November 28, 2024 • 49 mins
What if you could reshape your life amidst chaos and adversity? Meet Royston, a tenacious individual who turned the daunting challenge of emigrating to the United States into an empowering journey of transformation. From managing his transportation business to supporting his sisters' creative endeavors, Royston’s story is a testament to the power of strategic planning and resilience. Leaving behind an established career and the comfort of the familiar, Royston offers a unique perspective on overcoming the hurdles of relocation, including the complexities of educational credential transfers and the emotional toll of starting anew.
Join us as Royston shares how a difficult upbringing and a strained relationship with his father fueled his drive to succeed on his terms. The military not only became a pathway to expedited citizenship and career rebuilding but also a crucible for developing a resilient mindset. Through personal anecdotes, Royston reveals how he navigated burnout and setbacks, ultimately finding a new passion in woodworking. His insights highlight the transformative power of channeling pain into productive ventures, underscoring the importance of balancing ambition with mental wellness.
Guided by business coaching and mentorship, Royston transitions from a hobbyist to a driven entrepreneur, showing how the right support can illuminate the path to success. As he tackles the challenges of building a business in a new country, he emphasizes the significance of mindset shifts and the ability to separate emotions from critical business decisions. Alongside these valuable lessons, Royston invites listeners to participate in a special promotion, enhancing engagement and community building. This episode is a powerful reminder of the strength found in resilience, the value of seeking guidance, and the rewards that come with an open and reflective mindset.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Melissa Franklin (00:00):
Welcome back to Structuring Chaotic Minds,
where we dive into resilience,overcoming adversity and the
strategies we use to thrive.
Today, we have a very specialguest joining us.
He's not only a client ofStructure Innovations, but he's
also someone who has anincredible story of perseverance
, growth and mindset shifts.
He's built a thriving businessin his home country, he served
(00:22):
in the military and heeventually migrated to the
United States.
He had to leave it all behindand start all over when he got
here.
Not only did he have to rebuildhis life and his career, but
today he's providing mentorshipfor new recruits in the United
States Army, guiding others ontheir own journeys towards
success.
We're diving deep into how he'sused his own personal
(00:44):
experience, mindsetbreakthroughs and coaching with
Structure Innovations to reachnew heights, both in business
and in life.
So let's jump in, all right.
So let's jump in, Royston.
Welcome to Structuring ChaoticMinds.
Thank you for having me To kickthings off.
(01:06):
Let's take it back to thebeginning.
You had a business back home inyour home country before you
came to the United States.
Royston Telford (01:22):
Can you tell us about that time and what life
looked like before you came?
So the businesses that I hadback home it was a mix between a
business between myself, my dad, which was a transportation
business.
That was one aspect and theother aspect.
I worked for a radio televisionstation for the government.
So my side hustler, part-time.
So my side hustle, or part-timeif you may, would have been
(01:49):
doing a lot of promo for two ofmy sisters that were into
designing clothing.
So the combination of those twothat's what I did, in addition
to my regular nine-to-five.
That would bring that extraincome and for the most part my
dad managed the transportationbusiness, since he was also a
driver.
(02:09):
He would manage the otherdrivers, the other modes of
transport, maintenance, all thatstuff and for the most part
I'll be in the background.
And then, as it relates to thepromotional business for my
sisters, it would be running ads, events that they would be
(02:32):
attending, that kind of stuff,doing promo in that aspect.
Melissa Franklin (02:37):
What did you have to leave behind, though,
when you moved here?
Everything.
Royston Telford (02:43):
Everything Other than the materials,
everything.
The biggest one for me was allof my schooling, all of my
educational prevention, becausea lot of it did not transfer to
the US and apparently it waswhen I graduated it was just
(03:05):
about two years after then thatsome guidelines were put in
place for third world countriesto either transfer their
credentials either partially andtest out or the entire,
whatever certifications you have.
So that was the mostsignificant thing that I
(03:29):
struggled with a little at first, because we were told we were
going to come to America.
Since I was 11 years old.
And I had given up with thatdream and decided to build a
life in South America, in theCaribbean, and it was well.
It was a very good life.
(03:49):
I got the call when I was 28.
I was in Trinidad when my momcalled and said hey, the embassy
reached out, so it's time to goin.
It's time to go to America but,yeah, basically left the entire
life, business, everything Iworked for community.
(04:11):
For the most part, friends andacquaintances were kept in touch
.
Yeah, yeah, that life was achapter that came to a close.
Melissa Franklin (04:21):
Oh, and now, with everything going on, I can
only imagine the new emotionalimpact of coming back and forth
on everything and the long wait.
What was that emotional impactor practical impact in general,
of having to shut down yourbusiness and then start all over
(04:43):
, education-wise, business-wiseeverything as you got here in
the United States?
Of having to shut down yourbusiness and then start all over
education wise, business wise,everything?
Royston Telford (04:52):
as you got here in the United States, and how
did that affect both you andyour family?
So I knew I was.
I was very mature by the timewe migrated and you know,
because of things that lifethrew at us, my parents got
divorced, so I had to step up.
I'm the eldest of five two boys, two girls so basically I had
to step up and be that rolemodel for everyone.
(05:14):
Now, as it relates to when wemigrated initially, it was
myself, my two sisters and mymom that came.
So I was to some extent alittle bit matured and I already
(05:35):
had a game plan in that I don'twant to go into student debt, I
don't want to be working three,four, five jobs to bear myself
and you know the typicalstereotypical hey credit,
student loans and you're buriedin that by the time you're
finished you're just working therest of your life off to pay
that off.
You're not really having a life.
So the first struggle was and Iknew that before I came because
(05:56):
I traveled a lot before I workedfor the government back home,
traveled a lot in the Caribbean,went to different countries,
asia, china, a couple differentplaces, london so I knew that my
credential would not have worthanything here and I would have
to start over.
So the whole goal was as soonas everything is good or solid
(06:21):
with my sisters and my mom allfemales in a new country, a new
continent, as soon as they'reable to handle their own work,
have some type of income ontheir own, I was going to join
the military.
That was no doubt Because Ilooked at that package and it
offered a few things that wasgoing to get me not like crazy
(06:47):
rich, but from where I was towhere I want to go.
That was going to be asignificant milestone as it
related but getting mycitizenship early, benefiting
from funding to go to school themilitary offers $4,000 a year
(07:10):
to go to school Health benefits,the training that you get while
you're on the job.
So, whatever certifications youearn, whatever experience you
earn in comparison to someonegoing to college and then
graduating from college andtrying to get a job.
So, whatever certifications youearn, whatever experience you
earn in comparison to someonegoing to college and then
graduating from college andtrying to get a job now they
have to gain that experience.
(07:31):
Well, the difference is in themilitary if you are smart enough
and you're aligned with for meI'm a 68 whiskey what is
considered either a combat medicor a healthcare specialist,
depending on where you're at.
If we're deployed, it's acombat medic.
If you're here back stateside,it's a healthcare specialist.
(07:53):
You get that experience.
So at the end, whenever youdecide to get out, if you're
smart enough and you do thatsimultaneously, you already have
that experience.
So you're ahead of.
You know, for the most part,most of the populace here.
(08:15):
So that was my goal.
For all those things that areoffered, I have my own thoughts
and culture background.
As it relates to, you know, warand military and that kind of
stuff Weigh out the pros andcons.
That was the better overallpackage that I saw elevate
myself pretty quickly to getback into business, to get back
(08:38):
where I want to get to beeducated in this system, to be
considered educated, be educatedin this system, to be
considered educated, and learneda couple of things along the
way and utilized a lot of, Iwould say, free chicken that the
military offers metaphoricallyto get back into business.
(09:02):
I honestly did not know whatkind of business I would have
been in.
I had no clue, none, zero.
Melissa Franklin (09:09):
But what I knew?
Royston Telford (09:10):
is that it's a great tool for me to get back
into business, for me to getback at least somewhere at the
beginning of where I was backhome.
To give you a snapshot timelineafter I finished high school I
relaxed for a bit back home andthen I did technical institute
for a couple of years and righton the tail end of that 1920,
(09:36):
that's when I started workingfor the government by the time I
hit 28, I was already clawed inknees deep into that's going to
be my career for everything.
So, coming here and now havingto start over, I had no clue
(09:56):
what business I was going to getinto.
Melissa Franklin (09:59):
Makes sense.
I was literally going to askhow did you cope with your loss,
but I mean it was building abusiness.
So, thinking about that, youbuild a new business here and
you eventually figured out whatyou were going to do.
How did you stay resilient andkeep that dream alive and can
you explain like the setbacksyou faced along the way?
Royston Telford (10:22):
so, um, easy, um, being resilient.
I would say the militaryteaches you a lot about being
resilient.
There's a lot of classes, a lotof stuff, but I would say
honestly, life made me resilient.
Um, I've had, um, it was a timewhere I I was, I had a whole
(10:44):
plan to kill myself.
Um, because life was that hard.
Um, the home I grew up in, um, Iembrace it now, now that I know
different, but the home I grewup in, my dad was the only thing
he wasn't to us, was sexuallyabusive and um, growing up, I I
(11:05):
don't use that word anymore, butfor, for this, this reason, I
hated him.
Um, with everything that that Ibelieved in, I hated him and um
, that led me to a point where Iwanted to kill him first and
then kill myself.
That was the answer.
Kill him first and then killmyself, that was the answer.
(11:28):
Um, for whatever reason.
At that point, that very pointwhere I was going to execute, um
, something just just told menot to.
I guess that was God.
Um, but I didn't.
And, uh, I don't know what itwas.
But since then, the thoughtthat came to me was at that
point, the little that I builton was it's not that bad and at
(11:52):
least you didn't die.
So that's where my resiliencystarted, from that point, and I
wish I'd really embodied thatthought at a younger age but I
might have been super reckless.
But it's like what's the worstcan happen Either you go to jail
(12:14):
or you die.
Now, if you think about theconsequences of your actions,
the better your decision-makingprocess is going to be.
That means you don't lament onit too much to hold yourself
back and take an action.
But you have your plan A andyour course of actions, outcomes
probably two or three otherplans.
(12:35):
So if that doesn't work, youjust fall by, fall back.
My mindset now has gotten tothere's no plan B, there's no
plan C.
This is the plan and this willhappen at whatever cost.
Life is going to happen.
It's going to ebb and flow.
So resiliency building,resiliency started at that point
.
(12:56):
Coming through the military, Ilearned, picked up a little more
tricks, a little more methodsof how you deal with resiliency,
especially when it comes tobehavioral health or mental
health, because in my countrythat wasn't a thing At that
(13:16):
point.
It wasn't a thing.
So there was no foster caresystem.
You had no counseling to go to.
You had to figure it out onyour own.
My go-to was video games,basketball, swimming sports for
the most part because that'swhat both of my parents were
athletes and that was my copingmechanism Transitioning here,
(13:42):
not knowing where or whatbusiness I would have gotten
back into.
I know I was going to at somepoint in time and I was just
laying the groundwork all thetime for it.
And in 2016, I think it wasjust about July of 2016,.
Through stress, a relationshipthat I was in, through stress, a
(14:05):
relationship that I was in, Idiscovered woodworking.
After looking for, I wasstationed at Fort Drum, upstate
New York.
Well, they don't considerupstate as New York.
Upstate New York.
Fort Drum, one of the not soecstatic places that you would
(14:26):
want to go to in the military.
It's number one, two or threeup there.
But I volunteered to go therebecause it was closer to family
for me, six hours away, and wewere close-knit.
So I decided I'm going to go toFort Drum and man, oh man, the
(14:52):
first three to four months itwas a struggle because it wasn't
what I was accustomed to and itwas a lot of training yeah,
what you would expect from themilitary.
So you're in the field a lot,almost nine, ten months
collectively out of the year.
And then what happened to me?
Because, coming up in life,that resiliency, that wanting to
be better, um, disliking my dadto that extent, I wanted to be
(15:15):
better than him in every singleaspect possible and just prove
him wrong.
Um, because what I know now I Ididn't know then and I
understand to some extent.
It's like he brought us up, theway that he was brought up or
what he saw, what he knew wasnormal, what he knew.
But you also have that.
(15:39):
You know deep down inside.
You know when something's wrong.
So you have that power ofchoice.
And now I know that, not now,but as I did my meditation and
mature and everything.
That's what I found out.
But because of my mindset ofbeing better than him in every
(16:00):
aspect, proving him wrong, I canbe way better than you are in
every single aspect.
I got caught in that loop ofwanting to be better, striving
like what's next, what's next,what's next?
So with my work ethic that'ssomething that a lot of
individuals see whenever I startworking for them I'm the go-to
(16:21):
person to get something resolvedintuition, thinking outside the
box, improvising and making ithappen.
In the military, good work getsrewarded with more work.
So at Fort Drum I was usuallythe go-to for the medical aid
station supplies, orderingsupplies, basically making stuff
(16:44):
happen, and it burnt me out alot.
So for the first three months Ihad something to prove as a new
person coming to this unit.
And then when they saw that, oh, I'm now the go-to person
because I'm at that rank whereI'm now getting to it's E5
sergeant, I'm now getting to asergeant rank but I'm already
(17:06):
functioning at two levels aboveand every time another unit's
going somewhere or whatever, I'mthe person.
Hey, can you go, can you help,can you whatever?
So that nine, 10 months turnedinto like 13, 14 months in the
field at one time.
But I did find time to go downto New York spend time with
(17:27):
family there.
It's about six hours traveltime.
And then I had family in Canada, still have family in Canada
right near to the border.
So that was like 30, 20 minutesand I would always be over
there whenever we had that time.
So, building that bond,reconnecting with family,
connecting with the family Imigrated with, we were super,
(17:48):
always close, we're still close,and with finding that, that
woodworking um gift I would saythat I had in 2016.
I wanted to bring them intothat fold after I was like, all
right, this is something I saw.
Oh, I'm good at my first thing,that fold.
After I was like, alright, thisis something I saw, I'm good at
my first thing that I built.
It was a sound system, a hometheater system, and when that
(18:11):
was done, I was like, no way, Ijust made that.
So that gave me that confidencethat, hey, this is something
I'm good at.
So I just kept doing it, justmaking little gifts here and
there, memorabilia for family,and then I was like not really
thinking business wise at thatpoint, but it was something that
(18:35):
allowed me to relax, to losemyself, to do this and I'm not
thinking about anything else,literally not.
So I lost myself in that.
And between 2016 to 2019, 2018,the end of 2018, 2019, that's
when I was like, hey, I can makesome money with this thing.
(18:56):
So I turned it into a hobby.
And, um, a couple years later21, 22 it's when I streamlined
everything I was like I'll makea business of this.
Um, because I was focusing nowon how can I tailor this to not
be the regular thing out there,the regular woodworking, on
posters or whatever, not reallyin that competitive mindset, but
(19:21):
in that mindset where, providesomething or come up with a
concept that is not easilyreplicated out there and then
something that I can pour mypassion into.
So between 2016 to 2019, and Irealized, hey, hobby business
(19:41):
and then 2019, 21, streamlinedto business, and then 21.
Now it's just been furtherstreamlining and knowing how
businesses run in America, whatdo I have to do?
Create an LLC?
Taxes?
How do I separate my personalincome from my business income?
So that's like the timeline.
(20:04):
And then the last aspect of itbringing family on board.
I was super hyped about it.
It took off, even as a hobby.
It took off even today.
I would like to go to someclasses, schools, but it's all
self-taught.
I haven't been to a class doinga lot of research, getting with
(20:27):
a lot of people in the localpopulace that does the same kind
of stuff, forums, all that.
Local pop lists that does thesame kind of stuff, forums, all
that.
So wanting this to be a businessand seeing how lucrative it was
, how crazy it's getting, andthe feel of having something
that no one else has.
(20:48):
A lot of people like that,regardless of whatever class,
whatever bracket you're in,earning-wise People like to have
something of good quality thatnobody else has, or hey, let me
show you this.
So I came up with a businessplan, approached my family when
(21:14):
I say my family, my sisters, mymom and a cousin of mine and I
was like, hey, this is my plan,this is where I want to be, this
is where I want to go, and thentargeting or honing in on the
skills that everyone has.
Like my mom, she's great withpurchasing, she's great with
(21:36):
bookkeeping, so I wanted her tobe that aspect of the business.
Another sister that I have mylittle sister, nikesha.
I'm creative.
She's on a different level.
She comes up with some ideas,like, and I write them down,
make notes of them, because someof it's not even out there.
So she comes up with thecreativity aspect and I wanted
to hone in on that and tweak itand show her how to use some of
(22:00):
the programs that I use to 3Dmodel and that kind of stuff.
And then I have another sister,nadine.
She is great with computerprogramming, she's great with
writing codes, building websites, that kind of stuff.
So I kind of had her tailoredto dealing with all the online
(22:22):
streaming, social media,managing, marketing that kind of
stuff.
And then my brother-in-law andthen my cousin.
They would also help withpromoting um to a certain extent
.
My brother-in-law, he would bemore hands-on and then he would
run that portion of training,bringing individuals in and
(22:43):
training internship.
So I approached them about thatUm, and between 21 to 20, the
beginning of 23, it was waiting,waiting, waiting, waiting, like
certain things I would ask himto do, like invoices and quotes,
(23:03):
and I wouldn't get a return inan appropriate time.
And one of the other things oneof my FPs, it's procrastinating
to an extent.
So when it comes to business, Itry, not as much as possible
not to procrastinate there.
So one of the things I saidit's like hey, when it comes to
(23:28):
business, I'm a different person, as when it relates to family,
your brother, your son, is adifferent person.
As when it relates to, you know, family or brother, your, your
son's a different person.
So, business, I'm going to pushyou, but, um, they, it was a
delay, they didn't get on board.
Um, there were, there werereasons after the other and
other other reasons why you know, not now, not now, not now.
(23:51):
And um, I came to realize thatin the whole grand scheme of
everything, that everyone has agift that they're given.
You might find your, the drive,the excitement, the feel of,
hey, what this gift brings toyou.
Some people wouldn't get thatand you can't force people to
(24:29):
accept it realistically becausethat's not their gift.
They weren't given that gift bywhatever God being, whatever it
is.
So it was hard for me to acceptit, although I saw a lot of
signs that, um, hey, onto thenext, like, don't, don't spend a
whole lot of time on this.
(24:49):
But the, the focus, the stressorwas why wouldn't they want to
be part of it?
We're this close, it's a veryclose family, we're still close
after that fact, but whywouldn't they want to jump on
this?
And I couldn't see that, hey,this is my gift, that's my
passion.
It's not theirs, all right.
(25:10):
So that was a struggle for me,between 21 to 20, early part of
23.
And just before I startedcoaching with you, that gave me
a little bit more insight intothat.
But just before I did, a couplemonths before, I did Hold on
pause all right.
Melissa Franklin (25:40):
So you've built a business now here in the
united states.
How did you stay resilient andkeep that dream alive?
Because you've faced a lot ofsetbacks trying to build this
journey with your family alongthe way so my end goal that's
that's how I stayed resilient.
Royston Telford (25:55):
Um, my end goal , that's how I stayed resilient.
My end goal is seeing myself ona beach somewhere close to the
water and having that businessbasically running itself and I'm
just receiving, receivingresidual income in addition to
my military retirement, andthat's the picture that I have
(26:19):
in my mind.
I have in my head.
My storyboard kind of reflectsthe same.
And there's always going to besetbacks.
I've had a lot.
There's always there's alwaysgoing to be setbacks.
I've I've had a lot, um, butfocusing on that, that end goal,
that that freedom, thatfinancial freedom, that peace of
(26:42):
mind, um, I always keep that inmind there, even like,
sometimes I'm like, oh, I don'twant to get up, and sometimes
I'm like I don't want to get up,I don't want to do this, I
don't feel like, you know, notreally forcing yourself to get
in there, but that mindset.
(27:05):
Some people say, oh yeah,there's no such thing as always
being all positive.
There's all some crazy stuffgoing on or whatever.
But I try to look at everythingnow at this point.
I try to look at what is therethat I could have or what is
there that I learned in whateverexperience.
It is good, bad and different.
Whatever.
There's something for you tolearn and that I always keep
(27:28):
coming back to hey, by the timeI get to 60, 65, I want to be
there.
I don't want to be this65-year-old person that's oh,
I'm retired from the military,but I got a GS employee job and
I'm going off after another.
No, I've worked hard up untilnow.
(27:49):
I really haven't had a vacationso as to say so.
I want to enjoy the little oflife that I have left, and
that's what I keep coming backto, that's what I keep focusing
on.
Melissa Franklin (28:00):
I like that.
You're currently a client ofStructure Innovations and you've
gone through our businesscoaching.
You know that comes withemotional talks about mindsets
and such.
Can you talk about how coachinghelped you break through
mindset and emotional barriersbut actually adjusted a
different growth path for you?
Royston Telford (28:22):
yes, absolutely go ahead and breathe, I'll take
a breath, but no it.
It was for the most part thefoundation, so to say.
I had that down because I didbusiness before.
But the realization of certainthings like hey, do you need to
(28:44):
move out of the mindset of ahobbyist?
If you want this to be abusiness, you can't be thinking,
acting, doing certain things ina certain way.
You have to be a certain typeof driven.
One of the biggest things forme going through that coaching
(29:08):
period, was the emotional tiesto the business.
Right, you have to separate notcompletely, but you have to
separate emotions from majorityaspects of the business.
Because if you want thebusiness to scale, if you want
the business to, are you goingto do a partnership?
Are you going to whatever typeof LLC you're going to
(29:30):
transition to?
Are you going to sell the wholebusiness?
You have to remove thatemotional connotation when it
comes to, like, pricing orinteracting with clients.
Or can you sell a piece tosomebody that you disliked a lot
or couldn't work with and treatthem just like a regular client
, like anyone else, without bias, you know?
(29:52):
So that was one of the big eyeopeners for me, um, especially
when it came to pricing.
Melissa Franklin (29:59):
Um, that pricing often of an awful
emotion or how this hobby Ireally want to do this project.
Royston Telford (30:08):
It's me, you know like, oh, this is easier,
that's not, like, you know.
So that was one of the biggestthings disconnecting that
emotional connotation fromletting it take over the
business.
So, as Sarah, letting it be ahurdle, letting it be a block
for you, one of the biggestthings I learned.
(30:30):
And then the concept ofrealizing hey, if you want to
scale this into a business, youhave to change, you have to look
at things differently, you haveto have different approaches.
And I see that because a lot ofindividuals that I speak with on
forums that I follow it's ahobby and it's just a high-end
(30:55):
hobby to an extent.
They're not focused on scaling,they're comfortable with oh,
I'll do this when I have somespare time For me.
I have just about eight yearsleft in the military and I want
this to be, um, a great incomefor me when I'm done, to
(31:16):
supplement my, my benefits.
So I want it to flourish and itwill flourish into that which I
want.
So that's that's why I I'veadapted to that mindset and even
sometimes there's setbacks,you're going to have these
thoughts that are going to creepin and it's like you have to
think about the thoughts thatyou're having and be conscious
(31:39):
about it.
Melissa Franklin (31:41):
You can easily slip into right back into a
hobby or lose whatever you wantto stay that business owner and
not the owner, or not the?
Not yes, you've mentionedduring coaching that maybe five
years ago that some of thesequestions would have been way
too uncomfortable.
What mindset shifts have youhad that have allowed you to now
(32:04):
open up and reflect on yourjourney in a more empowering way
?
Royston Telford (32:12):
Sharing, Sharing, I love it way, Sharing,
sharing.
And why I say sharing?
It's and you've heard itthroughout school and everything
, classes and all that like aska question because somebody else
might be thinking the samething.
I want to know, but they're tooshy or timid to ask or they're
an introvert and they don't wantto ask and then their questions
(32:36):
never answered.
So for me, what that did for mewas I am, I have been super
introverted, but going through awhole lot of stuff, I know now
that I am not majority introvertanymore.
There are certain aspectsintrovert, ambivert, extrovert
(32:58):
but sharing stuff that I've beenthrough even before we got to
this point, stuff that I've beenthrough and I've been put in
certain places, certainpositions in the military, to
care for other individuals, tomentor individuals.
So what I started doing it'smoving away from the mindset
(33:20):
that vulnerability makes youweak or vulnerability makes you
less of whatever it is.
It's actually the oppositeUsing your experiences to share
with individuals.
11 times out of 10, people openup to it when they can relate,
when they see oh, you alwayslook a bit like this, whatever
(33:43):
package, and always have a smileon your face.
You always have everythingplanned out all this?
No, I don't.
I don't, Absolutely do not.
That's the outward facade thata lot of people see and, to an
extent, we don't know what a lotof people are going through to
(34:04):
get where they're at or whatthey're even struggling with on
a daily basis.
So, for me, share what I've beenthrough, opening up acceptance,
before you move on.
It's just like forgiveness too.
You have to accept that this ishappening, acknowledge that
this is happening and not just,all right, forget it and
(34:25):
whatever, but you still have towork on that.
Sharing, wanting to put it outthere hey, I'm not the total
package, but hey, you can stillachieve stuff once you put your
mind to it.
Our minds are so powerful.
So that's what kind of changedmy mindset wanting to share,
(34:46):
wanting to let people know hey,you can do it too.
Like I haven't done exactlywhat you're dealing with, but I
can empathize to an extent, andthen I share.
This is what I dealt with, butthis is where I'm at now, Like I
lost everything.
I had to start over life.
Melissa Franklin (35:02):
That reminds me a lot of Brene Brown.
She talks a lot about likevulnerability and its power, but
basically courage means youhave to be willing to be
vulnerable and step up in a waythat a lot of people are not.
Willing to put themselves inthat arena and take the
criticism and the judgment ofother people, because that's the
(35:23):
one that really messes with usnine times out of 10.
Thinking about that, as you'reproviding mentorship to new
soldiers because that'simportant to you, what impact do
you really hope to have ontheir lives and careers?
Royston Telford (35:40):
The impact I would and I always try to have,
it's having them see or developsome form of foresight.
All right, you don't have tohave everything planned out
every step of the way.
You don't have to haveeverything planned out every
(36:03):
step of the way, regardless ofwhatever is happening now,
accept it, for what it is, butput things in places to get to
that goal that you want to getto, and that's usually what I
have in mind every time Iapproach a new soldier or I have
(36:27):
a new soldier Before 2021,.
Yes, over the last two and ahalf years, I've worked at the
specialty unit.
It's a soldier recovery unit.
It's where everyone themilitary brings everyone at each
service.
This here in San Antonio FortSam Houston, Joint Base, Fort
(36:53):
Sam Houston that's the epicenterof medicine for the entire
military that are going throughany type of whatever if they're
physically challenged,amputations, injured, any type
of immunodeficiency issues orwhatever.
This is where they come to orinitial care and then at a
(37:22):
certain point, they eithertransition or go back to the
military if they can.
But working here, that hastested that mindset for me
significantly, because you'renot just dealing with soldiers
that are not injured or hurtanymore and I had to change my
focus of how I'm mentoring them,because my mentorship basically
(37:43):
followed a path of hey Art.
Now you're in the military,what's your goal when you get
out?
I know this is what themilitary wants for you, but
what's your goal when you getout and then fix a plan to set
yourself up for that To thisunit.
Now they might not betransitioning back to the
military, they might be gettingout of the military.
(38:05):
So now it's a whole new lifefor them and they don't know
what's next.
So trying to put that intoperspective, hey, foresight,
plan ahead, have a plan, eventhough, like, oh, everything is
crazy, your world's upside down,your life has changed.
Everything is crazy, yourworld's upside down, your life
has changed.
(38:25):
It still stayed the same, butjust the focus has been a little
bit different.
Melissa Franklin (38:36):
Foresight, plan ahead, or at least put
things in place to where youwant to get.
So, thinking about that, whatadvice would you have for
soldiers or even entrepreneurswho are facing major setbacks
like losing a business orstarting over?
How can that mentorship play arole in their resilience.
Royston Telford (38:57):
At the end of the day, if you don't want it
that bad, unfortunately it's notgoing to happen.
It has to start with thatperson.
I can talk your girl off thewhole day, but at the end of it,
if you don't want it bad enough, it's not going to happen.
However, some individualsrequire assistance.
(39:19):
Right, and unfortunately it'snot a textbook answer, it's not
an algorithm.
What's going to work atwhichever point?
Uh, you just have to try andunbiasedly try with that person
and hopefully, at one pointthey're they're going to see, or
(39:39):
their light's going to turn on,or they're going to click or
whatever.
What I would say with that,although it's up to them to want
(39:59):
it like, you have to realizethat it's not going to happen
the way you want it to happen,or at least the way you expect
it to happen, but you're stillgoing to have to keep working
towards it.
Regardless of whatever happens,you're going to have to keep
working towards it.
(40:20):
I kind of don't say or look atthings as problems or issues.
I look at it as a challenge,right?
Because when we're challenged,that takes you outside of your
comfort zone, and now you're ina different arena where that's
not regular for you, that's noteasy for you Now.
(40:40):
You have to step up to whateverthis new thing is.
You that's not easy for you Now.
You have to step up to whateverthis new thing is.
And at the end of that, if youreflect, you're going to see you
have built some kind ofresilience.
You've come up with some kindof concept in art how I've never
dealt with this before but hey,I made it through.
So now you tweak that a little.
(41:02):
The term is oh, just don't makethe same mistakes over and over
again.
Pay attention to what you wentthrough, what could you take
away from it, what worked, whatdidn't work, and you tweak it.
So the next time you end up inthat kind of situation hey, I've
dealt with this before, or forme, whenever you engage with
someone and it's something thatyou've been through, you can use
(41:24):
what worked for you, for themand show them that.
But just know that if you giveup, that's not the answer.
That's not the answer.
Every situation or challenges,that's going to build something
that you didn't know that youwere capable of.
That's going to help you to getto the next level.
Melissa Franklin (41:55):
I thinking about that.
I love that we're talking aboutnext levels and next steps.
So, for individuals that arenew to this country and starting
new journeys, individuals thatare new to the military and
starting their new journeys,individuals that are new to
entrepreneurship, you'restepping on your next steps.
What are some just last bits oftips or feedback and
(42:19):
information you would give tothem as they're stepping into
new journeys that they might bescared of venturing into?
Royston Telford (42:28):
Have an open mindset.
That's the biggest thing.
Have an open mindset, bewilling to accept criticism.
A lot of us get our egos in theway.
You don't know what you don'tknow, and every situation is an
(42:49):
experience.
Be open to, especially ifyou're getting into a realm
where you have no clue what'sgoing on.
Do a little bit of research andbe careful of who you ask for
assistance and who you approach,because you are going to have a
(43:11):
lot of individuals that aregoing to have a lot to say about
what you want to do.
You don't have to tell everybodywhat you want to do, because a
lot of people always haveresponses.
They always have these brightideas and then, when you get
down to the bottom of it,they've never stepped foot in
that arena.
So how are you advising me?
(43:31):
You haven't had the experienceright.
So, as it relates to havingthat open mindset, be open to
criticism One of the things inour earlier coaching sessions
right?
It's like I still have themindset.
I've dealt with business before.
Why are you telling me this?
(43:51):
I don't have to do that, butyou have to be.
Even if it's something you'vedone before, even if you've done
it a thousand times before, youprobably could be making the
same mistakes.
Melissa Franklin (44:03):
99,000 to 99999 times that's always my
favorite asking business ownerswho know they should be doing it
, and it's like no that that'shonestly amazing advice because
a lot of people know thosepieces and we should be doing
them same thing.
But it's just that kind ofreminder and thinking about it.
(44:25):
So I'm excited about what'snext for you and such military
career wise, business wise, allof it.
Um, can you share promos ordifferent things that you have
going on, because I'm excitedabout your charcuterie board and
if there's other ways that Ican get added into the raffle,
let me know, can you?
Royston Telford (44:43):
share with the audience what?
Melissa Franklin (44:45):
you have going on right now with your business
.
Royston Telford (44:48):
So sneak peek and insight.
I am currently running apromotion for a custom
charcuterie board and it's here.
It's for having me.
I didn't wait, look at that,it's nice.
Yeah, this is the charcuterieboard that I'm currently working
(45:08):
on.
Melissa Franklin (45:08):
You need to send me pictures so I can share
them in the show notes.
I love it.
Royston Telford (45:13):
Solid cherry.
It's just about two inchesthick.
Melissa Franklin (45:19):
It is heavy, Don't throw it at anybody.
I'm going to send you theaddress so you can share it with
us so I can put it in the shownotes If it gets lost.
I'm sorry to send you theaddress so you can share it with
us so I can put it in the notesIf it gets lost, I'm sorry it
happened it is.
Royston Telford (45:30):
That's a current promotion I'm working on
.
The drawing is going to be Ithink it's the 1st of December.
It ends on the 29th of November.
Okay, and then.
Melissa Franklin (45:42):
How do people get put into the drawing?
Royston Telford (45:45):
So how they get into the drawing, I do have it
running in all my social mediasTikTok, instagram, facebook,
linkedin, everything.
But how you get into thedrawing if you're already
following me, that's already oneeasy step, because you have to
follow.
If you're already following,you can get in there.
So follow, like the post andyou have to share the post and
(46:06):
then you have to tag two friends.
So you know, I need moreexposure too.
Melissa Franklin (46:13):
I love it.
I'm already following you, soif I like it, you're telling me
I have to share it and tag twopeople.
Yes, so when they share it, doI tag the people in the comments
, or how do you tag?
Royston Telford (46:25):
So you can tag them in the comments.
You can just as a comment.
You just mentioned whoever'sname or whatever.
Usually it's just the at signand whatever their handle is,
their social media handle is andyou can tag them on any, any
one of the platforms.
I do have a third party setupthat, with that specific promo
(46:47):
that's going on, it pulls anynew data.
It pulls from it, no matterwhatever platform I have, and it
consolidates it into an Excelspreadsheet so you can tag me on
.
You can tag friends in onTikTok, instagram, linkedin,
facebook, anything.
(47:07):
You're going to find them andit's going to pop up there.
So if somebody says, oh, youdidn't put me on your wheel,
because at the end, I'm alsousing that's what I was just
going to ask.
Melissa Franklin (47:19):
So how will they know if they won, or how
are you going to share it?
Royston Telford (47:22):
So I'm going to do for the drawing, I'm going
to do it live, okay, and I'malso using another third party
app which pulls all of thatinformation from the Excel
spreadsheet Because, also withyou, you can get a second entry,
an automatic second entry, bysharing the post.
(47:42):
Okay, that gives you twoentries.
So this third party is going topull all those entries on
Populated Wheel and that wheel.
I'll use it and that's how I'mgoing to select the winners and
I'm not going to say now, butI'm going to say on the live
there's some more gifts that I'mgoing to throw in there.
Melissa Franklin (48:05):
It's cool.
Just say my name.
Say it as many people as youcan.
Perfectly fine Christmas gifts.
Well, I appreciate you forsharing your story and your
vulnerability, because I knowgoing through our programs is
already painful enough onlybecause we make you do the
emotional work and thinkingabout that.
Thank you for sharing yourjourney and being vulnerable,
(48:25):
because that's not always easyfor people.
I appreciated the inspiringconversation about starting new
journeys and visiting new spacesand I know all of our listeners
will take a lot away from it aswe end up closing up this
episode of Structuring ChaoticMinds.
I have enjoyed having our gueston today and I invite all of
(48:47):
you to go ahead and subscribeand leave a review for us.
If you have any questions, feelfree to leave them in the show
notes.
Go ahead and leave us a review,and go ahead and follow us on
any of your favorite podcastingplatforms.
Stay resilient, stay focused andwe'll see you next time.
Thank you so much for joiningme for today's episode.
To catch up on the rest of theseason, visit
(49:07):
structureandchaoticmindscom ortake a quick browse on your
current app to see whichepisodes resonate with you.
If you struggle with your ownmental wellness or even just
balancing life.
We have a team of individualsat our site who can help.
You can visitstructureinnovationscom and find
a coach or mentor fit for you.
Thank you for joining me onceagain, melissa Franklin, on this
(49:29):
episode of Structuring ChaoticMinds.
Stay structured and smiling.
Welcome back to Structuring Chaotic Minds,
where we dive into resilience,overcoming adversity and the
strategies we use to thrive.
Today, we have a very specialguest joining us.
He's not only a client ofStructure Innovations, but he's
also someone who has anincredible story of perseverance
, growth and mindset shifts.
He's built a thriving businessin his home country, he served
(00:22):
in the military and heeventually migrated to the
United States.
He had to leave it all behindand start all over when he got
here.
Not only did he have to rebuildhis life and his career, but
today he's providing mentorshipfor new recruits in the United
States Army, guiding others ontheir own journeys towards
success.
We're diving deep into how he'sused his own personal
(00:44):
experience, mindsetbreakthroughs and coaching with
Structure Innovations to reachnew heights, both in business
and in life.
So let's jump in, all right.
So let's jump in, Royston.
Welcome to Structuring ChaoticMinds.
Thank you for having me To kickthings off.
(01:06):
Let's take it back to thebeginning.
You had a business back home inyour home country before you
came to the United States.
Royston Telford (01:22):
Can you tell us about that time and what life
looked like before you came?
So the businesses that I hadback home it was a mix between a
business between myself, my dad, which was a transportation
business.
That was one aspect and theother aspect.
I worked for a radio televisionstation for the government.
So my side hustler, part-time.
So my side hustle, or part-timeif you may, would have been
(01:49):
doing a lot of promo for two ofmy sisters that were into
designing clothing.
So the combination of those twothat's what I did, in addition
to my regular nine-to-five.
That would bring that extraincome and for the most part my
dad managed the transportationbusiness, since he was also a
driver.
(02:09):
He would manage the otherdrivers, the other modes of
transport, maintenance, all thatstuff and for the most part
I'll be in the background.
And then, as it relates to thepromotional business for my
sisters, it would be running ads, events that they would be
(02:32):
attending, that kind of stuff,doing promo in that aspect.
Melissa Franklin (02:37):
What did you have to leave behind, though,
when you moved here?
Everything.
Royston Telford (02:43):
Everything Other than the materials,
everything.
The biggest one for me was allof my schooling, all of my
educational prevention, becausea lot of it did not transfer to
the US and apparently it waswhen I graduated it was just
(03:05):
about two years after then thatsome guidelines were put in
place for third world countriesto either transfer their
credentials either partially andtest out or the entire,
whatever certifications you have.
So that was the mostsignificant thing that I
(03:29):
struggled with a little at first, because we were told we were
going to come to America.
Since I was 11 years old.
And I had given up with thatdream and decided to build a
life in South America, in theCaribbean, and it was well.
It was a very good life.
(03:49):
I got the call when I was 28.
I was in Trinidad when my momcalled and said hey, the embassy
reached out, so it's time to goin.
It's time to go to America but,yeah, basically left the entire
life, business, everything Iworked for community.
(04:11):
For the most part, friends andacquaintances were kept in touch
.
Yeah, yeah, that life was achapter that came to a close.
Melissa Franklin (04:21):
Oh, and now, with everything going on, I can
only imagine the new emotionalimpact of coming back and forth
on everything and the long wait.
What was that emotional impactor practical impact in general,
of having to shut down yourbusiness and then start all over
(04:43):
, education-wise, business-wiseeverything as you got here in
the United States?
Of having to shut down yourbusiness and then start all over
education wise, business wise,everything?
Royston Telford (04:52):
as you got here in the United States, and how
did that affect both you andyour family?
So I knew I was.
I was very mature by the timewe migrated and you know,
because of things that lifethrew at us, my parents got
divorced, so I had to step up.
I'm the eldest of five two boys, two girls so basically I had
to step up and be that rolemodel for everyone.
(05:14):
Now, as it relates to when wemigrated initially, it was
myself, my two sisters and mymom that came.
So I was to some extent alittle bit matured and I already
(05:35):
had a game plan in that I don'twant to go into student debt, I
don't want to be working three,four, five jobs to bear myself
and you know the typicalstereotypical hey credit,
student loans and you're buriedin that by the time you're
finished you're just working therest of your life off to pay
that off.
You're not really having a life.
So the first struggle was and Iknew that before I came because
(05:56):
I traveled a lot before I workedfor the government back home,
traveled a lot in the Caribbean,went to different countries,
asia, china, a couple differentplaces, london so I knew that my
credential would not have worthanything here and I would have
to start over.
So the whole goal was as soonas everything is good or solid
(06:21):
with my sisters and my mom allfemales in a new country, a new
continent, as soon as they'reable to handle their own work,
have some type of income ontheir own, I was going to join
the military.
That was no doubt Because Ilooked at that package and it
offered a few things that wasgoing to get me not like crazy
(06:47):
rich, but from where I was towhere I want to go.
That was going to be asignificant milestone as it
related but getting mycitizenship early, benefiting
from funding to go to school themilitary offers $4,000 a year
(07:10):
to go to school Health benefits,the training that you get while
you're on the job.
So, whatever certifications youearn, whatever experience you
earn in comparison to someonegoing to college and then
graduating from college andtrying to get a job.
So, whatever certifications youearn, whatever experience you
earn in comparison to someonegoing to college and then
graduating from college andtrying to get a job now they
have to gain that experience.
(07:31):
Well, the difference is in themilitary if you are smart enough
and you're aligned with for meI'm a 68 whiskey what is
considered either a combat medicor a healthcare specialist,
depending on where you're at.
If we're deployed, it's acombat medic.
If you're here back stateside,it's a healthcare specialist.
(07:53):
You get that experience.
So at the end, whenever youdecide to get out, if you're
smart enough and you do thatsimultaneously, you already have
that experience.
So you're ahead of.
You know, for the most part,most of the populace here.
(08:15):
So that was my goal.
For all those things that areoffered, I have my own thoughts
and culture background.
As it relates to, you know, warand military and that kind of
stuff Weigh out the pros andcons.
That was the better overallpackage that I saw elevate
myself pretty quickly to getback into business, to get back
(08:38):
where I want to get to beeducated in this system, to be
considered educated, be educatedin this system, to be
considered educated, and learneda couple of things along the
way and utilized a lot of, Iwould say, free chicken that the
military offers metaphoricallyto get back into business.
(09:02):
I honestly did not know whatkind of business I would have
been in.
I had no clue, none, zero.
Melissa Franklin (09:09):
But what I knew?
Royston Telford (09:10):
is that it's a great tool for me to get back
into business, for me to getback at least somewhere at the
beginning of where I was backhome.
To give you a snapshot timelineafter I finished high school I
relaxed for a bit back home andthen I did technical institute
for a couple of years and righton the tail end of that 1920,
(09:36):
that's when I started workingfor the government by the time I
hit 28, I was already clawed inknees deep into that's going to
be my career for everything.
So, coming here and now havingto start over, I had no clue
(09:56):
what business I was going to getinto.
Melissa Franklin (09:59):
Makes sense.
I was literally going to askhow did you cope with your loss,
but I mean it was building abusiness.
So, thinking about that, youbuild a new business here and
you eventually figured out whatyou were going to do.
How did you stay resilient andkeep that dream alive and can
you explain like the setbacksyou faced along the way?
Royston Telford (10:22):
so, um, easy, um, being resilient.
I would say the militaryteaches you a lot about being
resilient.
There's a lot of classes, a lotof stuff, but I would say
honestly, life made me resilient.
Um, I've had, um, it was a timewhere I I was, I had a whole
(10:44):
plan to kill myself.
Um, because life was that hard.
Um, the home I grew up in, um, Iembrace it now, now that I know
different, but the home I grewup in, my dad was the only thing
he wasn't to us, was sexuallyabusive and um, growing up, I I
(11:05):
don't use that word anymore, butfor, for this, this reason, I
hated him.
Um, with everything that that Ibelieved in, I hated him and um
, that led me to a point where Iwanted to kill him first and
then kill myself.
That was the answer.
Kill him first and then killmyself, that was the answer.
(11:28):
Um, for whatever reason.
At that point, that very pointwhere I was going to execute, um
, something just just told menot to.
I guess that was God.
Um, but I didn't.
And, uh, I don't know what itwas.
But since then, the thoughtthat came to me was at that
point, the little that I builton was it's not that bad and at
(11:52):
least you didn't die.
So that's where my resiliencystarted, from that point, and I
wish I'd really embodied thatthought at a younger age but I
might have been super reckless.
But it's like what's the worstcan happen Either you go to jail
(12:14):
or you die.
Now, if you think about theconsequences of your actions,
the better your decision-makingprocess is going to be.
That means you don't lament onit too much to hold yourself
back and take an action.
But you have your plan A andyour course of actions, outcomes
probably two or three otherplans.
(12:35):
So if that doesn't work, youjust fall by, fall back.
My mindset now has gotten tothere's no plan B, there's no
plan C.
This is the plan and this willhappen at whatever cost.
Life is going to happen.
It's going to ebb and flow.
So resiliency building,resiliency started at that point
.
(12:56):
Coming through the military, Ilearned, picked up a little more
tricks, a little more methodsof how you deal with resiliency,
especially when it comes tobehavioral health or mental
health, because in my countrythat wasn't a thing At that
(13:16):
point.
It wasn't a thing.
So there was no foster caresystem.
You had no counseling to go to.
You had to figure it out onyour own.
My go-to was video games,basketball, swimming sports for
the most part because that'swhat both of my parents were
athletes and that was my copingmechanism Transitioning here,
(13:42):
not knowing where or whatbusiness I would have gotten
back into.
I know I was going to at somepoint in time and I was just
laying the groundwork all thetime for it.
And in 2016, I think it wasjust about July of 2016,.
Through stress, a relationshipthat I was in, through stress, a
(14:05):
relationship that I was in, Idiscovered woodworking.
After looking for, I wasstationed at Fort Drum, upstate
New York.
Well, they don't considerupstate as New York.
Upstate New York.
Fort Drum, one of the not soecstatic places that you would
(14:26):
want to go to in the military.
It's number one, two or threeup there.
But I volunteered to go therebecause it was closer to family
for me, six hours away, and wewere close-knit.
So I decided I'm going to go toFort Drum and man, oh man, the
(14:52):
first three to four months itwas a struggle because it wasn't
what I was accustomed to and itwas a lot of training yeah,
what you would expect from themilitary.
So you're in the field a lot,almost nine, ten months
collectively out of the year.
And then what happened to me?
Because, coming up in life,that resiliency, that wanting to
be better, um, disliking my dadto that extent, I wanted to be
(15:15):
better than him in every singleaspect possible and just prove
him wrong.
Um, because what I know now I Ididn't know then and I
understand to some extent.
It's like he brought us up, theway that he was brought up or
what he saw, what he knew wasnormal, what he knew.
But you also have that.
(15:39):
You know deep down inside.
You know when something's wrong.
So you have that power ofchoice.
And now I know that, not now,but as I did my meditation and
mature and everything.
That's what I found out.
But because of my mindset ofbeing better than him in every
(16:00):
aspect, proving him wrong, I canbe way better than you are in
every single aspect.
I got caught in that loop ofwanting to be better, striving
like what's next, what's next,what's next?
So with my work ethic that'ssomething that a lot of
individuals see whenever I startworking for them I'm the go-to
(16:21):
person to get something resolvedintuition, thinking outside the
box, improvising and making ithappen.
In the military, good work getsrewarded with more work.
So at Fort Drum I was usuallythe go-to for the medical aid
station supplies, orderingsupplies, basically making stuff
(16:44):
happen, and it burnt me out alot.
So for the first three months Ihad something to prove as a new
person coming to this unit.
And then when they saw that, oh, I'm now the go-to person
because I'm at that rank whereI'm now getting to it's E5
sergeant, I'm now getting to asergeant rank but I'm already
(17:06):
functioning at two levels aboveand every time another unit's
going somewhere or whatever, I'mthe person.
Hey, can you go, can you help,can you whatever?
So that nine, 10 months turnedinto like 13, 14 months in the
field at one time.
But I did find time to go downto New York spend time with
(17:27):
family there.
It's about six hours traveltime.
And then I had family in Canada, still have family in Canada
right near to the border.
So that was like 30, 20 minutesand I would always be over
there whenever we had that time.
So, building that bond,reconnecting with family,
connecting with the family Imigrated with, we were super,
(17:48):
always close, we're still close,and with finding that, that
woodworking um gift I would saythat I had in 2016.
I wanted to bring them intothat fold after I was like, all
right, this is something I saw.
Oh, I'm good at my first thing,that fold.
After I was like, alright, thisis something I saw, I'm good at
my first thing that I built.
It was a sound system, a hometheater system, and when that
(18:11):
was done, I was like, no way, Ijust made that.
So that gave me that confidencethat, hey, this is something
I'm good at.
So I just kept doing it, justmaking little gifts here and
there, memorabilia for family,and then I was like not really
thinking business wise at thatpoint, but it was something that
(18:35):
allowed me to relax, to losemyself, to do this and I'm not
thinking about anything else,literally not.
So I lost myself in that.
And between 2016 to 2019, 2018,the end of 2018, 2019, that's
when I was like, hey, I can makesome money with this thing.
(18:56):
So I turned it into a hobby.
And, um, a couple years later21, 22 it's when I streamlined
everything I was like I'll makea business of this.
Um, because I was focusing nowon how can I tailor this to not
be the regular thing out there,the regular woodworking, on
posters or whatever, not reallyin that competitive mindset, but
(19:21):
in that mindset where, providesomething or come up with a
concept that is not easilyreplicated out there and then
something that I can pour mypassion into.
So between 2016 to 2019, and Irealized, hey, hobby business
(19:41):
and then 2019, 21, streamlinedto business, and then 21.
Now it's just been furtherstreamlining and knowing how
businesses run in America, whatdo I have to do?
Create an LLC?
Taxes?
How do I separate my personalincome from my business income?
So that's like the timeline.
(20:04):
And then the last aspect of itbringing family on board.
I was super hyped about it.
It took off, even as a hobby.
It took off even today.
I would like to go to someclasses, schools, but it's all
self-taught.
I haven't been to a class doinga lot of research, getting with
(20:27):
a lot of people in the localpopulace that does the same kind
of stuff, forums, all that.
Local pop lists that does thesame kind of stuff, forums, all
that.
So wanting this to be a businessand seeing how lucrative it was
, how crazy it's getting, andthe feel of having something
that no one else has.
(20:48):
A lot of people like that,regardless of whatever class,
whatever bracket you're in,earning-wise People like to have
something of good quality thatnobody else has, or hey, let me
show you this.
So I came up with a businessplan, approached my family when
(21:14):
I say my family, my sisters, mymom and a cousin of mine and I
was like, hey, this is my plan,this is where I want to be, this
is where I want to go, and thentargeting or honing in on the
skills that everyone has.
Like my mom, she's great withpurchasing, she's great with
(21:36):
bookkeeping, so I wanted her tobe that aspect of the business.
Another sister that I have mylittle sister, nikesha.
I'm creative.
She's on a different level.
She comes up with some ideas,like, and I write them down,
make notes of them, because someof it's not even out there.
So she comes up with thecreativity aspect and I wanted
to hone in on that and tweak itand show her how to use some of
(22:00):
the programs that I use to 3Dmodel and that kind of stuff.
And then I have another sister,nadine.
She is great with computerprogramming, she's great with
writing codes, building websites, that kind of stuff.
So I kind of had her tailoredto dealing with all the online
(22:22):
streaming, social media,managing, marketing that kind of
stuff.
And then my brother-in-law andthen my cousin.
They would also help withpromoting um to a certain extent
.
My brother-in-law, he would bemore hands-on and then he would
run that portion of training,bringing individuals in and
(22:43):
training internship.
So I approached them about thatUm, and between 21 to 20, the
beginning of 23, it was waiting,waiting, waiting, waiting, like
certain things I would ask himto do, like invoices and quotes,
(23:03):
and I wouldn't get a return inan appropriate time.
And one of the other things oneof my FPs, it's procrastinating
to an extent.
So when it comes to business, Itry, not as much as possible
not to procrastinate there.
So one of the things I saidit's like hey, when it comes to
(23:28):
business, I'm a different person, as when it relates to family,
your brother, your son, is adifferent person.
As when it relates to, you know, family or brother, your, your
son's a different person.
So, business, I'm going to pushyou, but, um, they, it was a
delay, they didn't get on board.
Um, there were, there werereasons after the other and
other other reasons why you know, not now, not now, not now.
(23:51):
And um, I came to realize thatin the whole grand scheme of
everything, that everyone has agift that they're given.
You might find your, the drive,the excitement, the feel of,
hey, what this gift brings toyou.
Some people wouldn't get thatand you can't force people to
(24:29):
accept it realistically becausethat's not their gift.
They weren't given that gift bywhatever God being, whatever it
is.
So it was hard for me to acceptit, although I saw a lot of
signs that, um, hey, onto thenext, like, don't, don't spend a
whole lot of time on this.
(24:49):
But the, the focus, the stressorwas why wouldn't they want to
be part of it?
We're this close, it's a veryclose family, we're still close
after that fact, but whywouldn't they want to jump on
this?
And I couldn't see that, hey,this is my gift, that's my
passion.
It's not theirs, all right.
(25:10):
So that was a struggle for me,between 21 to 20, early part of
23.
And just before I startedcoaching with you, that gave me
a little bit more insight intothat.
But just before I did, a couplemonths before, I did Hold on
pause all right.
Melissa Franklin (25:40):
So you've built a business now here in the
united states.
How did you stay resilient andkeep that dream alive?
Because you've faced a lot ofsetbacks trying to build this
journey with your family alongthe way so my end goal that's
that's how I stayed resilient.
Royston Telford (25:55):
Um, my end goal , that's how I stayed resilient.
My end goal is seeing myself ona beach somewhere close to the
water and having that businessbasically running itself and I'm
just receiving, receivingresidual income in addition to
my military retirement, andthat's the picture that I have
(26:19):
in my mind.
I have in my head.
My storyboard kind of reflectsthe same.
And there's always going to besetbacks.
I've had a lot.
There's always there's alwaysgoing to be setbacks.
I've I've had a lot, um, butfocusing on that, that end goal,
that that freedom, thatfinancial freedom, that peace of
(26:42):
mind, um, I always keep that inmind there, even like,
sometimes I'm like, oh, I don'twant to get up, and sometimes
I'm like I don't want to get up,I don't want to do this, I
don't feel like, you know, notreally forcing yourself to get
in there, but that mindset.
(27:05):
Some people say, oh yeah,there's no such thing as always
being all positive.
There's all some crazy stuffgoing on or whatever.
But I try to look at everythingnow at this point.
I try to look at what is therethat I could have or what is
there that I learned in whateverexperience.
It is good, bad and different.
Whatever.
There's something for you tolearn and that I always keep
(27:28):
coming back to hey, by the timeI get to 60, 65, I want to be
there.
I don't want to be this65-year-old person that's oh,
I'm retired from the military,but I got a GS employee job and
I'm going off after another.
No, I've worked hard up untilnow.
(27:49):
I really haven't had a vacationso as to say so.
I want to enjoy the little oflife that I have left, and
that's what I keep coming backto, that's what I keep focusing
on.
Melissa Franklin (28:00):
I like that.
You're currently a client ofStructure Innovations and you've
gone through our businesscoaching.
You know that comes withemotional talks about mindsets
and such.
Can you talk about how coachinghelped you break through
mindset and emotional barriersbut actually adjusted a
different growth path for you?
Royston Telford (28:22):
yes, absolutely go ahead and breathe, I'll take
a breath, but no it.
It was for the most part thefoundation, so to say.
I had that down because I didbusiness before.
But the realization of certainthings like hey, do you need to
(28:44):
move out of the mindset of ahobbyist?
If you want this to be abusiness, you can't be thinking,
acting, doing certain things ina certain way.
You have to be a certain typeof driven.
One of the biggest things forme going through that coaching
(29:08):
period, was the emotional tiesto the business.
Right, you have to separate notcompletely, but you have to
separate emotions from majorityaspects of the business.
Because if you want thebusiness to scale, if you want
the business to, are you goingto do a partnership?
Are you going to whatever typeof LLC you're going to
(29:30):
transition to?
Are you going to sell the wholebusiness?
You have to remove thatemotional connotation when it
comes to, like, pricing orinteracting with clients.
Or can you sell a piece tosomebody that you disliked a lot
or couldn't work with and treatthem just like a regular client
, like anyone else, without bias, you know?
(29:52):
So that was one of the big eyeopeners for me, um, especially
when it came to pricing.
Melissa Franklin (29:59):
Um, that pricing often of an awful
emotion or how this hobby Ireally want to do this project.
Royston Telford (30:08):
It's me, you know like, oh, this is easier,
that's not, like, you know.
So that was one of the biggestthings disconnecting that
emotional connotation fromletting it take over the
business.
So, as Sarah, letting it be ahurdle, letting it be a block
for you, one of the biggestthings I learned.
(30:30):
And then the concept ofrealizing hey, if you want to
scale this into a business, youhave to change, you have to look
at things differently, you haveto have different approaches.
And I see that because a lot ofindividuals that I speak with on
forums that I follow it's ahobby and it's just a high-end
(30:55):
hobby to an extent.
They're not focused on scaling,they're comfortable with oh,
I'll do this when I have somespare time For me.
I have just about eight yearsleft in the military and I want
this to be, um, a great incomefor me when I'm done, to
(31:16):
supplement my, my benefits.
So I want it to flourish and itwill flourish into that which I
want.
So that's that's why I I'veadapted to that mindset and even
sometimes there's setbacks,you're going to have these
thoughts that are going to creepin and it's like you have to
think about the thoughts thatyou're having and be conscious
(31:39):
about it.
Melissa Franklin (31:41):
You can easily slip into right back into a
hobby or lose whatever you wantto stay that business owner and
not the owner, or not the?
Not yes, you've mentionedduring coaching that maybe five
years ago that some of thesequestions would have been way
too uncomfortable.
What mindset shifts have youhad that have allowed you to now
(32:04):
open up and reflect on yourjourney in a more empowering way
?
Royston Telford (32:12):
Sharing, Sharing, I love it way, Sharing,
sharing.
And why I say sharing?
It's and you've heard itthroughout school and everything
, classes and all that like aska question because somebody else
might be thinking the samething.
I want to know, but they're tooshy or timid to ask or they're
an introvert and they don't wantto ask and then their questions
(32:36):
never answered.
So for me, what that did for mewas I am, I have been super
introverted, but going through awhole lot of stuff, I know now
that I am not majority introvertanymore.
There are certain aspectsintrovert, ambivert, extrovert
(32:58):
but sharing stuff that I've beenthrough even before we got to
this point, stuff that I've beenthrough and I've been put in
certain places, certainpositions in the military, to
care for other individuals, tomentor individuals.
So what I started doing it'smoving away from the mindset
(33:20):
that vulnerability makes youweak or vulnerability makes you
less of whatever it is.
It's actually the oppositeUsing your experiences to share
with individuals.
11 times out of 10, people openup to it when they can relate,
when they see oh, you alwayslook a bit like this, whatever
(33:43):
package, and always have a smileon your face.
You always have everythingplanned out all this?
No, I don't.
I don't, Absolutely do not.
That's the outward facade thata lot of people see and, to an
extent, we don't know what a lotof people are going through to
(34:04):
get where they're at or whatthey're even struggling with on
a daily basis.
So, for me, share what I've beenthrough, opening up acceptance,
before you move on.
It's just like forgiveness too.
You have to accept that this ishappening, acknowledge that
this is happening and not just,all right, forget it and
(34:25):
whatever, but you still have towork on that.
Sharing, wanting to put it outthere hey, I'm not the total
package, but hey, you can stillachieve stuff once you put your
mind to it.
Our minds are so powerful.
So that's what kind of changedmy mindset wanting to share,
(34:46):
wanting to let people know hey,you can do it too.
Like I haven't done exactlywhat you're dealing with, but I
can empathize to an extent, andthen I share.
This is what I dealt with, butthis is where I'm at now, Like I
lost everything.
I had to start over life.
Melissa Franklin (35:02):
That reminds me a lot of Brene Brown.
She talks a lot about likevulnerability and its power, but
basically courage means youhave to be willing to be
vulnerable and step up in a waythat a lot of people are not.
Willing to put themselves inthat arena and take the
criticism and the judgment ofother people, because that's the
(35:23):
one that really messes with usnine times out of 10.
Thinking about that, as you'reproviding mentorship to new
soldiers because that'simportant to you, what impact do
you really hope to have ontheir lives and careers?
Royston Telford (35:40):
The impact I would and I always try to have,
it's having them see or developsome form of foresight.
All right, you don't have tohave everything planned out
every step of the way.
You don't have to haveeverything planned out every
(36:03):
step of the way, regardless ofwhatever is happening now,
accept it, for what it is, butput things in places to get to
that goal that you want to getto, and that's usually what I
have in mind every time Iapproach a new soldier or I have
(36:27):
a new soldier Before 2021,.
Yes, over the last two and ahalf years, I've worked at the
specialty unit.
It's a soldier recovery unit.
It's where everyone themilitary brings everyone at each
service.
This here in San Antonio FortSam Houston, Joint Base, Fort
(36:53):
Sam Houston that's the epicenterof medicine for the entire
military that are going throughany type of whatever if they're
physically challenged,amputations, injured, any type
of immunodeficiency issues orwhatever.
This is where they come to orinitial care and then at a
(37:22):
certain point, they eithertransition or go back to the
military if they can.
But working here, that hastested that mindset for me
significantly, because you'renot just dealing with soldiers
that are not injured or hurtanymore and I had to change my
focus of how I'm mentoring them,because my mentorship basically
(37:43):
followed a path of hey Art.
Now you're in the military,what's your goal when you get
out?
I know this is what themilitary wants for you, but
what's your goal when you getout and then fix a plan to set
yourself up for that To thisunit.
Now they might not betransitioning back to the
military, they might be gettingout of the military.
(38:05):
So now it's a whole new lifefor them and they don't know
what's next.
So trying to put that intoperspective, hey, foresight,
plan ahead, have a plan, eventhough, like, oh, everything is
crazy, your world's upside down,your life has changed.
Everything is crazy, yourworld's upside down, your life
has changed.
(38:25):
It still stayed the same, butjust the focus has been a little
bit different.
Melissa Franklin (38:36):
Foresight, plan ahead, or at least put
things in place to where youwant to get.
So, thinking about that, whatadvice would you have for
soldiers or even entrepreneurswho are facing major setbacks
like losing a business orstarting over?
How can that mentorship play arole in their resilience.
Royston Telford (38:57):
At the end of the day, if you don't want it
that bad, unfortunately it's notgoing to happen.
It has to start with thatperson.
I can talk your girl off thewhole day, but at the end of it,
if you don't want it bad enough, it's not going to happen.
However, some individualsrequire assistance.
(39:19):
Right, and unfortunately it'snot a textbook answer, it's not
an algorithm.
What's going to work atwhichever point?
Uh, you just have to try andunbiasedly try with that person
and hopefully, at one pointthey're they're going to see, or
(39:39):
their light's going to turn on,or they're going to click or
whatever.
What I would say with that,although it's up to them to want
(39:59):
it like, you have to realizethat it's not going to happen
the way you want it to happen,or at least the way you expect
it to happen, but you're stillgoing to have to keep working
towards it.
Regardless of whatever happens,you're going to have to keep
working towards it.
(40:20):
I kind of don't say or look atthings as problems or issues.
I look at it as a challenge,right?
Because when we're challenged,that takes you outside of your
comfort zone, and now you're ina different arena where that's
not regular for you, that's noteasy for you Now.
(40:40):
You have to step up to whateverthis new thing is.
You that's not easy for you Now.
You have to step up to whateverthis new thing is.
And at the end of that, if youreflect, you're going to see you
have built some kind ofresilience.
You've come up with some kindof concept in art how I've never
dealt with this before but hey,I made it through.
So now you tweak that a little.
(41:02):
The term is oh, just don't makethe same mistakes over and over
again.
Pay attention to what you wentthrough, what could you take
away from it, what worked, whatdidn't work, and you tweak it.
So the next time you end up inthat kind of situation hey, I've
dealt with this before, or forme, whenever you engage with
someone and it's something thatyou've been through, you can use
(41:24):
what worked for you, for themand show them that.
But just know that if you giveup, that's not the answer.
That's not the answer.
Every situation or challenges,that's going to build something
that you didn't know that youwere capable of.
That's going to help you to getto the next level.
Melissa Franklin (41:55):
I thinking about that.
I love that we're talking aboutnext levels and next steps.
So, for individuals that arenew to this country and starting
new journeys, individuals thatare new to the military and
starting their new journeys,individuals that are new to
entrepreneurship, you'restepping on your next steps.
What are some just last bits oftips or feedback and
(42:19):
information you would give tothem as they're stepping into
new journeys that they might bescared of venturing into?
Royston Telford (42:28):
Have an open mindset.
That's the biggest thing.
Have an open mindset, bewilling to accept criticism.
A lot of us get our egos in theway.
You don't know what you don'tknow, and every situation is an
(42:49):
experience.
Be open to, especially ifyou're getting into a realm
where you have no clue what'sgoing on.
Do a little bit of research andbe careful of who you ask for
assistance and who you approach,because you are going to have a
(43:11):
lot of individuals that aregoing to have a lot to say about
what you want to do.
You don't have to tell everybodywhat you want to do, because a
lot of people always haveresponses.
They always have these brightideas and then, when you get
down to the bottom of it,they've never stepped foot in
that arena.
So how are you advising me?
(43:31):
You haven't had the experienceright.
So, as it relates to havingthat open mindset, be open to
criticism One of the things inour earlier coaching sessions
right?
It's like I still have themindset.
I've dealt with business before.
Why are you telling me this?
(43:51):
I don't have to do that, butyou have to be.
Even if it's something you'vedone before, even if you've done
it a thousand times before, youprobably could be making the
same mistakes.
Melissa Franklin (44:03):
99,000 to 99999 times that's always my
favorite asking business ownerswho know they should be doing it
, and it's like no that that'shonestly amazing advice because
a lot of people know thosepieces and we should be doing
them same thing.
But it's just that kind ofreminder and thinking about it.
(44:25):
So I'm excited about what'snext for you and such military
career wise, business wise, allof it.
Um, can you share promos ordifferent things that you have
going on, because I'm excitedabout your charcuterie board and
if there's other ways that Ican get added into the raffle,
let me know, can you?
Royston Telford (44:43):
share with the audience what?
Melissa Franklin (44:45):
you have going on right now with your business
.
Royston Telford (44:48):
So sneak peek and insight.
I am currently running apromotion for a custom
charcuterie board and it's here.
It's for having me.
I didn't wait, look at that,it's nice.
Yeah, this is the charcuterieboard that I'm currently working
(45:08):
on.
Melissa Franklin (45:08):
You need to send me pictures so I can share
them in the show notes.
I love it.
Royston Telford (45:13):
Solid cherry.
It's just about two inchesthick.
Melissa Franklin (45:19):
It is heavy, Don't throw it at anybody.
I'm going to send you theaddress so you can share it with
us so I can put it in the shownotes If it gets lost.
I'm sorry to send you theaddress so you can share it with
us so I can put it in the notesIf it gets lost, I'm sorry it
happened it is.
Royston Telford (45:30):
That's a current promotion I'm working on
.
The drawing is going to be Ithink it's the 1st of December.
It ends on the 29th of November.
Okay, and then.
Melissa Franklin (45:42):
How do people get put into the drawing?
Royston Telford (45:45):
So how they get into the drawing, I do have it
running in all my social mediasTikTok, instagram, facebook,
linkedin, everything.
But how you get into thedrawing if you're already
following me, that's already oneeasy step, because you have to
follow.
If you're already following,you can get in there.
So follow, like the post andyou have to share the post and
(46:06):
then you have to tag two friends.
So you know, I need moreexposure too.
Melissa Franklin (46:13):
I love it.
I'm already following you, soif I like it, you're telling me
I have to share it and tag twopeople.
Yes, so when they share it, doI tag the people in the comments
, or how do you tag?
Royston Telford (46:25):
So you can tag them in the comments.
You can just as a comment.
You just mentioned whoever'sname or whatever.
Usually it's just the at signand whatever their handle is,
their social media handle is andyou can tag them on any, any
one of the platforms.
I do have a third party setupthat, with that specific promo
(46:47):
that's going on, it pulls anynew data.
It pulls from it, no matterwhatever platform I have, and it
consolidates it into an Excelspreadsheet so you can tag me on
.
You can tag friends in onTikTok, instagram, linkedin,
facebook, anything.
(47:07):
You're going to find them andit's going to pop up there.
So if somebody says, oh, youdidn't put me on your wheel,
because at the end, I'm alsousing that's what I was just
going to ask.
Melissa Franklin (47:19):
So how will they know if they won, or how
are you going to share it?
Royston Telford (47:22):
So I'm going to do for the drawing, I'm going
to do it live, okay, and I'malso using another third party
app which pulls all of thatinformation from the Excel
spreadsheet Because, also withyou, you can get a second entry,
an automatic second entry, bysharing the post.
(47:42):
Okay, that gives you twoentries.
So this third party is going topull all those entries on
Populated Wheel and that wheel.
I'll use it and that's how I'mgoing to select the winners and
I'm not going to say now, butI'm going to say on the live
there's some more gifts that I'mgoing to throw in there.
Melissa Franklin (48:05):
It's cool.
Just say my name.
Say it as many people as youcan.
Perfectly fine Christmas gifts.
Well, I appreciate you forsharing your story and your
vulnerability, because I knowgoing through our programs is
already painful enough onlybecause we make you do the
emotional work and thinkingabout that.
Thank you for sharing yourjourney and being vulnerable,
(48:25):
because that's not always easyfor people.
I appreciated the inspiringconversation about starting new
journeys and visiting new spacesand I know all of our listeners
will take a lot away from it aswe end up closing up this
episode of Structuring ChaoticMinds.
I have enjoyed having our gueston today and I invite all of
(48:47):
you to go ahead and subscribeand leave a review for us.
If you have any questions, feelfree to leave them in the show
notes.
Go ahead and leave us a review,and go ahead and follow us on
any of your favorite podcastingplatforms.
Stay resilient, stay focused andwe'll see you next time.
Thank you so much for joiningme for today's episode.
To catch up on the rest of theseason, visit
(49:07):
structureandchaoticmindscom ortake a quick browse on your
current app to see whichepisodes resonate with you.
If you struggle with your ownmental wellness or even just
balancing life.
We have a team of individualsat our site who can help.
You can visitstructureinnovationscom and find
a coach or mentor fit for you.
Thank you for joining me onceagain, melissa Franklin, on this
(49:29):
episode of Structuring ChaoticMinds.
Stay structured and smiling.
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