Podcast Transcription

Melina: Hey, the music is on.

David: Check one-two, check.

Spoon: Hey, guys.

Melina: Yeah. Check one-two. The music is on. I’m getting ready to introduce in just a second.

Spoon: She’s getting ready.

Melina: Welcome to “Flippin’ Off,” a purpose-driven podcast about flipping houses and making a difference.

David: I’ll start.

Melina: All right. Well, this is a…

David: Hey, what’s up guys? Sorry, I was actually looking at a picture of Rosario’s work.

Melina: Oh, nice. Excellent.

David: He just put an icemaker in.

Melina: Oh, cool.

David: So, anyway, welcome, everybody. It’s been a little while. We took a little break recently and it was a much-needed break. We needed to take some time to just kind of recollect. I think everybody needed some time to get a clear idea about what it is we’re gonna do and the direction we’re going. We’ve got a lot of new things to share. This podcast is gonna be really just a conversation about where we are as a club, as a family, and where we’re headed, right?

Melina: Yeah.

David: So, yeah. How are you feeling?

Melina: It’s so funny. I feel like…First of all, I’m not wearing my headphones right now, which is a funny thing, which helps me to feel more like we’re having a conversation. It’s interesting, the headphones, when you have them on, you feel like you’re in performance mode. And I think I’m done being the performer. So, there’s a lot to share. I was just thinking about the last podcast we did, I think, what have we been off now for maybe two or three months? Is that about right? Something like that. Yeah.

David: Pretty close.

Melina: It’s just 2020, right? It’s just been the most absurd year of all. It’s been…yeah. And I was thinking if I was gonna describe 2020 in a few words, what would it be? Anyway, welcome back, guys. And we probably have everybody…so everybody knows who’s in the room right now, part of this podcast. So, we’ve got Oscar Solares.

Oscar: Hello, everyone.

Melina: We have Adriana “Spoon” Uribe.

Spoon: Hey, guys.

Melina: We have Christian “The Rock” Rios.

Christian: Hey, guys. Yeah. I like it. I like it. Let’s go with that.

Melina: We have John “The Brit” Slater.

John: Hi. Welcome.

Man: That was awesome.

Melina: Thank you. Thank you. And Andrew “The Squirrel” Boswell.

Andrew: Combat squirrel.

Melina: Combat squirrel. Combat squirrel. So, David, you really wanted to talk about the name of this podcast. Just so everybody knows, this is kind of how these things happen. David said, “I think the name of this podcast should be ‘Traditions That Transition.'” So, could you share a little bit about what your thoughts were?

David: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I was just gonna go there, actually. For me, these podcasts, it’s been something I haven’t wanted to just pull out content out of nowhere. We got kind of to a place where we were dealing with a lot of things and so it was difficult to even have normal conversations. And so to try to pull out any kind of fluff and talk about, you know, real estate or things, it was just becoming difficult. So, for me, this podcast is very relevant to our…

Melina: We’re already feeling emotional.

David: Yeah. It’s very relevant to our everyday lives right now, and so I felt for us to come back and really talk about what’s important and what route, you know, where we really are just makes the most sense. So, “Traditions That Transition.” So, every year for the past 40-plus years, we’ve had a tradition in our family that my grandfather and his buddy started back in the ’50s. And it’s an annual dove hunt river trip, so down to Parker, Arizona. And it’s honestly one…it was a staple in my family. My brother and I got to go when we were 12. It’s something we look forward to, the hunt for…I don’t know. Since we were 8 or 9, we were being told about the hunt, and so we were always really excited and anxious to get going. And then we finally got out there and it was just as much fun as we all anticipated. And the tradition carried on through years.

Melina: I think it’s important to share, like, the actual tradition because it’s like a really, really big deal because I am my dad’s only daughter, his only kid, right? So, it’s really for boys.

David: Yeah.

Melina: Boys only.

David: Right.

Melina: And so since I’m my dad’s only kid, and I’m a girl, I literally since I could remember…

David: Park girl.

Melina: Yeah, park girl. Tried to convince, coerce, badger my dad into letting me go. In fact, there’s pictures of me even when he’d be getting ready for the hunt, like, I’d put on all of his camo gear and, like, was holding his shotgun. I have on everything. And my dad was like, “Yeah, you still can’t come.” So, I have never been allowed to go. So, the tradition is that the boys, it’s on their…It was your 11th birthday, right?

David: Twelfth.

Melina: Twelfth birthday, you get a shotgun. On their 12th birthday, they get a shotgun and they get to go on the hunt that year that they get the shotgun, but they’re not allowed to shoot.

David: We shot the first year.

Melina: You did?

David: Mm-hmm.

Melina: You went the year before, though. You went the year before, the year before you got your shotgun. That’s right.

David: Yeah. The first year we went, 11, but we didn’t shoot.

Melina: Yeah. So, you’re not allowed to shoot. You have to bird dog and you have to actually watch…you have to be the bird dog and you have to learn and all the etiquette.

David: I was actually thinking about that and I do think the reason that happened was because I was almost…I was gonna be 12 that year.

Melina: In November.

David: In November, but the hunt is…

Melina: September 1st.

David: …on September, so they kind of just let me come because I couldn’t hunt until you…you can’t hunt until you’re 12, but I was gonna…So, it just worked out that we went that year. Anyway.

Melina: Anyway, so, the point is, is that only boys get to go.

David: Right.

Melina: And so then there’s other traditions when you shoot your first bird.

David: Yeah, yeah. Well, there’s also you have to bird dog everybody’s birds the first year. So, not only do you have to retrieve your own birds, but you get to bird dog everybody, all the other guys. And then this might be a little graphic for some but part of the…I mean, if you hunt at all, it’s no big deal, but…So, yeah. You gotta bite the head off the dove. That’s pretty much how it goes. So, I mean, you clean and field dress your birds either way. Everything comes off.

Melina: If you could see John’s face. Oh, I have pictures of both of my boys biting the head off, I mean, literally biting the head off the doves.

David: Yeah, yeah.

Melina: It’s a beautiful tradition.

David: It’s just a part of the tradition in order to come on the trip.

Christian: So, were you able to go before Andrew or did you guys go…?

Melina: Yeah.

David: Mm-hmm.

Christian: Okay. So, once you’re 12 then Andrew was able to go too.

David: Yeah. I was a few years ahead of him.

Andrew: And then I waited and then I went the next year and bird dogged and then I went…

Christian: So, David is making Andrew jealous for price…two years.

David: That’s one of the perks, I guess, for being an older brother.

Melina: And meanwhile, I’m hating every minute of it.

David: So, yeah. The tradition, in order to go, you have to…Like I said, you field dress the birds after you shoot them and get them prepared to cook. But part of the gnarly tradition is you gotta put the head in your mouth and off with it.

Melina: That’s exactly what it sounds like.

David: So, it’s not only, like, a time for family, but it’s, you know, traditions in that aspect, and then the rest of the time is just kind of guy time hanging out just kind of getting away. Yeah. To maybe shift a little bit, in my younger years, it wasn’t really…Okay. So, here’s the truth. What I realized is that every year in spite of how awesome the river trip is and how much fun we all have, there’s a group of people that it’s not so fun for. That’s my wife, my kids. And it actually was that way since I got married. It was always difficult on them. It’s not the worst thing in the world but they didn’t like it. They don’t like me leaving. It’s not comfortable for your spouse when you’re doing things like that. Trust has to be involved, obviously, but either way just being gone for that amount…it’s usually like a 10 to 14-day trip. So, just being gone for that amount of time, it’s taxing on a family. So, this year specifically, you know, our grandpa, he’s 83 and so he’s…To tell you the truth, this year he wouldn’t have been…had it not been for Andrew and I just kind of basically dragging him out. He’s got an old ’70s Bluebird motorhome that is a staple in the park that we go to every year. And so it doesn’t have air conditioning. It’s an old diesel and it is about 165 degrees in the desert. And poor Andrew has to drive the Bluebird through the desert. We put Papa in the truck with me, pulling the boat. And so it’s a mission to get down there. It’s a lot of work, but we’re so grateful for, you know, the tradition being passed to us that Papa still wants to go and we’re gonna do…you know what I mean? We’re able-bodied. We’re gonna get him there. So, we jumped through all the hoops to get down there but this year, and I think because we’ve taken on so much more of a role in planning and specifically this year because of COVID and because of some family illnesses, my grandpa’s buddy wasn’t able to come. His name is Larry. And Larry is always at the river. He’s there before everybody and then he’s there after. Before everybody comes and still there after everybody leaves and he just books his trip for, you know, outrageous days.

Melina: Like 20 days, I think.

David: Yeah. And this year, he wasn’t there at all. And it’s just…I mean, the campfire stories, even though we don’t have campfires at the river, it’s too hot, but we sit around and, you know, BS, and the stories from Larry are just…It’s a great time. It’s super epic. It’s stuff you don’t hear anywhere else. Larry was actually a prison guard in…where is it? Somewhere in, I think, Barstow. Do you know?

Melina: Lompoc.

Andrew: Lompoc.

David: He’s a prison guard in Lompoc. Lompoc? Lompoc. Lompoc. Lompoc? All right. Okay. So, the stuff that guy hears, comes up with, it’s different every year. It’s just chaos. It’s awesome. But he wasn’t there this year. His son is there usually like most of the days with him but this year his son came for like four days. And so I had a lot of time with Papa. I was there for a little bit by myself. I had a lot of time to just kind of think about the trip and what it’s gonna look like in coming years as my grandfather’s too old and tired to come. How is this gonna look? I realized, like, how difficult it is on my family and how much I hate being there without my family. But the deal always was… So, I asked my grandpa, “Why is it that no women or kids are allowed?” I mean, I get that, you know, it’s during Labor Day weekend, and it’s not the greatest place for kids. It gets a little crazy. There’s people drinking all over the place. So, it’s not the most ideal place for kids, still there’s a bunch of kids out there. So, as we started talking about it, he was like…Well, actually, I told my grandpa and he said, “That was always Larry’s idea.” Larry is a prison guard. He’s just…we love Larry to death. He’s an honest man, but he’s a dirty man at the same time. He’s a dirty, dirty dog. And so that was…

Melina: He wants to say what he wants to say and doesn’t wanna…He won’t speak in front of women.

David: That he cares and loves about. Yeah. And he doesn’t want…yeah, he never wanted those women to be around when he was acting like a dog. And it was all just talking. He was all just words. He would never do anything totally outrageous. It was mostly to say the most…

Andrew: It’s just a bunch of guys who get drunk and tell stories on the beach. You know what I mean? It’s not a big deal.

David: Yeah. Let’s say the most outrageous things.

Andrew: Yeah, exactly.

David: That your wife shouldn’t hear.

Andrew: It’s just…yeah. That’s all.

David: But at the end of the day, that’s not who I am. That’s not who my brother is. That’s not even who my grandpa is. Right? But traditions kind of form based on who’s around. And so I started thinking about…Actually, I asked my grandpa the question, like, “What would happen if it changed? What if my wife and kids were here? What if some of us did start bringing our families for, I don’t know, a few days or bring the family the whole trip and then it’s just maybe the guys that go out on the hunt alone for a couple of days?” I don’t know. “Why can’t this tradition change?” is basically how I started looking at it for everybody because I will never let the river trip go, right? We’re never gonna not go to the river and do this dove hunt and make our hats and, you know, have the camaraderie and everybody pulling up their campers and just having a riot. But how do we change it for it to work for everybody? So, that’s kind of how this conversation started. We’ve got a lot of things that are changing inside of the club. And the truth is since Dad died in 2018, we’ve been figuring out what the hell we’re gonna do this whole time. We’ve just basically had our heads down and grinding and doing deals and partnering with people and coaching people and doing all the things that we normally do, but the truth is Mom’s exhausted. It kind of feels like a never-ending hamster wheel at times. And so we’re at a place where we’re ready for this…I’m ready for this tradition to transition. That’s kind of how I feel. And I think we’re all on the same page. I think it’s just a matter of working out the kinks and kind of figuring out where we’re going. I think we have a really good idea now, but just a matter of going for.

Melina: Yeah. So, I appreciate…that was a beautiful segue, actually. You don’t wanna end the tradition. You wanna keep it alive, but there needs to be some transition in the tradition. And how do we do that while honoring the tradition? And I think you’re right. I think that’s what we’ve been doing in the club. The truth is the last two-and-a-half years for me have been…I took 30 days off after Dad died. Right? So, Dave died and 30 days later we did an RPP. And I literally haven’t stopped since. And there’s been so much that has gone on that I personally have had to carry, you know, to make sure that I felt confident that the club would continue to exist. I needed to, I think, prove that to myself and to everybody that we could…I wasn’t even sure, to be honest. I wasn’t convinced that the club would run without Dave. And so, I was so committed to making certain that that would happen. And I’m glad I did. And the club is thriving and doing well. But the truth is, I am officially burnt out. I am officially…I have burnout. And that’s difficult for me to admit because, you know, I’ve always…I always make the joke that I will outrun you on the treadmill, right, that you will never outwork me. I know I’ve said that so many times and I am to a place now in my life where, like, I’m getting off the treadmill. I’m just tired. And it’s a different kind of tired. It’s emotional. It’s spiritual. It’s physical. It’s all those things. And so I finally just got to a place where I had to admit it, like, yep, I’m burnt out. And burnout is like a…it’s an actual diagnosis and there is symptoms that show up when you have burnout. And so when I started to see the symptoms show up in myself, I said…I just put my hand up and said, “I’m burnt out.” So, through lots of really honest conversations and, you know, trying to figure out what that looks like…The challenge with burnout is that if you don’t catch it, you quit. Right? And you can actually sabotage stuff if you’re burnt out. And so I just put my hand up in the air when I started to see warning signs. And so we’ve now collectively as a group sitting here at this table, we have been working through what it looks like to transition. And so, I guess this is our official, kind of, launch of the new of the transition of our tradition. I think the thing that makes the clubs so amazing is our culture, which is based on tradition. I’m a very traditional girl. I love tradition. So, this is how I raised my family and this is how I’ve born the club with very specific traditions. Like, in the inner circle, you know, of the club, there’s traditions where we pray before every single event that we do. We pray together. We round up. We round down. We talk through. We make sure that every person is touched and every person feels seen and loved and cared for when they walk in. Lots of traditions like that. You’ll never walk into my office and not have fresh goodies. I’m always gonna have coffee and water and something sweet for you. Those are traditions that I have insisted on implementing inside of the organization, inside of the club. Music has to be on. Lighting has to be right. The office…the room must be always cool and it must be spotless. It has to be organized. It has to be…We strive for real excellence. And those are traditions that have built the club.

David: Absolutely. Those are ones that, like, never go away…

Melina: Right.

David: …because they never leave.

Melina: They should never leave. But…

David: Or really even change.

Melina: No.

David: They really just…We might adapt a little bit, but, like, those are the things that never change.

Melina: Right. And so then you have…that’s right. Those are traditions that are the core, that make the organization what it is part. The other part of that was that it was, you know, in the beginning, Dave and I were figuring this out, so because we’re the ones that created it, everything was centered on what Dave and Melina do, and over time we learned how to…As we did deals, we started sharing and…I guess the club has been built on what Dave and I have…what we accomplished, right? We are the story. We are the story because we were broke. We had no way to make money. And so we had this idea. And we implemented and we just worked like hell. We just drove, drove, drove. And that’s the story. And so over the years, you know, people look to you. People look to you for guidance, for mentorship, for coaching, for what do I do? And the burden has now become too much. That’s the truth. And I know longer…I guess over the years, one of the things that’s been very important to me is to raise up leaders. And I’ve been saying it for years. I keep on saying, you know, I have a shortage of leaders. I have a shortage of leaders. And so it’s been ironic for me over the last…I guess over the last two-and-a-half years, probably over the last six months, specifically for me, have been particularly painful, you know, because I think burnout started to really set in, right? And everything that I thought I knew in my life isn’t. So, for somebody like me who’s like a real planner, you know, I plan things ahead and I…As much as I’m shoot, ready, aim…I know they’re all laughing. They’re shaking their heads like, “No, she doesn’t plan.” Well, I actually do. I just don’t get into the details, into the weeds too much, but I’m definitely a planner. Absolutely. I’m clear on things like where I’m going and what my life will look like. I am a planner in the big picture. Big picture planning, absolutely. Detail planning, not so much.

Andrew: I can see where we’re going but I don’t know…

Melina: That’s a perfect way to say it. I don’t know what time we need to leave, and I’m not exactly sure I care. Anyway. So, now there is going to be a transition of those traditions. There would never be an event where I didn’t open the room, right? Like an RPP. There’s never…I’ve never missed an RPP in 12 years, 13 years. I’m going on 13 years. I’ve never once missed an RPP. And I’m guessing hundreds. I’m guessing…I don’t know. Somebody do the math. I’m sure Oscar has probably done the math. Do you know how many RPPs?

Oscar: RPPs. It’s a little tough. It’s a little tough because we used to do 14, and then we whittled it down to 9 eventually. And then we went back to 12, and then we went…Yeah. I mean, it’s 10 years, that’s 120.

Melina: There you go. So, imagine that.

Oscar: It’s easily at about 140.

Melina: Right. So, never…And so now it’s going to transition and that’s not going to be the thing so much.

David: Yeah.

Melina: So…

David: Yeah. I think…I mean, and those little things will work out along the way too. I think one of the biggest things was that the club originally was…Like you’ve said, I’ve heard you say so many times that you wanted everybody to be doing deals and then, unfortunately, like, people just stop working. They don’t work as much. And so it became difficult to really push different people out there, you know, or to highlight other people that are doing things because in the beginning, there wasn’t a lot of other things happening other than just what you guys were doing and what your core group of people were doing. But now, I mean, there are deals left and right in the club. There are people doing their own things. There are people that have come learned at the club and then left and now doing their own thing. There’s so many, you know, rabbit trails to the club and what it’s done over the years. And so our goal, or one of my goals is to highlight those people now rather than focusing on, you know, one group of people or just Dave and Melina all the time because, I mean, it’d be a lot easier to do that, but it’s exhausting for one person. You can’t keep doing…one person…it’s not sustainable. So, the goal is to…everybody needs a piece of that. Everybody needs a little piece of fame. Everybody should be able to be highlighted and that just boosts the club even farther because the truth is, that’s why it’s all happening. It started with you guys. And the club is what it is now. And people are really seeing so much fruit because of that. So, the goal is to highlight that. And you’re saying this is like the sixth…

Melina: Sixth iteration.

David: Sixth version, basically.

Melina: Yeah. Yeah, 6.0.

David: How’s that feel for you guys? Oscar has seen version one.

Oscar: Yeah. It makes me sound a little prehistoric.

David: Oh, gosh. I can barely breathe. Okay.

Oscar: I think it’s exciting, actually. It’s exciting that we’re able to shift and we’re able to pivot. When we went to Hawaii, that was really version five. So, we’re just continue to build and expand and grow. And I love the fact that we’re talking about transitions because it is about that. It’s about transitioning different things, right? It’s not just roles and responsibilities, but we’re also required to pivot and shift how we do things. We’re doing a lot of things virtually now versus in-person. And now the dilemma is like, “I don’t know. People kind of like this virtual stuff, but we kind of miss seeing people in person.” So, we got to find that balance, but that’s part of it. So, it’s exciting to be in version six. It’s good. It’s a good place to be. It’s a good direction that we’re going in. And there’s some shifts. Absolutely. Right? I can speak for myself. I’ve seen and been around Dave and Melina for, you know, 11, 12 years now. And some of the things that we’ve done in the past could be challenging to let go of just because it’s such a routine. It’s just…it’s done. This is the way it goes. This is the way it goes. But at the same time, I’m clear that there’s things that have to change because demographically speaking, the people that we cater to, they’re changing, right? So, we can’t continue the way we’ve been. It’s time for us to really shift gears. And that’s good. Looking forward to it.

Christian: Hi, this is Christian Rios. As many of you know, I’ve been a member of New Wealth Advisors Club for over 7 years and got started when I was 17 years old with absolutely no real estate experience. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from being in the industry is the need for authentic relationships. If you’re looking for an actual team locally in Southern California with all the resources needed to close deals, register for one of our free workshops by visiting www.joinnwac.com. Thanks for listening to the “Flippin’ Off” podcast.

Oscar: Looking forward to it.

Melina: Yeah. Spoon and I were just talking the other day. You know what we realized? She was at the very first RPP. So, she’s actually never missed an RPP either. Isn’t that crazy? So, the…yeah.

John: I think when you think about the journey over the years, you know, one thing that we forget or a lot of people don’t realize is the growth that has to happen or the growth that does happen in individuals because of what you and Dave created to say…I don’t know. Let me explain it this way. For me being able to stand up on stage and present was given…I was given that opportunity because you guys always made sure you poured into everybody else to create that growth. So, we’re not just transitioning here where Melina says, “I need a rest right now,” and we’re all scrambling around because really, you guys have equipped us with the tools that we need whether it’s, you know, we’re talking about Spoon right now, she was at the first RPP. She knows the inner workings of absolutely everything. Well, now she’s gonna put that into practice. She’s like, “I thought I was just gathering this information for no reason.” Well, now there’s a reason. Look at Andrew’s journey from being there as a young kid to taking time away, doing his own stuff, you know, growing in himself to, “Oh, by the way, you’re move to Hawaii because, actually, you are capable.” You’re capable because you’ve been around Mom and Dad for so many years to see how things are done. So, now, it’s a natural transition to step into that leadership, that operations role, that ability to continue the tradition but just slightly different. As we say, it’s a transition, but it’s just slightly different.

Andrew: I just wanna say, well, for me too it was…As I started thinking about this over the past month or so, I realized that I had a mindset shift about the club when I was in Hawaii because it was different, right? Like, Dad’s gone, Mom doesn’t live in Hawaii, right? So, Mom’s not at every single event. It’s on me and the Bongco’s at every single event. So, I didn’t realize this until after, but definitely my perspective on what the club is as a whole and how it runs changed through Hawaii because we had to do it there. You know what I mean? We got you guys for trainings and everything every once in a while, which was awesome and a huge help, and that’s the kind of thing that can be done but the club needed to run on its own in Hawaii without Mom being there every day. And so watching that, like, take place and watching that form and the Bongco’s are some of the most phenomenal people I’ve ever met in my life. But between them and then the club members that have come in, in Hawaii, Hawaii is doing fine by itself right now. You know what I mean? I moved back. We’re not there. Hawaii is still going. Mary Ann is working her tail off and she’s driving the bus really, really good. And club members contribute. People contribute. I guess, for me, it was an eye-opener that the club really just can run and that it is…what’s being created, the traditions will carry on. And for me, I had to come to grips with myself that the traditions are actually not the tradition that…really the only one that, like, needs to stay is our culture. And that is the little things like the snacks and the coffee and everybody. You’ll never walk into the office at an event and not be greeted. You’ll be greeted by more people than you wanna talk to if you’re an introvert like me. That is actually the tradition in my mind and that is what has to stay, but I don’t…I mean, businesses evolve and transform and grow and, you know, you can’t…Joel always says, you know, you have to always be thinking the next step. You can’t be stagnant, especially with a business because there comes to where there’s like, each thing you go through has its own stage of life, right? And when you come to that end of life of one specific thing, you have to be moving on to your next thing, otherwise, you get stuck and then your business will die. And I think that…actually, I know that we have so much experience and knowledge and everything that we need within the club to keep it going as long as we keep our tradition of the mission at the forefront of our minds, like, the club will never go anywhere.

Melina: I was thinking of that. I was thinking it’s mission.

Andrew: It’s totally mission. That’s really the only tradition that actually matters. And there’s a lot of little stuff obviously encompassed in that, but that’s actually the goal. And the cool thing, and that’s actually what is so important is that that’s what people grab on to and that’s actually why the club will keep going is because that’s what makes everyone want to contribute to it.

Christian: Yeah. And for me, this whole conversation and what I love, and like Oscar said, it’s like I’m excited too and I’m more excited just because everyone kind of found their lane and everyone’s focused on their lane. And that’s kind of how, you know, I tie this conversation together because, you know, we’ve been talking about our APs, like, solid, you know, accountability partners to our junior coaches to our senior coaches. And I go back to when you and Dave really started the club. It was you guys, like, doing everything. And one of the last boot camps for entrepreneurs that we just did, it’s like one of the chapters was you have to be a good quitter. You have to be a good quitter if you want to be a good entrepreneur. And to me, like, what you’re doing right now, Melina, is you’re kind of showing the path of, like, freedom, you know, and, like, getting recharged and knowing that we’re all gonna, you know, stay in our lane and we’re gonna grow the club and even take it to greater places. I like to think of, like, you know, when Walt Disney passed away, like, what that team did, they grew it tremendously. So, I think, you know, it’s gonna be cool when you come and you speak and people are gonna be like, “Wow. Look, there is Melina.” And it’s just gonna be so powerful, the places you’ve traveled to, the cultures you’ve seen. “Guys, I learned this from this country, and this is what they do here.” So, I’m just excited for, you know, the journey and I think that we’re gonna go to cool places.

Melina: Yeah. Should I talk about my next journey, my next adventure? I don’t even know if you know exactly, but my next adventure actually starts tomorrow morning. Oscar found out yesterday. So, yeah. I’m going to…My next adventure is I’m going to walk all 21 missions in California. So, it’s 800 miles and it is…yeah. And it starts from the southernmost oldest mission in San Diego all the way up to the tip of California in Sonoma. So, I am starting tomorrow morning doing my first mission walk and this is gonna be…My thought was that…I just didn’t know. My plan was that I was going to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain. And that’s the last missionary trip that St. James took. And it ends actually at his burial. And so, since I can’t do that because of COVID, and also nobody was comfortable with me going to Spain by myself and staying in hostels, and so I decided…yeah, and my bad knee. So, I do need a knee replacement, apparently. So, anyway. So, the alternative for me is walking all 21 missions. And what I’ve learned is that there’s only been a few people who have actually walked all missions in one walkthrough. And I’ve read different numbers. I just know not a lot of people have walked all 800 miles straight through. So, I don’t wanna say how many numbers because I don’t know, but it’s very few. And so, of course, you know, for me, I was like, “Well, then, that’s what I must do. I must walk that 800 miles and walk all the way through,” which is…Yeah, I know, this is how…You are bred by me, so clearly…

Andrew: …stairways that he was gonna take us eight hours and he had a crew like the day before who had done it in six-and-a-half. I went to David and said, “Well, we’re up and down in six-and-a-half.” …there’s no way.

David: Sorry.

Melina: Go ahead. And so what did you do?

Andrew: We did it in six-and-a-half.

Melina: There you go.

Andrew: It was a little rough, but we did it.

David: Barely. I almost died.

Andrew: He was fine.

Melina: Andrew told me today that I’m gonna be like you walking the stairway.

David: Because of hydration, that’s why.

Melina: He was like, “You should have been hydrating for the last three days.” I’m like, “I’m always hydrated.”… Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Oscar: …Nothing happened.

David: I was dehydrated.

Melina: Yeah, yeah. Right. Anyways, yeah, exactly. So, I am going to…I’m gonna do the first leg, the first mission walk starting tomorrow morning. And it’ll probably take me four days. So, it’s about 60 miles. And I’ll do it in about four days. So, that’s my plan. And I just made a decision that I was just gonna do it, so I’m doing it.

David: It’s doable.

Melina: It’s totally doable.

David: Yeah.

Andrew: We got her all set up with socks and a good pack. And we bought her, like, 12 pairs of socks at the store the other day because she didn’t have any socks.

Melina: Yeah, $350 on socks.

David: Did you get like a polyester blend or…?

Andrew: No. I made her get good socks.

David: Are they wool socks or…?

Spoon: Wool. Merino wool.

Andrew: Yeah. They’re made…For anybody who’s done a lot of walking in the military knows that you have to take care of your feet.

David: They gotta breathe.

Andrew: Yeah. That’s what…yeah. Whenever you stop, you’re gonna air your feet out, change your socks. Yeah, she’s set. She’ll be fine.

Melina: You should have seen this at REI. Spoon, what did you say last night? What did you tell me?

Spoon: About your new hobby?

Melina: Oh, yeah.

Spoon: Or how much you spent?

Melina: Both. Whatever you said. Whatever you said. We were talking about REI. Go ahead.

Spoon: We were just talking about how your new hobby is kind of expensive. It’s just walking and it’s super expensive.

David: God. Every hobby is expensive. Every hobby, like, manufacturer that sells that they know it’s a hobby and they know you want nice shit and…

Melina: And she tells me last night, “You spent 1,000 bucks at REI.” I go, “What?”

Spoon: And that didn’t even include your bag.

David: Okay.

Melina: I’m like I had one…I had a little paper bag of stuff. What do you mean I spent $1,000?

Andrew: Good socks are expensive.

David: Good socks and good shoes and…

Melina: That didn’t include shoes, man.

Andrew: Well, good socks and a good bag.

David: A good bag. Oh, yeah.

Andrew: The bag is really expensive, even socks are expensive.

David: I mean, you can spend…A dirt bike bag is like 500 bucks. You can spend money on a good bag.

Andrew: Yeah, especially when they get bigger.

Spoon: See. See what happens with your new hobbies?

David: They do.

Spoon: They’re very expensive.

David: They all know it’s a hobby and they…

Spoon: I actually said, “I hope you like this because, like, this wasn’t worth it for four days.”

Andrew: Like Dad buying the top-of-the-line paintball gun and it’s been sitting in the garage for 10 years.

David: Yeah. Yeah. What are you gonna do, you know?

Melina: Yeah. Exactly.

David: That one time was awesome…

Andrew: He went in, shot us a few times with a bunch of paintballs and he was done.

Melina: Anyway, the walk. I’ll talk a little bit about the walk, which was…Well, here’s my intention. Some people might hear she’s burnt out and yet she’s gonna go walk. And so the intention of my walk, and it’s very intentional, is to have a breakthrough. The thing I know about myself is that I am very strong. I’m strong-minded. I’m strong-willed. I am strong physically, emotionally, spiritually. And I’m somebody who, like, works diligently and I have a lot of self-discipline. And so…which is why I think it took me so long to officially burnout is because probably it has a lot to do with my strong will. And so what I know about myself is that in order for me to have an actual breakthrough, I need to be broken down. So, there’s this idea of, you know, if you need to have a rebirth or you need to build something new, there has to be some deconstruction that happens before you can reconstruct or reinvent. And in order for me to deconstruct, for me personally, it’s going to require me to be physically challenged, emotionally challenged. And I believe that walking for 20 miles several days in a row will be the thing that will force my deconstruction. And so that’s what I’m looking for. I’m looking for a breakthrough spiritually, emotionally, intellectually. And it’s for…it’s not only for me, but for all of us. That’s the truth is that I…When you find yourself in a leadership position, responsible for hundreds of people and what looks like their futures…because that’s what happens when people come to the club, right? People have this idea that they’re looking for “financial freedom.” And I think the thing that I’m able to show people is that financial freedom is already in the palm of your hands. I believe that people who walk into my club, I tell them all the time, “You’re already financially free. You just don’t know. And I know you’re financially free simply because you’re here. You are here at the club. You have the ability to be here, so that tells me you’re financially free. Now, you’ve backed into your life and you have some other idea of your life, right? You have some other picture of what you want it to be. And I think a lot of that is just based on media and a bunch of crap, frankly, but… and I think it’s okay to like money too. And I think financial wealth is…well, I know it dramatically impacts your quality of life. But what I know is that money isn’t the thing that brings you joy. It doesn’t bring you peace. It doesn’t bring you wholeness. It doesn’t bring you…It’s actually very fleeting and it can be very deceptive. And so what I want is for people to understand who they are wholly. And I mean wholly with a W and without a W. And that’s how I want people to begin to see themselves. And so I believe that I have equipped you guys and others to now feed and care for people walking into the club, which means for me as CEO, as the leader of the head of the organization, it is now time for me to go up another level. And ironically, you know, going to the next level requires deconstruction. So, it is kind of hilarious that I’m here doing a podcast today, feeding people and leading people, and then we’ll be on a call, a featured call with a hard money lending company, you know, and leading, leading, leading, and tomorrow morning I’m going to strip off all of this and, you know, put on my tennies and go trek. And I believe that’s what real leadership is. I believe real leadership is you never stop growing and you do whatever needs to be done. And I’m guessing I’m gonna be washing feet on my walk of somebody. I feel pretty confident that’s how it’s gonna look for me. As much as we say I’m a planner, I’m also shoot, ready, aim. And that’s what it looks like. So, that’s why, you know, I just…I ordered a book and the book came and I was like, “I think I’m gonna do this.” It was, like, there’s three things you have to do. Number one, get good shoes. Number two, have 100 bucks in your pocket. And number three, just go. And I was like, “Screw it. I’m going. I’m out. I’m doing this. I’m starting Saturday morning.”

Christian: You’re like, “I’ll put 200 bucks in.”

Melina: Exactly. I’m like, “I have a credit card. I have all that. I think I can do this. I’m like ready to go.” Otherwise, you know what was happening is I was getting ready to get ready. And dude, that is, like, the worst thing you can possibly do is, I mean, I’m telling everybody all the time, “Don’t get ready to get ready.” and I was sitting there doing that. And when I decided I needed to take some time off, you know, in my head, I was like, “I’m gonna daydream and I’m gonna sleep in. That’s what I’m gonna do. I’m just gonna…” Seriously, really that’s what I thought. And I did for, you know, a couple of weeks and it turns out, this is not life for me. So, it was fun, but I just gotta be about my business. And so making the decision.

Christian: Yeah. And I heard something the other day where it goes hand in hand with what you’re saying. It said, “Don’t be a person…Don’t be somebody that somebody asks you, ‘When are you gonna go? When are you gonna go? When are you gonna start?’ Be a person that says, ‘Man, when are you gonna stop? When are you gonna stop working? When are you gonna stop traveling? When are you gonna stop doing X, Y, and Z?'” And I think, you know, for people listening, you know, ask yourself. Don’t be a person that people ask you, “When are you gonna start?” And I took that away from you, Melina, is just go. Just go.

Melina: Just go do it.

David: I love that. I love that. I love that about you, Christian. That’s so true. That is actually who he really is, like, I see you show up like that in multiple ways. That’s one of the things I’ve grown to love about you so much is that you do just go for it. You don’t really…there’s no waiting. You say you’re gonna work out, you go freakin’ work out. That’s how it is. Even if it lasts a short amount of time, like, either way, you went and did it. That’s very cool. I think something that measures a leader, like one of the biggest things that measures a leader in my eyes is, like, how many leaders do you bring up around you? And I think it’s mostly about that. And Mom is always saying, “We have a shortage of leaders. We have a shortage of leaders.” And yeah, that’s true, but it’s actually not as true as you think. There’s a lot of leaders around you. And the fact that you keep saying it keeps bringing more damn leaders if you notice.

Melina: Oh, I didn’t think of that.

David: Yeah, I mean, it’s true.

Melina: I had no idea that would happen. No. No plan.

David: Over the year…Yeah, you can see, like, they’re surrounded by leaders.

Melina: I know.

David: I’m just saying for me. I’m not trying to say you didn’t think that, but, for me, I’ve noticed, you know, that’s true even though you keep saying and acting like we don’t. They just keep popping up. People keep showing up and doing what they need to do and that’s really cool to see. And so it’s a true testament to the leader you are.

Melina: Thank you. One of the things…I’ll let you in on a little secret.

David: Okay.

Melina: One of the things…Some of the maybe crap I talk is when I say things like, “I have a shortage of leaders.” And when I challenge, it’s…I say things intentionally, meaning to challenge people. So, I say things like, “I’ll put my marriage up against anybody else’s marriage any day.” That’s a challenge, not because I want to be better, it’s because I want people to feel challenged. I want people to be like, “Well, I wanna be that because that’s what I really want.” But if you tell people, “You’re great, you’re this, you’re that, you’re a leader,” they don’t do it. People rise to the occasion. So, real leaders will rise to a challenge like that when I say I have a shortage. And what I know is for the leader sitting in the room, when they hear that, there’s something that sparks inside their gut.

David: Absolutely.

Melina: Isn’t that right?

David: Absolutely.

Melina: That’s why I say it.

David: Right.

Melina: Because I want you to be like, “Well, screw that. I’m the leader.”

David: Exactly. And you can see that over the years of doing that consistently, I mean, they just keep showing up in so many different ways. It may be temporary, but either way.

Melina: That’s right. Well, that’s the goal. It’s always the goal.

David: So, I think like…at least for me, I think…So, everybody knows, like, the club’s not going anywhere. We’re gonna…

Melina: Really important to hear that.

David: Yeah. We’re gonna be continuing. So, that’s the beautiful thing about having Andrew home. And Andrew and Oscar kind of sing the same songs and walk the same way and shit.

Oscar: You sound jealous.

David: A little bit. A little bit. No, it’s really good. It’s perfect, actually, because Andrew and Oscar are gonna be, you know, at the office a lot focusing on a lot of the day-to-day things that happen and keeping the club going as we all know it and, yeah, operations. And not only keeping it going, but transforming it at the same time. And with the two of them, they can really push to do new things that are gonna be super beneficial for the club and to have Spoon there all the time…It’s the best thing that can be done for Mom to step away because everybody has to rise to the occasion. Everyone at this table is gonna be rising to their peak. And as long as we continue to do that and stay consistent, there’s no freakin’ way the club’s not gonna just explode into new places. My whole goal is to…Everything I wanna do is online. I wanna see us all over the world. I wanna see us over the entire globe online. I wanna have a bigger presence in every real estate investing club there is and I want people to know why we are who we are, and how awesome we are, and the footprints that we are trying to create everywhere. And that’s because it has nothing to do with us. I want people to be seen everywhere because of the club. And I think with COVID and with being able to do things online, I think the opportunity is just massive. It’s untouched at this point. So, that’s what I’m gonna be focusing strongly on is capturing new content and pushing us out as far as I can get us, as far as we can go online, and as far as that can take us, you know, just hopefully staying consistent and seeing what kind of new opportunities pop up.

Melina: Does anybody else have anything that they’d like to add? Spoon or Oscar, go ahead.

Oscar: Yeah. So, just to piggyback off David because, you know, we’ve had some conversations…So, what I heard him saying and sharing with you right now is that the target is that we’re going to become, not want to, but going to become the elite, real estate education provider nationally and globally at some point. That’s just the bottom line. And that doesn’t mean just the real estate investment, it means continuing education for real estate agents, growing people with strong ethics and morals, and all the stuff that the industry honestly lacks. Right? Whether you’re an investor or you’re a real estate agent, or whether it’s escrow or whatever it is, right? All those pieces have to work together well. And I think we’re primed now to really take it to that level and raise the bar for everybody else. So, whoever is listening to this that’s out there that considers themselves competition, you’ve been called up.

Melina: Spoon, what do you wanna add?

Spoon: I don’t have anything to add.

Melina: Sure you do.

Spoon: No, I really don’t.

Melina: Why don’t you just share a little bit about what your perspective is of the new iteration, 6.0, since you’ve been here from day one? Why don’t you share what…If you were to describe the newest iteration, 6.0, what would you say about it?

Spoon: Look at you all.

David: You got this, Spoon.

John: Be honest. Don’t be so shy.

Melina: What do you think?

David: How do you feel about how everything is happening right now? What are your thoughts? Like, you know there’s a lot of change. I know you’re emotional as hell right now. I can see you’re fighting them back. So, you get to be honest.

Spoon: Super fantastic. It’s gonna be awesome, guys.

Oscar: That’s it?

Spoon: That’s it.

David: Stop it.

Spoon: It’s gonna be good.

Melina: What do you mean? What’s good about it? What do you see happening or what’s your vision of it?

Spoon: Jesus. Why are you all looking at me?

David: I hope you guys can sense how uncomfortable she is.

Andrew: I love it. I love it.

David: It’s so awesome.

Spoon: …It’s super uncomfortable.

Melina: Go ahead.

David: I’m not cutting any of this out.

Andrew: This is the best part.

Spoon: It’s not even recording anymore.

David: Leave it count.

Spoon: Go ahead, Spoon, we’re waiting because I don’t think we’re gonna take the mic off you.

David: No way.

Andrew: You’re not…

Melina: You’re not getting out.

Spoon: I don’t have anything to say. We just gonna do. We’re just gonna go keep working.

Melina: Yeah. Can you share about…yeah, go ahead.

Andrew: How confident are you that the mission is going to keep going? Do you think that things can run perfectly? I mean, they can run the way that they are.

Spoon: Absolutely.

Andrew: Why is that? Why are you confident in that?

David: What’s wrong with you?

Spoon: What’s wrong with me?

David: Yeah, what’s wrong with you?

Spoon: Nothing is wrong with me.

Melina: Welcome to my dinner table.

Spoon: Exactly.

Andrew: Love you, Spoon.

Melina: Go ahead. Go ahead. Yeah, why, that’s a good question.

Spoon: It’s already been said today like we’ve all been prepped. And Christian said, we’ve all like found our lane in doing what we’re supposed to do, and it’s not Melina in every lane. And I think we also, to move forward, we have to not jump into other people’s lanes and have trust with each other that we are gonna handle our lanes.

Christian: Where’s your lane?

Spoon: Money.

Christian: That’s what I was gonna say. Like, aren’t you excited?

Spoon: No. I feel incredible pressure.

Christian: That’s cool. You rise to pressure. Otherwise, you’ll just sit and do nothing like me.

Melina: That’s so true. That’s so true. Actually, all three of you. All three of you. Literally, if you don’t feel pressure, you guys just do nothing.

Christian: I’d work better under pressure.

David: No. It’s not only…

Oscar: That’s like this entire table.

Melina: Yeah.

David: It’s also entrepreneurs.

Christian: It’s also an inspiration. That’s actually what’s really behind it.

Spoon: What?

Christian: Inspiration. Do you feel inspired? I know you feel inspired.

Spoon: Yeah.

Christian: Because I know we’re all happy to take things off of her plate and let her do her thing, especially you because you’re with her every day. And I…

Spoon: And my whole role is taking shit off her plate.

Christian: I know. And now you get to do it on a bigger level. And not only that, but in your own lane doing what you actually are comfortable and want to do.

Melina: That’s so funny. Spoon’s job description, take shit off Melina’s plate.

Spoon: Fill the holes. Fill the company holes. Fill the holes.

Christian: It might be.

Melina: Yeah. It’s true. That’s actually…

David: That’s what it’s worked out to be.

Melina: That’s what makes it so complicated.

Christian: Yeah.

Melina: Right.

David: Yeah. So, not everything is perfect. We’re not perfect. We definitely…

Melina: We could have a reality TV show and I know people would never stop watching. If you really knew what was going on behind the scenes, if you saw, like, oh my gosh.

Spoon: It’s just me and Andrew quiet and David and Melina just talking all day.

Melina: Me and David talk constantly.

David: I know. It would be a freakin’ complete silence otherwise and awkward. Awkward.

Christian: But I think…

Oscar: Christian…

Christian: Yeah. With everyone really here at the table, it’s like this is how we’re gonna move forward, really, you know, strongly because if Spoon wasn’t here, like, I would be nervous. She has a really big role and I feel comfortable. In her opinion she’s really, like, level headed she can see the bigger picture kind of like Melina and, you know, her lane might not be to be on podcasts moving forward, but…

Spoon: Honestly, when we sat down I was like, “We don’t need to bring this extra chair in the room right now. I could go sit outside.”

Christian: No. But honestly, Spoon is…You’re needed and we can’t do it without you.

Andrew: There would be a giant hole in everything without Spoon.

Oscar: To add what you just said, Christian, is that she’s also really good at asking the question and things that come up. She’s really good at…Because everybody has a tendency of hanging out in the weeds and problem-solving. And she’s really good at stepping back and say, “Well, what about…” And asking that question that…So, it’s good. She’s a great resource to have around. Don’t get a big head about it, but you’re a good resource to have around.

David: Absolutely. Absolutely. I had something I was gonna say. Spoon totally threw me off-topic.

Spoon: You’re welcome.

David: Yeah. I totally…

Spoon: Get used to it, buddy.

Melina: Yeah. I think for me, you know, it’s this feeling of, like, when I see you guys, I think, you know, it’s a beautiful thing to know that the younger generation is stepping in and that you guys…I’m so clear that you guys are fully capable of taking the club where it needs to be. I just know that. And I think enrolling the people that we have now to rise up as well. And I think that is pretty freaking amazing.

David: Yeah. You know what I was gonna say actually was that I said, for anybody listening who’s been to the club and who’s experienced the club, that feeling that you get when you come that nobody can describe and nobody really understands why it is, like, that’s the thing that we wanna put out in front of the whole world. That’s what we want every single person who sees an ad about us or hears a podcast or hears a story about a deal we did or a homeowner that we helped, like, that’s what I want them to get, is that little feeling of, “What the heck? That’s different. That’s really cool. What is that?” That’s gonna be our…That’s my main focus is getting that pressed out, trickled out.

Melina: I love that.

David: So, I think that’s good. Anybody have anything else they wanna add? Yeah.

Melina: I feel like I’m probably not gonna be on a podcast for a while. That’s my feeling. And so…

David: So, we definitely want to have podcast ideas. I said this before in a previous podcast, but let us know what you guys wanna hear. Do you wanna hear about real estate? Do you wanna hear about our deals? Because we have lots of deals going on. I could sit here and talk about freakin’ deals all day. We really wanna iron out what our listeners want to hear and what kind of content you guys want to see in the future. Just let us know. Just write us a…you can go to the…what’s the best way, Facebook page? Facebook page…

Oscar: They’re not gonna go to Facebook page if they see this…I mean, they can post on the YouTube channel, they can post and let us know…

David: Leave comments.

Oscar: Yeah. Leave comments on the podcast.

Spoon: What is it? Comment, subscribe, and like, something like that?

David: Yeah.

Oscar: Yeah. Something like that.

David: Like all of our social media and blah, blah, blah.

Christian: I mean, they can email us all direct too, oscar@newwealthadvisorsclub, christian@newwealth, david@newwealthadvisorsclub. Just add newwealthadvisorsclub.

David: If you…

Melina: First name.

David: Yeah. Yeah, first name. So, mine is david@newwealthadvisorsclub.com. If you guys have any ideas about podcasts that you’d like to hear, any kind of content you’d like to hear, videos, if you have a deal you’re working on and you’d like to get some video content done that, you know, you’ve come through the club and you’ve learned some things through the club and now you’re in a deal, like, I wanna capture that on video, we wanna show you. We wanna showcase you. We want you to be able to talk about what you’re doing. We wanna be able to highlight all the people that are actually working and doing things in the business now. So, send me an email, david@newwealthadvisorsclub.com. I’m gonna actually really look forward to hearing from you guys. So, don’t skip out. If you have anything at all just shoot me an email.

Melina: I feel like I just wanna say New Wealth Advisors Club is a group of people committed to empower and encourage all people to realize their core purpose in life. With this realization, we believe everyone can live an inspired life full of enthusiasm as they, in turn, inspire others. I’m Melina Boswell, I’m flippin’ off.

I’m Melina Boswell, your host of the Flippin’ Off podcast. I really hope you enjoyed it. If you did, we’d love for you to subscribe, give us a five-star rating, and tell your friends all about us. You can find more episodes of the Flippin Off podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever else you like to listen to awesome podcasts like this. If you like what you’ve heard, we’d really appreciate it if you’d follow us on Facebook and Instagram and tell us the stories that you’d like to hear.

Tim Jackson is our senior producer. Luke Jackson is our editor. Brothers. Josh Mauldin is our producer. Sound design by Frequency Factory. Our executive producer is Mind & Mill. This was all created by Dave Boswell for New Wealth Advisors Club.