The Exchanges

Q So is there anything that we haven't mentioned about ego that you want to share or add?

A Ego is good. Uh, having it in check. You know, it's, think of it like, you know, the, the scales of justice, so to speak. You know, you, you could have ego, but have some humility, because you do need to have the ego to be able to drive to get to what you want to, if that's your desired journey. Uh, if it's not, then, you know, ego probably isn't necessary at all, but for those entrepreneurs, you gotta have a little ego, because you gotta be a little, uh, you know, a little out there to be able to say, you know what, no, I could do this. I know it's never been done before. I know most people can't do it, but I think I can. Well, you need a legal, but with that, you got to have a little humbleness and a little humility because it's probably not going to be just you that gets you to where your success is, whatever that success is. So you're going to need the help, and it's okay to need the help. Again, I go back, a lot of entrepreneurs, their egos are so strong that they say, oh, I don't need any help, and then they fail, and Rome is burning around them, but you know, I'm gonna keep with the path I have, because I'm great. Well, you're not that great.

AI assessment note: “Ego is good. Uh, having it in check. You know, it's, think of it like”

Q Yeah. Uh, and, and how could you not be egotistical or passionate, a positive way, passionate about chocolate? Like who doesn't freaking love chocolate? Like, I don't think I've ever met a person in the world who doesn't love chocolate.

A Um, you know what? I, uh, I've probably met two of them in my entire life, and I stopped talking to them. I'm not friends with them anymore. No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Uh, you know, you're right. You know, when you, when you talk about chocolate, I'll go to a party, and people ask me what I'll do, and I say, I run a chocolate company. They're like, what? You run, how do you run a chocolate company? And it's like, well, yeah, and I tell them, you know, the, the brand and all, and they're like, that's gotta be the coolest job in the world. You know, you, you're surrounded by chocolate all day long. I'm like, yeah, I'm surrounded by thousands and thousands of tons of chocolate, but I'm also surrounded by some pretty amazing people too, who, who help us deliver that chocolate and make the brand what it is today. But yeah, you know, I was, um, uh, on an interview, uh, on, uh, radio and, You know, the name came up, Willy Wonka. You're like Willy Wonka, Glenn. I'm like, yeah, I kind of am. And the great thing is, you know, Gene Wilder, who was the very first Willy Wonka, actually lived in the hometown I grew up in, so maybe there's that connection. Maybe, you know, subconsciously, I wanted to be Gene Wilder, and I wanted to be Willy Wonka.

AI assessment note: “I've probably met two of them in my entire life, and I stopped talking”

Q Let's start on the personal side of ego, and then we'll explore the professional side of ego later. Um, what was it that made you say that word to me?

A Cause I think ego is probably one of the strongest Movers of direction in success and in failure. You know, you gotta have a little bit of ego, because you're doing something that not a lot of people do, but if you've got too much ego, nobody's gonna wanna be on your journey with you, and it's gonna be you, and it's gonna be one lonely road. So, you know, when I, when I think of ego, and I think about my personal life throughout, I mean, you know, from, you know, early twenties to today, you know, I can see how my, my ego has really shaped my journey And how my ego is, you know, shaped my, not only on the personal side, but also the professional side. I mean, ego is one of the strongest factors.

AI assessment note: “Cause I think ego is probably one of the strongest Movers of direction”

Q Having been around the world and around the US dealing with different kinds of people, would you say there's a cultural aspect or a regional aspect of ego? Like when I think of New York, like I imagine New Yorkers have big egos. But I imagine people in Georgia don't really have big egos. Would you say there's, there's a cultural aspect to ego?

A No, I wouldn't. I would say that it's more, again, because, you know, there are people that could have really strong egos that, ah, you know, live in, you know, the mountains of Tennessee. You know, I, I think, ah, ego is really a, a personal choice in how you want to fulfill how you think you should fulfill. So, you know, you could have a person that has a big ego, But it's extremely insecure, and the reason they have a big ego is because they're trying to hide that insecurity. You could have people that have been successful, but have no humility, and because of that success, they have a big ego. So I think what happens is, I think, again, it's that personal, especially on the personal journey side, you know, the ego always seems to be, again, back to the driving piece, and you know, you'll find successful people at times can definitely have a Larger ego than they're supposed to, but the majority of time they understand, you know, and I find even today that my ego sometimes comes out when I'm talking about red chocolate, you know, because it's like one of my kids. I've always said, you can say whatever you want about me. I don't care. Talk about my wife, talk about my kids, talk about my family. We're going to throw down. And that's my ego talking because I feel like I have to be the provider and the protector. Red is the same way. You know, I am the, the, the protector of red…

AI assessment note: “No, I wouldn't. I would say that it's more, again”

Q themselves. And so sometimes I struggle with that because people look at me like, oh, you're arrogant. Like, I love myself. How is that arrogance? But when you say that, it sounds arrogant. But everybody says, if you don't love yourself, no one else can love you. So, people want to love themselves, and they want other people to love themselves too, but saying you love yourself is arrogant. Why?

A You know, it's interesting you say that. I think, um, saying you love yourself, uh, and you respect yourself, uh, I think as long as you say with a little humility and humbleness, I don't think there's anything wrong with that, because I truly do think that you have to be able to look in the mirror and go, yeah, alright, it's good. Because we've all looked in the mirror at times and went, hmm, Not sure today. I mean, we've all gone through that, you know, everybody, and those days that you do that, what do you do? You can't crawl back into bed. You got to punch through the mud. You know, you got to say, all right, you know what, maybe today ain't the A-OK day, but I started to get stuff done. So I think that, um, you know, it's, I think it's wonderful when a parent gives you the, uh, the ability and the desire to want to put yourself forward. I think that's important because, um, You know, there are a lot of people that like being employee 10,906. There's nothing wrong with it, and they want to be at that company for 26 years, and they want to get the watch, or the plate, or whatever it is when they retire, or 46 years, or whatever it is, and off they go. And there are others that say, that's not me, man. It's just not what I want. And it doesn't mean that you have to have a passion or anything like that, as we had talked about. And I think that all is driven by the way that yo…

AI assessment note: “as long as you say with a little humility and humbleness”