February 14, 2025 • 51 mins
n this compelling episode of the "Stuck In My Mind Podcast," host Wize El Jefe welcomes esteemed guest Jeremy Haselwood, a two-time best-selling author, digital marketing expert, entrepreneur, and speaker. The episode titled "Unlocking Talent and Purpose: Jeremy Haselwood's Inspirational Journey" is a thought-provoking journey into the realms of self-discovery, purpose realization, and digital marketing insights.
Wize kicks off the conversation by enthusiastically re-entering the podcast scene post-surgery, expressing his passion for podcasting and connecting with thought leaders like Jeremy. This sets the tone for an engaging dialogue centered around pursuing dreams and personal growth.
Jeremy shares his inspiring journey from Oklahoma to Atlanta, motivated by a passion for music that eventually shaped his career in digital marketing and entrepreneurship. This move, driven by a triumphant experience performing in an Apollo-style show in Atlanta, became a pivotal moment in Jeremy’s life, anchoring him in a city buzzing with opportunities.
Drawing on his rich experiences in both the music industry and corporate America, Jeremy elaborates on the transferable skills and lessons he’s gained. He emphasizes the importance of structure, training, and adaptability which corporate settings instill—skills that have been invaluable in his entrepreneurial ventures.
The conversation naturally flows into a discussion about Jeremy's book, "Finding Your Edge," which took a decade to culminate. The book is a blueprint for individuals seeking to break free from stagnation and find purpose and passion in their lives. Jeremy candidly shares his personal struggles and the transformative processes that led to the creation of his book, offering listeners pathways to discover and harness their potential.
Wize and Jeremy find common ground in their shared experiences of overcoming self-doubt and breaking through mental barriers. Jeremy’s "EDGE" framework—Eliminate distractions, Discover yourself, Generate goals, and Enact discipline—provides a structured roadmap that listeners can apply to their own lives.
A significant portion of the discussion delves into the intricacies of digital marketing. Jeremy identifies common pitfalls, such as chasing trends without honing a unique brand, and advocates for a long-term strategy that aligns with personal and brand authenticity. This resonates with Wize, who appreciates the importance of staying true to oneself and impacting lives genuinely rather than superficially.
The episode also touches upon the vital aspects of the spiritual and holistic approach to life, encouraging listeners to maintain a balanced focus across different life facets, including personal, professional, familial, health, and spiritual domains.
As the episode concludes, Wize and Jeremy reflect on the profound insights shared and the empowering nature of following one’s passion. Wize extends gratitude to Jeremy for his contributions and hints at future collaborations to delve deeper into fascinating topics.
This episode is not just an exchange of ideas but a motivational dialogue packed with actionable insights to inspire listeners to embark on their own journey of finding purpose and achieving personal and professional excellence.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:41):
And welcome to another episode of Stuck My Mind podcast.
I am your host, w I z e. And and my next
guest, he's a two time best selling author, a digital
marketing expert, an entrepreneur, and speaker.
Welcome to the show, Jeremy Hazelwood. Welcome. I'm
still bopping off your intro song there. Appreciate it, man. Thank you. Thank
(01:04):
you. Just come in the room. I already know the rhythm is there for the
for today's podcast. So let's go. Puzzle. How How are you doing today,
brother? I'm doing great. It's a great day. Man. Yeah.
Yeah. Like like I was telling you off off air, this is actually my
first show back from from surgery. So Yeah. I'm
excited. I I miss doing this. This is something I love doing. I'm very
(01:25):
passionate about podcasting and being able to connect with people like
yourself. So Yeah. Let's get this going. Yeah. You know, you're gonna pick it up
like riding a bike. You got this. Oh, yeah. Definitely. Definitely.
Alright. So what made you what was the
moment that made you realize you wanna leave your home state and chase your
dreams, man? Oh, man. It was, gosh, the actual
(01:47):
moment. I can't tell you the moment, but I guess the
backstory I'm originally from Oklahoma Oklahoma City.
Well, Oklahoma City and Guthrie grew up back and forth, divorced parents.
And at 15, my my dad and my
stepmother moved to a different town in Oklahoma, and I went and lived with my
mom in Oklahoma City And went there, my brother moved with
(02:08):
me. He's cup actually, a grade older than me. Didn't know anybody
and a bigger school than what I was used to, so I was like that
dude at the lunchroom just sitting by myself. It was lonely. It was
sad, but my escape was music.
So I started writing poetry, started writing rhymes, and
creating beats at the house. And I just started rhyming,
(02:31):
man, and took that with me through college and got to a point
in college where I really wanted to pursue music. And a friend of mine, we
had a group, and it was like, do we go to New York,
LA, or Atlanta? And I had, and
still have family in Atlanta, so I'm like, let's go out there for a summer.
And I think it was one of those things where we were first moved out
(02:53):
for a summer to test it out and see how it went. But I guess
the ultimate decision to say we are staying in Atlanta versus
we're just gonna dip our toe in and see how it is is the first
show that we performed at in Atlanta. It was like an Apollo style show where
they'll boo you off stage, and we ended up winning the show. So we're
like, look, man. We we can't go back to Oklahoma. We have to see
(03:14):
what's happening here, and and pursue it. So I guess that
if you look at what was the point that made me decide to stay in
Atlanta, it was winning that first Apollo show in Atlanta.
Awesome. Awesome. So so how did your time in the music industry
influence your approach to business and marketing? Oh, man.
It's the foundation of everything I do with
(03:35):
business and marketing. When I was in the music
industry and I I use that word lightly. Like, I was in the industry,
but not making money in the industry. You know? It's like a feast or
famine kind of industry. But here in Atlanta, it's like I was on the
scene everywhere, performed at, like, every stage
that was available, every mic that was available, got in with some
(03:57):
labels, management, producers, studios. Like, so I was pretty ingrained in
it. But you fast
forward and to answer your question, it's like what I learned is
running a business is really the same as what I was doing as an artist
because I was self contained. Like, I wrote, I
produced, I mixed, did the vocals, of
(04:19):
course, arranged, pulled in different players,
instrumental players when I needed to. So it was all, like, orchestration.
And then it's like you have the product, you know, music being the
product, and now you have to market it. So how do you connect with the
audience? How do you where do you go? What do you say? How do you
keep that relationship going? And now I do I own
(04:41):
a marketing consulting company in Atlanta, and
everything I'm doing now is, like, exactly the playbook that I did
with the music industry. I'm just getting paid for it now and, you know, as
opposed to being a broke artist. So and it's nice. It's still, like, my passion,
and it's still still within me. Awesome.
Awesome. You've you've worked in both corporate America
(05:03):
and Azenta as a entrepreneur. What's the biggest
lesson you've learned from both? Corporate
America was good in many ways and that you it
provides structure. There was a telecom company that I work with that
had an excellent training program that I didn't realize at the time. But
when I left that company to go to smaller companies, and I was like,
(05:25):
well, when is training for this? How do you train? They're like, training? We don't
do training. So you see, you really get, like, some world class
training and, resources, and you learn some structures of
business. You learn the politics of business, but you
also have, like, the limitations and a lot of decision makers and
the politics are don't always work in your favor.
(05:47):
So that's definitely those lessons and some of those structures, like,
I can apply to how I run my business today. It's just good to
have the flexibility and the freedom to call the shots. But, you know, at the
same time, if something works, it's great. But when it doesn't work, like, it's all
on me, you know? But that's fine.
What so what what inspired you to write Finding Your
(06:10):
Edge, and how has that changed your perspective on
life? Yeah. Finding your edge was
about a ten year process for me to write, and
it really comes from my story of leaving home
when I was 20 years old to move to Atlanta, pursuing a dream,
and that dream not really panning out how
(06:33):
I had envisioned that it would. And getting to a point where this dream that
I had really became something that
was kinda ugly in a way, it was because when you really get in, you
see, like, the ins and outs of the music industry. Like, I really just want
to be an artist and perform and and affect people and
the business side and the politics. And, like, it it's a lot, and it's
(06:53):
not for everybody, and it wasn't for me. So I got to that point
where I was like, this is what I thought my life was going to be,
and now I have no idea what I wanna do. Like, I moved my whole
life, to follow a dream. So it kind of
and at the same time, you know, I was working full time. So I had
full time job doing music. So I say, like, my nine to five job was
(07:15):
telecom, and then my five to nine job was music
because I'd go home, I'd write, produce, record, perform.
But when it was kinda like this culmination of the music
fading out, and then I lost my job. So it was like
unemployment, not knowing what I was going to do
next, didn't have the, I
(07:38):
guess, the desire to continue music anymore, at least not in
the same way. So I was like, I don't know what to do now. And
went through this period of really trying to rediscover myself and find
who who am I? What am I supposed to be doing, when the dream you
thought it was kinda shatters in a way? Where do we go from here and
pick up the pieces, and how do we find purpose in life? So did
(07:59):
a lot of work on myself, ended up going back to school, getting my master's
degree, got a lot of coaching
actually through that program, did a lot of assessments on myself, a lot of
reflection. And on the flip sort, not the flip
side of that, but as life continued,
started my own marketing consultancy and really
(08:21):
hit my stride and really found joy in what I do.
And so I wrote about it and the different things that I experienced, the
different frameworks that I came up with that helped me out, kinda get out of
that rut, get out of being stuck, and really help me to discover who I
am, what my talents and passions, and tying that to my purpose. I
wrote a book about it, and that's finding your edge. And it's been really
(08:43):
helpful for me. And now it's like I have this book, which is kind of
like, I'm a messenger of hope now. So with this book, like, I
can do speaking and workshops and inspire other people because when I
tell people about the book, I tell them what I went through. They're like, wow.
Like, I've been there, or I'm there right now. Like, I hate my job. Or
it's like, I like my job, but I know I'm supposed to be doing something
(09:04):
different, but I don't know where to start. So that's
that's who I wrote the book for is people who are stuck just like I
was. Like, stuck in my mind podcast. Come on now. Oh, yeah. No. I I
feel you, man. Because, before prior to me
starting the podcast and and doing it, I didn't know
I didn't have my purpose. I didn't know what I like, I'm like, I have
(09:25):
a good paying job. I'm a I'm a pit boss in a casino,
and and I was like, what what am I
supposed to be doing? What what is what am I what am I because I
knew I knew personally I felt that I was supposed to be doing
more. Mhmm. I I I went through some some dark times
in my life. Yeah. And so it it was
(09:47):
when I when I discovered podcast, when I for me, when I started
finally got the courage Yeah. To
to press record and release my first
episode, it was like, okay. Yeah. I like
this. I I love this feeling. This feeling being able to to talk to
people and and have them share their stories, and and and it's
(10:08):
been it's been wonderful because, like, you never know what impact you're gonna
have, man. Like, I've there's people who reached out to me with some
amazing feedback. Like, yo, thank you for this
episode. I needed to hear it. Yeah. And so when you get that that kind
of feedback, you're like, okay. Yeah. I'm doing
what I'm supposed to be doing. Yeah. Can I ask you a question? Can I
(10:30):
turn the tables for a quick fix? Let's do this. Let's do this. Oh, because
you said something really profound that I I wanna dig into because I don't know
if you've talked about it on all the episodes of your podcast. But if you
have, let's bring it back up on this one. When you say the courage to
podcast, like, what was keeping you from doing it?
Oh, man. Self talk. Like Yeah. Me telling
(10:53):
myself, who's gonna wanna listen to you? Mhmm. You ain't
got no voice. Like, you like, your voice sounds horrible.
Yeah. Like, all this negative self talk within me. Like
Yeah. Just from years of people putting their their
doubts on you and everything in there. And it was like, man,
can I do this? Can I don't I don't know anything about this? I I'm
(11:15):
not I'm not a media guy. I don't I I taught I've
taught myself how to about mics. I taught myself about mixers, all this
stuff stuff. All the stuff you learned, like, you've Yeah. I'm
saying that at 44, I started learning. Yeah. And and
and and started just alright. Okay. And I just started
doing my own thing. And Yeah. And and a lot of the time, it was
(11:37):
like, okay. YouTube University, man. And and
so and so when I
finally recorded my first episode, it was me and my
nephew. I didn't I didn't have the proper hookup. I didn't Yeah. Had a a
hundred and $60 podcast studio that I bought
from Amazon. Yeah. It was a little mixer. It was a Behringer
(11:58):
mixer, with headphones and mics. I didn't even
have the proper hookup for the phone because my nephew was on the phone. So
what I was doing was holding the the phone to the mic. Like, on speaker
or something. Yeah. Yeah. He was on speaker, and he was talking on the and
and that was the that was the first episode. He was like, no. We can't
release that. I was like, no. We're gonna release that. Oh. I said, we're gonna
(12:19):
release that because I want people to see how we've grown. I
want people to see where I've started at, which was
basic Mhmm. To now where I know the difference
between a condenser mic and a dynamic mic. I know Right. What
kind of camera I wanna use. Like Mhmm. So
it for me, it was like, no. I want I want people to see the
(12:41):
progress. I want them to see that where I've how how
far I've come along Yeah. Since I started. Yeah.
No. That's great, man. I I love that story because I think so many
people that I talked to and you as well, it's like you had the
courage to do it. And I think a lot of people lose the battle in
the mind, which is stuck in my mind. Like, that that being stuck in the
(13:02):
mind will keep you from being being who you're supposed to be in this
world. Bro, and that's that was that was me. I was stuck. I was like
because I had I had I had the equipment for over a year. I I
purchased the equipment in 2019. Me and my homeboy was gonna
start a a podcast. I I got the book,
Podcasting for Dummies. Okay. And, like, we was gonna start a sports
(13:23):
podcast and everything. Yeah. And and then he him and his
girl got pregnant, and so that that kid he
got done. So I was like, I went by myself, and I was like Mhmm.
Like I said, I was all the self doubt, and I was just like, nah,
man. This don't sound I will record stuff. Nah. They don't sound right. Delete it.
Record stuff. Nah. It don't sound right. Delete it. And one day, me and my
(13:44):
nephew just here chatting up and talking and everything, and then I was like,
yo. Fuck it. Let's just
record. Yeah. Mhmm. Yeah. Put it out there, man. Just put it out
there. Yeah. That's it. And so and it was easy because I, like
yeah. I've been stuck in my mind. This is that's the name of the show,
stuck in my mind. This is and and at first, it was more
(14:06):
me. It was solo. Mhmm. Me, because
at the time, it was this George Floyd situation, the twenty twenty elections,
all this bullshit going on, the pandemic. Yeah. I was furloughed from work.
And I was just I came on, and I was just talking about what was
going on and everything. That is how I was feeling. And
then but I I was enjoying the
(14:29):
podcasting. I just wasn't enjoying the content. Right.
It it it wasn't it wasn't what I wanted because everybody was doing that. I
just, like, nah. I gotta find something else. Yeah. And
so when I started interviewing people and at first, it was hard to get
people to come, like yeah. Like, one of the first questions is,
how many downloads you get? Yeah. How many followers you have?
(14:51):
Yeah. Like streams. It's like, come on. You gonna mess with me or not? I
was like, yeah. You gonna record? Like, so I got ghosted so many times.
And Oh, yeah. And so but I kept going. I kept going.
I I linked I started connecting with people. I started I connected with this PR
guy. He started sending me guests. I started off with some
some b c d
(15:13):
celebrity. Yeah. Yeah. Nobody really major. But,
I and so it was like, alright.
Let's just and I started getting just getting into it. Then I started interviewing
friends of mine who are entrepreneurs. Yeah. And that's that's where it
started leading to and people started and people who had some amazing stories. And
Mhmm. And then it wasn't till I really started focusing on the
(15:36):
people I wanted to speak to, which was coaches,
entrepreneurs speakers, and
that things really started clicking, and things really started going
because it was something like that was something I was passionate about. That's something I've
I've always felt within me that I was a teacher and someone who wanted a
coach and Yeah. And wanted to speak. So I wanted to get the most of
(15:59):
the information from people who were doing it. Right. Right. In a way, I was
selfish on my part because I wanted to learn this information and
talk to these people. Mhmm. But at the same time, I'm sharing it with
my audience. Yeah. So it was like, okay. It's it's it's
good. It's a good thing because I'm learning. My audience is learning. People
getting being able to share their message and share their stories. So it was like,
(16:21):
alright. This is what I wanna do. Yeah. I mean, everything that you're
saying is, like, it it it's very in line with a lot of things. I
talk about my book and even my own journey, and it's like just
it doesn't have to be perfect. You know? I think a lot of times we
hold ourselves back because we're like, oh, I don't want either people to judge it,
or I I know if I put it out, it's not ready. So I wanna
(16:42):
make sure that whatever's there is my absolute best version.
And even like you said, man, if you look at your first episode and probably
the first ten episodes look nothing like they do now. You've gotten
better because you've put in the work. So it's like when you start to go
down this path of purpose, it's gonna be a little rough at first. But
you're gonna learn. You're gonna grow. You're gonna level up. And each time you step
(17:04):
out and do it, it's gonna get better and better and better. But you have
to at least start that journey in order to get where you are and
get where I am. You can't do it just being in your mind and thinking
about doing it and negating yourself before you even start.
Well, at first, I was strictly audio for the first
hundred and Wow. 32
(17:25):
episodes. Mhmm. And it was crazy because I was using StreamYard.
Right? Yeah. But, I was,
like, at first, I was over the phone. I was interviewing people over the
phone and all this stuff and to into others and through other stuff.
But then I started using StreamYard, but I was just using
the audio aspect of it. I was I was recording on my Rodecaster Pro
(17:48):
and and just interviewing people. And I interviewed a couple. They
were they were marketing specialists and everything. Okay. And the husband
goes, so do you do video? Mhmm. And I
was like, no. I'm not ready. I'm waiting for it to get perfect.
Yeah. And he goes, so you do
video? I said, no. No. No. Not yet. No. No. And then
(18:10):
the third time he goes, so so do you do do you do video?
Yes. I do. Click. There you go. Cool. Yeah. And I was and then I
knew what he was getting at. He was like, yo, just get ahead, man. Stop
stop front and just just jump right in and just oh, you're already
using the platform. Take advantage. Use the video app. Exactly. You got it. It's
included with what what you're already doing. It's it requires a little more
(18:33):
editing, but if you're creating it and you're trying also, you're trying to get your
message out so it opens you up to a whole new audience,
you know, outside of now you can put, like, the videos on YouTube and social
and all that stuff. And that and that's what it was. It was just Yep.
That was the next step. That was the next evolution of what I was doing,
and it took me it took someone just just like, yo, sure you
(18:54):
sure you don't do video? So you use the streamer, man. What you mean you
don't do video? Yeah. So Don't you love that? Like, when someone
just someone because it was a guest on your show. Right? Mhmm.
Yeah. Someone that you you didn't have a history with just popped in your life
for this podcast, and just some stranger asks
you a single question that totally, like, changes thing. Like, one question,
(19:16):
and you're like, wow. Like, that's dope, man. Yeah. He flipped he flipped
he flipped it off my head. So I was like, you know what? Yeah. You
know right? He I I feel you. I I like, yeah. I get it. Now
I I understand what you're trying to say, man. And so right right there, I
was like, yeah. I do video. Yep. That's it. You
don't look back. You know? Oh, definitely not. Definitely not. So so
(19:38):
what's what's one of the most common mistakes people make in digital
marketing today? Oh, man. Digital marketing
today, yeah, there there's many common mistakes. I think one is people
who just follow all the trends, and they
try to gain or game the algorithms, trying to do
what's popular because that will only get you so far.
(20:01):
Following trends, doing what's popular will allow you to have a
moment, but not spending enough time and attention on
creating your own brand and your own strategy that's actually
gonna be a viable product or service, you know,
five years from now. Like, that's you know, we're chasing short term
success as opposed to, like, the long term game. You gotta play the long game
(20:23):
in business and marketing. And what's crazy is, like, a
lot of times, the people that have success that are creating the
trends, like, they're the ones benefiting because they're, like, the
first to the market. You know? If you're the first one to do it or
the first few to do it, you're the one that's going to benefit the most.
But then all these other people see that, oh, that's what's working, or
(20:44):
you probably heard this a million times. That's what I have to do. I have
to do this to do x y z. And I just wanna say, no. You
don't. You can do that. But my whole thing is, like,
if everybody else is doing it, what makes you so
different? You know? Like, you're not standing out. So
you have to do something a little bit. You can't follow and chase the trends.
(21:05):
Like, and and I've posted content on my social. Like, I'm not
doing some dance trends. I'm not doing any of that.
And it's not because I can't dance. I mean, I'm okay. I don't profess to
be a dancer, but I'm not selling myself out for the content. I need to
be true to me, and I think brands and marketers need to be true to
who you are and who the brand is. And if there's a a time that
(21:26):
you can be genuine and authentic and hop into a
trend, cool. But don't let that shape the
direction of where your brand is going. And then you're absolutely
right. There's there's been plenty of times I've been wanting, like, I won't do that
to go to go viral or whatever, but I'm like, nah. That's not who I
am. Exactly. I I love the clips that I do for my show. I
(21:47):
love uploading those instead of instead of doing this because the most common
dance there the trending dance that everyone's doing or the trending thing. I was like,
no. Let me just be true to who I am and upload clips of my
show because this is what I love. And and and the people I have on
the show has have something beneficial. Yeah.
Is it is it it's blowing up? Nah. But it's getting to enough people.
(22:10):
If I impact one person's life, I'm doing something I'm I'm doing what I'm supposed
to be doing. Yeah. That's it. And and you're you're the boss of your
podcast. Nobody is telling you you have to make this content.
So whatever you put out into the world, your digital footprint,
all this is your brand. So when you put your head on that pillow to
go to sleep at night, it's like, do I feel good about what I'm putting
(22:32):
out? And if I'm not being authentic, if I'm not being true, if I'm not
making an impact, like, I don't feel good. So I'm I'm not
gonna do it. And I have that freedom. You have that freedom. Nobody's telling us
what to create. Give me 5,000, like,
active, engaged followers who really are looking for life
change or tips on marketing as opposed to 5,000,000 followers who
(22:52):
are just gonna talk trash about me on anything I post. I could say
something positive. They're like, I don't like this haircut. You know?
I'm like, my content isn't for you. Like, if you wanna grow, you wanna learn,
man, check-in with me. You know, I I'd rather have the real people
than a number. It's not about the vanity metrics. It's it isn't. It
really isn't. And like you said, I I'll I'll be happy with a thousand
(23:15):
loyal people who just tune in in and and listen. Because that that to
me, it's like, yeah, like, I'm impacting a thousand people's lives, man.
Right. Right. Tuning in and listening. I'm like and watching the videos.
And and, again, it's not like I have
it's not like, okay. Yeah. All these big name podcast, yeah,
they they have backing. They they've been doing the feed. Yeah.
(23:37):
Now I'm I'm I'm going in my fifth year now, but Awesome. I've
I've built this up. I I like this is something I I can be proud
of. I built this up from the ground. Nobody can say, oh, yeah. I I
did this for you. No, man. I built this. Yeah. I worked hard. I put
my blood, sweat, and tears into this. And so that
that right there for me is like, oh, man. Yeah. I did
(23:59):
I did something. I accomplished something. I got something done. So it's
something that I I'm very proud of, and and, hopefully, I can inspire
people to be like, yo. Listen. I'm I'm a kid from Brooklyn.
Mhmm. I this wasn't my my this
wasn't in in my like, I didn't have this vision of me
doing this and and being a podcast and everything. It was it's
(24:21):
something that I did I did, and I and I fell in love with
it. Yeah. And then it's giving me purpose now. It's giving me something like,
alright. This is what I wanna do. I wanna help people. I want people to
know Yeah. That I'm the only ones out there struggling. There's there's other
people, like, out that that started from
nowhere and and build something up. And and so I could
(24:42):
inspire people to to change their lives and see that,
hey, man. These are just regular folks. Exactly.
And and look what they're doing. Why can't I do this? Right. I mean,
everybody starts with zero followers. You know? And
when you build something that's yours and you start to get the followers,
(25:03):
and, again, not necessarily the followers, but the impact. You know? When you get those
comments, they're like, wow. That was thank you for what you said, or
that episode really impacted me. Like, that's that is the
payment. You know, that's the gratification. And you said it
like you're this is like purpose
driven work. This is like you do this. You feel like you're fulfilling your purpose
(25:24):
And you sharing your experience and
shining light on others and encouraging others to follow their
own path, you know, and and find their purpose, you
can vouch for, and I can too, like, what life is like now that you
are doing something. You've hit your stride versus what your
life used to be like. And you can have a a regular nine to five
(25:46):
job and still do something where you're fulfilling your purpose outside of
work. You know? It doesn't have to be like your nine to five is your
purpose is you're living your purpose. You know? Sometimes that's not how it is.
Your purpose is not a job. It's Mhmm. It's your life. It's
it's what your legacy is. And and that's what I kind of prior to that,
it was like, I was kinda getting it confused and mixed up and twisted.
(26:08):
And when I started the podcast, it was like, this is it. Right?
Yeah. I I I the the nine to five pays the
jobs. Right. Pay pay for my bills. That that pays the
bills and everything. This here feeds my soul. Yeah.
This here feeds me the energy and the and
and what I love to do and and and to see the impact and
(26:30):
to hear from the people. Mhmm. That right there drives
me. Yeah. Like, yeah, my job pays the bills, but this
year, like I said, this pay this fills my soul.
Yeah. And for you, it's podcasting. For someone
listening, it might be volunteering or What You know? Whatever it is.
Yeah. It might be carpentry. It's like like, that's my
(26:52):
encouragement. It's like, find if you're living in life right now and your
soul is not being fed in the way that you're talking about,
like, find what that is. And if you're like, well, how do I find if
I don't know where to look? Like, that's when you have to pause, and you
have to do some work on yourself. Get my book. My book
isn't the only personal development book. If you don't wanna get my book, don't get
my book. But get do something. You know? Check-in with, a
(27:14):
counselor or a coach. Even your family is what I found is, like because we
get so stuck in our head. And just asking them, what what do you
think I'm good at? You know, just from the outside. Close friends, close
family, if you're really trying to figure out that next direction to go.
You know? You can look inward, but look externally as well. Yeah. Definitely. Definitely.
And and I'm blessed, man. I my my nephew, he's like like
(27:37):
I said, he was the first one that I had, and we had him on
the phone with me and everything. Mhmm. And we've been able to publish his
book. He he's he he published one book prior, but then together,
me and him published a second book. Wow. And that one that one was much
more into, self development and and all
that. So Yeah. I love the fact that I helped Tim get
(27:59):
that to go and and launch that and and and and Right. And
accomplish that. And so then I have my wife
who's who, like I was I was a gamer, man. I used to play when
I come home from work, I spent hours gaming. Yeah. And so when I
started podcasting, she was like, yo,
this dude don't even pick up his his controller no more. Like,
(28:20):
like, she came to me and be like, yo, she says, I know
you you're serious about what you're doing right now. Now. Mhmm. So, you know, I
know you're serious because your PlayStation is over there collecting dust. Wow. And
you're over here recording, and and she lets me record.
She she goes, go do you. She's like, yeah. Well, what can we
do to start making this into something that's
(28:41):
gonna be profitable or whatever it is? She helped me launch my LLC,
do it all do all that. So I'm glad to have
that support. Yeah. But what I like
about what you said is you took a step to what I call
eliminating distractions. So you enjoyed gaming, but it was
also a distraction that was keeping you from your purpose.
(29:04):
Yeah. And at some point, you got the wisdom to say, you know
what? This purpose piece matters more to me than playing this game.
And finding a way to not finding a way, just being like, I'm not playing
anymore. Because I've I've had similar things, like, back in my twenties. Like, I love
to play, like, NCAA college football, you know, EA sports.
Like, I'm like, I'm just gonna play one game. And I play one game, and
(29:27):
then let's run it back. You know? You play two games. Let's run it back.
And before you know it, like, you've played, like, eight hours of
games back to back to back. And I'm like, man, I do not want this
to be my life. Like, there's other things that I wanna do with my life.
And so it got to a point where I was like, I'm getting rid of
this. PlayStation is going. And I haven't had one since. I know they they dropped
(29:49):
the NCAA, football this year. Back. Yeah. I know. And I I
was like, oh, man. I wanna get my favorite game. I ain't gonna lie. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. Football is one of my best favorite games to play, man.
And and so I was like, do I wanna get a PlayStation? I was like,
no. No. That's where I was. Exactly. I was like, no. Nope.
Nope. Nope. Because I I need to just keep that. You have to know what
(30:09):
those distractions are. And especially if you can't control, you know,
because that you you think you're just going to do something, but that addiction or
however your brain functions, it's like it just needs that little extra.
But I have zero regrets. You know? And and I'm sure you do as don't
have any as well because you're still podcasting five years later, like you
said. So, you know, you there are things that you enjoy. And when you're on
(30:32):
that path of purpose, you have to say no to things that you enjoy
because there's something bigger waiting for you. So it's like, what are you
willing to sacrifice to really have this life for you and for your family? And
those are the questions you have to ask yourself. Yeah. It is definitely
something I was like, you know, nah. I I love this. This is
Yeah. Like I said, she she's she's seen to love it from she like
(30:56):
and and, honestly, my wife hasn't hasn't heard one single
episode. Yeah. Not a one. But she she shit.
She wear my merch. She she oh, my husband gotta put go to the next
podcast or listen to my husband's podcast. Yeah. She she's my number one fan
without hearing an episode. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It was like Hey, man. This
past, September, I went to
(31:18):
Pittsburgh, and I went to a an I did an event with a a
fellow podcaster that I met couple years, and he he opened
a podcasting studio in Pittsburgh. Cool. And and I I I was
that's, like, four or five hours for me, but me and my wife drove over
over there. Another podcast that we that we connected with that
we're friends with came from Ohio, and we hosted a a a
(31:40):
two day event. It was for international
podcast. They failed fell on that
Monday, the thirtieth. So Okay. That Saturday and Sunday,
we did a two day event, and that was the first time she ever actually
saw one of my shows. Oh, wow. Okay. I had a guest come I
had a guest virtually, and I was on stage interviewing the person. And
(32:02):
Oh, you're doing it live? Yeah. I did it live. Cool. Cool.
That was the first time she ever watched one of my shows and or ever.
Yeah. Like so and then she got she got she got to interact, and then
she got to be on stage and do some stuff. Oh, awesome. So it was
it was cool. So now this year, again, we're we're we're expanding
it. We it's still two days, but we're trying to get people come to come
(32:23):
a couple of days early or whatever. We're trying to have a a
a get together that Friday Okay.
And then having the whole having the event. And we're trying to get more people
to come to the studio, which to the theater. Okay. Yeah. And
and and and be a part live from the theater. Yes. We're gonna have
virtual shows because not everyone's gonna be able to make it to Pittsburgh. Sure.
(32:44):
Yeah. But we've we've been promoting that. I've been every time I get a
chance to talk about it, I talk about it. And so
we wanted to become a a yearly thing where we we go on
stage, and we give these podcasters a platform where they should go
out and shine. Yeah. No. I love that, man. Like, building a a
community for podcasters because they may have that here in Atlanta. I'm not sure. I
(33:07):
just started podcasting, few months ago. So I just
wrapped for season one of my show. How did you love how did you like
it? Man, I enjoyed it, man. Like, my my biggest challenge was, like,
what do I wanna talk about? And that's because I've been wanting to podcast for
years. But in my mind, I'm like, man, what do I wanna talk
about for, like, 500 episodes? You know? And there's, like,
(33:28):
nothing. There's nothing that I'm, like, that interested in that I wanna talk about for
500 episodes. And then it's like, why would someone wanna listen to me for
500 episodes? That's, like, negative self talk in a way.
However, I'm like, I I will get bored talking, and I don't don't
wanna have to, like, chase down, like, guests for 500 episodes. So
I decided with my podcast, I'm doing seasons. So season
(33:50):
one is about one topic. Season two will be about another topic.
So every season will be like a different topic. And so season one was
about digital fundraising, and digital marketing for nonprofits because I
do a lot of work with nonprofits, and I wrote a book about it. Season
two, which I'm actually about to start recording, is really based on my book.
So, like, the, life transformation and personal
(34:13):
development. So I have 10 episodes of that. But, no, I'm enjoying it, man. Like,
I I knew I would want to. Like, this mic was the same mic that
I used back when I was doing music. Like, it's really the only piece of
equipment that I never got rid of because I was like, I paid too much
for this mic. And I'll probably use it one day. I don't know when, but
I will use it one day. Yeah. So I held on to it. Oh, no.
Your mic you sound good, bro. Yeah. I appreciate that. You got that voice. You
(34:35):
got that voice. It's that that that Neumann TLM mic. So I was watching it.
And, yeah, there was, like, a a documentary on, Billie
Eilish on Apple a couple years ago, and I saw she actually had the same
mic. I was like, oh, alright. I have the same the the pros
use it. It's a good mic, so I can't get rid of it. Good thing
you did, man. Because now look. Look at you. You you're being a guest on
(34:57):
podcast. You have your own podcast. So, yeah, it's a good thing you didn't get
rid of it. Trying to be like you, man. That's all. Yep. Oh,
thank thank you. So what
what's you you talk about unlocking your edge in your book. Right?
So how can someone start discovering their own edge today?
Yeah. And an edge is it's an acronym. So finding your
(35:19):
edge, and this is what I walk through. It's a framework that I walk through
in my book, and it's eliminate distractions, discover
yourself, generate goals, and enact discipline.
And it's really step by step by step. When you're doing this work on yourself
and really trying to unlock your purpose, you have to
start with eliminating distractions. Like, your life changed whenever you put that
(35:41):
PlayStation down as did mine because you can't really start that work of discovery
on yourself if you're still distracted by whatever it is. It can be gaming. It
can be food. It can be television. It can be toxic friends,
relationships. Like, these are all distractions. So I kinda help in my
book. Like, let's identify what these distractions are, then the
path of discovery. So now that we've eliminated these distractions, we're
(36:04):
in a mindset where we can really focus in on who we
are. So there's some assessments you can take. I talk about
different tips and ways that you can do this discovery work on yourself in the
book. And then once you learn more about yourself, you're now
coming from a position of having just this knowledge
more of who you are, what you're capable of, what stirs your heart. And now
(36:26):
when you're generating goals, it's not how you feel in the moment or
based on this experience last week at work. It's based on
who you are and what your gifts are. And creating
those goals around that and then enacting discipline is really having
that tenacity and perseverance to get up every
day and work towards these goals in this better life that you want
(36:48):
for yourself. So that's really what the book is about. So how do you find
your edge? It's really you have to do the work to do it. My book
is a resource that walks you through my model, and, you know,
it has reflections, journal reflections at the end of every chapter, which
I've gotten some great feedback on. People like, man, these are really good challenging
questions that have helped me learn about myself, or people
(37:10):
have sent me messages saying there are pieces in your book that have made me
think about things I haven't had to really address or think
about since my childhood. And it's really opened me up, like, you know,
finding what that joy is in your life. So that's it's really good to hear
that because I the book for me was therapeutic because it was just me
writing about what helped me writing about my experiences. It's also good to
(37:33):
hear that when other people read it, they can share their own
experience and relate to that as well and and get something from it that has
caused some positivity and movement in their life.
Yeah, man. Just listening to it, I'm like, man, I'm following
my edge. Yeah. You are, man. Yeah. You are. Or sir
certainly, you don't need my book. My book is not for you
(37:55):
are not the target market. It's not. I'm I'm gonna get it to support, bro.
Plus, I wanna read it. I appreciate it. Yeah. I'm sure there's something in there
that I can take from it, man. Definitely. Man. Definitely, I'm
gonna definitely go get it and and read it because,
just from you talking, and I'm like, man, that's something I I think I might
be interested in reading. So, yeah, definitely. Yeah. I mean, it's good. I I go
(38:16):
back and reread parts of it at times because there are a lot of questions,
and and I think there's questions even though we ask them of ourselves and we
answer them, it's good to go back and review those
questions. And because you forget about this, the brain can only hold so much.
Yeah. So there's times that I'll go back, to the questions at the end of
the chapters, and I'm like, man, I forgot about this. And your answers may be
(38:37):
different because you may have grown past where you were when
you, you know, you definitely grown where you were from a year ago, hopefully.
But if you do if you read my book and you read it again five
years later, you've grown. So the way that you answer the questions will be different,
and it can still challenge you. It still challenges me. Oh, yeah.
No. I've I've I've grown so much in the
(38:59):
past five years, man, since I started this. And even even with
this year now, having my surgery and and knowing that I gotta
this is a change of lifestyle for me now. I gotta change the way I
eat. I gotta do so many different things because I it was like,
I got so much stuff I gotta do and get like, I have, like, I
have purpose. I have something I need to get accomplished. There's so many other
(39:22):
people I I wanna impact and so many other different things I wanna start
doing. And I just I I didn't have the
energy Mhmm. Where I was at. And now
Right. After the surgery, I I wake up, like, yeah, first week, I
was I'm I've been sore and all that and everything. Mhmm. But I wake up
with a different energy now. Yeah. I'm like, okay. I'm more. I'm more.
(39:43):
And and and losing the weight and everything else. Mhmm. You
can see like, my feet used to swell up, bro. My
feet used to swell up because of the weight and everything. Mhmm. I have
ankles again. I joke with my wife, and I'll be like, yo, I got my
ankles back. I can see my ankles. You're like, I'm bringing ankles
back. Yep. There you go. You're bringing those ankles
(40:05):
back. Come on now. Yeah. So it's it's been it's been like, yo.
Yeah. This is this is life altering and changing
and and and but it's something that I needed. And and
I've also decided that something that, from
from earlier this month, I I, I connected with, I
actually connected with her last month on this
(40:27):
show that I do with my friend, called Rise and Out and
Outshine. Actually, I would like if you wanna,
I I wanna link you up with us so you can so you can be
do so you can do your show on it. It's it's a a show that
we do go call rise and shine where we have podcasters
come on, do ten, fifteen minutes of their podcast,
(40:48):
and and people who actually tell they they leave they
they, they could they leave, like, oh, what did
you like about it? Did you like his audio, his video, and all that? And
they'll leave words about what kind of, they'll leave message
words saying, like, oh, man. This this this episode was
amazing. Education. I was smart. Whatever whatever they they wanna put out
(41:10):
there. And so I I met, Nina Nina Perez.
Shout out, Nina. And,
she came on the show, but she didn't have a guest, and she didn't have
a video clip or whatever. So she said, yo, why? Can I
interview you? I was like, yeah. Sure. Let's let's do this. Even though I was
hosting a show, but I was like, alright. Let's do this. And she she interviewed
(41:31):
me, and we had we had a great conversation. It was ten, fifteen
minutes. And she was like, yo, I need to have you on my show.
Yeah. Like, alright. Cool. So That's awesome. Her show. I
I did her show. We we had a great time. I actually Oh, cool.
We actually recorded an episode for my show. I released it about,
prior to me going in for surgery and everything. Yeah.
(41:55):
And she she had a course before like, course,
a five day course. You are free, a five day course. And Yeah. And I
signed up. Like, I received the email, and I signed
up. And she doesn't really coach men. She she her her
things help and empower women and all that. Yeah. But I signed up
for the course, and and it was
(42:18):
it was impactful for me. It was, like, it was something where,
I realized, like, I need to me personally
improve my relationship with God. I'm not a religious person. I'm not gonna tell
you I go to church every Sunday because that that I'm, like, I'm not gonna
say I I read the Bible every day now. Mhmm. But it was
that those five days of
(42:39):
of her teachings and and speaking and and
everything she told me to do and and things that I started doing,
it it was impactful. It made me realize, you know, I I want to
improve my relationship with God. I I want I want to
be able to communicate with him more. And and so
one of the first things she had me do was write a letter,
(43:02):
and and I wrote my letter. Wow. And it's
crazy because I wrote the letter, and
I I let my wife read it and everything. Mhmm. And
so a situation came where my wife
was she put me in the she put me on the spot.
And she's like, okay. You wanna do coaching? I got
(43:25):
a situation for you. And Yeah. She put me on the spot and had me
do a coaching session. Wow. And it was amazing. I
was like at first, I was like at first, I was like, nah. She's like,
you could because it was something it was family issue and and Okay.
Like, nah. She's like, I was gonna go sit in the room and and let
her handle it. And she was like, no. No.
(43:47):
I read you a letter. I heard I read I read your letter, and I
know what you wanna do and get Wow. You know, here's the perfect opportunity. And
it was it was it was Yeah. Yeah. Parents are like, oh, man.
Oh, that's great. I could do this. And and when she's told me, she's
like and she see me at work and me talking and do
it. And she was like, that's my man. Like, yo, you
(44:09):
you could do this. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I was like, yo. Thank you.
Like, like, I might have to start adding coaching to the repertoire.
Yeah. It it it was amazing. And then I also wrote, I
wrote a prayer that I say every morning now. Awesome. That's great, man. Yeah.
So so now it was like it was
just impactful for me in in in a way. And it was like
(44:32):
and I wasn't like, my surgery looked like I wasn't gonna have my surgery. Right?
Mhmm. Okay. Things started falling into place. Things happened.
I I was able to get a a a search term procedure done
in order for me to because I was supposed to get it done December
24. Mhmm. And something happened where they they this
the the anesthesiologist
(44:55):
didn't feel comfortable with doing the surgery. Wow. Because he didn't feel
he didn't feel so I had to cancel it. So Yeah. Yeah. When I told
my surgeon this, it it looked so like, oh, we're gonna have to
push back the surgery to March. Yeah. Mhmm. So it looked like I was so
Oh, wow. I got like, all the progress that I've done Yeah. I
was gonna get pushed back to March. And my surgeon said
(45:17):
he worked that worked it out. And, actually, because I wasn't
gonna get the procedure done till February. Okay. The procedure that
that was supposed to do December 24. They had they didn't have no openings till
February. Oh. And my surgeon was like, nah. He
got it done. Yep. From and right right after I
had all this stuff that I put out there, you know, and he got he
(45:39):
got me an appointment where I got it done on the fifteenth of this
month. That's awesome. So I was able to keep my my
surgery date for the twenty first. Mhmm. And it was like,
man. Just just just just by
me, when did just the energy
I'm putting out and the and the message and and the talking to to God
(46:01):
and all this, things are just falling into place.
It is. It's like that's how God uses people, you
know, because I'm spiritual guy. And it's like Yeah. When you're doing
the work, like, there's you're gonna find
those blessings because you're you're in a position where you have a voice, you have
a platform, you're doing good in the world and things will come in
(46:23):
place. You start aligning yourself and making those moves, like doors
will open for you. And this is an example of how that works.
You know? It's to me, it's like I look at life in general,
and I talk about five forces of balance, which are like your
family, your professional life, your health, your spiritual
life, and then like your personal life. I'm not talk about these in the
(46:46):
book. But what you touched on with the spiritual life, if you have all this
other stuff going for you, but you don't have the spiritual life, then there's a
piece that's missing, you know? You know? On the flip side, it's like,
if spiritual is good and job is good, health is good, but
you're a terrible spouse or parent, like, man, you gotta do some
work on the family piece, you know, because it all is these
(47:07):
are the the forces that really help you to be
complete and and have that joy in life. And, like, I do
assessments, like, once or twice a year. Like, I'll rank myself in these. Like, on
a scale of one to five, how how am I doing in my family life
and spiritual and personal, professional? And it really
helps me to just to be conscious of it and be intent or make make
(47:28):
moves with intent with how I I live my life, the choices
that I make, and things like that. Oh, yeah, man.
Definitely. Definitely. Oh, man. The time is flying by. You feel like we
just been conversating. And that's what I love about this. It's like Yeah. Yeah. I
have questions I wanna ask, but then we start really getting to conversating
and talking, and we get started. Yeah. And and it's just like Three hours later,
(47:51):
here we are. Yeah. But,
bro, I appreciate this time, man. Oh, thank you. This is this is this
has been amazing. Yep. But now comes the time where you get the
solo screen and you get to share and plug away and and let everybody
know when when you get the solo screen now. Okay.
Cool. So, yeah, I'm Jeremy Hazelwood. You can find me at
(48:12):
JeremyHazelwood.com. You see my name here if you're watching it on YouTube. If you're
listening on the podcast, it's Hazelwood, h a s e l w o
o d. My book, my latest book is Finding Your Edge,
How to Unlock Your Talent and Purpose. It's available on Amazon,
Kindle, Apple Books, Audible. So
check it out there. If you are interested in coaching, I do offer a coaching
(48:34):
course as well. So you can follow me on Instagram, jeremy
dot hazelwood. Or if you work somewhere
and you want me to come lead a workshop or speak in an event, just
connect with me on LinkedIn. So I appreciate your time today as a
listener. Hopefully, you picked up something from this conversation that will
inspire you and cause you to take that step, that next
(48:56):
action that you need to take to be on that path of purpose. So, yeah,
thank you for your time today.
I appreciate it, man. I time time like, I usually I usually
try to keep it between thirty five, forty five minutes,
but it was such you know, when you just start talking to people that you
Yeah. Enjoy talking with and and just that connection going
(49:18):
and and you just start having a great conversation. Like, you just don't
know, man. Just keep it going. Yeah. Yeah. But but I
appreciate you, brother, man. I I thank you for coming on the show, man. I
definitely would love to have you back on because there's other questions I wanna get
I wanna ask you Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And all that. But I I definitely would
love to have you back on once again. And and,
(49:38):
hopefully, if you got something you wanna promote then too, you definitely come back
on and promote it. And, yeah, man, I appreciate you being on. But don't
leave this yet. Let me close out the show. But, thank you, man. I
appreciate this. Thanks, Will. Great. Thank you, man. I appreciate it. Thanks.
Yep. Alright, everybody.
Another episode is in the books. Shout out to
(50:02):
everybody who who sent me love and support. I appreciate you all, man.
Thank you for all the messages, the the calls.
Is is this just just another step in me in
my growth and development, and and me changing my life, and and
health was one of the keys. Health,
spiritual, all these are two steps that I I need I I
(50:25):
knew that I needed work on, and I'm I'm very glad that I I've I've
started those processes and and started changing my
life. But thank you everybody out there who supported the supported me and
and has helped the podcast grow. I greatly do appreciate
it, man. Shout out to, Poppy j, my brother.
Nothing but love for you, man. Thank you for the support. Shout out to the
(50:47):
boss lady. Appreciate everything you do and and
and everything you continue to do for our family. And and
as always, shout out to all the essential workers out there. God bless y'all. Be
safe. You know how your boy, Wise, does it. Peace out.
And welcome to another episode of Stuck My Mind podcast.
I am your host, w I z e. And and my next
guest, he's a two time best selling author, a digital
marketing expert, an entrepreneur, and speaker.
Welcome to the show, Jeremy Hazelwood. Welcome. I'm
still bopping off your intro song there. Appreciate it, man. Thank you. Thank
(01:04):
you. Just come in the room. I already know the rhythm is there for the
for today's podcast. So let's go. Puzzle. How How are you doing today,
brother? I'm doing great. It's a great day. Man. Yeah.
Yeah. Like like I was telling you off off air, this is actually my
first show back from from surgery. So Yeah. I'm
excited. I I miss doing this. This is something I love doing. I'm very
(01:25):
passionate about podcasting and being able to connect with people like
yourself. So Yeah. Let's get this going. Yeah. You know, you're gonna pick it up
like riding a bike. You got this. Oh, yeah. Definitely. Definitely.
Alright. So what made you what was the
moment that made you realize you wanna leave your home state and chase your
dreams, man? Oh, man. It was, gosh, the actual
(01:47):
moment. I can't tell you the moment, but I guess the
backstory I'm originally from Oklahoma Oklahoma City.
Well, Oklahoma City and Guthrie grew up back and forth, divorced parents.
And at 15, my my dad and my
stepmother moved to a different town in Oklahoma, and I went and lived with my
mom in Oklahoma City And went there, my brother moved with
(02:08):
me. He's cup actually, a grade older than me. Didn't know anybody
and a bigger school than what I was used to, so I was like that
dude at the lunchroom just sitting by myself. It was lonely. It was
sad, but my escape was music.
So I started writing poetry, started writing rhymes, and
creating beats at the house. And I just started rhyming,
(02:31):
man, and took that with me through college and got to a point
in college where I really wanted to pursue music. And a friend of mine, we
had a group, and it was like, do we go to New York,
LA, or Atlanta? And I had, and
still have family in Atlanta, so I'm like, let's go out there for a summer.
And I think it was one of those things where we were first moved out
(02:53):
for a summer to test it out and see how it went. But I guess
the ultimate decision to say we are staying in Atlanta versus
we're just gonna dip our toe in and see how it is is the first
show that we performed at in Atlanta. It was like an Apollo style show where
they'll boo you off stage, and we ended up winning the show. So we're
like, look, man. We we can't go back to Oklahoma. We have to see
(03:14):
what's happening here, and and pursue it. So I guess that
if you look at what was the point that made me decide to stay in
Atlanta, it was winning that first Apollo show in Atlanta.
Awesome. Awesome. So so how did your time in the music industry
influence your approach to business and marketing? Oh, man.
It's the foundation of everything I do with
(03:35):
business and marketing. When I was in the music
industry and I I use that word lightly. Like, I was in the industry,
but not making money in the industry. You know? It's like a feast or
famine kind of industry. But here in Atlanta, it's like I was on the
scene everywhere, performed at, like, every stage
that was available, every mic that was available, got in with some
(03:57):
labels, management, producers, studios. Like, so I was pretty ingrained in
it. But you fast
forward and to answer your question, it's like what I learned is
running a business is really the same as what I was doing as an artist
because I was self contained. Like, I wrote, I
produced, I mixed, did the vocals, of
(04:19):
course, arranged, pulled in different players,
instrumental players when I needed to. So it was all, like, orchestration.
And then it's like you have the product, you know, music being the
product, and now you have to market it. So how do you connect with the
audience? How do you where do you go? What do you say? How do you
keep that relationship going? And now I do I own
(04:41):
a marketing consulting company in Atlanta, and
everything I'm doing now is, like, exactly the playbook that I did
with the music industry. I'm just getting paid for it now and, you know, as
opposed to being a broke artist. So and it's nice. It's still, like, my passion,
and it's still still within me. Awesome.
Awesome. You've you've worked in both corporate America
(05:03):
and Azenta as a entrepreneur. What's the biggest
lesson you've learned from both? Corporate
America was good in many ways and that you it
provides structure. There was a telecom company that I work with that
had an excellent training program that I didn't realize at the time. But
when I left that company to go to smaller companies, and I was like,
(05:25):
well, when is training for this? How do you train? They're like, training? We don't
do training. So you see, you really get, like, some world class
training and, resources, and you learn some structures of
business. You learn the politics of business, but you
also have, like, the limitations and a lot of decision makers and
the politics are don't always work in your favor.
(05:47):
So that's definitely those lessons and some of those structures, like,
I can apply to how I run my business today. It's just good to
have the flexibility and the freedom to call the shots. But, you know, at the
same time, if something works, it's great. But when it doesn't work, like, it's all
on me, you know? But that's fine.
What so what what inspired you to write Finding Your
(06:10):
Edge, and how has that changed your perspective on
life? Yeah. Finding your edge was
about a ten year process for me to write, and
it really comes from my story of leaving home
when I was 20 years old to move to Atlanta, pursuing a dream,
and that dream not really panning out how
(06:33):
I had envisioned that it would. And getting to a point where this dream that
I had really became something that
was kinda ugly in a way, it was because when you really get in, you
see, like, the ins and outs of the music industry. Like, I really just want
to be an artist and perform and and affect people and
the business side and the politics. And, like, it it's a lot, and it's
(06:53):
not for everybody, and it wasn't for me. So I got to that point
where I was like, this is what I thought my life was going to be,
and now I have no idea what I wanna do. Like, I moved my whole
life, to follow a dream. So it kind of
and at the same time, you know, I was working full time. So I had
full time job doing music. So I say, like, my nine to five job was
(07:15):
telecom, and then my five to nine job was music
because I'd go home, I'd write, produce, record, perform.
But when it was kinda like this culmination of the music
fading out, and then I lost my job. So it was like
unemployment, not knowing what I was going to do
next, didn't have the, I
(07:38):
guess, the desire to continue music anymore, at least not in
the same way. So I was like, I don't know what to do now. And
went through this period of really trying to rediscover myself and find
who who am I? What am I supposed to be doing, when the dream you
thought it was kinda shatters in a way? Where do we go from here and
pick up the pieces, and how do we find purpose in life? So did
(07:59):
a lot of work on myself, ended up going back to school, getting my master's
degree, got a lot of coaching
actually through that program, did a lot of assessments on myself, a lot of
reflection. And on the flip sort, not the flip
side of that, but as life continued,
started my own marketing consultancy and really
(08:21):
hit my stride and really found joy in what I do.
And so I wrote about it and the different things that I experienced, the
different frameworks that I came up with that helped me out, kinda get out of
that rut, get out of being stuck, and really help me to discover who I
am, what my talents and passions, and tying that to my purpose. I
wrote a book about it, and that's finding your edge. And it's been really
(08:43):
helpful for me. And now it's like I have this book, which is kind of
like, I'm a messenger of hope now. So with this book, like, I
can do speaking and workshops and inspire other people because when I
tell people about the book, I tell them what I went through. They're like, wow.
Like, I've been there, or I'm there right now. Like, I hate my job. Or
it's like, I like my job, but I know I'm supposed to be doing something
(09:04):
different, but I don't know where to start. So that's
that's who I wrote the book for is people who are stuck just like I
was. Like, stuck in my mind podcast. Come on now. Oh, yeah. No. I I
feel you, man. Because, before prior to me
starting the podcast and and doing it, I didn't know
I didn't have my purpose. I didn't know what I like, I'm like, I have
(09:25):
a good paying job. I'm a I'm a pit boss in a casino,
and and I was like, what what am I
supposed to be doing? What what is what am I what am I because I
knew I knew personally I felt that I was supposed to be doing
more. Mhmm. I I I went through some some dark times
in my life. Yeah. And so it it was
(09:47):
when I when I discovered podcast, when I for me, when I started
finally got the courage Yeah. To
to press record and release my first
episode, it was like, okay. Yeah. I like
this. I I love this feeling. This feeling being able to to talk to
people and and have them share their stories, and and and it's
(10:08):
been it's been wonderful because, like, you never know what impact you're gonna
have, man. Like, I've there's people who reached out to me with some
amazing feedback. Like, yo, thank you for this
episode. I needed to hear it. Yeah. And so when you get that that kind
of feedback, you're like, okay. Yeah. I'm doing
what I'm supposed to be doing. Yeah. Can I ask you a question? Can I
(10:30):
turn the tables for a quick fix? Let's do this. Let's do this. Oh, because
you said something really profound that I I wanna dig into because I don't know
if you've talked about it on all the episodes of your podcast. But if you
have, let's bring it back up on this one. When you say the courage to
podcast, like, what was keeping you from doing it?
Oh, man. Self talk. Like Yeah. Me telling
(10:53):
myself, who's gonna wanna listen to you? Mhmm. You ain't
got no voice. Like, you like, your voice sounds horrible.
Yeah. Like, all this negative self talk within me. Like
Yeah. Just from years of people putting their their
doubts on you and everything in there. And it was like, man,
can I do this? Can I don't I don't know anything about this? I I'm
(11:15):
not I'm not a media guy. I don't I I taught I've
taught myself how to about mics. I taught myself about mixers, all this
stuff stuff. All the stuff you learned, like, you've Yeah. I'm
saying that at 44, I started learning. Yeah. And and
and and started just alright. Okay. And I just started
doing my own thing. And Yeah. And and a lot of the time, it was
(11:37):
like, okay. YouTube University, man. And and
so and so when I
finally recorded my first episode, it was me and my
nephew. I didn't I didn't have the proper hookup. I didn't Yeah. Had a a
hundred and $60 podcast studio that I bought
from Amazon. Yeah. It was a little mixer. It was a Behringer
(11:58):
mixer, with headphones and mics. I didn't even
have the proper hookup for the phone because my nephew was on the phone. So
what I was doing was holding the the phone to the mic. Like, on speaker
or something. Yeah. Yeah. He was on speaker, and he was talking on the and
and that was the that was the first episode. He was like, no. We can't
release that. I was like, no. We're gonna release that. Oh. I said, we're gonna
(12:19):
release that because I want people to see how we've grown. I
want people to see where I've started at, which was
basic Mhmm. To now where I know the difference
between a condenser mic and a dynamic mic. I know Right. What
kind of camera I wanna use. Like Mhmm. So
it for me, it was like, no. I want I want people to see the
(12:41):
progress. I want them to see that where I've how how
far I've come along Yeah. Since I started. Yeah.
No. That's great, man. I I love that story because I think so many
people that I talked to and you as well, it's like you had the
courage to do it. And I think a lot of people lose the battle in
the mind, which is stuck in my mind. Like, that that being stuck in the
(13:02):
mind will keep you from being being who you're supposed to be in this
world. Bro, and that's that was that was me. I was stuck. I was like
because I had I had I had the equipment for over a year. I I
purchased the equipment in 2019. Me and my homeboy was gonna
start a a podcast. I I got the book,
Podcasting for Dummies. Okay. And, like, we was gonna start a sports
(13:23):
podcast and everything. Yeah. And and then he him and his
girl got pregnant, and so that that kid he
got done. So I was like, I went by myself, and I was like Mhmm.
Like I said, I was all the self doubt, and I was just like, nah,
man. This don't sound I will record stuff. Nah. They don't sound right. Delete it.
Record stuff. Nah. It don't sound right. Delete it. And one day, me and my
(13:44):
nephew just here chatting up and talking and everything, and then I was like,
yo. Fuck it. Let's just
record. Yeah. Mhmm. Yeah. Put it out there, man. Just put it out
there. Yeah. That's it. And so and it was easy because I, like
yeah. I've been stuck in my mind. This is that's the name of the show,
stuck in my mind. This is and and at first, it was more
(14:06):
me. It was solo. Mhmm. Me, because
at the time, it was this George Floyd situation, the twenty twenty elections,
all this bullshit going on, the pandemic. Yeah. I was furloughed from work.
And I was just I came on, and I was just talking about what was
going on and everything. That is how I was feeling. And
then but I I was enjoying the
(14:29):
podcasting. I just wasn't enjoying the content. Right.
It it it wasn't it wasn't what I wanted because everybody was doing that. I
just, like, nah. I gotta find something else. Yeah. And
so when I started interviewing people and at first, it was hard to get
people to come, like yeah. Like, one of the first questions is,
how many downloads you get? Yeah. How many followers you have?
(14:51):
Yeah. Like streams. It's like, come on. You gonna mess with me or not? I
was like, yeah. You gonna record? Like, so I got ghosted so many times.
And Oh, yeah. And so but I kept going. I kept going.
I I linked I started connecting with people. I started I connected with this PR
guy. He started sending me guests. I started off with some
some b c d
(15:13):
celebrity. Yeah. Yeah. Nobody really major. But,
I and so it was like, alright.
Let's just and I started getting just getting into it. Then I started interviewing
friends of mine who are entrepreneurs. Yeah. And that's that's where it
started leading to and people started and people who had some amazing stories. And
Mhmm. And then it wasn't till I really started focusing on the
(15:36):
people I wanted to speak to, which was coaches,
entrepreneurs speakers, and
that things really started clicking, and things really started going
because it was something like that was something I was passionate about. That's something I've
I've always felt within me that I was a teacher and someone who wanted a
coach and Yeah. And wanted to speak. So I wanted to get the most of
(15:59):
the information from people who were doing it. Right. Right. In a way, I was
selfish on my part because I wanted to learn this information and
talk to these people. Mhmm. But at the same time, I'm sharing it with
my audience. Yeah. So it was like, okay. It's it's it's
good. It's a good thing because I'm learning. My audience is learning. People
getting being able to share their message and share their stories. So it was like,
(16:21):
alright. This is what I wanna do. Yeah. I mean, everything that you're
saying is, like, it it it's very in line with a lot of things. I
talk about my book and even my own journey, and it's like just
it doesn't have to be perfect. You know? I think a lot of times we
hold ourselves back because we're like, oh, I don't want either people to judge it,
or I I know if I put it out, it's not ready. So I wanna
(16:42):
make sure that whatever's there is my absolute best version.
And even like you said, man, if you look at your first episode and probably
the first ten episodes look nothing like they do now. You've gotten
better because you've put in the work. So it's like when you start to go
down this path of purpose, it's gonna be a little rough at first. But
you're gonna learn. You're gonna grow. You're gonna level up. And each time you step
(17:04):
out and do it, it's gonna get better and better and better. But you have
to at least start that journey in order to get where you are and
get where I am. You can't do it just being in your mind and thinking
about doing it and negating yourself before you even start.
Well, at first, I was strictly audio for the first
hundred and Wow. 32
(17:25):
episodes. Mhmm. And it was crazy because I was using StreamYard.
Right? Yeah. But, I was,
like, at first, I was over the phone. I was interviewing people over the
phone and all this stuff and to into others and through other stuff.
But then I started using StreamYard, but I was just using
the audio aspect of it. I was I was recording on my Rodecaster Pro
(17:48):
and and just interviewing people. And I interviewed a couple. They
were they were marketing specialists and everything. Okay. And the husband
goes, so do you do video? Mhmm. And I
was like, no. I'm not ready. I'm waiting for it to get perfect.
Yeah. And he goes, so you do
video? I said, no. No. No. Not yet. No. No. And then
(18:10):
the third time he goes, so so do you do do you do video?
Yes. I do. Click. There you go. Cool. Yeah. And I was and then I
knew what he was getting at. He was like, yo, just get ahead, man. Stop
stop front and just just jump right in and just oh, you're already
using the platform. Take advantage. Use the video app. Exactly. You got it. It's
included with what what you're already doing. It's it requires a little more
(18:33):
editing, but if you're creating it and you're trying also, you're trying to get your
message out so it opens you up to a whole new audience,
you know, outside of now you can put, like, the videos on YouTube and social
and all that stuff. And that and that's what it was. It was just Yep.
That was the next step. That was the next evolution of what I was doing,
and it took me it took someone just just like, yo, sure you
(18:54):
sure you don't do video? So you use the streamer, man. What you mean you
don't do video? Yeah. So Don't you love that? Like, when someone
just someone because it was a guest on your show. Right? Mhmm.
Yeah. Someone that you you didn't have a history with just popped in your life
for this podcast, and just some stranger asks
you a single question that totally, like, changes thing. Like, one question,
(19:16):
and you're like, wow. Like, that's dope, man. Yeah. He flipped he flipped
he flipped it off my head. So I was like, you know what? Yeah. You
know right? He I I feel you. I I like, yeah. I get it. Now
I I understand what you're trying to say, man. And so right right there, I
was like, yeah. I do video. Yep. That's it. You
don't look back. You know? Oh, definitely not. Definitely not. So so
(19:38):
what's what's one of the most common mistakes people make in digital
marketing today? Oh, man. Digital marketing
today, yeah, there there's many common mistakes. I think one is people
who just follow all the trends, and they
try to gain or game the algorithms, trying to do
what's popular because that will only get you so far.
(20:01):
Following trends, doing what's popular will allow you to have a
moment, but not spending enough time and attention on
creating your own brand and your own strategy that's actually
gonna be a viable product or service, you know,
five years from now. Like, that's you know, we're chasing short term
success as opposed to, like, the long term game. You gotta play the long game
(20:23):
in business and marketing. And what's crazy is, like, a
lot of times, the people that have success that are creating the
trends, like, they're the ones benefiting because they're, like, the
first to the market. You know? If you're the first one to do it or
the first few to do it, you're the one that's going to benefit the most.
But then all these other people see that, oh, that's what's working, or
(20:44):
you probably heard this a million times. That's what I have to do. I have
to do this to do x y z. And I just wanna say, no. You
don't. You can do that. But my whole thing is, like,
if everybody else is doing it, what makes you so
different? You know? Like, you're not standing out. So
you have to do something a little bit. You can't follow and chase the trends.
(21:05):
Like, and and I've posted content on my social. Like, I'm not
doing some dance trends. I'm not doing any of that.
And it's not because I can't dance. I mean, I'm okay. I don't profess to
be a dancer, but I'm not selling myself out for the content. I need to
be true to me, and I think brands and marketers need to be true to
who you are and who the brand is. And if there's a a time that
(21:26):
you can be genuine and authentic and hop into a
trend, cool. But don't let that shape the
direction of where your brand is going. And then you're absolutely
right. There's there's been plenty of times I've been wanting, like, I won't do that
to go to go viral or whatever, but I'm like, nah. That's not who I
am. Exactly. I I love the clips that I do for my show. I
(21:47):
love uploading those instead of instead of doing this because the most common
dance there the trending dance that everyone's doing or the trending thing. I was like,
no. Let me just be true to who I am and upload clips of my
show because this is what I love. And and and the people I have on
the show has have something beneficial. Yeah.
Is it is it it's blowing up? Nah. But it's getting to enough people.
(22:10):
If I impact one person's life, I'm doing something I'm I'm doing what I'm supposed
to be doing. Yeah. That's it. And and you're you're the boss of your
podcast. Nobody is telling you you have to make this content.
So whatever you put out into the world, your digital footprint,
all this is your brand. So when you put your head on that pillow to
go to sleep at night, it's like, do I feel good about what I'm putting
(22:32):
out? And if I'm not being authentic, if I'm not being true, if I'm not
making an impact, like, I don't feel good. So I'm I'm not
gonna do it. And I have that freedom. You have that freedom. Nobody's telling us
what to create. Give me 5,000, like,
active, engaged followers who really are looking for life
change or tips on marketing as opposed to 5,000,000 followers who
(22:52):
are just gonna talk trash about me on anything I post. I could say
something positive. They're like, I don't like this haircut. You know?
I'm like, my content isn't for you. Like, if you wanna grow, you wanna learn,
man, check-in with me. You know, I I'd rather have the real people
than a number. It's not about the vanity metrics. It's it isn't. It
really isn't. And like you said, I I'll I'll be happy with a thousand
(23:15):
loyal people who just tune in in and and listen. Because that that to
me, it's like, yeah, like, I'm impacting a thousand people's lives, man.
Right. Right. Tuning in and listening. I'm like and watching the videos.
And and, again, it's not like I have
it's not like, okay. Yeah. All these big name podcast, yeah,
they they have backing. They they've been doing the feed. Yeah.
(23:37):
Now I'm I'm I'm going in my fifth year now, but Awesome. I've
I've built this up. I I like this is something I I can be proud
of. I built this up from the ground. Nobody can say, oh, yeah. I I
did this for you. No, man. I built this. Yeah. I worked hard. I put
my blood, sweat, and tears into this. And so that
that right there for me is like, oh, man. Yeah. I did
(23:59):
I did something. I accomplished something. I got something done. So it's
something that I I'm very proud of, and and, hopefully, I can inspire
people to be like, yo. Listen. I'm I'm a kid from Brooklyn.
Mhmm. I this wasn't my my this
wasn't in in my like, I didn't have this vision of me
doing this and and being a podcast and everything. It was it's
(24:21):
something that I did I did, and I and I fell in love with
it. Yeah. And then it's giving me purpose now. It's giving me something like,
alright. This is what I wanna do. I wanna help people. I want people to
know Yeah. That I'm the only ones out there struggling. There's there's other
people, like, out that that started from
nowhere and and build something up. And and so I could
(24:42):
inspire people to to change their lives and see that,
hey, man. These are just regular folks. Exactly.
And and look what they're doing. Why can't I do this? Right. I mean,
everybody starts with zero followers. You know? And
when you build something that's yours and you start to get the followers,
(25:03):
and, again, not necessarily the followers, but the impact. You know? When you get those
comments, they're like, wow. That was thank you for what you said, or
that episode really impacted me. Like, that's that is the
payment. You know, that's the gratification. And you said it
like you're this is like purpose
driven work. This is like you do this. You feel like you're fulfilling your purpose
(25:24):
And you sharing your experience and
shining light on others and encouraging others to follow their
own path, you know, and and find their purpose, you
can vouch for, and I can too, like, what life is like now that you
are doing something. You've hit your stride versus what your
life used to be like. And you can have a a regular nine to five
(25:46):
job and still do something where you're fulfilling your purpose outside of
work. You know? It doesn't have to be like your nine to five is your
purpose is you're living your purpose. You know? Sometimes that's not how it is.
Your purpose is not a job. It's Mhmm. It's your life. It's
it's what your legacy is. And and that's what I kind of prior to that,
it was like, I was kinda getting it confused and mixed up and twisted.
(26:08):
And when I started the podcast, it was like, this is it. Right?
Yeah. I I I the the nine to five pays the
jobs. Right. Pay pay for my bills. That that pays the
bills and everything. This here feeds my soul. Yeah.
This here feeds me the energy and the and
and what I love to do and and and to see the impact and
(26:30):
to hear from the people. Mhmm. That right there drives
me. Yeah. Like, yeah, my job pays the bills, but this
year, like I said, this pay this fills my soul.
Yeah. And for you, it's podcasting. For someone
listening, it might be volunteering or What You know? Whatever it is.
Yeah. It might be carpentry. It's like like, that's my
(26:52):
encouragement. It's like, find if you're living in life right now and your
soul is not being fed in the way that you're talking about,
like, find what that is. And if you're like, well, how do I find if
I don't know where to look? Like, that's when you have to pause, and you
have to do some work on yourself. Get my book. My book
isn't the only personal development book. If you don't wanna get my book, don't get
my book. But get do something. You know? Check-in with, a
(27:14):
counselor or a coach. Even your family is what I found is, like because we
get so stuck in our head. And just asking them, what what do you
think I'm good at? You know, just from the outside. Close friends, close
family, if you're really trying to figure out that next direction to go.
You know? You can look inward, but look externally as well. Yeah. Definitely. Definitely.
And and I'm blessed, man. I my my nephew, he's like like
(27:37):
I said, he was the first one that I had, and we had him on
the phone with me and everything. Mhmm. And we've been able to publish his
book. He he's he he published one book prior, but then together,
me and him published a second book. Wow. And that one that one was much
more into, self development and and all
that. So Yeah. I love the fact that I helped Tim get
(27:59):
that to go and and launch that and and and and Right. And
accomplish that. And so then I have my wife
who's who, like I was I was a gamer, man. I used to play when
I come home from work, I spent hours gaming. Yeah. And so when I
started podcasting, she was like, yo,
this dude don't even pick up his his controller no more. Like,
(28:20):
like, she came to me and be like, yo, she says, I know
you you're serious about what you're doing right now. Now. Mhmm. So, you know, I
know you're serious because your PlayStation is over there collecting dust. Wow. And
you're over here recording, and and she lets me record.
She she goes, go do you. She's like, yeah. Well, what can we
do to start making this into something that's
(28:41):
gonna be profitable or whatever it is? She helped me launch my LLC,
do it all do all that. So I'm glad to have
that support. Yeah. But what I like
about what you said is you took a step to what I call
eliminating distractions. So you enjoyed gaming, but it was
also a distraction that was keeping you from your purpose.
(29:04):
Yeah. And at some point, you got the wisdom to say, you know
what? This purpose piece matters more to me than playing this game.
And finding a way to not finding a way, just being like, I'm not playing
anymore. Because I've I've had similar things, like, back in my twenties. Like, I love
to play, like, NCAA college football, you know, EA sports.
Like, I'm like, I'm just gonna play one game. And I play one game, and
(29:27):
then let's run it back. You know? You play two games. Let's run it back.
And before you know it, like, you've played, like, eight hours of
games back to back to back. And I'm like, man, I do not want this
to be my life. Like, there's other things that I wanna do with my life.
And so it got to a point where I was like, I'm getting rid of
this. PlayStation is going. And I haven't had one since. I know they they dropped
(29:49):
the NCAA, football this year. Back. Yeah. I know. And I I
was like, oh, man. I wanna get my favorite game. I ain't gonna lie. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. Football is one of my best favorite games to play, man.
And and so I was like, do I wanna get a PlayStation? I was like,
no. No. That's where I was. Exactly. I was like, no. Nope.
Nope. Nope. Because I I need to just keep that. You have to know what
(30:09):
those distractions are. And especially if you can't control, you know,
because that you you think you're just going to do something, but that addiction or
however your brain functions, it's like it just needs that little extra.
But I have zero regrets. You know? And and I'm sure you do as don't
have any as well because you're still podcasting five years later, like you
said. So, you know, you there are things that you enjoy. And when you're on
(30:32):
that path of purpose, you have to say no to things that you enjoy
because there's something bigger waiting for you. So it's like, what are you
willing to sacrifice to really have this life for you and for your family? And
those are the questions you have to ask yourself. Yeah. It is definitely
something I was like, you know, nah. I I love this. This is
Yeah. Like I said, she she's she's seen to love it from she like
(30:56):
and and, honestly, my wife hasn't hasn't heard one single
episode. Yeah. Not a one. But she she shit.
She wear my merch. She she oh, my husband gotta put go to the next
podcast or listen to my husband's podcast. Yeah. She she's my number one fan
without hearing an episode. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It was like Hey, man. This
past, September, I went to
(31:18):
Pittsburgh, and I went to a an I did an event with a a
fellow podcaster that I met couple years, and he he opened
a podcasting studio in Pittsburgh. Cool. And and I I I was
that's, like, four or five hours for me, but me and my wife drove over
over there. Another podcast that we that we connected with that
we're friends with came from Ohio, and we hosted a a a
(31:40):
two day event. It was for international
podcast. They failed fell on that
Monday, the thirtieth. So Okay. That Saturday and Sunday,
we did a two day event, and that was the first time she ever actually
saw one of my shows. Oh, wow. Okay. I had a guest come I
had a guest virtually, and I was on stage interviewing the person. And
(32:02):
Oh, you're doing it live? Yeah. I did it live. Cool. Cool.
That was the first time she ever watched one of my shows and or ever.
Yeah. Like so and then she got she got she got to interact, and then
she got to be on stage and do some stuff. Oh, awesome. So it was
it was cool. So now this year, again, we're we're we're expanding
it. We it's still two days, but we're trying to get people come to come
(32:23):
a couple of days early or whatever. We're trying to have a a
a get together that Friday Okay.
And then having the whole having the event. And we're trying to get more people
to come to the studio, which to the theater. Okay. Yeah. And
and and and be a part live from the theater. Yes. We're gonna have
virtual shows because not everyone's gonna be able to make it to Pittsburgh. Sure.
(32:44):
Yeah. But we've we've been promoting that. I've been every time I get a
chance to talk about it, I talk about it. And so
we wanted to become a a yearly thing where we we go on
stage, and we give these podcasters a platform where they should go
out and shine. Yeah. No. I love that, man. Like, building a a
community for podcasters because they may have that here in Atlanta. I'm not sure. I
(33:07):
just started podcasting, few months ago. So I just
wrapped for season one of my show. How did you love how did you like
it? Man, I enjoyed it, man. Like, my my biggest challenge was, like,
what do I wanna talk about? And that's because I've been wanting to podcast for
years. But in my mind, I'm like, man, what do I wanna talk
about for, like, 500 episodes? You know? And there's, like,
(33:28):
nothing. There's nothing that I'm, like, that interested in that I wanna talk about for
500 episodes. And then it's like, why would someone wanna listen to me for
500 episodes? That's, like, negative self talk in a way.
However, I'm like, I I will get bored talking, and I don't don't
wanna have to, like, chase down, like, guests for 500 episodes. So
I decided with my podcast, I'm doing seasons. So season
(33:50):
one is about one topic. Season two will be about another topic.
So every season will be like a different topic. And so season one was
about digital fundraising, and digital marketing for nonprofits because I
do a lot of work with nonprofits, and I wrote a book about it. Season
two, which I'm actually about to start recording, is really based on my book.
So, like, the, life transformation and personal
(34:13):
development. So I have 10 episodes of that. But, no, I'm enjoying it, man. Like,
I I knew I would want to. Like, this mic was the same mic that
I used back when I was doing music. Like, it's really the only piece of
equipment that I never got rid of because I was like, I paid too much
for this mic. And I'll probably use it one day. I don't know when, but
I will use it one day. Yeah. So I held on to it. Oh, no.
Your mic you sound good, bro. Yeah. I appreciate that. You got that voice. You
(34:35):
got that voice. It's that that that Neumann TLM mic. So I was watching it.
And, yeah, there was, like, a a documentary on, Billie
Eilish on Apple a couple years ago, and I saw she actually had the same
mic. I was like, oh, alright. I have the same the the pros
use it. It's a good mic, so I can't get rid of it. Good thing
you did, man. Because now look. Look at you. You you're being a guest on
(34:57):
podcast. You have your own podcast. So, yeah, it's a good thing you didn't get
rid of it. Trying to be like you, man. That's all. Yep. Oh,
thank thank you. So what
what's you you talk about unlocking your edge in your book. Right?
So how can someone start discovering their own edge today?
Yeah. And an edge is it's an acronym. So finding your
(35:19):
edge, and this is what I walk through. It's a framework that I walk through
in my book, and it's eliminate distractions, discover
yourself, generate goals, and enact discipline.
And it's really step by step by step. When you're doing this work on yourself
and really trying to unlock your purpose, you have to
start with eliminating distractions. Like, your life changed whenever you put that
(35:41):
PlayStation down as did mine because you can't really start that work of discovery
on yourself if you're still distracted by whatever it is. It can be gaming. It
can be food. It can be television. It can be toxic friends,
relationships. Like, these are all distractions. So I kinda help in my
book. Like, let's identify what these distractions are, then the
path of discovery. So now that we've eliminated these distractions, we're
(36:04):
in a mindset where we can really focus in on who we
are. So there's some assessments you can take. I talk about
different tips and ways that you can do this discovery work on yourself in the
book. And then once you learn more about yourself, you're now
coming from a position of having just this knowledge
more of who you are, what you're capable of, what stirs your heart. And now
(36:26):
when you're generating goals, it's not how you feel in the moment or
based on this experience last week at work. It's based on
who you are and what your gifts are. And creating
those goals around that and then enacting discipline is really having
that tenacity and perseverance to get up every
day and work towards these goals in this better life that you want
(36:48):
for yourself. So that's really what the book is about. So how do you find
your edge? It's really you have to do the work to do it. My book
is a resource that walks you through my model, and, you know,
it has reflections, journal reflections at the end of every chapter, which
I've gotten some great feedback on. People like, man, these are really good challenging
questions that have helped me learn about myself, or people
(37:10):
have sent me messages saying there are pieces in your book that have made me
think about things I haven't had to really address or think
about since my childhood. And it's really opened me up, like, you know,
finding what that joy is in your life. So that's it's really good to hear
that because I the book for me was therapeutic because it was just me
writing about what helped me writing about my experiences. It's also good to
(37:33):
hear that when other people read it, they can share their own
experience and relate to that as well and and get something from it that has
caused some positivity and movement in their life.
Yeah, man. Just listening to it, I'm like, man, I'm following
my edge. Yeah. You are, man. Yeah. You are. Or sir
certainly, you don't need my book. My book is not for you
(37:55):
are not the target market. It's not. I'm I'm gonna get it to support, bro.
Plus, I wanna read it. I appreciate it. Yeah. I'm sure there's something in there
that I can take from it, man. Definitely. Man. Definitely, I'm
gonna definitely go get it and and read it because,
just from you talking, and I'm like, man, that's something I I think I might
be interested in reading. So, yeah, definitely. Yeah. I mean, it's good. I I go
(38:16):
back and reread parts of it at times because there are a lot of questions,
and and I think there's questions even though we ask them of ourselves and we
answer them, it's good to go back and review those
questions. And because you forget about this, the brain can only hold so much.
Yeah. So there's times that I'll go back, to the questions at the end of
the chapters, and I'm like, man, I forgot about this. And your answers may be
(38:37):
different because you may have grown past where you were when
you, you know, you definitely grown where you were from a year ago, hopefully.
But if you do if you read my book and you read it again five
years later, you've grown. So the way that you answer the questions will be different,
and it can still challenge you. It still challenges me. Oh, yeah.
No. I've I've I've grown so much in the
(38:59):
past five years, man, since I started this. And even even with
this year now, having my surgery and and knowing that I gotta
this is a change of lifestyle for me now. I gotta change the way I
eat. I gotta do so many different things because I it was like,
I got so much stuff I gotta do and get like, I have, like, I
have purpose. I have something I need to get accomplished. There's so many other
(39:22):
people I I wanna impact and so many other different things I wanna start
doing. And I just I I didn't have the
energy Mhmm. Where I was at. And now
Right. After the surgery, I I wake up, like, yeah, first week, I
was I'm I've been sore and all that and everything. Mhmm. But I wake up
with a different energy now. Yeah. I'm like, okay. I'm more. I'm more.
(39:43):
And and and losing the weight and everything else. Mhmm. You
can see like, my feet used to swell up, bro. My
feet used to swell up because of the weight and everything. Mhmm. I have
ankles again. I joke with my wife, and I'll be like, yo, I got my
ankles back. I can see my ankles. You're like, I'm bringing ankles
back. Yep. There you go. You're bringing those ankles
(40:05):
back. Come on now. Yeah. So it's it's been it's been like, yo.
Yeah. This is this is life altering and changing
and and and but it's something that I needed. And and
I've also decided that something that, from
from earlier this month, I I, I connected with, I
actually connected with her last month on this
(40:27):
show that I do with my friend, called Rise and Out and
Outshine. Actually, I would like if you wanna,
I I wanna link you up with us so you can so you can be
do so you can do your show on it. It's it's a a show that
we do go call rise and shine where we have podcasters
come on, do ten, fifteen minutes of their podcast,
(40:48):
and and people who actually tell they they leave they
they, they could they leave, like, oh, what did
you like about it? Did you like his audio, his video, and all that? And
they'll leave words about what kind of, they'll leave message
words saying, like, oh, man. This this this episode was
amazing. Education. I was smart. Whatever whatever they they wanna put out
(41:10):
there. And so I I met, Nina Nina Perez.
Shout out, Nina. And,
she came on the show, but she didn't have a guest, and she didn't have
a video clip or whatever. So she said, yo, why? Can I
interview you? I was like, yeah. Sure. Let's let's do this. Even though I was
hosting a show, but I was like, alright. Let's do this. And she she interviewed
(41:31):
me, and we had we had a great conversation. It was ten, fifteen
minutes. And she was like, yo, I need to have you on my show.
Yeah. Like, alright. Cool. So That's awesome. Her show. I
I did her show. We we had a great time. I actually Oh, cool.
We actually recorded an episode for my show. I released it about,
prior to me going in for surgery and everything. Yeah.
(41:55):
And she she had a course before like, course,
a five day course. You are free, a five day course. And Yeah. And I
signed up. Like, I received the email, and I signed
up. And she doesn't really coach men. She she her her
things help and empower women and all that. Yeah. But I signed up
for the course, and and it was
(42:18):
it was impactful for me. It was, like, it was something where,
I realized, like, I need to me personally
improve my relationship with God. I'm not a religious person. I'm not gonna tell
you I go to church every Sunday because that that I'm, like, I'm not gonna
say I I read the Bible every day now. Mhmm. But it was
that those five days of
(42:39):
of her teachings and and speaking and and
everything she told me to do and and things that I started doing,
it it was impactful. It made me realize, you know, I I want to
improve my relationship with God. I I want I want to
be able to communicate with him more. And and so
one of the first things she had me do was write a letter,
(43:02):
and and I wrote my letter. Wow. And it's
crazy because I wrote the letter, and
I I let my wife read it and everything. Mhmm. And
so a situation came where my wife
was she put me in the she put me on the spot.
And she's like, okay. You wanna do coaching? I got
(43:25):
a situation for you. And Yeah. She put me on the spot and had me
do a coaching session. Wow. And it was amazing. I
was like at first, I was like at first, I was like, nah. She's like,
you could because it was something it was family issue and and Okay.
Like, nah. She's like, I was gonna go sit in the room and and let
her handle it. And she was like, no. No.
(43:47):
I read you a letter. I heard I read I read your letter, and I
know what you wanna do and get Wow. You know, here's the perfect opportunity. And
it was it was it was Yeah. Yeah. Parents are like, oh, man.
Oh, that's great. I could do this. And and when she's told me, she's
like and she see me at work and me talking and do
it. And she was like, that's my man. Like, yo, you
(44:09):
you could do this. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I was like, yo. Thank you.
Like, like, I might have to start adding coaching to the repertoire.
Yeah. It it it was amazing. And then I also wrote, I
wrote a prayer that I say every morning now. Awesome. That's great, man. Yeah.
So so now it was like it was
just impactful for me in in in a way. And it was like
(44:32):
and I wasn't like, my surgery looked like I wasn't gonna have my surgery. Right?
Mhmm. Okay. Things started falling into place. Things happened.
I I was able to get a a a search term procedure done
in order for me to because I was supposed to get it done December
24. Mhmm. And something happened where they they this
the the anesthesiologist
(44:55):
didn't feel comfortable with doing the surgery. Wow. Because he didn't feel
he didn't feel so I had to cancel it. So Yeah. Yeah. When I told
my surgeon this, it it looked so like, oh, we're gonna have to
push back the surgery to March. Yeah. Mhmm. So it looked like I was so
Oh, wow. I got like, all the progress that I've done Yeah. I
was gonna get pushed back to March. And my surgeon said
(45:17):
he worked that worked it out. And, actually, because I wasn't
gonna get the procedure done till February. Okay. The procedure that
that was supposed to do December 24. They had they didn't have no openings till
February. Oh. And my surgeon was like, nah. He
got it done. Yep. From and right right after I
had all this stuff that I put out there, you know, and he got he
(45:39):
got me an appointment where I got it done on the fifteenth of this
month. That's awesome. So I was able to keep my my
surgery date for the twenty first. Mhmm. And it was like,
man. Just just just just by
me, when did just the energy
I'm putting out and the and the message and and the talking to to God
(46:01):
and all this, things are just falling into place.
It is. It's like that's how God uses people, you
know, because I'm spiritual guy. And it's like Yeah. When you're doing
the work, like, there's you're gonna find
those blessings because you're you're in a position where you have a voice, you have
a platform, you're doing good in the world and things will come in
(46:23):
place. You start aligning yourself and making those moves, like doors
will open for you. And this is an example of how that works.
You know? It's to me, it's like I look at life in general,
and I talk about five forces of balance, which are like your
family, your professional life, your health, your spiritual
life, and then like your personal life. I'm not talk about these in the
(46:46):
book. But what you touched on with the spiritual life, if you have all this
other stuff going for you, but you don't have the spiritual life, then there's a
piece that's missing, you know? You know? On the flip side, it's like,
if spiritual is good and job is good, health is good, but
you're a terrible spouse or parent, like, man, you gotta do some
work on the family piece, you know, because it all is these
(47:07):
are the the forces that really help you to be
complete and and have that joy in life. And, like, I do
assessments, like, once or twice a year. Like, I'll rank myself in these. Like, on
a scale of one to five, how how am I doing in my family life
and spiritual and personal, professional? And it really
helps me to just to be conscious of it and be intent or make make
(47:28):
moves with intent with how I I live my life, the choices
that I make, and things like that. Oh, yeah, man.
Definitely. Definitely. Oh, man. The time is flying by. You feel like we
just been conversating. And that's what I love about this. It's like Yeah. Yeah. I
have questions I wanna ask, but then we start really getting to conversating
and talking, and we get started. Yeah. And and it's just like Three hours later,
(47:51):
here we are. Yeah. But,
bro, I appreciate this time, man. Oh, thank you. This is this is this
has been amazing. Yep. But now comes the time where you get the
solo screen and you get to share and plug away and and let everybody
know when when you get the solo screen now. Okay.
Cool. So, yeah, I'm Jeremy Hazelwood. You can find me at
(48:12):
JeremyHazelwood.com. You see my name here if you're watching it on YouTube. If you're
listening on the podcast, it's Hazelwood, h a s e l w o
o d. My book, my latest book is Finding Your Edge,
How to Unlock Your Talent and Purpose. It's available on Amazon,
Kindle, Apple Books, Audible. So
check it out there. If you are interested in coaching, I do offer a coaching
(48:34):
course as well. So you can follow me on Instagram, jeremy
dot hazelwood. Or if you work somewhere
and you want me to come lead a workshop or speak in an event, just
connect with me on LinkedIn. So I appreciate your time today as a
listener. Hopefully, you picked up something from this conversation that will
inspire you and cause you to take that step, that next
(48:56):
action that you need to take to be on that path of purpose. So, yeah,
thank you for your time today.
I appreciate it, man. I time time like, I usually I usually
try to keep it between thirty five, forty five minutes,
but it was such you know, when you just start talking to people that you
Yeah. Enjoy talking with and and just that connection going
(49:18):
and and you just start having a great conversation. Like, you just don't
know, man. Just keep it going. Yeah. Yeah. But but I
appreciate you, brother, man. I I thank you for coming on the show, man. I
definitely would love to have you back on because there's other questions I wanna get
I wanna ask you Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And all that. But I I definitely would
love to have you back on once again. And and,
(49:38):
hopefully, if you got something you wanna promote then too, you definitely come back
on and promote it. And, yeah, man, I appreciate you being on. But don't
leave this yet. Let me close out the show. But, thank you, man. I
appreciate this. Thanks, Will. Great. Thank you, man. I appreciate it. Thanks.
Yep. Alright, everybody.
Another episode is in the books. Shout out to
(50:02):
everybody who who sent me love and support. I appreciate you all, man.
Thank you for all the messages, the the calls.
Is is this just just another step in me in
my growth and development, and and me changing my life, and and
health was one of the keys. Health,
spiritual, all these are two steps that I I need I I
(50:25):
knew that I needed work on, and I'm I'm very glad that I I've I've
started those processes and and started changing my
life. But thank you everybody out there who supported the supported me and
and has helped the podcast grow. I greatly do appreciate
it, man. Shout out to, Poppy j, my brother.
Nothing but love for you, man. Thank you for the support. Shout out to the
(50:47):
boss lady. Appreciate everything you do and and
and everything you continue to do for our family. And and
as always, shout out to all the essential workers out there. God bless y'all. Be
safe. You know how your boy, Wise, does it. Peace out.
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