressed with the conversations that, that we've had. And, um, but there is a set— there is a negative connotation with a budget that it's restrictive, right? It's like putting on a financial straitjacket. And there's a sense that a budget tells you what you can't do. And to some degree, that's not untrue. But the perspective, I believe, should be more that a budget ensures that what is most valuable happens. It's more about making sure what must happen actually comes to fruition rather than being a bunch of dos and don'ts that you can't do. And it's all about perspective, right? So if our budget is focusing our attention on what is most meaningful and important, then it's almost like a calendar. A calendar is a budget for our time, and we schedule the things that are most important. We don't think of a calendar as telling us everything that we can't do. We put things on the calendar so we make sure that we are able to do those things. And that's exactly what a budget is. It's scheduling payments. It's scheduling savings. It's scheduling purchases in advance to make sure that the most important things to us actually happen. And then we might have some free space and some white space around that to do some things that come up and be spontaneous, all those things. But what it— what a budget does is it prioritizes our spending and our purchases so that effort and that energy can be directed into the things that are most impactful for us. And then that the things that aren't as impactful They get the leftovers. But too often, we run out of money before we run out of month. And the important things don't get our attention. They don't get the money. They don't get the resources that we believe that they should. And it's kind of like that old metaphor of filling— you have this big jar. And if you fill it with water and sand first, you try to put the big rocks in, there's no space for them. If you put the big rocks in first and then you put in some pebbles, then you put in some gravel, then you put in sand, and then you put in water, you might have room for all of it. But if you reverse that order, it doesn't work. We have to get the big pieces of our budgets, of our time in there first, and then let those gaps and holes be filled with some of those things that come up on a day-to-day basis. So I'd never thought of it that way before. But I really— I, when I was talking to you about it, I really liked that metaphor of a budget simply just being a calendar for our money.

So a budget ensures, guarantees, uh, increases the chances of the most important things in your life happening. I've never thought about it like that until we had this conversation, and I hope you wrote about it like that in your book because that's some powerful stuff.

Well, I appreciate that. And, uh, you know, it, it's, it was a way to frame that perspective. And it's the same thing with it, with like a diet too, right? I mean, a diet is a little bit more dos and don'ts, but for some people it isn't cutting out the unhealthy food that is the hardest part. For some people, it's just getting in the good foods. I mean, for me, it's vegetables. I don't like vegetables. I never have. Um, I've never actually— so Peas technically are not a vegetable, they're a legume. Sorry, I'm homeschooled. Don't judge me, I'm a nerd. But I have never in my life actually eaten peas. They are so disgusting to me. I have— I, as a kid, I used to hold them in my mouth until I could go to the bathroom and spit them out in the toilet. And even as an adult, if I am at a dinner where I feel like I need to eat the peas, I will swallow them whole because I just— I do not like vegetables. I'm 42 years old and I'm still doing this to today. So, for me, I have to schedule in my diet. These are the things you must eat today. I've got to eat a certain amount of fruits and veg, mostly vegetables that I want to get in every single day, and a certain amount of protein, a certain amount of fats and omega-3s. And then, I have some freedom around that. But I schedule in what is most important, making sure that happens. Even in my workouts, it's the same thing. Like, these are the pillars of my workout. This absolutely— even if I have to fight a grandma to get her off one of my machines, like, I will do this exercise. It has to happen. And then if there's extra time, I might do some of these other things. So it's just— it's a way of living more intentionally.

I'm curious about your opinion on, you know, we talked a little bit about the average and how that's not a good thing anymore, but what's your opinion on how we have gotten to this point where average isn't good enough? Like, what's your opinion on what's happened in the world and things at large that has put us into the spot where being obese is normal, where having, you know, we don't— most Americans don't have enough to pay for a $1,000 emergency in their accounts. Like, why do you think that's become so normalized?

I think one of the reasons is we have removed a lot of the pressures that would've not allowed people to get so comfortable and complacent. So, it wasn't that long, just a few generations ago, you couldn't work a part-time job into your 40s. It wasn't socially acceptable, but you couldn't support a family. The government assistance programs weren't there. Yeah, you might be sick, you might be hurt, you might be just— you had to figure it out. And then, if it was a legitimate issue where, yeah, you really couldn't work, communities, churches, there was more community involvement that picked somebody up, but you didn't have the insulation from some of these risk factors. This allowed us to, I think, as a society, be more comfortable comfortable and complacent. Think about even going back to like 9/11. Think about how our society bonded together around that. We weren't worried about what gender or race or religion or any— we were all Americans together because we had something so much bigger. We had a risk factor. We had a pressure on us. And we were able to push aside some of these other— menial differences, and we were more focused on what united us than what separated us. You remove some of that and then you start fighting. It's kind of like little kids. If you don't give them something to work on, they'll fight about piddly stuff. And as a society, we've not been working— I believe we've not been working on anything big enough to keep us from fighting and worrying about stupid stuff. And that's where we're at right now. is we've divided ourselves along all these lines. Well, did you get a vaccine? Did you not? Do you mask? Did you not? Are you a capitalist? Are you socialist? Are you Republican? Democrat? All these different divisions. And we're fighting about stuff that can be somewhat trivial because as individuals, we're not working on anything big enough.

Yeah.

As our friend Marcus would say, we need to play a bigger game.

Yep, absolutely. So, how do you— how can we, I don't know, cultivate that purpose in our own lives that we can work on something bigger than just ourselves?

Well, one of the things that really frustrates me about this industry is the tendency to look at retirement as some sort of a finish line, like that's the destination, that's what we're going for. And I just believe that that quitting your job is not compelling enough. And the idea that I get to a place where I have enough wealth where I don't have to go to work anymore, and that's this big overarching goal, that's not compelling enough to save and sacrifice for 20, 30, 40 years to get there. It's not compelling enough to ride out the market storms, to go through the hassle of doing a budget, to give up today so I can have something different in the future. So, there needs to be meaningful pursuit. And I don't have all the answers. I'm still working on this right now, but trying to shift people's mindsets so they're looking at retiring to something, not just retiring from a career. And I was on another podcast the other day and I was explaining it like if you're in an Watching a nature show. You have like a cheetah chasing a gazelle. Both are running as hard as they possibly can. Guarantee you only one of them is having any fun. And the difference is the cheetah is pursuing something. He's chasing something. The gazelle is running for their life. And I think too often we spend our lives fleeing from things, fleeing from From the fear of failure, fleeing from anxiety, fleeing from whatever. And we need to spend more time in pursuit. And Brandy Bouchard talks about meaningful pursuit. And it can't just be meaningful. It can't just be something that is important and impactful. It has to be pursuit. There has to be a challenge. There has to be something that stretches us beyond what we're currently capable of. And I think that's really important. It looks different for different people. And a big part of our mission right now is helping people come up with what that is. Because when I started this job, I thought my reason for being on this planet was to make sure people didn't run out of money in retirement. That is part of it, but I believe my bigger job is making sure people don't run out of purpose.

It's so good. And I love— yeah, I'll let you go, Nick. Sorry. But I was just going to say, I love that analogy and it's so good. And you also have— I love this quote by you and it's, you're saying, stop calling it retirement, but working towards a work Optional lifestyle. And I just love that that mindset is so different from the thing that we're taught. And I love that you've, you've, I don't know, you've came up with some such good language around that. And that analogy is so cool. Anyway, sorry, Nick.

Oh no, all good. Listen, we both, we both value Chad so much, Luke, that I'm sure we both have like 1,000 questions and we're trying to keep the podcast closer to 30 minutes these days. So we'll probably be wrapping up soon. Uh, Chad, I want to share with you, and I, I talked with Luke about this last week, that one of my mindset shifts moving into 2024 is to start looking at frugality as a good thing, to start looking at budgeting as a good thing, as a positive thing, as a way to exercise discipline and create freedom in my life. And so you've been an inspiration in that change. And We were also talking about something that it would take 20 minutes to kind of catch you up with all of the things that kind of led me here. But the result is that most people, they can't get around the idea of becoming healthy because they don't want to live longer. They don't love their lives. They don't love the present moment. They can't work towards this idea of frugality or discipline in budgeting because they don't really care that much about tomorrow anyway, right? They're indulging in the present moment because they don't look forward. forward to the future very much. Same thing happens with headspace. So I'm wondering, do you have any words of encouragement or motivation for somebody listening today that maybe they have this brief moment of inspiration, but they might fall back into their default pattern of like negativity and, and self-discrimination and stuff tomorrow? Um, but to get them into that headspace more often, like, you are enough, you are worth being here. life is worth living. It's a positive thing that we should invest in and want to live as long as we possibly can and have as much money as possible and build an amazing family. Like, you're a clear representation of that. This is probably the longest question I've ever asked, but do you have any kind words of motivation or encouragement for people listening today?

It's a lot. Uh, first of all, I appreciate you saying that, and And you're absolutely right, Nick. We are wired to live and exist in an immediate return environment because it wasn't that long ago, people didn't worry about planning for retirement or saving up for a beach house or sending their kids to college. People went to bed with the worries, I wonder if a saber-toothed tiger is going to get me while I'm sleeping, or, I wonder if those berries that I ate for dinner, if those were poisonous or not. We didn't have to worry about the future because we were so worried about not dying in the present. And, again, that is our wiring, our wet work is designed for that to get us to survive, not necessarily to thrive. And, this idea of the future version of us, it's so intangible, and especially for somebody who's struggling with the current version of themselves.

Yeah.

They know the current them and they're not super excited about that. Maybe they're frustrated. Future them is even more intangible. Like, I don't know if I'm going to like that person at all. I'm not super thrilled with myself some days. But it's coming up with a vision for what they want their life to look like, where they want to be, who they want to become, what is deeply meaningful and impactful, and start creating steps towards that, even if they're small. Again, it goes back to James Clear. Start voting for that person? What would it look like? What would it look like today to make my future self proud? And creating something more meaningful so they can chase it, so they're not running from the problems in their life today, they're running towards something greater in the future. And I've been thinking about this idea of wealth a lot lately, especially as I write this book. And I think for a lot of people, wealth is this idea of, I have enough money, I never need a paycheck ever again.

Yeah.

It's that paycheck-optional lifestyle, the work-optional lifestyle. But I want to expand on that. And wealth is, I believe, having enough money where you never need a paycheck ever again, but having enough purpose that you always have a mission. And I think people lack a mission today. And I just wonder what life would look like if people had personal mission statements and family mission statements.

Yeah.

And I think that would help bridge that gap between who they are today, who they want to be, and inspire them to live differently. So that's my long answer to your long question.

Oh, such— so much wisdom. So much wisdom. Um, would you be comfortable talking a little bit about your, your faith and the role that that has played in your life and your purpose and your personal mission?

Absolutely. Because they're absolutely tied. You can't separate one from the other. I think we talked about this a little bit when you guys were up here, but I had a near-death, should have been a fatal encounter with carbon monoxide poisoning when I was 19. It's been 23 years since then. And, some people might call that borrowed time. I like to I think of this bonus time where I've had over 2 decades that I should not have had. And each one of those days is a gift from God. And I feel like my gift to Him is how I live those out. And if I live those out selfishly for me only, I believe I'm gonna have to give an account for that. And I do not want to stand before God and Him looking at me and saying, I gave you so much. I gave you I gave you great people around you. I gave you a great family. I gave you life after you should have passed away at 19. What have you done with it? And I don't want to hear that. I want to hear, well done, good and faithful servant. So, um, that's a pretty— for me, that was a pretty dramatic moment in my life. And, and that's probably what it took to wake me up. But I just hope other people look at that and— or can understand that even their own life, like, every day truly is a gift. And to be grateful for those small things that we so easily take for granted. And you guys have met my family. You've seen the different parts of my life. And I've been given so much. Not everybody has that. And I believe that because I've been given much, a lot is expected. And there was a cartoon that I clipped out 30 years ago from the newspaper. And at the end of this cartoon, just It was just a little, like, a 3-blurb thing or a 3-scene cartoon at the end of this. It was, uh, this person asked the question, when God was handing out good lives, why did he give one to me? And that's the question that I ask myself. I try to ask myself every single day and try to give a piece of that good life to the people around me because I've been abundantly blessed. And I believe that blessings should be a river that flows through me. Not a lake that dams up and gets stagnant.

Such a powerful story. Yeah. Do you think you would be where you are today if you didn't have that experience? Do you think you'd be as successful as you are?

No, no. In fact, I think, I think I would have probably stopped when I got comfortable and There was a period in my life where a lot of those financial pressures of growing a business were alleviated. And it would've been really easy. So if we go back to that cheetah chasing the gazelle, it'd be really easy to stop running if I'm the gazelle in that. And this is why having pursuit is so much more important than running from something. Because if you feel like you're fleeing from something, once you stop being chased, You stop, you slow down, you stop running. And there was a period where a lot of those pressures were starting to be relieved. The business was going well. The finances were more comfortable. And again, I don't want to stand before God and give an account for why did I stop exerting myself? Why did I stop putting forth effort when I got comfortable? If I had so much more I could have given. So I think moments like that raise the stakes on what I'm supposed to be doing here. I was explaining this to my daughter the other day. We were talking about some memories, and I told her that the day that we found out, it was her 10th birthday, and I found out that day that my wife was pregnant. With, um, with my third son, um, our, our fifth child. Um, so they announced it at her 10th birthday party. That night I had a pulmonary, pulmonary, pulmonary embolism. Sorry, words aren't coming well today. Um, I had a blood clot that moved from my leg and hit my lungs. And I remember laying in bed. I didn't know what it was, but I was afraid. I went to the emergency room the next morning because I'm stubborn. And I remember wondering, is this what a pulmonary embolism feels like? Because I'd had blood clots in the past. And I remember thinking like, my wife is pregnant with a brand new baby. This would be a really bad day to die. And, uh, but like those moments have just been amazing moments of clarity for me, just how precious and fragile life is. And I think that had I not had some of those experiences, It would be really easy to get stuck in a rut, to get into a comfort zone, and then complacency shortly follows.

Yeah, I think that mortality definitely creates clarity in all sorts of ways, shapes, and forms. And then that clarity creates space for growth and change, which is really nice. Uh, we've got to wrap up the show, Chad, although we'll have you on again in a couple of months right before the book launches. So here's my last question. What book have you gifted the most over the last couple of years?

It's probably the book I just sent you, which is Simple Wealth, Inevitable Wealth. That book was written by a mentor of mine, Nick Murray, who has been life-changing for me. I don't know why he decided to give me any attention when I was just— I was a chemist trying to start a financial planning practice. But that book has so much wisdom, so much insight. A lot of that inspired the way that I run my practice today. So, that's very, very specific to finances and investing. But Atomic Habits would also be up there too, because I think Atomic Habits has even more widespread impact. It's a lot of the same stuff. It's just Atomic Habits can be applied to building a business, can be applied to a marriage, can be applied to health, and can certainly be applied to finance. One of my favorite books, one of the most practical books that I've ever read.

Atomic Habits is great. And I'm excited to read this because like I said to you the other day, If I can use this book to get closer to the same understanding of financial literacy and money and wealth that you have, then that's a good step for me. So, yeah, I'm excited. Thank you for sending this to me. And I'll be doing a little unboxing story soon.

My pleasure.

All right, Chad. Well, man, I hate to end this conversation, but I have 2 more questions. The first is, where can people go to find out a little bit more about you? Maybe they want to order the book. Where can they go to find all that stuff?

Well, forgingfinancialfreedom.com is kind of the book's landing page right now. And the hard copy is not yet available for preorder, but there's a spot on the website where they can put in their info and we'll not only keep them updated with the release of the book, which will happen at the end of April, But also with some of the bonuses and some of the things that we're going to be putting out along with the book because this book is about application and execution, not just knowledge. So, if we look at knowledge as the gathering of information, execution is the application of information. If you just read this book and it becomes philosophical, it's not going to do anything for you. So, we want people to apply it. We're going to be providing some of those tools. So, forgingfinancialfreedom.com.

Awesome.

And of course they can find us, our website, veritasalaska.com, and, uh, on Instagram as well, uh, veritas.alaska.

Perfect. Well, we'll definitely, uh, we'll link all that stuff in the show notes. All right. This is the final question. If you pass away and all the information that you put out, the books, the courses, all the information goes away, but you can leave the world with a single piece of advice, what would it be?

You are the biggest variable in the trajectory of your life. And, the choices you make, the decisions that you engage in, your habits, your behavior are the major determining factors in success or failure of the days ahead of you. So, make those choices carefully.

Powerful.

Chad, thank you so much for your wisdom and your time. Appreciate you.

I appreciate you guys. Thank you so much for having me. This has been a wonderful conversation, um, and appreciate you inviting me, uh, to your show and to be in front of your audience. It means a lot.

That is a wrap. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode of Book Thinkers Life-Changing Books. It would mean the world to us if you could write a review and share this episode with a few of your friends. I mean, these books truly have the power to change people's lives, and by reviewing or sharing our podcast, you're helping us make an impact. If you have any recommendations for future guests or any constructive feedback for us on how we can improve our show, Please feel free to submit a form on our website, www.bookthinkers.com, or send us a direct message on Instagram @bookthinkers. With that, I am signing off, and I hope you have a wonderful day. Don't forget, go read something.