The LoCo Experience EP 282 Power Partnership w/ MO Benefits with Nima & Valeria Ortiz Mousavizadeh

In today's conversation, I sat down with a pair of founders who also happen to be newlyweds, Nima Musavizeta and Valeria Ortiz Musavizeta of MO Benefits Consultants. Valeria is a returning guest, having been on episode 115 as the founder of Ortiz Insurance, which she retains, and Nima has been an impact player for Journey Payroll and HR since 2021. Starting in sales, moving through director to VP to president of strategic growth and a partner before co-founding MO Benefits. When Valeria was on the podcast, we detailed her journey from single mom from Puerto Rico to bilingual Medicare expert in Northern Colorado. In the time since, she added ACA Benefits Consulting to the practice, and that capability was part of the operational foundation for MO Benefits. In today's conversation, we focused more on Nima's journey, including his roots as the son of a Persian immigrant from a Muslim background and a Catholic mother. His father was aligned with the Shah of Iran and had multiple companies there, and the family struggled as immigrants to the USA and eventually found themselves in Trinidad, Colorado, where Nima grew up. Nima built his skill set as a corporate trainer in South Korea, working especially for Samsung Electronics. And his enthusiasm for relationships and helping people and Valeria's expertise in operations created great partnership. And the love story is a big bonus to this conversation. So I hope you'll join me and enjoy my conversation with Nima Musavizeta and Valeria Ortiz Musavizeta. Welcome to the Loco Experience Podcast. On this show, you'll get to know business and community leaders from all around Northern Colorado and beyond. Our guests share their stories. And through it all, you'll be inspired and entertained. These conversations are real and raw, and no topics are off limits. So pop in a breath mint and get ready to meet our latest guest. Here we are. Welcome back to the Loco Experience podcast. My guests today are Nima Mousavizadeh and Valeria Ortiz Mousavizadeh. Yes. Yeah, nice. Newly married about a month ago now, a little over. So congratulations to you too. Valeria, a returning guest to the Loco Experience. That's right. Happy to be here. And Nima, a first-timer. Yeah, so happy to be here. Thanks for having us. So you guys recently also, not just got married, but you co-founded MO Benefits Consulting. Yes. That's right. Who wants to describe that? Yeah, so MO Benefits Consultants, we specialize in an underutilized tool for a small group, but also any really sized group in Colorado that really wants that innovative solution for their health care benefits. I think there's a lot of frustrated business owners with the options that are out there for, especially with under 25 employees. Yeah, a lot of people almost just give up. They're like, well, I guess when I grow bigger, then I can think about this problem. Yes. Absolutely. Yeah. And we founded it because, you know, my wife's expertise with the ACA market, which is important to provide this kind of option. And my experience with business owners and what they need. Okay. So this is an ACA product, but for small business owners? Correct. Is that kind of the truth? Yeah. Okay. This is ACA. Yeah, so it's Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement is what it's called. And we have the ICRA acronym for that. And I think that it's something that people are like, what's an ICRA? I've never heard of it. And we do a lot of education because it's... You need someone that specializes in it in order to really provide the value that's there within arm's reach. And we've just created a specialty in that exact space for employer benefits. And it's been getting a lot of traction. We're super busy. And so this is kind of like… Basically the same as an individual plan that I might buy from ACA. Correct. But then there's like an employer reimbursement element to it that maybe gives some tax benefits to the employer or things like that? Yes, that's exactly right. Yeah, through the ECRA, your employees get to pick whatever ACA plan they want. from the marketplace and with our expertise, we guide them in that. And Nima's job is to help you as an employer to set up that contribution. How much is that? What do you want to do? And follow up with all those processes. And it might be just a flat thing. Every employee gets 500 bucks a month toward their plan or depending on how you want to do it. Exactly. Oh, interesting. Yeah, but it gives a lot of freedom to your employees. Right. Well, and it's also then it creates a tax deductible event, right? Like, whereas otherwise, if you just individual and you buy health insurance, it's like, right. That's act for tax. Yeah. Yep. It is. And I think that the major benefit within ICHRA is that, you know, the premiums that are paid. are paid pre-tax so it's like a traditional group in that way on the employer can also get the tax benefits on for year-end tax for their business and the employer is also paying the premiums on the exchange for the ACA market pre-tax as well and When you look at that and then you look at the way that an ICHRA is structured compared to a traditional group, it's significantly less. I think that we get a lot of feedback when we are doing a side-by-side comparison of traditional group and the ICHRA, how different it really is in good ways, in ways that employers respond to. And do the subsidies then that are applied, does that vary based on the income of the employee and stuff? Yes. You can give it to everybody, but some people might not get any subsidies toward it. Right. So that's part of the evaluation when we go through the employees and the census. Depending on your income, you could qualify for APTC, which those are the tax credits to pay for your insurance. And if that's the case, you have to go straight with the marketplace and not with the ICRA. But we guide them through all that process. So the employees with us have access to support, whether that is through an ICRA or independently through their APTCs or the tax credits. I could see how that would be really especially cool for, I'm imagining companies like maid service agencies or stuff, where there's maybe a lot of single moms with families that have health insurance needs, but their income still isn't very high because they're spending a lot of time being a mom and stuff, right? Yes, exactly. And cleaning into the corners. Yeah, so when we meet with the employees, part of the evaluation is to ask for that AGI, the income for the family. And we input it in our system, and it tells us, no, this person should go with the marketplace directly. Or, yeah, the contribution from that employer is better. So we help with that transition. So, Valerie, you've been running Ortiz Insurance mostly kind of in the Medicare, Medicaid space? That's correct. Yeah, Medicare individual plans. Medicare individual plans. Yeah. That's still existing? That didn't get folded into MO benefits or nothing like that? That's still operating? No. Yeah, still up and running. Actually, we're just expanding now because with the division of MO benefits and partnering like this, now we continue to help individuals one-on-one, clients with Medicare, clients with individual plans, families. But then MO benefits is helping the employers getting that business, ICRA, set up for the employees. So that's what makes it easier. better because we already have the systems in place for individual. We already understand the marketplace, ACA plans, all of that. And Nima's knowledge kind of of working with businesses. Exactly. Payroll and other HR-related benefits and stuff. Yes. And so it sounds like you're still friends with Kevin and the crew at Journey. Of course. I always love my Journey family over there. And I'm still a shareholder. And I'm just proud of the legacy that I created while I was there for five years. And still to this day, I can still help people with... connecting them with accountants and, of course, connecting them with Journey for payroll services around the nation. The one thing that struck me over the years is how much there is a need for innovation, for benefits, even more than payroll, even though there's a great need for great service in that area. There's so many nonprofits and for-profit companies that have just given up. on trying to provide benefits. And what they end up doing, Kurt, is that they just give a stipend. They're like, look, I can't afford any of this. Like just go and figure it out. And then the people are like, it's too complicated. I don't want to go figure it out. I don't even know who to talk to. And I'm probably not going to find the best solution for me because I'm just a one person now that has a really hard time catching the attention of the marketplace. I mean, if you imagine a business owner, they're just trying to do the right thing, right? They have a set contribution that they can give their employees, their five or ten employees. And they just want to do that, and they want that to make a difference for their employee. But if a business owner is providing a stipend, the problem is that that's post-tax. So when you just hand a stipend, like everything is post-tax, both on your side and when they play their premiums, it's also post-tax. Right. So you're removing 30% of what you're trying to do as a business owner by just providing a stipend. When it comes to an ICHRA, we're able to get those payments done for premiums on the employer and employee side pre-tax. So obviously the money goes longer when you're doing something pre-tax. But also for a business owner, you want to reduce the overall payroll amount that has unemployment insurance pulled out of it. That has Suda and Fuda implications. Okay. So you're reducing the overall payroll to be taxed also when you have, you know, this set up with an ICRA. And, you know, the employer is relieved because they don't own the plan. I don't have to be the middleman that's one of the biggest benefits of an ICHRA they don't have to be administering the plan and they don't have to be hit with those renewals which if you've tried to offer then you're just like I'm stopping my reimbursement for this person but they can still keep their health plan which is another thing for the employee especially if you have to you'll stay with a shitty job just so you don't lose your health plan Literally, yes. Like a lot of people out there have done so. That's right. So with this option, the plan is yours. You can get the reimbursement or pay it in full if you're let go or you just want to part ways. The plan is yours. You're not going to get or be without insurance because you're terminating a job. So is this business, like who's doing this stuff and is it just the two of you right now? Will you be hiring? So I think it's important to kind of get a background story of how we landed here. Yeah, yeah. Let's do it. Let's set the stage. Yeah. So what is it that got us to this point as a married couple and as professionals? And I think that… Should we set the stage even going back to when Valeria was on? She was a very eligible single lady, very beautiful. No longer. No, I'm eligible. You need to talk to the credibility on our podcast. But maybe, Valeria, could you set the stage from there almost? Oh, my gosh. How far do you want me to go? How did you guys meet? Was it an online thing? Friends of friends? No. Well, we met networking. Sure. That makes sense. I've seen you both on networking. Yes. We are both very active networking in the community. But believe it or not, this is a story that Nima doesn't like me to say very much. But the first time I met Nima. I love those kind of stories. The first time I met Nima, it was in a networking event. And he didn't even notice me. I talked to him, asked for information. I thought he was gay. Yeah. I thought that at first too. I don't know. I don't know how fancy he dresses all the time. He's so dapper. Oh my God, he's so tall. And you know, I'm trying to be like, hey, this is me, Valeria Ortiz. But no, nothing. No, I didn't need payroll that time, so I don't know. But I mean, he literally didn't remember me. He doesn't remember me at that time. And then after, like a year after, I got invited to a BNI, one of those BNI meetings. And I walk into the room, and the first person I see is him. And I was like, here you are. Because after a whole year, we never crossed paths in networking. And we sat down and looked at pictures, and we were at the same event sometimes, but we never saw each other. Interesting. It was crazy. So then after a year, I was like, oh, here you are. Now I need a payroll, like for real. And I was thinking to myself, oh my god, she doesn't have a ring on. She's single. She's single. That can't be. So I was thinking about what I can do to like, hey, do you need a consultation for payroll? And then she came up to me and she was like, hey, I need payroll. And I was like, hey, I need some help. And I was like, oh, I don't have to go through that in my mind. Like with what I was like to do. It was just kind of an online Donkey Kong from there. Yeah, you know, I did some evaluation and realized that the firm that she was with was doing a lot of things right. I had a close relationship with that accounting firm that was doing her payroll and reached out to a buddy of mine over there and said, look, I think that she's happy with the payroll part, but what she's not happy with is the particular accountant that she had there at the time. And I was able to put a good word in to get her accountant switched out at that firm. And that's when she was like, oh, you really helped me. You know, like you really, you really helped me. And then, and then eventually I was just like, actually, you know, payroll is cool and all, but, um, but can we, do you mind if I take you to dinner? And then she said, no, no, I don't mind. I didn't want to hear no at that moment. So I was happy that she said yes with a no, I guess. Well, we saw each other that same day and another networking event that night. So that same day and I was like, oh, second time. Hey. And then that's when he asked and I was like, no. I was like, communication problems already. I'm like, no, we're not. We're starting over. You asked me if I mind. How is this first date? Right. You know, I went to, I really felt immediately that this woman is a completely different category than any woman I've dated before. So I really just wanted to pull out all the stops and called her and then realized that even though I gave her my number, she didn't save it because she answered with like her Vortiz Insurance business voice. Hello, this is Vortiz Insurance. I'm like, this is my personal line. Like, did you not save my number? my number and she's like no i didn't save the number because it was two weeks before we could schedule our date and i was like that's too long you know with a woman like this like we gotta have like i gotta touch base and make sure that things are still good and i just asked her if she had any dietary restrictions and and then she was like really like you're really gonna ask me no i eat everything or whatever and then then set up a date um at uh Actually, one of my favorite places in all of Colorado. One of my favorite bars. I like a classy bar. And you wouldn't know it by the name, but in Longmont, the West Side Tavern is one of my favorite places. Yes. And we had just a magical date, first date. Oh, yes. It was like a speakeasy kind of thing. Yeah. Where you're... You know, upstairs at the bar and then somebody comes in and escort you to the to this room like downstairs. And I was like, where are we going? It was a risky decision because I feel like if you're going to be putting on a first date, just us in a room, like just to talk, it's risky, right? Because if you don't connect, you can't even talk about other people. There's no people watching. No TV on there, no sports ball. And I got to say, Nima is the first person that only speaks Spanish or only speaks English that I dated. So I was so worried because I'm like, I don't even know if I'm going to be able to... He doesn't understand his jokes or whatever. Whatever. Your English is amazing. Well, thank you, but it's different. It is now, but I mean, 10 years ago, you had very little, right? Yes, definitely, yeah. So I was so worried, but no, we never stopped talking, laughing, and he's so funny. So we connected. I was like, oh, this gringo, look. I think that was actually one of the reasons I called you for the podcast. Okay, cool. Because you're not really a gringo. You're a Persian. I'm not a gringo. He's Persian. Right. That's why you have such a funny name. Yeah. So half Persian. My father's from Iran. My mother, born in London. Okay. So that does kind of make you gringo. A little bit gringo. That's like extra white. Half gringo. Yeah. proper yeah for puerto ricans everybody speaks english only is a gringo anybody that doesn't speak spanish is a gringo pretty much yeah oh i see more focused on like the north of the border whiteys no if you speak english you're gringo yeah okay No, but no, super happy to go on a date and get to know this person. I think that the most important thing for me was like Nima, this is a huge opportunity to really connect with someone who, you know, she started her agency as a professional 12 years ago. And, you know, she went from Puerto Rico to Greeley and then built her agency one, you know, changing one life at a time. And I think that now, While working at a call center at the beginning, right? Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And now her agency is to the point where, you know, and we talked about my Journey family. And I'm so grateful for my time there and all the work and amazing, you know, connections and opportunities we created together. But at some point, it's like, okay, well, we're getting married. And guess who needs Nima for business development? Like, I know… I know Journey needs Nima, but not, but what about your family's legacy? And like, I can't build it further than here. So, so then it got me to consider, um, Sorry, Journey. I got like more. I mean, you're the wife. I love Journey. Actually, don't get me wrong. You can't compete. But we're not. I'm putting her again. But I think that it matters to me that I was able to maintain and continue to keep my relationships with my Journey family strong and continue to help businesses in the community and still be involved in referring great clients and great partnerships to Journey. But in the end, I can stay a shareholder and do that as an independent contractor and then put my full focus into being the best partner to my wife that I possibly could be. And, you know, she's established in Medicare for many years. I mean, there's organizations that refer her. I'm just like, I'm amazed at the organizations that refer her that really just trust her over anyone, even internally. And it just blew me away. So I can contribute to, you know, partnerships that affect the community where we can bring people, you know, into our consulting where we know that we have 12 years of experience. Like, there's just no one better at doing it than my wife. I mean, literally, there's not. in Colorado. And then there's something that I realized because out of the 600 or so payrolls in Northern Colorado that I've been involved in building, it's just the same story as that these small group benefits are just impossible to access. And it's like, how do we help those people? So that's when I researched and found ICRA, and then I realized that because during the Medicare enrollment process, like you're dealing with a senior and their families, and when you're enrolling a senior in Medicare, but what about their family members that don't have insurance? Like you need to have ACA market coverage to help them. So that's why she's been involved with the last five years of the ACA market and becoming an expert. And then I realized, but that is exactly- These other parts of the family aren't covered. Like, yes, I got you your Medicare, but your daughter... What about the wife at 62? And your kids, and I have kids too. Correct, yes, yes. I didn't really realize that transition. Yeah, it was part of the need. I mean, we're just getting referrals and having to find somebody else. Sorry to cut you off, Neal. No, no, you're good. as I start to think about collaboration with my wife is such a well-established professional and thought leader in the Medicare space. You know, what is it that I can contribute, you know, as a partner? And I think that I can definitely contribute to, you know, helping, you know, agents under her, you know, be, be better and, and, and strategize for, for how they can be successful. I can also, um, go out in the community and consult and really bring more Medicare people to the door for Vortiz insurance. But, you know, with my time in payroll and small business, I really wanted to fill that need of there just isn't an option for medical insurance as a small business owner. Like, how is this problem really solved? And then a light bulb went off and I said, well, look, the ICRA process, what is it? It's actually a Medicare evaluation. Like that's really what it is, but it's for employees that are under 65 for health insurance. So when I realized the similarity there, because when you're, and there's some amazing benefits, brokerages out there, Sage Benefits, Shirazi Benefits. There's some amazing brokerages out there that offer some amazing traditional group plans. But it's hard to pass the savings on when you don't have a system to deal with the different kinds of structure that an ICRA presents. If you think about it, a business owner is going to be able to offer a united plan for everyone, and then maybe one other one. But besides that, they're not going to be able to customize it. When it comes to what we're able to offer, it would be time-consuming if my wife did not come up with operational procedure that works for Medi. Right, right. Oh, well, that happens. Yeah. Not in Colorado, though. Okay. Colorado is a state-based marketplace. Okay. So to be able to enroll people and sell through the Connect for Health Colorado, you need to be state certified. So they're pretty strict on everything like that. But yeah, states like Florida and Texas. Yeah, I heard there was like tens of thousands of people that, oh, I have ACA coverage? I didn't even know somebody said that. Yes. Okay. told me to sign here or something, and they got a $500 commission, and I never got any health benefits because I didn't know I had them. Yeah, exactly. No, that did happen. Not in Colorado, though. Okay, good at all. Anyway, sorry. Thankfully. I was remembering that story a little bit, but obviously when you're working with businesses, but that's what I wanted to know is how, how do you get paid? Your MO benefits gets paid on an individual basis for each of those plans. And then does the employer also pay a little bit for the, the reimbursement stuff? Yep. Yeah. So we do have some administration fees to manage that. It cry and manage all of your employees and all that. So that goes to MO benefits. And then also the, the plans per se. So everybody enrolls in a different plan. We get a per member per month commission on that. So we, And the sign-up's the hard part, and then after that, you just kind of have a revenue stream, kind of make sure they're in the same plan. Well, it's tough, because if you offer a traditional group plan, you don't have to meet with each individual employee. If there's 50 employees, you've got to meet with each individual employee and their families. I mean, you really have to have a system, because from what I've seen, it's 20% to 30% less than... because of what's called reinsurance in Colorado, where all the carriers on the ACA market, they came together and they're like, we need insurance for catastrophic claims. And then they pulled this money together. We can self-insure for this small pool, but we can't have a million dollar cancer thing, it'll just wreck our pool. Yeah, I mean, that's gonna wreck Etna. or whomever that provider is, right? So they all got together and they're like, look, to keep all the premiums low, let's just have this pool of money where any catastrophic claims from any of these carriers get pulled through this pool. And what that allows is that for ICHRAs in Colorado, like it's significantly less amount for a comparable ICHRA as it is for a comparable traditional group. Like it's going to be less with an ICHRA every time in Colorado, if you look at that. And that's really the benefit. Yeah, so far. So far. But it's a dramatic difference in cost. Yeah. No, but definitely. I mean, insurance is expensive, right? It is expensive for everyone to be insured. But through the individual marketplace and through a NICRA, the employee now gets to choose. So if you're a 21-year-old that never goes to the doctor and you have a NICRA reimbursement and you want to pay only $30 out of your paycheck to have a bronze high-deductible plan, you can do that. But if you have family and you have a... medical conditions or whatever, then you can go with the gold plan and pay a little bit more for that. Right. So it's super. We love to serve these families and really find them what's the right thing. And that's what's driving this new division. Well, I like what Neva said about your history and navigating the Medicare process. Do we want Part B, Part D, all that kind of stuff. It's the same kinds of questions that ACA requires, too. It definitely syncs with everything that we're doing with the ICRAS. And we have a team, so it's not just me anymore. We have a team. We have three employees that are working constantly with us. Oh, that's your back office, basically. Yeah. They're customer service, referring you to where you need to go or finding you that specialist in your network, whatever it is. And then we have sales support that is there to enroll and support, doing applications, helping us with answering questions about the enrollments and things like that. Yeah. So we're growing, we're growing. Yeah, what I was going to say was what's growth look like for MO benefits in particular? Because I guess before we do that, Vortiz. Yeah. What's your team over there now? You've got a number of sales agents around the region? Yes, so we went through a transition and changing some things because we grew too fast. You had some people in Colorado Springs, you were doing this, maybe a Pueblo person, I forget exactly. We grew very fast all of a sudden and we had a bunch of agents and we really weren't. A couple of them were good and most of them were not. How do you know? How did you know? We weren't in the right fit. Not to the ones that were bad, but it turned out they were just bad. Maybe they'll find a better career elsewhere somewhere, but it's not. We weren't the right fit for them. So we had to kind of like reorganize everything. So now we have a team of four independent agents out in the community and, you know, kind of like supporting them. All more Northern Colorado based. Well, no, actually Denver. Denver as well. Denver and Northern Colorado. So we are, you know, growing that side. And then also we have... two employees on our side doing customer service. Gotcha, gotcha. So that's managing the existing account managers, basically, from that perspective. Yes, yes. Cool. And Mo Benefits is growing. And what does Mo Benefits look like in the future? Is that more back of the house, and Nima just goes and rings doorbells? Kisses hands and shakes me. I love you. It takes care of him and trains a team. You know, I'm, I'm, I'm really lucky, you know, my time, uh, you know, being in Northern Colorado and, and helping small businesses for as long as I have, there's many amazing relationships that I've built with organizations that really care about, um, you know, value first initiatives to anyone who contacts. I mean. Fort Collins Area Chamber, Windsor Chamber, Better Business Bureau are good examples. We just partnered with them for opportunities to spread the word, hey, this is an option. Have you heard that this is an option? And any time we want to be able to side-by-side compare, okay, so this is the traditional group in Colorado with eight employees, and this is the ICRA. It has a dramatic effect when people really realize how it works. It's funny, my personal political philosophies are largely kind of libertarian. I think the government shouldn't really be in there and stuff. And it's like, well, if it's there, go get you some, otherwise you're the sucker. You have to work within a system that exists, right? No, I mean, but it's a subsidized healthcare program, basically. Oh, yeah, the ACA. Especially if you're in an industry that struggles to pay competitive... Wages for the cost of living in Northern Colorado, you know, like those, you know, maid agencies or like any, you know, restaurant or retail business that struggles to give benefits, you know, here's a lot easier way to do it maybe. Yes. And we try to encourage employers, hey, if you have a budget for insurance, whatever it is, let us know. Because a lot of employees now, or families in general, not only employees, are losing the credits. The credits are just getting more, lower and lower in income. Right. So you can be $50,000 and you don't qualify for any credits. And how can you afford a $500 a month insurance? So we encourage if you have it, but even if it's $200 a month, $150, that's better than nothing. And your employees will be able to pay some and then have the insurance. And you can set that reimbursement up basically however you want to. Pre-tax, yes. So, pre-tax on both sides. It's almost like a health savings account kind of thing with the premiums that run from. It is, it comes from a, it's a type of health savings. Or it goes through payroll, it's a reimbursement through payroll almost. So, the payroll deduction profile is created from whatever the difference is from the employer contribution versus what the actual plan cost is, right? So, the employer contribution is 400, but the plan is 475. So then we have a $75 payroll deduction for that two week pay period or whatever. Oh, I see. So that's what you were talking about, that comes off of the taxable payroll. The payroll. Yeah. So that's kind of where payroll is connected to it, is that we always want to make sure that we get the correct payroll deductions for the plan, the individual plan. You know, the customization of this is really what makes it stand out. When people realize that, look, with this contribution, I can get at a lower cost than if I was outside this business, I can get a really great plan that's customized to me. I mean, there's 40 or 50 different plans to choose from. Is this like, HMO, PPO, different things? Well, the marketplace is HMO only, but every company. So you can do Anthem, Kaiser, United, whatever it is. Select Health. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And we also see the participation increases. So we met with groups that have been offering traditional group for years. Right. They pay thousands of dollars and only 5% of their workforce uses it because it's too expensive and nobody wants it. Well, and if I leave, it'll lose it anyway. Yeah. So moving into an ICCRA, now the employees are like, oh, this is not that bad. And I have a low deductible plan. I can use that. So then it increases the participation of the employees. And on that point, it's important to know that, so we talked about before that the credits are based on the AGI. So if someone loses their job, their AGI changes. Oh, sure. So then we can evaluate them to keep the plan that they were in when they were employed as they transition out. Now they don't make any money. Well, it depends on what credit that they qualify for. But I mean, that part is a really cool feature of an ICHRA. Yeah. Mm-hmm. You sort of like, it seemed like you had a story around that or something. No, no, no. I was just like thinking on the families. We have a family that, like you said, one of the employees, the whole group, nobody qualifies for the APTCs or the tax credits. Okay. But one employee is particularly, she has three kids and single mom and she gets almost, she pays like $70 a month for insurance. Right. Instead of paying, you know, $400 or whatever. At least, yeah. So we were able to help her. That's a big change for her. Yes, and it's wonderful. And then the employer, in this case, is a nonprofit. They're so happy that all the employees have insurance, whether that is through their spouse or through us. So we just love it to be able to find that right fit. And there's no minimum enrollments, right? So that's the problem with traditional group. If you've got four employees, you can still do this. I mean, it's, you know, it's... Even one. It's one non-owner W-2, and then it's worth looking into an ICHRA because, you know, there could be, like, genuine benefits and no limitations on enrollments and administration stuff, you know? Yeah, I dig it. We've been kind of delving into the why some with you, and we actually have a sponsor here at The Local Experience. It's Purpose Driven Wealth. management. Cool. And so we have purpose-driven questions. Okay. It seems like a good time to maybe ask some purpose-driven questions. Yes. Thank you to Purpose Driven Wealth of Thriven for sponsoring our purpose-driven questions segment. At Purpose Driven Wealth, they believe financial clarity leads to a life of contentment and purpose. Their mission is to help guide clients using a values-driven, stewardship-based approach focused on provision, contentment, and enjoyment. With more than a century of experience, Thriven helps individuals and families navigate life and business transitions and prepare for the future, while creating space to live generously and give back in meaningful ways. To learn more about purpose-driven wealth, please call 970-330-7411 for a complimentary initial consultation. And now, on to the questions. This one might be appropriate. And you can do either or both on these. Can you describe a business decision you've made that didn't make sense on paper? And what was the result? Do you want to take this one or do you want me to? I don't, I mean, we make so many decisions. I know. So I think that when, I'll go. So when I first started working with Valeria, I realized that, you know, when you have someone that has so much experience and trust and just has the kind of knowledge where any question is immediately going to be addressed and we're going to be able to guide someone, it's easy to build your operations and your business completely around that. But actually, like you still want to be able to take your wife on a vacation. I mean, the thing is, is that what I found out is that we make more money with freeing up her time. So anytime I free up her schedule, then our company can make more money. Anytime that I put more on her plate. It just doesn't work because she's already like the reason why she's limited with how she's grown before I came is because she's maximized her time already. Right. So I think that that's that would be an example of what you're talking about. I thought it's a good idea to let's build the business around her expertise. And I'm like, actually, we need to train people to do what she's doing so we can free up her schedule. And it's part of scaling. You know, it's a it's a different animal. Yeah, we are. We are growing so fast and I feel like it's a blessing, but at the same time, it's like, oh, my God, how are we going to handle this? Do you have a next person that you would add to your team? Yes, we are actually in that process. Already? Back office support mostly? Yeah, enrollment and the sales part is what we need the most. Okay, yeah. Where we're growing. It's just hard to find the right person and you go to those trials and see exactly. Yeah, that was my question here was going to be is like, how do you evaluate kind of that right person-ness? Yeah. What's your kind of values, evaluation with teammates? They need to be male? Yeah. No, I'm just kidding. No, we have a really amazing, talented rock star female. But that's pretty rare. I think that... Really? Yeah, I think that just with the way Valeria is, it's hard for women, other than the amazing rock star we have right now. I think it's harder to work with women in the office because they're always looking at Valeria, and it's like... how can how can how can they compare yeah and men are a little bit like what do I need to do tell me what to do kind of I think it's not much it's more that I I am very straightforward and I am not going to just sugarcoat things so I feel like and I raise boys it's kind of partly cultural yeah I raise boys I grew up with two brothers like I'm always around boys and so you're making all these ladies cry yeah It's basically what I'm hearing. And they can't handle it. You can't handle the trailer. But I have wonderful, wonderful team members that are females, and we do great. It's just that sometimes it's like, I wish I could just say it like this, but I have to really think about it. You know what's funny is I actually, I haven't shared my superpowers with everybody, but beautiful women love me in general. Like, it's kind of. That's a pretty cool superpower, Dave. For sure. Well, better. I'm married for 23 years, partly because I don't do anything gross. I don't make any moves. Maybe I say inappropriate things, but that's just conversational. And I find that I actually work way better surrounded by beautiful women. Okay. Is there anyone that doesn't work better in that environment? Yes. Yes. I can't even talk to them because they're all, oh, you're so pretty. I can't even talk to you. that. And that's part of why I work well with... And it doesn't mean they're beautiful supermodels or whatever. They're just radiant... Beautiful aura people. Exactly. And sometimes they're 70 years old and sometimes they're 19. And it's their first job. I don't know what that dynamic is. I think I like being the alpha male and I'm kind of skinny. I'm not really... I'm doing great health in most circumstances. Yeah, we can handle it. I get along great with a lot of men. But when it comes to workplace environments, I've just kind of always, like I worked in banking to begin my career. It was like three boys and 26 ladies. Ladies. But the boys were all the bosses, so that was nice. Okay. I was looking for a reaction. That's okay. It's okay. But now, women, we are... You're the world. We are the world. Ten more years, you're basically going to be telling all the men what to do. No, and the thing is, the hard part of this is you need so much time to have an employee fully ready. This is not something I can teach you in a week. It's so hard. It takes six months to a year for you to really understand what we do, how we do it, do it right, why, all that. So it's like that thing, you're like, is this the right person? Am I really investing in it? It's going to work. So how do you know, I guess? Well, I still don't know. You know, I think that's... You just have to go over the process, yeah. Yeah, if we... You can't dump them out of the boat too early. You gotta give them a little time. Exactly. They have to fill it out, right? They have to fill it out. You know, I think that's, you know, do they have, because in the end, as I mentioned before, you know, we hire with a very specific objective in mind. And that is we need to offload things from my wife's plates, okay, for things to work, because I need her for operations. She's an operations queen. She has no more bandwidth. So when we're looking for a higher man or woman, like they've got to be able to pick things up, really quickly. And they have to be like operationally savvy. They've got to be self-starters. It has to make sense to them some of the stuff that you've just done. And, you know, the customer service aspect of it with the sales touches and making sure to be in compliance and to be good with how you're processing questions and going through, you know, guidance. You know, all that stuff is something that we take really seriously. You know, it's taken her... Blood, sweat, and tears, and single mom working vibes for a really long time to get things the way they are. So, really just getting that employee to the place where we know that they're independent and they're doing the things that Valeria would be doing in that moment, even though they might not have the entire skill set, right? Because, I mean, it's rare, honestly. some portions of it where we can start to remove, you know, you know, her, you know, her actions or her tasks, then that's super valuable to the firm. If we can trust that someone will do that when, when no one's looking, anyone knows Nima. I mean, he will grow this thing in three months and we're going to be needing seven people to, you know, I mean, he goes a million miles per hour. Yes. So we are super excited. But at the same time, it's like, okay, we need to start hiring now. Like, let's not wait. Yeah. Because he is definitely doing a great job with his MO benefits and growing the ICRAS and spreading the word and finding those business owners that want to start, you know, offering these benefits. And again, this is not just one Medicare client. This is a group of 25 that we have to now evaluate. Right. Yeah, you're selling clumps of 10 and 20 now instead, right? So we are excited. Every time you catch a big fish, your team largely processes the fish. Exactly, exactly. So, yeah, he's bringing a lot of fish. You know, I'm just... I'm so grateful that I've developed such amazing relationships with so many business owners and organizations that care about the same things that I do that are ethically aligned. And really, all I had to do is just walk in there and say, look, this is really an option. You know, and I believe that. that you should get behind a sales strategy of something that's truly like speaks for itself as far as the value. Like, like all we do is educate something I believe in. I can sell it pretty good. Yes. If I don't have something, you know, I've worked for banks where at the time I just really didn't believe they're in the right direction and stuff. Yeah. You're not going to do a good job. And I would even say that selling, I mean, I understand what you're saying, but for me, I trust a business owner to do the right thing for them with the right information. So for me, it's not selling. It's literally educating on the option. Selling is helping. Selling is helping, man. You got it. Yeah. And it's hard to do if you don't trust your organization to deliver the goods. Yes. Correct. Correct. Yeah. The business idea is… It's not really a sales job. Yes. Yes. Yeah, the business idea is how am I providing real value? Like something that is going to change the person that I'm talking to, change their situation in a positive way. And if you have that, then you're going to be successful. I can bless my employees with health insurance for half of what I thought I was going to have to spend. Correct. Or something. Not quite. Not quite. Well, yeah, it's dramatically different. Sometimes it is. But they didn't know. Sometimes it is. Well, for one thing, they didn't know what they were going to have to spend. And so they've been avoiding even looking at it. Let me give you an example. We have a group of four people. And this particular employer was giving them a stipend of $300 per person. And we came in and said, let's do a NECRA and we'll match it to the $300. We actually lower it to like $275. And we'll do that for them. When we really look at the group, two of the employees qualify for APTCs. So they didn't need it to be part of it. Now she's paying less than half of what she was giving and everybody has insurance. And two of them get it for free. Exactly. And she gets the tax benefits of all that. And she's getting all that. And her payroll taxes are lower. Exactly. So you see, it depends on your group. And we love it that there's no minimums. So even if we have groups, there's just one person. And because the owner is the, you know, they have their own individual plan, but the employee needs it. So again, it's very flexible. We love it. We found that so useful for all the business owners that we are helping. Yeah. So I want to get into one more question on the purpose-driven. Let's talk about like, perspectives, like, uh, especially like integrity decision-making, like what you've both kind of shared some things that are very kind of, uh, thoughtful of ethics and what's the right thing to do by people and stuff. What's, what's your anchor when it comes to that? You know, I think that people have a very short-term mentality when it comes to this, okay? And they're thinking in the short term, okay? Let me give you an example. So there's so many people that I've met when I was in the payroll world for so long that, you know, there's seven employees and they have a 401k, okay? And it's like, look, a simple is going to accomplish what you're trying to accomplish. And the yearly cost is so much less. But someone was looking short term at the money that they could make by guiding the seven employee company into a 401k because 401k is a buzzword. Yeah, but here's a couple of things that you can say that somebody say, okay, sure. But where's the relationship? Once that person realizes that they could have had something that provided at less cost to them, like, what does that do for your relationship long term? It's not worth, like, damaging it by getting some money short term. And I think that the people that I align with in the community understand that. A company can make money and find win-wins in every engagement. And that's the philosophy that I have, is that I'm going to provide value well before you're my client. You can be someone in an educational that's there digitally. You can be there while I do an educational on whatever it is I'm doing. You can be there and you can get value. I can meet you one-on-one and really just let you know that... oh my gosh, that Medicare plan that you're in, I know that it's the most amazing one. Like, I really feel great about the broker that you have right now, that's not us, okay? So whatever it is, what matters is that the people will remember the advertising that we have as individuals, and we're not Nike and we don't have a billion dollars, is these little differences that we can make in these people's lives that genuinely need it. And stepping into that space and helping them well before their clients is a very overlooked strategy for business that's wildly successful. If you look at organizations that have made a big difference. Add value first. Yeah. Like you want to... they hold back. Oh, you're not my client. So I'm not going to tell you all the benefits. I really do a person. I really, I really fight against that. I'm not going to move your investments to me. Well, then I'm not going to tell you about all these things. I really fight against that kind of mentality. Like just open the floodgates and help those people in every way you can in those engagements. And oh my gosh, will they tell people how you help them? And when there's an opportunity to, for reciprocity, then you're going to be top of mind for that. And, and you know, that that's at least on my side. I want to let you have space to add. You can, go completely off yeah I mean whoever knows Nima I mean he's a great person he would never know he wouldn't hurt a fly like he has a such a good heart and like he just serves people I know his answer was very business oriented but he has a generally good heart like he was he's never gonna lie or hide something or or not tell you the true or doesn't make me feel good Yeah. So it's it's also part of that values that he grew up with, with his mother and what he has, you know, in his core of just you do the right thing for people. And that's it. Like whether that is beneficial for you or not, you do what's right. And on our side, I mean, I'm a Christian, and I believe that what I give is going to come around at some point, right? Blessings will just come. So we just serve. We do what's right. We tell you all the secrets or whatever. Love your neighbor kind of style. Yeah, and things will come back around. And if it's not you as our client, you probably send somebody because that's how we gain the trust, by telling you the truth, guiding you the right way without causing problems. And I always say we don't like not happy clients. So me switching you just to get that sell or whatever and putting you on a crappy plan. There's so many terrible opportunities to... hurt somebody while making money. There really are. Yes, yes. And especially in an industry like this, everybody's so confused about everything. So it's easy to just say, oh yeah, sign here, it'd be great. But we like to, we base all of our engagements with education. If you ask our clients or people, we educate first before we even sell anything. We wanted you to make sure you are making the decision and you are understanding what you're doing. And empowering because one of it, well, first of all, I'm in peace that you know your options and you chose this crappy plan, that's on you. And second of all, then you don't call me that much. That makes sense. I don't have to hold your hand this whole time forever and ever. We save money that way. And we feel at peace. We can sleep and be like, okay, this family is staying care of. I like it. I just had the crew from Fort Collins heating and air on. And they were, like, after they install a new furnace unit kind of thing, then, like, a couple days, maybe a week, maybe more in the busy season, then somebody comes out for, like, three or four hours. And, like... checks your whole thing. Make sure it's working like it's supposed to be. And that's a big investment, right? You've got to send somebody over there and do all that stuff. And you don't get called back a week later out of the random, either. Yes, exactly. Because you made it work right away. You have a system, yes. So that's how we do it and why we do it. It's just to keep everybody. I'm going to call a break. And when we come back, we are going to go in the time machine and go to a first grade age Nima. Awesome. I love that. This episode is sponsored by Loco Think Tank. Loco Think Tank provides peer collaboration for business owners. We build smart, safe places to help business leaders navigate every stage of the business journey and we love what we do and who we do it with. Our model features gift back minded business veterans in the role of Loco facilitators, We're always looking for abundance-minded individuals to add to our membership, facilitator team, local community, or to feature on this podcast. Listeners of this podcast who go on to become members of Loco Think Tank get their sixth month of membership for free. Just mention the Loco Experience podcast on your application. To learn more, visit our website at locothinktank.com. That's L-O-C-O thinktank.com. I can work while you drive. I'll do operations. That's more efficient. It scares you when she drives when you're in the car, too? Only in Puerto Rico, my man. She scared me in Puerto Rico. That was worse. I really want you to drive because like you need to drive right now because there's too many people trying to get us one place or the other. And then she's like, fine. And then she gets in the driver's seat and I'm like, I am white knuckle over here. And then I was like, please stop over here. And then I'm like, you got to get out right now. Now I'm mad and driving. I'm like, you can be mad in the passenger seat and not in the driver's seat. How do you like Puerto Rico? Man, it's beautiful. You know, I think that I've been... I love dancing my whole life, but mostly it's, like, electronic music. Okay. But... I remember that. And, like, freestyle hip-hop dancing. You're a big dance kind of girl, too, right? Yeah. But kind of when we first started dating, she was, like, telling me that... you know Latino music? You should approach it. Trying to tell me gently, this is really a necessity. We gotta figure this out. Yeah, those are second date. I don't have time to waste. If you're not gonna like the salsa, then you're gonna have to find some other... Yeah, let me know now. And there's this ignition with my interest that happened with salsa, merengue, and bachata. The rest is history. We took lessons every week for like six months. We went dancing twice, sometimes twice a week. And now we dance salsa. I mean, our first dance in our wedding was salsa. So we dance. We love to dance. She's incredible though. I just want to make sure that she's not bored. You want to look worthy. All right. I just want to make sure that. I mean, he's a tall man. It's just like, just stand there. You stand there. You can spin me around. You can tell me how stupid you can look as a tall man that does not understand salsa. You can look like an idiot. But I'm intermediate. I'm intermediate now, so I'm happy to approach that and be creative out there with her. You guys both probably know Andrew Johnson. Yeah. Of course. He's a legend. He was on the podcast just a couple of years ago. I noticed that. He's a farmer. Nice. He's an absolute legend in the networking game. I've never seen anyone do it like him. He was a semi-professional dancer. Oh. I did not know that. I didn't know that. What kind of dancing? All of it. What? Everything from line dancing to salsa. My dude. You're telling me some new things right now. He toured internationally, entered pro-ams. He was like a 13-year-old kid that... Andrew Johnson? His sister's dance classes, and then he started getting drafted, and he was a freaking banger at it. Oh! I didn't know that. That was awesome. He was in three pro amateur tournaments, he had a professional coach, and this and that. Oh, wow. Holy crap. I did not know that. You'll have to tune in to that episode of Local Experience. And he's a dear friend. I believe in what he's doing these days out in the community. He's really an expert at it. He teaches me something about networking, and I like to think that I'm decent at it, but I learned something new from that guy. I'll tell you what. He's amazing. He's a good guest to have, Kurt. Happy to be in his company right now. Yes, yes. Following his two steps. We're going to jump in the time machine. Okay. Because we've kind of talked about recent past, weddings. We might get into a little bit more around what's in the future. But first. Sure. uh what's in the pasture um valeria we kind of shared a lot about you but can you want to let's why don't you start us since we already had a podcast with you it's episode number i don't know i can remember i have about three years ago with valeria ortiz you can find it out there yeah You were raised in Puerto Rico. Your mom was in kind of the benefits industry as well in the Medicare space. Yes. So, yeah, born and raised in Puerto Rico. My mom, yeah, grew up with a single mom. My mom was in insurance because she had three kids, and she was like, I need to have flexibility in my schedule and make good money. So, she raises us by doing insurance. So we had great lives also dancing professionally and my brothers did sports and we were always busy. And then when I got pregnant with my son, I was 16 years old when I was pregnant with Justin. I don't remember. Super teen mom, like trying to figure it out. And she was, you need to do insurance if you want to survive life because you need to be able to be part of this life. Exactly. So, I mean, after the slapping me in the face, he was, okay, now you need to do insurance. But no, she was the one that kind of like put me into this industry. And I was able to, thanks to her help, to finish school, finish college, did a degree in marketing administration, and at the same time working and taking care of Justin. But because of her help, then she was like, at the beginning I was just fighting it, oh, I don't want to do that. I don't want to do that. That's what you do. But then at the end, I end up doing it. And that's how I end up in Colorado because I started in Puerto Rico, working for Medicare, doing insurance, doing everything in Puerto Rico. Was married at the time. Ex-husband comes to Colorado and I was like, well, I got to move. Here we are. Yeah, yeah. So move and then hearing and move from, yeah, straight from Puerto Rico to Greeley. Like, didn't stop anywhere. And very little English for you. Yes. Or your husband, even? Yes, yeah, yeah. Both of us were just Puerto Ricans. And Circa Me, what year was this? This was 2014. Okay. Yes, yeah. So if you want the full version, find the Valeria Ortiz podcast. And we'll catch back up to your kind of... business launchy stuff but i'm gonna i'm gonna zoom in on nema here because he's the uh the first time attendee i am you're you're five years old what's uh what's your circumstance in the world um so my uh sooner if it makes more sense so so no no so um so i was living um in Arizona, in a place called St. John's, Arizona at that time. Okay. So my mom was living in Iran during the revolution. So in 1979, she fled. She was an English person, but working and living there? She was obsessed with the Middle East and New Farsi and worked for my father's company. Oh, wow. It was a construction company, and he worked for the Shah of Iran at the time. Yeah. So he was actually like an inner circle. Yeah. And then all the family was like, hey, there's a revolution that's going to happen. You should take all your money where we're taking it, which is like California and Canada. Like LA area. And he was like, no, that's never going to happen or whatever. So he lost everything during the revolution and then immigrated to first California. And then I was born. And you were the first? I was not. I have an older sister. She was born in England in the intermediary because we had family support in England. And what was your dad's business, if I may? Actually, he had multiple construction businesses, but the one my mom worked for was actually pipelining. Yeah. So it was infrastructure for it was like the admin part of it. Sure. It was like the like the coordination of the of that. Well, it's crazy when you like I've been watching a lot of like geography by Jeff on YouTube and stuff like that. And like you can criticize the colonization by the English and the French and stuff of Africa and different places in the Middle East. And, like, they built a lot of the infrastructure that is one of the lifelines of those economies today still. Right? Their investment left lasting economic opportunities, and Iran's not necessarily different. Yeah, you know, I think that the Ayatollah Khomeini compared to the Shah of Iran at the time is totally different. I mean, we're talking about, like, someone that's super hardline. Well, I just learned that the Shah was actually a descendant of Cyrus the Great. No kidding. Yes. That's probably how he got legitimacy in that role. And that was, you know, Cyrus the Great was kind of a big deal back in the day for Christians as well. So to get back to your question, so right around five years old, you know, we kind of bounced around to some different places. Because your dad had been around. of wealthy man with and then we kind of started completely over and then we ended up settling um at a bed and breakfast on maining commercial uh in trinidad colorado and if you if you've ever been to trinidad that red brick building that was that red brick building on maining commercial is like iconic man like you like so that's where i lived when i was growing up is that exact that building no way so the bed and breakfast is a bed and breakfast because my family saw that paper or something and they're like that's our business well the raton range in the trinidad plus at the time were the newspapers um but but yeah so we we settled there it just seems like it's such a strange place to live it is man it's a catfish bro let me just tell you right now okay like it looks charming from the outside but it's a border town my dear you know like it's Some knuckleheads running around there. But I went to Trinidad Catholic High School. Because your mom was from a Catholic background? Yeah, she was. And was your dad Muslim? Yes. So I was supposed to be Muslim, and my sister was supposed to be Catholic. So that was the arrangement. that they made in the marriage. Oh, I see. That was the bargain that they made together. Interesting. But my dad's not a good, was not a good Muslim, even before he passed, and I'm making my own path, man. So, yeah. We're here drinking wine. I mean, that's not a very Muslim of me. Do you eat bacon? I mean, I do. I'm really like, I'm definitely more on the Christian side than anything else. But not really fully investigated? You know, I believe in the teachings of Jesus. But as far as like the nitty gritty on the rest of it, like I focus on what I know to be valuable, which is definitely like the teachings of Jesus. I like that. I've kind of got an internal philosophy that's like, what's probably the most dangerous almost is like concentrations of power. And so whether it's the Catholic Church or frankly in today's world, the imams and stuff in the Muslim place, like their power concentration and therefore their corruption is enhancing. And so like I belong to a little local kind of community church that preaches the Bible and focuses on Jesus. You know, it doesn't have a bunch of power structure. So it'd be interesting for you to know that my mother is an ordained Buddhist nun. Oh, interesting. Yeah. And she worked for years at MM Solutions in Loveland, which she was the HR director there for many years and is really well-established in the community with the work that she's done. That's cool. But I have a lot of different spiritual influences. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Did you ever do our Halos thing, Valeria, when you were with Loco? No. It's like a, uh, almost like a disc-like or Enneagram-like personality assessment kind of thing. Oh, I did, I did, yes! Yeah, and it's kind of built on, like, yin and a yang and a polarity kind of thing that's more almost borrowed from Buddhist tendencies, but it's a Brazilian Portuguese Catholic. We were dating or started dating at that time and I share it with you. Yeah. Personality thing. I'll test him up for you if you want me to. I know. I know. Anyway. I need all the help I can get. I said almost those exact words the other day was, oh, well, understanding middle-aged women is definitely something I can explain. I have no expertise in it. Women of any sort, really. So back to age five. You're growing up in this kind of small town, right? A couple thousand people? Ten thousand in the surrounding area. And then as soon as I became, you know, I graduated from my high school, I left as soon as I possibly humanly could. I did not, you know, I did not. Were you involved? Were you in football? Were you a big kid already? Were you a big bruiser on the football team? It's funny, U.S. So I spent, you know, between... the sixth grade to 12th grade doing eight man football, cause in Trinidad they don't have 12 man. So it's like, you're fighting against Aguilar or like a team, you know what I mean? Like it's not necessarily 12 men, but I never really found a lot of success in that. I think that I really started to find my true calling in life when I started to do speech and debate and forensics. And then like at, From a little kid from Trinidad, winning state championships in forensics and interpretation of poetry and humor, really was like, okay, so I have the necessary ingredients to really propel me into college. So you're a wordplay guy as well. I just love it. The most fun I have is public speaking, Kurt. That's the most fun I have. A lot of people, it makes them uncomfortable, but it's the juice that's in the engine, man. It's really what gets me going is being able to be up in front of people and providing value with the things I say. I just like imagining everybody else naked. I heard that that helps. That's cool, actually. Do you know Tannis rotor? Um, she, uh, she actually was an event planner that like did the peach festival and a whole bunch of other things, the Matthews house thing, but she pivoted her career to be like teach you how to talk better person. Cool. Oh. And, uh, she was like a state champion or national champion kind of speech person too. And she, before she launched that business, she test piloted me and 15 other people on how to make us talk better. Oh yeah. Can you tell? Yeah. Uh, maybe before. You took me from a four to a seven. It's okay. Well, I think that you're doing pretty awesome. Well, this is fun. Mostly because you take no notes. It's all in your brain, Kurt. So that's always good, man. If you listen, then you have a great question. I feel like that you care when you're well-researched like you are. I appreciate that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you come up to Northern Front Range for school? Or where did you go when you got away from Trinidad as fast? Yeah, so I was lucky enough. And I grew up without money and was able to get an academic scholarship to Colorado College. So I graduated in 2005 with full academic scholarship there. In Colorado Springs there. In Colorado Springs. And so did my sister, and she graduated magna cum laude. I actually lived in Colorado Springs from 2004 to 2007. No kidding. Only like a mile away from Colorado College at Union and Uinta. Uinta. Yeah, that's exactly where I live, my dude. Yeah, Uinta. I lived on Meade Avenue. Exactly the neighborhood that I was in for four years in school. That's fun. Yeah. I love my school. I mean, I think the people are lukewarm about schooling sometimes and about the value. But even though that, I mean, at the time in 2005, I think it was like, I think it was about... 36,000 at that time. And now it's in the 40s per year. Well, it's a pretty small school with pretty limited programs. And it's hyper-liberal kind of. It is. As far as their expressed values, if you will. You know, I think that the value was in, you know, critical thinking and analysis of information. You know, being able to truly evaluate, like, what's real and what's not. Which I think is a truly valuable skill now. And it's like, well, how? How do you know? It just, it takes... What is truth? Yeah. It really, it takes like coordinating from multiple areas and looking at it from different perspectives and figuring out what's omitted and what's included. And then you can kind of figure out like what everyone's agenda is. But, you know, people aren't just, they don't roll out of bed and they're like, hey, I understand how to do all that. Like it takes training to really do that. But making me, you know... being the person that I know that I can achieve whatever I put my mind to. And that, um, and that I, it's harder. A lot of us struggle with that. Yeah. Frankly, I second guess myself and perhaps even self-sabotage myself sometimes. And I don't even know what to set my mind to. Dude, everyone does that, man. Everyone does that to some degree, right? We're never really 100% certain, but the skills that I attained while struggling through the academic rigor of Colorado College truly changed me in all the best ways. And sociology and psychoanalysis were my majors. And did I major in insurance or business management or technology? No, I didn't. Sales. But still, the core of what I learned there still reverberates today in what I do. Dig it. Valerie, you were going to say something. No, no. I mean, the story gets more interesting, so I'm just waiting for it. I'm waiting for the next chapter. I dig it. I dig it. So, Nima, can I top you up a little bit there on the wine? Please do, my man. Boom. Thanks, brother. Valeria, is your empty yet? No, I'm okay. I'm okay. Thank you. A little more than mine then. So you go to school for, would you say psychology and... Sociology. Sociology. And then, like, what's the start of your career look like? Much different than Valeria's. She's got like an ankle biter. Right? You know, with that kind of degree, I think that I just want to jump right into the cut. So I was working with criminal kids. in a program called Rite of Passage. And originally went out to Durango, Colorado, and worked at Denier Youth Services Center out there. Like Boy's Ranch kind of thing? It was definitely locked doors, so it was slightly less therapeutic than what I wanted. But eventually transferred from there to Ridgeview Academy, which is no longer open now, but was in Watkins, Colorado, and was an alternative to imprisonment for juveniles that have been there. have committed serious crimes. Wow. And I just wanted to really make a difference in that world. And then went through some other odd jobs, and then… Can I pause for just a moment? Sure. But what got you into that space and trying to help those kids? That's a really good question. And the answer is that I did not have a father figure to rely on. So I wanted to provide that for others. So your dad kind of bounced after you let him there? Or he just didn't really engage much? I think that everyone tries to do their best. My father, he's passed now. You know, I think that's a, I was always confused because my mom is so interested in what are you thinking and how do you feel about this? I'm like, what are your thoughts on that? And my dad just didn't care about that. And it just affected me where I was like, I need someone in a fatherly role to care when you're young about who I'm becoming. And I just didn't get that from him. Yeah. So I was like, you know what I'm going to do? Is I'm going to dedicate my post-college life to changing the lives of young kids who also don't have father figures. So I think that's the core of my motivation there. That's wild. Yeah. My dad's a little bit like that, too. Like, my dad started a farm evenings and weekends with a full-time job when I was in second grade or something. My mom came to every basketball game. My dad, maybe not to any. No kidding. Yeah. And he's an awesome man. He's actually a really incredible business person and a... high integrity man and stuff. And I'm not sure he quite understands what Loco Think Tank does. Or why the hell people would pay Loco Think Tank to be a member of it and stuff. It doesn't make sense to him in some way because of... Yeah. Because he doesn't have... That same kind of emotional type of connection and understanding of other people's stuff that I was someone with through my mother. Yeah. Through my mother, too. Perhaps the same. Yes, right. So anyway, I just thought I would establish a little kinship there with you. No, totally, man. Happy you shared that. So now you're in Watkins working with the real bad kids. Yeah. Yeah, and then I realized, and you know, this facility is shut down now for some of the reasons why I left, which is that you can't fight battles on multiple fronts. Sun Tzu Art of War, don't fight battles on multiple fronts if you can possibly help it. And when you're dealing with an administration that are not doing things in the ethical way that you expect, and then you're dealing with kids who are obviously, you know, have a criminal background. Well, you're trying to sell... success in life from an organization that you're feeling questionable about their ability to deliver it. Right. And that contributed to the closing of the facility. And that facility is now closed now. But at the end of that experience, I was just like, well, what do I do from here? It could be a little bit. This is 2008 or 10 or something like that. Yeah, sure. So then, you know, my best friend during the crash of 2009, and he's a pilot now, couldn't even get a job at a mattress firm in 2009, and he grew up with me in Trinidad, and he went to Korea, and he was there for five years. And I was working with criminal kids. I did not want to entertain going abroad. But after five years of him being in my ear, like, look, in Korea, they really need our help. And you can get paid well. That kind of propelled me to make a move. And I was like, look, I need to make a huge move. So I moved to Korea. I sold all my items, and I moved to Korea. And you were like a single guy this whole time? Yeah. Or were you like recently heartbroken or something? You're like, screw it, I just got... I did it a little bit, but nothing that would keep me. Precipitate a move to Korea. Right. But I really, you know, moving to Korea and being alone. Right. I don't know. There might be some mystery out there. The mystery. You're so cute. No, but I think, but you know, I just made this decision that, look, I have a chance to go abroad. I'm 31. Last chance, kind of. This is my last chance. Either I do it now or never. Oh, no. And man, did it change my life. I mean, it's the best, one of the best decisions I've ever made. South Korea, right? North Korea. North Korea. Definitely South Korea. I did. Definitely South Korea. And I went out there and it's like, they really need help with social skills. You know, you would imagine that every place you go is like America where they have prom and they interact with women and men and they have like schools that are co-ed and they understand how to interact and be cool. But that's not the case in Asia. Okay. Like, yeah. That's part of why South Korea is screwed up right now and nobody's having babies, right? Like they're expensive and nobody knows how to freaking interact with each other. I mean, it's harder, man. They need that skill development. And my angle was, I worked for Samsung the last three and a half years I was there exclusively for Samsung. And I could talk about LG Chemical or SK Innovation, which are, Chebol, which are like billion dollar companies in Korea. I knew I wanted to come back. So Samsung is the place that I wanted to go because I knew that work experience would translate. And man, I mean, one-on-one executive training, role call, I mean, you know, role play. Just kind of building your personal skills and listening skills and question asking so you seem like you actually care about somebody else. It's actually just asking questions. Right. In Asia, when you ask a question, it's challenging the person saying the question. But if you don't ask a question and you're a Westerner, you're not even paying attention, my dude. So it's like there's such contradictions in the basics that they really need help with understanding how to interact with affiliates in Texas that are talking about timeline problems with wafer dimensions and whatever it is. It's like they don't know how to... You didn't even ask me if it's fixed yet. Yeah. They just lack the skills to really work through that without offending people. So they paid a lot of money to people like me in Korea to train executives for high-powered companies in order to do that. And it was a comfortable life. It's comfortable, but I had a kid in Korea. I have an eight-year-old from a previous marriage. Oh, wow. A Korean mom? Korean mom, yeah. And, you know, I didn't want my child to grow up in the Korean educational system, which is very focused on standardized testing. The testing result is what matters, not the learning part of it. And it can make kids into zombies. And I love Korea, okay? It changed my life in the positive ways. But, you know, you have to look at it honestly. The educational system for young people in Korea, I didn't want my child to go through that. So I knew that I needed to... Their problems are now, I imagine, right? Like, they're not innovating, they're not... Well, I mean, they- They're building relationships. Yeah. I mean, I think that- And COVID hit, and then I was a freelance contractor. I think South Korea and North Korea almost are required to merge, to reunite, because the North Koreans don't have any economy, and the South Koreans won't, like, breed with other people than other Koreans. Mm-hmm. Like, there's almost no option for them but to reunite. You know, I think the South Koreans have a lot of compassion for North Koreans. Yeah. Because. Well, the North Koreans can take care of the South Koreans' kids and stuff then. You know, it's. Like, they need some cheap labor, like we had Mexican labor for a long time and Puerto Rican labor and stuff in the U.S. I know, yeah. Right? I mean, it's definitely. I don't know. It's definitely complicated because the cultures have become so different since the Korean War, right? So you have genuinely different cultures. And actually the language is different. So even the dialect of North Korea is different from South Korea now. Oh, I'm sure it's been so separated. It only takes like 30 years almost. It's been so many years. If you look at the... Like, there's some parts of Europe and different places in the world that have developed, like, ten languages. Like, in, where is it? Indonesia area and Papua, New Guinea? Papua, yeah. There's, like, tribes that have, like, there's, like, 20 languages in, like, a small portion of the island. Yeah. How did you guys all come up with these things? You know, but they just were separated from each other. Yeah. And then you just do it. Exactly. Yeah. Anyway, I digress. Yeah. No. So bring me back. Where did we jump off? No, no. So I think that. I haven't. So, you know... Move to Colorado. Yeah, you're from Korea. So COVID hit. You're a kid. Oh, really? You're a COVID transplant. And 2019 is when COVID hit in Korea. We live COVID in Korea. Really? So I live COVID in Korea, and it was depressing forever. Like people were getting sick and stuff, and nobody was talking about it? Or what? You need to understand the culture. So in Korea, there's a famous quotation, which is, the nail that sticks out gets hammered. So if you are different... Like literally, if you're thinking or acting differently, that's not smiled upon. The only difference you can have is a higher test score to be accepted. Right. So like you, you, so when you're going through COVID, everybody is stuck doing the same thing with no variation. I mean, so I had problems even going up to the rooftop and working out and maintaining my sanity when literally you can't go outside. Like you're looked at like death if you're going, because the, the government says you can't, you know? So all freelancer contractors, which I was, I was a full-time freelance contractor, got cut during that time. And I was like, okay, this is the time for me to move my baby back to Korea, I mean to America. So I did that and thankfully found, was connected with Journey. Not with her mom though? You know, I got divorced as soon as I could. Okay? And it's really just because, you know, my ex struggles with very serious mental health issues that I didn't really recognize. And I wanted something better for my life, man, and for the life of my child. So you guys have a mixed family now. We have a melting pot. We have a melting pot. Literally, we represent all corners of the globe. All right. South Korea, Puerto Rico. We got Iran. We have England. I mean, if you see us at Target, people look at us like somebody's adopted here. You can see our head tilt. You see me? Asian little girl It's a daughter What's her name? Her name is Aria And she's with us full time So she's always with us And she's getting her Puerto Rican attitude So you've been single dadding for like 5 years While you became a networking guru Interesting I was really lucky to be able to be a full-time dad and to be that cornerstone for my child. And I always wanted to raise a daughter, and I'm so grateful to be able to do that. And I'm sure it's a lot easier with help. Oh, yeah. Oh, my gosh. I really can't say I'm a single dad. Have the kids received this well? Well, yes. My boys are older, right? So they're like, well, this girl, we got to behave. Oh, we got to have her around. Don't throw a tantrum right now. Plus she's Asian. How did that happen? I know. Asian, British, and British. no um yeah they did they love her of course they're different ages so it's um they don't really play right together but but when we go places our boys now like it gives them a different purpose i notice how they really change their demeanor but we have a girl now like we gotta represent 19 and 12 so so the 12 year old is not too like he's three years old or four years going 25 mom what's the story we've got like yeah people we have a little bit of that it's not that easy but annoying but anything though I think that they care for each other we did it the right way so when we started dating one of the things it's funny because both of us started with like we're not getting married this is for fun like don't even think it's marriage it's just for the sex the first marriage I was like look I'm not in the marriage. This is insane. I'm like we're on the same page I just got divorced. I don't know what you're thinking. That's how we started and then of course I'm falling in love all the story and then I was like well I don't live with anyone unless I'm married. Right. I should revisit it. But it's only because look, I think that people who have subpar engagements and they try to fit a square peg in a round hole and it doesn't work. Oh sure, well everybody's got a hole in their head. And it's like you want it to work because you love this person and you try to make it work even though the pieces don't fit in the way you want. And your focus is in the future they will fit because we can make it, we can make it. I've been so lonely I'll figure it out. I think it's different when, and people get sweeped off their feet when they really engage someone and it's like, oh my gosh, this is why marriage makes sense. It's like we're laughing all the time. It's like we have mutual respect. Like we have communication skills. We bring a lot to the table, you know, independently of each other. We're not codependent. Like we want, you know, we choose to... love each other and to be there for each other but we don't need each other for survival yeah okay like we were surviving before we met each other honestly like that's what dependency is risky and so tell me about like when you first introduced the kids oh my gosh that's a good question right that took a while um more more for me because my kids are older so i gotta be more like let me think about this i remember the first time nema came to pick me up for a date he just goes No! I did. I ran to my door and my kid's like, see you. You're a gringo. I'm a gringo. I'm a gringo. I'm not official. I can't do that. Why did you touch the doorbell, motherfucker? You can't do that. You're not official. No. No. So it was funny because I really wanted to keep it private. He had at this point like a five-year-old R.E.S. So it's easier when you're little. They don't really understand it or whatever. I'll take that. Thank you. So it took me a while. And seeing like, wait, let's do this. Let's just... I had to really push myself to do it because I was so scared. I was like, this is going to be a mess. But then it was great. I do got to say the first time we went out was for bowling, just to do bowling. Remember? Main event? Yeah. No, in Greeley, whatever it was. And we just went out bowling. My kids are there. But I remember Nima being how charismatic. You know how he is. He's like social. I kind of want to date him. And I'm not even gay. Okay. When Nemo was the first time meeting my boys, he was like... Awkward. I was legitimately nervous. I was like, oh, ball. What do I do? I've raised my girl. He's never dated anyone with kids. He doesn't know what two teenagers here are judging you. You just put a freaking stomach up on him, chest up on him, and show what's up. We found our way, but that one was, she was like, why are you acting weird? I'm like, I'm just nervous. She was like, I've never seen you nervous. Like, this is weird. He was so quiet, like, weirdly looking at the bowling balls. I love it. What do you think about this yellow one compared to this purple one? This is still the work. I just really didn't want to mess anything up. And I'm like, it's better to say... I mean, my boys are Puerto Rican. They'll survive. Whatever you throw them, they're going to survive. They're very independent. They're outspoken. They're going to say whatever it is. What did they say about Neema after that first date? I don't think they... I mean, they're just like, we'll see. You know? That's what you said. Oh, yeah. That's what you said, LA. and you're like, we'll see. We'll see if it's real. That was the classic quote from her. It's we'll see. You were in love first. I was in love first. Yeah, yeah. I need more time. It's not what you say, it's what you do. You were once bitten twice shy, but in a different way, right? Like, you had different kind of circumstances where you're like, uh, but you're like, boys are bad, kinda. Yeah. And they're fun. And they dance good sometimes, but those fuckers, you can't trust them. So, yeah, it took me more time, definitely. But the boys, yeah, then after a while, a couple of going out and doing things and coming for dinner, things like that, they got better. Like, they love Nima. They're like, Nima is fun. They even say, Nima, you need to talk to my mom. She's like the fun of Nicole, basically. Yeah, yeah. I'm like, okay, dude, like, this is how we're going to approach this with my mom. Let's make a plan right now. Let's make a plan right now. I know she loves you, but you need a little more strategy. I would say... I didn't tell you needed it. We'll say that she is kind of the bad cop. I am the bad cop. Oh, I'm sure. I'm the good cop. I prefer your mom. Is she a bad cop? I don't know. We need to be harsh with that, but it's important to have those moments. And then, they're teenagers. They don't close the doors. The dog gets in places that the dog shouldn't. They don't clean anything. They're just typical teenagers. Okay, well, you know, we have security here, so don't leave the door open completely without locking it, like at night, and it's three in the morning and I wake up and the door is open. The boys are coming. It's normal teenage things. Wonderful. It was perfect. And that's one of the things that was like, this is it. This is perfect. It blended perfectly after, you know, we finally trust each other and now we're okay. And when did you get engaged? How long were you engaged? Yes, we were engaged for a year and a half. Yeah, about a year and a half. So after that, it's kind of like, the kids are accepting. They're like, what happened? Yes, they were actually asking for it. They knew it was going to happen. So they were like, oh, what happened? What happened? You know, then we didn't live together until after the engagement. Yeah. After almost at the end of the year of our engagement. So we because, again, I was very like, we're not traditional. Yeah, this is I'm just like the example. Right. Our kids are there. We want to make sure. Wait for any opportunity to go. Right. You know, well. dude okay she's slow time to waste it yeah yeah she was like can i really is the ball gonna drop ever it's literally like that's the thing is that i was thinking the same thing like is this to be to be true like this seems like i'm missing something because it's so good and then she's thinking the same thing so we we really wanted to wait it's like this is that's like what at Is this real? Just because we were traumatized by our previous relationship. We started living together in November before our wedding. It's been what? Not even a year. Nine months now. Yeah, so it's a process. Of course it's different. That's when the kids, I feel like, were more like, wait, he's here now? We want to do that before the wedding, right? If you're going to really blend the family, you have to iron that out before the official wedding. It's better to do that. For Aria, I was like, okay, two days here, three days in your house. Very confusing. We were trying to do it slowly. You're going to stay here one night, and then in a month, two nights. So you get used to the house and it's not like a trauma, trauma, like you're moving now. Changing the world slowly. Yeah. So we did that and that took a while. And now, I mean, she's again, lovely. We had to, of course, set rules, new rules. Now, my boys, you can't be naked walking in the house. Like we got a girl here. Were your boys naked and running around the house? I mean, not naked, but in underwear. You can't be naked walking around the house. You're little. basic stuff. It's like, okay, we have boys and girls in the same house. Let's get some privacy and rules. No boys and girls rooms and vice versa. There's no excuse for that unless there's an emergency, that kind of thing. Jill and I have a two-bedroom, one-bath home, bungalow down in Old Town. Cool. We host exchange students regularly. We have another one coming in for 10 days. Oh, I love it. It's super fun. That's so awesome. German, Julian from Stuttgart. Cool. And, but, like, that means no more naked walking around the house. It sucks. It doesn't matter if it's a boy or a girl. There's still no more naked walking around the house. almost free kurt we call our seasons of adulting oh by the way you actually might really love that right now yeah like maybe not this year but maybe next year while you still have kids that for whom they're not competitive with uh-huh um you you can't like they can babysit but you can't pay them legally okay um but you can get somebody from Japan, you can get somebody from Germany, Finland, you know, Brazil, Colombia. We actually were thinking about that, remember? And you guys have already got like this multicultural theme going. I think you need an African. I know, we need that. You have basically no black African going on there. That's the only cultural area. So the family photo looks extra good. Yeah. Just fill out the corners. Think about family photos. Maybe like an Eskimo. Oh. Dude. Anyway, yeah, bro. No, but we've thought about that. We do have an extra room in our house. We need help sometimes. Well, and honestly. With Aria or like. Get a girl that likes to watch kids a little bit and stuff. And then like. Pick up from school. If only I had a friend with exchange student. Yeah. hosting uh he's a long ways away from where you guys are um no that's that yeah we thought about that um but yeah you're gonna sample this hot sauce with me because i understand who's sourcing this hot sauce so this is the crazy ginger hot sauce um i came up with the name and the color basically and like i wanted to be local ingredients and then matador mexican grill Oh, nice. It's the sauce. It's a peach, red bell pepper, and habanero are the first three ingredients. Are we taking the plunge here or what? I feel like we should do that. You're going to give some tasting notes. You like hot sauce. I do. I love hot sauce. Okay. Valerie, you're out completely. I feel like this is hot ones, bro. I'll take this nice little. No, we're trying to. I'm trying to spur some sales. It really is one of the top three or four hot sauces that I have enjoyed. I really like it, man. Is that good? Yeah. It creeps up on you. I'm like, no spicy. It is delicious. Thank you. Actually. Yeah. Good. For our listeners, this is a guest gift for folks. I'm appreciating it more now that I tasted it. I'm like, this is actually really good. It hits nice first, and then it kind of creeps up on you like, huh. You're so nice. Just stick with me. And that's actually where we'll go now. So a stick with me story. This is the introduction of the Loco Experience segment. Okay. The craziest story that you're willing to share. Do you remember the story that you shared last time, Valeria? I can't remember. I don't know if I remember either. Do you have any crazier stories? It's been like three or four years. Oh, that's been baby Nima. Before Nima. After Nina, we've got a bunch of crazy stories. All right. Let her take the lead on that one. Do you guys want a sipper of WizCal first, though? Hell yeah. I'm okay, thanks. WizCal? I would love to. Okay, we'll do that. It's like a Mezcal-Whiskey hybrid. You might like it. It's got a little... I used to like Scotch whiskey. Okay, a little bit. And then I tasted a good mezcal and I was like, this is kind of like so good. Yeah, sweet. This is kind of like a hybrid from there. It's kind of like. Do you got some ice for me? Can you put some ice in it? I do. I'll put some ice in it. A couple of glasses. Ice. Not a shot then, just a sipper. I think I'd like a sipper. Yeah. You want a sipper, too? Or you want just a little sip of his? Just a little. Yeah, I'll try his. Okay. Sounds good. We'll do that. We'll do that. So have we thought about the... So the Loco Experience is the name of the podcast. And as you may or may not know... Well, actually, before we go there even... So it's local community experience, local community think tank. Would you share? You're no longer a member, Valeria, but would you share, like, for listeners out there, you were probably two years a member. Yeah, I did. You were actually in your crazy, growing, adding terrible choices. And did she talk about the value of her time? These guys let me do that dumb thing. Or did they actually tell you not to, and then you're like, no. No, no, no. I say all the feedback and and support and coaching I got was to do the opposite of what it was So now I'm applying a lot of those I You're so sweet. Thank you. I've got to say I learned a lot, love the environment, love the group, and just learned so much. It was a key part of growing the business. Let me just, because it's weird for you to talk about it, but we're in the same communities, and there are some very influential people. in circles like accounting firms and lawyers and medical practices that value being in the local think tank, my dude. Okay? And I'm not putting that kind of feedback on the website. I never call on those kind of companies is the funny thing because because I was a banker for so long, I just almost kind of avoid that. Yeah. A little bit somehow. Those professional services circles. And I'm glad I have a good reputation among that circle. I try. I try to really focus on high integrity, high opportunity, high potential people. Yeah, there's a certain structure to getting the advice and consulting from other professionals that are struggling and knowing you're in a safe place to share and get that kind of feedback. Well, like I said, everybody struggles. Yeah. Like we're all real people that have some struggle spots. Different growth, I guess. And so, setting the stage there, who's got a local experience for me? A crazy experience that you really don't want to share because your customers might be like, oh. But you're willing to share here because not that many people listen, actually, to this podcast anyway. Right. It won't go by. I have one. I have one. Oh, I like it. I like it. I love it. Okay. He was like, I'm a big fan. so okay let's see part of our relationship has to be a lot in mixing the different cultures and how we see things and how we communicate and how where the boundaries are right like it's so different like we love it and we learn from each other but as some things are like do I really have a to say that or do you should say that I didn't know anyways Nima is like he shared he graduated from Colorado College and they do reunions every what every What she's talking about is actually the 20-year reunion. 20-year reunion. 20-year reunion for Colorado College, which I hadn't been to any reunion in 20 years. But the 20-year reunion, I really wanted to go. Plus, you had the prettiest girlfriend or whatever that you'd ever had. Yeah. Hey, guys. Look at me. The dorkies. Let me just be. It wasn't like that. It was more like she's like you I have to go with you So wait, you're telling me you have a reunion well in Puerto Rico we do reunions for high school But we don't do it for college. So I was confused about it was I wait your high school reunion No, no, no, no the college reunion 20 years. Okay. So when are we going? Oh, yeah Like you were thinking without me? And then, no, we're going. So we went. And it was so weird because, I mean, we had a blast. But I was one of the only, I guess, very few girlfriends or wives were there. Oh, really? It was just everybody there. It was like a bro club. Like, exactly. and girls but everybody they didn't bring their they didn't bring their other yeah they didn't get so i was like okay this is interesting but the fact that the some of the women there were like oh you're so brave that you're here and i was like um he would never come alone like that confused her like that comment right that was one of the first first time that I'm just in there love Nima Nima Nima Nima they're basically saying that you have a high standard to live up to somehow yeah but one of the things that I mean I don't want to say this is only Puerto Ricans but at least for us it's very clear that you don't touch our man like you don't touch them like I don't care who you are unless you're the mom unless our Unless you're the mom or the sister, right? But you don't touch them. Like, you can say, how are you? But that's it. And they're, like, all over me. I'm, like, hugging and hugging. And I had to just breathe and be pretty. You know, like the penguins, like... Be confident and secure, as secure as you can feel. So this is, like, such... Grab somebody by the hair. Right, that's what I mean. Yeah, exactly. Once what you wanted to do was grab them by the hair and be like, listen, bitch, that's my man. You don't be touching him. Boundaries. Boundaries. Yeah, I mean... Thankfully, she did not. I did not. I survived. Well, I think that... I mean, you have to understand that I have the most fun going out ever in my life when we're together, okay? Like, it's so fun, right? And I think that when it comes to this event, she wanted to go home at 10.15. And when she's telling me in earnest... I'm ready to go home to our hotel because we're in Colorado Springs. you know, at 1015, I'm like, she is not having a good time here. And all my friends are going to think I'm a weenie. It's like, this is my 20 year reunion. I'm not going to go home at 1015, which sets the stage for an 1115 exit. It was something else, you know? It was awesome. Oh, yes. I was surprised, honestly. I never, we're never expecting all these girls being without husbands and boyfriends there. And being like, oh, hey, let's remember the old times. And I'm like, I have a knife. Actually, that's crazy. That's actually a great local experience because you walked in having no idea. No, no, no. It's a different culture. It was a very different. And again, I don't want to say. What is happening right now? I don't want to say they had that in mind, although I think they did. But I just feel like the different culture and being like, well, he's like successful. Like I had that actually when I went back to my hometown of Jamestown area, North Dakota after. going through college, and then moving successfully to Colorado for a couple years. Like, when I went back home, I was way more handsome because I represented a potential ticket out of that place. Kind of. Yeah. Like, I was... Sam, you overnight got good looking. You know, he had become successful by that time. He was fresh meat. He wasn't wearing a ring yet. He didn't put a ring on it. No, he didn't have a ring at that time. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Anyway. It was a cultural experience. I mean, you probably built some strength that you really didn't understand at the time. Right, yeah. It's different. It's not the same. I feel like if you have a bunch of Latinas doing that, they have another intention. That would be a different story. Like, it's going to be a fight. Then you're going to be training with a hair. Yeah. going to be way open. If they're Irish or, you know, mixed-race, whatever. Maybe they're just different. Yeah, they might just actually be. But I'm still watching. If they touch his chest or anything. And they're hugging him for more than two seconds. That's interesting because, like, when we were in Puerto Rico, it seemed like the dancing was, like, everybody was all but, like... having sex on the dance floor i know but you know what it was so yes but you know what you go dancing and nobody dances with you because they don't know you so it has to be but i mean i know i know how to dance but i would dance only with friends or people that we really trust and it's okay to dance with okay but it's not with everybody doesn't want to stick his penis in you Like, I'm sorry, but that's just what boys want. I don't know. I'm sorry. I mean, in our wedding, it was funny because we had all this mix of cultures in there. It was amazing. We got everybody from every corner of the globe at our wedding. And his uncle from England was like, I've never seen so many buttons shaking in my life. Actually, what he says, I've never seen so many bottoms shaking. Bottoms. to this day man he's like fun wedding i've ever shaking We got like everything happening in the wedding. We had a really good time at our wedding. I guess that's my question a little bit. It seems almost contrary. Like you're like, nobody touches my man or I'm going to drag him out by their hair. Right. And like in the right circumstance, we can have kind of pretty damn sexy dance. But not to him. So it's a very clear boundary. It's confusing. Who can you sexy dance with? It's so confusing, dude. While you were single, who can you sexy dance with? It's confusing, dude. Only if you approve it. So only as a woman, you get to choose, okay, I want to dance with you. And I'm already clear that you're single and you're not with any women here. So we can dance. and maybe share numbers. So it's more of like a clearance system. All right, let me give you a hack. This is the hack. This is the Latino code. Wow, okay. Is that you can dance in any kind of sexy way you want with your friend. With your girlfriend. With your girlfriends only. Or with an invited male companion that you know isn't dating any other bitches. Yeah. A gay would be the gay friend. Gay is okay. Especially reggaeton, right? Salsa merengue doesn't matter. Salsa merengue is different because you want to learn how to do it. And it's complex and it's normal to do social dancing. The minute you dance reggaeton with someone and it's so sexy like that, it's because you have certain interests, right? Sure. There's no like learn dancing with reggaeton, bro. Like how many dudes are like pretending they're gay so they can fucking be close to... Well, maybe. I don't know. It's just, it's a weird world these days, right? We're not. I was right. That was a good strike. Or better dudes that could never actually make the move on a hot chick, but they'll hope for the chance to do a tequila. I don't know. I digress. We love to do this. Political commentary. I'm glad your grandfather loved that wedding. No, uncle. He's my uncle. We got all kinds of cultures in the wedding. Korean, England, Puerto Rican, American, Mexican. Some African friends. Oh, that's true. Nima, we got to wrap this up with your local experience now. And before that, though, the tasting notes on the Whizcal. Would you like to share? Oh, sure. Cheers, by the way. Cheers. Cheers. We'd like this melt down a little bit. This is from Seed and Spirit Distilling, just in the former Funkworks. It's going to be opening soon. Very drinkable. Yeah. Nice. Buy a straight drink, like straight booze. There are not that many things that are very drinkable. Uh-huh. Love it, man. Yeah, I would drink it. So what's my crazy story? Yeah, that's true. I think that I wanted her to be my girlfriend so bad when we first started dating, and I wanted to lock her down. You've never actually focused on anything other than maybe like a sale or an account. as much. It seems like that when I'm hearing the story, he's like, man, I don't want to mess this up. Well, we were at Wicked Tequilas. Yeah, we were at Wicked Tequilas actually, and she wanted to test how much can this guy dance, so it was like a pretty watershed moment for our relationship. She was like, I could work with this. Right, he's got a base. He's got a foundation. We're having a good time, and I walked in, and I just saw someone that I knew from my past. And then, And of course, yeah, yeah. Of course, because God provides opportunities. And then I wanted to just set the groundwork for what I wanted. So I was just like, oh, hey, blah, blah, blah. This is my girlfriend, Valeria. Oh, before she agreed to that? She didn't agree to it. I was like, what? No, not at all. Because he put me in that position. I was like, yeah. Yeah. And then, bro, she's my girlfriend, just like that. Yeah, so that's how we asked. To his ex-girlfriend. Yeah. It was an ex-girlfriend. It was an ex-girlfriend. But it's someone that I feel like had interest, you know, that has a little bit of a history enough where I need to make it known that I'm not available for flirting right now. Yes. Yeah. I remember saying, well, I hope you don't propose that way. Then you're like, oh, yeah, we're going to get married. Like, you know, we're even. This is my fiance. What? Well, he did a great job of proposal. Yeah. Yeah. You want to tell the story? Yeah. We went on a cruise. We love to go on cruises. So that's like our vacation thing. And that cruise particularly had a stop in Puerto Rico. So while I was planning a dinner for my family to meet him, my mom already knew him, but my aunties and everybody else, he was planning with them the proposal. So. They're like, oh, yeah, we're going to go. And yeah, we're going to. My mom is like, don't worry. We're going to find a restaurant nearby, the poor and whatever. Okay, cool. So we got out of the cruise that day. Well, it was like a whole day in Puerto Rico. So we visit family. Then we came back to the cruise, changed. And he's so nervous. I was like, is this just my family? They're not going to. She was like, why are you so nervous? I'm like, I'm not nervous. I mean, it's like, they're not going to do anything. Calm down. He's just shaking and like nervous. She's like FBI investigator, my dude. I know what you're talking about. She notices any change in pattern of behavior. You're the green type. You're the person reader type. Yes, you are. I am. So the second you change, I'm like, what? Just relax. And then we get there and everybody's wearing white. And I was like, why is everybody white like my nephews and like little and white and i was like what's going on and my best friend flew from florida from um what does she lives in uh anyways and from the states to puerto rico and and i was like what are you doing here and that was like kind of like so i kind of like she's like what the fuck is going on right right i know something um what's going on oh god and then of course that was beautiful he just stand up in front of all my family in the middle of dinner oh what a cool thing and you know he must have been pretty confident oh yeah he I mean he's such a good public speaker right so he did a great it's just an opportunity to honor you know people I care about man I'm not gonna pass that up you know well and plus an opportunity to like just in case she was thinking about saying no like in front of all those people. She's such a people pleased. All of us already knew, bro. Right? Let me tell you, my family was like, oh, this gringo is amazing. They're all so happy. But when we got to the cruise, I was like, oh, I'm engaged. The guys from the cruise were like, oh, you did it. So she couldn't say no. She needs to come back to the cruise. The gringo's thing with 72's above their weight class. Now you're smart. He was like, no, that's why they do it, because you can't go anywhere from here. baseball game, something like that. There's a pattern forming. Let's wrap this up. It was beautiful. Thank you, Craig. M.O. Benefits. M.O. Benefits Consultants. Yes. Go Google it. You can find it. It'd be fine. Yeah. Well, they can email Nemo. Just email me. Yeah. Or you're still Vortiz, right? Yeah. We're still independent companies. Yeah. Vortiz Insurance is a partner with M.O. Both of us. But you get some juice on whatever he makes now, right? Oh, yes. Like you've attached them to your brand. I mean, it's a partnership, right? Yeah. It's a marriage, man. I mean, it's, um... It doesn't matter. It's happy life, happy life, bro. Was his is mine, and was mine is mine. Honestly, neither of you is very driven by, like, having the super big house. You just want to have freedom and love. Yeah. You know, and happy... And travel. People, yeah. Yes. Oh, we're on the world, yes. I love it. Thanks, Kurt. I really appreciate it. I hope you enjoyed it. I'm so happy to be on this podcast, man. Thank you. This was awesome.