The Exchanges

Q is something that is probably a very private For you, very personal and probably not easy to talk about, but it needs to be said. And I'm happy that you're the person to do it. Felt like you were really a humble kind of a person. And I felt like you were the right guest to talk about it. So welcome to the show. And why don't you introduce yourself?

A Thanks for having me. And my name's Mark. I own a two car dealerships with my brother. We also have a real estate holding company where we have three apartment buildings together and I also do fiction writing on the side, kind of, like, as a hobby. So, and I'm planning on doing that a lot more now that I, I guess, recently retired. But I will say, as far as psychedelics go, like, I tend to be pretty open about my use of them. Um, I mean, obviously, it, it, it's kind of depending on, like, which audience you're, you're with. Some people are completely against it. Other people are, you know, open to the idea, but not necessarily willing to try. And then there's the other ones that are just Super gung-ho about like wanting to know everything about it and wanting to try it themselves.

AI assessment note: “my name's Mark. I own a two car dealerships with my brother.”

Q working for Google and Apple and Facebook. They're living in vans making 200,000 a year. Cause they're like, we just couldn't afford to live in any of those places. Like that, that just blew my mind. Um, so the, the last question is what advice do you have for other entrepreneurs? I know you've talked about these other, these kinds of things, but if you could just sum it up.

A I would say, uh, okay. So definitely learn to understand people, uh, learn to listen, but like also the biggest thing is just Learn to lose. Like, I don't think people realize how much failure and how much loss you, you take on, on a daily basis. Like, it's not just massive wins all the time. Like, people focus on You know, like somebody making, okay, like the business bringing in six million dollars a year, like, okay, yeah, it's easy to focus on that, but like, we still keep losses happening every single day. Losses in the sense of like, you know, maybe unhappy customers or Salespeople that quit or like turnover, things like that. Like all of those things are losses that you, you take on. And if you don't learn to solve those problems and to like really accept the losses and kind of like move forward from them, you're, you're not going to be an entrepreneur. You're just going to end up being, let's say like a failure. And, The difference between somebody that fails and the entrepreneur is the person that just accepts that there's going to be losses and forces themselves to keep going past it. Like I can comfortably tell you, like on a lot of the properties that we were rehabbing, I have come across like so many problems and there are days that like, I've just been like, holy shit, I just don't want to deal with this right now. I'm dealing with the stuff at the company too. An…

AI assessment note: “Learn to lose. Like, I don't think people realize how much failure”

Q is something that is probably a very private For you, very personal and probably not easy to talk about, but it needs to be said. And I'm happy that you're the person to do it. Felt like you were really a humble kind of a person. And I felt like you were the right guest to talk about it. So welcome to the show. And why don't you introduce yourself?

A Thanks for having me. And my name's Mark. I own a two car dealerships with my brother. We also have a real estate holding company where we have three apartment buildings together and I also do fiction writing on the side, kind of, like, as a hobby. So, and I'm planning on doing that a lot more now that I, I guess, recently retired. But I will say, as far as psychedelics go, like, I tend to be pretty open about my use of them. Um, I mean, obviously, it, it, it's kind of depending on, like, which audience you're, you're with. Some people are completely against it. Other people are, you know, open to the idea, but not necessarily willing to try. And then there's the other ones that are just Super gung-ho about like wanting to know everything about it and wanting to try it themselves.

AI assessment note: “my name's Mark. I own a two car dealerships with my brother.”

Q Do you feel like there's still lasting positive effects or negative effects?

A Negative effects? No. I mean, right now, um, any form of like anxiety or depression or anything like that, not there. Like as soon as I stopped taking it, it went away. As far as positive effects, yes, I am still, I'm able to empathize with people a lot better now. Um, I, I, I find myself that to being able to like pull myself out of ruts really quickly. So if ever I feel like I'm in like a negative spot or things are just not quite working out the way that I think they are, you know, sometimes all of us get those moments where we feel like, man, the whole fucking world is coming down on us. What are we going to do? And this person yelled at me and now I'm losing this account or whatever. And I find that it just, it doesn't matter. Like I've always been able to figure out a way and it's easy to, to be able to just Pull out of it and keep focusing on everything good that you have coming your way, you know, and, and, uh, I would say those, those are probably like the biggest benefits that have lasted with me. And also just the, the appreciation of, of my own life and everything around me as well. Like those, those are the benefits that really stuck.

AI assessment note: “Negative effects? No. [...] As far as positive effects, yes”

Q 20 14, yeah, and unfortunately, I, I lost contact with her. When she was getting married, she was like, look, you know, I'm getting married, like, I just don't think it's a good idea that we keep being friends, and I was like, if that's how you feel, then okay, fine. So I'm curious, through all of this, Were you consuming coffee at any point?

A Caffeine, whenever I took it, while I was on, like, microdosing, first, it gave me this metallic taste in my mouth, like, every single time, that I would not get with just caffeine alone, or with the, the, the dose of, of LSD, but then it also gave me, like, the, the jitters. LSD is already enough of, like, a, a stimulant, and so, if some, some days, like, if you took a little bit too much, you'd feel kind of, like, pulses around your The back of your neck and, and sometimes like, uh, over your, your skin, like your skin would just tingle a little bit. Uh, and it was kind of like the, the stimulant effect of it, you know, but when you took it with, with caffeine, you would definitely start jittering a little bit. And so it wasn't as enjoyable. So I kind of like made sure that caffeine was not part of it when I actually would take my dose. Don't do it with Modafinil and don't do it with any kind of stimulant, like any other kind of stimulant, like caffeine or anything. It alters the way that you experience it. It's a lot better with, with it just by itself.

AI assessment note: “made sure that caffeine was not part of it when I actually would take my dose”

Q 20 14, yeah, and unfortunately, I, I lost contact with her. When she was getting married, she was like, look, you know, I'm getting married, like, I just don't think it's a good idea that we keep being friends, and I was like, if that's how you feel, then okay, fine. So I'm curious, through all of this, Were you consuming coffee at any point?

A Caffeine, whenever I took it, while I was on, like, microdosing, first, it gave me this metallic taste in my mouth, like, every single time, that I would not get with just caffeine alone, or with the, the, the dose of, of LSD, but then it also gave me, like, the, the jitters. LSD is already enough of, like, a, a stimulant, and so, if some, some days, like, if you took a little bit too much, you'd feel kind of, like, pulses around your The back of your neck and, and sometimes like, uh, over your, your skin, like your skin would just tingle a little bit. Uh, and it was kind of like the, the stimulant effect of it, you know, but when you took it with, with caffeine, you would definitely start jittering a little bit. And so it wasn't as enjoyable. So I kind of like made sure that caffeine was not part of it when I actually would take my dose. Don't do it with Modafinil and don't do it with any kind of stimulant, like any other kind of stimulant, like caffeine or anything. It alters the way that you experience it. It's a lot better with, with it just by itself.

AI assessment note: “So I kind of like made sure that caffeine was not part of it”

Q Sure. So what make, what made you excited for getting into the car dealership? I remember it was your dad's, I think, and you bought them out.

A Yeah. So, I mean, honestly, I can't say that it was cars itself cause like, Cars have never really interested me. Like it's, yes, they're nice. And when you see like fast cars and everything, or like the, the really nice, new or shiny ones, like you, obviously your eyes get real wide, but the moment that you get into them, you realize they're the exact same thing as like that Pontiac G six that you saw, you know, like the 2004 Pontiac G six that's sitting around her vibe. Um, but that's, that's the point. Like I see cars as transportation. I think the exciting part of it was just the business itself, like how, how things operated, how my dad had kind of like raised us to have this mentality that, you know, we, we, We eat what we kill, you know, and, and, um, which is funny. I'm vegetarian, but I use that. But anyway, um, the, the point is that, uh, it's just the excitement of having the business and being able to operate it better, uh, and seeing the growth part of everything. Like, I think I would get excited about almost any business as long as I saw how I could improve it and how I could, uh, make it more and more profitable and keep growing it. Like that's, that's the part that, that, uh, that really excites me about. Our dealerships.

AI assessment note: “I think the exciting part of it was just the business itself”

Q Okay. Fair enough. So then what's the first, what's your first thought in the day? And it can't be, I need to pee or anything like that.

A First thought throughout the day, I would say that it's different every single day, but I mean, I, I know if, if you were to ask this to my brother, even though he won't admit it, the first thought that would be going through his head is, I need to check my bank account. He fucking does that every single day. But for me, I don't, I don't know, man. Like, I, I guess it's just kind of random. Like, sometimes I'll think about Like sometimes I'll wake up and I will think about, oh shit, like I have a good idea for the next video, or I have a good idea for like a new, um, like ad for the dealership or, you know, but other times it could just be, damn, I'm tired. Kind of want to go back to bed, but I'm, I'm, I know I won't be able to, like, I don't, I don't have like a fixed thing that I think about every single day. I think it's just, um, it, Usually like the inspiration just comes in the, in the morning and just kind of like travels through it. And I think just the fact that I have the routine set up allows me to be able to, uh, not go in the wayside and keep myself like on track with everything I know I need to do.

AI assessment note: “I don't have like a fixed thing that I think about every single day.”

Q Yeah. From my research, I've gotten the impression that if you're going to do anything, you should always just do it by itself. So you said it helped you to focus. It helped you with empathy. Do you feel like it made you a better leader?

A Yes. Yes. Especially with the empathy part of everything, because I always try to remember that the employees are actually what makes my companies run. And without them, I am Nothing. Like I am literally just some guy sitting around barking order orders at fucking nothing. And so I've also come to recognize the fact that employees have a life outside of your business. And we always have this misconception that we're the ones that care the most about the company, but that's, that's just a fucking lie too. Like there are employees that care so much about your company and you and everything that you're trying to build. Even if it's something like, uh, Collecting bills from people. Like, people think that there's no purpose behind collecting, that you have to do something that matters in the world, but that's the thing, like, it matters to the people that are involved in that business, and that's the biggest thing about it. Like, the employees care about it when you show them that you care about them. It took me a long time to finally recognize that, but I definitely saw that the more time that I would spend trying to feel for them, and trying to get to know them, and trying to involve them in my life and the business, They began getting more engaged with the company, and I just, I, I definitely felt like, ah, there was more of a connection all around the company, and again, this c…

AI assessment note: “Yes. Yes. Especially with the empathy part of everything”

Q tone deaf for him to- Hopefully he'll relive that moment for the rest of his life and go, shit, I shouldn't have done that. But that's just very telling of who he is. Um, and the cutthroat nature of, of his personality. So do you feel like microdosing improved your relationship with your family and you're married, right? How has that helped with her and your brother and your parents?

A My dad and I have never had, let's say like a super strong relationship. Like I love my dad and I have a lot of respect for him, but I do tend to cling on to a lot of, like, bad things that happened in the past and everything, but it has helped me kind of just let it go and realize, like, it already happened, like, there's no reason for you to let it keep on leading you down, like, that same path, you know, and so I do notice that I don't get into as many arguments with, with him at all anymore. I just kind of let it wash off, you know, like, if I notice that maybe, like, we start trying to get into an argument, I stop, and I'm able to be more aware, like, in the moment, and let it go, and recognize the fact that, like, hey, This is going down like a shitty path. Like, don't let it. It's not worth it. My brother and I, I would say that we're pretty good partners, but if him and I would have been like in high school together, we probably never would have been friends. Uh, but we work really, really well together. I can talk really well with people. I can get along with them really easily. He has a little bit of a harder time with that, but he wants to go out more. So we work as partners together really well, but when it comes to outside of that, sometimes we clash a lot. And so we can get into arguments, but as of like, let's say a couple of years ago, like it doesn't happen as …

AI assessment note: “it has helped me kind of just let it go and realize”

Q So then what has driven you to keep doing all of this?

A The challenge, um, for me, it's, it's honestly, it all just comes down to the challenge and seeing, um, how far I can push myself. Um, I mean, it's the whole reason why I go to the gym or I run, um, like, It, it, almost every decision that, that I make comes down to being able to see how far I can stretch things. And, and, um, yeah, like I, I just enjoy being able to see like how, how much I can grow. Um, and one of the other things too, is I like being able to Provide, uh, for, for people like for the people that are close to me, like I like being able to, to be there and give them the life that they want, you know? And so, um, my, a lot of my employees, like I, I hold a lot of stock when it comes to treating my employees well and making sure that they're taken care of. Um, cause it, okay. Perfect. Perfect way to, to look at it is, um, I'm sure, you know, like what a Baron is right. A Baron from

AI assessment note: “it all just comes down to the challenge and seeing, um, how far I can push myself”

Q Whoever is a first time founder often doesn't know what they don't know. The things you just said are very wise and obviously you're very experienced with your company, um, through your experiences, but how did you come to learn That you needed to do all of those things in order to keep the company running and growing?

A Um, it's interesting because my brother is more of the data guy. Um, so I view things more in like the creative sense. So my brother went to school for, for business. And so for him, it's get as much data as possible, you know? And for me, it's, it comes down to, that's why I talk about people so much because I believe in relationships more than I believe in full on data. And while data is very, very useful, um, I kind of feel like The data is only there to help you strengthen the relationships that you actually make. And, and that could be relationships within your employees or with your customers. So it's always about finding ways to, to make things better. So for me personally, like, I don't know, I would, I would argue that like, we just, we grew up with that mentality. And I would say my parents, like my, we're, we've always been In a business like we have never, the only time that my parents actually worked for somebody else was when we first came to the United States and, you know, they were working at a, I don't know, like one of the fucking warehouses or something, you know, and, and, uh, and then when my dad was selling cars and my mom was a CNA and that lasted for maybe five years or something. And then after that, we ended up opening up the company and we went right back into. Just owning our own business and. So I would say, like, just watching them throughout my e…

AI assessment note: “just watching them throughout my entire life is really what helped us”

Q know, the goal is to find a solution. Cause I think it's so easy to just complain. And I I've definitely been known to complain at times. I think my, my ex-wife can, can vouch for that. Um, so, so yeah, that's good to do that. And I'm sure it's not to do. Um, so I'm curious then what has been one of the hardest decisions you've had to make?

A Ooh, uh, One of the hardest decisions we've had to make. I don't know. That's a, it's a tough question. I feel like almost every decision is, is hard to make, but I don't know. I w I would say most of them come down to making a choice of like firing somebody like it's never. Cause you always have it in the back of your head. Uh, or at least I do like, Is it, is it my fault that this person did not work well for the company, you know, and it could I retrain them? Could I attempt to retrain them, uh, to be able to kind of like adhere to what we need out of them? Uh, so I would say like anytime that you have to fire anybody and you, you are not a hundred percent sure if it's your fault or if it's actually them, like they're just not a right fit for the company. And I would say most of the time, no, I would say all of the time it is our fault at the end of the day, because we hired them. And if we would have done a good enough interview, we would have been able to find the red flags that would have let us know. Hey, this person will not be a right fit. Or if we weren't a hundred percent sure. And we just thought this person seems like a right fit, but I'm not quite there. Okay. Well, maybe we should have given them like a trial period, like where we offered them like, Hey, could you come on board for a week or two? And just to see if you are going to enjoy working with us and we're…

AI assessment note: “most of them come down to making a choice of like firing somebody”

Q personality thing, and then, like, a few months later, after we knew, we tried everything to, like, get through to them, like, it just wasn't gonna happen, and we're like, okay, we've just gotta let you go, um, and that, that caused Problems that rippled and it's still rippling now. We're still dealing with that crap, but, um, so then I'm curious, how do you anticipate problems in your business?

A Um, okay. So a problem that we're having right now, um, one of our salespeople been with us for a couple of years already. I can tell you, like, I absolutely love this salesperson. Like it's somebody that I am a hundred percent sure is going to be sticking with me, whether it's in the car business or any other business that we open up, like there's somebody that's going to be sticking with us for, for life, you know, and, um, she was going through some relationship issues at her house and I could tell From months ago that she was having these problems. And I think last time during the interview, I'd mentioned to you that like, I, I have regular sit downs with our, our employees just to ask them like, Hey, how's your life going? Like, how are you feeling? Just to find out a little bit more about them, just to help them feel at ease and comfortable talking with me about everything going on. And So out, well, I'll say out of the blue, she, she came and didn't really request, but ended up stating that she wanted to go to Florida for two months. And right now we've been having a pretty hard time, like actually finding, uh, a, an additional salesperson, and we've been having a really hard time finding a collector. I'm sure. Like you might have been having a hard time finding replacements as well for everything, but I don't know how it is for, for, uh, the rest of the world, but for u…

AI assessment note: “I have regular sit downs with our, our employees just to ask them”