Adaptive Learning and Self-care with Garrett Gunderson – Bonus Episode 554

This transcript was auto-generated and may contain errors.

[00:01] Welcome to the Prosperity Podcast. Prosperity thinkers, this is a special bonus episode where Kim is having a conversation with Garrett Gunderson. The unique thing about this is Garrett and Kim have known each other for years and years and they’re both experts in the financial industry and we get to pull in the conversation of the books that Garrett’s writing, the conversation of updates in life and current events that are happening. As a bonus episode, this is one that you want to listen to and really peer into the lives and the thoughts of how Kim and both Garrett are navigating what’s happening today in our real world. Enjoy. Hello, I’m Kim Butler and I have with me today Garrett Gunderson.

[00:45] Garrett, so good to get a chance to talk with you. What are you working on these days? I’m actually doing a lot of writing, rewriting two of my older books, updating them for today, Killing Sacred Cows, which was released in August of 2008. So it’s got, you know, it’s been a minute. And what would the Rockfellas do, which was released in 2016. And so there’s just been, you know, there’s a lot that’s happened. Crypto didn’t exist when Killing Sacred Cows came out. Inflation has really, you know, been pretty substantial in the last few years. And I also just wasn’t as good of a writer. I mean, I just was my first book. I was I sounded like an attorney trying to make a case and sometimes being

[01:26] redundant. And I’m also using language that you would have rightfully critiqued me on. I’m using words like never and always and infinite. And I’m like, I want to I think there’s, you know, there’s ways to say that that aren’t so demonstrative or limited in scope so that people aren’t feeling threatened by it. It’s like, you know, the word like some or most or sometimes, you know, that that seems to have a little bit more leeway for people that just actually be OK with where they’re at. I love it. It’s interesting. You kind of have to, as you’re learning through life, get to a black and white state yourself for your own mind. And then you have to back off that black and white state to help other people get the clarity.

[02:14] Is that what you’re finding in your writing? And like where I was trained at the time I wrote Killing Sacred Cows was by people that were really good at like they, you know, like one this phrase that, you know, blowing up the island. I’m like, well, do we have to blow things up? Like even killing is a pretty intense word, right? For the title. But then what was the sequel? Disrupting Disrupting is not quite as harsh of a word as killing. So, yeah, it’s it is like there is that passion that comes from like in that seal from discovering it. But sometimes we’re not meeting people where they’re at, you know, in their conversations. And that can come across as pushing people on the defensive because people don’t want to admit they’ve made mistakes financially

[02:59] because they’ve been working. Oh, gosh. Things. And it’s like, well, what else was I supposed to do? And maybe that’s there was no other option than it was something instead of nothing. And, you know, to make it wrong immediately put someone in a position where now it’s a fight versus like, oh, that was a start. What else is what else is available? What else could you do? What are other possibilities? Love it. So you’ve always been an author. And how many books are you on now? So the kids books, number 10, and I have a manuscript done for number 11. But I think it’s going to take a minute to edit. And I know that you’ve done the same number of books. You know, I think about my first books. I was a co-author a lot of times, or even if it was my book

[03:40] that I started, I still hired a co-author. Money on Mass was my first book that I just wrote every word and then just had amazing editors. I, you know, so that I felt I’ve fallen in love with the process of writing. But I will tell you, writing a kids book, I tried that in the past because I, you know, I had a consultant in like 2013 say, why haven’t you ever written a kids book? And I was like, that’s a really smart idea. And his daughter was like an agent for kids books and connected me with a really famous kids book author who was not pleasant to be around. So I was like, I just tabled it. And I was on this flight and sitting next to someone who’s a prolific children’s book author, sold three million copies of kids books.

[04:22] We hit it off. And by the end of the flight, we were talking about a collaboration. And so I put the content in and she put the fun in the content. You know, she speaks kid. I didn’t I like I’ve tried to teach my kids sometimes and I start talking about things. I’m like, why am I talking to my kids about this? This is 10 years down the road, you know. So so this book, I am money. And Julia was the person sitting next to you on the plane. Julia Cook. Yeah. And then I texted my little sister who’s a school teacher. I’m like, hey, what do you think about Julia Cook? And she’s like, yeah, we have a bunch of her books in our classroom. She’s awesome. So I was like, oh, and she’s been a great collaborator

[04:57] because she gets things done. And I also know where her skill sets are. Like, I don’t really read the book to kids. She does. And she’s got this funny voice. And it’s like her animation behind it is fantastic. So, yeah. And when she came back after a 38 or 39 minute phone call and the first round, I was blown away because you just see someone’s gift. You’re like, wow, this is truly magnificent. Yeah. Dan Sullivan’s concept of unique ability. When you see that in somebody that is developed there so that they’re clear on it and they can be so clear out in the marketplace on it, that really is an experience to behold. And in the younger me might have wanted to try to have every skill set or get like, who knows, but like to be willing to be collaborative

[05:49] is such a key to enjoying life and to being more prosperous. Like, you know, competition is where a lot of young people are, you know, trying to get ahead, trying to do. And if they hold that on for too long in their life, they’ll probably get, you know, really ill because our bodies aren’t meant to be on 24 seven pushing, grinding, hustling, you know, scaling and all these kind of things. It’s like insatiable that by the way, there’s never any end to that. It’s always like more because you get more. Someone else has more and I need more. And, you know, and it’s just filled with jealousy and comparison. So I like that the children’s books about what would it look like just to, you know, invest in yourself and treat yourself

[06:32] as your greatest asset. And, you know, if you do have more than is required to live, like, what would it look like to share and what would that mean? And, you know, what does investing yourself look like? And just in fun ways. I think that every adult will learn from that and it’s willing to. I mean, and like I’ve had so many people just read the book in front of me, right? My friends are like, oh, this is a good message because it’s a kid’s book so they can get it done. I had a buddy on a plane yelling from the back of the plane is like, dude, love in the book, you know, but it’s it’s finished before we take off. So I know you mentioned Dan Sullivan. He’s done a better job at writing shorter books over time

[07:08] because they get more read. And sometimes long books are about the author and not enough about the reader. But a kid’s book is about the kid and like, hey, how do they have fun with this? I love the concept in the book about you are your best investment. And I think you also address about time and how time is an investment and how you treat your time. Am I remembering that correctly? I know I do that money on mass. I’m trying to think about I am money. Well, it’s just what it says is it’s OK just to like there’s a part that’s like, hey, a lot of people talk about having a rainy day fund, but it’s OK to spend your money when there’s not rain, if it’s something you truly enjoy. You know, and it was like funny things like trombone classes

[07:50] or, you know, zoo school or singing lessons. And it’s like, hey, that’s that’s OK, because a lot of society’s about, no, no, no, you’ve got to save for retirement before you do those things. That’s frivolous. And then we lose our quality of life along the way and our energy and our joy. And as we look out there, there’s a lot of people that are, you know, working hard to get ahead for retirement, but they’re losing life on the bridge to get there. And they can’t share. And that’s another central message that I picked up in your I am money kids book, because sharing is such an integral part of a child learning. But you take it further and talk about sharing your values, sharing the good that you bring to the world, which, of course,

[08:33] is different than every other person and the good they bring to the world, which goes back to that Dan Sullivan unique ability concept. And yet in a child’s environment, something like sharing is everything to them. I loved how you described it in the book, shared it in the book about sharing. And I am just really excited to see what people can do with that. And again, that is a concept that adults need to pick up on more thoroughly. And I said, you know, taking care of the basics is critical. And when you get there, then you have, if you’re abundant, you get to a place of sharing and it’s just breaking down, earning money, saving money, spending money, and then giving money away. And, you know, some people give so much away that they

[09:25] actually hurt themselves. Or, you know, and so like it’s like it’s OK to treat yourself as your greatest asset. It doesn’t mean you’ll have less to give. It just means that, you know, it’s kind of that notion of if you take care of yourself, you have more energy to give to other people. If you always take care of other people, you have no energy left for yourself. And it’s like when we had our first son and my wife just felt like to be a good mom, she had to be 24-7 with them. I was like, well, what if you just had like a day off? And I, you know, and I helped and I was like, what if you had, you know, two days off and a nanny helped part time? It was like, well, she read that like, well, what if I

[10:00] does that make me a bad mom? And I was like, no, it makes you a better mom because you get to have your life. You get to go be creative. You get to go do your shopping because sometimes like when my kids were both small, she was like, you should take them shopping sometime. They were hiding in the clothes. I couldn’t find them, you know, crying because I wouldn’t buy them a game that was like got blood on the cover of it. And, you know, I’m just standing at Target while he throws a fit and I’m like, okay, yeah, it’s nice because if she takes care of herself, then she has more joy, more energy and more to give, but you know, sometimes that message gets lost in society. That’s so true. Yes, we must take care of ourselves and it’s

[10:38] not a selfish act. It is the way to be able to take care of others in the best way possible with, like you said, all the energy and the joy that goes with it. So, well, congrats to you and Julia both. I have one last question for you. Who picked the purple bubble gum? Well, that was her all the way. I mean, again, she speaks kids, you know, so, yeah, and she also put how to win friends and influence guinea pigs, a little subtle book that the guinea pigs reading in the middle of it. So she had some really like cute little moments that were special touches. That was the fuzzy patchwork pants, all that. That’s Julia’s mind at work. That’s cool. And obviously your illustrator is equally talented.

[11:23] My mom was a kindergarten teacher for over 30 years, two classes a day. She had AM and PM kindergartners. And I have no idea that she, I don’t even know how you could do that. I mean, you can hear, I can’t even get the words out. And I know you’ve got teachers in your family, a lot of them. And it’s just an amazing thing to think that you and I could have some small contribution to a child or the parent gaining a hold on an aspect of life that affects everything. I always say money isn’t everything, but money affects everything that is important to us. So I’m trusting that your book and ours will do good, good work out in the marketplace. Yeah. Well, thanks for interviewing me and getting the message out and following the work

[12:18] on your own of getting a children’s book out because they’re gonna get read cover to cover. Our other books might not get read cover to cover and maybe get read multiple times, right? Cover to cover and hopefully plant some seeds from the parents as well. And look, it’s tough as a lot of parents don’t know anything about money. Yeah. So they’re afraid to have the topic. So the kids just watch the behavior. Like this gives a basis of having those conversations with prosperity or money. And you don’t have to have all the questions figured out on your own. Well said. So if people are curious and connecting with you, tell us what’s the best next step. garrickgunnerson.com. I’ve got my books on the site, other books,

[13:01] and then a blog because I’m in love with writing and money persona quiz and those kinds of things. Awesome. And all your books are on Amazon? Yep. They are. They are all there. So it’s a wonderful plan. No longer own or still there. I’ve told the rights to some of them. So yeah. Yep. Well, I really encourage people to go to your garrickgunnerson.com site because of your weekly newsletter, because that is the latest and greatest of your thinking going on right now today. And it’s so valuable to have some good prosperity-oriented thinking or reading in this case, to do on as often of a basis as we can. So kudos to you for your good work. Tim, but let’s get to be with you, especially considering like the very first thing

[13:54] that I ever went to in finance was in Phoenix and you made a guest appearance, just that like it was an orientation, but it was an agency. I think that you had some something to do with. So you showed up and you gave a talk and I was like, oh, I want to meet her. I got to get to know her because I was inspired. And then I saw you at another separate event in Phoenix and I just went up to you and started talking to you. And then I got to go to your office. You gave me a bunch of articles and resources. And so, and I was probably like 22 years old at the time that I was stalking you and learning. And then I joined strategic coach and you’re on my coach and strategic coach. So like, you know, we’ve got quite a history here.

[14:40] Well, the fun thing is, I think I was probably only 26 or so when that was occurring. So yeah, nice long history. And it’s always been a joy to work with you and watch the growth and the challenges that both of us have dealt with over, however, whatever 25 years that is. Yeah. I also learned like early on when we would talk on the phone, you’re such a good listener. You always gave space for listening. And I’ve been working on that. And I realized like some of it’s because I get like, I’m trying to impress instead of listen, you know? And so that’s just another great lesson. But I think it’s kind of wild that we’re both coming out with our 10th book and it both happens to be children’s books.

[15:21] And we didn’t plan that. It wasn’t like we talked and like, hey, what are you up to? Oh, we should do children’s book. Yeah, it’s just, you know, I don’t know. How did you arrive to the concept of doing one? Well, it’s a great question. In fact, I remember telling you about it when it was really in the works because I knew that you were working on. And I was like, wow, we’re working on children’s book too. And you said, great minds think alike, which was such an awesome response. But I really have to give Spencer Shaw my co-author credit for this one because he said, you have such an amazing message and it needs to be in the hands of the younger crowd. He said, do you know how many families

[16:05] listen to your podcast? You know, of course, no, but he has all the stats. So we came up with the prosperity pets idea in a dog, the great Dane, which a lot of our clients and listeners know about. And of course, an alpaca. Well, yeah, it wouldn’t be one of your books without an alpaca, that’s for sure. Like a kid’s book, that’s perfect. You know, there’s a bunch of alpacas close to my cabin and we just drive over and check them out all the time. Oh, fun. Have you ever pet one in real life? No, I heard they’re super soft. I have not met one. They’re softer than they look and they look soft. So you’ll have to get a chance, ask the farmer if you can pet one someday. They are a joy. So tell me about the, like what the book’s about

[16:56] and what this great Dane represents or kind of some of the idea there. Well, it’s a great question. So the book is about prosperity thinking and how important our mindset is, which absolutely needs to be taught to children at like one year old, right? You pick up a baby and they’re crying and do you say, oh my gosh, what’s wrong? Or do you say, you’re okay? And that’s what we wanted to capture is that early, okay, maybe a little later than one year old, but that early mindset work that is so easy to do with pets because as you know, and people especially that have dogs know, but I think people that have cats know this as well, an animal, a pet in particular is always loving. They always have a prosperity mindset.

[17:57] They’re always serving even just by being who they are. And I don’t know if you’ve ever been around a great Dane, but holy cow. And of course they’re big like Emma dog, the real great Dane weighs more than I do. The most unbelievable loving, happy, prosperity oriented, servant oriented, like let’s save the world dog that I’ve ever, ever known. I’ve been around a lot of dogs. Yeah, I mean, I don’t know if I’ve been around one, but I always felt like my oldest son reminded me of a great Dane puppy, cause he was so big flopping around, gentle giant, you know, happy. And I was like, always worried he was gonna break something cause he didn’t realize how big he was and all that kind of stuff. I mean, he’s six, six and a half now.

[18:49] So yeah, we had a golden retriever that just seemed like super, super sweet, but never been really around a great Dane. Well, they’re unique animals. And then to bring in the alpaca side of things, alpacas have a unique space in the world because as a pet, they’re not actually fabulous. They don’t always enjoy engaging with humans and yet they’re extremely curious and they are very, very full circle in the servant space. So if you think of like, I’m a big believer and I know you are too and human beings were put on earth to serve. We want to create value. We want to do that for the rest of our lives. Like let’s please toss out the idea of retirement. Well, an animal never retires. An alpaca, which you can buy life insurance on by the

[19:42] way, an alpaca is a very servant oriented animal and they will, they’ll be curious. They will do what they need to do. They of course provide fiber. They have amazing poop, if that’s an okay thing to talk about. And they’re very, very full circle in that they are very clean. Though actually the meat is even good, which in America, it’s not typically eaten, but in South America, it is all the time. But the best is that you, you share them, you’re not killing them to have them be serving. And so it’s a very cyclical environment. Interesting. Yeah. So when you wrote this and you have a kid read it, like what do you hope they get from it? Love that. So I would like a child, a parent that’s reading the book to the child,

[20:38] anybody reading this book to grasp the very obvious concept that prosperity thinking is the way to get better results. That serving is the way to get better results. And you could even call it saving because sometimes when we’re serving, we’re saving things. And the pets on the farm save the farm because of work. That’s the message that we’re driving home in this book. And it’s really well illustrated and gorgeous. So hopefully that will be enticing. Cause when people aren’t committed to work, it is really hard to be in a business relationship for sure. It’s like, you know, I’ve been there and I always like people alert. Like I went through this program with my kids called Love and Logic and the whole philosophy, yeah,

[21:33] was teach them lessons while they’re small. So you’re writing this book to teach them more in the small world cause it does get this like, there’s a level of pressure as an adult for a lot of them, the higher the stakes, they start doing things that aren’t maybe the most prosperity thinking things out of what they feel is a necessity. But kids, I mean, I love the abundant days of they could be anything, do anything, ask any question, be whatever. So it’s like really great to like attach that to life instead of lose that in life. Yeah, I went through Love and Logic as a kid. Yeah. My parents. Those guys were amazing that taught that and those books were so helpful. Yeah, my parents were all into that

[22:14] and they taught it in their classrooms in school. And even just the thing where, you know, it’s very prosperous thinking like, would you rather have this or that always leaving choice instead of demonstrative statements of punishment and things like that. So, I mean, these kids have choice with work but like, I always feel like I build confidence when I work on things that I enjoy or that matter. And that, you know, you’re talking about, hey, we’re here to serve. And when we serve, we find a lot of solutions for ourselves. And animals, that’s a good choice, you know? I mean, if you’re not like, I’m always suspect to people that aren’t dog people or some animal. Right. You know, like, hey, these things are like

[22:58] just a bundle of unconditional love. Yes. And happiness and joy, and you add that servant element and our society today is hungry for that message. And so whatever way we can leak it into people’s thinking, I’m in for, because it is so important. You know, Todd Langford, my husband, who you know very well, did the math and 87 is the new 65. If you moved age 65 forward, the way that it should have been moved forward from 1930 when it was chosen, it would be age 87 today. For the retirement age, essentially, and the level of health people have or when they die and all those factors. I mean, retirement is, you know, it means to take out a service. That’s the definition. It sounds like something you do

[23:51] to an old cow behind the barn. And yet that’s, I mean, I don’t know. I mean, I could see, like, my dad was a coal miner. So I get it. Like, yeah, retire as early as you can from coal mining. But like, what would just happen if you worked in stuff that you enjoyed? Like, I don’t know if you watched the Grammys. I happened to watch them. And the speech for Album of the Year that Taylor Swift gave was actually phenomenal because she gets the award. She goes, I’m honored. I respect this. It’s beautiful. But it’s not why I do what I do. I do it because I love the work. I love writing a song. And it’s like, man, what a gift that people could find something like that. And to keep that story going in kids’ lives

[24:28] and seeing that, you know. That is awesome. And there are so much other good things that are bubbling up to support the messages that you and I are trying to put out there. Million Stories is another one. They’re just with so many celebrities sharing their failures, which I think is important. And that’s something that- Yeah, we don’t get to hear those very often unless it’s like expose in there now. Right. Right? Right. And that’s something too that animals are really good at, right? They just overcome failures like immediately. Like you get the dog in trouble because it did whatever it did. And then like the very next second, they’re ready to go. They’re prosperity thinking. They’re serving right away.

[25:13] So that’s been a fun thing to watch as well. And just in the book as it wraps up, it’s got some fun things in it. It’s got recipes for kids to make, to learn with. Some crossword puzzles and some other things that will just engage kids in the learning. Smart. Get it more interactive and engaging them. That’s great. And then, final kind of question is, when it’s all said and done, you mentioned something earlier. It was like for parents and kids. And that was just subtle, but I think that sometimes as adults, it’s hard to admit things we don’t know. When we’re reading a kid’s book, we’re not thinking we’re going to learn. And there’s like a magic to that equation. Absolutely. Because if you can be open-minded

[26:06] and what a great space to learn to be more open-minded in is helping a child self-discover. And so, yeah, Prosperity Pets is the book that causes an adult to just open mind a little bit and add in that prosperity thinking, which is really, really easy to just cast aside and be like, ah, you know, that’s like rose colored glasses or it’s like the secret or, you know, some of these things that have introduced to that idea, but maybe not taken it far enough to understand the work that it takes to be a prosperity thinker. I mean, I still work at it every single day. There are things that are in my life that I have a choice about. And that is, do I be a prosperity thinker or do I be something else?

[26:58] Whether you want to call it scarcity or poverty or whatever other word you want to use, that mindset is imperative to learn, grow with, continue to work on. And so if the book helps that, I’m in. Yeah, I’m still waiting for the day to find the person so enlightened that they don’t have scarcity thought at some point. I mean, it’s just, we’re in human bodies. We can wake up tired. We could, you know, have something happen, but it’s like the key is what happens when all of a sudden you have an awareness that you make better choices. And you don’t say like, I remember we have, you and I have this mutual friend and like 20 years ago, he’s going through something and he called me and he was like really down and out.

[27:37] And I was like, well, you know, this could be temporary. And, you know, just because you think the way you’re thinking right now doesn’t make it reality. And he was like really defensive about it. But then years later, he’s like, yeah, I realized like I just had this perspective because of what I was going through. And then that was clouding all the judgment. I think there’s just a lot of people in this world that they don’t know when they’re in scarcity. They just accept that to be the circumstance and truth. Hopefully a kid’s book will help because those people probably aren’t reading our other books. Yep. Well, I’m so glad we got to talk about it. This is the Prosperity Pets book. We’re super excited to have it out there.

[28:15] I’m very grateful that you were curious about it. And to both of us and all of our listeners, upward and onward we go. I like the upward word first. I like it. Well, thanks, Kim. I appreciate you. Kim, like where do people find you and what are some ways they get engaged with you? Prosperitythinkers.com is the best place. Of course, I’m on most social media platforms. And yet what I love about the website is it can be very personalized. So there’s a quiz there. There’s some people like our Prosperity Pledge. There’s entry level webinars. There’s books, there’s games. We have our Family Legacy game. And although all of our books are on the site, the Family Legacy game, which is a simple little card game,

[29:05] but does do some good teaching, that is only available at Prosperitythinkers.com. Thank you for listening to the Prosperity Podcast. To take control of your money and have it work for you, visit Prosperitythinkers.com.