Unbankable with Alex Shvarts

Welcome to Unbankable, the podcast for entrepreneurs who won't take no for an answer. I'm Alex Schwarz, and today we're talking about something that hits close to home for a lot of entrepreneurs. How to bounce back from setbacks, reinvent yourself, and build something meaningful after facing public challenges. Because here's the reality. Failure isn't the end of your story. It's the beginning of your best chapter. Let's dive in. So today is a really, really special treat. You know that it's like gives me goosebumps, man. The man's genuine. He's real. And he's got a story to tell and a story to share. Today I'm joined by Michael Paul Beasley Jr. former NBA player who was the number two overall pick in 2008 NBA drafted by the Miami Heat. Michael played 12 seasons in the NBA with teams like the Heat, Timberwolves, Suns, Rockets, Bucks, Knicks, and Lakers and also had successful stints playing internationally, including winning a championship in China. What makes Michael's story compelling? He's someone who's experienced the highest highs and the lowest lows of professional sports. And now he's focused on building businesses and sharing his experiences through media entrepreneurship. And here's why this matters to our unbankable audience. Michael represents resilience and reinvention. He's here to share how athletes and entrepreneurs can turn their experiences, both good and bad, into real opportunities. Michael, welcome. It's a really, really, really nice pleasure. We were neighbors and we never ran into each other in the building, right? Yeah, that was a heavy heavy introduction. It was good, but that's heavy. Well, I mean, I'm not sure if I can deliver all that. No, no, you you don't have to deliver anything. You've already delivered. I mean, so many people look up to you and you know, you're a legend. People look up to you. Young people, old people, like look, so you don't have to deliver. You just have to keep doing what makes you comfortable doing, right? That's all it's about. That's good, dude. You know, they make us they everybody has expectations of us, right? They got expectations of you. They got expectations of me. Now, listen, my the circle of people have expectations of me is a lot smaller than yours, right? We can only do our best. I I try to do my best. But here's what I say. Ready, Michael? If we can make a difference in one person's life, our life was worth living. Just one person. We can't change the whole world, but we can make it better just for one person. And so I do this podcast because this is for entrepreneurs that are trying to succeed, that are trying to make it. If we can help just one person make the right decisions, the right choices by listening what we went through, the challenges, our failures, our positive stuff, and they can make one right choice and we can help it make it better for them, then this was worth it. That's all it's about. So, welcome. Thank you for joining me. We just had about 20 minutes of We had some that was a good 20 minutes. I probably that 20 minutes is going to be better than the next half hour, right? But that was a good 20 minutes. I liked it. You know what I mean? But but you know, this is easy conversation. you you're an easy guy to talk to. You know, I I can I can see um that that that you bounce around. Yeah. I'm not a I'm not a basketball player, though. I played basketball three times in my life and three times I wound up in the hospital. Wow. What are you laughing for? I'm telling you, the first time the guy hit me my brain. First time the guy I go up, the guy hits me, I got a concussion. Whoa. Right. Second time I rip my whole ankle out. The next day I got to go to a wedding. I'm in a freaking cast. And the third time I like dislocated my whole knees. That was three times a Jewish Jewish boy played basketball. I was like I am done. A lot faster than your body. I just sounds like it sound like it sound like you competitive but then your body is especially now like my my mind is like my body is slow. I'm old man. I'm old. How do you I'm I'm gonna be 58 this year. I mean that's not that old. It's not young. It's like Yeah. It's It's What do you How old do you plan on living? I plan on living as long as the as God lets me live, but I just want to live a productive life. I I'm going tomorrow to New York to celebrate my mom's 93rd birthday. And it's a blessing that she's still with us. 93 60 is 30 and then 32 years. So if you think my my my oldest child is only 16, so you still got double her life and she thinks she's know everything. M mine's a 28 and 34 and and they definitely think they know everything. So think about it. You still got 32 years minimum left. I don't know about that. I I just whatever the time is, I just I want to be able to live a full productive life. Make it count. Make it worth it. And um you know, just keep doing the best I can. That's that's all I could hope for, man. You know, that's it. That's all. But yeah, I'm getting old, man. I'm telling you. Like, medicine's good. Make me look younger. You know, these doctors say take this, take that, man. Exercise is medicine. I I do I play I'll play raetball. I'm a good raetball player. I bike. But you play ball, don't you? No, I don't play paddle, man. It's some bougie [ __ ] man. I play. Padell padel pickle ball. It's some bougie [ __ ] they invented in Miami for the rich folks, man. I like raetball. I like a hardcore game. It's hard. It's fast. And I'm good at that, right? I don't know. It's And they don't move. They call pickle ball ped, but they don't move. It's like I ski. I don't snowboard. Like snowboard is like I don't do neither. I skiing is great. I love skiing. Too fast. You know why I like skiing. I don't have to talk to anybody. You're on your own. You're like, you're going down the mountain. Nobody long walk up. I like I bike. I I I like Yeah. Yeah. I do biking. So I mean I'll go from here all the way to Bell Harbor and back. Uh, go to Hollywood. From the highway to the pier is maybe 6 and a half miles. So, it'll take me maybe 30 minutes. You bike? Yeah, I love biking. I haven't biked in maybe three or four months because, you know, whatever. That's a good exercise though, right? But Oh, it's so easy to stay in shape. So, it's a good And you know, I put my music on and I'm just I'm in my zone. I don't have to talk to nobody. You know, I bike up the pit, have a cup of coffee, kick it for maybe 20, 30 minutes. So, maybe smoke me in jail or two and take it back home. That's good. Let's talk about how people perceive you when it comes to your first business talk. They all want to hang out. They want your autographs, right? Um, take some pictures. But when you got a prop business proposition, when you got an idea, what happens? How do you overcome and let them know that you're serious? Uh, I got a saying like everybody likes the cakes. Nobody wants to crack eggs. So, you walk in the kitchen and you see flour everywhere and a couple, you know, eggshells and yolk and sugar on them and you like, you [ __ ] that did in my kitchen, right? But then if I bring you even a half decent cake and let it taste good, then now you're like, "H, you know what? I can I can see what you right." So I look at business the same. Everybody got ideas. Everybody got ideas. Nobody want to put nothing on paper. And then when you do it on paper, nobody wants to do the hard work first. And um that's the the flower. That's the egg cracked. But soon as the hard work's done, everybody wants to everybody walks into your to your establishment. Soon as the office nobody nobody pays attention to construction or the cranes that we're looking at now. As soon as it done, everybody's going to take pictures of the skyline and the Oh, yeah. So, so I think we all think that our ideas and conversation is the thing that lead us into baking the cake. When actuality, we all just saying in the conversation that I don't like to crack eggs. Everybody, I'll tell you what I want to do, but me telling you what I want to do is having my cake and not eating it, right? It's like you can't you can't have it. and it still be here. So, it's either you want to do the thing which you never told your legs that you were thirsty. You just get up and right. How how many times you left, right, left, right, left, right, fridge, close. Okay. Seat, right? You cook? No. I cook. I can never cook for myself. It's got to be people around. I'll cook for my wife. I don't have the attention span to. I'll be cooking. I'll be cooking and I do I do this. I do this. And then she'll ask me a question or one of the other ones ask me and know she'll ask and then I got to do the and then and then I'll be like tomorrow like literally I'll be sitting down tomorrow after the workout and I think I left something in the oven and right I'm just I just I don't know. I'm just so all over the place. So with me it's being organized. With me it's just knowing what to do and when and then but like I'm so out of mind out of sight out of mind. It's it's it's ridiculous. I think we was just talking about something and you just threw me off track. No, you started talking about cooking. I don't want to talk about money or business or success. I love to cook, man. I'll I'll cook for Listen to me. I'll cook for three. If I got people coming over, I'll cook for 20 people. I'll prepare for 3 days, man. I love it. I just don't have that much time. I love it, dude. I love You know what? H forget about anything. Fancy [ __ ] man. Look like you went to a crazy like But I'll tell you what. I like cooking because if if I did a good meal and my friends come over and they eat and they really enjoy it, like that makes me feel good. Okay. So, I went to a Greek restaurant. Uh Kikis. I went to Kikys right over here. He's on the river. Yeah. Okay. Little business meeting. And one of the guys I was with, he owns a restaurant. I forgot where he is, but he was teaching me I don't know anything about Greek food. And every time I seen it, you know, she liked the Greek sides and stuff like that. But I don't e it just But he was telling me do this, do that. Yeah. How to share, how to And I'm not going to lie, that Greek salad was awesome. Good stuff. Yeah. The first time I had it, but it's like I I do enjoy the family vibe of Greek food. Piling up and everybody dig in and let's speak and let's I love that 100%. I I don't in general they're very like I can I can order a pizza. Hey, good a good pizza, too. Oh, I love pizza. All right. Question for you, Michael. You were the number two draft pick in the NBA, right? And which comes with massive expectations, right? How did dealing with that pressure early in your career prepare you for the pressure in building businesses? Uh, what's worse, by the way, the pressure of NBA or pressure of business? I think at age 18 19 you don't know the difference. I think at age 18 19 you being you having pressure from the NBA or you having pressure from your first job or business or you having pressure from being late to class. I think it all feels the same at 19. All right. So I think I think it taught me that. I think the pressure rushed me. Right. the quote unquote pressure because I we all so worried about a perfect start and nobody is intrigued with the perfect ending. I'll give you Kobe Bryant's career. At his last game, he scored 60 points. Anybody know what he scored his first? Nobody knows, right? Like nine points or some [ __ ] like that or not even. All right. Yeah, I a like like six points rookie year as next year he was like nine then like 13, right? I think it's 30 for him and for you and any player that first game probably was the most intense. Right. It like if you had to remember it was intense because we wanted to be so perfect. Right. Right. But then if you judge Kobe Bryant by his first game Yeah. you would have never be able to enjoy his last 60point walk out, right? And it's like now you can look back on his career and say in totality, oh my god, but if you just want him to be the 60point killer from day one, then it's true in life and it's definitely true in business, right? Like okay, like none of us are Elon Musk. Like not I I can't touch everything I touch doesn't turn to gold, man. I failed so many times. I've lost so many times. And that's the story for our audience, right? For entrepreneurs and business people, like they're going to fail, man. Like, not everything is going to be smooth. But that's okay, right? Like your first game wasn't your best game, but that's okay. You don't give up after then, right? Well, like, okay, I'm starting to see failure differently. Tell me. Okay. Everything has a every game has a yang. Yeah. So we can't have like in order for us to notice what's what's perfect, we have to have to fail. We got to, you know, so it's like are we failing or are we just learning how to do it better, right? So how long is right now? Anybody ever ask that? How far away do you have to be to get out of right now? Anybody ask that? Like okay. When you start the thing you want to do, is it not right now? And then when you finish that same thing, is it still not right now? That's a real question because we rush a week and rush two weeks and rush two. But whenever you get done, if it can only be like, you can't ask the studio audience this [ __ ] dude. They're still memorized by meeting you, man. You got them thinking about some deep thoughts right now. They're [ __ ] lost. And it's not even deep thoughts. But we we overlook the what is but it's like you never not took a step and ground wasn't underneath you. You never right we we you you find a solid and right it's like the what is is actually just what is it's never not right now. So if you rush how fast can are you going to get to tomorrow before I do? You know what it sounds like to me is that you have this way of almost accepting what's going on right now. You have to without overthinking it because and letting it happen. If you if Okay. All right. One one of my favorite shows growing up. That's a Raven. Okay. because she like the beginning she will have the vision and then at the end she will actually be the what caused the vision. It's not, you know, I'm going have a vision. I'm trying to stop it, which she was trying to stop it. But just like I said, everything you want, you don't have. Everything you say, you are not. No tiger talks about a stripe. No lion talks about his furrow, right? Uh, a lion doesn't tell a zebra what time dinner is. If I got to tell you what I am, then I might not be it. If I'm trying to stop something, then I know it's going to happen. Right? That make sense? So, it's like to me it completely makes sense. We get we get in our own way trying to not be the what we want to be. What would Michael at age 18 say to Michael today? Be you about all that. Just be you. Were you the same at 18? The same what the same thought process? Yeah. [ __ ] no. I don't know. I thought a lot. Yeah. 100%. But I didn't know that I was thinking to be on I guess a thoughtprovoking level. I just ask questions. My brain just don't stop. Even now I'm I got new questions in my head. I just don't know how not to ask questions or not to like be inquisitive or curious or I don't know. So, I mean now people just starting to accept it now. So, that's probably why I'm asking more questions. But I just like I just like to know and not for no better reason but to know. I just like to know just like the sun the sun can see it all and just right like if the sun was like upset then what would what would tomorrow be? So I I do find that people that has some kind of that are tied to sports or even workout, they're actually a lot better prepared in business because they have a balance like you know like they're able to let steam and and sports is is is a routine and it's a discipline. That part is discipline is routine and it's learning organization and and I do find that those people actually react to more stressful situations better. But look, you went from the NBA, you went from playing ball to business. You're a businessman today, right? You do business. Am I wrong? I I do business. Yes. Okay. So, how I guess the question is doing that, how did it prepare you better? And did you see a difference that your experience by playing, you know, professional sports gave you some kind of an edge? forget about your persona and your name and that you know you can open the door much easier than somebody who doesn't have your name, right? Has that help? But but opening the door is that that's the easiest part. Like it's it's it's stories of so many people sneaking into this building and that building with a fake credential and just having the thing happen. Right? So that's the easy easiest part. Me being who I am, right? me not being able to say what I want or how I want to say it or come across in the way I want it to come across. I think that's the the whole thing. But other than that, you're right. There's a lot of people with fake credentials sneaking into meetings and a lot of [ __ ] Yeah. And I say to, you know, entrepreneurs, man, just tell the truth. Tell it like it is. Have real expectations. Be transparent. Everybody like puts on this show, man. Like I I talk to business owners who need money, right? And they're trying to impress me, but you know, their their business, their performer, their cash flow, what they're doing speak for themselves, right? You know what I look at? Listen to this. We look at reviews for businesses, right? And if somebody's got like a 4.9 star review, 5,000 reviews. We don't take that seriously cuz you can buy fake reviews. I was just about to say you can't buy negative reviews, right? M I'd rather see somebody with a 4.1 and some people upset cuz you know um the spring rolls weren't fresh right than somebody who's got like all perfect. Ain't nobody perfect. Ain't no restaurant perfect. Somebody's going to get pissed at some point and write a bad review. Everybody don't like everything, right? Nothing. So, you know, there's a lot of um fluff and and fake in in in business and all that. All right. So, another question. So, you you played in China, right? Do you like China? How was that experience for you? China is one of my favorite place. Hong Kong is my favorite city. Yeah, I went to Hong Kong the first time I went to Hong Kong, I was 23 years old in 1991, man. It was like really Hong Kong. It wasn't like what Hong Kong is today. And I went to China like 12 times over three Hong Kong and mainland China. That was something, man. I was a young kid doing business. When last time you been? Oh, man. Late 90s. I haven't been since. So, you went after that. You're like in a different world. Way different. Now, how did that prepare you that like multicultural experience like dealing because that's a really different type of China told me that we aren't as big as we think we are. Like the thing I like about China, Shanghai, I would be in a arena and it' be 20,000 people, you know, every screaming your name, hit the shot and uh you walk across the street, one of my favorite pubs, a little dive bar, right? Go get a drink, go get some fries or whatever. And the and the people, nobody know what you did across the street. No kidding. There's that many people. Yeah, it is a lot of people. saying I got like 30 million people. So it's like here everybody knows what you're doing. Everybody, yo, he just he just everybody want to go viral. Right. Right. Right. Everybody over there just so into their own world that it's like you do the thing and get paid like you just did the thing. But then across the street they all doing their own thing. So just come and introduce yourself and say hi. I'm going to tell you when I went to China very few Americans or even white people visited. Like I went to a place called Guandon which was like right close. That's that's that's that's one of the best cities close it's close to Hong Kong. Yeah. That's the first port from it. But back then man there was no coming from I can't I can't speak for back then. So like I was like I went into a factory there were like 16 year old girls in these blue uniforms work working and you know putting together electronics right and um and I'm walking down these were like 5,000 kids literally sitting there and dude they're all looking at me like they're about to they never seen a white man before. Oh yeah that that happens. They never seen a white man before. I had my kids over there and like people will come touch them because I tell you something if you if you look anything different than Chinese, they never seen it before. They never seen it. Black, Chinese, anything. If you don't know, you don't know. But they are just that literal. Yeah, absolutely. But how good was how good was the Chinese food in Hong Kong, man? I've never had better. Even in China, too. And they're all skinny, too, man. They all ate all ate that rice. They just eat right. They eat right. They don't It's not fatty foods and all sugar and all, but it's good, you know? They they I they just eat right. I love how they eat. So, look, you've played with some of the biggest names. You're a big name yourself. What did you learn about leadership, teamwork, and building brands, let's say, from players like LeBron or other super I learned that leadership looks different. You can't expect what you want out of Kobe from LeBron. You can't expect Kevin Durant to do it the way Michael Jordan did it, right? I I I just learned that we all come up in different ways and we see the world and such. So when it's time for us to do the thing, we only know it from our own eyes. Right? I think people judge us because you don't do the thing I want you to do the thing or like I seen the guy do the thing right but I just think I what I learned is um like I said leadership just looks different and if you if you are able to accept that for just another dribble another play another and let the player be the player or let the leader be the leader whatever sports whatever business then um I think he'll will get to the the goal a lot faster than you trying to force them to do it your way. Like one of my favorite things in business where I've learned is you give your hardest task to the laziest people because they're going to figure out how to do it the fastest way. And then I like that. Then you take I'm going to test that with some people here tomorrow, man. Then you take the smartest people to come clean it up because they going to do it the right way. You understand? Yeah, I do understand. So just remember that folks. Yeah. Give the hardest task to the laziest people because they're going to get it done the fastest. I like that. Yeah. Then the smart had the smartest people come behind them and and make sure they We talked about LeBron, right? And I'm going to tell you why. I'm not going to I'm going to ask you this cuz this happens to a lot of people. You know, there's a big story about how LeBron lost it on you for a minute, right? Scream. Lost it on me. Yeah. He was screaming at you. There was something. It was all over the internet. Maybe. No, I think people took context out of that. Okay. Took they No, LeBron's never lost it on me now that I know. maybe in practice and [ __ ] [ __ ] like that like I hear you. But I guess my question to you is like and and I tell people like people you as a businessman need to always remain composed, calm, collected, right? I don't think so. I think people think that and that's what you just said. But no, when you when you're dealing with customers, for example, right? I mean, okay, dealing with customers, I get that they lose it all the time, right? I I don't deal with customers. I guess fans are customers. Yeah, they are. But uh yeah, they are your customers. And so in the big three is different. Like after like you come to the big three, please come to the big three. Just come cuz it's kick it right. You come over, you come and watch us play. And then afterwards, we'll just be right outside the arena kicking it with the fans, right? Whether you know some people uh drinking, some people got food. You talking about the the Dallas victory? Uh which one? We we go everywhere. Oh, you go. We played in Miami last year. We won a championship in Orlando. Um but um you know after the game, this is what I do love about the big three. After the game is just the family vibe. The kids are running around, the men over here, the wives is just making sure we all straight, you know, and the fans can walk up and just long as you're not weird and just snapping pictures all day, it's like you just come have a conversation with us, you know. So I do like that part. But I think I think we hold up bottle up too many emotions for so long, which is why everybody see me crying on TV so you know so much. But I That's all right, man. I I cry, too. Right. But yeah, I think my wife slaps the [ __ ] out of me after a second. You better stop whining. But I do. Well, no. I think I think we I don't think anything is negative. We We look at certain emotions like negative and it's like there's nothing negative. You'll never understand anxiety, depression. And you'll never understand if you're tired or exhausted. You'll never understand, right? If it's all negative, but but I think sometimes human sometimes you need to break [ __ ] sometimes. Like, cool, let's let's let's just redo this. Maybe no, but but I mean it. But let's maybe But you know what? They are in Velcro. I do take them down from time to time. Maybe let's replicate this. Maybe let's replicate this and put the fakes up there and just [ __ ] break the wall. Maybe we need to break some pretty [ __ ] cuz cuz it's like the perfect [ __ ] always works. the money like having the money and doing the thing you want to do always works and it's like not true. Exactly. So it's like just having the money doesn't make it but that's my point. It's like you you saying that I shouldn't have an attitude. It's who up to who? You saying that I shouldn't feel the way I feel is up to who? Like sometimes you need to feel it. Sometimes feel it. Sometimes quiet sometimes happy. Sometimes just be it. You know who says that? That people that are afraid to show the true emotions. People who judge emotions are people are afraid to show their emotions. My point. Exactly. And it's like if you let them make you afraid, then you just you're just like them. I don't care. Right. So I just think sometimes you just need to be who you are because the moment will always be the moment. Right. I think if we if if we just understand that yesterday never happened, tomorrow never comes, and all we got is right now. It's okay if you smile. It's okay if you cry. It's okay if you're not okay. And it's okay if I can't fix it. Sometimes just be here. All straight dogs don't want you to touch them. You might get bit. Somebody asked me the other day. They said, "What was my last best day in business?" Today. I said yesterday and tomorrow will be today. Every day is a best day for me. Every day I cherish and value. And that's why I say to entrepreneur, you might have a shitty day, but you made through it, right? My grandfather used to always tell me, it's only a good day until you miss one. It's only a bad It's never a bad day until you miss one. That's a good one. It's only a bad day if you miss one. It's only a bad day if you miss one. And And back to the pressure. We make the days bad because we think we need to be as perfect as we want, but it's like if you just just be consistent and just be better than you were yesterday, everything will take care of itself, right? And as long as you don't miss none of these days, I don't know how you don't learn from some of them. you know, um, forget some of them because that's that's the only thing that keeps us to the past is our memories. If we didn't have memories, then we wouldn't know anything. And then I guess we'll be doing the same thing over and over again. Maybe not. We would just be happy. We'll just be happy. Maybe we won't do the same thing. Oh, well, maybe we will. But if if if we didn't have memories, it is it'll stop you from not doing the thing you want to do. It'll stop doing the thing you know you need to do. It'll stop it like you'll do some push-ups. Like you won't just worry about the burn afterwards. You weren't worried about ah what if I got to sweat and take a shower cuz like no if if if you just wash your memories right like you can forget you were poor just like you can remember you're rich but we just choose not to do that we just choose to make ourselves the victim of the story rather than be the hero and be honest. No no just be just be. It's like life is just a puzzle piece. We all on this earth the same and just be. But it's like you say we all wear the mask and just lie lie lie and not be for the sake of lying for the sake of just not being wanting to be seen. Like I'm we're not honest because I don't want to die in front of you. I don't want to run my fastest because I don't want to be out of and right. I don't I don't want to like and there's So I think you're you're probably killing it in business and I'm going to tell you what's different, right? Like I'm I'm listening to you. I'm observing and just so you understand like over 350,000 businesses have come to our company for capital. Not that we gave everybody capital. And lately, every entrepreneur that I speak to or listen to, man, they think that they got to throw the pitch or, you know, like this tech generic, they say all the right words, all the right stuff. And what I hear very rarely is like passion and emotions, right? And you got that like you got passion and emotions. Everybody want to know, you know, and and I think that and I think Elon Musk has got a lot of passion and emotions. He's just very like it's just I guess the way he talks about it, he like he never like raises his voice or goes up and down in his tone. I can't like I I try like I really practice trying but I do lose it. Several reasons like that, right? So monotone, but but but I think people who have emotions and passion and like really break it down are probably the most successful people because they're not hiding behind like these, you know, words, these fancy words that everybody's using. Like I I talk to people, they're using words, what the [ __ ] are you saying? I don't understand what speak English. Exactly. Some sometimes people just want to know everything right now, but it's like you got to you got to humble out to yourself. I I see like am I talking to a person or am I talking to AI? You got to humble out to yourself. Cuz sometimes the thing that I think I know, you actually know. Or if I'm sitting here pretending like I know it, then you'll never tell me because you don't think you have to. Here's another thing, right? So, you know, I call ESPN the error sports network, right? They messed up your [ __ ] many times. your stats. Not just me, but a lot of people, a lot of people, right? But the same thing that the aerosports network does, right? A lot of the same happens in business. Numbers don't really always represent what the business is doing. That's why we don't look at credit scores at Funkite, right? We look at your cash flow, what you've accomplished more than credit score because a lot of people don't have credit scores, right? That's why banks say no. But how do you and this is good for the people the entrepreneurs listening man they say one thing which doesn't represent you and that's the same thing a might a guy might have you know 3.9 star reviews but that doesn't mean he's running a bad business right so how do you tell people that are listening like how do you overcome what others have to say that isn't right it might not really represent what's going on what do you say to people when you you looked at those scores like damn it Yeah, I did better than this. What the You know why? I had to tell myself that

Hitler had people that loved him and Jesus had people that hated him. I had to tell myself that everything isn't 100%. So my chocolate to your vanilla isn't a I like I like things. It's just a perspective, right? So no matter how much I put in this glass, it's somebody gonna walk and say it's half empty rather than half full. Right? Me and you in the room and we see a glass and you say half full. I have half empty. And then we ask the third guy say what do you see? And he said I see a dirty glass on the table. What do you see? When you see a glass, what do you say? I see. I see. Fuller half empty. I see water in the glass. Now, if you want to argue about the amount, then that that's but cuz I see a glass half full. I never see a glass half empty. I see water in a glass. So, I I'm an optimist per personally. I see dirty dirty glass on the table. So, like if you want to argue about the amount of the dirty glass, then I don't Ying is ying to a yang. You you like there's never been a day the sun came up that the moon hasn't. I I think I think people need to understand that about the glass, right? If the if the sun and the moon will argue about what's half and what's what is 12 to 24 hours, right? So, I I love your perspective. I love your but then there's also plants that grow at night. Also animals that are nocturnal. I think my brain goes at night when I shut up, right? I think you I think I think you get some rest and it starts there there's there's there's there's people that can't see in this in in the daytime and there's people that thrive at night. That's true. You understand? But we Are you a morning or a night? Half and half empty, half full. Are you a morning person or I'm a both. Like I I Okay. I I got I got my brain checked out. And this is why I hate when people say I I I got mental issues or I don't take accountability or No, I've been taking accountability my whole life. So when when I was in Phoenix, what does that even mean? When I when I was in Phoenix, I went to um get my brain. I forgot the doctor. I can I forgot the doctor called it was a clinic, but Lance Blank thought something was wrong with me just cuz we relate the ADHD thing. Um so I went and got my brain checked out, slept there for 3 days and [ __ ] like that, whatever. um come to find out that I fall directly into rim sleep. So I I'm only able to sleep for four hours a day. Right. So it's like if if I sleep for 20 minutes right now, if I take a nap, one, I don't know I'm taking a nap until I wake up. Mhm. So that's been a problem in my career. Um and two, I just slept for I just, you know, 20 minutes is rim sleep. So I don't got to sleep like Right. So if I go to sleep at 8:00, I'm up at 12. Yeah. So I need only four maximum 5 hours of sleep. I've never tested it. Get your brain check, but that's all I really need. Right. And um so I'm up at 4:30 in the morning. I go to sleep a little early. I don't sleep. I'm up at 4:30. Like not that I don't sleep, but I don't have to sleep. Like I'll tell you one I'll tell you I'll tell you a funny story. Got me in trouble, man. We were in Paris for the you know NBA game, my rook of year and the we were going to a team dinner and and I was on the bus and [ __ ] Pat Riley called me up to the front of the bus and wanted to have a conversation with me, right? And my like when I fall asleep, I don't know I'm falling asleep. She tell you, my my daughter tell you and I fall asleep, my eyes open. So, I'll be I can sit here and speak to you and just be listening to you and you're sleeping and then you think you still talking to me and you're out and I don't know I'm sleeping till you wake me up, right? That's scary, but it's a real thing. So I'm talking to Pat Riley on a bus in in Paris and you know he come tell me he tell me come sit next to him and I sit next to him and second thing uh my mom tell tell me all the time I'm a city driver because I'm if I'm in the car for more than 15 minutes I'm going I'm falling asleep. So that's another thing but whatever. So I'm on the bus with Pat Riley and we speaking we speaking and I don't remember exactly what he asking me. I just remember this. Look at him. Look at like I remember like him starting to rally was just boring, man. You know, the world needs to know. This is a real thing. This is a real thing. And it got me in trouble. No, you got me in trouble. Like I came I've talked to him. I'm talking to him. I'm talking to him. You're out. I don't know. The next thing I know is we arrive at our destination 40 minutes later and I'm looking at him say these words to me. Are you [ __ ] with me? So I I you know I I I jumped back and like what you uh uh Bro, are you [ __ ] with me? Were you just faking sleep? No. And I and I didn't know what he was speaking about because like I told you, I don't know when I fall asleep. I just know when I'm up. I just Yo, and I'd be sitting there I literally be sitting here like this and be dead sleeping until you wake me up until you nothing. Right. And I didn't find I didn't find that out. I mean, I'm sorry that you're going through this, but that is not funny, right? Like, are you [ __ ] my book? My memoir is going to be called Too True to be funny because these are real [ __ ] But it's like I don't mind if you laugh at it. Just understand it because it got me in trouble when I was 19 and people thought I were gross. Is that different when my wife's talking to me and she's looking at me and she goes, "Are you even listening to me right now?" I'm like, "Yeah, yeah, I'm listening to you." Do you have a phony ear? No, no. I'm I'm looking at her, but you know, I've always got a thousand things going on in my mind and that's and then, you know, I can explain it. It It's usually that. Maybe I am. Maybe I got to tell her I I actually have a medical. No. So, if I can explain it, it's usually that. So, I go I go I I go to places in my mind. I go to com comfortable places. I've been since I was young. talking about. So when I when I see it's a it's a blue blue beach bed with a circle table next to it with coffee. I'm not going to say what else. Coffee and an umbrella and it's right on top of Mount Mount Everest. And when I see that in my mind, I just know it's time to go to sleep. So listen, I think we just gave a tip to all the entrepreneurs that are going to be watching this. And cuz you know entrepreneurs have a lot going on in their mind. and they're managing a business. They're trying to survive and they're trying to expand and then they get home and you know the family takes over and they want the attention. But the entrepreneur, right, is um you know, still thinking, reliving the day. We relive the day when we get home. So, we can just now comfortably say at home, you know, listen, I'm No, I just think I'm having a Pat Riley I'm having a Pat Riley moment right now. I'm sorry. I think people need to shut the [ __ ] up. Huh? I think people need to shut the [ __ ] up. I agree with you. I think everybody needs to give you space. Everybody want to tell everybody what they mean and everybody wants everybody what to do and everybody wants everybody what they want them to do. That's why wives and husbands, that's why your wife can smack you when you're not doing what she wants you to do. It's like everybody has a perfect world and that everybody want to be a perfect perfect. It's a per it's not a perfect world. When is it when has it ever been? Right. We all have an idea of what the perfect world is, but none of us want to stop poverty. It's 2.2 million vacant homes in the world and only 1.2 million homeless people. I was just one of them. Nobody wants to help. Nobody want to bake the cake. Nobody want to hear nobody talk. Everybody's Abraham said people are just an audience for you to hear yourself speak. Everything you say to you, right? And people shut the [ __ ] up. Do you see what's going on? I just think people need to shut the [ __ ] up. I just think people need to just listen. Excuse me. You watching this, are you [ __ ] with me? Click subscribe. Drop some comments and tell me tell me if you like what we're talking about with Michael cuz like I don't know, dude. Like they're not being serious out there. We're trying to help you. But I'm I'm really enjoying this, you know, because like a lot of entrepreneurs and successful people come in here and it's hard to have this conversation, right? You don't roll these. No, I tried to roll it one time and one of them cracked or something [ __ ] man. It's the producer, dude. He like puts all this [ __ ] up here, you know? Yeah. Do you use any of this [ __ ] Yo, some some dude said that I look like this, right? Yo, some for my birthday. Do I look like this? Tell me. But it was you. Like, do I sit there like this? Seriously, if I'm being That's not me, right? Talking about talking about talking about if I'm being completely honest. What do you What is your right leg doing right now? I mean, okay, dude, because I just can't sit. I've been sitting here like this, but the head bob me like that. The I wish I had hair like this, dude. I wish No, come on, man. Look, man. My hair's so thin, man. It It left me a long time. I ain't going to lie. I thought that was you. I thought And I have a French bulldog's always like I don't know. I don't even know what dog. You know what that's for? It's hourglass. Yeah. You know what that's for? People come in here and they're like, "Oh, I got to talk to you. Something's really going on." And you put them on Thomas. Yeah. It's like, "Listen, just whatever it is, just make sure you get to the point in their face." Yeah. Your employees love you, don't they? They love I promise you they love me. I promise. No, it's You know what? That will speed somebody up. Yeah, it will speed somebody. I'll still listen to them past that, but at least they, you know, No, no, no. I I I sit out there with my So it's not a it's not it's not for real but it's like I'm I'm messing with them like listen you got Oh I got to talk to you. Oh when you got to talk to me when you already start I got to talk to you. Okay just listen you got to make it this time right and then it just puts them so at least they get to the point cuz people like to just talk for the sake of talking. Exactly. And when you know you're running a business as an entrepreneur man you don't have time to to talk sometimes. You just need to know what do I have to I [ __ ] like you right. Yeah. I don't like I'm crazy. I scream. I blast music in there. I don't care if you like me. I don't care if anybody likes me. I just want my family to like me. I can feel it. I can feel it. I can feel you don't care. Tell me something. What's the biggest meaning of success for you? Uh the biggest meaning of success. What's going to be at the end when you're going to say this is why I was successful? Tell him that um for tomorrow. Okay. If you're doing anything for other than tomorrow, then you just don't know how to survive, right? Is the amount of money you make is going to is that going to define your success? [ __ ] no. There's h haves and there there's haveotss. That's the only two kind of people in the world. There's the hs and the have nots. And as long as I'm having my way, I'm good. Right. having my way looks like her working out and having her having food to cook and and and packages to order. Um, I got nine other kids that need to eat, right? I can literally make Elon Musk money and it would literally go all to them and they will have to come find me just like now. I'll be outside just talking to whoever listens, right? Like I like I got a nice beautiful home. Um, I got kids that I think love me, but you got to ask them sometimes. Do you want to know what I how I success? I just rather be outside. I Do you even care how I define success? I s I can see it. No, this isn't success. I I don't care. But you ask me. Do you want to know? Cuz I want people out. You ask me a question. I know, but you're not asking me anything. It's like a oneway conversation. What are we doing here? Are you [ __ ] Are you [ __ ] here? It would be called the what is this called? The [ __ ] Michael Beasley. Unbankable, right? I get that. Serious. I get that. But you try to play on words. Yeah, but dude, you don't want them to You don't want them to give you the turtleneck they gave me. Look at that neck right there, bro. Look like a lizard. If I'm being honest, that guy that guy looks like that guy.

Really does. Fired. You're all fired, right? Hey, bro. I like I like the wall. This is fire. Whoa. You got They signed these things. These are all signed, man. Oh [ __ ] I like These are all signed. Way better now. Yeah, they're all signed. Prince, everybody here signed this. All them signed. Oh my god. Yeah. Yeah. That's pretty cool. You just noticed this, bro. I like the first thing I told you when you walked in, man. You told me about the records. You didn't say they were signed. Which if you would have told me to sign, that was kind of dicky move. If you would have told me they were sign, hey man, look this guy signed it and Right. Cheese head. [ __ ] Green Bay Packer, right? No me. I know. If you would have did that. I'm not telling you. Green Bay Packer. What the [ __ ] is that? Cheesehead. [ __ ] No. No, dude. I look I grew up. Look, I'm not going to lie. I grew up in New York. So, okay. The Giants were my team. The Knicks were my team. Packers fan to be a cheese head. That's just Oh, yeah. That's just like That's what you're dick. I call you a cheese head. [ __ ] No. All right. You're just packing it all, huh, man? Dude, I'm just trying to I was going to tell you that success to me is going to be the success of my kids. But you didn't even let me get that one out. That's okay. It's all right. You know, I mean, but we just say the same thing. As long as my kids happy as long as long as long as my woman's happy, which she's never happy, even when she's happy. So, you know, figure that one out. Um, as long as she got a root and you think you think you're special, right? And that's No, no, I know. That's what I'm saying. We all go through it. But it's like as long as long I'm going to tell you something. If a woman ever tells a man that I'm I'm really happy, I think you're in trouble. Yeah. Cuz she tell I think you really I don't know how we just got into I don't know how unbankable just came into like marriage therapy counseling. Listen, but your wife telling you she's 100% happy. She's telling him that she's not. That make sense? I like that. Oh, this is great. Yeah, I don't know how much of this we're going to need to cut out because we might think I don't cut it out. Might confuse a lot of people out there. It's unbankable. It's unbankable. Yeah. In order to a happy wife is unbankable. Everything Everything is is is correlated. Right. So, the way you play basketball is the way you live. The way you do is the way you do business. The way you live is the way you Right. If I go to your home right now, I bet I can correlate it to or I bet I can correlate it to your finances. Right. And people don't realize that when we say make the bid in the morning, it's not we're not saying make the bid in the morning. We're saying, hey, don't forget to check that on your W to don't don't forget to on your tax. Don't forget to hey, keep that receipt. I always make my bed in the morning. Don't forget to Right. But it's like if you can't remember to just make your bed and brush your teeth, do anything else. How can I trust you to Exactly. with my taxes. Exactly. Right. So, it's like the way you live is the way you do everything. And before we can get the thing we want, we got to take care of the thing we have. And until you make your bed, you won't get a Let me ask you this. So, you know, people have this like perception, you know, they think that it's easy for athletes to do what? To be good businessman to make they think the doors are open that you know like business just comes your way. I mean, people just don't know. I know a lot of athletes and I know the strug I know how hard it's even harder right now. it like so it's easy for some to do right name like this Kobe $100 million Pelle right um Messi one of the richest guys uh the Messi that's Messier was a hockey player but loved him growing up I don't know who that is yeah hockey player um you know Magic Johnson's a brand right some LeBron James Kevin Durant some guys come in and understand the power of that brand and there and have the money to do so some guys come in with education and uh uh damn was Junior Bridgeman, right? Um a better story than one I like is um and it's not a right uh Jamal Masher. Nobody talk about how how much of a businessman he is. Um, you know, it's it's a lot of a lot of businessmen out there that Norm Nixon, a real good one, right? And it's like, yes, I want to say it's easy to, but it's not. We all don't understand what our name is worth, what our name is, right? And partly it's because of the bad stories that's out. Like, you know, you know me for the one bad thing I did. And then now everything I did it's good thing good thing but remember the bad thing good thing good thing but remember the bad thing good thing right and it's like but that's the world as a whole. Yeah. But that's why people want to tear people want people love tearing people. That's why it's hard to use our name and likeness because all right anything else in the world if you can say out of 8 billion people or out of 8 billion things only 4,800 did this. Think about that. Only 4,800 did this. Those 4,800 would be rock stars. All 4,800 would be just right. Let's go back to Roman times and just put those same numbers. Those 48 4,800 people will get all the grapes. All the women, all the Right. But today, y'all [ __ ] on NBA players because what? We didn't score the 20 points you wanted me to score. Like it's only 4,800. All the bust thewaame Browns, all the worst players, all the players you don't know about. 4,800. 4,800, right? That's it. 4,800, right? And it's 8 billion people now. How many people ever, right? And only 4,800 made it. And it's like you didn't even realize, right? You think you understand respect, but what? I'm a bust. And you really think a YouTuber can be who? You understand? It's like just because I don't do it your way then I'm not the thing what 4,800 that's00 I never that's right and it's like don't even I won't even look at you and say go try I know you tried AU basketball I know you tried middle school I know you tried you get cut from high school okay let's stop there for most of you how do you know I got cut from high school kicked out of high school exactly no not you went to I got kicked out of high school man you went you went to hospital three times playing basketball but my Point is, we can speak about and disrespect the 4,800, but most of you most of you got cut in middle school. Most of you got cut when you were 6 years old. We were all on a journey, but you just were because you just got cut a little faster. It's it's it's better for you. It's better for Right. It's like, no, 4,800 made it. Respect that, [ __ ] I had discipline. I had I had I I had but it's like we don't we we choose what we want to respect and somebody for some reason as a society someone has to say the right thing at the right time for us to get it the right way and it'll never not be right now. You know this society loves to take people down. Yeah. They love to find something bad about you negative and they hold on to it. That's true. Yeah. And that's the biggest problem, man. Right. You know, they don't I don't know. It that's a really long discussion. It aggravates me. It makes me really upset. It shouldn't aggravate. No, because it does because I see it all the time, man. But that but that's what that's what you know to stay away from. And uh what are you going to do with No, I know. I know. Like it hurts. I'm not It's It's easier said than done, right? But it's like if you just understand every every Yang has a Yang, you just know why he said that bad thing. It's like, cool. I like I like vanilla and just because I like vanilla, somebody's gonna come around here and say, "Dang, Michael Beasley hate chocolate." It's like, "No, just like why are you putting the OB like you think what you think right?" I would say I hate the daytime or I would say um I don't understand religious a religion, right? Now I'm just I I just don't love God or I'm just the total opposite. It's like it's so much space in between of being Oh my god. Yeah. Right. And it's like but soon as I say hot, you say cold. Why do you Why are you thinking for me? No, I just said hot and I don't you know, maybe a little less hot, maybe more warm. Tell me, but maybe. Right. But it's like everything I say, you just go right to the opposite and just That's just what I said. Tell me, you got a good team around you today? No. No. And yes. Yes. And no. uh about what I don't know what you mean by like a business team like good lawyer good accountant I got a good lawyer I have to protect you and give you good advice I'm looking for a good accountant right now that's not me because a lot of people don't understand that you need good people around you need a good lawyer you need a good accountant people you trust people that aren't take trying to take a piece of what's yours they charge you for the work they do right and that's okay they should get paid but people that really want to protect your interest right I always ask this question No, I don't I don't lot of small business trying to build build a build the right team right now. Um are you able to allow people to um like you know building a team is also like trusting them to make decisions for you? Right. Mhm. Can you allow people to do that? To be completely honest, I trust people too much. So now like rather than um like cuz I get I I've had a lot of things done in my life, good, bad, and and you know, all in between. And if I'm being completely honest, I just trusted you too much. So now if I got to do the thing myself, it's either I got to mend that relationship because of whatever you did cuz I don't talk to people. I don't not talk to people until they can't be held accountable. Right. Right. So um I do that. I I I'm I'm very open with people until they give me a reason not to. Right. So yeah, I I Dang, I forgot I was going to say, man, this was this was very cool. I mean, it's cool because um it's a very different conversation than most people that sit here because they're just trying to, you know, a lot of programmed answers and stuff. And the first thing I I see from you like talking to you and everything, everything comes from here. Like everything comes from your heart, from your emotions. And I think that it's a good thing. It could also be a a tough thing because your emotions is what drives you your passion. I think it's it's it's a bad thing when people when it makes other people uncomfortable. Yeah. But it will make people uncomfortable cuz who can actually be honest about their emotions. Very few people I know it's not. I will be as honest as I can be with mine and what it does to you is you and your mirror. You know, I miss these convers like I had these conversations with my dad when he was alive. like I was able to talk about things that really I can have these conversations with my kids, right? Like emotional and and feelings and stuff, but it's hard to have these conversations in business. It really is today because, you know, you're trying to do business and people are just trying to get to the point that da da da da da da. It's all about numbers. What can you do for me? But you you don't get to learn people, right? You don't get to understand people like that, right? It's conversations like this that can build things and you just don't see it that much. Michael, I can't thank you enough for doing this with me, man. This was this was the best part of my day today.