The Perfect 100

Hello and welcome back to The Perfect 100.

My guest today is Jeff Kimbro, a business banker who works with entrepreneurs and business
owners at pivotal moments.

Often when the right guidance can make just the difference you need, when you're feeling
stuck and you want to move forward with confidence.

Jeff specializes in business lending, but what makes his work really stand out is the way
that he builds long-term relationships rooted in trust, consistency, and understanding.

He is also a member of my chapter and so I actually had the pleasure of inviting him to
the meeting before he joined.

And since then, I've watched him show up, thoughtfully build relationships quietly, and
recently step into a leadership role on the membership committee.

He's helping us think more clearly about onboarding expectations and how we support
members as they grow because he just had his one year anniversary.

Now he brings a steady presence, a sharp mind, and a deep...

commitment to doing things well, not just fast.

And in today's conversation, we're going to talk more about what that really means and how
to be approval ready as a business owner and how clarity might change confidence.

So if you're a BNI member, a business owner or someone who wants to lead well while still
protecting what matters most, this episode is for you.

Jeff, welcome to the Perfect 100.

Thank you, Tammy.

I appreciate you having me on.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

and let's go ahead and roll in your 45 seconds so people that do not know you get to hear
more about you.

Okay, great, thank you.

Hi, again, I'm Jeff Kimbro.

I'm with Independent Bank.

We are a locally financial institution here in the Memphis area.

support entrepreneurs and business owners in the area, really to support their financial
success and their dreams.

Again, I'm with VNI East Memphis.

I hold the banking services seat.

Personally, what I look for um are business owners who are ready to level up, need a
relationship banker, and just ready to grow.

um If any of those sounds like things that I can help you with, let's do a one-to-one.

Thank you.

Again, Jeff Kimbro, Independent Bank.

Awesome.

All right, so you work in business banking.

think most people probably think that's just about loans and numbers, money.

um How do you explain the real value that you bring to business owners beyond just the
transactional?

Sure.

As we know, owning a business is a huge commitment.

um Business owners, entrepreneurs, they lose sleep each night.

m What I like to bring to the table is m to minimize that level of stress.

This is my profession.

This is what I've been doing for some time now.

So I tell all of my clients, if you have that

those sleepless nights and just, you know, it's bringing the stress.

Keep the stress of your business.

Let me handle the stress of your finances.

uh And that's the level of confidence I like to bring to my clients.

uh And it has been helpful over the years.

Okay, awesome.

And so you do loans for people, which is often I would think at pivotal moments in their
business.

So in your experience, what does it really mean to be for a business owner to be approval
ready?

Because they're basically coming to you to get some more money and hoping that you're
going to say yes and give them what they need.

how do they do that?

Yes, and honestly that's one of difficult parts of this.

um A lot of individuals, a lot of business owners, um they usually come to me or come to
us when the need is truly a burden.

um It's not always as easy to get to the next level when everything isn't in line.

uh

I like to preach becoming lender readiness and sometimes that takes time.

You get quite a few business owners that come in and have a need for a loan right away and
cash might not flow properly.

There might be other hurdles that can slow that process down.

So what I like to do is work with my clients.

not just when they need a loan, but when everything is going well.

And typically, when you're showing that cash is flowing and everything is going well,
that's probably the best time to reach out for lending, because when that rainy day comes,

you're already prepared for it.

So that's my take on that.

that makes sense.

I think that you're probably far more ready when things are going great and everything
looks good to have somebody give you more.

it's that abundance thing.

sure, absolutely.

Because let's take, for example, 2025.

You may have had a really good 2025.

2026 may get off to a slow start.

And if cash isn't flowing the way you were expecting, it would have been an easier sell to
jump on it when everything is best for you.

have it and not need it than need it and not have it, right?

That's that thing.

Okay.

So what's the thing, what's one thing that business owners think makes them or assume
makes them loan approval ready, but it really doesn't matter as much as what they normally

would think.

That's hard to say because again, each loan is different.

pieces of collateral will be different.

um Assets are different.

So every business cash flows differently.

So it's just a matter of that particular business.

um That sounds more of a individual loan opportunity, whereas...

um

Everyone thinks because they have the 700, 800 credit score that they can be approved
right away.

if you're 800 credit score but you're overextended, we have to do some things to correct
your debt to income, make sure that that falls into place.

So there's other factors that comes into play when we're looking at lending opportunities.

Okay, all right.

And so you're, and maybe people will pick up on this just listening to you, but you're
naturally somebody who's relational and steady, not flashy or loud.

um How has building trust quietly over time shaped the way clients experience working with
you?

Great question.

em Just over time, it's, and I will say this, in banking in general, it's people bank with
who they trust.

And if clients over time haven't been able to trust me, they would not be with me.

em And that's one thing I do not take for granted, is the trust of my clients.

try to treat each one as if they're my number one client.

I'm one of those that I do quite a bit of hand holding and just making sure that my
clients receive that level of professionalism and trust.

Because banking isn't just about that one particular deal.

It's relationship driven.

So I may help you today.

And my goal is when the need comes around again,

you look for me again.

Sure, sounds good.

How long you been in banking?

Entire career, so 20 plus years.

Came out of college in early 2000s and within three or four months I was working for a
bank.

Okay, so that's a steady uh climb.

um I like it.

So you've had good personal, or excuse me, good professional success, and you've also
raised a couple of successful children.

What lessons around discipline, consistency, or decision making carried over from your
work life into your family life?

And they're probably, and to say that, they'll probably be the first to thumbs up this
podcast, because of course I'm going to share it with them.

Right?

Let's be honest, they're the reason I do this.

They're the ones that keep me going.

I think they've watched me for so long being a professional atmosphere that some of those
things just tend to, I guess, automatically, I don't want to say fall into a lap, but I

think they can kind of read those things um without having to be said.

Sure.

How old are your kids?

So I have a 22 year old and a 20 year old.

My wife and I, been together quite some time, married just over 21 years.

um my daughter, she's the youngest.

So, know, dad being in banking, this is all she knows.

Okay.

And the light of your eye, I think, um from all I've seen.

All right, awesome.

What part of your work gives you the most pride right now?

Not just professionally, but personally?

uh I would say the relationships.

Some relationships carry on beyond these four walls.

I guess with me being in this profession for so long, the amount of relationships you meet
over time, they come to fruition.

I I saw a previous boss maybe two weeks ago.

She was with her daughter and just to see ah how we all have evolved and to see that her
kid is near graduating college as well, it's just great to see those things.

Yeah, awesome.

All right, so before we go deeper into leadership and relationships, let's talk about your
Power of One and your Palms Report.

So you will start at the top here.

You have a score of 75 in the green.

You have 15 points in the yellow on attendance.

You have 10 points in the red on referrals per week.

10 points for visitors.

you have 20 points for one to ones in the green and 20 points for CEUs in the green.

So if we jump in look at, well, we don't have to go anywhere because it's on the screen if
you're watching on YouTube.

We'll look at your palms also.

So this is for 24 weeks and we're at it's showing through December, even though we're a
couple of weeks into January.

And this at this time, we're doing this recording because we had unfortunately Christmas
and New Year's both fell on

days where, right around where the chapter was meeting.

So both of those, I'm imagining for a lot of people everywhere, were the last two weeks of
the year where we didn't meet.

So we don't even have the January stuff on here yet.

But you had, let's see, you have no absences.

um

Referrals given inside, have three.

Referrals given outside, you have 11.

Referrals received inside, you have three.

Referrals received outside, you have six.

Visitors, you have four.

One-to-ones, you have 27.

You have given $6,555 worth of thank you for closed business and you have done 24 CEUs in
24 weeks.

Good job.

So what of all those things stands out for you?

lot of work and you know to be transparent it was I guess more so a task to get back in
green.

That's something I've been working diligently on for maybe two, three months now and as
you mentioned I'm just celebrating my one-year anniversary so I would honestly say those

first six months were probably

me trying to learn the ropes of being high.

um my goal is, you know, as I look at these numbers, to my referrals up.

ah Referrals and visitors are probably two that I've...

I think about most often right now.

Yeah, well, and you had four in that short time period, but three of them were in the last
two weeks of that report.

So um you struggled as you self-admitted, you struggled early on with the power of one.

And it's not for lack of effort, but as we've had discussions now, Jeff joined our
membership committee just recently and he shared with us that it was not a full

understanding of actually how it worked.

And I think that that's fairly common out there that

people don't understand kind of what they're being measured on, which can be a challenge,
right?

So what clicked for you once it was explained differently?

Honestly the thing that clicked was um understanding that it's a rolling six months that
we're reporting on.

um

Maybe just my lack of understanding, but I was more so thinking of month to month and not
so over a 24 week period.

And when the numbers kick in, or come when you look at the numbers, once I understood that
it's, that once I can get June and get some of those previous months to roll off, then it

made more sense that way.

it can be a challenge if you have a stretch where, you know, for whatever the reason,
there's a lot of good reasons why things can drop off.

And there's also some reasons why that are not so great, but not saying that's you.

I'm just saying in general for anybody listening is we all know, you know, it's hard to be
consistent.

And it's really hard to be consistently doing all the things all the time.

I will tell you, because, you know, I keep

trying to do my best to keep 100.

Actually, I will self admit that I fell to 95 last month.

And that was only for lack of, I thought I had it, but I didn't actually measure it.

How I normally do it, and I just didn't do it the previous month was I look at the app and
actually count.

I go back through the app and I look at, I have one CE for every week, I have four CE, I
do the math and I didn't do that because I was like, I have plenty.

And I have extra even, because it's a six month rolling average.

Well, guess what?

I didn't, and I didn't.

And I rolled to 95 and my heart stopped a little bit.

I am back at 100 though.

The must-recent report just came out a couple of days ago.

So I will diligently, but it is easier to stay at a higher number and keep it there than
it is to climb from a lower number and rise it up, right?

Yes, and because it takes time.

And again, I do what you just mentioned as well.

Now what I look at is, for instance, the new Power One report came out, I think last week.

um I now look at it a month in advance, so I might take off July month now to see what
hole I will be in as of right now.

Yeah, yeah.

So planning ahead is also a thing because if you know you're not, know, that's we have
people and you know, a lot of us recently have been sick because and I'm still I'm three

weeks in and I'm still suffering the consequences of the cold I got, you know, over
Christmas.

the if you said those things come up where you just wake up and you're like, I can't go
because I don't want to give everybody whatever I have.

Unfortunately, mine came when we didn't have meetings.

So I didn't have to worry about that.

But you.

are gonna take a ding if you have a sub.

And you actually had subs in that frame, but you didn't have any absences because you had
subs.

So if you plan ahead knowing, okay, so I'm gonna be, I know I have to go to this
conference or whatever, trying to line up multiple visitors or multiple subs is often a

good thing because sometimes their plans change last minute too and they wake up sick or
whatever.

And I've learned now, don't schedule all your vacation, you know, in the same four-week
period.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, you know, you get we do get the ability to have that.

if you care about like, you know, unfortunately, I do.

It's fortunately or unfortunately, but I want to make sure I keep the high score.

So it has always mattered to me to try to maximize those things.

And we're going to talk about maximizing in a minute because we both have that.

um But yeah.

So from a membership committee standpoint, I think you've brought a new voice to, know,
we're a high performing chapter.

We tend to always be at the top of the charts when you look at the region.

But you've given us kind of some new insight on why clarity matters.

So do you think it's a clarity or motivation or both for processes to be kind of what
they, you know, we need to share, we need to look at not just

bringing people in but how we educate them as well.

Sure, I believe both.

Definitely the clarity um and I'll say more so with members that are new to BNI.

um Cause I take that, know, one year in I still consider myself a newbie, but just to be
able to share those things or things to consider, you know, in those first, you know,

three, six months.

Cause before you know it, that's seven months.

Review is is there So just be prepared and understand, you know what goes on and meetings
meetings move quickly.

So And for me, you know come into a meeting and Before you know it an hour and a half has
passed but so much has gone on that in short period You're trying to piece everything

together.

So it

It might be a couple of months before you understand the true layout of a BNI meeting and
understanding to give back to your power of one and make sure that you m have a decent

score.

Yeah, well, and you mentioned another thing there, the seven month review.

Why we do those is for that reason, right?

Is we wanna catch somebody before they're a year in and a lot of different reasons, a lot
of bad things can happen is they might not understand, that's a bad thing.

They might not be getting what they need, that's a bad thing.

They might not renew or we might choose not to renew them because we just look at the
paper and don't talk to the person.

And if you don't talk to the person, then you're not getting the story.

So, you know, if you're, if you belong to a chapter who's not doing seven month reviews,
it is high time to do them because they help everyone, right?

They, our goal is to help everybody be successful and the more successful everyone is, the
more successful we all are, right?

So that's a good thing.

So I had the pleasure of inviting you to BNI What made you stay?

Um.

We have a unique chapter.

um Everyone in the group is beyond professional, beyond trustworthy.

um And I didn't want to be the one to leave such a good group and allow someone else to
come take my seat.

But no, I mean, I've made some great connections within the group.

um And everyone is so willing to.

to help the next succeed.

in my role, uh I need all the help I can get.

just having those that can validate me as well to their network, those things is helpful.

And I like to return the favor as well.

Yeah, awesome.

Yeah, we all have a strong group that um is very involved, which is amazing.

I look across the landscape of chapters and we talked about this um last week on when the
one that's going to publish tomorrow um in the early January for those of you listening to

it later is an actual coaching session.

And we talk a lot about how one person has to do a lot of things.

And when it's left or a couple of people in a chapter, usually they're

Problem chapters generally are a problem because there's not enough people that are
willing to put in time to make it good.

So when you have a group where everybody's bought in, it makes a significant difference
because you have help, right?

And it's not just help for the chapter, but it's help for your business, which is what
we're all trying to do, right?

We all want more, you know, and the way to get more is to be involved with each other and
make sure that the

the vehicle by which we all receive things works well.

So, so love that.

All right.

From a banker's lens, what risks do you see business owners or BNI members operating, who
operate without understanding how the numbers or the process actually work have?

Sadly, um it's a huge risk.

m I think that's something a lot of business owners do not understand are their numbers.

um And I mentioned this earlier, um business owners are experts at what they're doing.

Sometimes the numbers might not reflect that, but that's because they don't understand the
numbers.

um I tell anyone you need a team around you to help your business succeed.

m a banker is one of those team members that I believe every business owner needs to have,
relationship they need to have, a close relationship with.

um If you don't have your business owner, you're a banker on speed dial or you can shoot
them a quick text, it may be time to call me for a one-to-one.

Yeah.

Yeah, well, and I didn't think of hadn't thought of the abundance thing is, know, that the
saying, whatever I said earlier, that, you know, the time to call is when things are going

well, not when things are not because the time you can get access to more is when you're
already have more because that makes you more.

um What's the right word?

Friendly to a bank than the not because it's like, you know, now it looks like you're in
trouble and probably because you are so they're less likely to get what you

need at that point.

So that's a great point that if nobody else gets anything out of this is hopefully they
get that.

So be sure to reach out to Jeff and make that acquaintance.

All right.

Let's roll over now because you um

You are a trust person, decision making person, show up as a leader kind of person.

So let's find out why.

So your CliftonStrengths from the top.

So your number one is Relator.

uh Relator, you enjoy close relationships.

You find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal.

Your number two is Self-Assurance.

You feel confident in your ability to manage your own life.

You have an inner compass that gives you certainty in your decisions.

Ideation you are fascinated with ideas you see connections that others don't and can view
the world from different perspectives Your number four is maximizer you consistently ask

how can we make this better?

You don't settle for good enough, but push for excellence your number five is Consistency
you are keenly aware of the need to treat people the same you crave uh Sorry, you crave

stable routines and clear rules and procedures that everyone can follow

So the question I always ask everyone is, what do you think about that when you got it
back?

It's pretty spot on.

I might shift the order of a couple if I were to look at it, but for the most part, I
believe they were spot on.

Yeah, well, and they do shift.

So that's a good observation is they shift day to day, week to week, month to month.

What's today?

If relator is your number one thing today, it might fall.

I've taken it and I've mentioned many times over.

I took it in 2009 and then again in 2015.

I just did the top five those two times.

And actually my first time I took it ideation was my number one.

That is now my number.

So they will rearrange.

They don't typically change significantly though, unless you've had a uh huge life
experience change or something along those lines.

We generally fall into the same set of things over and over again and they do work
together.

you know that's the big thing is those things even though they're rank ordered, they can
be super close to each other.

They might be you know just a hair apart.

So one today, one tomorrow could be you know two tomorrow, etc.

trust.

But you have relator and self-assurance as your one and two.

So you build deep trust.

You also have a strong inner compass.

How does this combination show up for you in client relationships?

That's the thing I'm all about building relationships um and the key to strong
relationships is again is trust um and most clients or That you know, they'll tell you I'm

probably not one to push products or anything on you right away That's never been my thing
um It's been more of me observing to see um

what needs you may have and again sometimes it takes to listen.

Everyone will tell you what they need, you just have to listen.

And sometimes that client may think it's an immediate need and that need may actually be
something that's six or 12 months down the line and something else may be more important

at the moment.

So timing is a big thing as well.

Okay.

And you have ideation and maximizer.

So, and those are two of minear and dear because I also have those, right?

em So you see possibilities, but you're also wired to improve what already works.

How do you help business owners refine instead of constantly starting over?

Ah.

business owner in my role, sometimes you have to just take a step back and look and see
what's working and what's not working.

And don't be afraid to let go of what's not working.

It may be something that you really, um it may have been your top goal for that period.

be a struggle.

So it may be okay to take a step back and say, okay, this isn't number one for me right
now.

Let me shift my focus or pivot to what actually works.

And sometimes if you can pivot to what's actually working well, you can maximize that.

Yeah, as an idea guy, probably uh feel some symbiosis when people have lots of ideas about
where they want to take their business, but maybe sometimes perfecting what's already in

place is maybe the better move.

Yeah, awesome.

uh

and or financial institution, as to say, and just learning the ropes, you know, being
here, you know, those things come to play.

It's hard to have a great year every year.

And sometimes you have to understand that it's OK to focus on what's working at the
moment.

mean, so that's something we have to take consideration here as well.

Okay, awesome.

And you have consistency and relator, so you care deeply about fairness and relationships.

How do you treat people equally or equitably while still honoring those individual
circumstances?

I think this one was pretty spot on.

I've always been one to treat the next individual with respect.

I think back to my early days in banking and just the client contact, you don't know what
type of day that the person across from you is having.

you know, in the banking world, most people come to you probably at their low moments or
when you're having a bad day.

just from that and their stuff, you have to sit back and for one, listen.

m But then, you know, be a positive voice in there, you know, to them because sometimes
it's what they need.

And, you know, just in banking in general, again, some days people come to you on their
worst day.

um

and it's just a matter of.

being trusting for them because people come to me, their life can be turned upside down
and it's just a matter of us realigning some things financially to keep the boat from

sinking.

Okay, awesome.

And you're more reserved by nature.

um How do you think quiet leadership is often misunderstood in business and in networking?

Great question.

um Yes, I am very quiet in nature.

um I can be the life of the party if the moment arises before the book part.

I'm probably the one that you may not realize is in the room.

um just for, I guess, networking purposes, um it's one, because I'm more observing.

It's.

When it comes to banking, it's a matter of observing and being able to make those around
you more comfortable.

um That's a difficult one um because people expect, you know, because, and I like it being
in banking because banking kind of forces me to step out of that um shell of mine and have

to talk.

um And once I get to going, I'm okay.

Right.

But sometimes it's just a matter, but in, you know, with clients, I think it's helpful
because it allows me to listen.

And a lot of times I can give them feedback on things that.

Most of the time they know it, it's just a matter of they haven't heard it in a while.

And it's just a matter of helping them understand what's needed.

Yeah, well, I have two things here, but what you just said led me to my next thing, which
is, uh is there a moment where you've worked with a business owner who had a breakthrough

because they finally understood kind of their financial picture and you working with them
on that?

Yes, that happens more than...

um happens often.

um And it's just a matter of, you know, pivoting.

uh

A lot of people that come to me have an idea of which direction they want to go.

It's just a matter of being consistent and continue to move in that direction.

And again, life happens.

Sometimes life can put things on pause.

Just have to stay consistent and they'll get back on track and that's the joy of what I do
is helping them get back and actually meet that financial goal.

So.

Yeah, well, and the other thing I was while you were talking is that you're because you
are a quiet person in the meetings, you you you stand you do your thing and then but we

don't really hear a lot from you unless we directly ask you questions.

So it was really interesting to me to see your results.

And it wasn't surprising to me that relator was, you know, on the top of your thing.

Self-assurance.

oftentimes people who are quiet are not self-assured and that's why they're quiet.

But you have self-assurance and you're quiet and that always reminds me that sometimes the
person who's quietest in the room is the person you need to talk to, right?

Because they have things that they're just not loud and they're not forthcoming with all
the things, but they definitely have great, and you have high ideation.

So you've got great ideas, but oftentimes if you're not going to those people in your
room, you're missing out on those opportunities because just because they're quiet doesn't

mean they don't have something to add.

It just means they're quiet, right?

Correct, that is definitely true.

And what I like about that is, and I also think of it as, you know, in the meetings, we're
trying to move along.

We're growing and we have to keep it moving.

that's where the one-on-ones come into play.

I think those that I get to meet with, one of

um Maybe not the first one to one because we're really getting to know each other.

But by the time we have that second one, mean, things really get deploying and.

we definitely can find ways of working together and not just that, learn more about each
other.

Yeah, well, and it's good because we have you on the membership committee and all of your
strengths lend very well to being on a membership committee, right?

Is the maximization later, working with people, getting to know them well, all the things,
consistency is great for a membership committee because we want to make sure we're

consistently treating everyone and everybody's getting what they need.

All the things that...

treating people the same and routines and rules and procedures.

Those are all great for membership committee.

So, you know, I hadn't had the benefit of seeing what yours were.

We have a lot of people in the chapter that I have the benefit of knowing what their
strengths are, but I was glad to see that you have all the great stuff that is perfect for

where we have you.

So, you know, glad to have you.

All right.

Yeah, of course.

So can you kind of shift gears a little bit?

Can you share a moment?

or actually let's talk about uh one leadership or relationship mistake you've made that
taught you something important.

Let's see, so doing this for the amount of time I've been doing it, I've made a shared
number of mistakes.

um What I will say from those mistakes, you learn quite a bit.

um One thing I try to keep in mind is as you make a mistake, don't just learn from it.

um And one of our core values here, even at the bank, is celebrating fast failures.

So as you make a mistake.

live in the moment, understand it, but learn from it.

um And just in myself, it could be maybe I misquoted something to a client.

which is something in the banking world we try not to do is make a mistake.

Yes.

But you have to own it.

um And that's what clients love.

mean, they might not like it what you tell them after that.

being transparent, um it helps, especially with the relationship building aspect of it.

For sure, yeah, I think we're all humans and we make mistakes and maybe AI is gonna take
all of that away so we don't have to worry about that anymore.

I think that the best lessons come from something we've done wrong versus something we've
done right, right?

what I've learned is, you know, make the mistake, you know, live in the moment, but pivot
as quickly as possible to turn it into a better situation.

Yeah, well, and I think even with entrepreneurs that it's fairly common, entrepreneurs try
a lot of things and fail at a lot of things, right?

That's just, it's just in the nature of be, if you're willing to take the risk to become
an entrepreneur, you're going to make mistakes.

And that is perfectly fine because everything you learn from those mistakes is what's
setting you up for the next success, right?

Awesome.

tell you, majority of those entrepreneurs, they're doing much better now because they
learned from those mistakes.

Right, of course.

All right.

What becomes possible when business owners stop avoiding financial conversations and lean
into them instead?

business owners.

Accountability is a huge thing uh and it goes back to with business owners, again, they're
experts at what they do.

em And you have to continue to have those conversations and not just the conversations,
but continue to put yourself around other people m that can ignite more growth.

um And the thing is just

Don't always be the smartest in the room.

Position yourself to be able to learn from others.

And I think that helps in entrepreneurship and other aspects of life.

For sure.

Yeah, that's uh a great lesson is if you're not the smartest one in the room, you're going
to grow, right?

So the hard part is admitting that you're not the smartest one in the room sometimes.

We're feeling worthy of being in the room when you're not the smartest one in the room.

That can, you know, if you know it and you feel it, then you're less likely to do it.

And I think that's where a lot of people struggle is coming, especially into a BNI
situation is they're forced.

I mean, maybe that's a good thing, right?

Is they're forced to go and not everybody

Everybody you have something you can take away from everybody sitting in there It's just a
whether you're willing to take the time and the effort to do it um So that's the one thing

I've loved about doing the podcast is I get to dive into a lot more about a lot of people
in different professions and what they bring and the insights that you know, I'm a high

ideation person so I love

listening to what other people have to say and that that sends me down a road, right?

As, I never thought of that, you know, I get excited about a new idea and what else can I
do that I haven't tried and that kind of stuff.

So that's very cool.

All right.

So we're going to switch over from a different we're going to just take a little twist or
turn here.

So from your perspective, what separates business owners who build lasting success from
those who consistent or constantly feel reactive?

um Sometimes just being reactive, I don't know, maybe that's the conservative side of
myself, m but you know, as you're being so reactive.

um

Well, I guess it's hard for me to say because I like to, I love consistency.

um And just, you know, that reactive side of it.

As long as you can pivot properly.

um

I don't know, that's a tough one.

It's for entrepreneurs and for business owners.

uh It's just...

That's a tough one.

Yeah, well, I think it's, you know, for me that it's a shiny object thing is it's really
easy to chase after the shiny objects.

You know, here's a new thing we can go chase, you know, this, that, and the other.

all want that on the front end and we all want to taste the glamour part of it, but you
have to be willing to put in the work to get there.

Being a business owner and entrepreneur, it's just, there's late nights, there's some
nights you don't sleep as well.

Early mornings, it's just a matter of just be ready to put the time in.

You just have to grind, grind it out.

Yeah.

And from a coaching perspective, know, it's for a lot of it is stick-to-it-iveness, right?

Is sometimes it gets hard and sometimes you just have to push through, right?

You know, a lot of people, why most businesses, you know, if you look at small business
numbers, I think everybody knows that within the first two years, a lot of small

businesses fail.

And, you know, oftentimes in...

Both of us can fix that, but a lot of times it's they don't have the money to keep going.

And the other side is they don't believe in themselves and they don't believe in, or they
don't have the processes or systems in place that can help them push through.

But a lot of it can just be a personal, like, I don't think I can handle it.

But you can with the right advisors in place.

If they go to you at the start, if somebody comes to you at the beginning, I'm gonna start
a business.

and gets your advice, isn't that going to be a better spot to be than waiting until two or
three years in?

Absolutely, because if we can look at on the front end, know, we can There's there are
things that we can put in place to That we can review on a consistent basis to make sure

that we're on them on the right trajectory for the growth of your business I'll tell
anyone set us, you know, make a plan put it in writing Brother it's a

I'm gonna back up because this is my personal feeling.

I'm not a bit stickler of business plans, but sometimes business plans are needed.

I would definitely say look more into maybe a strategic plan.

Just because business plans is more so of how you're gonna get your business off the
ground.

strategic plan is gonna get you from day one when business starts.

to the next level.

And I think a lot of new business owners, they stick to just a business plan and not shift
to the additional planning that's required to grow their business.

And sometimes that's, if they come to me year two, year three, well now they probably
depleted all their financing.

Well, chances are, if you come into me for financing,

If your cash hasn't been flowing and you can't show proof of payment, now we have a bigger
issue.

Right.

Yeah.

Wouldn't it be amazing if a small business owner just starting out came to a BMI chapter
and met with all the people that they could, because we cover literally, you know, most of

the things that you need to run a business.

And most of us would do a consultation at no charge to start off how things go.

Right.

And if you start off on the right foot,

then you're going to be more successful, you know, even if you don't have a great plan,
you have some sort of plan and more so you have the relationships that you can build with

somebody that over time is going to, you'll have money to pay them to do the services that
you need or borrow the money that you need, etc.

So if somehow we could figure out how to leverage all of that in a BNI chapter.

m

Maybe we would all have more business, right?

totally agree.

I think that you're a part of, if memory serves, you're a part of a small business
association for the chamber as well, the big chamber here, not the regional ones.

And I'm imagining that there's some opportunities there to meet up with small business
people.

Is that a true story?

Yes, so with the Memphis Chamber, well, we just rebranded it's not the think tank anymore.

It's the, oh, forgive me, now they're gonna be upset with me because I can't remember the
name.

But it's one of the...

We help plan things for the Small Business Council to help with growth just to keep the
community engaged and make sure they have resources or whatever to continue to grow.

uh

Yes, yeah, so if somehow we could all figure out how to work together with our chambers
and BNI there might be some opportunities there.

Yeah.

is, and there's a lot of overlap.

um mean, you and I met at a chamber event.

So there's quite a bit of overlap.

It's just a matter of...

um

of it being more, I guess, direct um for the purpose of growth.

Because there is a ton of overlap.

Yeah, and you know, I've mentioned before, but maybe this is somebody's first time hearing
this episode.

um I'm a the chamber ambassador president for my local city chapter chamber rather.

And I, I only joined the chamber.

I've been, I was a part of the big, so we have a weird.

thing here, I don't know if this is everywhere, but there's a big, county, all the little
cities sit inside the county for the most part that surround Memphis.

So there's, I don't know, seven, let's call it seven, I don't know what it actually is,
different cities that all have their own chambers, but they fall under the same county.

And then the county has its own chamber that oversees all of it, Memphis city and all of
that.

And so you can belong to the big one, I call it, cause it kind of oversees everybody.

or your local one and having become more involved with my city one that the city I live in
and the city my business is in and becoming the president of the ambassadors, you have

much more purview to things that you wouldn't otherwise because you're now part of the
decisions.

And that matters when you can, from a, and I'm a futurist, I have high futuristic, it
matters when you can see where is this thing going.

and you have a voice in it and you can help others become part of that process and help
your business also.

you know, I've invited, I don't know, Jeff's a member.

So Jeff, met, he just said I met him at a chamber and now he's a member in BNI.

So really you can do both.

And I tend to invite lots of people who are chamber members who have not heard of BNI to
come visit.

So I have a very high visitor count because I'm always out talking to people.

But it's a

you know, from a strategic standpoint, which is my number one thing, ah you know, you can
build a strategy around growing your business just through BNI.

Literally, you know, there's 500 people in our local market that belong to BNI.

It's 501, uh who's counting?

But the, know, if you had 500 people that were willing to take your phone call and do
business with you, how significant would that be if you actually tapped into that, you

know?

And we have a lot of replicas.

Yeah, we have a lot of replication in seats, but that doesn't mean you can't do business
with everybody, right?

Because sometimes you can give business to this one, sometimes you can give business with
that one, and vice versa.

They're gonna sometimes give it to you and sometimes to the other person, and that's okay.

I would rather have a piece of the pie than no pieces, you know, no pie at all.

Absolutely, and there's enough business around for all of us.

So, yes.

Yeah, very cool.

All right.

So how do you build accountability without fear, pressure or embarrassment, especially
around money?

um Around money.

guess I think because I've so in a previous role always I've always worked um on the
retail side of banking so there's always been I've always been around physical cash you

know not just you know watching individuals um you know bank account information.

You we see the fiscal cash side of it.

just that, and you ask anyone in the bank, we don't look at cash as something tangible.

mean, we see it and our mind is thinking, man, now I gotta go count it.

um But just seeing it and creating and separating, you know, the value of it from what we
do every day, cause it's our job.

um

That's a different side of it.

oh It's just a matter of...

Being confident in what you do.

I've always been a confident person, so when I take on something, my goal is to see it
through.

m

Not only that, I'm anxious to unlock the rest of my CliftonStrengths because I want to see
how my competitive nature kicks in.

oh Just so, so I'm anxious to see that, but you know, that comes in, you know.

Me as a person, I've always been a competitive person.

So as I start things, I like to finish them.

But I've always been confident about it.

So never really had a lack of confidence.

It's just a matter of seeing things through.

Yeah, okay.

What excites you most about where you're headed professionally over the next few years?

The of that is, you know, I look at it, thinking, man, I'm getting closer to retirement.

But the plus side of that is, I've done maybe 10 years ago was I sat back and just kind of
realigned my thought process.

And I've always tried to put it in the mindset of being a business owner.

So I look at my personal finances in the mindset of it being an entity or business.

Just to, you know, and I have goals, so as long as I can stay on track and meet those
goals, you whether it's five years from now, 10 years from now, and you know, at the rate

I'm going, 20 years in retirement is going to be knocking on the door pretty quickly.

Yeah.

um So it's just a matter of positioning myself to be better in a better position than
where I was yesterday.

And I take that same approach, you know, as I meet with clients.

it's, I like to always take a snapshot of, you know, where we are on day one.

And, you know, as we continue to meet, you know, we continue to take snapshots and compare
and...

That's where clients, they get to see their growth and where they're moving to.

Yeah, and that's a, I wish I had seen a financial advisor earlier in my career than I did
because I've built a lot since working with one, but you know, you always the regret of I

wish I would have started earlier because you know, when you're younger, you don't have
the access that you feel like you need to invest money.

yeah, we're invincible when we're young, so we don't have that fear.

uh It's as we start hitting certain milestones, it's a matter of, okay, I might need to
realign a few things here.

But that's a good thing.

Yeah, that's a good thing, because you're learning how to and you're growing from it.

Yeah, and it's the same for your business, right?

That's why, you know, what were the crux of this whole thing is if you look at your
personal life and your business life together as a holistic across the span of life, em

you know, that what you don't know is what you don't know.

And so when you work with professionals, they know it and they can give you guidance that
you didn't, you know, it's all it's fine to know and not do.

It's not so great to not do and not know because then you'll have regrets.

So.

All right, and so you mentioned your kids are gonna probably listen to this later.

What kind of example do you hope that they take away from how you work and how you lead?

m that they always continue to be leaders within themselves.

um It's okay to follow, it's okay to sit back and listen, but understand that you are
built to be a leader.

I'm a little biased, but my wife and I have always instilled into them that um they're
destined for greatness.

Yes, yes, well, and we have a lot of, well, not a lot of, but we definitely have a new
generation of younger people coming into BNI who are in their 20s.

this is, I feel so old now, but having to think about, we've got kids that are also
entrepreneurs coming in to BNI or working for someone else and helping build their dream.

So it's always interesting to.

Had I found, had I been in, you know, I worked corporate for 26 years, had I found
entrepreneurship earlier and joined BNI, you know, what would life be?

But I wasn't prepared for those things until I got there.

So that's kind of how it goes.

All right.

It's a matter of, you you grow with what's in front of you.

Yes, yes, for sure.

You're learning what you're supposed to learn at the moment, you're supposed to learn it.

So if a business owner wants to be more confident, prepared and approval ready, what's the
first step they should take this month?

um I would say complete a personal financial statement.

Get a snapshot of where you are right now.

um And kind of, because it'll kind of give you an idea of um where you stand at the
moment.

uh And chances are something may stand out to say, I need to, you know, put more attention
to this and...

chances are six months in a year you'll see a difference.

And not only that, business owners...

Thank

have the right financial partners, the right partners around you, whether it's financial
or legal.

It's just a matter of having the right partners around you to help your business thrive.

And really quickly, because I always use a bail acronym, which is, you know, the four
partners that I think any business owner should always keep close.

B is for a banker.

A is for accountant, I for insurance, and L is for lawyer.

I think those are four professionals that you have to.

have on speed dial that you can get access to quickly.

And fortunately enough, we have those in our BNI chapter.

Yeah, yeah, good advice.

Awesome.

All right, so quick fire round.

So just give you a couple of quick questions, quick answers.

All right, first one is lake river or ocean fishing?

Um, I must say ocean fishing.

I just recently went deep sea fishing.

That's probably why I got a few absences on my, on my report.

I'll definitely say that's, that's a good hobby now.

Okay, uh German Shepherds, protectors or goofballs?

my goodness, more so goofballs.

oh Definitely protectors, but you know, when they're comfortable around you, they're the
biggest goofballs ever.

Yeah, Jeff's got two of them, that's why the question.

Best thinking space, on or in the water, driving or early morning quiet?

Early morning quiet.

m

And I guess it depends on the day.

My wife might say I'm a morning person on the weekend, which it's hard to wake up during
the week, but come Saturday, Sunday, I can be up before the sun is up.

But that's just my time to um have a free mind, I guess.

Yeah.

awesome.

What money myth would you love to retire forever?

money myth?

That's hard to say.

Winning the lottery, I guess.

No, it's not going to happen.

Definitely a myth.

it.

All right.

Quiet confidence or loud charisma, which lasts longer?

I quiet confidence.

m

I like both.

um

but sometimes you don't have to always be the loudest in the room.

uh

all right.

One habit you never skip no matter how busy life gets.

um I would say an event for my kids.

um I've always made an effort to, if they have an event, um and I've been blessed with my
professional roles I've had that I couldn't most of the time get away, but we all know as

parents that they don't stay young forever.

And um meeting those, attending those events where there's a...

30 minute beta club induction to watch them go across the stage because they have no idea
what they're doing or you know that soccer game that they you know enjoy so it's just a

matter for me parenting always has always come first so it's just a matter of making sure
that I'm competing with my competing with my wife to be top parent I would say

I love that.

Top parent, that's the best.

All right, who shaped your leadership style the most?

That I would probably say my mom, em she's always been my voice of comfort.

And I would say between her and my wife, they're probably the two that keep me grounded
and focused.

I would say in recent years, more so my wife, because she's the one I bounce everything
off of.

um

But before that, I would say my mom, just because she raised me in a way to want to always
be confident and to see things through.

So my wife is just one to push me and challenge me to make sure that I see those things
through.

Awesome, good job mom.

All right, and what's one thing you wish someone had explained earlier in your career?

finances.

em

more so, more so because there are so many different avenues in the finance world.

um Just a matter of.

having a keen understanding.

And again, I think I've been blessed to be in this, to do what I've been doing.

I've learned kind of on the go, on the job, really on the job training, I've learned on
the job.

But I wish that I would have learned some of these things as in grade school.

These are just things we don't learn in grade school.

Right, right, or even, you know, before we graduate.

yeah.

All right, and then last one, finish this sentence.

Success to me looks like.

My kids telling me that, dad, you don't have to work anymore.

You can come live with me.

But seriously, success to me looks like continued growth.

As long as you're on a pattern to continually do better day after day, to me that's what
success looks like.

love that.

All right.

Well, thank you so much for your honesty, your insight, sharing all your experiences with
us today.

Appreciate it having you as a guest.

Thank you.

Thank you for having me.

This was fun.

I was a little nervous in the beginning, but this has been fun.

Thank you.

Awesome, my pleasure.

And there were a lot of things to take away from today, but if you are listening and you
are a fellow BNI member, I want to leave you with this reminder that givers gain isn't

just about referrals, it's about supporting one another's growth, sharing value, and
helping good conversations reach the people who need them.

So if in this episode helped you, if you had some different thoughts, gave you some
clarity, sparked a new idea,

The simplest way you can give back is to engage.

So here's a number of ways.

Subscribe to the channel.

That way you won't miss future episodes.

Like this episode so it reaches more business owners.

Drop a comment with your biggest takeaway and share it with a fellow BNI member or
business owner who you think might benefit from it.

And also remember you're getting a CEU credit for listening.

So.

m

do all those things and that helps me and you get something back.

So thank you all for being here and we will see you next time on The Perfect 100.