Episode 2 transcript: Why you should be taking more risk and embracing change with Jim Marous

 Episode 2: Why you should be taking more risk and embracing change with Jim Marous

00:00.00

Aneta: Welcome to the Live the Width of Your Life podcast. I'm so excited. This is my very first episode, and my guest is Jim Marous. Thank you, Jim, so much for joining me today.

00:12.60

Jim: Thank you! I'm excited to be the first guest and start this new endeavor of yours, hopefully well.

00:19.55

Aneta: Well, of course, I am thrilled, and I want the audience to know that when I sent an email out to my community saying hey, guess what? I want to launch this podcast, you were the first person to respond, and you said, "so let me know how I can help?" So I just want to thank you for that because you mentor me, and you mentor so many people, and that means the world to me. Thank you.

Jim: You're Welcome. Thank you, I appreciate that.

00:51.26

Aneta: I want to congratulate you. Also, you are just named one of the top 5 most influential people in banking, and Fineth is like for the tenth year in a row.

Jim: It's been a long time, and I always couch it to say It's not like I'm influential as much as I'm an influencer on social media, and part of that comes because I've been in the same career or the same industry from the beginning of time.

Jim: Since I came out of college and joined National City Bank, I've been in the same industry my whole life. But also, the stars had aligned at certain times when I got into the business of content creation. When I was 55, I said, I want to make it so I don't become irrelevant. So, I said maybe there's a way to learn to disperse the information and help me when I was in sales, but just as importantly, it is interesting. The whole dynamic of what we all do is trying to share and have dialogue, which makes life more fulfilling, and as a whole it's exciting, and if you're not afraid of failure—it kind of opens up a whole realm of possibility.

02:12.64

Aneta: That is the truth, and fear holds so many of us back and keeps us stuck for too long. So going back to your background, I know you said you started in banking, and at one point, you said I don't want to be irrelevant anymore. So how did you decide what you were going to do next? Did you have it all figured out, or did you have the next step figured out?

Jim: It's interesting because at the time when I made the decision to do something in addition to what I was already doing at the time, I was in the sales role at a marketing services firm that served the banking industry and I said well maybe there's a way I have already in my career. Done well in sales but usually by being an invaluable resource to my clients. So if I was able to continually know as much or more than my clients in a certain realm not in the realm that they did but in the broader sense, and I was able to bring that to the table. It made us so they'd realize off the bat that I may not be the smartest person on the table. But I'm an asset, which was obviously gratifying to me, but it also worked well for the clients. So at the time, I said, well I got to take this to the next level because I, as most of us, remember. So that person that comes into the office that is saying the exact same thing they said ten years ago five years ago twenty years ago and I had been in the industry for a long time and I said, how can I mix this up a little bit I said well what I do I'm going start a block and this was back in. Cheese I think it was 2008, 2007 sometime around then and blogs were just starting. So I said I'll set up a blog I use WordPress and start something that basically takes research that I read I give my spin on it I link it.

04:04.67

Jim: To the research so that people can access it. But I use that as a gateway to opening the doors of new and existing clients and basically, I would say I pick up the phone or get on email and say, what have you seen my lead's latest article and they go Well, What do you mean? I said well I have this blog. And I'm writing articles about research. But I think you'd really be interested in this research to tell you what you could take a read of what I said but how about if I bring in this research for to you? Well, the research was free to access anyway. So it's not like I prepared anything that they couldn't find, but the reality was it was at the time when people really were overwhelmed. With just a lot of stuff, I Remember how I used to read our trade publication, The American Banker people weren't doing that anymore. There was just information overload. So shat I did was I pared down what I thought was important. I obviously related well to the people that told well to what I liked, and so you kind of you.

Jim: Predefine your segment on what you're good at, and it became a business. I took a summer about a year after I started it to follow my son's sports endeavors and he was at showcases and things I took a summer off, and when I started writing again. I had people connecting with me saying "where were you?" I paid attention and said, how many people pay attention here, I have a lot of readers of articles during that time. Not a lot of individual people but enough downloads of my articles going, guys, I think it's about time I start to figure out a way to monetize this.

Jim: It just so happened I got into a partnership with a gentleman with a much bigger publication and became a writer for him. But again I was simply doing what worked down the path naturally and for those who don't remember that was also the beginning of social media.

Jim: With Linkedin and Twitter, I realized that those might be great conduits to announce. I have something else that became that hit the airways or the news ways so all these things aligned in a neat way that made it, so I became a content producer. I became relevant in indeed in marketing in the financial services realm, and as a result, that's getting back to your very none question about being an influencer. I was an influencer on social media more than an influential, which is a whole lot more because I don't build things; I write things I do research. But basically, my career over the last twelve thirteen years has all been about some form of learning and dispersion of content creation.

06:48.48

Aneta: Well, I think that's a wonderful way to simplify it. But it's amazing to actually see looking back trying to connect the dots because one of the things that I noticed about you and something that you and I talked about early on is just consistency in creating this brand, knowing what your brand is, posting consistently so people know where to find you, so tell me a little bit of how your brand evolved and the things that you did.

Jim: Great! Great question because my brand initially was writing articles for a company called the financial brand on the coke publisher and it was basically just 2 of us, right? At the time, there were now 7 or 8 writers as well as contributors.

07:20.54

Aneta: And what you're doing now?

Jim: But what was interesting is I realized that well maybe there's more I can do here because it wasn't enough financially for me just to do what I was doing there. So I bought a report business and the report business in doing research in the industry using our database of subscribers I had a database I could ask questions of. Provide build reports and then use that for content. So every time I did something, I was trying to figure out how can they feed each other, and it ended up where my articles helped to feed my report business. My report business helped to feed my content both of which got exposure to me.

Jim: This then became the foundation upon which I started a speaking business, and in 2019 which is the last normal year that we know of I did twenty I think 25- 27 international speaking engagements anywhere from 50 people to 5000 people. I did them domestically as well on the same subject matter. So back to what you were out talking about with consistency, I Also realize that if you're going to write, set a cadence and live to that cadence because no matter how popular you are, no matter how much somebody wants to hear about you. There's so much going on.

Jim: You've got to make it part of their daily habit. Otherwise, they're not going to look for you because they're going to go. When I think of Jim I'll search for his name and see what he's written now maybe read 1 or 2 articles if they know I'm going to publish every Monday and they're there on Monday to see what Jim posts now.

Jim: If I come out with reports on a consistent basis and now the most recent area of content is my webinars and my podcast if they know when it's going to happen that helps increase your exposure and then if you continue you're looking at how can I give back. So, when I'm writing research I'm writing research often with the assets of other companies. Let's say Accenture, Mackenzie, or something like that, I make sure to give them credit to give them links and many of these companies IBM and others have said we get more people to read our content based on your link. Then we do from our own exposure to it in the social media realm and that's probably because it's sometimes very hard to find on many of these platforms plus some people may say they can't go to any organizations to see what they've written That's what my job is and then pick the best at least ones that align with what I think and build it from there.

10:07.10

Aneta: Wow, that is so amazing. So what would you say to someone who may be in their 30s, in their 40s, 50s or even those who find themselves stuck or maybe a little bit like they're not growing and they're considering doing something different but maybe they're worried or they don't think they can make money doing something that they really enjoy what advice would you give them.

Jim: It doesn't matter if it's content. It doesn't matter if you have a hobby. The internet is a great equalizer right now. The internet allows you to not only expose yourself and get out there with very little risk. No money has to be made to get exposed in the marketplace but then to build a network of people like mine. So Let's say I collect like a little metal car. There's a whole universe of people that also collect the same thing. If you find the leaders in that realm, you're going to find other people through them that will connect you to other people and if you're contributing to the conversation. What's neat is they let you in and they help promote you. Human nature is that we all want to help each other. It's not a competitive scenario. What? What's needed is I found out very early that I can't worry about who else may be getting a piece of the pie. My goal is to increase the size of the pie.

Jim: So whatever piece I get is going to be acceptable, and so I think one of the things you really have to do is number one realize the risk level is so low. It's the thought of failure that really throws us off. It's not the failure itself I mean, I'm sure in your endeavors in the last few years. You've had stumbles. You've had disappointments but every one of them has been a learning experience now some people may have to run parallel paths at the same time they may have to hold on to what they have and at night do something different. The 1 thing I have absolutely no patience for are people that will continually say I hate what I'm doing or I wish I was doing something else. The world today makes it so that anybody can do anything at a level, Gary Vaynerchuk. I read him quite a bit, and he says if you want to do something it is simple.

12:37.63

Jim: Get something on eBay that's underpriced and then resell it at a markup you can make a living doing that you just have to get really efficient and during that process, you're learning things I've learned a lot early in my writing career early in my report career. And then it transformed into my webinar and my speaking and my podcast career but you still have to learn from me, you have to be aware and how we came in contact you also have to be willing and desirous of sharing with others what you learn because of what ends up happening. People share back with you. Now, you can't do it with a contingency. You can't share going I'm only going to share if you share bat, but good things happen to people that help others, and if you go with that mantra if you believe that and don't feel upset when it doesn't work out quite that way. You're going to do okay.

Jim: But the pandemic gave us an amazing opportunity to expand the Breadth and using your podcast, to expand the Breadth of what you can do and I liken it to going to the doctor. The doctor will tell you, you need to change your diet. You need to change your exercise habits to be healthier. And you may keep on it for about a month but it's that third year you go and he goes what we got a problem here? You haven't exactly found my regimen and so we see something here. That's not good. It's amazing. How pain makes you switch immediately people did this during the pandemic. Some people got out of the workforce.

Jim: Some are coming back in some started new businesses I Think what we have to realize is that everything looks like a threat if you have the right attitude. It actually is a great opportunity out there I mean the economy is going down right Now. There's never been a better time to start a new business because other people are getting out of business or are being shut down because they're not evolving. They don't have to challenge your mindset So at the end of the day if you have the ability to say what I'm going to work harder at what I do My son was in sports and he always said the reason why he practiced twice as hard in the summertime than during the season was that he realized his competitors weren't all practicing, and so he got he had a way to move up the ranks of what his competitive situation was because he was doing something other. And what everybody else was doing. It's easy to be like everybody else. It's when you can stand out and do things a little differently and look for those avenues and I'll get back to the social media side and reach out to those that are the foremost leaders in what you want to do. And engage with them maybe it's asking them to be interviewed. Maybe it's simply saying I'm just starting this field can I spend 5 minutes on the phone with you. They are more than willing to help because they realize it's not a competitive situation. We all want to help each other.

Jim: And I think that's what you have to be told no 10 times to get 1 Yes is great and what's interesting is over time if you do well you're going to have 10 people coming to you and you're only going be able to say yes to 1 that's a whole flip of the coin there.

15:57.66

Aneta: Yeah, so true. I wanted to talk about a couple of things that you just mentioned one being the pandemic. So I know that you were traveling and you were speaking and I remember when you and I talked during the pandemic and you said I'm going to start a podcast, you started to shift. You saw that something was changing. We weren't sure when we were getting out. There are obviously podcasts out here but there isn't 1 exactly like yours and your podcast is the number 1 podcast in banking so talk a little bit about it. When you got the idea were you thinking about doing it for a bit and then what have you learned during your podcast journey?

Jim: It's interesting to your point when my speaking business which at the time was about half of my revenue was going to shut down and you could see it happening I was traveling in January 2020. This does not look good if we get shut down as far as travel, all the events I go to and speak at, and all the people that send salespeople to other companies to sell and to events to sell. That's all when we shut down. What could come from that?

Jim: And they decided to not just take my report business but decide to build white papers that could be sponsored by organizations that sold to the banking Industry. So I would write a shorter version of what I would do in a report business that could get the company’s names out there at a time when salespeople. Working from home or not traveling at all. In addition, to your point, I said maybe I can start a podcast to interview people which is my way of gathering more insight from people across the world but connections I had across the world I started the good old email you can get to. I can get to the Middle East I can get to the far east I can get to Europe and connect with these people I think people would still be interested in hearing from these people at the same time. There's a sponsored element of my podcast where companies can sponsor me to interview their people about what they do.

18:08.30

Jim: And the only qualification is how I sell on the podcast. It has to be for the benefit of the audience my audience to be able to learn more about what's going on in the industry and by the way, just by thinking a little bit you say well this must be the spot. They must do this this company must do this. And it worked out famously. Ah, it was much more than I ever expected. But it was interesting because again we were doing the same thing we were doing before but this new channel’s webinars turned into more like podcasts where it's more like what were you and I are doing now rather than PowerPoint presentation. What we really realized was there's there are ways to pivot. It's a word that we use quite a bit during the pandemic and at a time that Zoom I mean we never knew what Zoom was before March 2020 well we became more open to trying to see new things.

Jim: And what do you even have to think out of the box? Once you get something established keep that challenge in your mindset One year ago that I started saying I'm going to start recording these videos and audio prior to that for the None years two-quarter years. It was only audio I said we have a video to a video platform here. Why don't we also record it this way and started a Youtube channel well things don't always work the way you think they're going to so we started None episodes None recording on video I just introduced the Youtube channel I think was four weeks ago now what was the delay me.

19:41.26

Jim: I was I had all this content and I didn't really put it into the platform yet and now that is going to provide us some point another sponsorship opportunity but it was also the way I started the podcast initially which was I never looked for any sponsor the podcast I may never look for anything other than

Jim: Distributing content building an audience building a reputation and then saying, maybe somebody else wants to participate in what I'm doing so I went I invested with a producer and put a year under my belt before we even asked. For anybody to help sponsor or contribute anything the same thing's going on with the Youtube channel. It's not me, not everybody has the ability to do that. But it's always better to build your reputation before you try to sell your reputation. We're not all the fashion.

Jim: The fashion icons that can go out there and put a Tiktok video up and get money for it. It automatically now we have a face for writing not for podcasting but again, it's one of those things that if you do it with genuine under your genuine enthusiasm going to always work better.

20:54.62

Aneta: I agree and thank you for giving me the tip to start off doing the video and the audio. It's one of the None things you told me to do and I appreciate that you shared you took your learnings and you shared it with me early on. So yeah.

Jim: Well yeah, Youtube it's the fastest-growing search engine and the fastest-growing content-listening and watching platform. So many people pick Youtube, put the earbuds in on their phone, and listen to what they think they're watching. It's just another channel and you can't again; what's also needed about the podcast from my perspective is I also love to write, So my podcast interviews become content and I turn then turn into writing that helps me fulfill my obligation on the financial brand and on my reports.

21:43.10

Aneta: So smart I love how it's all integrated and the other thing that's integrated is I love to follow you not just on Linkedin but also on Instagram and what I appreciate so much is that you share all of your I see. Photos and posts about your family about sporting events, about concerts that you go through but also you're on this wellness journey and I love seeing you talk about riding your bike you do Valassano your favorite smoothies wherever you are visiting I see that you get some good smoothies. So tell me about this wellness journey that you're on and how long have you been on it because it seems like it's really important to you.

Jim: Well, it is I referenced the doctor analogy on my transformation and the reality has I had a saying that I would use when I was presenting which was to embrace change take risks, and disrupt yourself. And all of a sudden I realized that I wasn't the best version of myself and I'm not sure if any of us ever get there completely. But I realized that it all is part of this whole journey I can't go internationally and speak and get in planes get off of planes and. Spend four days in Budapest or in Paris or any in Utah any place else if I'm not healthy I had some issues I had to deal with and the doctor made it very clear I better deal with them and I decided in January if I think it was 2018. Maybe it's probably None

23:20.23

Jim: That I was going to do the double whammy I was going to None going to go to lose weight I was going to focus on losing weight I joined the Noom platform which is a digital diet program kind of like Weight Watchers. But for digital mobile phone junkies and got on that platform and lost around 25 pounds and I said well having lost that I now can do some better exercising. So I joined a local fitness studio and one that really required a commitment that if you signed up and didn't go you got charged and yeah it was a very different kind of platform. Everybody's got something different they like but putting those things together I lost over 50 pounds and I've gained a little bit since then not a ton but I gained a little bit when I was in Florida of all places over the winter time and now getting back on it. But you really have to make your entire self.

Jim: Better. It makes it so every part of your life your busy your personal life all works well and you really need it. You can't put all into any one part of your life and be happy at least I don't think so and so I appreciate that you follow me on Instagram. Instagram is my fun platform to say what's going on. I'm raising money for this I'm helping people with this I had this great experience. That's very visual, so I put it on Instagram my wife's tired of all my social media connections on Facebook as well. But the reality is it opens up your world and says I'm leaving a kind of normal life and I'm proud of the fact that at very old age I will say it's all in the mind but at an old literal age.

Jim: Then I'm building a podcast. It's the thing I like to talk about now because people just go wait. You have a podcast and then I talk about the digital amplification things we do in ah, and I'm a content creator and all of a sudden their eyes go I cannot believe this I have people much younger than me that have already retired. I think this is what keeps me saying, and it Also it's interesting because if you enjoy it. It's not a pain, and you can do it just as your hobby if you want you can go back from having to be a business to being in a hobby, and if you can do that and have fun doing it. It's the best of all worlds.

25:44.61

Aneta: So true. It's combining your passions, your skills, your experiences your talents, and creating this life. This integrated life that you love I mean that's what it's all about what would you tell your younger self because? I'm assuming that you've evolved over the years that you didn't have maybe all this wisdom when you were 181920 years old what would you tell yourself a younger version of yourself?

Jim: That's interesting. I would say number one. And it's actually something that I really embraced probably at age 40 maybe a little bit before that and that it's not going to kill you now that mentality ranged from when we bought a house and decided to sell it and move a completely different part of the country at a time on the spur of the moment truly and I said I guess the comment was what's the worst that can happen now mind you I will say that there have been multiple times in my life when that answer has come to me when we did move from Ohio to California.

Jim: It was what's the worst that can happen. We landed on the day we were going to close on our house and there were fighters in the Hills somebody told me where they were genuinely sounded familiar and I realized it was in the community right next to ours. So all of a sudden I'm going So we're going to a place that may not be here by the time that the next day came and on top of that we went there in 2006 and I think we bought on the day that the marketer was the highest in real estate from that point on it went down almost I told people's like if you had a thousand hours throw out the window every day we lived in California that's pretty much what we did.

Jim: But then we had the offer to come back to Ohio came back to Ohio and it just so happens that if you were asked my wife my son or myself would you do it again? Knowing exactly the way it was going to play out. We'd all say yes it was an experience and it did not kill us. Yes, did it make things difficult? Yes, did it make it so we had to resave to buy another house? Yes, did it change our life? Yes, but none of us would take that away because there were a lot of parts of that experience that were just outstanding.

28:12.70

Jim: And I think that if you realize that what's the worst that can happen and it's not the end of the world I think this is especially important for younger people. Younger people at 24-25 think that they aspire to be this thing that's been built for them by their parents by themselves by their friends. And the reality is you don't need to know in many cases at 24 25 23 you don't have a house. You don't have children. You may not be married. You may have a significant other, but the responsibilities are so much less than what they are when you're 40 and 50 so if you're young.

Jim: Try everything. Don't be confined to what you think your parents wanted or what you thought you wanted to know I'm amazed when you go to high school sporting events during the senior year and people say what they're going to be going to school for what they're going to study and be you go how the world do you know you want to be. When you've never seen chemical engineering in your life and it means when you're young test everything Heck when you're old test everything you know, dip your don't just dip your toe in the water jump in disrupt yourself take risks to embrace change.

Jim: That's the hardest part I mean we're none of us love change. We're going through it every single day, and it wears this out and that's the 1 downside right now is that there's so much happening around us. It can get overwhelming sometimes that respite that that quiet place is maybe doing something that you never thought you'd do.

Jim: And trying it but going all in on it. Maybe as I said maybe on a parallel path to the rest of your life. Maybe just let go of everything saying hey I'm going to try this, it's Amazing. What you can Try. I have a friend who's a designer Tennis Shoes. He's just an artist and then he decided to do specialty shoes. Customized shoes make a business out of it now this person has to learn business because the person was an artist and wasn't really a business person. That's an amazing opportunity for people to think outside the norm

30:22.95

Aneta: I totally agree with many of my clients. They'd often so they come to me and they were like should I quit my job or should I try something different I always say it doesn't have to be 1 or the other it can be an and.

Jim: And just try something. Right.

30:37.70

Aneta: Continue doing what you're doing if that makes you feel safe and secure for the time being, similar to what you did, but you want to explore and try some new things. Try it Out. It's all Information. You might love It. You might hate it. You might be really good at it. You may not be great at it. It's just information if you see it as an experience you'll get some answers. And you can continue on and expand more or you might go Well this wasn't what I thought it would be and try something different. Why do you think that sometimes we're so afraid to try something different like to take some things that are perceived as risks?

Jim: We don't want to be considered a failure. We have this preconceived notion. We don't want to wake up and say what in the world did I do? It's what's going to happen, but you need to put it in perspective. You need to put in perspective if you're young saying from the age of 21 to 26 five years is one-twentieth of the possibility of your lifespan if you're a 20-year-old right? Now that's not that long. That's a sliver of time it will pass.

Jim: And most of us, almost all of us, don't have to risk life health and wellness. So the reality is if you realize that the risk isn't as great as we make it be and don't let that overwhelm us, we're better off how many times has somebody left a job and said. I should have done this five years ago; three years ago ten years ago we are our own worst enemies because we're fearful of what may happen the reality is you can take a pay cut if you enjoy doing your work more and you have a pay cup. You have some more balance.

32:25.38

Jim: Great if you want to say, I want to take my post-college sabbatical this year and I'm 30 and I travel the world and go and say it's interesting. You watch these people that do this and not all of them come from money. They just find a way to make it happen to say you know what? I'll find my way back if I have to I'll find my way back I'll do something in the meantime we are our own worst enemy and it's interesting because once you embrace that change my wife was in a traditional store Retail She moved to digital Retail. She was scared to death and then she realized all her talents. Transformed she became the enemy of a lot of the store units because now in the digital site. It was a competition. My son came off a baseball field at the end of the travel game and in so one summer and at None grade and said Dad Mom this my last baseball game and we just.

Jim: Were completely stunned. There's no warning nothing else. We're a baseball family we said okay, what are you going to do I'm doing lacrosse he had not picked up lacrosse. We asked why and he said gives baseball's boring which I had very little to combat but on the other hand, he said I'm going to put in all the time that's needed I'm going to start from my high school team and I'm going to start from my college team from the first year on I'm going to get signed by a college and we'll play every game and he did that and now not everybody can do it.

Jim: But what was he was getting into a complete discomfort zone I hope because of his parents and other people he was involved in. He saw no downside to trying something new. He had faith in himself, and he never quit people would say why you are taking all these clinics.

Jim: I got to get better I have my goal in mind and his goal was to have fun it's funny because now he's out of university he went an extra year because of covid in sports so he was able to go an extra year and plus because he was an only child. We allowed him to do so but he's now going on a golf trip in a week from now with 12 of his old Lacrosse teammates that brotherhood lived on and he looks back and goes this would not have been quite the same if he stayed in baseball. So again, you have to realize and for him. What's the worst that could have happened if you go back to playing baseball or not playing any sports? You have to put things in perspective sometimes, we build our own Boogeyman.

35:01.52

Aneta: The mind is so powerful I always say use it for good because otherwise, so tell me what's next for you. Do you have things that you have on a traditional bucket list? Do you have a dreams log or is it just things that you think about otherwise, personally, and professionally are you willing to share with the audience today what you want to make sure you do next?

Jim: It's going to the under the bucket of balance. My son is graduating from university my wife is retired there were plans that we had for when those things happened but they both happened in 2020, 2021 and so it didn't quite work out that way. So the thing on my bucket list is to expose them to some of the amazing places that I've gone first on the bucket list is go back to I've been to Africa and done a safari they didn't they were not with me. It was a business trip. Believe it or not and I want them to be exposed to that and my personal bucket list as well as want to go to Greece with my wife. It's a place that I find I've never been to I find it to be amazingly beautiful. So some travel just for vacation, one thing I did in 19 was kind of like a bucket list item.

Jim: I actually cut back my travel and said I'm not going to go to any location overseas without ah, a four-day layover so instead of doing a day, and a day to rest a day for speaking a day out I did a day in 3 to four days of speaking but also see the country. And then out that completely transformed my focus on why I was going there and it made it also so that I changed my fee structure a little bit because I said no if it's the right place we can make a deal and sometimes I made a deal to bring my wife as opposed to taking the normal fee and even without the fee to have the opportunity to see the world and it's so vast and so under and not understood and misunderstood and to be able to go to place ego

37:12.10

Jim: I never thought I'd be here and I've told you the story that even to is involved with people. You never thought you'd be involved with I remember two instances one was when I was in North Africa doing a bank event and we had probably no people in the room from the south. Of the Middle East and so they had the white garb on and then the other group was from the northern part of Africa from Nigeria and such and so imagine dynamics as I'm looking out the audience seeing vastly different diametric and demographics and cultures. And they'd stand in line to talk to me after my event I'm going like pinch me I can't believe I'm here and then a follow-up trip was going and I was sponsored by a bank in the Middle East and going and meeting the chairman of the bank and in his office and he's again in the white.

Jim: There's probably a word for it, but the white garb and wearing sandals and bare feet, and I'm just going to if anybody could see me now and realize I'm exposed to this. It takes my breath away. I think the bucket list is to get on the road again. Even to the countries that are more typical of Paris and the London of the world that are just so amazing and of themselves and to see my friends because I'm very fortunate to knock on wood that I now have friends internationally than any country I go into.

Jim: I'm going to have at least a couple of people that know who I am even if I don't know them personally because of my exposure in the marketplace. So it's a little bit more balanced I don't foresee myself retiring from everything anytime at all I'm just going to pair back the parts that take a toll and take going are the ones that are the most fun.

39:05.67

Aneta: That sounds fantastic, and I hope you get to see and do all of those things. So the name of this podcast is Live The Width of Your Life and it's based on a Diane Akerman quote that says I don't want to live my life and get to the end of it and realize I just lived the length I Want to have lived the Width as well. So what does that quote mean to you? How do you live the width of your life?

Jim: Now, it's all cliche to a degree to put as much into a day as you can. I'm at an age now that I have people that are leaving my sphere of friendships that have not been as fortunate as I am to be yours today I have a friend that just left the Cleveland Clinic after a week's stay with some cancer surgery and if you keep on realizing it doesn't matter if you're None years old 20 years old that your life is not predetermined by you as to how long it's going to be. You need to make the most of every. Possible second so that you don't go to bed at night going teas I didn't move forward at all I didn't move any direction at all that doesn't mean you have to make an advancement they have to get things done. It's not a to-do list, the fact that you may replace a tennis lesson with a podcast.

40:27.37

Jim: Interview and make that decision that doesn't make it bad but make sure that you never regret not doing something and that gets back to the very beginning of what we talked about if you're stuck in a job that you're not enthusiastic about, you have to love your job. But if you don't really like the way it's contributing to your life If you don't think you're using your best skill sets to give back to the world change. It knows live the breath of your life live the width of your life. It's not linear and again I can't emphasize it enough to say really use the term it and sometimes it's if it doesn't kill you. You make you stronger I'm not too sure about that. But I will say that you need to ask yourself. What's the worst that can happen to be honest with yourself.

Jim: Skydiving we know what the worst is that could happen. But if it's going deep sea fishing or it's going snorkeling or it's going bike riding on the toe path in Cleveland if it's simply reaching out to a friend you haven't talked to for months yourself in my case. Then don't live with regrets the kids. It's filled with opportunities.

41:43.76

Aneta: I love that beautifully sad I couldn't have said it better myself I am so grateful for you, and I'm grateful for our friendship. Thank you so much for all that you do and what you've given back to so many and thanks for sharing so much wisdom today from your own experiences I know that people will find it to be very inspiring. How can we best support you? What is the best way that folks can support you and follow you? On your channels. What else would be helpful for you?

Jim: Honestly, the more general thing is to tell friends about your podcast because the reality is the people that are listening to you today are not my followers. They're not necessarily wired the way I am I'm going to share it on my platforms. But for those who are actually listening to what you put your life into share it with 3 or 4 others. That's what people can do because somewhere down the line. It all is going to come back and I can't emphasize enough that the universe is so large the little bit you can move it transform it and make it better more than ever before today. It's going to make it better, so the way to get back for me is to make sure that people share what you're sharing because it's pretty important in today's world to live the width of your life to leave lead them. The whole breadth of what's a possibility there and to realize that now more than ever you can start today and do something different.

Aneta: That's right, you can start today, and you don't need to know how it will all work out. You can connect the dots by looking back and not always going forward. Thank you so much. Jim, I look forward to continuing to follow you and include all the ways folks can find you. In the show notes and hope you have the most amazing rest of your day today. Thank you.

Jim: Thank you as well.