Self-reflection and Success for Future Entrepreneurs with Dr. Derrick Love

Speaker 2: 0:11

Welcome to Side Hustle City and thanks for joining us. Our goal is to help you connect to real people who found success turning their side hustle into a main hustle, and we hope you can too. I'm Adam Kaler. I'm joined by Kyle Stevy, my co-host. Let's get started. Welcome back, everybody, to the Side Hustle City podcast. Today we've got a special guest, dr Derek Love, a doctor, on our show Guys, somebody who actually knows what they're talking about. I'm pumped up about this, derek. How you doing? I'm doing well. How about yourself, adam? I'm doing great. I'm excited to have you today. Thank you for coming on the show. All the way from what? Texas.

Speaker 3: 0:54

Yeah, all the way from good old, prosperous Texas.

Speaker 2: 0:57

Nice, nice. So how is it in Texas, man? You guys got a great economy down there, don't you?

Speaker 3: 1:03

Yeah, we got a thriving economy. I think a lot of people come here because of our economy and so we've been able to kind of beat your archvillablaser in that area. But yeah, so it's about 60, 65 today, so sunny today, so we're doing good in good old Texas.

Speaker 2: 1:23

I love it, man. You spent a long time as an educator. You've written some books I guess the most recent one here, self-awareness and leadership and I was excited when I was reading through your bios, reading your profile, I was like, wow, I got to get him on the show. This is stuff that applies to everybody, especially when you start talking about who's leading us right now. Who do we have? And we're dealing with some hard times, and we got this. They say it's not technically a recession, but they just keep moving to goalposts on that. So I think if you ask anybody out on the street, most people would probably tell you that the credit card debt's going up their car payment. They wish they hadn't got that $1,000 month car payment. You know there's kind of blindsided a lot of people with these interest rates and inflation, the way it happened, and now we're supporting two wars out here. It's just. You know they got money for wars but can't feed the poor right.

Speaker 3: 2:17

Right, correct, and I think that's one of those areas. I think that most people who are those at kitchen table points that everybody is concerned about how do I financially support myself, my family, and what does that look like? Right? How do I move forward in life in a way that is productive, safe, healthy? You know, everybody wants to be in an environment like an environment or a financial environment or wage where they're not living from paycheck to paycheck, I'm not worried about what's coming next.

Speaker 3: 2:48

And so I do believe that we're in a critical time where leadership is essential, it's necessary, and that's why I created this book and wrote this book about self-awareness and leadership by the best of his first examine himself and the lead. And it's critical because in self-awareness it's all about understanding who you are as a leader. It's because it's self-awareness is that more accomplished that leads that guy. So it governs your attitude, your beliefs and who you are. It's critical. So it's kind of like you have to be able to understand who you are before you can be able to lead effectively. And I think in society today people are. The internal is not as good. I want to say corrupt, but I'm not going to use that word on your platform, oh don't worry, we're going to get into corruption.

Speaker 2: 3:33

I feel like we got some corrupt ones going on here in Cincinnati, so they're not into leading with a moral compass for the betterment of people.

Speaker 3: 3:42

So leadership is not about the individual. It's about the people they lead or the people they're influencing, the people that they are moving to be greater. And leadership is greater than the person. It always has to be greater than you. It's not about you, but it's how you impact others so they, in turn, can lead in a better society.

Speaker 2: 4:02

I love this, and you've got your own podcast too. On top of the books. You've got your own podcast. I mean you seem really active. You've been on a lot of podcasts. I mean I'm guessing you know right now, you know not just the leadership issue in this country, but I think we've got just a fundamental issue in our education system and I think part of the leadership problem has trickled down into this poorly run education system and just, I think there's a lot of people who are just maybe, and you know our teachers work hard, they do what they can. Sometimes you know the parents need to start doing their job, let's be honest. But you know there's only so much a teacher can do. But you're also a teacher Like you're not necessarily an entrepreneur, you seem to be an entrepreneur but with a background in education. But you know they may not be prepared to teach these students what they actually need to learn. In the curriculum they're given to teach these students, a lot of times is made for workers, not thinkers.

Speaker 3: 5:05

I do believe that, but I do believe that we have to cultivate a generation of thinkers, a generation that can analyze and critically think, and I think the education system sometimes has been predicated on the individuals and I mean the individuals, I mean the adults, and so these adults have been kind of ego-tistical about self and not really thinking about the greater good of how do we increase student achievement, how do we make career pathways and career pathways, and how do we create a system where we're bringing in industry, education, entrepreneurs all into the educational pipeline, because that's what's necessary needed to move a thriving economy right? And so how do we create students to take on jobs that are being created, like in AI or in cybersecurity or these new things age that are coming up, and how do we create these curriculum and courses so that these students can move into these areas and fields of study? So I do believe that, as educators, we got to tap into what's happening in community, what's happening in the world today. How is the workforce driving and really bringing these industry partners into the educational setting so that we can create a more robust educational system that allows students to thrive in their individual career pathways, because everybody's not going to college, right, and that's fine. But what we want to do is make sure that everybody comes out with workforce-ready skills or a skill that they can go into a job or a career and I want to say career and not a job, because I have something to go to every day, but something they can go into that they love to do.

Speaker 3: 6:52

So if I was a student, I'm graduating out of high school and so I'm thinking about, hey, I wanted us to go into HVAC or something like that.

Speaker 3: 7:00

Or it's making sure that the kid graduates with a certificate, an industry-based certificate, that he can go out into the world to a career that he's going to be, to make a living wage right, and to be able to feed his family eventually in that career, but also give him the opportunities to grow as well too.

Speaker 3: 7:22

So I do believe we have to think in those terms for our kiddos and education. And if they are going to college, if they are going to a two-year or four-year institution, how do we prepare them to be college-ready in that regard as well too? And then you have last, I believe, is the military, because some kids may go straight into our military. How do we prepare those kids for the ASVAP and those assessments so that they can go in at a higher level. And so it's our job as educators in the education realm to make critical decisions. That is truly going to impact kids, and I think sometimes we have so many people looking at the education system and thinking about self and really not tapping into what's greater good for our community, the communities that we serve and the people that we serve, and it's our obligation to make sure that we get it right.

Speaker 2: 8:14

Yeah, I mean everything you're saying is 100% on like same page with what I've got going on that I've been thinking, and, honestly, the HVAC thing. So there's a lot of baby boomers out here selling their businesses right now and I'm talking about plumbing, electrical, hvac. Their kids don't want to do that work. There are companies that are cash flow positive. These people are making $300,000 to $500,000 a year in their businesses, right, and they're probably putting maybe $100, $200 back in their pocket every year, depending on where you're at in the country, and these are great businesses. It's not like you have to be a tech entrepreneur and start something novel. These are businesses that we need in America. We can't. We don't have enough houses right now because we don't have enough people that even build them. Even if we, even if people wanted to build houses and there were places to build them and they had money, the banks would give them money you still don't have enough people to build these things. You don't. You know you call plumber, I can't get out today. Well, my, you know I got these issues and then you got to sit on these things overnight Like why don't we get these vocational programs back into the schools and then help these kids apprentice while they're still in school, maybe a couple years after they graduate, and then connect them with like an, an SBA 7A loan or something to purchase these businesses off of these retiring business owners, these entrepreneurs.

Speaker 2: 9:39

There could be a cycle. We have the cycle of poverty. We all know that we've got a cycle of poverty, but why don't we have a cycle of success? This is how you build things and this is what you're getting to, and what you're saying is why can't we turn the education system into a cycle of positive? Instead of a daycare Like, why is our schools of daycares right now? Let's turn it into something. Let's use all the resources that are out here and the kids that want to be entrepreneurs, they want to go into the trades. Let's get them in there.

Speaker 3: 10:10

Absolutely. I think it's critical and key to the survival of our economy, right, I think it's critical that we have these. But the other thing that you find is that these different workforce career careers, they are limited in people. I mean, there is limited people who are moving into those areas, and so therefore, like you said, you call the age back where you can't get anybody to work, I don't have anyone to hire.

Speaker 3: 10:34

And so one of the things is that we have got to just really, really hone in on these areas of the workforce-ready areas, and so one of the things that we've done is kind of created a pipeline for those workforce-ready careers and making sure that students leave high school, and it's critical they leave high school with one that they have graduated diploma.

Speaker 3: 10:59

But the plumber is not good enough, right? No? But number two is that they graduate with a workforce-ready industry certification that they can take and go out into the world of work, and it's critical. And so we make sure that these students are set up for success, not only, and then also maintain that we also bring an industry into the system, right, and we mentor these students over 40 years. So say, for example, you may have a student who is age back or let's go with the age back piece right there and so that kid kind of declares that by his sophomore year. So we're going to bring in people from the age back industry into our classrooms so they can see, so they can hear about the age back career Matter of fact, and then they're going to be able to do job shadow in high school and so they can say, hey, job shadow, and go out and do these internships with the age back companies and things like that. So it's critical that we continue, like I said, to bring industry into our educational pipeline to create a better workforce.

Speaker 2: 12:05

I love it. That's exactly what we need to do. This is the game plan. So what made you want to write these books? I mean, you have several. I mean it's hard to write a book. I've written a book and it takes some time to get these things down and to get them together. You really have to be motivated, not necessarily just financially, because not all books do well. Right, I mean, you're taking a risk even doing it, but the information you're trying to get out there you have to be passionate about. And you've got the leadership thing. You've got some educational stuff. So what was it that you know sparked in your head that said I got to do this. I've got to get this information out here to people.

Speaker 3: 13:21

I've always been within me to be able to leave a legacy and a blueprint for people, one of the things I think my, one of my gifts, and that's the gift of help. And I want to see people. I want to see people not sore. I want to see people thrive and walk totally in their purpose and what they've been called to do. That's my heart and pulse of everything that I do, and so that has been within me forever and so that's been kind of, like I said, the pulse, and that has been the temperature gauge that I always the litmus test that I always look through, because when people are thriving and they are successful, then that is, that's all that I could ever ask for. But when it comes to even writing a book in leadership, adam, I can tell you early in my career as a, as an elementary principal, that way back to maybe 12, 13, 14 years ago, when I started in administration, adam, I got it wrong. I thought leadership was about leading with an iron fist.

Speaker 2: 14:26

Like a dad.

Speaker 3: 14:26

Yeah, I am 23 years old, 25, I mean 25 years old, and I am saying you're going to do what I say, how I want it to be done. And, whoa, it just blew up in my face. And, matter of fact, adam, I really need to tell somebody, tell a lot of those people. I'm sorry and I apologize because doing that in my earlier stages there was so many insecurities, right, I was trying to fight, to fight and within myself, to say that I'm good enough. I'm trying to fight within myself to say, hey, I can do this job. And then you, thinking about you know, as a, you know, genet, I mean I'm thinking I got. I have these veteran teachers who've been teaching 25 years, they looking at this little young whippersnapper, trying to come and tell me what to do.

Speaker 2: 15:15

Yeah, they were like just wait a little while You're you're going to come tell me what to do right.

Speaker 3: 15:23

And so I, you know, I, really, like I said, my insecurities came out in my actions and really I heard some people and really I got it wrong. And from that kind of stems why I wrote this book in leadership and self-awareness about being in tune with who you are, first, to be able to lead effectively, but not on just yourself, but lead teams. And how do you impact people in such a way that it brings out the best in them. And so it's about bring out the best of them so that, not only that we, so that we all achieve success and we all win, because, at the end of the day, you want to see the organization and its vision and its mission thrive. You want to see everybody contribute to that process.

Speaker 3: 16:06

And so when people contribute to that process, they have a collective buy-in, there's value, they feel value added, and everybody wants to feel value added and not to be, not have no value added right. And so these are the things that are that I really tugged at my heart and really, really, really, really I wanted to make sure that other leaders, future leaders, leaders to be, can have a blueprint to know how to get it right and how to move effectively. To move people and you have to love people too. You can't just say the theory right, it has to be an action and you really have to want that to create a level of synergy, a level of unity, a level that is going to help move the organization or the nonprofit, or just lead yourself and your family.

Speaker 2: 16:54

Well, and you mentioned something when you started as a teacher, you had all these preconceived notions about how you were going to do things and how these kids were going to listen to what you had to say. You eventually probably realized that leadership is listening. It is Leadership. Isn't Genghis Khan, you know, taking over your country, right? Leadership is leadership is, you know, listen to these kids what's going on in their life. They don't need another father, right? They, you know. They don't need another mother. They don't need another somebody telling them what to do. Because, you know, honestly, nowadays these kids think they know everything anyway. And I mean we did too. We're on Gen X too. I mean we thought we knew everything you know, and but it happens all the time. And eventually you realize, man, I really gotta like, I gotta listen. I gotta listen to these older teachers, I gotta listen to what the students are actually saying, instead of telling them shut up, you're gonna do what I say.

Speaker 2: 17:50

I mean that's leadership right, it's it, it it no matter where you're at, what you're in government, you're a teacher, you're. Whatever you own, you're the CEO of a business. You gotta listen.

Speaker 3: 18:00

You do, and I think that's that's a part of it you have to be able to listen to it and to truly be communicative in that process. And listening not with the intent to just to make an appointment or to jump in to, but really take in what the and be really what we call active listening, to really take in what's being said, to absorb what's being said and then, after you have absorbed what's being said, to then think about it and then respond, because so many times we get it wrong because we bring and so when people are talking, we bring our own personal biases into the conversation. Right, and so we take in, but then you get into the take our own personal biases and what happens in our response is our personal bias and then therefore, then we get it wrong with the individual, the teacher, the student or whomever we get it wrong with. But it's critical that we listen actively and it's critical that we listen to make change, and I think one of the things that we have lost in just into science today is that level of effective communication and really, really really taking in and listening and really being an apathetic or active listener and then making some changes not changes, but just then making well, hey, I hear you, I understand what you're saying, and, really, how do we move forward with that? Because until I hear what the person is saying, right, I don't know how to move forward.

Speaker 3: 19:24

Right, I have to be able to listen and then be like, hmm, okay, and then, as I'm listening, I may give a response after this person has completed their thought process, and then I might say, well, what do you think about that, how do you think we should move forward? And then that allows the person to open up and give more information and more insight. Well, hey, that's a great idea. Let's go with that idea, because, once again, leadership is not you having to be the smartest person in the room. It's about actively listening and taking in those collective thoughts and being a facilitator to usher in something new. And so we definitely have to make sure that we are doing our part in listening, because the world needs more listeners, right, that's true, and the world needs more people who are willing to drop the egotistical eye for the week.

Speaker 2: 20:18

And you make more friends with sugar, or you make more friends with honey, right Then salt or whatever. Yeah, whatever, I'd say it is. And there's the book how to Win Friends and Influence People. I'm sure you've read that, like everybody who's into leadership, and so every time I want to respond to somebody on Twitter with something nasty or whatever, my wife's always like you know that's not helping you win friends and influence people. Like you don't want to make enemies, you want to like you know, some people are just that's how they are. They've got this online persona. They go after people, but you could turn those people into allies.

Speaker 3: 20:52

You can. You can move those people into allies, you can move those people into a part of a week, a week, a week process, and I'm just mean about that, just not. You don't have to have to negatively, negatively respond, but just hear the person out. I mean, sometimes this is about listening to the person and what they're saying, though, right, and then taking in the content of maybe what you guys both fully agree on and then working from what the level of agreement to get a level of understanding, because I think once a person can understand who you are in your heart, then you can help move that person from a naysayer to hey, all right, I hear what you're saying, and then that can build a more healthier relationship. To be able to move, yeah, oh to move it.

Speaker 2: 21:42

When I grew up Catholic and I think you know if you grow up in the church and you know understanding the Bible and things like that too and not everybody's into it and I get that and there's a lot of animosity and stuff towards Christianity right now, I mean I don't understand it, but there is. But if you actually listen to it and you read it, there's a lot of self-help and all these things that we've. You know that are some of the things that are probably in your book. Just how to treat people. And you know who'd he surround himself with? Right, it wasn't the leaders, it wasn't the most important people, it was everyday people and you know he was there, he was in the streets and when you read some of that stuff, you get this stuff.

Speaker 2: 22:26

But if you didn't grow up with that influence in your life, you know you've got to pick that up from somewhere and this is just basic stuff. How to treat people in our society. This isn't new stuff. I mean this in human nature, it's the same. It doesn't matter what part of time you're in people or people and these types of frameworks like what you probably have in your book. What's in the Bible? What you know, is in how to win friends and influence people. These are frameworks that stand the test of time.

Speaker 3: 23:03

I think it's the common thing to see treat people how you would like to be treated, right, other phrase of the cliche treat people how you want to be treated.

Speaker 3: 23:11

I mean it's just one of the basic elements that people, all people, want that. But I think, at the core of it, all these basic tenets these basic, even though our Christian principle are the B attitudes, kindness, meetingness, tenets of love, I mean, like everybody embodies it right, and so all of these Christian principles that we've grown up to know is what people use every single day in the world. They just don't, they don't look at it as Christian principles. But being kind, loving one another, treating people with kindness, showing people grace and mercy, all of those things are what our Christian values and Christian things that we do, and so everybody likes that and so everybody wants to be a part of that and so. But I think, at the very crux of it all, the human nature of it all. I think everybody wants to be loved, everybody wants to be kind, and I think everybody wants that. They just don't understand how to achieve it.

Speaker 2: 24:13

Yeah, I think so. And again, these are things that are just time tested. It doesn't matter what generation you're in. You know, you and I can be critical of the Gen Zs and the Gen Ys and all them and say all this stuff, but at the end of the day we were probably just as bad, you know.

Speaker 3: 24:31

Absolutely, absolutely, man, we were, we were just as bad as back in the day. And so I think that and that's what we that, and that's what we said we give grace, right, you give grace to those individuals, you give grace to that because you know where you come from. But I think it's our obligation to go back and say and to teach them and to educate, right, each one teach one, and that's how we all grow, and when we grow together, then we grow in love, we grow in unity and we grow in togetherness. And so, therefore, it's critical that we still go back and teach and educate and mentor and train so that we all grow.

Speaker 2: 25:10

But in order to get there, you have to be self-aware, and I think the overarching theme of your book would be about that. Like the, leadership starts with self-awareness, right.

Speaker 3: 25:22

It all begins with self-awareness and, once again, I believe that's the kind of more compass of how it drives who we are. And so, like I said, if I am, if within me I have anger issues, anger problems and all of that, and it's gonna come out in my leadership and how I lead people, whatever that trigger is, and when it happens, then that's how my behavior is going to follow. And so you have to be cognizant of who you are as a leader and what makes you tick, what makes you thrive, what makes you who you are. And I think for me, doing those early stages of leadership, I didn't have that and I had to grow into those areas and I had to be more an understanding of myself and then grow in those areas and heal in those areas before I could be effective as a leader. And so I think that the whole premise of my book is about you being self-aware so that you can lead others effectively. And it's just very critical that we have more people and more leaders who are self-aware and how to lead people.

Speaker 3: 26:28

And I think we've all had you could think about it, adam. I know you've had like a good boss. You was like, hey, that boss right, there was very spot on every single time. Right, he listened. I mean, she listened. They were able to rally the troops, they were able to cast a vision, they was able to get supported by and from people. But you've also been under leader.

Speaker 3: 26:49

He was thinking like, oh my God, when you leaving, why are you here every day? We don't know what day you're coming in on, and anything like that. And, man, adam, I had a leader like that when she would say Dr Love, I knew it was gonna be a good day or a bad day. And I give you the prime example If she called me that morning she said Dr Love, I would say, yes, ma'am, and she's my superintendent, right, I'd be like, okay. But if she called me that morning she said Dr Love, I knew from that tone right there, it was gonna be a day. Right, it was not gonna be an effective day, it was gonna be a day that wasn't gonna be good at all.

Speaker 2: 27:28

Yeah, that's true. Well, I mean and you know what the crazy thing is. So, since we're on this subject of leadership and with this side hustle podcast, you know there are people out there who have bosses that maybe they don't want to deal with or maybe they think they can do a better job Than what their boss is doing. And you know, everybody thinks they can do a better job in there. By the why they didn't pay this much. I should be getting paid this. Everybody thinks that right, but but there are opportunities in leadership positions if you, you don't have to go out here and start a clothing company. You don't have to start a high-tech company, you don't even have to do HVAC or any of that stuff. There are opportunities. If you are interested in in leadership and helping people, you could start a nonprofit. You could, your business that you have could find ways to give back to the community. There are all kinds of opportunities. Even running for a political position could kind of be a side hustle. I mean, not all these political positions are full-time jobs necessarily.

Speaker 2: 28:31

I mean, what would you say to people who are thinking about Aside, I mean volunteer, help these kids. They I mean I'm helping a kid, a girl. Right now she's 14. I sit on the board of my high school and they're always since I'm an entrepreneur they're always sending me these kids when they have some kind of entrepreneurial inclination. She wants to start a nonprofit helping homeless people, so I'm trying to help her figure out, like, what part of that Do you want it? She won't do everything, you know. She wants to get them off the streets.

Speaker 2: 28:58

I'm like you're 14, right, you, you know that let let the professional people get them, get them sober first, right, like, and then, if you want to like, help them get a job or something, then maybe that's where that's your portion, right, you don't have to do it all and you know so. You know she's 14 years old. She's already decided that her entrepreneurial inclination is to help people. What have you run into? A lot of folks like that, because a lot of people I run into or start at like high-tech startup people Just because of my background. Well, have you run into a lot of that as a teacher? As you know, somebody who's most teachers are gonna be like that, right.

Speaker 3: 29:37

Yeah, I think one of the things I would say to Adam is that you know, if you're looking for a good side hustle, what are you passionate about, what do you love? And one of those things that you're passionate about, what is it you love? And let's look into how that's going to create another revenue Revenue stream for you, or side hustle, right. So if you are like, hey, I want to, I want to help out community, I want to see these youngsters thrive in such a new way, right. Then you may say, hey, I want to start a mentoring organization, a mentor and I am proper that gives back to the community, that Goes into schools or community schools, I mean, like YMCA's, and really kind of partner with them to really Develop young men and young women in such a way as mental, as mentoring. Or it could be if your, if your passion is Doing something remotely I don't know, you think there's a lot of remote jobs you can do online. You know you don't have to go into a knock up to a brick and mortar, so, whatever you're passionate about, I think that's what should drive that, that added income. If you are a writer, right, and you like a man, I will, I love right now, just hadn't got a chance to get into it, but this is who I am and you want to be an author. They start that process and so whatever you are, like I said, passionate about or whatever that that Really says, you know, gets you up in the morning. He was like I wish I had more time for that. That's what you can kind of create as a side hustle that will lead to you to something that, with that's far greater Than you can ever think or imagine, like I would say.

Speaker 3: 31:13

One of the things for me was, you know, as a K-12, like, I serve as assistant superintendent of a school district, but one of my, one of my most loved things to do was to write, and so I I'm a researcher at heart. I'm a. I'm a I call myself a Nerd in that because I love research. Right, I love the research, I love to find new things and I love to write about those things, and so writing was a passion for mine, and so I use that to not only write books, but I've written for journal articles, I've written for magazines, I've gotten paper for writing, and so I've created a Denied was an adjunct instructor where I was over dissertations, and so I was a adjunct dissertation chair and so I allowed that to create a side hustle and another revenue straining for I'm teaching the higher ed for the past 15 years and so that become another side hustle. That I was like, hey, this is something else I can do. So whatever your passion, is that you like, let that drive you for your side hustle and, once again, self-reflection.

Speaker 2: 32:26

School is not teaching you to be self-reflective. They're teaching you to go somewhere, sit down for eight hours and work and maybe get a little lunch break Not to think about what do I actually want to do? What is my passion? And then also part of self-reflection is what am I actually good at? What am I not good at? Who do I need around me to make my thing successful?

Speaker 3: 32:51

Right, and I think that's really critical was you said, it's that reflection and really thinking about what, what, what it is that you're passionate about, and then see, you know those individuals who can help you thrive in that area, right, and so none of us got what we are by ourselves, right, it was somebody who lend a hand or gave us information, gave us advice, that book that provided us a means to kind of move forward in that particular area.

Speaker 3: 33:17

So I know, when you started podcasting I'm pretty sure you listen to Many pro podcast is first to kind of kind of see how do I get a flow going, how do I make this happen, and so, and then you may have reached out to some other Podcasters and says, hey, how does this work for you? And so we all had to kind of investigate, kind of research, those areas that were press To about, and then got that information and said, you know what, now I'm ready to launch, now I'm ready to start, now I'm ready to begin, and it's all about us tapping into, you know, a network, I guess, a network of people that can help us move forward in our vision when I love it too.

Speaker 2: 33:56

I mean it doesn't have to be people you know either. I mean, one of the reasons I started the podcast was you know, I heard all this negativity about what you can't do in America. You know there's all this, all you know America's out to get you. There's this corrupt system, there's a cabal of these. You know people that are controlling us all and this and that and it's you know. You got to be aware enough to know that. Hey, look, even if that is a thing, you're still in control of your life.

Speaker 2: 34:23

And with this podcast I wanted to bring people like you on, people that with credentials, that know what they're talking about, that wrote books and just Put it out there in the world. Say, look, doctor loves out here. He's been in the schools, he knows what's going on, he's seen the curriculum, he's had to teach the curriculum. He knows what's going on with these kids. He's written these books on leadership. He's he's a doctor. He gets it right. Read his book. Listen to his podcast if anything that he's saying is resonating with you, and not just you but everybody else. It's been on my podcast. Just, I want to expose people to positivity. I want to expose people to, to folks that know what they're talking about. You can back it up and you've written it down, you've taken the steps.

Speaker 3: 35:12

Absolutely no.

Speaker 3: 35:13

Adam. But I think we need more people who are like that, who want to put out, promote, who want to promote Positivity, who want to put the things out there so that people can grab a hold of, and I do believe that Society at large needs that. We need more of that right. We need more of that level of that. That's that's knocking down all the negative right and breaking down all the stereotypical things out there, but just putting out positive, factual information that people can absorb and that people love. People love authenticity, right. They love when people are authentic and they're true and true, and so people can grab a hold of that and they can move in that and they can say, hey, I can apply what he or see what, what, what he or she is saying and I can apply those things really readily to my life, whether that be professional and or personal.

Speaker 2: 36:03

And what you're doing is you're sharing your gifts With people. With this book, you're sharing your gifts and if, if people are like, hey, how do I, how do I be a better leader, how can I be a better parent? Because parent, being a parent, is being a leader. You got to lead people. You're leading people and your book, what do you hope this book, what kind of impact do you hope this book can make on people, on leaders, on society? How do you think this plays into the whole, like the overall zeitgeist?

Speaker 3: 36:36

I think one of the things that I am hoping that this book will do is that I, every time, I pray that it gets into the right hands, and when I'm praying that it gets into the right hands is that I pray that, when it gets into the right hands, is able to transform the person that's reading the contents within that book, that they absorb the contents within that book, that they see themselves, um, and they really critically reflect on who they are, and then they be being to take the necessary steps To make a better them, a better you, a better me. And so, therefore, as as they take the step to become a better me, a better them, a better I, and then they can look at how they can influence not only their, their workplace, which is transforming people, and they're working to lead people. But how do I transform people in my personal life which is home, like as a father, as a mother, as a brother, as a uncle? What does that look like for me? And I do believe that this self awareness piece goes across all people, all ages, all demographics.

Speaker 3: 37:41

It goes into everybody's life, right, and so one of the things we understand is that when we are self aware and when we allow our self awareness to be that more compass of good, then what portrays as the outward poured out of good, and then that is, each one of us lead it in the self aware, in that more compass of good, then we are creating and we're cloning that level of good in society. Right, that impact society is the way that it becomes contagious, right? And then we're making decisions. In america, in society, we are being self reflect, our self reflective leader or self aware leader, thinking about not me, the we part of who I'm governing, the we part of who I'm leading. And as we're teaching that and building that, then we create a better society, we create a better people, we create something that's utopia for all mankind and that is to be Self aware and understand that so it does impact all of us. So that's what I hope to achieve with this book.

Speaker 2: 38:45

Unbelievable here here. Well, dr Love, this been amazing, I would. How, how do people reach out to you? I mean, obviously you know you want them to take a look at the book self awareness and leadership, derek love uh, the author, and you have a couple of the books. Talk about your other books.

Speaker 3: 39:04

So I have a one other book that talks about um, which is purpose, um, and I have one that is a devotional, and so my background is I am a believer, and so one of my things is is that when I wrote the book about purposes is that I wanted people to be able to find a purpose, and they're not giving purpose, and what he created them to do, um and be able to walk in that, and so that's one of my books. And then I have a devotional that's an accompaniment of that book, um, but you can find more information on my website at www. Newhorizoninstituteorg, and that is newhorizoninstituteorg, which is my nonprofit, and so I do run a nonprofit. I am a CEO of that nonprofit. Um, not only do we provide consult, we provide consulting services, um for CEOs and nonprofits and educational systems, um and leadership coaching and all those kind of great things which you can find more on um. That website and that's how you can definitely get in contact with me is through my website.

Speaker 2: 40:07

Well, dr Love, I want you to come to Cincinnati one of these days. I want them to hire you to come in and talk to every city council member and get that and get them to think a little more innovatively about what's going on in the city with their, the way they lead, uh, in in these kids. Like we got to get to these kids and we got to start changing the education system, especially the K through 12 system, cause this is when the kids are the most malleable. In my opinion, and I mean just personally, I've never taught you know any of that stuff.

Speaker 2: 40:36

I do sit on the board of a school, but, uh, but I think, looking back on my own life, reflecting, right, you know, that's when I was like, what am I going to do? Like, what am I going to do with my life? What do I want to be? How do I position myself? And when you grow up I mean kind of the way I grew up, you don't have any doctors and lawyers and all these other people around you. There's only a few things you even know. But there are so many different things out here. People can be and people can do, but they just don't have the wisdom yet.

Speaker 3: 41:07

But I think one again that's about exposure right, and that's about exposing our students to go a different career pathways and and and the endless possibilities and that's why I talk about that we have got to engage in public education is bringing industry what I mean, industry, those different, diverse career pathways into the school system so students can be be exposed to what is out there for them and what's available and what they can do I think what you know and how they can go about achieving those different career pathways. And then what does it take to achieve that? What does that look like? And I think, as we create more opportunities for kids to do job shadowing opportunities, will they go into.

Speaker 3: 41:49

If I want to be a dentist, right, I go to one of the the whatever community school that I'm in, high school that I'm in, I'm able to go into a dentist's office and just see what happens every day in a dentist's office, right, and see what it looks like. I may, because once you get looking at the drill and the drill and you're using it in somebody's mouth, it's like oh no, that ain't what.

Speaker 3: 42:15

I want no, I want to do that every single day and then I'm able to kind of really sit down and talk with it and just kind of get feedback and you know, and kind of be mentored in that process. We got to get, get back to the heart of education and really listening to, listening to students and listening to what they want as well too. And it's not about us driving the train so much in K-12 education. It's about us collectively listening to all stakeholders, right, and so we take all stakeholders in this game. You know we have everybody. We have parents, we have students, we have teachers, we have administrators, we have the city council, we have the mayor like we're all a part of this educational system and then we don't come together to really solidify and build it up.

Speaker 3: 43:03

We're going to keep pushing our kids who can't think for themselves, who don't know how to, where to go, and we're going to continue to create a gap in a, a gap in society. And so in order to close that gap, we're going to all have to come together and really think, have this great think-take session and now think about who we are, but think about the really good and what we, what we want to create for society and our community right, and so we want kids to come out to be able to thrive in our community, to get back to the economy, to have a living wage, to be able to live and be effective in our community, and so that's what we really want and to for our students to be able to come out and do. But it takes the collective. We come together and not just somebody saying this is what we're going to do, but how do we achieve it together?

Speaker 2: 43:57

Yeah, cause I mean the path to bad, the path to evil is is really clear.

Speaker 2: 44:02

Everybody that's easy, right, doing the wrong thing is easy, and there's a lot of influences out here says, oh it just you know, at the streets, you know that it's easy to be out there and do that kind of stuff. So you know. The hard thing is is you know what you don't see. The hard thing is what you don't know. You don't know what these careers are out here, you don't know what your opportunities are, you don't know who's out here that can actually help you because you don't have a network. And a lot of times, especially you know, when you grow up in some of these communities and and it's hard to do to do that and you're, you're already so many steps behind just regular people who grow up in decent areas and things like that. It's like these inner city schools and ones I'm concerned about. Those are the ones where we need to focus the most attention, in my opinion, because this country can't move forward until we start moving some of the people who are the less, the least advantaged in this country.

Speaker 2: 44:55

And until we can start moving these folks forward, the whole country is going to going to going to hurt and if you think that you can just move out to a nice neighborhood and and not have to deal with it anymore, we're all dealing with it, you're, you're still going to deal with it.

Speaker 3: 45:08

Absolutely, though. But I think once I think we can kind of continue to create a whole disenfranchised workforce, that you know, we don't provide the greatest means to those into those, and I think to those, those inner city schools. And I think one of the things is, adam and I we create pockets of has and have nots, and I just yeah, we do.

Speaker 3: 45:36

And how we. The main thing is how we fund education as a whole, right? You know what I'm saying? So we based on local properties, on local property tax dollars, and so if you live in this zip code area, it's a Lord. Well then, the resources are fewer, right? And so I think one of the things we have to give back to is really looking how we fund public education in our school systems, right, and I think our system is our school systems our districts that create these, these, these vacuums, and and and and and, disenfranchised pieces, and I don't think, you know, I really wanted, adam think people have the best intentions.

Speaker 3: 46:19

I really, I want to look at that right, but the reality is I think they sometimes get what I think and I'm going to send their best intentions. Really it's not best intentions. I think it's all about self, but all about what they thinking.

Speaker 2: 46:32

I'm right there with you with that, yeah.

Speaker 3: 46:34

And not not really tapping into the heart of that, of those communities, right? How do we elevate these communities in such a way? And the only way you're going to elevate those communities is through education, that's the only way you're going to get, the only way 100%, 100% You're not going to be able to do it any any other way out.

Speaker 3: 46:51

You're not going to do it. It has to be through education and education is the cornerstone, it's the gateway, it's the gatekeeper to raise his success for those families. Because when they're educated and they have, then they'll do better. Right, and when you have better and you know better, you're going to do better. And you, when you are exposed to those different opportunities, when you are exposed to those things, that that, that that that comes, that you can achieve absolute. You don't create a better pipeline. And I think we just have to get back to the heart of creating a better pipeline for kids and for students, man and families and communities, man, and really get out of the selfish mentality. And I won't. You know my pocket of suburban areas to thrive, but I don't want nobody else's area to thrive. It's crazy. My, my, my constituents, my constituents are happy. That's all that really matters. I don't care about what's going on on the other side of that other fence or the other side of that out of sight, out of mind, right.

Speaker 3: 47:53

It doesn't matter to me. But then again, what happens to that pocket of people that you that are out of sight, out of mind? So then you create these, these non opportunities for these people. They have no idea what they can achieve or what's possible, because they're never getting an opportunity. And so, once again, as a self-aware leader, though, I'm not thinking about myself, I'm thinking about the greater good of the people that I serve, not just my constituents that are in my area, but all people. And what does it look like? And how do we create that man? And so we have got to be able to get back to the heart of humanity, man. Humanity like that's what it's all about. That's one, yeah.

Speaker 2: 48:35

And we got to stop electing these wolves and sheep's clothing that are just in it for themselves and, you know, saying they want to help, saying they want to do all this stuff, but they really they don't implement their cowards. And I think we need strong people, strong leaders that understand what's going on, that are from these communities. We have a lot of people that move here and they work at these corporations and then they they got corporate backing and they get elected because they got a lot of money and they say the right things. And you know, they put that D next to their name and everybody votes for them and just thinks, oh well, this is a good person, I'm going to vote for them.

Speaker 2: 49:08

Nothing changes, Nothing happens. These people are not innovative. They're coming from corporate America. They've got that nine to five mentality. They've been trained in the same system. We need innovative people with innovative ideas that are going to pull us out of that, because that's what it takes to change the way things are. What's the saying? You know the insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, thinking things are going to change Absolutely, yeah, but it's not going to change that.

Speaker 3: 49:34

But you've got to raise up when those communities right, like, why is it that we were so willing to choose one from the outside? They rather pick it someone that's in that own community right.

Speaker 3: 49:47

Seems simple, like basic, like you know, why wouldn't we write you know what I'm saying why wouldn't we want to bring in some? Take bring in somebody from the outside who don't even know the culture, right, they don't know the people, no clue. And so why do you think that they're going to be concerned about the culture of people when they're not even from there, right, they're not.

Speaker 3: 50:06

They're not concerned about that. All they're concerned about is themselves and how they're going to move forward, or their own agenda. And use, like you said, use that as a stepping stone to go somewhere else further, in that that's going to help them elevate in their own personal career, and it's about their own personal ambition and career and not about the ambition and other people. And so we have to be about the people. And so, adam, until we get back to the heart of humanity and people, I would never be able to thrive as a nation. And I think, as a nation, as the free country that stands, as beautiful the state of the United States that we all love, we love it dearly, we absolutely love it. But it's going to take all of us coming together, the collective, to really showcase humanity, to be able to move us to a level of acceptance and to move us to a level of greater good.

Speaker 2: 50:57

And so Yep that you said it. You said it right there, left right all different. Everybody's got to come together. This is one country and we got to start acting like it is and quit being so tribal.

Speaker 3: 51:08

Yeah, man. And so it's not about that. It's not about us being tribal, because I think at the very heart, everybody wants to be in a place that's safe, right. Nobody wants to be in a world where they got looked up, they showed us.

Speaker 2: 51:19

Yeah, that's where I grew up. Yeah, that's where I grew up.

Speaker 3: 51:21

I don't know what I'm saying. I'm like I don't know what I'm saying. Nobody wants me to keep doing all that. No, oh, I'm on the street. No, who wants to live like that?

Speaker 2: 51:30

And it just keeps pulling you back in too, Like, if you can't, like, it's just there's always going to be somebody that's got something to say. That's, you know, somebody that's doing something bad, Somebody's going to pull you into something. It just it finds a way to just drag you back in the drama, right, and it's these areas like that's just what they do, and it's hard to get out of that cycle, which is why I said we need to start creating positive cycles. You know, winning cycles. Instead of cycles of poverty, let's create cycles of success.

Speaker 3: 52:03

But how do we continue to perpetuate that level of success for people Right? And how do we, how do we groom that level of success, how do we be innovative in our thinking and that level of creativity and that level of creativity to ignite that right? So some of us got ignite that level of innovation, ignite that level of creativity so that we can move that piece. And so we, just like I said, we got to, got to, got to get back to the basics, I think, and that is humanity and that is the greater good of all people. And so once we do that, then we'll see a greater change in our society. And then, once we come self aware, we'll see even a greater change of our society, because now we have leadership, not thinking about themselves, but the people.

Speaker 2: 52:44

That's right. That's right. Well, give me your, give me your website again.

Speaker 3: 52:49

It is wwwNewHorizonInstituteorg.

Speaker 2: 52:54

And you're on LinkedIn, people can obviously connect with you there, send you a message If they're interested in you coming out and speaking or helping their leadership teams. Yeah.

Speaker 3: 53:04

Yeah, you can reach out to me on my website. I'm a link LinkedIn, I am on Instagram and so on link on Instagram my name is not as my, as my handle is at Dr Love talk shows, so that is at Dr Love talk shows as the art talks, talk, talk shows, and you can reach me out there on Instagram and so also LinkedIn and in my website. I love it.

Speaker 2: 53:31

Dr Love, I appreciate this time, I know it's valuable and, you know, hopefully somebody hears this and something sparks in them and they're motivated to get out there and do something. They read the book, they get the framework that you've you've put together and things work out for them. And when we start changing the world, one person at a time, hey, that's what I'm.

Speaker 3: 53:51

That's what I'm about. That is changing one person at a time.

Speaker 2: 53:54

Sir, I love it, I love it Well, thank you, sir.

Speaker 3: 53:57

Man, it's been an honor man. Thank you so much and I appreciate it.

Speaker 2: 54:00

All right, have a good one you too. Thanks for joining us on this week's episode of side hustle city. Well, you've heard from our guests, now let's hear from you. Join our community on Facebook, side hustle city. It's a group where people share ideas, share their inspirational stories and motive for stories and motivate each other to be successful and turn their side hustle into their main hustle. We'll see you there and we'll see you next week on the show. Thank you,