Podcasts about john you

I feel like it wasn't too many episodes ago to where I was like "I don't see a need for me to own Foams given my current style".  Yet here we are, I'm back with Coppers and a pair of Royals on the way and scheming on some Black Volts while I'm at it.  I guess... never say never?  Also I talk a bit about using Goat and StockX to see demand on a sneaker. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

EMILÍANA TORRINI - Jungle Drum. SÓLSTRANDARGÆJARNIR - Sólstrandargæji. MADONNA - La Isla Bonita. Lizzo - JUICE. THE CHARLIE DANIELS BAND - The Devil Went Down To Georgia. Júlí Heiðar Halldórsson, Ragga Holm, Ragnhildur Jónasdóttir - Líður vel. DE LA SOUL - All Good? (ft. Chaka Khan). CMAT - Running/Planning. Wet Leg - Catch These Fists. Stereolab - Aerial Troubles. JANIS JOPLIN - Me and Bobby McGee. BELLE & SEBASTIAN - Another Sunny Day. Svenni Þór, Regína Ósk Óskarsdóttir - Hjá þér- kynning plata vikunnar 2024 18. vika. Svenni Þór, Regína Ósk Óskarsdóttir - Hjá þér. BRONSKI BEAT - Smalltown boy. STEALERS WHEEL - Stuck In The Middle With You. Gugusar - Reykjavíkurkvöld. STEVIE WONDER - Isn't She Lovely. DAFT PUNK - Lose Yourself To Dance. AMY WINEHOUSE - The Girl From Ipanema. OJBA RASTA - Baldursbrá. ELÍN EY & PÉTUR BEN - Þjóðvegurinn. Snorri Helgason - Ein alveg. Hall, Daryl, Hall and Oates, Oates, John - You make my dreams. ARETHA FRANKLIN - Think. SNOOP DOGGY DOGG - Gin And Juice. Ásgeir Hvítaskáld - Sólstranda-date. Sheeran, Ed - Azizam. BLAZROCA OG ÁSGEIR TRAUSTI - Hvítir skór. CORINNE BAILEY RAE - Put Your Records On. Jóhann Helgason Tónlistarmaður, Gammar - Stay. Perez, Gigi - Chemistry. Glóey Þóra Eyjólfsdóttir - Away. HARRY STYLES - As It Was. TRABANT - The One (The Filthy Duke Remix). Lady Gaga - Alejandro. MGMT - Kids. NÝDÖNSK - Nostradamus. Daði Freyr Pétursson - I don't wanna talk. LUCY PEARL - Don't mess with my man. Milkhouse - Komdu út. THE PRETENDERS - Back On The Chain Gang. GusGus, Bngr Boy, Unnsteinn Manuel Stefánsson, Tatjana - Partýið er þú og ég. BELLE STARS - Iko Iko. Lizzo - Still Bad. FAMILJEN - Det Snurrer i Min Skalle. FLOTT - L'amour. Svenni Þór, Regína Ósk Óskarsdóttir - Ekki ein á ferð - kynning plata vikunnar 2024 18. vika. Svenni Þór, Regína Ósk Óskarsdóttir - Ekki ein á ferð. FRANK OCEAN - Lost. DESTINY´S CHILD - Say My Name.

In this episode I go over my latest pickups including the Air Max 90 Carbon Fiber, Air Force 1 Canvas Linen and Air Jordan 1 UNC Reimagined.  I also talk a little bit about my new musical device! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the relevance of OGs these days and Nike making new versions.  I used to hate it, but now... I'm ok with it... sometimes.  Also talking a bit about my new pickups! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the Air Force 1 Smoke and Mirrors pack, and "pre-vintaged" kicks in general.  Also a couple Air Max 90 pickups! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the AM95s popping up on Nikes site, and why I keep looking at Air Max 90s instead.  Spoiler alert: it's the colorways. Still waiting on some fire 95s from Nike that have been rumored to drop. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode, I get into my latest Air Max and Air Force 1 pickups and opine on how the attention on Air Max 95s is moving the focus away from some other great Air Maxes getting slept on.  I gotta say, I've spent way too much on kicks this month!!! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I go over FOUR (4) new pickups and what I have on the way plus what I'm thinking of picking up.  Pray for my wallet and bank account please. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about how once I'm in a mood to start copping lots of kicks, a lot of stuff that was "off the table" or "not my style" goes out the window!  Rules were meant to be tested!  Who knows what I'll be into copping? Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

This episode is all about how I'm definitely in a buying mode and looking at sneakers all the time on my phone again!  Pray for my wallet! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

Ever wonder what other people talk about with their financial advisors? A new survey of nearly 400 experienced advisors reveals the biggest concerns, challenges, and financial goals their clients are facing today. From retirement planning to healthcare costs to working longer than expected, we're breaking down the key takeaways and how they compare to what we see in our own client conversations.   Helpful Information: PFG Website: https://www.pfgprivatewealth.com/ Contact: 813-286-7776 Email: info@pfgprivatewealth.com   Disclaimer: PFG Private Wealth Management, LLC is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. The topics and information discussed during this podcast are not intended to provide tax or legal advice. Investments involve risk, and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial advisor and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed on this podcast. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Insurance products and services are offered and sold through individually licensed and appointed insurance agents.     Marc: Ever wonder what people are talking about with their financial advisors? Well this week on the show we're going to discuss a new survey of nearly 400 experienced advisors revealing the biggest concerns, challenges, and financial goals that their clients are facing. We'll see how that compares with what the guys see here on the show. Let's get into it this week on Retirement Planning - Redefined.   Welcome to the podcast, everybody. Thanks for hanging out with John and Nick and myself as we talk investing, finance and retirement. And guys, we're going to share this survey. We'll put a link into the show descriptions as well for folks that want to check it out, but want to run some of this information past you guys and see does that correlate with what you're seeing, do you think it's accurate, not accurate, and just spitball and talk a little bit about some of the stuff out here.   The survey was done of nearly 400 experienced advisors all with around 20 years or more of a business, practicing business, so interesting. They didn't really say exactly the age bracket of all the people they were talking to, so there could be some folks that are not necessarily retirement age. They could be younger as well as older, but I want to run down some of this stuff and just get your guys' take on it.   How you doing this week, John?   John: I'm doing well. Daylight savings is messing with me a little bit, but I'm adjusting pretty well. And one of my kids, actually both my kids, they're testing for an honor belt in karate.   Marc: Oh, nice.   John: So they're excited.   Marc: They're going to whoop on you. Be careful.   John: It's funny you say that. They're running around the house kicking me now. It's like I wanted to get them into some self-defense stuff, but now I'm getting kicked.   Marc: So now you got to walk around with some pads on.   John: Pretty much.   Marc: Make sure you're not getting beat up too much. Very cool. Well watch the shins, man. They'll get you in the shins.   Nick, how you doing, buddy?   Nick: Good. We're staying busy.   Marc: He's like, "Good." Well, let's break this down a little bit, guys.   John: That's the sound of a guy that's in the middle of planning a wedding.   Marc: Right? That's what I was just thinking. He's like, "I got to make another decision. I don't want to make a decision." Let's jump into this and we'll see if we can make this easy for you this week, Nick.   So seeking out a financial advisor, the first part of this survey, advisors in the survey said 52% of their clients have sought out financial advisors to help with the retirement planning. About 34% surveyed were just looking for somebody to build wealth with. And in an era where everybody can call themselves a financial advisor, does that strike you as interesting? What do you guys think about that, 52% looking for retirement planning versus 34 just looking for some sort of wealth building, whoever wants to start?   John: Yeah, those numbers seem accurate to me. Well, I guess I'm a little surprised it's not more looking for help with retirement planning.   Marc: Okay.   John: I'd say the majority of our clients are retirement planning based, "Hey, I want to make sure my plan's good. I want to make sure I don't outlive my money." As far as building wealth, that does come up quite a bit, and Nick will jump in as well, but I'd say most of our clients are looking for retirement planning and just making sure they're on track and making sure that they're making the right decisions.   Marc: And it's two different mindsets too, right, Nick? I mean, so you need to decide what it is that you're looking for. I mean, not to say that you couldn't work with a retirement planner who also can help you with some of the wealth building, but it is a different skillset as well. If you're just looking for someone only to help you build the wealth, that's a little bit easier, I would think.   Nick: Yeah, and I would almost, if I were to say maybe put that in other words, we talk with people at the three phases of money as far as their life goes are accumulation or growth, distribution, taking their money in retirement and then transfer when they leave money. And so I would say from that initial, that wealth building, that's most likely accumulation focused. And because so many people accumulate their money while working in their 401(k)s and that kind of thing, I think it tends to be a little bit of a different conversation and it's those people that as you get closer to retirement. So without having ages, it does make it, the numbers are interesting, and I agree with John, I would've thought maybe it'd be a little bit higher from the standpoint of the retirement planning side, but-   Marc: Well, I mean, if you're just trying to grow the money, again the market's been, obviously we haven't had a prolonged downturn, and it's been choppy here lately, but we haven't had a prolonged downturn since '08, '09, so there's a lot of information out there about saying it's a little bit easier to build the wealth. But the preservation stage, which retirement is a little bit more complicated. There's more things going on than just the portfolio.   But with that in mind, check this out. Over half of the survey of financial advisors said the average client asset minimum was 760,000. I found that to be good. I know different areas are going to be more or less depending on the economic state of the area, but when you often hear that people aren't doing a very good job saving for their retirement future, three quarters of a million dollars is not bad.   Nick: It's definitely interesting to see the numbers and how they've changed over the last five to seven years where, and you mentioned it earlier where we've had a long prolonged period of time with the market going up, and so there's quite a bit of people meeting with us or ending up with more money than they had thought that they would or that sort of thing. There's a little bit of concern with that that only lasts for so long and that there's some correction and all that kind of stuff to happen. But absolutely, definitely that puts most people in the wheelhouse of where they need to be to have a successful retirement.   Marc: I mean, it's not bad. John, do you guys have a minimum? I mean, I know different advisor firms do different things. You can't service everybody. There's only so many hours in a day. So you'll hear something where somebody says, "Well, we work with people with 250,000 who have saved or more in assets," or some or a million or whatever. Do you guys have a breakdown?   Nick: We don't have a set minimum that we advertise or market.   Marc: Okay.   Nick: I would say that the majority of the people that meet with us tend to have what many institutions have as their minimum. So in other words, a lot of places will tell people, like you referred to that, they're looking to work with clients that have 250,000 or more just from an efficiency standpoint of trying to make sure that they can service their clients and that sort of thing, and so we end up above that with most clients. But the reality is, is that the conversations that we have with clients are really we don't keep that rule set in stone because for us, it's more of a relationship-based.   Marc: Individually based kind of thing? Okay.   Nick: Yeah, and really it's something we're looking for people that are serious about planning. I would say if you were to draw a line between what we were talking about earlier where a growth or retirement planning in a more broadly focused strategy, so they're focused on that. They're serious about it. We reference like, "Hey, we don't want to convince you that you needed an advisor. We want you to know that you need one and we want to interview for the job," kind of concept.   Marc: No, that makes sense because I mean if you're giving suggestions and someone's not willing to take them, you're just wasting each other's time versus... Yeah.   Nick: Exactly, and we found that that'll waste more time than in theory working with somebody that maybe isn't where they're going to be yet. And also-   Marc: It needs to be a reciprocal relationship.   Nick: For sure. Communication's super important for us because we've also found that we've had people come in that maybe are under that 250, but their parents are wealthy and they ended up being a teacher or something that maybe didn't allow them to save as much money as some sorts of jobs, and they're going to inherit money and they need assistance that way. So I'd say we're pretty comfortable with our process and how we approach that sort of thing and really look for it on a relationship basis, communication basis, and how we all get along.   Marc: That makes sense. And it's got to be a two-way street. I mean, when we do the podcast, it's not designed to turn every listener into a client if they're not already a client, but it is designed to say, "Hey, if it's the right relationship field going both ways, then we're happy to help if we can." That's pretty cool. So that's a good way of looking at that.   John, check out some of these top concerns. Let me know what you think here. So no surprise, number one, outliving their assets, 38% of the people surveyed. That's pretty much always number one, right? Outliving your money.   John: Yeah.   Marc: 31%, generating reliable income streams, a pretty high number as well.   John: Yes.   Marc: Okay. Then it drops off to a pretty stark, down to 12% for a future stock market crash. Now with some context here, this survey was completed at the end of last year, so it was December of '24. Do you think that number's gone up recently?   John: I would willing to bet that number's gone up. I think we were talking about the market, the last real big downturn was '08, and I think in the last 10 years, we've only had two years of the market being down, the S&P 500. I think it was, what, '22 and 2014, I believe.   Nick: I'd almost say that's a leading indicator that there's going to be, it's one of those things. Once people get that comfortable, that's usually when it comes.   Marc: I mean, it's been a while, right? So because nobody's worried about it whenever it's riding high. We only seem to worry about it whenever we're in the middle of it falling a little bit. But the one that really surprises me is all the way down to 8% for healthcare costs. Now if you guys are focused more on helping people with retirement planning and strategies, that to me, again depending on the ages of the people that answered this survey, healthcare costs at 8% seems awfully low because it's pretty costly, and we need to be having those conversations when we're, especially as we're getting older.   John: Yeah, for sure. This one, it is very important, and I think it's same thing we're talking about the stock market where it's been doing well. And when you're healthy-   Marc: It's great.   John: ...you think you're going to be healthy for a long time.   Marc: You don't think about it. Right, exactly.   John: You don't think about it all. It's back of your mind. I'll tell you where we see a lot of people concerned about it is if they had to do some care for their parents. Then it becomes top of mind of like, "Hey, this was a lot that I just went through." And taking care of them or seeing, whatever, if they have to go into a facility, and then in turn that's where we see the most of our clients that are concerned about healthcare costs is if they had to take care of a loved one.   Marc: Nick, according to the survey on that topic, advisors that were surveyed in this, were saying that clients should be more concerned about healthcare costs at around 54% unanticipated healthcare cost. Will you agree with that as well? Because I mean, obviously it comes out of the blue, it can totally derail the whole strategy.   Nick: Yeah, I think part of that is, from an advisor perspective, the whole concept of long-term care, obviously I'd say many advisors have a good grasp on long-term care, but I think it's become increasingly difficult for advisors to help clients plan for that with insurance or certain products that are out there. If we went back 10 years and from, let's just call it 2015 back through maybe 2005, that was the golden era per se for clients to be able to secure a reasonably priced policy from a long-term care perspective. So I think maybe that ties into the concern that advisors have is that at the end of the day it's a really expensive problem that clients can have, but it's also an expensive solution that a lot of clients are reticent to spend on something that may not be an issue, especially in a state like Florida where all of the insurance, people have serious insurance fatigue here.   Marc: Oh, I'm sure.   Nick: So it's a funny thing. The one time I actually answered a soliciting call earlier this morning was from State Farm calling me to, and they asked me if they could shop my car insurance for me, and I said, "Sure, let's try it." And sure enough, it was going to be $1,400 a year more than what I'm currently paying.   Marc: Thanks for the help.   Nick: And she laughed too, and she's like, "Well, can I call you in six months?" I was like, "You can try."   Marc: You can try.   Nick: I don't think you guys are going to come down that much. And so it's just crazy with what people are paying here. And so I think, long story short, I think that really ties into it as well for advisors.   Marc: And I'll hit you with this last one, John. I'll let you start and then I'll let Nick jump in if he wants to. And again, this survey was completed at the end of last year, so you can't take the current market downturn into this conversation. But according to the survey, an average of 63% of clients age 55 or older intended to work to 65 and beyond. 63% of people wanted to continue working up to 65 or beyond, yet only 30% of those clients are actually still doing it. So I guess my question is, does this surprise you that people want to keep working longer? And if so, what are some of the main reasons why you guys are seeing people want to work into their older ages?   John: It doesn't surprise me. I think with the shift really since COVID of being able to work remote, I've seen a lot of people that sit there now thinking like, hey, I work from home. I can travel still and log in. And it's given them a comfort of just saying, yeah, I'm making good money. I can continue to do this.   Marc: Feather than nest some more, right?   John: Yeah, so it's just building up the nest egg and allows them maybe to feel comfortable doing some more travel that they otherwise maybe wouldn't have felt so comfortable doing. We talked about the fears of outliving your assets, so I've seen a lot of that. And then there's a lot of studies out there saying, just keeping sharp of mind. So I've seen that where people are like, "Hey, I don't want to retire because I want to stay active. I want to have a purpose and continue to do things." So I think I'm not surprised by that number.   Marc: Interesting.   John: Because we're having more conversations of people wanting to work longer because they enjoy what they're doing. And with Zoom, it's become very easy to continue to work longer.   Marc: Well Nick, I'll give you this last piece here. 48% of those people feel like they don't have enough saved to live on through retirement. I mean, you're talking about half. So half of the people surveyed don't think they have enough, so that sounds like it just comes back to just not truly having a plan or even really knowing what it is that you've got. They've probably never sat down and really pulled this stuff together so they don't feel confident.   Nick: Correct. I think you nailed it there. The uncertainty of not having a plan and not knowing and understanding what things look like really oftentimes causes procrastination, and then all of a sudden it's 5, 7, 10 years later and there could have been a couple of small tweaks or a couple of small adjustments. I mean, in reality, there's been so many times when within 30 minutes if John and I meeting with somebody the initial time, we can tell three to five things that they could do that wouldn't have a significant impact on their life, but would have a significant impact from a positive perspective on their overall planning. And so whether it's informing themselves and holding themselves accountable or working with an advisor, which we have found, and there's been a ton of studies that have found that having that partner to help guide them through the decision-making process, that there's significant value there and the average rates of return and all that kind of stuff show that because of the decision-making.   Marc: Well, think about what you're going through with the wedding planning stuff. So there was a thing a couple years ago we were talking about, some of the most stressful events we can do in life, one of them was planning for a wedding. One of them was planning for retirement, right?   Nick: Yeah.   Marc: There's a lot of decisions to be made. And so having somebody to lean on I think goes a long way into removing some of that stress because it does get overwhelming. And at some points you're just like, ah, screw it. I don't even know what to do anymore. So being able to talk with guys like yourselves and say, "Okay, look. Here's some thoughts we had," or, "Here's what we were afraid of," or whatever the case is, it gives you that sounding board to bounce some ideas off of and maybe get some reassurance.   Nick: Yep, fully agree.   Marc: Yeah, and so are you having that same problem from the wedding standpoint?   Nick: Right now we're interviewing planners-   Marc: There you go.   Nick: ...and the prices have gone up, so it's-   Marc: But you're looking for help, right, because it's a lot.   Nick: Yeah, absolutely, absolutely.   Marc: John, you don't want to be the wedding planner?   John: No, no. I did that 12 years ago-   Marc: I got you.   John: ...and I want no part of that.   Marc: I got you. Well, all right, guys, good conversation as always. Thanks so much for hanging out. So at the end of the day, I mean you find these surveys are pretty interesting. And I think a lot of this stuff comes back fairly similar each time, is that people are looking for some assurance. They're looking for some clarity in some of these situations, so that's the point of running through the planning process is finding out what do you got, where do you stand and how's it working for you, and do you need to make some changes?   Often people feel like we're going to have to do some major overhaul, and it scares them. But a lot of times when you run through the planning process, many people are in better shape than they realize. You just need some tweaks here and there. So if you want to have those conversations for yourself, reach out to John and Nick and get started today at pfgprivatewealth.com. That's pfgprivatewealth.com. Get yourself onto the calendar for a consultation and a conversation.   And don't forget to subscribe to us on Apple or Spotify, whatever podcasting app you like using. Retirement Planning - Redefined is the name of the show with John and Nick, and we'll see you next time here on the program. Thanks, guys. Take care of yourself.

In this episode I talk about why I wish I at least temporarily had all my old New Balances back, weight loss, and having to change my sneaker collecting policy this year.  I also talk about my latest Air Max 1 HUF and Air Max 86 Powerwall/BRS pickups. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the Antihero Dunk High SB, some Air Max Month pickups and how to properly do video reviews based off some commentary I saw online about how Sneaker Youtube is fading. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

April Fool's Day is all about jokes and pranks, but when it comes to retirement planning, getting fooled can cost you real money. Today, we're uncovering the beliefs that fool retirees and pre-retirees into making bad financial moves.   Helpful Information: PFG Website: https://www.pfgprivatewealth.com/ Contact: 813-286-7776 Email: info@pfgprivatewealth.com   Disclaimer: PFG Private Wealth Management, LLC is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. The topics and information discussed during this podcast are not intended to provide tax or legal advice. Investments involve risk, and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial advisor and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed on this podcast. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Insurance products and services are offered and sold through individually licensed and appointed insurance agents.     Host: April Fool's Day is all about jokes and pranks, but when it comes to retirement planning, getting fooled can cost you some real money. So we're going to talk about that. A little early for April Fool's, maybe, but we're going to still talk about it this week here on the podcast. So let's get into it.   Hey, everybody, welcome to the show. Thanks for hanging out with us here on Retirement Planning Redefined, with John, and Nick, and myself, as we talk investing, finance, and retirement. And we're taping this a couple of weeks before April Fool's Day. It should drop right around there, but we'll have a conversation with the guys. What's going on, Nick, buddy, how are you?   Nick: Good, good. Staying busy.   Host: Yeah. Well, that's always good. Good stuff. John, I know you and I were just chatting before we got rolling, we're worn out. But you hanging in there?   John: Yeah, doing all right. And don't let Nick fool you, he's got a lot going on.   Host: He's got a lot going on.   John: You tell him the news.   Host: He did. Yeah.   Nick: John's favorite topic. Got engaged a little over a month ago.   Host: Awesome, awesome.   Nick: Yeah, in the full throws of wedding planning, which is, of course, extremely exciting.   Host: That you're doing a little of, or a lot of, or zero of?   Nick: I would say some impact. My fiance is originally from Columbia, and the way that they do things for weddings there is a lot different than here.   Host: Okay, cool.   Nick: So yeah, so there's a little bit of translation from that perspective.   Host: Nice, nice.   Nick: Yeah, that's interesting. But it'll be good.   Host: Very cool. Nice.   Nick: It'll be good.   Host: Well, congratulations. Very, very cool.   Nick: Thank you. Appreciate it.   Host: All the best to the newlyweds. Very good stuff. We won't pull any April Fool's Day pranks on you then, in that regard. We'll just take to the financial stuff here this week.   So the idea, guys, being that, look, the media is nonstop, the onslaught of social media, internet, whatever. There's always something out there. And you just want to make sure you're vetting some stuff before you... Fool's gold, right? Before you just jump into something and maybe make a mistake.   So we'll start with tax conversation. So as at this time that we're taping the podcast, we don't know if the TCJA will get extended or not. Odds are fairly good, we'll see how the year plays out. But if they don't, they expire at the end of the year, the current tax code that we're under.   So are you taking that information and maybe thinking, hey, I don't have to do any tax planning for the future, because maybe the taxes are going to stay really low like they have been historically? Or are you being proactive and saying, "Well, there's a chance that taxes could still go up, because we owe a lot of money"? So whoever wants to jump in, get started on that. But what do you think about the tax situation and not fooling yourself into just thinking everything's going to stay exactly the same?   Nick: Yeah, I can start with this one. So one of the things that we really emphasize with clients and people that we work with is, especially when it comes to taxes, that the best thing that you can do is to expect change. So whether it's something changing at the end of this year, a couple years from now, whatever it is, the goal is to allow yourself to be adaptable to whatever's happening.   So the easiest way to do that is to have different types of accounts. So to have Roth accounts, pre-tax accounts, and more of a traditional brokerage account where we can factor in capital gains instead.   But even more specific, when it comes to the whole concept of potentially underestimating taxes, there's still a lot of confusion for people on how much of their social security is going to be taxable, or include-able in their taxable income. I had a conversation with my parents about it, and I had to convince them that I was correct and knew what I was talking about after 20 years, because of a way that something that they heard on the radio or saw on TV was phrased, made it very confusing to them. So just-   Host: Sure, I mean, there's the conversation that they might get rid of it, but they haven't done it yet. So you still got to be planning for stuff.   Nick: Yeah. But even outside of that, the way... It was interesting, and I do want to bring it up now that I remember it.   Host: Sure.   Nick: The way that it was being marketed was that the concept of, "Hey, most people don't know that your social security, how much you pay in taxes on your social security will go up at age 73." And so, really, the concept of that was, "Hey, when required minimum distributions kick in, and you have more taxable income, there's a chance that more of your social security income will be include-able in your tax and how much you pay in taxes." So it was kind of a roundabout way to scare people. So it allowed us to have the conversation about, for a huge chunk of people, 85% of their social security is going to be include-able in their taxable income, at least how the law is now, and just how other types of income may impact that.   Host: Oh, and that's a great point though. That really highlights exactly the point of this conversation, is that depending on how you phrase things, it's very easy to get misled by stuff. And so that's a great illustration of that, Nick. So thank you for sharing that.   And it definitely walks that... And that's what all these are going to do. John, like the next one around Medicare misunderstandings. So my mom's forever, she's 83, she's forever going... And my brother's now, he's over 65, so she's educating him. She's schooling him on the stuff she's been doing for a while with Medicare. And it's like, it doesn't cover everything. And people still sometimes think that, "Hey, at least I've got to 65. Now I've got this Medicare thing. I'm in good shape." And it is a great program, in a lot of ways, but it doesn't cover everything.   John: Yeah, that's accurate. And a lot of people, unfortunately, don't realize that. And a big thing that, when you get Medicare age, age 65, Medicare has a lot of moving parts to it, and there's a lot of different options.   Host: Oh, yeah.   John: So depending on whether you go, let's say, on an Advantage Plan, if you're on Plan F, or G, you get the supplement, it's going to determine what is covered. And then, also, you want to look at, do your current providers even take Medicare? So you might be looking at it and think that you're going to be all set-   Host: Great point.   John: ... And then you come to find out that your provider who you like doesn't even take it. So yeah, it definitely does not cover everything. So when you're doing your planning, when we do it, we always try to make sure, "Hey, this is our set price for Medicare." Then we adjust as we determine what plan the client's going to go with or help them determine what's their best option. But also, you want to plan for some out-of-pocket medical expenses for what it doesn't cover.   Host: Yeah, I think she's changed her dentist a couple of times just because they don't take it anymore. They changed or whatever. And of course, dental being one of those things that people often don't realize is, a lot of stuff's not covered there.   John: And prescriptions.   Host: Yeah, and eye. The eye stuff is really interesting. Some of the eyeglass stuff, like going to the eye doctor for just basic optometry stuff is not covered. But then the cataract stuff, some of it was. So it's very strange. So you want to make sure you're understanding what is and what isn't taken care of there with Medicare. So that's certainly a good one as well.   Nick, what about the set it and forget it retirement plan strategy. When you're talking about things getting kind of mis-sold or kind of mislabeled out there, some people will be like, "Hey look, you got to get a plan together. You put stuff in there. You let it ride and you roll from there." Right? Well, some things can set it and forget it, but some things can't either.   Nick: Yeah. So kind of a good example of maybe the set it and forget it concept, saw come up a little bit more in the last couple of years, where had some clients that were moving towards retirement, and they had done a good job of saving and building up the nest egg, and they were somewhat familiar with, maybe take 4% a year and I can live off of 4% a year.   But with rates being in that point of time where we clicked up, where they could get four to five, five and a half percent in money market CDs, et cetera, they had kind of just said, "Hey, want to shift to the sidelines, want to avoid the market. I'm just going to take my 4-5% and live off the interest." And the conversations that we had to really have were, conceptually, that'll be good for now, for the next year or two. But most likely, there's going to be a point in time within the next three to five years that rates are going to change, and that 5% might turn into 3%, or two and a half percent.   And even on, let's just use 2 million bucks. So maybe they could do 5% on 2 million is a hundred grand a year, good to go. Now if we shift to two and a half, 50 grand a year off of the portfolio, with their intention of trying to maintain principle, that starts to rewind a little bit.   And so, it's a good example of realizing how the dynamics of a plan change, and that if you're only factoring in what's happening now, or in the next short term, next couple years, that not understanding updating and adjusting your plan to current circumstances, or maybe a broader sense of what could happen, could really put somebody in a difficult position.   Host: Yeah, that's a great point as well. So there's so much stuff you got to think about when you're factoring all these things in. And John, the market's been choppy. The time we're taping this, it's been a little choppy out there. So some of the tariff conversations-   John: Just a little bit.   Host: A little bit, or whatever is kind of making the market uneasy. But chasing and obsessing, not necessarily just over the market highs, but also high dividend stocks. So sometimes people will say, "Well, a good alternative to doing X or Y is to get high dividend stocks." What's some thoughts there?   John: There's different strategies for what you're trying to accomplish. And one of the problems with this one, especially if you're going to retirement and you're thinking of, "Hey, I'm just going to have high dividend paying stocks," is that those things can change. If all of a sudden we have a recession, or the economy's not doing well, or that particular company's not doing well, guess what they could do? They could just change your dividend.   So if you had a plan, going back to what Nick's example, they're like, "Hey, I've got this stock. It's giving me 4- 5%," and you think you're okay. And all of a sudden some news comes out and that dividend drops, and now your whole plan just slightly changed. So with dividend paying stocks, they're not guaranteed. And depending on how high of a dividend paying stock it is, the higher sometimes could be correlated with a little bit being more aggressive and more risk.   So I've seen, this actually reminds me of a meeting I just had this week, where someone was in talking to a friend of theirs, and they were trying to say, "Hey, just put all your stuff in these high dividend paying rates," and all these things. And I'm looking at it like, "Hey, this is pretty aggressive. You're getting a good yield. But if we have some type of pullback, not only will your dividend potentially go down, but the value of this stock could also drop."   Host: Sure. Yeah.   John: So it's just important to understand what you're in and what could change.   Nick: I think I'd also like to jump in on that.   Host: Sure.   Nick: Because I've had this conversation with some clients quite a bit. And one of the things that I tried to emphasize is that if we look over, because a lot of times the generation that's been drilled with dividend paying stocks is a generation now that's kind of entered into retirement, where they were really starting to invest in coming up through the period of higher interest rates, when dividend paying stocks perform better.   And frankly, if you look over the last 10, really post recession, post '09 and 2010 recession, in an environment with lower rates, if somebody was invested the last 15 years in only dividend paying stocks, then the returns that they have gotten are pennies compared to being involved in-   Host: Wow.   Nick: ... growth related investments. Think of tech, think of the Magnificent Seven now, think of all the areas of the massive growth over the last 10 or 15 years, and there was significant opportunity cost. So the environment that we're in, where those companies were really rewarded for, the cost of borrowing was low, the ability to reinvest and grow was high. Even when you factor in stock buybacks, I mean, you had companies that were making more money in stock buybacks than they were in producing their own products. So the environment of what's happening has a significant impact on that as well.   Host: That's great points, guys. So it's easy to get lulled into whatever kind of marketing, or whatever kind of news headline, or whatever the case is. So just make sure that you're not falling for it. Or at least not without vetting some things out and talking with your financial professionals.   So if you've got some questions, as always, you need some help, you should always run anything you hear by on our podcast, or really any other, even the big talking head shows, talk with someone local in your area about your unique situation so that you're getting some hands-on advice and conversation. And if you need some help, John, and Nick, and the team are available at pfgprivatewealth.com, that's pfgprivatewealth.com. So you can subscribe to the podcast. You can find it there. Of course, you can get some time on the calendar through the website, lots of good tools, tips, and resources. And of course, you can subscribe to us on Apple, or Spotify, or whatever podcasting app you like using.   So again, pfgprivatewealth.com. That's going to do it this week. Guys, thanks for hanging out, as always, and breaking it down. Congratulations once again, Nick, on the upcoming nuptials. And John, buddy, have a great week. We'll see you next time here on Retirement Planning Redefined.  

In this episode I go over my latest pickup, the Alexis Sablone x Nike SB Dunk Low Chameleon.  Then I talk a bit about the 2000 stolen pairs of Nigel Sylvester's Air Jordan 4 Brick from a train heist! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about my recent Aluminum Dunk SB pickup and get into the topic of the nature of sneaker sales with respect to hyping up products.  Also, I'm sick so it will be a bit of a short episode. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into why going to a sneaker event might be a better look than just paying resale for the shoe.  Depends on what your goal is!  I also give quick reviews on the University Blue and Supersonics SB Dunks! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into my latest SB pickups like the City of Cinema, Trocadero Gardens and Escargots.  Then a short tangent on why Nike SB GR's are special before getting into some of the upcoming kicks to release! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I go over the Burnt Sunrise SB Dunk Low and my other SB Dunk pickups, plus what I'm selling to cover those.  Also I talk about publicly announcing things on social media, why do it and why people shouldn't make a big deal over someone needing to clear the air. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the recent release of the Nike SB Dunk Low Pro B Parachute Beige.  Then I get into what SB's I'm suddenly feeling and some upcoming (and currently available) pairs. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

  In this episode we get into the lack of hype for the Blacktoe 1 and like, way more hype for the Bred 1 because "limited"  Also talk a bit about the show "Lost".  Bet you didn't see that coming! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about conditions leading to moldy kicks and what to do if they are moldy but cleanable.  I also get into some pairs I've been feeling on sale on the Nike site and some upcoming Jordans, SB's and Air Maxes. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into a social media post I made about the resell sites and why I don't use them anymore...  But to each their own, of course.  Also, I briefly touch on the recent Kanye/Adidas stuff and a bit on some new Transformers and some of the video games I've been playing recently! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into the rep "community" and talk a bit about how I don't really see it as much these days...  it's a definite ramble on this one! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about being seeded with shoes and other sponsorship offers I've gotten in the past.  I also give my thoughts on a few new upcoming Air Maxes and my ideas on spending in the New Year. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about a few new releases coming up in 2025 along with some hater-ish takes on a few items I saw on the sneaker news sites.  Also have made our latest CD available to buy online, details in the episode... Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I detail swapping out my beaters for new beaters including the Purlicue x Vans Old Skool Year of the Pig and Size? x Adidas Yung 1s.  Then I get into some nice upcoming pairs as well as discussing getting excited about music again! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode, I go over my plans to swap out some of the stuff I currently have on sale with other stuff, and my plans to not buy myself much this winter to instead buy for others.  Unless certain AJ1 lows go on sale!  I also briefly go into the last issue of Mashle and the series as a whole. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about a lot of upcoming kicks but also talk about saving your money and using it for what it's supposed to be used for this holiday season.  I also give a recommend on another sneaker podcast I've been listening to recently. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about getting some old PS1 games out for fun, and also my thoughts on the next SB Dunk Lows in Smoke Grey dropping 12/3.  I also get into the Retroid Pocket and the Voice with Snoop Dogg and Michael Buble. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the Wu-Tang Dunks, and memorialize my father just a bit. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into whether theoretically impending tariffs will balloon sneaker costs.  Also dip a bit into some Final Fantasy 7 replay action, and my thoughts on One Punch Man Vol 29 and Judge Dredd comics. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I age myself horribly by going over the current trend of meshy kicks being in style vs the way I see them - as insta-beaters.  Then I get into retro Pokémon games for a bit before discussing why hardware music equipment gives me the sound I want vs digital means.  Even though I do both. Hypocrite or just old man vibes... you be the judge! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

I'm hoping I can get my hands on the Wu-Tangs...  But if not, no biggie!  Also I get into a bunch of upcoming Dunks, how to tell the Next Nature Dunks from other pairs, and playing old PSX games.  Finally I speak on the state of my Hot Wheels, Lego and Transformers collections and a quick bit of thoughts on the new Sonnyjim x Giallo Point release. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into how I can binge just as hard on selling kicks as I can on spending money on hobbies, once I lock in and get in the zone.  I also get into retro games, the Mentalist, and a few life events like how I'm putting up numbers at work and recently saw a friend I haven't seen in almost a decade! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about my latest pickup, the Nike SB Dunk Low Carbon.  Then I talk a bit about some upcoming pairs including my feelings towards velvet on shoes and some cool Air Max and Dunk releases.  Finally I get into handheld gaming devices and other electronics I'm thinking of upgrading to. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode of Building Texas Business, I discuss John Marvin's transformative leadership journey as CEO and President of Texas State Optical (TSO). Founded in 1936 by the Rogers brothers, TSO evolved into a franchise operation spearheaded by John starting in the 1990s. Hear John's compelling account of reviving the brand, establishing the franchise association, and guiding the innovative physician-owned business model that has empowered young optometrists for decades. With the evolving eyewear landscape, our conversation analyzes consumer behavior shifts and their implications for strategic competition amid growing online retailers. We also explore the importance of supporting TSO's physician member network through mentorship and partnerships, especially given industry consolidation challenges. SHOW HIGHLIGHTS John D Marvin shares the history of Texas State Optical (TSO), founded by the Rogers brothers in 1936, and its growth into a franchise operation. We discuss how John Marvin revitalized TSO in the 1990s and his journey to becoming the president of the company in 2001. The episode explores the challenges and strategies involved in competing with online retailers in the eyewear industry, emphasizing the importance of convenience and well-stocked dispensaries. John describes the shift in optometry ownership trends, with fewer young optometrists interested in private practice, paralleling broader healthcare industry trends. We examine the strategic importance of building a physician member network to support optometrists and the criteria for network inclusion. The episode delves into leadership principles inspired by John C. Maxwell, highlighting the role of influence, trust, and accountability in effective leadership. John reflects on the transformative impact of setbacks, such as being fired, and how these experiences shape one's leadership journey. We explore the importance of forming strategic vendor partnerships and the role of mutual accountability in maintaining long-lasting business relationships. John emphasizes the need to adapt to industry shifts, including the rise of artificial intelligence, while fostering an innovative mindset among optometrists. The episode concludes with a discussion on the significance of understanding and meeting customer needs through effective consumer research, as a universal business strategy. LINKSShow Notes Previous Episodes About BoyarMiller About Texas State Optical GUESTS John D MarvinAbout John TRANSCRIPT (AI transcript provided as supporting material and may contain errors) Chris: In this episode you will meet John Marvin, ceo and President of Texas State Optical. John shares his views on how the fundamentals of leadership boil down to influencing and how having mutual accountability in your business relationships create win situations. John, I want to thank you for taking the time to join me today. It's really been a pleasure to get to know you before we got started here. John: Well, Chris, I appreciate the opportunity to sit down. I always love talking about business. Chris: Well, that's good, that's what we're going to do. So you're the CEO and president of Texas State Optical, or most people know it as TSO. That's right. Tell us a little more detail about what is the company, what does it do and what is it really known for in the market. John: Okay Well, texas State Optical was founded in 1936 by four brothers the Rogers brothers, in Beaumont, texas, and anybody who's been to Beaumont or familiar with Beaumont knows of the impact those four brothers had on that community and then in turn throughout Texas. Two of the brothers were optometrists and they opened pretty traditional optometry practice. And if you'll think about what else was going on in 1936 in Beaumont, it was the oil boom that was just blowing up, and so the one that originally came to Texas from Chicago all four of them were from Chicago called back home and said boys, you need to move down here. We got a big opportunity and they did, and consequently, over the next several years they built a large retail optical chain they called Texas State Optical, and one time in the early 60s it had reached over 300 locations. And one time in the early 60s it had reached over 300 locations and those were in New Mexico, oklahoma, arkansas, louisiana and Texas, and so that went on until, due to some legal issues with the state optometric group, who decided that they didn't want someone in the state running 300 locations, they passed some legislation that limited optometrists to only three locations and so they could subsequently, after a long legal battle had to sell off most of their property, but they kept the core of the business of the optical lab. They kept that and kind of a condition of buying. The practice was that you obligated yourself to continue to purchase items from them. But then in the late 60s the Rogers, having gone through this process of dissolving their ownership in it, decided to turn their attention towards real estate development and at one point they owned 25% of Caesars Palace in Vegas. They just got involved in other things and then consequently in the early 70s they sold the company to a large pharmaceutical company, gd Searle, who then subsequently sold the company in the early 80s to Pearl Vision. Most people are familiar with Pearl Vision, most people are familiar with ProVision and ran that until the late 80s when they sold it to a group of kind of investors who wanted to own it. They didn't really know how to run it than investors. So in I got involved in 1993 doing consumer research for the corporate office. My background at the time I had a company marketing management group and based here in Houston and it was a small marketing management and consumer research group and was doing work in other areas. But picked them up as a client and began to do a lot of consumer study for them and learned about the business. At that time it was somewhat distressed because of the leadership that had taken over from the Pearl Vision taken over from Pearl, and so there was a lot of unrest among the franchisees because at that time TSO was a franchise operation and so I helped them form a franchise association and then kind of on a part-time arrangement took on an executive director position within that while maintaining my consumer study and research stuff. And so that happened until the late nineties, when everyone was planning for the great millennium you know, the 2000 and Y2, right, right. And so we gathered everybody in my conference room over here and how, booty building, and down here in the galleria and they started you know, flip chart sheets, what do we want to accomplish? And blah, blah, blah, and and that the result of that was really, guys, you're not going to get any of this done unless you own it. And so we began to have some discussions about them buying the company, the, the franchisor, and that took about a year to negotiate, and during that process I was asked to come on as the new president and since and then we closed in June of 2001, and since that time I've been the acting and operational by president and CEO of the company, and one of the reasons that it appealed to me was it was the ultimate fixer-upper, because the company had really was kind of loosely held together but had an iconic brand, and so we started opening new locations with Young Optometrist and we're a brand license company. So we knew that the only way we could pick up a new customer, if you would be, if a young OD wanted to open their own practice and then we could help them do that. People that were established at the time and successful weren't interested in converting to a retail trade name, so we did. We opened up about 80 new locations and helped a lot of young ODs live a dream and had put together a whole turnkey system commercial realty contractors the whole nine yards. Chris: That's a fascinating history, you know, to kind of just see it grow so big in the beginning, get broken down and then almost come back together. Yeah with, I guess in 2001 you said, with these individual practice owners or franchisees becoming owners. John: That's, you know, kind of unique, especially for doctors yeah, it was a different approach to it, one of the reasons we can set it as a now. We never incorporated it as a cooperative, we incorporated it as for-profit. We simply chose to run it as a cooperative, which, by its nature of co-op, isn't intended to make money, right? So we could keep the services and the value of what we offer members very high because we priced it at a break-even point, and so it was very appealing to a lot of young ODs who needed that help without any experience knowing what to do. And, of course, we then had a retail trade name that had market appeal. So a lot of them benefited greatly by, as opposed, to, opening up under their own name and unknown in a community. Chris: Yeah, it gives it instant credibility with the brand name right. That's right. What are some of the things I guess that you know since that time in 2001, that you do and your team around you, to kind of help preserve that brand value, to make it marketable and enticing to these doctors. John: Well, part of it is the importance. An optometry practice as a small business has a very defined marketplace of about three radium miles Okay, so one. That's part of that is because there are so many options and the profession is a licensed profession and so there's a little bit of perception by consumers that it's a commodity. In other words, anybody who's got a license will be able to give you a good exam. Consumers at one time back in the 60s and 70s, thought mostly of wherever they got their exams. That's where they purchased their eyewear. Chris: Out of convenience, right Out of convenience. John: That's right. And in the 80s you had a much more proliferation of retail optical chains like LensCrafters and EyeMasters at the time and Pearl Vision, which were creating an awareness among consumers that you know what, I can get my exam in one location and I can buy my eyewear in another location, and so that added to that sense of commodity. And so what we've done is focus on a three mile marketplace. So instead of running one advertising campaign in Houston, we run 50 around each of our locations, and those are largely driven through community involvement, pay-per-click, you know, today pay-per-click In the beginning though, a lot of it was just getting to know your school nurse, getting to know the coaches in the league ball game, and so from a marketing strategy it was always hyper-local standpoint. And so if you go into some neighborhoods, everyone knows the TSO. If you go into an neighborhood where we have no location, maybe not so much, and that was done probably more just from a practical standpoint of cost than it was anything else, because you know Houston and Dallas. Where we're at in San Antonio, they're very expensive media markets and so if you've only got, you know, 20 locations in the DFW market to go in and try to buy television, advertising or something more traditional is prohibited, and so it makes a lot more sense because that's where people live and work. People ask me sometimes how do you go about picking your locations, your real estate stuff? And I said we tend to let Kroger and HEB do that for us. So, wherever they're at, we want to be close because that's a neighborhood. Chris: That's right. You figured they thought there were enough households to support a grocery store. So I like that, you know, uh, you know. There's a lesson there, though, for a business owner, an entrepreneur, in that you don't necessarily have to do all your own organic research if you don't know, aware what's going on, you can, you know, let someone else do some of that and just make sure that their end users look like yours, and that's right. John: They do a tremendous job, both of those companies, at understanding the market before they ever buy land or pour concrete. I'd hate to insult them by not taking advantage of all that good work they do. Chris: They're genius right, they're genius, that's right. You just mentioned, you said 30 different or 50 different marketing campaigns in Houston alone. I mean, how do you go about figuring out you know the right message for the right place? That must take a lot of work. John: Well, not so much I mean because the message in Sugar Land is the same as the message in the Woodlands. I mean people. While we, as as in our profession, try to complicate this, it's pretty simple from a consumer standpoint. They're looking for a place where they can get their eyes checked and buy a pair of glasses. But probably two-thirds of all of our revenue today come from a third-party payer. So that changes kind of the basic consumer behavior dynamic. But by putting out a message that really is focused on that group of people in terms of maximizing the value of those coverage benefits, that becomes real consistent and then it's a matter of just being louder than anybody else. Chris: Sure, while we're on the subject of that consumer and consumer behavior, what are some of the things that you have done over the last 10, 15 years to either combat the online competition, as you mentioned, because people get their eyes examined and they either go online or do something. How are you managing that and what are some of the strategies you found to be successful? John: Well, first of all, consumers are driven, and I think this may be generally true, but certainly our consumers are driven with the priority on convenience, and one of the reasons the online marketing purchase of eyewear is so appealing is its convenience, and oftentimes it's not a price issue as much as it is a convenience issue and assortment and selection. So one of the things that we focus on is to make sure that our retail dispensary that's what we call the retail store aspect of a practice is well inventoried with product and assortment price points, and then the ultimate differentiation is customer service and knowledgeable people, and so if you have selection pricing and knowledgeable people, it's a home run and you don't have to worry about it, because if you can make it convenient for them, then they're not tempted to go online. And because there's a lot of I don't know if you've ever bought a pair of shoes online, but all you need to do is have one bad experience with that and have to turn around, send them back and so forth and so on that people would really prefer to get it locally, where I got my, where they received their exam, and it's kind of hours to lose. So we try to make sure we don't give them a reason to leave. Chris: Yeah Well, it's an interesting analogy with the shoes, because I can relate to that and see that people like to try on shoes but also glasses right. John: What are these going to look? Chris: like, and if you're at a store with a good selection, it's all right there as opposed to ordering one or two online and knowing you're going to be returning something. Advert Hello friends, this is Chris Hanslick, your Building Texas business host. Did you know that Boyer Miller, the producer of this podcast, is a business law firm that works with entrepreneurs, corporations and business leaders? Our team of attorneys serve as strategic partners to businesses by providing legal guidance to organizations of all sizes. Get to know the firm at BoyerMillercom, and thanks for listening to the show. That's right, yes, well, that's it. So let's shift now kind of to this physician member network. What do you look for, if anything, as far as qualifying people to come into the brand, and then how do you help, kind of manage and support once they're in the network, if you will, to make sure that you're doing all you can to help them be successful? John: It's an interesting change we're seeing right now, especially in the last five to 10 years, and that is, the number of young optometrists who have an interest in owning their own practice is going away. Chris: It's really an interesting thing. John: One. It's very similar to what's going on in healthcare in general. You know, I was just talking to some people last week and I said you know when was the last time I asked them? I said do you have children? Yes, do you have a pediatrician? Yes, is that pediatrician private practice? Chris: No. John: It's owned by some big organization like Texas Children's, and what you're seeing in healthcare delivery at the provider level is a consolidation of these organizations and the disappearing of private practice, and we're seeing that now in optometry. And another big dynamic is 85% of all optometry graduates today are female, and in the 80s that number was just the opposite. It was very unusual in the 80s and early 90s to see women in optometry school. I mean they certainly didn't represent the majority. And so with that comes different priorities of practice. You know you don't have the hard-charging young guy who wants to go into small-town Texas and really build up a big practice or even a metro area. You have people that are much more interested in part-time, that I want to be able to step aside, raise my family, then maybe come back later, and so there's a whole different culture among the providers now coming in. So our organization as a business model relies on young optometrists wanting to own their own practice, and if that category is declining we've got to come up with some other plan here to maintain Sure. So one the opportunities we have are less. The vetting process is largely a discussion with very successful people. Our board of directors consists of nine doctors and three outside directors, but the nine doctors are all very successful. And so a young person does approach me and we talk, I want them to speak to one of our successful guys, and then their job is to kind of assess and come back to me and say, John, I don't know if she's ready, I don't know if he can do this, or I think this is a home run, let's go. And with their input and my discussion I've been doing it now long enough that I kind of get a feel for it Then we'll say let's go. And really it's a matter of they own everything. It's a matter of us guiding them through the process and then supporting them with just the knowledge they don't have about building a practice afterwards, and then lots of follow-up and hand-holding. Chris: And it's done. I think you said just as, basically a license agreement where they're licensing the name and brand and they get some support as a result of that as well. John: I mean contractually, I'm not obligated to support anything. Contractually I'm not obligated to support anything. All I'm obligated to do is to keep the value of the brand consistent with what they're paying for it. But I realized that if they're not successful, my brand value suffers. So we do all that we can to support them and help them be successful. Chris: So let's talk a little bit about your internal team. I mean, you've got a team I think you said 12, that's kind of help support you, that support these members. What have you found to be successful as you've gone through maybe trials and tribulations of hiring the right people, making sure you've got the right people in the right seat to kind of support the business and the brand? John: You know, that's a great question, because I, up until about 2015, I took a whole different approach to personnel than I did 2015 and on, and it was like I learned something, and that is I put together a group of really knowledgeable people in terms of their expertise in certain areas, but the quality that I had not paid attention to prior to that was they also had to be connectors. They had to be the kind of people that could say hey, chris, I know somebody you ought to talk to. And so because when a non-doctor walks into a doctor's office, even with the responsibility of helping, they carry a different level of credibility with that doctor than if a doctor told them something. If we go in and say, hey, listen, you need to be open Saturdays, because there's a lot of business on Saturdays, I don't want to do it. But if a doctor tells them, oh man, you got to be open Saturday, they'll listen to it. But if a doctor tells them, oh man, you've got to be open Saturday, they'll listen to it. And so our guys who are in the field, they do tactical training and support for staff, but when a doctor is facing an issue that they know the answer to, they in turn, seek out other leadership in the doctor community to say would you mind giving so-and-so a call Because I think you could help them get through whatever issue they're dealing with. And so that quality and frankly it's, you know it requires someone who doesn't have much of an ego. Sure, because you know I say this all the time like my old friend Ronald Reagan used to say, there's no limit to what you can accomplish if you don't care who gets the credit. Chris: Yeah. John: And so we take that approach, and ours isn't about trying to get a bunch of credit. Ours is about trying to lift up this organization and get these guys successful, and if we're simply a facilitator in information to how to do that, we don't have to be the initial provider of that information. Even if we know it, it comes much better from a colleague, and so that's one of the things that we put a lot of emphasis on is helping the network, help each other. Chris: So you know you were very quick to say 2015. Have you seen a dramatic improvement in the performance of the overall business since making that change and kind of focusing on the connector quality as being an additional important quality in the people you bring on? John: Very much so, because what Texas State Optical was in the beginning was a doctor-owned organization and doctors working with other doctors to help them grow a network and large business. We're trying to replicate that from the standpoint of, especially as the business, the structure we use I mentioned earlier as a cooperative. It requires doctor leadership to be active and engaged in running their own company, their owners of the company, and so, while I have certainly an important role in that, the more doctors that engage in the leadership of the organization, the better it is overall. And since we took that intentional effort in 2015, a couple of things too. We had a kind of an evolution of membership. I mean, we had a lot of our older doctors retire and sell practices, and then we had a whole influx of young doctors, and so we ended up in 2015 with an organization that was significantly different demographically, both age and gender. That was significantly different demographically, both age and gender. But we thought they need mentorship among the leadership in the organization, and so we worked at creating that for them, and it impacts not just clinical I mean, there's also that aspect of it they're learning clinically from friends but operationally, and so it made a big difference Very good. Chris: I know that you have supply agreements with certain labs and other things. Let's talk about some of the things that you found to be successful in maintaining, I guess, forming those kind of key strategic relationships for the business, and maybe some of the things you do to make sure that you foster and keep them strong of the things you do to make sure that you foster and keep them strong. John: Well, in the vendor-doctor community there is a kind of an assumption made by both sides, and one is the doctor assumes that the vendor's got more money than they know how to spend or what they've got all this money to spend, and the vendor assumes the doctor's not going to follow through on all the promises they make. So that's kind of where we start at the table, and so I think it's important and what we've worked at bringing to our relationships is mutual accountability, and we have found our vendor partners to be extremely invested in our success, but at the same time they've got a business to run as well, and so our success with them and that dynamic of that exchange or relationship cannot be at the vendor's expense. It's gotta be the classic cliche win type of thing, but you only get win if you have mutual accountability. And so in every agreement we have, here's what the vendor commits to and here's what the doctor community commits to. And then we have business reviews where we sit down and say here's where we're dropping the ball or here's where you're dropping the ball, and we hold that accountability does a long goes a long way to not only making the relationship productive but also building trust and longevity into those partnerships, because if you're making money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, right, you know? And that goes both ways If you're a doctor making money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, and if money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, and if you're a partner, you don't want to stop. So I found that type of mutual accountability and the willingness to be held accountable is critical to those relationships Very good. Chris: So you know. Talk a little bit about leadership. You've been running this organization for a long time now. How would you describe your leadership style and how do you think that's evolved over time? John: well, I would. I don't know if I've ever been asked to describe it, but I would say it's Maxwellian. Okay, and that means John C Maxwell, who is an author, has written a number of books on leadership and, in my opinion, probably is the most the best leadership author. I'm biased, of course, but I think he is. Forbes Magazine said that a few years ago, but basically his definition of leadership is influence. Nothing more, nothing less. It's just influence. And an example of that is if you walk into a room of people, you're naturally going to notice someone who's exercising influence on others, and it isn't an authoritarian way, it's in a trust and credibility way. And so if you're influencing, you're leading. If you're not, it doesn no matter what title you have. So an example is my when I explained how we use doctors to help influence other doctors. So that's a level of influence that doesn't come because I require somebody to do something. It it occurs because you're able to influence others to to make a difference. So I would. I'm a big believer in that. I'll plug his book. There are 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. It's a classic, and so that's like a Bible. It's my business Bible in terms of leadership style. Chris: I was going to use that word because others and it's fair to plug books, because sometimes I ask people what's a book you would recommend. We hear a lot of good to great from people Sure, jim Collins. But what I love what you said if you're influencing, you're leading, because I say a lot of times a true leader leads without a title. John: Right, you're actually doing things without the title to demonstrate leadership, which is what you're talking about Exactly, and if you do have the title and can influence, it's a home run. It's a home run, yeah. Chris: So you've learned that through lots of trials and tribulations. I think we all learn through mistakes or setbacks Anything you could share with the listeners about a decision made that didn't go the way you thought but you learned from it and that learning kind of catapulted you made you better because of it. Setback, failure whatever word you want to describe Anything you could you care to share in that realm. John: Sure the. So I came to Houston. I was born and raised in Western Kansas and I was in Wichita born and raised in western Kansas, and I was in Wichita, kansas, in 1989, excuse me, in the late 80s, 84, 89 era and I was working for a large ophthalmology practice up there as a marketing administrator and in that role I attended a lot of national meetings in ophthalmology and during that meeting I met an owner of a large Houston ophthalmology and during that meeting I met an owner of a large Houston ophthalmology group who ended up offering me a job and I came to Texas. Due to some marketing challenges we were facing at that practice, I was introduced to Texas State Optical while I was at that practice and then left after about four years, left that practice and went to a consumer research firm here in Stafford and quickly turned around and went to Texas State Optical to see if they would like to buy some insurance I'm not insurance, buy some research and they did so. I ended up doing this large project for them but also ended up doing a ton of work for HLMP. During the time they were prepared to try to go to battle with Enron and this was like early nineties, right, and so everything was going well. And then I get fired from the research thing. Now I moved my family down from Kansas. I've been in the state about five and a half years and I get fired. I've been in the state about five and a half years and I get fired. And that was a big you know. Anytime you've been fired, that kind of devastates you Right, it shakes you up. Chris: Yeah, it does. John: But had that not happened, I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing Right, and so I have learned, and what pulled me through that is faith, Faith in God and faith in myself is faith, faith in God and faith in myself, and I felt like I can do, kind of what. There was a part of it, chris, that was liberating, because that was like, instead of thinking now what am I going to do, I was thinking now what am I going to do. I mean, it was a whole different frame of attitude and that subsequently ended up leading to the position I have today, through working with franchisees at Texas State Optical and so forth. Chris: That's a great story. Thank you for sharing. You bet A lot of people don't want to talk about, especially if they've been fired for something. But to your point on that, these other opportunities would have never presented themselves right, because you likely stayed in the comfort of the job and seeing where that takes you. You know there's so much that can come. John: Actually, I'd gone to that research firm. The owner of it had brought me there with the promise implied I mean not implied, but it wasn't in writing but the idea was that I would take over that firm at some point and it turned out that didn't work out Well you know a lot of what you, I think, describe. Chris: The undertone to that is the mindset you had in the wake of that setback. You know you didn't let it take you down. You're like like you said what am I going to go? Do I got all these opportunities and go? Explore and figure it out. John: So I had about 30 days before the next house payment came, so that you were acting quick, got to be decisive man. Chris: You can't be stewing on decisions forever, for sure, well, that and so you know that leadership, you know is forged and helped you get to where you are today. You know, when you, when you think about applying that mindset and that leadership kind of style, how does it help you kind of navigate the ups and downs of the economic cycles that we've experienced over the last 20 plus years? John: Well, you know, first of all is to understand which of these cycles are cyclical. That's a little redundant, but I mean, what is it we're going through that's cyclical. That you can. You know, business loves a stable and predictable environment. Right Now, the reality is it's ups and downs. But if it's ups and downs within a certain range of up and down, it's stable right, and you can prepare for it Certain tolerances right, yeah certain tolerances. What we've seen, not only in the economy and that's a whole different issue but what we've seen in the profession itself and the consolidation of private practice by private equity that's come into the marketplace, is we're seeing disruption like we haven't seen before. And I was talking to one of our board members doctor board members about it and we were just, you know, he was pointing out all of the things that are kind of out without from under excuse me, out of our control, and as we were talking about it, I had this thought and I told him. I said it's a great time to be alive and that because we're the ones that get to go through this, and in many ways I believe that our profession is going through a transformation that will take probably a 20 year period of time. But 40 years from now, optometry, I don't think, will look anything like it does today, and it's always bumpy to be in the middle of that turbulent transformation. The 80s were very steady, the 90s were pretty steady. It was in starting about 2010, 2000, that things started rapidly changing and then the acceleration with just technology and everything else is just gone, and then you've got now the whole world of artificial intelligence coming into play and it's. I consider it exciting, invigorating, challenging, but I mean what's? The alternative is to be bored right. Chris: Well, if you don't adopt and if you're not using it, you die use it you die, that's right. So I mean, you know, kind of it's a great segue to what are some of the things you do to kind of foster that maybe innovative mindset of how you're going to embrace the technological changes and use them in the business model to further the brand and the business. John: So I there's very little I can do without the support of the doctor, owner, community right. And sometimes there's a lot of indecision, because when you're not sure what to do, you're scared of doing the wrong thing. Chris: Sure, Well, it seems like you got a lot of opinions that out there too, right? John: You got a lot of them, and so what I have to do is to influence them through other people and through information, to get them to a point of being open enough to consider ideas that they might consider kind of sacrilege in some case. For instance, what is real common in most optometry practices today is what's called an autorefractor. It's a machine that people go through and it gives you a prescription, and the prescription is used by the doctor to zero in on where your visual acuity is right. Well, when that first came out, optometrists thought that was the end of the profession. Here's a machine that'll do what I'm doing. Optometrists thought that was the end of the profession. Here's a machine that'll do what I'm doing. And so there's a fear oftentimes of innovation. Right, that you have to assure people that there's a way to use this to our benefit, and that's what we're going through with artificial intelligence right now. One group is scared to death. It's going to replace them. The other group is glad they're old enough, they're probably not going to have to go through with it. And then you're looking for those people who say, hey, how can we utilize this to really to our benefit? Yeah, and once people feel that's safe enough to kind of try. Then the people realize that the fear is misplaced. Chris: So true, right, but it takes education, information and influence, as you said, to get people to get there so that they can adopt it One of the things that I teach my team to say. John: I mean to believe, and I say it all the time is we believe in everybody's right to make a bad decision. So if someone listens to us and they choose not to do what we're recommending and we know it's a good decision what we're recommending and they choose not to, it's their right. You know, I mean everybody's right to waste their own money. So that kind of patience is necessary with a group like ours. In many ways it's like working with a volunteer organization. Chris: Yeah, well, lots of challenges there, I'm sure. Well, john, this has been a great conversation. I really appreciate you sharing everything I want to ask you, I guess, going back to your days, you know, I guess growing up in Kansas what was your first job? John: A drugstore Rexall drugstore and I grew up in a town of 2000 people and my dad was the family physician of the community and so of course in a town like that in western Kansas the doctor and the pharmacist are close relationship. And so I got my first job at a drugstore, working a soda fountain, delivering prescriptions, restocking things. Like that had a blast and that really I learned a lot in that, not just like everybody learns a lot from their first job, but understanding. I was intrigued by Rexall. I don't know how familiar you are with Rexall, but Rexall was a national organization that gave private ownership of drugstores the purchasing power of a large corporate chain, and so my employer was the pharmacist. He owned the drug store and he stood up in the stand in the dais every day counting pills and chatting with people. So that was my first job. Chris: Very good. Well, you've been in Texas now since what the late? John: 80s. Chris: So do you prefer Tex-Mex or barbecue Barbecue? Okay. John: Barbecue Very good. My waistline prefers barbecue. Chris: And last thing if you could take a 30-day sabbatical, where would you go and what would you do? I don't know, Probably nuts. John: I just I've got to be engaged and I mean I don't have to be. I'm not select. I love business and I love the challenge it has. So I'm not I don't. You said earlier in our discussion about you were describing about the law firm. When I was doing consumer research, I did some healthcare work 12 Oaks Hospital was a client and so but I would tell people, is I specialize in a process, not an industry, because the process is the same and I would say that's what I really love about business, because when you boil it down to what I do and what you do and others that run businesses, it's the same process. It's understanding your customer and then directing how your services or products benefit that customer and communicating and the whole marketing scheme of promotion, price, product and place applies to every industry. And so I'd probably do something if I had 30 days. Like I said, I'd go nuts. Chris: Well, but I think what you just said there in the end is you have great insight and learning for business owners and entrepreneurs out there. You're trying to find their way. It's it is figure out what the consumer that you're catering to really wants and then deliver that as efficient as best you can that's why you know my, when I first got into consumer research, I thought this is like cheating. John: I mean you're actually going out and saying what do you want? They tell you, and then you give it to them. I mean it's like, it's amazing. Chris: Yeah, right, so well, this has been great, John. Thanks again for taking the time. You bet I really appreciate your invitation. Special Guest: John D Marvin.

In this episode we get into how I restored the midsole of the Orange Box SB Dunk classic "Flash" colorway. I talk about a lot of upcoming Dunks and then give some comments on the Agatha, Penguin and Rings of Power TV shows.  Plus you can hear a new background beat made on my new phone! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about how my sales are going, even though I have to keep my kicks super cheap in order to move them quickly.  Even though I'm feeling good about all the sales, I'm still thinking about grabbing those Light Carbon SB Dunks and adding to the collection once more.  I also get into the "Batman" Air Max 1s, Tekken 8 Foamposites, NIGO collabs on the Air Force 3, Lufia on SNES, and my new phone! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about 3 pairs of upcoming SB Dunks along with some Air Max releases. Then I get into the Castlevania Dominus Collection, Mickey Diamond, production techniques and more!  Did you know I wanted to go into hip hop reviewing before I started reviewing kicks? Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

You know that Sts. James and John approached Our Lord to ask Him that they might reign with Him, that they might sit at His right and left hand in His kingdom, once He had entered into His glory. Our Lord, in response, said to them, “Can you be baptized with the baptism wherewith I am to be baptized?” (Mk. 10:38) And they said, “We can.”You see in this request the desire to be identified with Our Lord, the desire for a complete and total association, such that Sts. James and John would be inseparable from Our Lord in His kingdom. Of course, there was a merely worldly ambition in this request. However, we are meant to have a similar ambition: we must want to be completely identified with OL.Our Lord says to Sts. James and John: “You do not know what you ask.” And then He proceeds to tell them what they need to do to have their request granted, and predicts that they will indeed accomplish what is necessary. There are three stages in this whole scene: a) the brothers desire to be identified with Our Lord; b) they understand the means necessary to reach that end through Our Lord's teaching; c) they employ those means by dying for OL.Let me remark in passing how few there are who even make it to the first step. Who wants to be completely identified with Jesus Christ? Is not such a one considered to be a religious fanatic by the world, a fool? Is not such a one obsessive? But who is the fool? Is it the saints who are fools who become fools for Christ, or is it the worldlings who become fools for the world?We, above all people, must have this burning desire to be identified with Our Lord. We, above all people, must understand the wisdom of Christ, and the folly of the world.“Can you be baptized with the baptism wherewith I am to be baptized?” Of course, Our Lord is speaking about His death. And you see from this that it is not enough for Him to die. If He dies and moves towards us, but we do not move towards Him, then there is no identification. This is why He says, “He who does not take up His cross and follow me is not worthy of Me.” We have to live the life of Christ, repeat that life, we may say.Our Lord issues the call “Follow Me” but He also gives us most powerful means of answering it. These means are the sacraments and the Mass. With St. Thomas the Apostle, once we have embraced this desire of identifying ourselves with Christ, we say, “Let us go and die with Him.” How? Well, firstly, we are baptized.In this sacrament, it is not sufficient for sin to be wiped away. On the contrary, it is necessary for the candidate to “switch sides”, to take on a new life, a new mode of existence. Quite simply, the baptized must be brought into the life of Christ Himself.St. Paul is at pains in many passages to make Catholics understand that their lives are now assimilated to that of Christ. In the early Church, catechumens walked down steps to be immersed or buried in a pool of water before rising up and walking up the other side. This was a symbol, St. Paul remarks in Rom. 6:3-4, of their death and resurrection, mirroring those of OL. As a result, they can “walk in newness of life”; they now live the life of Christ.

In this episode I review the Silver Surfer Dunk Low, my last anticipated pickup of the year as of now!  Then I get into selling off some pairs and what pairs are getting chopped, and my feelings as bits of my collection go.  Plus, cancelled Jordans, ugly New Balances with dope colorways, Castlevania collections, Lego Technic and more! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

Finally put some pairs for sale, and how it can impact my living space / aesthetic.  Also I discuss some Ultraman-like Dunks I saw pop up on Nike's site, as well as some upcoming NB 993s, Jordan 1 Low 85s and AM90 Halloweens.  And I'm back writing raps again! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about the Silver Surfer Dunks AGAIN and how I'm a bit disappointed at the photos on SNKRS.  Say it ain't so!  Still probably copping though.  Also I mention Seal Team, Lego Technic, Super Mario World, Castle In The Darkness, Reimagine Metallic 5s and Cough Drop Foamposites! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I reveal my thoughts on the all important topic "how high to lace your kicks".  I also talk about some upcoming New Balance, Metroidvanias, Google's latest core algo update and it's effects on my website and Google Data Studio.  Finally, I talk some more about Bone Thugs and the "clean" sound that damaged a lot of otherwise good records in the late 90s and 2000s. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I talk about how to use Salon Care 40 to whiten midsoles.  Use caution and don't do some of the stupid stuff I do... I am not responsible for you messing your kicks or skin up!  But warnings aside, it totally has worked to de-yellow some white midsoles on some of my older pairs.  I also talk about playing old school games, my love for Super Mario Bros 3, detailing my older car, and Lego Speed Champions! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I go over my thoughts about selling pairs and how often I actually wear any of my kicks vs how I used to wear them all back in the day.  I also discuss old school knock back in video games, The Mentalist, The Wire, Bone Thugs N Harmony and Batman cartoons. Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this one I go on about all the classics from back in the day now getting ready to retro.  Great if you really wanted these colorways but didn't want the resell.  But is this really what we need now?  Also a little bit on Mega Man 2 and Hot Wheels (of course). Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I get into why I'm chilling on buying kicks for a little while, and I finally made a new beat!  I also get into the $250 Bred Jordan 1s, some upcoming Dunks, and Nike's 55 shoe Olympic "pack". Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers

In this episode I briefly review my latest pickup and then get into a bunch of new kicks releasing.  I also get into Shoe Surgeon v Nike, Record of Ragnarök, Street Fighter 2 classics, Ace Attorney Chronicles and Dark Side of the Moon! Thanks as always for listening AFS Squad! Shoutout to the Patrons: Kyle M, Kingsley G, Tristan S, Brian D, Joshua N, John You can support this podcast, get your name listed above and get early access to episodes (paid tier) at: Patreon.com/ActualFanOfSneakers