April 17, 2025 • 38 mins
Brandon Taylor, Senior Vice President of Transportation at JB Hunt Transport, takes us on a deeply personal journey through his formative years and the values that have shaped his life and leadership philosophy.
Growing up as a self-described "military brat," Brandon moved constantly throughout his childhood – from Michigan to Wyoming, England, Oklahoma, Germany, and California. This nomadic upbringing forged in him an unusual combination of introversion and extroversion; he gains energy from quiet time alone yet possesses a remarkable ability to connect with strangers and form meaningful relationships quickly. At the heart of Brandon's story stands his grandmother, who lost both parents to tuberculosis at a young age yet went on to become an educator who taught Sunday school from 1941 until COVID prevented her from leaving home. Her influence instilled in Brandon a lifelong love of reading and learning.
Three core values emerge as the foundation of Brandon's life: integrity, character, and trustworthiness. These principles, drilled into him from childhood, guide his personal and professional decisions even when candid truth-telling might be difficult. Brandon shares how becoming a father at 24 transformed his outlook, shifting his focus from self to family and community. His personal mission statement – "to help people unlock their God-given potential and gift it back to Him" – reflects his belief that our talents are meant not just for personal gain but to serve others.
With refreshing honesty, Brandon discusses a period when life's difficulties led him to step back from mentoring others, even throwing away his books rather than giving them away. Yet it was precisely by returning to his purpose of giving and serving that he found his way through depression – a powerful reminder that living in alignment with our core values is essential for wellbeing. For aspiring leaders, Brandon offers two invaluable pieces of advice: "Influence is a contact sport" and "Compete but don't compare." These insights, along with his emphasis on community building, provide a blueprint for leadership with purpose and integrity.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Brandon Taylor (00:00):
Your integrity, your word and being a person of
integrity is so important.
You know that we all have had,you know, individuals in our
family with military backgrounds, and so that was instilled in
me at an early age.
Like you have to be a man ofintegrity, brandon, you have to
be a man of integrity.
So you know, even though it maysometimes hurt, I'm always
(00:24):
going to be candid and truthful.
Ken Leith (00:26):
Yeah, welcome to the 4 Bars podcast.
I'm Ken Leith.
Patti Leith (00:29):
And I'm Patti Leith .
We're your hosts for somecompelling dialogue, encouraging
our listeners to strengthentheir connections.
Ken Leith (00:36):
And build strong communities, lifting each other
up and connecting in ways thatmatter.
Patti Leith (00:40):
We named the podcast 4 Bars as a reference to
how hard we work to find a FourBars connection on our devices.
Ken Leith (00:47):
And we wondered what could happen with relationships
if we worked as hard atconnecting.
Let's find out.
So welcome to Four Bars, andI'm one of your co-hosts, ken
Lee and I'm Patti Lee.
Welcome.
And today we have with usBrandon Taylor, who's Senior
Vice President of Transportationat JB Hunt Transport.
Welcome, brandon.
All right, thank you,appreciate it.
Patti Leith (01:06):
Great to be here with you.
Yes, absolutely.
Ken Leith (01:10):
And just for full disclosure, we have known
Brandon for quite a while now.
Brandon Taylor (01:13):
Yes, we have.
Yes, we have.
Ken Leith (01:15):
And we are thrilled to have you on here today to
talk a little bit about, kind ofwhat makes you you, you and how
you kind of came to be who youare.
Okay, because that's alwaysimportant when we think about
things.
And then ultimately we're goingto have another segment and
that segment's going to be moreabout how does that tie into
your professional life also.
Okay, because that'll be a goodtakeaway, I think, for our
(01:37):
viewers and listeners that arehere today.
I'll just throw out the firstquestion a little bit to kind of
get started.
If you would just kind of giveus a little bit about how were
you raised, I mean yourupbringing, where you grew up
and things of that nature,because that always plays a part
, I know it holds a whole lotwithin who I am.
So tell us a little bit aboutthat, if you would.
Brandon Taylor (01:55):
So thank you for the question and, once again,
thank you both for having mehere.
I'm really excited.
I feel like I'm catching upwith my oldest daughter, she and
her friend.
They do a podcast.
Patti Leith (02:05):
Oh nice.
Brandon Taylor (02:06):
What I wish, wait what we wish.
We would have known.
Patti Leith (02:10):
I love it.
I know right, I have tosubscribe.
That's amazing.
Brandon Taylor (02:13):
And so it's funny that I'm getting this
opportunity to do something likethis today.
So, brandy, I'm trying to catchyou, but my upbringing you know
you hear the term quite oftenof a military brat yes, well,
that's what I was.
Now I don't want to say that Iwas a brat, but I was an only
child growing up.
So I was born in Grand Rapids,michigan, and then, after that,
(02:37):
we moved to Wyoming, we moved toEngland, we moved back to
Michigan, we moved to Oklahoma,we moved back to Michigan, we
moved back to England, we movedto Germany, we moved back to
England, we moved to Michigan,we moved to California, and then
I graduated high school inMichigan.
(02:57):
So when you talk about Wow,that's a lot of movement, a lot
of movement.
So when you talk about myupbringing.
Once again, being an only childgrowing up, it was one of those
things wherein I had to makefriends really quickly, you know
, because I didn't have anybodyelse around.
Yes, people always say, oh,come on, you're not telling the
(03:22):
truth, and I'm like, yeah, but Iam more of an introvert because
I do gain my energy from beingalone and reading books and
things of that nature, but I'mpretty much an extrovert because
I don't mind talking to peopleand getting to know them.
My wife often says that we cango to a Walmart or Target or any
(03:44):
other store.
I'm going to meet somebody inline and they're going to become
my friend, and so that's a lotof my upbringing.
Now, I mentioned Michigan quitea lot in my upbringing.
So, for those who don't know,I'm a fanatical fan of anything
Michigan when it comes to sportsteams and things like that, and
(04:04):
so I would always go back toMichigan.
That's where my mother's familywas, and my grandmother was a
big part of who I am today, soshe had me reading books at the
library that you know would havebeen on the high school or
collegiate level when I was fiveyears old.
Wow school or collegiate levelwhen I was five years old, and
(04:28):
so you know I love to read.
I still believe that learningis a big part of who I am, and
you know I try to make sure thatI coach others around me to
read as well, because you learnso much from reading and the
last thing I'll say about myupbringing with that and you may
ask a few more questions aboutit but when you read so much of
(04:50):
some of the great authors outthere or even if it's nonfiction
, you find yourself in thoseplaces and you could learn from
that as well, and so I've beenable to take a lot of that to
help me become the person I amtoday.
Ken Leith (05:04):
Yeah, yeah, very good , and I don't know if you know
this, but actually Patty and Iare, and so I've been able to
take a lot of that to help mebecome the person I am today.
Yeah, very good, and I don'tknow if you know this, but
actually Patty and I our fatherswere both in military.
Okay, I'll say so, did not movenearly as much as you do.
Yeah, my mom tended to stay putwhile dad went around the world
in the Navy for 20 years, andyou can talk about your dad a
little bit.
Patti Leith (05:22):
Yeah, my dad actually was out of the military
by the time he had us.
He he was in world war ii andum he, uh, was a nuclear
engineer.
So we lived in the dc area.
But I moved three times in mychildhood and was horrified at
every move.
You know to hear the, themovement, it shapes you yeah
right.
(05:42):
It shapes you and I can reallyidentify with it when you say
you're both an introvert and anexpert.
Brandon Taylor (05:46):
I'm similar.
Patti Leith (05:48):
At the end of the day, I want my cave time, I want
to read and pet the dog and,you know, spend a little time
just chilling.
But I ideate collaboratively.
I can tell stories and gatherinformation on the fly pretty
easily, but I do have a side ofme that needs some quiet time to
recharge.
Brandon Taylor (06:08):
You know it's funny.
So I've been married for 28years and so my wife and I we
get along great, jessica.
But you know, there was a time,probably in the early 2000s, I
would come home from work and Iwould just want to be alone.
She did not like that, and sowe had to communicate to
(06:28):
understand, because you know,she would be home with the kids
for most of the day and shewanted to have the adult
conversation.
I get it and I was like I justwant to go ahead and just take
some time to get on a game orspend time just alone, and so,
as we've evolved in our marriage, I spend a lot more time
(06:53):
understanding that.
First off, before I cross thethreshold, I get off the phone.
And so all conversations finishat the driveway and then I get
in the house and then we makesure to spend that time.
So you know, going back tobeing an introvert and extrovert
, just understanding where youget that energy, but I've also
learned how to adapt as well,because you know there are other
(07:14):
people who want to spend thattime with you.
Patti Leith (07:16):
Absolutely, yeah, yeah, and I'm interested in
hearing more about yourgrandmother.
Ken also is very shaped andvery influenced by his
grandmother.
I think it takes a village aswe're growing up.
Tell me more about her.
Brandon Taylor (07:29):
Yeah, so my grandmother's Blanche Babers.
And so real quick, you knowbeing here in Northwest Arkansas
, you know, not far from Tulsa,oklahoma, so my mother's side of
the family was in Tulsa andthey left after.
You know the you know whathappened in 1919 in Tulsa, and
(07:55):
so they moved to Canada, thefamily, and they were there
until 1923.
And then they moved to GrandRapids, Michigan, in 1924.
And then my grandmother wasborn there.
Now my grandmother had 10siblings, you know they were.
She was the youngest of all thekids and my grandmother's mother
passed away when she was sixyears old from tuberculosis.
And so then my grandmother'sfather remarried and then he
(08:15):
passed away when she was eightyears old from tuberculosis.
And so at that time, you know,doctors wouldn't, you know,
allow certain people to go tothe hospital.
Yeah, and you had to havedoctors that would come to the
homes, and so, and they it was.
It was similar to what youwould see, you know, or
envisioning a Bible with thePassover.
So when somebody hadtuberculosis, my grandmother and
(08:37):
has shared with me that theyput something over the door
stoop to let people know who hadit yeah.
And so she was living with herstepmother, but not enjoying
that, and so a few months intothat, she moved in with her
older brother, my Uncle Jesse,who was very influential on me
(08:58):
as well, so I'll tell you alittle bit about him a little
later.
But my Uncle Jesse, I believe,was probably 20 years older than
my granny.
You know so my grandmother, Icalled her granny, and so she
was with us until 2022.
Patti Leith (09:14):
And you had her.
You had her in your life a longtime.
That's a blessing.
Brandon Taylor (09:18):
Yeah, and you know, with my granny I smile a
lot because you know there werejust so many things, so many
lessons that she gave me andshaped me.
You know she grew up in GrandRapids and she started teaching
Sunday school in 1941.
Wow, and so one of the storiesthat my grandmother told me,
(09:38):
like she remember, you know,driving to church when Pearl
Harbor was attacked in 1941.
So you know, when you thinkabout that, with the historical
context and some of herperspectives on you know,
relationships outside of thiscountry and things of that
nature, and you know she taughtfifth and sixth grade girls in
(10:03):
Sunday school all those yearsand unfortunately, when COVID
occurred, you know, being older,in her 90s, she was no longer
able to leave the home, you know, just because of everything
going on.
And so you know, when we talkabout it we say that COVID took
her, not because she evercontracted COVID, but my granny
(10:24):
was an extrovert to the max,yeah, and not being able to be
around people, you know, took alot away from her.
But my wife and I talk about allof the stories she gave us, she
told us.
My wife has so many recordingsof when she would sit down and
just listen to her talk and youknow my wife is planning on
(10:46):
putting something togethereventually, you know, to write
the story, a biography to share.
You know her life.
Ken Leith (10:54):
That's amazing, so priceless.
Yeah, interesting In the firstcouple of minutes here I've
learned so much more about thatthan we've known in all these
years.
I come from large families.
My mom was next to the oldestof nine, dad was the youngest of
16.
So big families back at thattime and my grandmother, who was
probably the biggest, alongwith my mother, the biggest
(11:15):
influences on me.
We called her Granny Austin.
Okay, my great Interesting.
It's a small world in a lot oftimes.
Thinking about again thatjourney that you've had along
the way, what was some of theearly values or lessons you've
learned that you've kind of keptfrom the time you were a child
and brought into your world asan adult that you utilized?
Brandon Taylor (11:37):
Absolutely Integrity, character and being
trustworthy and I start withthat, I mean your integrity,
your word and being trustworthy,oh, I bet, and I start with
that, I mean your integrity,your word and being a person of
integrity is so important.
You know that we all have had,you know, individuals in our
family with military backgrounds, and so that was instilled in
(11:58):
me at an early age.
Yeah, like, you have to be aman of integrity, brandon, you
have to be a man of integrity,brandon, you have to be a man of
integrity.
So you know, even though it maysometimes hurt, I'm always
going to be candid and truthful.
Yeah, yeah, always.
Patti Leith (12:15):
Which is really what integrity means.
Brandon Taylor (12:17):
Yeah, right, yeah, so you're always going to
get that with me, going to getthat with me.
And it's difficult at timesbecause you're like I don't want
to hurt this person.
So I've learned to measure mycommunication as well as I've
developed and matured.
When I was a lot younger itwasn't good at all.
It would come across as cuttingand it wasn't meant that way,
(12:39):
but it was more along the linesof being a person full of
integrity was more along thelines of being person full of
integrity, your character.
The thing is, you know, PattyKen, you have your own character
, I have my own character, butwe each have to live in our own
space, and sometimes people,when they talk about character,
(13:00):
they're trying to emulate orreplicate somebody else, and you
can't necessarily duplicateanybody else's journey.
Yeah, and so they know, true,the character that you have is
based off of your experiences,and so each thing I went through
because, at the end of the day,you know one of a minister that
(13:22):
I heard a long time ago he, hesaid life is going to life.
What does he mean by that?
Well, as a 50 year old man, Iunderstand that life is going to
life it is.
And then finally just beingtrustworthy.
You know, once again, being anonly child and moving somewhere
(13:44):
almost every two years.
There were a couple of places Ilived for three years, but most
of the time it was a two-yearstint and so by moving so much,
I had to be just truthful andsomebody that people trusted.
And it was funny.
You know, it's not bragging atall, but as a young kid I would
move somewhere and people wouldsay that's my best friend.
(14:06):
And you know I still admirethose relationships from people
who have known somebody fromfour and five years old.
But I've been able to buildsuch deep relationships with
people in a short period of timeand I believe a lot of that is
based off of my trustworthiness.
I'm the person that people cometo and they share their deepest
(14:27):
thoughts and secrets or howthey're feeling, because they
know that it's not going to beheard again because they trust
me.
And so integrity, character,trustworthiness.
Patti Leith (14:38):
Yeah.
Ken Leith (14:38):
I love that.
Those are definitely a solidfoundation.
Patti Leith (14:43):
And I've known you for many years.
You lead with all three ofthose front and center.
Brandon Taylor (14:47):
Absolutely, absolutely, just because you
know that's not going to changeand I'm glad you said that,
patty.
I was going to bring it upbecause I remember for years
when I was like, patty, you'remy therapist, you know.
So, thank you, I'm like, I'm onthe couch.
Okay, so let's talk, becauseyou know, just especially going
(15:08):
into a second career yes, youknow, and so you've done some
things in the past and then yougo into your second career and
you're trying to understand thelay of the land.
Patti Leith (15:17):
Yeah.
Brandon Taylor (15:17):
And so it's like okay.
Patti Leith (15:19):
When I started working with you, when you were
in Miami.
That's correct.
Yeah, Before you moved into thecorporate headquarters scenario
.
And yeah, so it's been a reallylong time that we've worked
together.
Absolutely yeah, that's funny.
Ken Leith (15:31):
It is.
It's time that we've workedtogether.
Absolutely, that's funny.
It is when you were younger.
Think about this as children.
There's this time where wethink about okay, this is where
I'm going to go, even as a child.
How different was your thoughtyour first time you can think
about well, I think I'm going tobe this person, I'm going to do
X.
How different is that, or howsimilar is it to where you are
(15:54):
today?
Brandon Taylor (16:03):
It is very, very , very different, and so I
whisper that because, you know,in the depths of my mind I still
think about it.
So when I was younger, probablywhen I was six or seven years
old, I had my mind set that Iwas going to go into the
military.
I was going to be a fighterpilot in the Navy or the Air
Force.
I was going to then retire fromthe military.
And this is when I was young.
I was going to run for Congress, be in the House of
(16:25):
Representatives or a senator fora few years, and then I was
going to run for president in2024.
How times have changed.
And so, as a young kid, that'swhat I thought.
I promise you, those were thethoughts, and I think a lot of
that comes back to just a lot ofthe reading that I was doing,
because you know my family, mymom and dad neither one said
(16:47):
that there were any boundarieson who you could be and what you
could become.
Yeah, and so there were neverthose boundaries set, and you
know, for me it was never about.
You know, a monetary thing I'vealways thought about how can I
give back to others?
And I like people and so I wantto.
You know, that's a part of mypurpose, is that and you know
(17:09):
what?
It's funny because I'm thinkingabout it I'm not a people
pleaser, but I want to helppeople with themselves.
So my own mission statement isthat I want to help people
unlock their God-given potentialand gift it back to him.
And so what I mean by that isthat every individual has
(17:29):
potential that God has giventhem.
I'm a believer, that's what Ibelieve.
Potential that God has giventhem.
I'm a believer, that's what Ibelieve.
And so everybody has thatpotential.
But some of us don't ever reachthe zenith of all the potential
we have, because you never havethat confidence or belief in
what you can do.
And so I'm coaching.
(17:50):
I think I would have been agood football coach, but I'm
coaching.
I think I would have been agood football coach, but I'm
coaching.
I think you would have too, youknow, but I'm coaching to help
people unlock that God givenpotential.
And then, at the end of the day, it's not about what can I get
for myself with the God givenpotential, but how can I give it
back as a gift to him?
Yeah, and giving a gift back toGod is by serving the community
(18:12):
that you're in.
Yeah, it.
Patti Leith (18:13):
Giving a gift back to God is by serving the
community that you're in.
Yeah, agreed, it really is.
It's well said, yeah, and sothat's how I look at it.
That's well said and that very.
(18:38):
That changes everything itchanges everything.
Ken Leith (18:40):
Yeah, it really does 100% and I do like what you said
.
I think a lot of people havethese thoughts of what could I
be, what am I going to take intolife?
But at the same time, I thinkit was very important what you
said about having people in yourlife who didn't set boundaries,
just said, hey, it's up to youwhere you want to go and how you
take it.
Just, you know, have thesevalues within that.
(19:01):
I think that's very important.
Again, that's a similar thingthat I had, uh, with my mom.
I may have played sports myentire life.
At one point I thought I wouldgo play professional soccer, um,
but the ankle didn't hold upthere.
But at the same time, it was mymother in my life who always
said it doesn't matter where youare with certain things, it is
what you make of it, and I thinkwhat you said adds to that.
(19:24):
The other thing I think that'simportant is just you mentioned
the community and you tie in alot of what we at Four Bars on
the podcast here think are socritical.
It's what do we do to make goodconnections and make it
valuable?
And a good connection we defineit as and I know we've had the
conversation before it is sothat both parties have takeaways
(19:45):
that are valuable for them, andthat's in our life, in our
business and in our community.
You hit on that, you kind oflive that in a lot of ways.
Those connections, how do youget to that point where you
started thinking, wow, this isso important that these
connections it's not likesomething you have to do, but
something you wanted to do.
Brandon Taylor (20:03):
Yeah, so you know it's funny when you talk
about how I felt when I was ayounger child in my adolescence,
and then I became a teenager.
Patti Leith (20:13):
That happens, yeah, that happens yeah so we skipped
that part kid.
Brandon Taylor (20:17):
So then we became a teenager, and I became
a little more selfish.
Ken Leith (20:22):
Okay.
Brandon Taylor (20:23):
And you know we talked about God's gifts, and so
I was utilizing God's gift thathe gave me just into what would
be pleasing for me, just beinghonest.
Patti Leith (20:35):
Yeah, as many times as the kids.
As people mature, they gothrough a stage where they are
focused more centrally.
Brandon Taylor (20:44):
And so it's funny, I promise you and my
wife's going to be like oh, whyare you mentioning me so much?
But I met my wife in college.
She was going to Florida State,I was going to Florida A&M
University Both schools are inTallahassee and I was like
because I used to always tell myfriends, man, I'm not getting
married, I'm just going to livelife and just enjoy myself.
(21:08):
And then I met my wife and Iwas just like, wow, who would
have thought that a year laterwe're married?
But that's happened, yeah.
And so 28 years later, and someeting her and she really
allowed me to think about a lotof things differently.
She was just like you know,you're not being the best you,
(21:31):
and she would tell me this andit would hurt.
Ken Leith (21:32):
What do you mean I'm?
Brandon Taylor (21:33):
not being the best me and she would tell me
this and it would hurt.
What do you mean?
I'm not being the best me and Iwasn't living to my potential.
I was living, life was stillliving, but I wasn't living to
my potential.
And she was like you couldunlock so much more.
And so when I had my firstchild, we had our first child.
It really changed everythingabout me.
(21:55):
So, once again, we've beenmarried 28 years.
My oldest child is 26.
So for the past 26 years, I'vereally shifted my focus, because
then I was able to see that Iwas a part of bringing something
into this world and it was justlike whoa, you know, it's not
just about me, it's not evenabout me and my wife.
(22:15):
It's about me, my wife and thislittle child that I brought
into the world.
And as much as you want to loveyour children, you also want to
make sure that the communitythat they're in is great.
Patti Leith (22:29):
Yes, yes, and from that time when I was 24,.
Brandon Taylor (22:32):
I've been pouring into people and I've had
(22:55):
opportunities to havemanagement roles since I was
really, really young and I'vejust poured in and poured in.
And there is a time you mightget to a question, warren.
Have you ever walked away fromthat?
There was a time, warren, I waslike I don't want to pour into
people anymore because ofsomething negative within life.
Patti Leith (23:15):
Once again, life is going to life.
Brandon Taylor (23:17):
It's ironic.
So my wife and I and I'llpromise you I'll end this one
real quick, no, no it's fine,fascinating.
So my wife and I we talked Ithink it was.
Was it this weekend?
It might have been this weekend, no, it was Wednesday night.
It was Wednesday night.
We were talking about all thebooks we have and my wife gets
so upset because, you know, wehave 12 different bookshelves
(23:42):
and like we just buy a lot ofbooks, like you know what's in
my granny instilled in me.
So I buy a lot of books and youknow, at the time when I walked
away from mentoring andcoaching people, I threw a lot
of my books away.
I didn't give them away, I wasjust like it's not worth it.
And I went through that periodin my life.
You know there were months thatI was there and you know, at
(24:10):
the time, you know you're likeman.
Why am I this way?
Not that I ever got diagnosed,but I was depressed because once
again life is going to life.
But then, when I started givingagain and I started living in
my purpose, it was easy to comeout of that.
Patti Leith (24:23):
That's so true.
You get what I'm saying, sotrue.
Brandon Taylor (24:26):
And so, once again, long-winded way of
answering the question, butthat's really what's happening.
Ken Leith (24:30):
No, I appreciate that .
I'm sure everyone listeningalso appreciates that, because
it's true, I mean, and very realfor who you are.
Patti Leith (24:38):
I think most of us have experienced something like
that at some point in time andit puts you into almost a state
of inactivity and the less youdo, the more you feel that
depressed emotion and the onlyway out is to start doing and
giving and connecting you know,and I love what you said also
(25:01):
about wanting the community tobe not just safe but great.
Brandon Taylor (25:05):
That's right and that's a big part of it too,
and you know I mentioned mydaughter, brandy, who's my
oldest, but I have four kids andso you know, each child that
was added to the Taylorhousehold just made that drive
even more for me to make thosearound me safe and great and
(25:27):
allow them to unlock theirpotential to give back.
Because if all of us would justdo what God has purposed us to
do, man, just think about theplace we would be in.
Ken Leith (25:36):
Yeah, absolutely, and I think all that goes into
really forming good communitiesand then good villages.
There's a whole lot of talknowadays about the village
because it does take a village.
It sure does.
And the fact that I will sayone thing about coming to
Northwest Arkansas when I camehere I didn't know what to
expect, but one of the things Idid find coming from Washington
(25:59):
DC and I love Washington DC, butit's not a touchy-feely kind of
a city.
It is a beautiful city andthere are some wonderful people
there, but here it's more abouta lot of people coming together.
A lot of people, especially innorthwest Arkansas now, are not
from here originally and itseems to create a more of a
(26:20):
closer-knit community andvillage.
If you would have youexperienced anything like it,
what's your experience likehaving moved here?
Brandon Taylor (26:26):
Yeah, so it's funny you say that.
So my wife and I, we moved herein 2013, and my four children,
and you know my oldest child.
So when she was about tograduate, and probably you know
her junior year in high school,she was looking at okay, well,
I'm going to go to schoolsomewhere else.
Patti Leith (26:45):
Yeah, yeah.
Brandon Taylor (26:46):
To get away from Northwest Arkansas.
Well, she stayed here, did herfour years of undergrad here and
then got her master's at the Uof A, okay, and so it was like
one.
We helped build that community.
Now she currently lives inNorthern California, but the
community that she establishedhere, the friends that she had
here, our friends that she hasin Southern California, our
(27:09):
friends that she has in NewJersey, our friends that she has
in Michigan, who she met here,and so that community once again
was really strong.
Now my second child she's 21,brittany.
She lives in Miami.
She left like two days aftergraduation and she went to
school out in Miami.
Well, we had moved here fromMiami so you know she wanted to
(27:29):
get closer to there.
My 18-year-old he's going to begoing to school at Western
Michigan in Kalamazoo Michigan.
You know I can't fault him, youknow, just being a Michigander.
Patti Leith (27:41):
Michigander, that's a.
Thing.
Brandon Taylor (27:42):
That's right.
And then my 13-year-old.
All he knows is NorthwestArkansas, and so our house is
full of people all the time.
All these kids, 13-year-old boys, or my friend, my son is going
to this party or that birthdayparty and celebrating different
things with everybody he's methere and my wife and I we've
(28:03):
been able to develop a reallygood community and we've had
different cohorts of communitiesthat we've been a part of since
we've been here.
We lived in Centerton when wefirst got here and then two
years later we moved to CaveSprings and so you had a
different community, a differentgroup.
Then we moved from Cave Springsto Fayetteville in 21.
And so we have a differentcommunity and a different group
(28:25):
Now we still connect quite oftenwith the group that we knew
when we were in Cave Springs,but once again it's still a
different community and adifferent group.
And then we are also pulled alot from my 13 year old and the
relationships he's made, whichin turn allows my wife and I to
make different relationshipsbecause of relationships for my
youngest son, and so it's beengreat.
Patti Leith (28:47):
Travels with sports .
Yeah, and you get really tightknit with that parent group when
the kids are traveling.
Brandon Taylor (28:53):
Yeah, thanks for reminding me, patty, because
we're coming up on AAU travelbasketball and so every weekend
we'll be taking up.
You know it's funny because,like for the past gee whiz, five
years, it seems like thevacations we take.
You know he'll be upset becausewe're like, look, son, we're
(29:14):
still going to take a vacation.
And it's like, yeah, you'regoing to miss a tournament and
you're 11 years old, you know.
So it's like that's not reallygoing to get you to the NBA.
But to your original point ofthe question, we've really been
able to develop some greatlongstanding relationships here
and we love Northwest Arkansas,you know.
(29:35):
So it's not as if you knowwe're looking to flee or to move
tomorrow.
Now there may be a time that wedecide to move.
You know my oldest daughter.
Although she lives in NorthernCalifornia, she recently
purchased a home in KalamazooMichigan, which happens to be
where my son is moving to.
(29:55):
My other daughter is moving toKalamazoo Michigan, and so you
know.
Patti Leith (30:02):
Wow.
Yeah, our kids are all inColorado.
Brandon Taylor (30:04):
And if it weren't?
Patti Leith (30:05):
so darn cold.
Brandon Taylor (30:06):
We might be there, yeah, and so we're going
to have the same thing with thatcold, and so three-fourths of
our children will be in Michigan, and so we shall see.
Ken Leith (30:17):
Yes, I gotcha be in Michigan and so we shall see.
Yes, definitely seems to be amigration of the Taylor family
to back to Michigan.
Patti Leith (30:26):
Do you have a question?
Well, yeah, as you grew intoyour career and began to pursue
leadership, it sounds like youhad a lot of opportunities and
an early age.
What drew you into the fieldthat you are in today?
Brandon Taylor (30:37):
Yeah, so my father-in-law.
So when I first went intotransportation and logistics, it
was in 2000.
And you know, I was looking attwo different jobs.
And because it wasn't a careeryeah, I was looking at two
different jobs.
You hear me, I hear you I had awife and a child and I needed to
(30:59):
make sure that I was takingcare of them.
I understand, and so I leftTallahassee and I was looking at
working at an organization thatwas going to pay a little bit
more than the opportunity that Iwas given with another
organization transportation andlogistics and the individual
that sold me on it was JoelKennedy.
(31:21):
Okay, so yeah, joel, I'm givingyou a shout out.
But his name's Joel Kennedy,and when I came and I was
talking to my father-in-lawabout our meeting and the
interview, he was like you needto follow this Joel guy because
he's going to be good for you.
This Joel guy and myfather-in-law I never met him,
but he said that's the personthat I should follow.
(31:43):
And so I took a job that paidsubstantially less than the
other offering.
But you know, after being inthis career once again, the
delineation from job to careerfor the past 25 years it was the
right decision.
Patti Leith (31:59):
Yeah, very good, very good, and I'm sure you
learned a lot from Joel.
Brandon Taylor (32:03):
Oh yeah.
So it's funny because I hadnever thought of myself as a
salesperson.
You know, once again, because Ialways envision and I'm not
trying to be negative to any ofthose sellers who are listening
but I never thought of myself asa salesperson because I thought
when you're selling, you'rejust trying to make the sale,
(32:25):
not necessarily trying to solvefor the customer.
And Joel was a person thattaught me that selling is not
about just making the sale andclosing the deal.
There's a lot of people whothink that way, but he said
here's the deal At the end ofthe day.
And Joel would always say youknow, slim, at the end of the
day, slim, you just need to makesure that you're solving for
(32:45):
the customer.
How can you have a solutionthat they're going to continue
to come back?
And you want to make sure thatyou have a relationship with
them, because whether you're atthis organization, another
organization or you see them ina store, you want them to be
able to come up and give you ahandshake.
Patti Leith (33:04):
And Joel told me that a long time ago.
That was great advice, becauseif you can help the customer
solve a problem, it's not aboutthe sale, it's really about I
can do something that helpssolve that problem for you.
Brandon Taylor (33:18):
And that's at the core of a good sales
mentality, I think really aboutI can do something that helps
solve that problem for you, andthat's at the core of a good
sales mentality.
I think yeah, and then topiggyback on top of that.
So you know, I started learningthe sales from him, but then my
leadership acumen reallystarted to develop differently.
You know watching Joel,listening to Joel, him taking
the time to coach me on what aresome of the blind spots that I
(33:42):
might have had at the time, someof the areas of opportunity
that I continue to work on,because you know as much as you
want your skills to have ametamorphosis.
You know we're not butterfliesyou know, and so you have to
evolve over time.
And so, through this evolutionof this journey, I enjoy it more
(34:06):
now than I did when I firststarted.
Now have there been times whereit's like, oh my gosh, why did
I get bit by this particular bug?
But you know, I told somebodythe other day I said, you know,
but it's almost like asuperpower now.
It's like, you know, I feellike a little bit of a logistic
Spider-Man because I got bit bythis bug, but I'm pretty good at
(34:27):
it and you know, I mean, youknow you don't want to do
anything else, and so even whenI go into my later career, once
I leave corporate America,there's still going to be some
connectivity to transportationand logistics.
Patti Leith (34:40):
Yeah, I always tell young people starting out that
your first job is often dumbluck and after that it's based
on the connections that youfoster Absolutely.
It's who you know and that'sbecause you've taken the time to
really develop a relationshipwith them.
You know, as you think aboutyour career.
In the next segment of thiswe're going to dig deeper into
(35:01):
your role in transportationlogistics, your leadership at
JBN.
But as you think about yourcareer, what advice would you
give a new person seeking outconsidering leadership,
considering moving into a rolewith advantaged people?
What advice would you give anew person?
Brandon Taylor (35:20):
Yeah.
So there would be two thingsthat I would say to people and
this is at any point of theircareer.
I love that.
Okay, any point, yeah, anypoint, any point of their career
.
First one would be influence isa contact sport, and I truly
believe that, because whenyou're influencing somebody,
you're touching.
You know, ken, you had talkedearlier about soccer yes, well,
(35:42):
if you didn't make connectionwith the ball, you were not
influencing anything that washappening on the field.
Absolutely, you know, whetheryou're a big Detroit Lions fan
and you know you're tacklingsomebody or you're scoring a
touchdown, you're going to makesome sort of contact and you
know those victories come withthat influence.
(36:02):
Yeah, and so influence is acontact sport.
The second thing is compete butdon't compare.
And what I mean about competebut don't compare is that, yeah,
we're going to have acompetitive nature internally
and it's okay to compete withsomebody else.
That's okay, but you shouldn'tcompare yourself to someone
(36:25):
else's journey.
Agreed, I said it earlier aboutthat character piece.
And so when you're thinkingabout competing and not
comparing, you can't create yourcharacter if you're comparing
yourself to someone else.
And so, once again, influenceis a contact sport.
You compete but don't compare.
And I would tell people that,whether they've been doing their
(36:48):
job for 40 years or four months, influence is a contact sport.
You compete, but don't compare.
Ken Leith (36:57):
Very, very good.
I like both of those.
I will say that the influenceif I wasn't making contact with
the ball was how long the coachneeded to have me sit on the
bench until I figured it out.
That's right.
That's right.
It's the truth, which, again,there are lessons to be learned
through.
That, that's right.
Brandon Taylor (37:11):
Yeah, real quick .
I'm glad you're using thesoccer analogy.
So, when you think about thefield, you want to be on the
field, and there are going to betimes in your life, in your
career, that you might not bethe person making contact with
the ball.
Yeah, but you've got toposition yourself to be able to
(37:36):
score or either play defense,and so, even if you're not in
the role or the position youthink you want to be in today,
still put yourself on the fieldthe right way and hustle and
don't give up.
Ken Leith (37:49):
Just once again, going back to the soccer analogy
, I love that you don't give upand you be part of a team.
Yeah, absolutely.
Patti Leith (37:57):
Thank you so much for being with us today and
sharing your personal insights.
We're looking forward totalking more about your
professional side of things.
But great advice for ourlisteners and thank you all for
joining us today and tuning in.
We hope you'll subscribe to thepodcast and tell your friends.
Yes, Thank you Thanks.
(38:18):
Subscribe to the podcast andtell your friends yes, Thank you
, Thanks.
The 4 Bars Podcast has beenbrought to you by Edges Inc.
A growth advisory firm based inBentonville, Arkansas.
I founded the company in 2001.
Ken Leith (38:27):
Edges promotes growth of people, companies and ideas.
Our team collaboration tool,called Interface Methods, is a
basis for teams to work togethermore collaboratively,
understand each other and acceptdifferences and address
challenges together.
Patti Leith (38:39):
We also started a nonprofit called Unform your
Bias.
We teach kids and their adultinfluencers how to utilize
storytelling as a means toreduce bias in the world.
We hope you'll check us out,subscribe to our podcast and
look at our website.
Your integrity, your word and being a person of
integrity is so important.
You know that we all have had,you know, individuals in our
family with military backgrounds, and so that was instilled in
me at an early age.
Like you have to be a man ofintegrity, brandon, you have to
be a man of integrity.
So you know, even though it maysometimes hurt, I'm always
(00:24):
going to be candid and truthful.
Ken Leith (00:26):
Yeah, welcome to the 4 Bars podcast.
I'm Ken Leith.
Patti Leith (00:29):
And I'm Patti Leith .
We're your hosts for somecompelling dialogue, encouraging
our listeners to strengthentheir connections.
Ken Leith (00:36):
And build strong communities, lifting each other
up and connecting in ways thatmatter.
Patti Leith (00:40):
We named the podcast 4 Bars as a reference to
how hard we work to find a FourBars connection on our devices.
Ken Leith (00:47):
And we wondered what could happen with relationships
if we worked as hard atconnecting.
Let's find out.
So welcome to Four Bars, andI'm one of your co-hosts, ken
Lee and I'm Patti Lee.
Welcome.
And today we have with usBrandon Taylor, who's Senior
Vice President of Transportationat JB Hunt Transport.
Welcome, brandon.
All right, thank you,appreciate it.
Patti Leith (01:06):
Great to be here with you.
Yes, absolutely.
Ken Leith (01:10):
And just for full disclosure, we have known
Brandon for quite a while now.
Brandon Taylor (01:13):
Yes, we have.
Yes, we have.
Ken Leith (01:15):
And we are thrilled to have you on here today to
talk a little bit about, kind ofwhat makes you you, you and how
you kind of came to be who youare.
Okay, because that's alwaysimportant when we think about
things.
And then ultimately we're goingto have another segment and
that segment's going to be moreabout how does that tie into
your professional life also.
Okay, because that'll be a goodtakeaway, I think, for our
(01:37):
viewers and listeners that arehere today.
I'll just throw out the firstquestion a little bit to kind of
get started.
If you would just kind of giveus a little bit about how were
you raised, I mean yourupbringing, where you grew up
and things of that nature,because that always plays a part
, I know it holds a whole lotwithin who I am.
So tell us a little bit aboutthat, if you would.
Brandon Taylor (01:55):
So thank you for the question and, once again,
thank you both for having mehere.
I'm really excited.
I feel like I'm catching upwith my oldest daughter, she and
her friend.
They do a podcast.
Patti Leith (02:05):
Oh nice.
Brandon Taylor (02:06):
What I wish, wait what we wish.
We would have known.
Patti Leith (02:10):
I love it.
I know right, I have tosubscribe.
That's amazing.
Brandon Taylor (02:13):
And so it's funny that I'm getting this
opportunity to do something likethis today.
So, brandy, I'm trying to catchyou, but my upbringing you know
you hear the term quite oftenof a military brat yes, well,
that's what I was.
Now I don't want to say that Iwas a brat, but I was an only
child growing up.
So I was born in Grand Rapids,michigan, and then, after that,
(02:37):
we moved to Wyoming, we moved toEngland, we moved back to
Michigan, we moved to Oklahoma,we moved back to Michigan, we
moved back to England, we movedto Germany, we moved back to
England, we moved to Michigan,we moved to California, and then
I graduated high school inMichigan.
(02:57):
So when you talk about Wow,that's a lot of movement, a lot
of movement.
So when you talk about myupbringing.
Once again, being an only childgrowing up, it was one of those
things wherein I had to makefriends really quickly, you know
, because I didn't have anybodyelse around.
Yes, people always say, oh,come on, you're not telling the
(03:22):
truth, and I'm like, yeah, but Iam more of an introvert because
I do gain my energy from beingalone and reading books and
things of that nature, but I'mpretty much an extrovert because
I don't mind talking to peopleand getting to know them.
My wife often says that we cango to a Walmart or Target or any
(03:44):
other store.
I'm going to meet somebody inline and they're going to become
my friend, and so that's a lotof my upbringing.
Now, I mentioned Michigan quitea lot in my upbringing.
So, for those who don't know,I'm a fanatical fan of anything
Michigan when it comes to sportsteams and things like that, and
(04:04):
so I would always go back toMichigan.
That's where my mother's familywas, and my grandmother was a
big part of who I am today, soshe had me reading books at the
library that you know would havebeen on the high school or
collegiate level when I was fiveyears old.
Wow school or collegiate levelwhen I was five years old, and
(04:28):
so you know I love to read.
I still believe that learningis a big part of who I am, and
you know I try to make sure thatI coach others around me to
read as well, because you learnso much from reading and the
last thing I'll say about myupbringing with that and you may
ask a few more questions aboutit but when you read so much of
(04:50):
some of the great authors outthere or even if it's nonfiction
, you find yourself in thoseplaces and you could learn from
that as well, and so I've beenable to take a lot of that to
help me become the person I amtoday.
Ken Leith (05:04):
Yeah, yeah, very good , and I don't know if you know
this, but actually Patty and Iare, and so I've been able to
take a lot of that to help mebecome the person I am today.
Yeah, very good, and I don'tknow if you know this, but
actually Patty and I our fatherswere both in military.
Okay, I'll say so, did not movenearly as much as you do.
Yeah, my mom tended to stay putwhile dad went around the world
in the Navy for 20 years, andyou can talk about your dad a
little bit.
Patti Leith (05:22):
Yeah, my dad actually was out of the military
by the time he had us.
He he was in world war ii andum he, uh, was a nuclear
engineer.
So we lived in the dc area.
But I moved three times in mychildhood and was horrified at
every move.
You know to hear the, themovement, it shapes you yeah
right.
(05:42):
It shapes you and I can reallyidentify with it when you say
you're both an introvert and anexpert.
Brandon Taylor (05:46):
I'm similar.
Patti Leith (05:48):
At the end of the day, I want my cave time, I want
to read and pet the dog and,you know, spend a little time
just chilling.
But I ideate collaboratively.
I can tell stories and gatherinformation on the fly pretty
easily, but I do have a side ofme that needs some quiet time to
recharge.
Brandon Taylor (06:08):
You know it's funny.
So I've been married for 28years and so my wife and I we
get along great, jessica.
But you know, there was a time,probably in the early 2000s, I
would come home from work and Iwould just want to be alone.
She did not like that, and sowe had to communicate to
(06:28):
understand, because you know,she would be home with the kids
for most of the day and shewanted to have the adult
conversation.
I get it and I was like I justwant to go ahead and just take
some time to get on a game orspend time just alone, and so,
as we've evolved in our marriage, I spend a lot more time
(06:53):
understanding that.
First off, before I cross thethreshold, I get off the phone.
And so all conversations finishat the driveway and then I get
in the house and then we makesure to spend that time.
So you know, going back tobeing an introvert and extrovert
, just understanding where youget that energy, but I've also
learned how to adapt as well,because you know there are other
(07:14):
people who want to spend thattime with you.
Patti Leith (07:16):
Absolutely, yeah, yeah, and I'm interested in
hearing more about yourgrandmother.
Ken also is very shaped andvery influenced by his
grandmother.
I think it takes a village aswe're growing up.
Tell me more about her.
Brandon Taylor (07:29):
Yeah, so my grandmother's Blanche Babers.
And so real quick, you knowbeing here in Northwest Arkansas
, you know, not far from Tulsa,oklahoma, so my mother's side of
the family was in Tulsa andthey left after.
You know the you know whathappened in 1919 in Tulsa, and
(07:55):
so they moved to Canada, thefamily, and they were there
until 1923.
And then they moved to GrandRapids, Michigan, in 1924.
And then my grandmother wasborn there.
Now my grandmother had 10siblings, you know they were.
She was the youngest of all thekids and my grandmother's mother
passed away when she was sixyears old from tuberculosis.
And so then my grandmother'sfather remarried and then he
(08:15):
passed away when she was eightyears old from tuberculosis.
And so at that time, you know,doctors wouldn't, you know,
allow certain people to go tothe hospital.
Yeah, and you had to havedoctors that would come to the
homes, and so, and they it was.
It was similar to what youwould see, you know, or
envisioning a Bible with thePassover.
So when somebody hadtuberculosis, my grandmother and
(08:37):
has shared with me that theyput something over the door
stoop to let people know who hadit yeah.
And so she was living with herstepmother, but not enjoying
that, and so a few months intothat, she moved in with her
older brother, my Uncle Jesse,who was very influential on me
(08:58):
as well, so I'll tell you alittle bit about him a little
later.
But my Uncle Jesse, I believe,was probably 20 years older than
my granny.
You know so my grandmother, Icalled her granny, and so she
was with us until 2022.
Patti Leith (09:14):
And you had her.
You had her in your life a longtime.
That's a blessing.
Brandon Taylor (09:18):
Yeah, and you know, with my granny I smile a
lot because you know there werejust so many things, so many
lessons that she gave me andshaped me.
You know she grew up in GrandRapids and she started teaching
Sunday school in 1941.
Wow, and so one of the storiesthat my grandmother told me,
(09:38):
like she remember, you know,driving to church when Pearl
Harbor was attacked in 1941.
So you know, when you thinkabout that, with the historical
context and some of herperspectives on you know,
relationships outside of thiscountry and things of that
nature, and you know she taughtfifth and sixth grade girls in
(10:03):
Sunday school all those yearsand unfortunately, when COVID
occurred, you know, being older,in her 90s, she was no longer
able to leave the home, you know, just because of everything
going on.
And so you know, when we talkabout it we say that COVID took
her, not because she evercontracted COVID, but my granny
(10:24):
was an extrovert to the max,yeah, and not being able to be
around people, you know, took alot away from her.
But my wife and I talk about allof the stories she gave us, she
told us.
My wife has so many recordingsof when she would sit down and
just listen to her talk and youknow my wife is planning on
(10:46):
putting something togethereventually, you know, to write
the story, a biography to share.
You know her life.
Ken Leith (10:54):
That's amazing, so priceless.
Yeah, interesting In the firstcouple of minutes here I've
learned so much more about thatthan we've known in all these
years.
I come from large families.
My mom was next to the oldestof nine, dad was the youngest of
16.
So big families back at thattime and my grandmother, who was
probably the biggest, alongwith my mother, the biggest
(11:15):
influences on me.
We called her Granny Austin.
Okay, my great Interesting.
It's a small world in a lot oftimes.
Thinking about again thatjourney that you've had along
the way, what was some of theearly values or lessons you've
learned that you've kind of keptfrom the time you were a child
and brought into your world asan adult that you utilized?
Brandon Taylor (11:37):
Absolutely Integrity, character and being
trustworthy and I start withthat, I mean your integrity,
your word and being trustworthy,oh, I bet, and I start with
that, I mean your integrity,your word and being a person of
integrity is so important.
You know that we all have had,you know, individuals in our
family with military backgrounds, and so that was instilled in
(11:58):
me at an early age.
Yeah, like, you have to be aman of integrity, brandon, you
have to be a man of integrity,brandon, you have to be a man of
integrity.
So you know, even though it maysometimes hurt, I'm always
going to be candid and truthful.
Yeah, yeah, always.
Patti Leith (12:15):
Which is really what integrity means.
Brandon Taylor (12:17):
Yeah, right, yeah, so you're always going to
get that with me, going to getthat with me.
And it's difficult at timesbecause you're like I don't want
to hurt this person.
So I've learned to measure mycommunication as well as I've
developed and matured.
When I was a lot younger itwasn't good at all.
It would come across as cuttingand it wasn't meant that way,
(12:39):
but it was more along the linesof being a person full of
integrity was more along thelines of being person full of
integrity, your character.
The thing is, you know, PattyKen, you have your own character
, I have my own character, butwe each have to live in our own
space, and sometimes people,when they talk about character,
(13:00):
they're trying to emulate orreplicate somebody else, and you
can't necessarily duplicateanybody else's journey.
Yeah, and so they know, true,the character that you have is
based off of your experiences,and so each thing I went through
because, at the end of the day,you know one of a minister that
(13:22):
I heard a long time ago he, hesaid life is going to life.
What does he mean by that?
Well, as a 50 year old man, Iunderstand that life is going to
life it is.
And then finally just beingtrustworthy.
You know, once again, being anonly child and moving somewhere
(13:44):
almost every two years.
There were a couple of places Ilived for three years, but most
of the time it was a two-yearstint and so by moving so much,
I had to be just truthful andsomebody that people trusted.
And it was funny.
You know, it's not bragging atall, but as a young kid I would
move somewhere and people wouldsay that's my best friend.
(14:06):
And you know I still admirethose relationships from people
who have known somebody fromfour and five years old.
But I've been able to buildsuch deep relationships with
people in a short period of timeand I believe a lot of that is
based off of my trustworthiness.
I'm the person that people cometo and they share their deepest
(14:27):
thoughts and secrets or howthey're feeling, because they
know that it's not going to beheard again because they trust
me.
And so integrity, character,trustworthiness.
Patti Leith (14:38):
Yeah.
Ken Leith (14:38):
I love that.
Those are definitely a solidfoundation.
Patti Leith (14:43):
And I've known you for many years.
You lead with all three ofthose front and center.
Brandon Taylor (14:47):
Absolutely, absolutely, just because you
know that's not going to changeand I'm glad you said that,
patty.
I was going to bring it upbecause I remember for years
when I was like, patty, you'remy therapist, you know.
So, thank you, I'm like, I'm onthe couch.
Okay, so let's talk, becauseyou know, just especially going
(15:08):
into a second career yes, youknow, and so you've done some
things in the past and then yougo into your second career and
you're trying to understand thelay of the land.
Patti Leith (15:17):
Yeah.
Brandon Taylor (15:17):
And so it's like okay.
Patti Leith (15:19):
When I started working with you, when you were
in Miami.
That's correct.
Yeah, Before you moved into thecorporate headquarters scenario
.
And yeah, so it's been a reallylong time that we've worked
together.
Absolutely yeah, that's funny.
Ken Leith (15:31):
It is.
It's time that we've workedtogether.
Absolutely, that's funny.
It is when you were younger.
Think about this as children.
There's this time where wethink about okay, this is where
I'm going to go, even as a child.
How different was your thoughtyour first time you can think
about well, I think I'm going tobe this person, I'm going to do
X.
How different is that, or howsimilar is it to where you are
(15:54):
today?
Brandon Taylor (16:03):
It is very, very , very different, and so I
whisper that because, you know,in the depths of my mind I still
think about it.
So when I was younger, probablywhen I was six or seven years
old, I had my mind set that Iwas going to go into the
military.
I was going to be a fighterpilot in the Navy or the Air
Force.
I was going to then retire fromthe military.
And this is when I was young.
I was going to run for Congress, be in the House of
(16:25):
Representatives or a senator fora few years, and then I was
going to run for president in2024.
How times have changed.
And so, as a young kid, that'swhat I thought.
I promise you, those were thethoughts, and I think a lot of
that comes back to just a lot ofthe reading that I was doing,
because you know my family, mymom and dad neither one said
(16:47):
that there were any boundarieson who you could be and what you
could become.
Yeah, and so there were neverthose boundaries set, and you
know, for me it was never about.
You know, a monetary thing I'vealways thought about how can I
give back to others?
And I like people and so I wantto.
You know, that's a part of mypurpose, is that and you know
(17:09):
what?
It's funny because I'm thinkingabout it I'm not a people
pleaser, but I want to helppeople with themselves.
So my own mission statement isthat I want to help people
unlock their God-given potentialand gift it back to him.
And so what I mean by that isthat every individual has
(17:29):
potential that God has giventhem.
I'm a believer, that's what Ibelieve.
Potential that God has giventhem.
I'm a believer, that's what Ibelieve.
And so everybody has thatpotential.
But some of us don't ever reachthe zenith of all the potential
we have, because you never havethat confidence or belief in
what you can do.
And so I'm coaching.
(17:50):
I think I would have been agood football coach, but I'm
coaching.
I think I would have been agood football coach, but I'm
coaching.
I think you would have too, youknow, but I'm coaching to help
people unlock that God givenpotential.
And then, at the end of the day, it's not about what can I get
for myself with the God givenpotential, but how can I give it
back as a gift to him?
Yeah, and giving a gift back toGod is by serving the community
(18:12):
that you're in.
Yeah, it.
Patti Leith (18:13):
Giving a gift back to God is by serving the
community that you're in.
Yeah, agreed, it really is.
It's well said, yeah, and sothat's how I look at it.
That's well said and that very.
(18:38):
That changes everything itchanges everything.
Ken Leith (18:40):
Yeah, it really does 100% and I do like what you said
.
I think a lot of people havethese thoughts of what could I
be, what am I going to take intolife?
But at the same time, I thinkit was very important what you
said about having people in yourlife who didn't set boundaries,
just said, hey, it's up to youwhere you want to go and how you
take it.
Just, you know, have thesevalues within that.
(19:01):
I think that's very important.
Again, that's a similar thingthat I had, uh, with my mom.
I may have played sports myentire life.
At one point I thought I wouldgo play professional soccer, um,
but the ankle didn't hold upthere.
But at the same time, it was mymother in my life who always
said it doesn't matter where youare with certain things, it is
what you make of it, and I thinkwhat you said adds to that.
(19:24):
The other thing I think that'simportant is just you mentioned
the community and you tie in alot of what we at Four Bars on
the podcast here think are socritical.
It's what do we do to make goodconnections and make it
valuable?
And a good connection we defineit as and I know we've had the
conversation before it is sothat both parties have takeaways
(19:45):
that are valuable for them, andthat's in our life, in our
business and in our community.
You hit on that, you kind oflive that in a lot of ways.
Those connections, how do youget to that point where you
started thinking, wow, this isso important that these
connections it's not likesomething you have to do, but
something you wanted to do.
Brandon Taylor (20:03):
Yeah, so you know it's funny when you talk
about how I felt when I was ayounger child in my adolescence,
and then I became a teenager.
Patti Leith (20:13):
That happens, yeah, that happens yeah so we skipped
that part kid.
Brandon Taylor (20:17):
So then we became a teenager, and I became
a little more selfish.
Ken Leith (20:22):
Okay.
Brandon Taylor (20:23):
And you know we talked about God's gifts, and so
I was utilizing God's gift thathe gave me just into what would
be pleasing for me, just beinghonest.
Patti Leith (20:35):
Yeah, as many times as the kids.
As people mature, they gothrough a stage where they are
focused more centrally.
Brandon Taylor (20:44):
And so it's funny, I promise you and my
wife's going to be like oh, whyare you mentioning me so much?
But I met my wife in college.
She was going to Florida State,I was going to Florida A&M
University Both schools are inTallahassee and I was like
because I used to always tell myfriends, man, I'm not getting
married, I'm just going to livelife and just enjoy myself.
(21:08):
And then I met my wife and Iwas just like, wow, who would
have thought that a year laterwe're married?
But that's happened, yeah.
And so 28 years later, and someeting her and she really
allowed me to think about a lotof things differently.
She was just like you know,you're not being the best you,
(21:31):
and she would tell me this andit would hurt.
Ken Leith (21:32):
What do you mean I'm?
Brandon Taylor (21:33):
not being the best me and she would tell me
this and it would hurt.
What do you mean?
I'm not being the best me and Iwasn't living to my potential.
I was living, life was stillliving, but I wasn't living to
my potential.
And she was like you couldunlock so much more.
And so when I had my firstchild, we had our first child.
It really changed everythingabout me.
(21:55):
So, once again, we've beenmarried 28 years.
My oldest child is 26.
So for the past 26 years, I'vereally shifted my focus, because
then I was able to see that Iwas a part of bringing something
into this world and it was justlike whoa, you know, it's not
just about me, it's not evenabout me and my wife.
(22:15):
It's about me, my wife and thislittle child that I brought
into the world.
And as much as you want to loveyour children, you also want to
make sure that the communitythat they're in is great.
Patti Leith (22:29):
Yes, yes, and from that time when I was 24,.
Brandon Taylor (22:32):
I've been pouring into people and I've had
(22:55):
opportunities to havemanagement roles since I was
really, really young and I'vejust poured in and poured in.
And there is a time you mightget to a question, warren.
Have you ever walked away fromthat?
There was a time, warren, I waslike I don't want to pour into
people anymore because ofsomething negative within life.
Patti Leith (23:15):
Once again, life is going to life.
Brandon Taylor (23:17):
It's ironic.
So my wife and I and I'llpromise you I'll end this one
real quick, no, no it's fine,fascinating.
So my wife and I we talked Ithink it was.
Was it this weekend?
It might have been this weekend, no, it was Wednesday night.
It was Wednesday night.
We were talking about all thebooks we have and my wife gets
so upset because, you know, wehave 12 different bookshelves
(23:42):
and like we just buy a lot ofbooks, like you know what's in
my granny instilled in me.
So I buy a lot of books and youknow, at the time when I walked
away from mentoring andcoaching people, I threw a lot
of my books away.
I didn't give them away, I wasjust like it's not worth it.
And I went through that periodin my life.
You know there were months thatI was there and you know, at
(24:10):
the time, you know you're likeman.
Why am I this way?
Not that I ever got diagnosed,but I was depressed because once
again life is going to life.
But then, when I started givingagain and I started living in
my purpose, it was easy to comeout of that.
Patti Leith (24:23):
That's so true.
You get what I'm saying, sotrue.
Brandon Taylor (24:26):
And so, once again, long-winded way of
answering the question, butthat's really what's happening.
Ken Leith (24:30):
No, I appreciate that .
I'm sure everyone listeningalso appreciates that, because
it's true, I mean, and very realfor who you are.
Patti Leith (24:38):
I think most of us have experienced something like
that at some point in time andit puts you into almost a state
of inactivity and the less youdo, the more you feel that
depressed emotion and the onlyway out is to start doing and
giving and connecting you know,and I love what you said also
(25:01):
about wanting the community tobe not just safe but great.
Brandon Taylor (25:05):
That's right and that's a big part of it too,
and you know I mentioned mydaughter, brandy, who's my
oldest, but I have four kids andso you know, each child that
was added to the Taylorhousehold just made that drive
even more for me to make thosearound me safe and great and
(25:27):
allow them to unlock theirpotential to give back.
Because if all of us would justdo what God has purposed us to
do, man, just think about theplace we would be in.
Ken Leith (25:36):
Yeah, absolutely, and I think all that goes into
really forming good communitiesand then good villages.
There's a whole lot of talknowadays about the village
because it does take a village.
It sure does.
And the fact that I will sayone thing about coming to
Northwest Arkansas when I camehere I didn't know what to
expect, but one of the things Idid find coming from Washington
(25:59):
DC and I love Washington DC, butit's not a touchy-feely kind of
a city.
It is a beautiful city andthere are some wonderful people
there, but here it's more abouta lot of people coming together.
A lot of people, especially innorthwest Arkansas now, are not
from here originally and itseems to create a more of a
(26:20):
closer-knit community andvillage.
If you would have youexperienced anything like it,
what's your experience likehaving moved here?
Brandon Taylor (26:26):
Yeah, so it's funny you say that.
So my wife and I, we moved herein 2013, and my four children,
and you know my oldest child.
So when she was about tograduate, and probably you know
her junior year in high school,she was looking at okay, well,
I'm going to go to schoolsomewhere else.
Patti Leith (26:45):
Yeah, yeah.
Brandon Taylor (26:46):
To get away from Northwest Arkansas.
Well, she stayed here, did herfour years of undergrad here and
then got her master's at the Uof A, okay, and so it was like
one.
We helped build that community.
Now she currently lives inNorthern California, but the
community that she establishedhere, the friends that she had
here, our friends that she hasin Southern California, our
(27:09):
friends that she has in NewJersey, our friends that she has
in Michigan, who she met here,and so that community once again
was really strong.
Now my second child she's 21,brittany.
She lives in Miami.
She left like two days aftergraduation and she went to
school out in Miami.
Well, we had moved here fromMiami so you know she wanted to
(27:29):
get closer to there.
My 18-year-old he's going to begoing to school at Western
Michigan in Kalamazoo Michigan.
You know I can't fault him, youknow, just being a Michigander.
Patti Leith (27:41):
Michigander, that's a.
Thing.
Brandon Taylor (27:42):
That's right.
And then my 13-year-old.
All he knows is NorthwestArkansas, and so our house is
full of people all the time.
All these kids, 13-year-old boys, or my friend, my son is going
to this party or that birthdayparty and celebrating different
things with everybody he's methere and my wife and I we've
(28:03):
been able to develop a reallygood community and we've had
different cohorts of communitiesthat we've been a part of since
we've been here.
We lived in Centerton when wefirst got here and then two
years later we moved to CaveSprings and so you had a
different community, a differentgroup.
Then we moved from Cave Springsto Fayetteville in 21.
And so we have a differentcommunity and a different group
(28:25):
Now we still connect quite oftenwith the group that we knew
when we were in Cave Springs,but once again it's still a
different community and adifferent group.
And then we are also pulled alot from my 13 year old and the
relationships he's made, whichin turn allows my wife and I to
make different relationshipsbecause of relationships for my
youngest son, and so it's beengreat.
Patti Leith (28:47):
Travels with sports .
Yeah, and you get really tightknit with that parent group when
the kids are traveling.
Brandon Taylor (28:53):
Yeah, thanks for reminding me, patty, because
we're coming up on AAU travelbasketball and so every weekend
we'll be taking up.
You know it's funny because,like for the past gee whiz, five
years, it seems like thevacations we take.
You know he'll be upset becausewe're like, look, son, we're
(29:14):
still going to take a vacation.
And it's like, yeah, you'regoing to miss a tournament and
you're 11 years old, you know.
So it's like that's not reallygoing to get you to the NBA.
But to your original point ofthe question, we've really been
able to develop some greatlongstanding relationships here
and we love Northwest Arkansas,you know.
(29:35):
So it's not as if you knowwe're looking to flee or to move
tomorrow.
Now there may be a time that wedecide to move.
You know my oldest daughter.
Although she lives in NorthernCalifornia, she recently
purchased a home in KalamazooMichigan, which happens to be
where my son is moving to.
(29:55):
My other daughter is moving toKalamazoo Michigan, and so you
know.
Patti Leith (30:02):
Wow.
Yeah, our kids are all inColorado.
Brandon Taylor (30:04):
And if it weren't?
Patti Leith (30:05):
so darn cold.
Brandon Taylor (30:06):
We might be there, yeah, and so we're going
to have the same thing with thatcold, and so three-fourths of
our children will be in Michigan, and so we shall see.
Ken Leith (30:17):
Yes, I gotcha be in Michigan and so we shall see.
Yes, definitely seems to be amigration of the Taylor family
to back to Michigan.
Patti Leith (30:26):
Do you have a question?
Well, yeah, as you grew intoyour career and began to pursue
leadership, it sounds like youhad a lot of opportunities and
an early age.
What drew you into the fieldthat you are in today?
Brandon Taylor (30:37):
Yeah, so my father-in-law.
So when I first went intotransportation and logistics, it
was in 2000.
And you know, I was looking attwo different jobs.
And because it wasn't a careeryeah, I was looking at two
different jobs.
You hear me, I hear you I had awife and a child and I needed to
(30:59):
make sure that I was takingcare of them.
I understand, and so I leftTallahassee and I was looking at
working at an organization thatwas going to pay a little bit
more than the opportunity that Iwas given with another
organization transportation andlogistics and the individual
that sold me on it was JoelKennedy.
(31:21):
Okay, so yeah, joel, I'm givingyou a shout out.
But his name's Joel Kennedy,and when I came and I was
talking to my father-in-lawabout our meeting and the
interview, he was like you needto follow this Joel guy because
he's going to be good for you.
This Joel guy and myfather-in-law I never met him,
but he said that's the personthat I should follow.
(31:43):
And so I took a job that paidsubstantially less than the
other offering.
But you know, after being inthis career once again, the
delineation from job to careerfor the past 25 years it was the
right decision.
Patti Leith (31:59):
Yeah, very good, very good, and I'm sure you
learned a lot from Joel.
Brandon Taylor (32:03):
Oh yeah.
So it's funny because I hadnever thought of myself as a
salesperson.
You know, once again, because Ialways envision and I'm not
trying to be negative to any ofthose sellers who are listening
but I never thought of myself asa salesperson because I thought
when you're selling, you'rejust trying to make the sale,
(32:25):
not necessarily trying to solvefor the customer.
And Joel was a person thattaught me that selling is not
about just making the sale andclosing the deal.
There's a lot of people whothink that way, but he said
here's the deal At the end ofthe day.
And Joel would always say youknow, slim, at the end of the
day, slim, you just need to makesure that you're solving for
(32:45):
the customer.
How can you have a solutionthat they're going to continue
to come back?
And you want to make sure thatyou have a relationship with
them, because whether you're atthis organization, another
organization or you see them ina store, you want them to be
able to come up and give you ahandshake.
Patti Leith (33:04):
And Joel told me that a long time ago.
That was great advice, becauseif you can help the customer
solve a problem, it's not aboutthe sale, it's really about I
can do something that helpssolve that problem for you.
Brandon Taylor (33:18):
And that's at the core of a good sales
mentality, I think really aboutI can do something that helps
solve that problem for you, andthat's at the core of a good
sales mentality.
I think yeah, and then topiggyback on top of that.
So you know, I started learningthe sales from him, but then my
leadership acumen reallystarted to develop differently.
You know watching Joel,listening to Joel, him taking
the time to coach me on what aresome of the blind spots that I
(33:42):
might have had at the time, someof the areas of opportunity
that I continue to work on,because you know as much as you
want your skills to have ametamorphosis.
You know we're not butterfliesyou know, and so you have to
evolve over time.
And so, through this evolutionof this journey, I enjoy it more
(34:06):
now than I did when I firststarted.
Now have there been times whereit's like, oh my gosh, why did
I get bit by this particular bug?
But you know, I told somebodythe other day I said, you know,
but it's almost like asuperpower now.
It's like, you know, I feellike a little bit of a logistic
Spider-Man because I got bit bythis bug, but I'm pretty good at
(34:27):
it and you know, I mean, youknow you don't want to do
anything else, and so even whenI go into my later career, once
I leave corporate America,there's still going to be some
connectivity to transportationand logistics.
Patti Leith (34:40):
Yeah, I always tell young people starting out that
your first job is often dumbluck and after that it's based
on the connections that youfoster Absolutely.
It's who you know and that'sbecause you've taken the time to
really develop a relationshipwith them.
You know, as you think aboutyour career.
In the next segment of thiswe're going to dig deeper into
(35:01):
your role in transportationlogistics, your leadership at
JBN.
But as you think about yourcareer, what advice would you
give a new person seeking outconsidering leadership,
considering moving into a rolewith advantaged people?
What advice would you give anew person?
Brandon Taylor (35:20):
Yeah.
So there would be two thingsthat I would say to people and
this is at any point of theircareer.
I love that.
Okay, any point, yeah, anypoint, any point of their career
.
First one would be influence isa contact sport, and I truly
believe that, because whenyou're influencing somebody,
you're touching.
You know, ken, you had talkedearlier about soccer yes, well,
(35:42):
if you didn't make connectionwith the ball, you were not
influencing anything that washappening on the field.
Absolutely, you know, whetheryou're a big Detroit Lions fan
and you know you're tacklingsomebody or you're scoring a
touchdown, you're going to makesome sort of contact and you
know those victories come withthat influence.
(36:02):
Yeah, and so influence is acontact sport.
The second thing is compete butdon't compare.
And what I mean about competebut don't compare is that, yeah,
we're going to have acompetitive nature internally
and it's okay to compete withsomebody else.
That's okay, but you shouldn'tcompare yourself to someone
(36:25):
else's journey.
Agreed, I said it earlier aboutthat character piece.
And so when you're thinkingabout competing and not
comparing, you can't create yourcharacter if you're comparing
yourself to someone else.
And so, once again, influenceis a contact sport.
You compete but don't compare.
And I would tell people that,whether they've been doing their
(36:48):
job for 40 years or four months, influence is a contact sport.
You compete, but don't compare.
Ken Leith (36:57):
Very, very good.
I like both of those.
I will say that the influenceif I wasn't making contact with
the ball was how long the coachneeded to have me sit on the
bench until I figured it out.
That's right.
That's right.
It's the truth, which, again,there are lessons to be learned
through.
That, that's right.
Brandon Taylor (37:11):
Yeah, real quick .
I'm glad you're using thesoccer analogy.
So, when you think about thefield, you want to be on the
field, and there are going to betimes in your life, in your
career, that you might not bethe person making contact with
the ball.
Yeah, but you've got toposition yourself to be able to
(37:36):
score or either play defense,and so, even if you're not in
the role or the position youthink you want to be in today,
still put yourself on the fieldthe right way and hustle and
don't give up.
Ken Leith (37:49):
Just once again, going back to the soccer analogy
, I love that you don't give upand you be part of a team.
Yeah, absolutely.
Patti Leith (37:57):
Thank you so much for being with us today and
sharing your personal insights.
We're looking forward totalking more about your
professional side of things.
But great advice for ourlisteners and thank you all for
joining us today and tuning in.
We hope you'll subscribe to thepodcast and tell your friends.
Yes, Thank you Thanks.
(38:18):
Subscribe to the podcast andtell your friends yes, Thank you
, Thanks.
The 4 Bars Podcast has beenbrought to you by Edges Inc.
A growth advisory firm based inBentonville, Arkansas.
I founded the company in 2001.
Ken Leith (38:27):
Edges promotes growth of people, companies and ideas.
Our team collaboration tool,called Interface Methods, is a
basis for teams to work togethermore collaboratively,
understand each other and acceptdifferences and address
challenges together.
Patti Leith (38:39):
We also started a nonprofit called Unform your
Bias.
We teach kids and their adultinfluencers how to utilize
storytelling as a means toreduce bias in the world.
We hope you'll check us out,subscribe to our podcast and
look at our website.
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