1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:13,720 Speaker 1: Hiper One. It's Jason Kelly in New York with the 2 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:17,239 Speaker 1: special edition of Bloomberg Business of Sports. Well for the 3 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:20,880 Speaker 1: latest installment of our Athlete Empire documentary series, I went 4 00:00:20,960 --> 00:00:23,440 Speaker 1: to visit with Steve Young. He's, of course, the NFL 5 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:26,560 Speaker 1: Hall of Famer who's now the co founder and president 6 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: of the private equity firm h G g C. Now 7 00:00:30,760 --> 00:00:32,720 Speaker 1: this is a guy who made his name with his 8 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:36,560 Speaker 1: feet running away from defenders, running for the end zone, 9 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:39,120 Speaker 1: first a B y U and eventually with the San 10 00:00:39,159 --> 00:00:43,160 Speaker 1: Francisco forty Niners, where he won three Super Bowl rings. 11 00:00:43,840 --> 00:00:46,680 Speaker 1: And he's still on the move. We met up at 12 00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:49,519 Speaker 1: his Palo Alto office and then drove He's got a 13 00:00:49,560 --> 00:00:52,800 Speaker 1: sweet minivan down to Levi Stadium. That's where his old 14 00:00:52,840 --> 00:00:56,080 Speaker 1: team now plays. He still goes to games there at Levi's, 15 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: often hosting fellow investors in portfolio companies there in the 16 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:02,960 Speaker 1: suite that his firm has. We met up the following 17 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: week in Arizona. He was hosting a golf tournament for 18 00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:09,560 Speaker 1: his Forever Young Foundation, as well as a conference of 19 00:01:09,640 --> 00:01:13,639 Speaker 1: CFOs of h G g C companies, and after spending 20 00:01:13,640 --> 00:01:16,600 Speaker 1: a day chasing him around the golf course, literally chasing 21 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:19,480 Speaker 1: around in golf cards. We finally sat down for a 22 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:22,800 Speaker 1: long conversation there in Scottsdale, and that's what you're about 23 00:01:22,840 --> 00:01:25,480 Speaker 1: to hear. He talks about his playing days and the 24 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:28,520 Speaker 1: transition to life after football, as well as what it's 25 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: taken to build h G g C into a firm 26 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:35,440 Speaker 1: that's raised about seven billion dollars in private equity funds. 27 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:38,040 Speaker 1: I hope you enjoy it. To see the full documentary, 28 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 1: you can check out athlete Empire on blueberg dot com 29 00:01:41,120 --> 00:01:47,480 Speaker 1: or YouTube here. Steve, So, let's start by talking about 30 00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:52,000 Speaker 1: where we are. We're not in Palo Alto, where we 31 00:01:52,040 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: did spend a found together. We're here in Arizona and 32 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 1: this charity golf tournament where in the ball are suite. 33 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:00,480 Speaker 1: We are the ball. We are absolutely the ball are sweet. 34 00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:04,520 Speaker 1: And it was fascinating yesterday to watch you and I 35 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:07,200 Speaker 1: want to talk about it because it was like all 36 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:10,680 Speaker 1: these worlds colliding in some way. So and this happens 37 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 1: three times a year, right, so tell me about this. 38 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:16,240 Speaker 1: So our foundation, historically, that's how we make the budget. 39 00:02:16,960 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: And what we do is we trade on signed you know, 40 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:24,120 Speaker 1: footballs and helmets and jerseys and you know, even up 41 00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:26,600 Speaker 1: for different sports. And now we're in We've got to 42 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: one of the people that I signed, I basically signed 43 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:31,839 Speaker 1: my name because they you know, we make a deal 44 00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 1: like and then we get stuff to kind of use 45 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:36,400 Speaker 1: in the tournament. So it's it's like, that's how we 46 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:40,400 Speaker 1: make our budget. And uh. And then in time my partner, 47 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,320 Speaker 1: which laws and finally realized this is an opportunity for 48 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 1: our business. And I told you Originally I was like, 49 00:02:45,960 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: you know, easy, but it's phenomenal and it's really now 50 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:54,079 Speaker 1: we have our CFO conference at the Phoenix Tournament every year. 51 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:56,040 Speaker 1: That's kind of how we do it. And we're half 52 00:02:56,040 --> 00:02:58,840 Speaker 1: the field or more from our own portfolio, in our 53 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:01,600 Speaker 1: own firm. And so it's kind of all come together, 54 00:03:01,720 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: my firm, our charity, how fundraising efforts. And then the 55 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:07,960 Speaker 1: friends that are around, like there's a few guys, you 56 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:11,240 Speaker 1: know my oldest friends now is it's and my dad 57 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:15,240 Speaker 1: and my brother, like it's they're all. It's all happens 58 00:03:15,320 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 1: right there as a confluence of all these parts of 59 00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:22,360 Speaker 1: my life that have found it's common center, you know. 60 00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:25,839 Speaker 1: And I I can't tell you as time has gone 61 00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:29,680 Speaker 1: on how grateful I am. That's a that's a super 62 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:32,480 Speaker 1: cool thing that can happen in my life. I can 63 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:35,160 Speaker 1: roll and my whole life comes, you know, like in 64 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:39,880 Speaker 1: a circle. Uh, in one day, well exactly. I mean 65 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:42,120 Speaker 1: I felt like I was living a this is your 66 00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:45,560 Speaker 1: life with you, like chasing you around a golf course yesterday. 67 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,440 Speaker 1: Because as you say, they're all these different touchpoints. How 68 00:03:48,440 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: do you approach a day like that? I mean, how 69 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,040 Speaker 1: do you get because you've got a clipboard, You're like, 70 00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:56,000 Speaker 1: we've been at it a long time. So for me, 71 00:03:56,600 --> 00:04:00,680 Speaker 1: it's it's a it's a fun day to make all 72 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 1: the associations, but they're they're most of them our old associations, 73 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 1: you know what I mean. And so it's like going 74 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:09,680 Speaker 1: to the super Bowl. It's it's a in many ways, 75 00:04:09,680 --> 00:04:12,080 Speaker 1: it's a convention, right of the people that I don't 76 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 1: see maybe once a year, and it's all kind of 77 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:19,120 Speaker 1: quick close and kind of getting around. And I used 78 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:21,480 Speaker 1: to play. I used to just play with one group 79 00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:24,480 Speaker 1: and just you know, just play. And I finally realized that, 80 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:28,440 Speaker 1: you know, again, Steve, people come, they want to, we 81 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:30,159 Speaker 1: need to take the picture, we need to and so 82 00:04:30,320 --> 00:04:32,240 Speaker 1: part of it's a capitulation. I'm like, Okay, let's do 83 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:36,120 Speaker 1: the picture, you know. But then, like most things, I 84 00:04:36,160 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 1: realized it's good, Like it's actually things I want to 85 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:41,919 Speaker 1: do and things that I enjoy. And so luckily you 86 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:44,400 Speaker 1: live long enough. That's the blessing of living a little longer. 87 00:04:44,400 --> 00:04:46,880 Speaker 1: As you you get to see the screw ups of 88 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:50,360 Speaker 1: how you looked at things and how much there's benef 89 00:04:50,400 --> 00:04:52,599 Speaker 1: you know, it's a there's a there's an overall benefit 90 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:56,599 Speaker 1: to to my life in kind of the rigor of 91 00:04:56,600 --> 00:05:00,040 Speaker 1: the day, right, I like I I now look I 92 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:02,440 Speaker 1: see it as a huge opportunity more than anything. And 93 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:04,080 Speaker 1: to be fair, you did you did get in a 94 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: few holes at the end of the year, because you know, 95 00:05:08,279 --> 00:05:11,240 Speaker 1: through the last couple of years. Keith Clearwater, I have 96 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:14,440 Speaker 1: a I have a love for golf. Like a lot 97 00:05:14,480 --> 00:05:16,760 Speaker 1: of people, I as it really is a passion. I 98 00:05:16,800 --> 00:05:19,159 Speaker 1: love golf. I love thinking about it. I just don't 99 00:05:19,240 --> 00:05:21,760 Speaker 1: play it very often. But I believe that if you 100 00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:24,200 Speaker 1: love golf and you don't play very often, you can 101 00:05:24,400 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: get better kind of in your backyard. That's my theory, 102 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:34,000 Speaker 1: and it has proven untrue, and so it's been very 103 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:36,960 Speaker 1: frustrating because I want to prove that you do not 104 00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:40,560 Speaker 1: have to go play a lot, they get better. And 105 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:43,600 Speaker 1: uh so Keith's my check in, you know. I was like, 106 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:48,359 Speaker 1: because he's the guy that, uh he makes the most 107 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:50,560 Speaker 1: sense to me. And when you're talking, when you talk 108 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:51,920 Speaker 1: about golf and what you know, these are the things 109 00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:54,200 Speaker 1: you need to work on. I get a thousand tips, 110 00:05:54,200 --> 00:05:56,800 Speaker 1: you know from everyone, uh, but the thing that And 111 00:05:56,839 --> 00:05:59,039 Speaker 1: so when I get around him, I'm like, where's Keith. 112 00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:00,680 Speaker 1: I gotta get to him so I can give me 113 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:04,719 Speaker 1: a couple of tips. So you mentioned seeing your dad yesterday, 114 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 1: which for me at least having you know, learned a 115 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:09,120 Speaker 1: lot about you and talked to you a little bit, 116 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,080 Speaker 1: I mean, the seminal guy, seminal person in your life 117 00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:15,680 Speaker 1: and in many ways, and you talk a lot talking 118 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:18,920 Speaker 1: your book. I heard you talk to the CFOs about, 119 00:06:19,200 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: you know, these critical moments in your life and not 120 00:06:23,360 --> 00:06:28,400 Speaker 1: just moments, but sort of through lines and specifically what's 121 00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:31,920 Speaker 1: the plan and and when you think about yourself as 122 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:36,360 Speaker 1: a business person. I wonder how you sort of factor 123 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:38,440 Speaker 1: that in And and I have to say, for me, 124 00:06:38,480 --> 00:06:40,480 Speaker 1: at least like seeing your dad evoked a lot of 125 00:06:40,520 --> 00:06:43,080 Speaker 1: that for for me, and I wonder if it does 126 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:45,400 Speaker 1: for you as well. I think, like most people, you 127 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:48,920 Speaker 1: don't appreciate it when it's happening growing up, and all 128 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:50,920 Speaker 1: the things that your dad or mom do for you, 129 00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:55,320 Speaker 1: or any parent or parent person or guardian, it doesn't matter. 130 00:06:55,400 --> 00:06:58,880 Speaker 1: It's like it's just the relationship. Um when you're you know, 131 00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:00,880 Speaker 1: what is it, Mark Twain? The youth is wasted on 132 00:07:00,920 --> 00:07:02,920 Speaker 1: the young. I mean, you're you're, you're, you're kind of 133 00:07:02,960 --> 00:07:05,760 Speaker 1: don't You're not built to appreciate the way that now 134 00:07:05,760 --> 00:07:07,560 Speaker 1: it's time gone on, it has gone on, and I 135 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:11,240 Speaker 1: look back and reflect on the impact, and you go, 136 00:07:12,760 --> 00:07:17,480 Speaker 1: I mean, it's like the threads are thick, and and 137 00:07:17,640 --> 00:07:19,760 Speaker 1: how I look at the world. I didn't realize how 138 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: informed it was by how my dad looked at the world. 139 00:07:23,920 --> 00:07:25,760 Speaker 1: And and then you get older and you're like, oh 140 00:07:25,800 --> 00:07:30,160 Speaker 1: my gosh, that's amazing. How you know how much that happens. 141 00:07:30,240 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: And I think that's another thing to getting a little 142 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:37,400 Speaker 1: bit more ages than appreciation for those things and actually 143 00:07:37,480 --> 00:07:40,000 Speaker 1: having to be able to tie them all together for yourself. 144 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:43,320 Speaker 1: And that's what's happened in the last really in ten 145 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:46,760 Speaker 1: fifteen years, is just that appreciation for how thick that 146 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:50,040 Speaker 1: is and how beneficial it's been in my life, like 147 00:07:50,120 --> 00:07:52,280 Speaker 1: just as a direction, you know, you you'll be able 148 00:07:52,320 --> 00:07:53,760 Speaker 1: to say, you know, you wake up every day and 149 00:07:54,080 --> 00:07:57,080 Speaker 1: a new day, what direction are you headed? And so 150 00:07:57,200 --> 00:07:59,280 Speaker 1: much of which direction I headed every day was really 151 00:07:59,360 --> 00:08:03,040 Speaker 1: informed by how my parents thought about how to look 152 00:08:03,040 --> 00:08:06,480 Speaker 1: at every day. And uh, and that's where the you know, 153 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:08,520 Speaker 1: the great gratitude comes from. And he's not he's a 154 00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:09,760 Speaker 1: man of few words. I don't know if you got 155 00:08:09,800 --> 00:08:11,360 Speaker 1: a chance to talk to him. It's not like he's 156 00:08:11,360 --> 00:08:15,320 Speaker 1: gonna you know, but he's he's as fun and happy 157 00:08:15,320 --> 00:08:17,160 Speaker 1: as he's been in a long time because he's healthy 158 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:20,240 Speaker 1: and and uh, you know his nickname is Grit and 159 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:23,320 Speaker 1: probably not because he but when you get him, like anybody, 160 00:08:23,320 --> 00:08:25,040 Speaker 1: when you get him going, he's the funniest guy alive. 161 00:08:25,160 --> 00:08:28,200 Speaker 1: But h but as a but as super intense. But 162 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:32,199 Speaker 1: the plan becomes formative in many ways, and not just 163 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:38,040 Speaker 1: for football, and in many ways almost in spite of football, 164 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:40,880 Speaker 1: like it it transcends. And maybe tell me about that 165 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:45,439 Speaker 1: my career in private equity is solely on the back 166 00:08:45,520 --> 00:08:51,599 Speaker 1: of his constant pecking at me around football is a dream? 167 00:08:51,760 --> 00:08:55,480 Speaker 1: What's the plan? And because I constantly thought about that, 168 00:08:56,000 --> 00:08:58,520 Speaker 1: I was in a position because how we've talked a 169 00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:00,320 Speaker 1: little bit of how the transition. I give a couple 170 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:04,319 Speaker 1: of very important kind of things that happened, But fundamentally, 171 00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:06,840 Speaker 1: without the law degree, I wouldn't have been able to 172 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:09,719 Speaker 1: get the opportunity to get into direct investing. Now did 173 00:09:09,720 --> 00:09:11,640 Speaker 1: I have the NBA that everyone had out of Harvard? 174 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:14,640 Speaker 1: Did I do the four years of consulting or banking? 175 00:09:14,640 --> 00:09:19,199 Speaker 1: And you know no, But I think I was given 176 00:09:19,240 --> 00:09:24,040 Speaker 1: the opportunity um because I had that in my pocket. 177 00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:26,160 Speaker 1: And I wouldn't have it, and and I wouldn't have got 178 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:28,760 Speaker 1: a law school if my dad had not had driven 179 00:09:28,800 --> 00:09:31,520 Speaker 1: into my head that you better have a plan because 180 00:09:31,760 --> 00:09:33,960 Speaker 1: I don't care if And what's amazing to me Jason 181 00:09:34,040 --> 00:09:38,280 Speaker 1: is that he was actually he was right. I played 182 00:09:38,320 --> 00:09:41,199 Speaker 1: eighteen seasons and now there's a few that have played more. 183 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: How Brady is now twenty three, but there was a 184 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:46,839 Speaker 1: couple of guys that got to twenty. But I got 185 00:09:46,880 --> 00:09:50,720 Speaker 1: as many as maybe anyone who ever played. And I 186 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: still did have half of my life that I wanted 187 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: to be productive, and what could you do with another 188 00:09:56,200 --> 00:10:02,480 Speaker 1: half of a life? And and I without him backing away, 189 00:10:02,520 --> 00:10:06,400 Speaker 1: I mean I would have just wing did you know? 190 00:10:06,960 --> 00:10:08,720 Speaker 1: And uh, having a thought? And that's why I want 191 00:10:08,760 --> 00:10:11,600 Speaker 1: to pay it forward to future generations, to just give 192 00:10:11,679 --> 00:10:14,839 Speaker 1: them what's the plan? You know, I mean to kind 193 00:10:14,840 --> 00:10:17,439 Speaker 1: of pay forward. What what is your plan? And I 194 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:19,679 Speaker 1: don't care how long you play. If you think you're 195 00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:22,280 Speaker 1: gonna play for eighteen years, fine, still got another half 196 00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:24,120 Speaker 1: of your life. What are you gonna do? And just 197 00:10:24,160 --> 00:10:28,880 Speaker 1: to have that people that germinating in guy's minds, um, 198 00:10:28,920 --> 00:10:30,800 Speaker 1: it was super value to me, valuable to me, and 199 00:10:30,800 --> 00:10:32,840 Speaker 1: I would love it to think of you pay forward 200 00:10:32,800 --> 00:10:36,000 Speaker 1: to other people. And and so tell me about you know, 201 00:10:36,080 --> 00:10:38,480 Speaker 1: and you talk to the CFOs about this, this notion 202 00:10:38,480 --> 00:10:40,840 Speaker 1: of all right, you had a lot degree, but that 203 00:10:40,920 --> 00:10:44,720 Speaker 1: opens up but a lot of possibilities. You do have 204 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:47,679 Speaker 1: this conflation of events a little bit in the sense 205 00:10:47,760 --> 00:10:50,600 Speaker 1: that we talked about this in the way to you're 206 00:10:50,600 --> 00:10:53,880 Speaker 1: in Silicon Valley. So all these things are kind of germinating. 207 00:10:54,080 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 1: But that doesn't necessarily mean it happens. It happens, and 208 00:10:57,559 --> 00:11:01,080 Speaker 1: so what what's the moment or or what's the process 209 00:11:01,160 --> 00:11:04,280 Speaker 1: by which you've become an investor? You know, the truth 210 00:11:04,400 --> 00:11:07,040 Speaker 1: is if you think about the entrepreneurship that was born 211 00:11:07,080 --> 00:11:09,200 Speaker 1: out of the locker room to find those relationships up 212 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:11,440 Speaker 1: and down sand Hill and to think about, Okay, what 213 00:11:11,480 --> 00:11:13,760 Speaker 1: do I have, what are my assets and what can 214 00:11:13,800 --> 00:11:16,959 Speaker 1: I what can I trade on to kind of figure 215 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:21,240 Speaker 1: out ways to entrepreneurial spirit, to start Northgate Capital with 216 00:11:21,280 --> 00:11:24,600 Speaker 1: Brent Jones and Tommy Vardell, to to start a business 217 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:29,199 Speaker 1: found with some buddies from Scope, from college and find investors, 218 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:33,320 Speaker 1: sophisticated institutional investors like you look back and the like 219 00:11:33,440 --> 00:11:35,400 Speaker 1: how did you get the private equity? Well, you know 220 00:11:35,400 --> 00:11:37,440 Speaker 1: it was there. It was that you know, you you 221 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:40,439 Speaker 1: started doing you know what you did private equity on 222 00:11:40,480 --> 00:11:42,880 Speaker 1: the other side. And I think that's the only way 223 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:47,320 Speaker 1: the transition happened is that you're looking back at being 224 00:11:47,320 --> 00:11:49,120 Speaker 1: on the board at power Bar and being in the 225 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:50,920 Speaker 1: locker room trying to talk about the those relationship and 226 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,079 Speaker 1: learning getting to be friends with Douglioni at Sequoya and 227 00:11:54,240 --> 00:11:56,360 Speaker 1: seeing the deals and how they thought about the world, 228 00:11:56,400 --> 00:11:58,760 Speaker 1: and being an investor in Bain and watching Bain go 229 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:00,959 Speaker 1: from the you know, from the very beginning to this 230 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:05,480 Speaker 1: uh you know, stratospheric rise and the personalities and what 231 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:08,120 Speaker 1: that the rigor of it. I've got that insight over 232 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:10,240 Speaker 1: time while I was while I was playing in many ways. 233 00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:14,160 Speaker 1: So um, and that's why I said, you know, LARRYS. Fitzgerald, 234 00:12:14,160 --> 00:12:17,120 Speaker 1: it's famously not famous, but to me, famously come ask 235 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:19,320 Speaker 1: me all the time, Steve, tell me more, tell me, 236 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,480 Speaker 1: tell me because he he's thinking about it and think. 237 00:12:22,520 --> 00:12:26,160 Speaker 1: And I tell Larry, because you're asking the questions, you're 238 00:12:26,160 --> 00:12:27,960 Speaker 1: going to find a way through it. And he now is. 239 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:30,080 Speaker 1: I just saw him on in the newspaper. He announced 240 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:32,400 Speaker 1: the huge hotel that he's building with the guys that 241 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:37,360 Speaker 1: the great restaurateur and others that like he's he's figuring 242 00:12:37,360 --> 00:12:40,560 Speaker 1: it out. And the encouraged players just keep asking questions. 243 00:12:41,160 --> 00:12:43,600 Speaker 1: And you know, because there were people should be worried 244 00:12:43,600 --> 00:12:46,280 Speaker 1: about the future. It's something that we worried about. And 245 00:12:46,360 --> 00:12:49,080 Speaker 1: so when you get into private equity and you start, 246 00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:53,520 Speaker 1: you know, Northgate comes along, then you start building and 247 00:12:53,559 --> 00:12:56,120 Speaker 1: in different parts of your life start start coming together, 248 00:12:56,760 --> 00:13:00,400 Speaker 1: um and then coming apart. So tell me about those 249 00:13:00,400 --> 00:13:06,000 Speaker 1: early days of what becomes h G. So really it's 250 00:13:06,080 --> 00:13:09,840 Speaker 1: fundamentally Bob Gay, who had been a close friend of mine, 251 00:13:09,880 --> 00:13:13,520 Speaker 1: who did a lot of philanthropy together. He I mean, 252 00:13:13,559 --> 00:13:17,199 Speaker 1: he you think about the O G s of private equity. 253 00:13:17,559 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 1: You could he's in there with Mitt Romney and Building Bain. 254 00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:22,040 Speaker 1: I mean that that, you know, he was the third 255 00:13:22,040 --> 00:13:25,840 Speaker 1: guy in a Bain and so he had deep private 256 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:31,600 Speaker 1: equity and experience and so and when I had started 257 00:13:31,600 --> 00:13:34,640 Speaker 1: the north Gate Capital and I had started found me start. 258 00:13:34,760 --> 00:13:37,480 Speaker 1: Don't overstate it, but I've just been involved in these 259 00:13:37,559 --> 00:13:41,239 Speaker 1: kinds of things, uh, And and then made the associations 260 00:13:41,440 --> 00:13:44,120 Speaker 1: rich and rich to me was very important because he 261 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:47,320 Speaker 1: was the traditional banker, the traditional private equity kind of 262 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:54,360 Speaker 1: uh heritage. We we were connected and partners at that point, 263 00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:57,240 Speaker 1: and Bob wanted, you know, I was encouraged to start 264 00:13:57,240 --> 00:13:59,640 Speaker 1: and help start Storge and Capital, and so that it 265 00:13:59,760 --> 00:14:01,679 Speaker 1: was just seemed like an almost a natural thing to 266 00:14:01,760 --> 00:14:03,960 Speaker 1: step into those shoes and be a founder in a 267 00:14:03,960 --> 00:14:07,319 Speaker 1: private equity firm. And that is that's the place where 268 00:14:07,520 --> 00:14:11,520 Speaker 1: in private equity, that's the spot where you can do 269 00:14:11,559 --> 00:14:13,600 Speaker 1: a lot of different things. But they got to actually 270 00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:17,120 Speaker 1: get in from the ground floor in a private equally firm. Uh. 271 00:14:17,160 --> 00:14:19,640 Speaker 1: And in many ways, you know, it cut my teeth 272 00:14:20,040 --> 00:14:23,560 Speaker 1: on a small two or fifty million dollar fund. And 273 00:14:23,600 --> 00:14:26,400 Speaker 1: so that was perfect too, because you know, you can't 274 00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:29,960 Speaker 1: over stretch yourself, and so it they you know, if 275 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:33,840 Speaker 1: you look, it was without it's like idiot savant, right, 276 00:14:33,920 --> 00:14:36,840 Speaker 1: like things that led to each other. But we're not 277 00:14:37,440 --> 00:14:40,560 Speaker 1: natural kind of outcroppings. And so getting into direct investing 278 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:44,480 Speaker 1: felt like, you know, people say, so, how do I 279 00:14:44,520 --> 00:14:48,960 Speaker 1: do that? Like it seems you know, disjointed, but it's 280 00:14:49,000 --> 00:14:53,160 Speaker 1: actually step by step in some ways, right and uh, 281 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:57,280 Speaker 1: and then how to lea day CD see was you know, Uh, 282 00:14:57,400 --> 00:15:00,280 Speaker 1: we invested in very successfully their first fund and storms 283 00:15:00,320 --> 00:15:03,080 Speaker 1: in capital and one of the two partners, Ron Mika 284 00:15:03,120 --> 00:15:06,800 Speaker 1: and Fraser Bullock, great guys, wanted to stay in Utah 285 00:15:06,840 --> 00:15:10,440 Speaker 1: and do this geographic kind of inner Mountain West two 286 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:13,880 Speaker 1: million dollar prihatically firm and rich and I because of 287 00:15:13,960 --> 00:15:17,840 Speaker 1: relationships that we kind of emerged out of my previous 288 00:15:17,880 --> 00:15:19,880 Speaker 1: life and other things that happened, like we have a 289 00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:24,600 Speaker 1: kind of grander visions. And Bob had gone to gone 290 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 1: to Africa for church service for three years, left Bain 291 00:15:27,560 --> 00:15:29,920 Speaker 1: to do it and now had to decide where to 292 00:15:29,960 --> 00:15:33,320 Speaker 1: come back. And Bain had grown in those three or 293 00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:36,360 Speaker 1: two thousand, four thousand seven are the you know, the 294 00:15:36,560 --> 00:15:39,080 Speaker 1: big years of growth for and so in two thousand 295 00:15:39,120 --> 00:15:41,400 Speaker 1: and seven, he's coming back to a Bain that's now 296 00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:44,960 Speaker 1: buying pizza Hut and Burger King and and and the science. 297 00:15:45,880 --> 00:15:48,360 Speaker 1: And we knew that he loved the art right the 298 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:51,239 Speaker 1: middle market, this you know, kind of down with the operators, 299 00:15:51,280 --> 00:15:53,520 Speaker 1: and and so Rich and I had this idea, let's 300 00:15:53,520 --> 00:15:58,440 Speaker 1: go pitch him to come back and start his own firm. 301 00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:00,640 Speaker 1: And so Rich and I flew over to Africa and 302 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:03,280 Speaker 1: bounced around in the car and as he was going 303 00:16:03,320 --> 00:16:05,320 Speaker 1: to visit missionaries and came up with the idea, and 304 00:16:05,360 --> 00:16:08,880 Speaker 1: he he did it. And uh, and that was you know, 305 00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:12,680 Speaker 1: so Huntsman Gay Global Capital. And then when John Huntsman, 306 00:16:13,280 --> 00:16:14,800 Speaker 1: it's a long story of how he didn't get over. 307 00:16:14,840 --> 00:16:17,440 Speaker 1: But and then Bob ended up going to full time 308 00:16:17,480 --> 00:16:20,560 Speaker 1: church service thousand eleven. So then in two thousand twelve, 309 00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:22,680 Speaker 1: Rich and I found ourselves and found ourselves kind of 310 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:26,400 Speaker 1: without the name partners and trying to now recreate eight 311 00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 1: hunts Global Capital into h G g C. So it's 312 00:16:29,720 --> 00:16:34,720 Speaker 1: a it's an evolving over period of time, but to 313 00:16:34,880 --> 00:16:38,400 Speaker 1: me it makes total sense to someone on the outside, like, so, 314 00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:41,120 Speaker 1: w how do you good luck trying to connect those 315 00:16:41,160 --> 00:16:43,360 Speaker 1: dots and I guess that's your job. Well, and and 316 00:16:43,360 --> 00:16:46,120 Speaker 1: in that, in that moment, I mean, I do wonder 317 00:16:47,040 --> 00:16:49,920 Speaker 1: the two named partners are no longer part of it. 318 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:52,880 Speaker 1: You obviously have a name. Why didn't you name it 319 00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:56,680 Speaker 1: Young Capital or whatever? I mean, I I well, first 320 00:16:56,680 --> 00:16:58,600 Speaker 1: of all, it was in you know, Bob never wanted 321 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:01,800 Speaker 1: to use his name, so you know that was that 322 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 1: was on my mind as well. But I also I 323 00:17:05,600 --> 00:17:09,800 Speaker 1: wasn't a great marketer. I mean there's more you know 324 00:17:09,840 --> 00:17:13,440 Speaker 1: I've run there's players that are Dion Sanders is a 325 00:17:13,480 --> 00:17:16,399 Speaker 1: genius marketer. When he played over the forty Niners, I 326 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,520 Speaker 1: got to watch it firsthand and talk about an athlete. 327 00:17:20,600 --> 00:17:24,000 Speaker 1: I mean, he could he could go from the field, 328 00:17:24,400 --> 00:17:27,520 Speaker 1: be a great locker room teammate and then be a 329 00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:31,320 Speaker 1: great marketer and he could actually put on those different shoes. 330 00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:34,960 Speaker 1: And I was, I'm not that talented. I'm not. I'm 331 00:17:35,000 --> 00:17:37,440 Speaker 1: not a genius marketer. If I was, maybe I would 332 00:17:37,480 --> 00:17:39,919 Speaker 1: have done something different. And so I've in some ways 333 00:17:42,359 --> 00:17:44,720 Speaker 1: I've held maybe maybe there's things I could have done 334 00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:47,320 Speaker 1: that would have made it even easier, better or whatever. 335 00:17:47,359 --> 00:17:50,840 Speaker 1: I just my my mind doesn't work that way. You also, 336 00:17:51,600 --> 00:17:54,359 Speaker 1: and I don't think this is a stretch. Had some 337 00:17:55,200 --> 00:18:03,840 Speaker 1: hesitation about being ex football players you wanted to be 338 00:18:03,880 --> 00:18:06,399 Speaker 1: an investor. Is that fair? It's very fair. And I 339 00:18:06,440 --> 00:18:10,000 Speaker 1: think I don't know how to say this the right way, 340 00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:14,560 Speaker 1: but the more famous you are as a player, the 341 00:18:14,600 --> 00:18:20,200 Speaker 1: more accomplished you are, the more I thought the difficulty 342 00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:23,960 Speaker 1: would have to actually have people take you seriously like 343 00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:26,280 Speaker 1: you can play a little bit, and then transition and 344 00:18:26,400 --> 00:18:27,960 Speaker 1: he goes, oh, yeah, used to play. You know, he 345 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:30,480 Speaker 1: was played at Harvard and then he played at you know, 346 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:33,359 Speaker 1: for a couple of seasons with the Browns, and you 347 00:18:33,359 --> 00:18:37,560 Speaker 1: know that that's fine. But a Hall of Fame football 348 00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:41,920 Speaker 1: player now wanting to be in a really intense environment 349 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:45,720 Speaker 1: in an industry that's you know, kind of like in 350 00:18:45,760 --> 00:18:49,119 Speaker 1: some ways the rigor of football. I may be overplayed it. 351 00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:51,480 Speaker 1: I can. I can admit that at this point. But 352 00:18:51,760 --> 00:18:56,560 Speaker 1: if you're gonna in my mind, if you're gonna start 353 00:18:56,600 --> 00:19:00,399 Speaker 1: from the beginning and be a founder and kind of 354 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:03,880 Speaker 1: clawed out from the beginning, you can't bring that with you. 355 00:19:04,560 --> 00:19:06,439 Speaker 1: That's gonna be. It's gonna be every day, every time 356 00:19:06,440 --> 00:19:08,040 Speaker 1: you walk in a room, it's gonna be part of it. 357 00:19:08,240 --> 00:19:11,440 Speaker 1: The worst that you can do is bring it with you, right, 358 00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:15,439 Speaker 1: And so I think there was a concerted effort and 359 00:19:15,480 --> 00:19:20,320 Speaker 1: maybe over effort to separate the two. And I've learned 360 00:19:20,359 --> 00:19:24,640 Speaker 1: how to become comfortable with both. And I think that's 361 00:19:24,680 --> 00:19:28,040 Speaker 1: a cool place. And but you you love the psychoanalyze 362 00:19:28,040 --> 00:19:29,800 Speaker 1: and Jason, you're like, you can't help it. You're like, 363 00:19:30,119 --> 00:19:31,679 Speaker 1: let me fare it through if let me find out 364 00:19:31,760 --> 00:19:34,720 Speaker 1: exactly where this is coming from. And I think that 365 00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:38,240 Speaker 1: you've hit a little bit of a vein that I've 366 00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:43,879 Speaker 1: purposely was not comfortable because my level of fame was 367 00:19:43,880 --> 00:19:46,960 Speaker 1: going to already be in the room. The level. What's 368 00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:49,480 Speaker 1: worse is the guy who's has it uses it as 369 00:19:49,520 --> 00:19:52,679 Speaker 1: a as a stick, you know. And I always my 370 00:19:52,880 --> 00:19:55,080 Speaker 1: my another dad and my analogy of my dad is 371 00:19:55,119 --> 00:19:57,359 Speaker 1: a stick in a tool, like you know, a weapon 372 00:19:57,400 --> 00:20:00,600 Speaker 1: and a tool. And I wanted my fame to be 373 00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:02,320 Speaker 1: a tool. I didn't want it to be a weapon. 374 00:20:02,840 --> 00:20:04,760 Speaker 1: And it's so easy to weaponize, right, you can bring 375 00:20:04,760 --> 00:20:06,639 Speaker 1: in and just slay the room and just tell everyone 376 00:20:06,680 --> 00:20:09,400 Speaker 1: to you know, And that's not the way I wanted 377 00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:11,439 Speaker 1: to do it. I wanted to be And it's hard 378 00:20:11,600 --> 00:20:13,960 Speaker 1: because it because it comes with you no matter what, 379 00:20:14,840 --> 00:20:17,719 Speaker 1: inevitably the conversation. Look, I just I've been out for 380 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:19,800 Speaker 1: twenty two years and I go in to talk to 381 00:20:19,800 --> 00:20:22,119 Speaker 1: our CFOs and our portfolio, and what do I do? 382 00:20:22,160 --> 00:20:24,840 Speaker 1: I talk about football. So I'm guilty of it as well. 383 00:20:24,880 --> 00:20:27,680 Speaker 1: But you can't. The lessons are true and that and 384 00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:31,200 Speaker 1: and they and they resonate, and so I've figured out 385 00:20:31,200 --> 00:20:34,359 Speaker 1: how to again, like most things in my life have 386 00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:37,359 Speaker 1: become integrated. But that all works now. But certainly when 387 00:20:37,359 --> 00:20:42,159 Speaker 1: I started, I held myself back in some ways because 388 00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:52,560 Speaker 1: I was so worried about being taken seriously. So in 389 00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:57,840 Speaker 1: terms of, you know, these worlds really integrating, it was 390 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:02,240 Speaker 1: really fascinating to hear you talk to the CFOs. First 391 00:21:02,240 --> 00:21:04,800 Speaker 1: of all, I would love to know how you approach that, 392 00:21:04,880 --> 00:21:07,639 Speaker 1: because I saw you on the side. You sort of 393 00:21:07,720 --> 00:21:09,480 Speaker 1: jotted down a couple of things and then you just 394 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:13,879 Speaker 1: like you were off, And I know it's not a 395 00:21:13,960 --> 00:21:17,880 Speaker 1: can speech, so there's there are certain elements there that 396 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:22,199 Speaker 1: you've clearly been thinking about in terms of metaphors and 397 00:21:22,240 --> 00:21:26,560 Speaker 1: analogies and connections. How do how do you approach something 398 00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:28,880 Speaker 1: like that? You know, I've done a lot of speaking 399 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:34,640 Speaker 1: and it gives me opportunities to kind of formulate themes 400 00:21:34,680 --> 00:21:38,960 Speaker 1: in my head, and I didn't realize how much those 401 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:43,159 Speaker 1: themes kind of roped off on the firm and uh, 402 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:47,760 Speaker 1: and I realized over time that they weren't just you know, 403 00:21:47,880 --> 00:21:51,399 Speaker 1: something to say there actually had some really important meanings. 404 00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:55,439 Speaker 1: And so I think over time it doesn't I'd written 405 00:21:55,440 --> 00:21:58,000 Speaker 1: down a couple of things I actually didn't. I stopped 406 00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:00,600 Speaker 1: where I started to write. I stopped because I'd spent 407 00:22:00,680 --> 00:22:03,119 Speaker 1: so much time talking about something I didn't really intend to. 408 00:22:03,720 --> 00:22:08,080 Speaker 1: But I also when I got started talking about what 409 00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:12,359 Speaker 1: a partner is and what these guys as CFOs think 410 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:15,080 Speaker 1: about every day, and retention and how do we keep 411 00:22:15,119 --> 00:22:17,760 Speaker 1: people in this environment? How do we make sure that 412 00:22:18,600 --> 00:22:22,760 Speaker 1: you know, we're having a place that you know, people 413 00:22:22,800 --> 00:22:25,280 Speaker 1: are happy and and and that just got me started 414 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:29,000 Speaker 1: on what what made my previous experience with the forty 415 00:22:29,080 --> 00:22:32,120 Speaker 1: nine ers, what was unique and different about them? And 416 00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:35,320 Speaker 1: where we made great you know, where we lead and 417 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,480 Speaker 1: where we failed, you know, So that and then how 418 00:22:38,520 --> 00:22:41,600 Speaker 1: to think about what is you know, this idea of 419 00:22:41,640 --> 00:22:43,720 Speaker 1: creative tension. I've been thinking about a lot a lot lately, 420 00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:46,600 Speaker 1: because people shy away from tension. It's like a tension 421 00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:49,280 Speaker 1: that's it seems very tense. We need to move away 422 00:22:49,320 --> 00:22:51,919 Speaker 1: because we need to be you know, everything's copasetic and 423 00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:56,240 Speaker 1: happy and bubbly, and it's like, no, but there's a 424 00:22:56,240 --> 00:23:00,919 Speaker 1: place where it gets toxic. And that's athletic in itself 425 00:23:00,920 --> 00:23:03,800 Speaker 1: to figure out where that line is. But having those 426 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:08,040 Speaker 1: guys think about and empower them as they sit in 427 00:23:08,160 --> 00:23:13,720 Speaker 1: unique spots two mold a business that needs to retain people. 428 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:19,200 Speaker 1: Some of these things, to me are vital ways to again, 429 00:23:19,520 --> 00:23:22,080 Speaker 1: which way do I face I waste, you know, and 430 00:23:22,119 --> 00:23:24,080 Speaker 1: how do I approach each day? It gives them some 431 00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:27,800 Speaker 1: fundamental kind of to me truth principles and I probably 432 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:29,399 Speaker 1: should write them all down and have them all co 433 00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:32,480 Speaker 1: colated and in a little thing and I can just 434 00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:35,320 Speaker 1: swift through and kind of pull them out. Um, that 435 00:23:35,359 --> 00:23:38,920 Speaker 1: will be another project out of the future. But hopefully 436 00:23:38,920 --> 00:23:40,800 Speaker 1: we tape some of this stuff over the years because 437 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:44,080 Speaker 1: it does build on itself. And uh, the guys that 438 00:23:44,119 --> 00:23:46,399 Speaker 1: have been around my shop for a long time, I 439 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:48,240 Speaker 1: really work hard to come up with new stuff because 440 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:50,440 Speaker 1: they're just so bored of seeing you know, Oh my gosh, 441 00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:52,520 Speaker 1: if you tell us that accountability story again, I'm gonna 442 00:23:52,520 --> 00:23:54,960 Speaker 1: go crazy. So even today I couldn't. I couldn't bring 443 00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:56,280 Speaker 1: it for I had it written down. I was like, 444 00:23:56,320 --> 00:23:58,360 Speaker 1: I just can't do it because I see Bill Conrad 445 00:23:58,359 --> 00:24:01,040 Speaker 1: and like, Bill, just I can't do it again, you know, 446 00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:04,080 Speaker 1: And least would say, look, there's six there's eight new people. 447 00:24:04,960 --> 00:24:07,040 Speaker 1: You tell them, you know, and I'm like, I worry 448 00:24:07,080 --> 00:24:09,640 Speaker 1: about the guy that's hurt it three times. So along 449 00:24:09,680 --> 00:24:16,240 Speaker 1: those lines, I want to talk about what you have described, 450 00:24:16,600 --> 00:24:21,640 Speaker 1: and rich is described as this different approach to private equity. 451 00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:24,040 Speaker 1: I know enough to be dangerous about about the business 452 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:29,199 Speaker 1: and this is, if not revolutionary, And again I'll do 453 00:24:29,240 --> 00:24:32,280 Speaker 1: the job of drawing the metaphors. Good luck making the case, 454 00:24:32,440 --> 00:24:34,919 Speaker 1: but go ahead, and I I it's worth making. I 455 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:40,600 Speaker 1: think so. I think that interestingly, as a quarterback, you 456 00:24:40,640 --> 00:24:44,760 Speaker 1: approach the game different left handed scrambling when nobody was 457 00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:47,120 Speaker 1: doing when nobody's doing it and you were physically told 458 00:24:47,119 --> 00:24:52,399 Speaker 1: not to. Similarly, you're going into private equity with a 459 00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:58,119 Speaker 1: very different playbook, and one might argue radically different, Why 460 00:24:58,440 --> 00:25:02,080 Speaker 1: and how does that actually get executed? Because there's a 461 00:25:02,119 --> 00:25:04,879 Speaker 1: lot of what a lot of people talk about it, 462 00:25:05,280 --> 00:25:08,119 Speaker 1: it's softer, you know, it's not something you can grab. 463 00:25:08,160 --> 00:25:12,600 Speaker 1: You can to two things. First of all, I realized 464 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:16,520 Speaker 1: pretty dramatically that football was unique in that there's so 465 00:25:16,560 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 1: many guys and you needed it. I think, did I 466 00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:21,280 Speaker 1: tell you the story about Steve Covey, Like, let me 467 00:25:21,320 --> 00:25:24,159 Speaker 1: just boil it down. One of the conversations I was 468 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:25,800 Speaker 1: on a plane with him in a very dark part 469 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:28,400 Speaker 1: of my career just happened sitting next to him. He's 470 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:31,399 Speaker 1: the seven Habits guy, and I've never really chatted with 471 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:34,400 Speaker 1: him before in my life. I knew of him and 472 00:25:34,520 --> 00:25:37,280 Speaker 1: told him how terrible it all was going and how 473 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:38,840 Speaker 1: hard it was, and how much I wish I would 474 00:25:38,840 --> 00:25:42,359 Speaker 1: have played golf, you know, and they don't just play. 475 00:25:42,760 --> 00:25:44,760 Speaker 1: I win or lose. And I know I'm going to blame. 476 00:25:44,960 --> 00:25:47,800 Speaker 1: Football is just too many guys, and you have to 477 00:25:47,880 --> 00:25:51,040 Speaker 1: kind of gather everybody, and some are disinterested and some 478 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:55,199 Speaker 1: are lessons than others, and you know, and and I 479 00:25:55,280 --> 00:25:59,040 Speaker 1: just remember moaning and complaining about it, and he had 480 00:25:59,080 --> 00:26:02,720 Speaker 1: something to say that just super important. It's informs your question. 481 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,840 Speaker 1: He said that it's been scientifically proven, Steve that the 482 00:26:06,960 --> 00:26:10,560 Speaker 1: most human beings that can work efficiently together is seven 483 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:14,600 Speaker 1: And when you add the eighth person and geometrically devolves 484 00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:17,919 Speaker 1: ninth even more so it gets worse, and so you 485 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:22,399 Speaker 1: get to the eleventh person, it's just chaos. And I 486 00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:25,959 Speaker 1: remember looking at him like I've I thank you for 487 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,639 Speaker 1: proving my point. I can't tell you how grateful I 488 00:26:28,640 --> 00:26:30,680 Speaker 1: am that you gave me this little tidbit because it's 489 00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,919 Speaker 1: been so frustrating. And then he came with with the hammer. 490 00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:37,600 Speaker 1: He said, but what you're missing is and why I'm 491 00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:39,880 Speaker 1: inspired to write my books and to do everything else, 492 00:26:39,960 --> 00:26:43,439 Speaker 1: is that, by definition, when you have too many people 493 00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:49,000 Speaker 1: and you can find efficiency or success or innovation or 494 00:26:49,000 --> 00:26:54,480 Speaker 1: anything else, it's magical because it makes no sense. It's 495 00:26:54,560 --> 00:26:57,359 Speaker 1: devolved in the number of humans that are in the 496 00:26:57,480 --> 00:27:00,439 Speaker 1: in the room scientifically does not make sense that you 497 00:27:00,440 --> 00:27:04,600 Speaker 1: could work together, and that when you do against science, 498 00:27:05,760 --> 00:27:09,040 Speaker 1: there's magic. And it just so resonated with me. That's 499 00:27:09,080 --> 00:27:11,560 Speaker 1: so true. Some of the greatest moments of my life, 500 00:27:11,640 --> 00:27:15,199 Speaker 1: or when fifty guys have one done something together and 501 00:27:15,240 --> 00:27:18,600 Speaker 1: you look at each other like I can't believe what 502 00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:22,280 Speaker 1: that feels like, and there is magic in it. And 503 00:27:22,320 --> 00:27:25,680 Speaker 1: I think what resonated with me in private equity and 504 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,119 Speaker 1: I gotta give Bob Gay credit because he loved the 505 00:27:28,119 --> 00:27:31,080 Speaker 1: middle market. He loved the operators, he loved the people. 506 00:27:32,560 --> 00:27:34,600 Speaker 1: He didn't you know, he was not great underwriter, and 507 00:27:34,600 --> 00:27:37,200 Speaker 1: he loved the science because you have to, and I say, 508 00:27:38,119 --> 00:27:41,160 Speaker 1: everyone can, you know, sciences should be a commodity. Everyone's 509 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:43,520 Speaker 1: great at the science, but as the layer of art 510 00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:47,080 Speaker 1: and the people. And so when we came together Rich 511 00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:49,919 Speaker 1: that was and Greg, that was fundamental to how we 512 00:27:50,040 --> 00:27:53,160 Speaker 1: saw the business. And that resonated with me back with 513 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:57,080 Speaker 1: you know the magic like that is the magic of football, 514 00:27:58,280 --> 00:28:01,480 Speaker 1: and this is very very much the same kind of 515 00:28:02,040 --> 00:28:06,320 Speaker 1: rigor and that there's magic in the people and if 516 00:28:06,359 --> 00:28:10,800 Speaker 1: you could leave the hubris behind. But that says I 517 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:12,840 Speaker 1: love that business, but it would be so much better 518 00:28:12,880 --> 00:28:16,919 Speaker 1: if I landed right. And that might be true, and 519 00:28:16,960 --> 00:28:21,520 Speaker 1: there's plenty of money made that way, but to me, 520 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:25,800 Speaker 1: the more profitable way to do it not just in returns, 521 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:31,240 Speaker 1: but in kind of legacy, in abundance, in a spirit. 522 00:28:31,240 --> 00:28:32,720 Speaker 1: I don't want to be too weird, but like in 523 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:36,479 Speaker 1: a is to approach it kind of looking at the 524 00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:40,640 Speaker 1: person across the table as your strategic partner. And in 525 00:28:40,760 --> 00:28:44,920 Speaker 1: that is complex, it's the person across the table has 526 00:28:44,920 --> 00:28:47,760 Speaker 1: never had a partner. They hate the process, the reason 527 00:28:47,800 --> 00:28:50,080 Speaker 1: why they started their businesses because they never wanted a partner. 528 00:28:50,080 --> 00:28:53,280 Speaker 1: And here they are at the table that they don't 529 00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:55,520 Speaker 1: really want to be at, and here you are across 530 00:28:55,560 --> 00:29:00,280 Speaker 1: the table trying to convince fundamentally that no, you you 531 00:29:00,320 --> 00:29:02,560 Speaker 1: really do want a partner. And then we get into 532 00:29:02,560 --> 00:29:06,280 Speaker 1: conversations around control. And that's my whole life, for my 533 00:29:06,280 --> 00:29:09,720 Speaker 1: my whole life. It's control, Like control is how you 534 00:29:09,760 --> 00:29:12,520 Speaker 1: get across the metaphorically across the goal line, like how 535 00:29:12,520 --> 00:29:14,760 Speaker 1: do you part control and how do you work with 536 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:17,560 Speaker 1: each individual unique way. I can yell at John Taylor. 537 00:29:17,560 --> 00:29:19,440 Speaker 1: I don't yell at Jerry Rice, you know I can. 538 00:29:19,800 --> 00:29:21,280 Speaker 1: I have to talk to Beren Joe in a certain way. 539 00:29:21,280 --> 00:29:23,840 Speaker 1: I gotta. And so all those aspects are just one 540 00:29:23,880 --> 00:29:27,840 Speaker 1: to one in private equity. And to me, private equity 541 00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:34,360 Speaker 1: at its best is art and at its best and 542 00:29:34,560 --> 00:29:39,120 Speaker 1: most profitable too. It's in this context of people first 543 00:29:39,320 --> 00:29:42,040 Speaker 1: and art first. And I think that we and we 544 00:29:42,240 --> 00:29:45,040 Speaker 1: raised money in two thousand seven on that and remember 545 00:29:45,160 --> 00:29:47,920 Speaker 1: LPs kind of glazing over looking at the returns of 546 00:29:47,920 --> 00:29:50,840 Speaker 1: both of our firm funds and saying Okay, I fine, 547 00:29:50,880 --> 00:29:56,840 Speaker 1: finely find you know, let's numbers. I think maybe be 548 00:29:56,920 --> 00:30:00,479 Speaker 1: profitable to talk to LPs. But we'll look, I told him, 549 00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:02,560 Speaker 1: and to each said in two thousand and eight, there's 550 00:30:02,600 --> 00:30:04,680 Speaker 1: a denominator of businesses that want to transact in this 551 00:30:04,840 --> 00:30:07,880 Speaker 1: kind of what we described, this artful way. Believe us, 552 00:30:08,440 --> 00:30:09,880 Speaker 1: we were pretty sure that that was the case, and 553 00:30:09,920 --> 00:30:15,560 Speaker 1: it was the case fifteen years later. What tenfold of 554 00:30:15,600 --> 00:30:18,720 Speaker 1: businesses that want to transact when they want to see 555 00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:21,080 Speaker 1: someone across the table that can take care of the legacy, 556 00:30:21,160 --> 00:30:26,160 Speaker 1: take care of the fifteen or twenty things that might 557 00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:29,640 Speaker 1: be as important as value, because everyone's like, what's the price, 558 00:30:30,400 --> 00:30:32,560 Speaker 1: But all of a sudden, there's fift things that I'm 559 00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:34,600 Speaker 1: I'm very concerned about that I need to make sure 560 00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:36,640 Speaker 1: that you and I are on the same page. And 561 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:39,240 Speaker 1: so the dominator business that want to transact this way, 562 00:30:39,280 --> 00:30:42,560 Speaker 1: it was really at this point most everybody. So that's 563 00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:44,840 Speaker 1: why everyone's a partnership investor now, right, because you have 564 00:30:44,920 --> 00:30:47,240 Speaker 1: to be because that's what everyone's looking for. And I 565 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:51,320 Speaker 1: tell everyone, well, that's great, you rent there, I live here, 566 00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:54,240 Speaker 1: this is all we do, and it foundationally. I remember 567 00:30:54,520 --> 00:30:58,200 Speaker 1: there was a guy a good friend ran a famous 568 00:30:58,240 --> 00:31:02,880 Speaker 1: private equity firm nearby, and he said, your culture. I mean, 569 00:31:02,920 --> 00:31:05,040 Speaker 1: I'm you guys over there, you know, because we're kind 570 00:31:05,040 --> 00:31:07,640 Speaker 1: of a not an unknown quality quantity, but we really, 571 00:31:07,680 --> 00:31:09,719 Speaker 1: you know, kind of under the radar. And as they 572 00:31:09,720 --> 00:31:11,680 Speaker 1: got to know it, it's like, your culture is what 573 00:31:11,800 --> 00:31:13,960 Speaker 1: I want our firm to be. Like, what do you do? 574 00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:16,479 Speaker 1: What do you how do you do it? I said, well, 575 00:31:16,520 --> 00:31:19,480 Speaker 1: the first thing you gotta do is your founders need 576 00:31:19,520 --> 00:31:22,400 Speaker 1: to put all of the relationships in the middle, and 577 00:31:22,440 --> 00:31:25,200 Speaker 1: no one owns anything, and you don't fight over those 578 00:31:25,240 --> 00:31:30,800 Speaker 1: relationships there they're the firms. The fifteen seconds he's like, yeah, 579 00:31:30,840 --> 00:31:35,920 Speaker 1: that's not gonna work. So it's like the culture has 580 00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:39,120 Speaker 1: to be kind of in the roots and that resonates 581 00:31:39,120 --> 00:31:41,560 Speaker 1: with people. And I think that that's what we're you know, 582 00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:44,920 Speaker 1: in our shop, we believe it. It's become it's not 583 00:31:44,960 --> 00:31:49,440 Speaker 1: a religion, but it's it's a it's a culture that 584 00:31:49,520 --> 00:31:52,720 Speaker 1: everyone's invested in and we we we we mean it. 585 00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:56,360 Speaker 1: And I think it goes back to my to my 586 00:31:56,440 --> 00:31:59,120 Speaker 1: roots as well, and it resonates with me, that's for sure. 587 00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:02,040 Speaker 1: And so that that ethos manifests itself I think in 588 00:32:02,040 --> 00:32:04,640 Speaker 1: interesting ways. And I spent some time with Brian from 589 00:32:04,680 --> 00:32:08,400 Speaker 1: Integrity to see over Integrity yesterday and he told me 590 00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:10,000 Speaker 1: a story that that I want to test out on 591 00:32:10,080 --> 00:32:12,000 Speaker 1: you and I want to see if you remember the 592 00:32:12,280 --> 00:32:14,800 Speaker 1: same way, which was you guys were looking to buy 593 00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:18,680 Speaker 1: the company. It was an auction situation and so it 594 00:32:18,800 --> 00:32:24,800 Speaker 1: was competitive and nineteen bids, nineteen and we were not 595 00:32:24,840 --> 00:32:29,920 Speaker 1: the highest price. He mentioned that a details, Yeah, exactly, 596 00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:34,520 Speaker 1: data exactly, But he said that he remembers this very clearly, 597 00:32:35,120 --> 00:32:38,000 Speaker 1: that the two of you had a conversation and you 598 00:32:38,040 --> 00:32:40,400 Speaker 1: were asking him about his life. You're asking him about 599 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:43,280 Speaker 1: his schedule, and he was talking about how much he 600 00:32:43,320 --> 00:32:47,400 Speaker 1: was traveling, and that you said to him, I want 601 00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:49,480 Speaker 1: to do this deal, but if we're going to do it, 602 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:51,920 Speaker 1: I need you to spend two weeks at home, not 603 00:32:52,040 --> 00:32:58,000 Speaker 1: on the road. True story, true story. And I um 604 00:32:58,040 --> 00:33:02,320 Speaker 1: I believed you. And this athleticism, this idea that you 605 00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:07,960 Speaker 1: could be emotionally athletic, is super important and I encourage 606 00:33:10,240 --> 00:33:12,560 Speaker 1: people to not be. You know, everyone can play one 607 00:33:12,640 --> 00:33:14,920 Speaker 1: key on the piano and they play great, but you've 608 00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:16,520 Speaker 1: gotta be able to play a lot of keys. And 609 00:33:16,560 --> 00:33:20,600 Speaker 1: the most healthy companies are the guys that and the 610 00:33:20,640 --> 00:33:24,959 Speaker 1: women that can you know, play the symphony, and that 611 00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:30,120 Speaker 1: means at home, that means efficiency on travel like boon 612 00:33:30,280 --> 00:33:34,280 Speaker 1: doggles and everything else, like what what really matters? And 613 00:33:34,400 --> 00:33:36,800 Speaker 1: making them the space for what I'm not saying what 614 00:33:36,800 --> 00:33:39,400 Speaker 1: what matters me? What matters to you? But now I 615 00:33:39,440 --> 00:33:41,520 Speaker 1: know what matters to you is similar to what matters me. 616 00:33:41,840 --> 00:33:44,840 Speaker 1: Make it matter and you know, if you're going to 617 00:33:44,920 --> 00:33:47,120 Speaker 1: take a week trip, make it two days, get the 618 00:33:47,120 --> 00:33:50,560 Speaker 1: same done, but get home. I don't know, I don't 619 00:33:50,560 --> 00:33:53,360 Speaker 1: know if that's that dramatic to success, but it certainly 620 00:33:54,280 --> 00:33:56,840 Speaker 1: always is resonated with me, and probably it seems like 621 00:33:56,840 --> 00:34:00,680 Speaker 1: a resonate with him, which is cool. What's interesting as 622 00:34:00,720 --> 00:34:04,600 Speaker 1: you think about Integrity is this is a business that, 623 00:34:05,600 --> 00:34:11,680 Speaker 1: again keep me honest, becomes an integral part of your portfolio. 624 00:34:11,880 --> 00:34:16,440 Speaker 1: I mean, arguably could be everyone has. Everyone has those 625 00:34:16,960 --> 00:34:20,560 Speaker 1: fund returners that you don't know, you didn't, you didn't expect. 626 00:34:21,680 --> 00:34:26,680 Speaker 1: We loved integrity from the beginning of Norfolk, Nebraska. Three Partners. Uh, 627 00:34:26,920 --> 00:34:28,960 Speaker 1: my dad would love it. Mike, Tom and Brian you know, 628 00:34:29,160 --> 00:34:32,080 Speaker 1: just you know, Jim, Tom, Steve, you know, not the 629 00:34:32,160 --> 00:34:36,520 Speaker 1: grand and uh, that's a reference to my family and 630 00:34:37,000 --> 00:34:39,520 Speaker 1: probably but anyway, it was but it had to grow 631 00:34:39,600 --> 00:34:41,000 Speaker 1: and it had It was really an m and a 632 00:34:41,080 --> 00:34:42,960 Speaker 1: story like we're gonna go out and find others to 633 00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:46,080 Speaker 1: kind of you'll be the platform and we'll bring others in. 634 00:34:46,520 --> 00:34:49,040 Speaker 1: And it was slow. It took time. We had to 635 00:34:49,120 --> 00:34:51,719 Speaker 1: have a shared services where the point is that you'd 636 00:34:51,719 --> 00:34:55,799 Speaker 1: have a a grouping back that would create this you know, 637 00:34:56,719 --> 00:35:00,200 Speaker 1: ability to do the back office accounting and h ARE 638 00:35:00,239 --> 00:35:01,799 Speaker 1: and everything else in a you know, a kind of 639 00:35:01,840 --> 00:35:05,320 Speaker 1: centralized place and that would be in a more efficient process. 640 00:35:05,400 --> 00:35:08,320 Speaker 1: As we brought new new people on and it took time, 641 00:35:08,920 --> 00:35:11,480 Speaker 1: more time than we thought. And there was a moment 642 00:35:11,480 --> 00:35:15,440 Speaker 1: when it's like is this working, you know? And how 643 00:35:15,880 --> 00:35:19,840 Speaker 1: Brian you know? And I think having those referendums and 644 00:35:19,960 --> 00:35:23,239 Speaker 1: deciding and re underwriting again and say no, he is, 645 00:35:23,840 --> 00:35:26,759 Speaker 1: and yes, this is the way is super cool. Now 646 00:35:27,400 --> 00:35:31,800 Speaker 1: when you know they're gonna be I mean, the returns 647 00:35:31,800 --> 00:35:35,879 Speaker 1: are you know, they returned the fund and more with 648 00:35:35,920 --> 00:35:39,120 Speaker 1: one just one investment off of a faith and a 649 00:35:39,239 --> 00:35:42,399 Speaker 1: relationship really more than anything, and a belief in each other. 650 00:35:42,719 --> 00:35:44,120 Speaker 1: And so now that we're on the other side of 651 00:35:44,160 --> 00:35:47,000 Speaker 1: that and now we used to be they were the 652 00:35:47,000 --> 00:35:50,200 Speaker 1: moon to our earth and now we're the earth to 653 00:35:50,280 --> 00:35:53,120 Speaker 1: the universe to them, like we're this small. That's how 654 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:56,200 Speaker 1: big they've gotten, and that you know anything like that 655 00:35:56,239 --> 00:36:00,440 Speaker 1: when you had those fundamental conversations on direction, which way 656 00:36:00,440 --> 00:36:02,799 Speaker 1: we're going to go, and decisions that you made together 657 00:36:03,160 --> 00:36:06,560 Speaker 1: partner and went through the rigor I look, I I 658 00:36:06,719 --> 00:36:09,879 Speaker 1: my previous life. It was amazing, you know, throwing Jerry 659 00:36:09,960 --> 00:36:12,680 Speaker 1: Rice a touchdown or Brent Jones like it was in 660 00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:14,960 Speaker 1: front of eighty thousand people and winning games like there's 661 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:18,640 Speaker 1: nothing like it. But you talk about that relationship and 662 00:36:18,680 --> 00:36:22,200 Speaker 1: how that was forged everything. It's not eighty thousand people 663 00:36:22,200 --> 00:36:27,000 Speaker 1: watching it, but it it feels familiar and how fun 664 00:36:27,040 --> 00:36:29,400 Speaker 1: to foundational it is to the experience and how like 665 00:36:30,280 --> 00:36:32,600 Speaker 1: amazing it is. And I think that's why there is 666 00:36:33,160 --> 00:36:36,760 Speaker 1: magic in private equity. Integrity is also an interesting example 667 00:36:36,840 --> 00:36:40,560 Speaker 1: of something notable and again somewhat radical that you do 668 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:46,040 Speaker 1: around compensation and ownership and something that and and help 669 00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:49,200 Speaker 1: me with this. You know you've extended that idea even 670 00:36:49,239 --> 00:36:51,879 Speaker 1: into your own firm in a in a different way. 671 00:36:51,960 --> 00:36:55,080 Speaker 1: So let's walk me through that. So Brian had the 672 00:36:55,120 --> 00:36:59,200 Speaker 1: idea that he had, you know, three thousand employees at 673 00:36:59,239 --> 00:37:03,880 Speaker 1: the time, and you know what, the equity owners of 674 00:37:03,920 --> 00:37:08,520 Speaker 1: the business, the people that have the stock are making 675 00:37:08,640 --> 00:37:12,239 Speaker 1: incredible amounts of money, but the employees are getting paid 676 00:37:12,280 --> 00:37:15,920 Speaker 1: their salaries. What if we gave them stock in the 677 00:37:15,960 --> 00:37:18,840 Speaker 1: business so that they as the business crew, they weren't 678 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:21,440 Speaker 1: just getting their salary, they were actually had stock that 679 00:37:21,480 --> 00:37:26,440 Speaker 1: would get more valuable. And I was like that, I 680 00:37:26,560 --> 00:37:31,960 Speaker 1: love right, shared you know, common experiences, right saying the 681 00:37:31,960 --> 00:37:34,319 Speaker 1: stuff that I've always talked about football and the idea 682 00:37:34,360 --> 00:37:38,440 Speaker 1: of building partnership, build partners with your employees, not just 683 00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:41,279 Speaker 1: be paid mercenaries. I'm overstating it, but not just paid, 684 00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:44,359 Speaker 1: but they're actually owners of the business. And I love 685 00:37:44,440 --> 00:37:47,600 Speaker 1: that concept. And he did that for three thousand people, 686 00:37:47,600 --> 00:37:51,800 Speaker 1: and I'm thirty three thousand range and you know, and 687 00:37:51,800 --> 00:37:53,840 Speaker 1: and then three or four years later, when the you know, 688 00:37:53,920 --> 00:37:57,120 Speaker 1: next transaction came by, that had turned into just an 689 00:37:57,160 --> 00:38:01,920 Speaker 1: astronomical return for the employees. And he did that as 690 00:38:01,920 --> 00:38:05,799 Speaker 1: a private business, and I thought, that's that's a way 691 00:38:05,800 --> 00:38:09,440 Speaker 1: to solve for a lot of the ills of a 692 00:38:09,480 --> 00:38:13,440 Speaker 1: corporate world and how people see the world as building 693 00:38:13,480 --> 00:38:17,920 Speaker 1: equity inside the employee base. I think that's I don't know, 694 00:38:18,000 --> 00:38:22,800 Speaker 1: I'm not new certainly, you know, not revolutionary, but actually 695 00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:25,640 Speaker 1: doing it when you don't have to, when you're not 696 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:29,200 Speaker 1: forced to. There's magic in that. And I loved that. 697 00:38:29,320 --> 00:38:30,960 Speaker 1: And I think we've done on our firm as well, 698 00:38:30,960 --> 00:38:34,200 Speaker 1: and kind of more distributed partnership and trying to give 699 00:38:34,239 --> 00:38:40,200 Speaker 1: equity out ownership not just held by two people, um, 700 00:38:40,239 --> 00:38:45,160 Speaker 1: because what that does is it allows for generational mindset. 701 00:38:45,360 --> 00:38:48,560 Speaker 1: It's not just waiting for two founders to you know, 702 00:38:48,960 --> 00:38:51,920 Speaker 1: shove off and then you know, I'll fight over the remains. 703 00:38:52,280 --> 00:38:55,759 Speaker 1: It's like it builds value in the system that's ongoing 704 00:38:56,160 --> 00:38:58,960 Speaker 1: and you can talk about and and to me, that 705 00:38:59,040 --> 00:39:01,400 Speaker 1: was it goes. It's funny. It goes back to Bill Walsh. 706 00:39:01,880 --> 00:39:05,640 Speaker 1: He took I watched him do it in the late eighties. 707 00:39:06,239 --> 00:39:08,720 Speaker 1: He filmed There's a guy with a camera, the old school, 708 00:39:08,760 --> 00:39:11,000 Speaker 1: you know, big thing on his back, and he'd followed 709 00:39:11,040 --> 00:39:13,600 Speaker 1: Bill around everywhere filming Bill as he spoke to the team, 710 00:39:13,640 --> 00:39:16,239 Speaker 1: went out on the practice field, installed the offense in 711 00:39:16,280 --> 00:39:19,520 Speaker 1: the lunch room and I kept at, what, what is 712 00:39:19,560 --> 00:39:21,160 Speaker 1: this like a museum they're doing or what are they 713 00:39:21,160 --> 00:39:25,120 Speaker 1: doing a special documentary? Like no one knew well what 714 00:39:25,160 --> 00:39:30,279 Speaker 1: it was was he was creating a physical tool kit, 715 00:39:31,360 --> 00:39:35,000 Speaker 1: a video based audio based of all his speeches and 716 00:39:35,080 --> 00:39:37,760 Speaker 1: all of his playbooks and all of his installations, everything 717 00:39:37,800 --> 00:39:40,319 Speaker 1: paper base that he had and essentially wrapping it all 718 00:39:40,360 --> 00:39:43,239 Speaker 1: up as a tool kit to do what at the 719 00:39:43,280 --> 00:39:46,160 Speaker 1: height of his career. He was world famous, and he 720 00:39:46,280 --> 00:39:50,000 Speaker 1: was Bill Walsh was three Super Bowls in and you 721 00:39:50,040 --> 00:39:52,520 Speaker 1: know he was the It was at the native of 722 00:39:52,640 --> 00:39:55,560 Speaker 1: his of his fame. He was doing this to hand 723 00:39:55,640 --> 00:39:58,799 Speaker 1: it to his assistant coaches that he wanted to go 724 00:39:58,880 --> 00:40:03,240 Speaker 1: have success in the league. He wanted to his minority coaches, 725 00:40:03,360 --> 00:40:06,680 Speaker 1: especially before the Rooney Rule, to give this tool kid, 726 00:40:07,320 --> 00:40:10,319 Speaker 1: because he knew if he gave it to him, they'd 727 00:40:10,320 --> 00:40:14,399 Speaker 1: have success. Who takes all their secrets, all the things 728 00:40:14,440 --> 00:40:16,719 Speaker 1: that makes them great at the height of their greatness, 729 00:40:17,120 --> 00:40:19,880 Speaker 1: three or four generations ahead of everybody else in the league, 730 00:40:20,120 --> 00:40:23,040 Speaker 1: and wraps it up and hands it to the people 731 00:40:23,040 --> 00:40:25,759 Speaker 1: who are leaving them to go coach other places, and 732 00:40:25,800 --> 00:40:27,880 Speaker 1: then says to them, you know what I'll see in 733 00:40:27,880 --> 00:40:31,279 Speaker 1: the championship game because he knows that with my tool kids, 734 00:40:31,320 --> 00:40:33,799 Speaker 1: I'm gonna you're gonna be competing back against me. And 735 00:40:33,920 --> 00:40:38,440 Speaker 1: it happened, and so to me, that is a Look. 736 00:40:38,440 --> 00:40:41,080 Speaker 1: I'm not selling everyone should give away their proprietary information. 737 00:40:41,239 --> 00:40:44,640 Speaker 1: But there's a spirit to legacy. There's a spirit too. 738 00:40:44,760 --> 00:40:47,400 Speaker 1: And so I watched it. I watched the guy at 739 00:40:47,440 --> 00:40:49,919 Speaker 1: the height of his and I said to him, Bill, 740 00:40:51,719 --> 00:40:54,600 Speaker 1: why would you do that? They said, Steve, We've got 741 00:40:54,600 --> 00:41:00,480 Speaker 1: to give opportunity. I want these men to succeed. And 742 00:41:00,520 --> 00:41:02,640 Speaker 1: I thought, that's a heck of a statement, because of 743 00:41:02,680 --> 00:41:06,120 Speaker 1: course you do. But who does the actual work to 744 00:41:06,239 --> 00:41:09,000 Speaker 1: give them the opportunity to go succeed? And giving away 745 00:41:09,040 --> 00:41:13,600 Speaker 1: what you own that is most valuable that ist is 746 00:41:13,640 --> 00:41:17,360 Speaker 1: that great business. You can make an argument maybe that 747 00:41:17,520 --> 00:41:20,400 Speaker 1: is the great business that we need to be in. 748 00:41:20,760 --> 00:41:22,960 Speaker 1: And so those are like when you ask me what 749 00:41:23,040 --> 00:41:25,560 Speaker 1: I'm thinking about most of us, because I witnessed it, 750 00:41:26,160 --> 00:41:30,440 Speaker 1: and I've seen this happen and I I know it is. 751 00:41:30,760 --> 00:41:32,759 Speaker 1: It's an abundant way to look at the world. And 752 00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:35,600 Speaker 1: you I can tell you that thirty years later in 753 00:41:35,640 --> 00:41:37,640 Speaker 1: the NFL, as I go around on Monday nights and 754 00:41:37,680 --> 00:41:41,239 Speaker 1: see the teams and see the coaching staffs, that Bill 755 00:41:41,280 --> 00:41:43,799 Speaker 1: Walsh and he doesn't get nearly the credit he is 756 00:41:43,880 --> 00:41:48,600 Speaker 1: the NFL. His coaching tree is is the NFL. You 757 00:41:48,680 --> 00:41:51,160 Speaker 1: name a team and you name that toolkit. That tool 758 00:41:51,239 --> 00:41:54,040 Speaker 1: kid has traveled around now and been built on two 759 00:41:54,320 --> 00:41:57,600 Speaker 1: so that today's offenses. If Bill was alive today and 760 00:41:57,600 --> 00:41:59,920 Speaker 1: he saw the offenses today, the first thing he'd say 761 00:42:00,080 --> 00:42:03,360 Speaker 1: is why didn't I think of that? That is amazing. 762 00:42:03,440 --> 00:42:05,040 Speaker 1: But the second thing that I'd want him to know 763 00:42:05,200 --> 00:42:08,520 Speaker 1: is they built it off you. What you did exactly 764 00:42:08,560 --> 00:42:10,960 Speaker 1: what the West Coast offense is is everywhere in the league. 765 00:42:11,280 --> 00:42:14,800 Speaker 1: So what is the spirit of what he did? It's legacy, 766 00:42:15,120 --> 00:42:21,520 Speaker 1: it's abundant, it's it's like a headwaters. And so there's 767 00:42:21,520 --> 00:42:24,480 Speaker 1: a way to make returns. There's a way to have 768 00:42:24,600 --> 00:42:27,479 Speaker 1: proprietary knowledge and not give it away. There's a way 769 00:42:27,480 --> 00:42:30,600 Speaker 1: to but there's a spirit. And I think what you're 770 00:42:30,640 --> 00:42:33,279 Speaker 1: describing with Brian and what we've tried to do is 771 00:42:33,280 --> 00:42:36,080 Speaker 1: a spirit of abundance that I learned from Bill Walsh. 772 00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:40,680 Speaker 1: And what better way to honor something that was formative 773 00:42:40,680 --> 00:42:43,080 Speaker 1: and funded foundational to how I see the world than 774 00:42:43,160 --> 00:42:46,880 Speaker 1: to have this new, wonderful career in private equity and 775 00:42:47,280 --> 00:42:53,360 Speaker 1: have it informed by this amazing cool stuff that happened 776 00:42:53,960 --> 00:42:56,239 Speaker 1: that would have no place in private ectory otherwise. So 777 00:42:56,239 --> 00:42:59,160 Speaker 1: it's like I can, I can bring it in and 778 00:42:59,200 --> 00:43:08,640 Speaker 1: it's so far, so good. So then roll it back 779 00:43:09,239 --> 00:43:12,960 Speaker 1: to something that I know is very much front of 780 00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:15,960 Speaker 1: mine for you in terms of paying it forward, in 781 00:43:16,040 --> 00:43:19,960 Speaker 1: terms of legacy, in terms of playbook, which is seeing 782 00:43:20,000 --> 00:43:24,839 Speaker 1: a generation of athletes coming up, seeing athletes who turned 783 00:43:24,880 --> 00:43:29,000 Speaker 1: professional and get taken advantage of, whose money is squandered, 784 00:43:29,480 --> 00:43:34,920 Speaker 1: who get who make mistakes. You've seen it, other athletes 785 00:43:34,960 --> 00:43:38,000 Speaker 1: have seen an athletes who work with you, like Junior 786 00:43:38,040 --> 00:43:40,640 Speaker 1: Bryant have seen it and experienced it. What do you 787 00:43:40,640 --> 00:43:44,200 Speaker 1: do about that? We gotta pay it forward. We've got 788 00:43:44,200 --> 00:43:46,480 Speaker 1: to the same thing build that. We need to package 789 00:43:46,640 --> 00:43:49,440 Speaker 1: up all of our experiences and that's my job. My 790 00:43:49,520 --> 00:43:52,600 Speaker 1: next job is to get developed the repository of all 791 00:43:52,640 --> 00:43:56,520 Speaker 1: the experiences of people who have transitioned. And by definition, 792 00:43:56,800 --> 00:44:00,520 Speaker 1: if you've retired from the game, you've transitioned. Doesn't mean 793 00:44:00,560 --> 00:44:02,800 Speaker 1: it was successful, it doesn't mean it wasn't a mess. 794 00:44:03,360 --> 00:44:05,719 Speaker 1: But the stories need to be told, and there needs 795 00:44:05,719 --> 00:44:08,680 Speaker 1: to be repository for those stories to be drawn from 796 00:44:08,719 --> 00:44:10,520 Speaker 1: for people who need to be thinking about. And then 797 00:44:10,520 --> 00:44:12,279 Speaker 1: you've got to go out to the rookies who have 798 00:44:12,400 --> 00:44:14,400 Speaker 1: stars in their eyes, who believe it's going to go 799 00:44:14,440 --> 00:44:17,440 Speaker 1: on forever. That the money just flows in, like you know, 800 00:44:18,000 --> 00:44:22,000 Speaker 1: off a waterfall, and the financial literacy that they have 801 00:44:22,280 --> 00:44:25,400 Speaker 1: versus the money that they own is a huge grand 802 00:44:25,440 --> 00:44:30,040 Speaker 1: canyon that just is where people just collapse into. And 803 00:44:30,120 --> 00:44:34,400 Speaker 1: so we owe it from our own experiences to to 804 00:44:34,719 --> 00:44:38,600 Speaker 1: to bring that forward. And I it's it's you know, okay, 805 00:44:38,680 --> 00:44:40,359 Speaker 1: young go get it done. Well that's in my head. 806 00:44:40,400 --> 00:44:42,719 Speaker 1: I gotta get it done. But to have you know, 807 00:44:42,760 --> 00:44:45,080 Speaker 1: I had a funny story. I was, unfortunately at a 808 00:44:45,120 --> 00:44:48,399 Speaker 1: funeral one of our coaches recently tragedy was run over 809 00:44:48,880 --> 00:44:52,160 Speaker 1: on a bike and uh and at the at the 810 00:44:52,200 --> 00:44:56,080 Speaker 1: funeral was one of my old tackles, Kirk Scrafford. He 811 00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:57,920 Speaker 1: played for a number of years, but no one you 812 00:44:58,200 --> 00:45:01,200 Speaker 1: like the annuals of the NFL. You're like Kurt Scrafford 813 00:45:01,200 --> 00:45:04,320 Speaker 1: from Montana and so you know, I'm like, Kirk, what 814 00:45:04,680 --> 00:45:07,160 Speaker 1: are you doing? He goes, well, you know, in this drawl, 815 00:45:07,320 --> 00:45:10,239 Speaker 1: you know, I'm living in Costa Rica, you know, And 816 00:45:10,520 --> 00:45:13,479 Speaker 1: he tells a story about starting ice cream stores and 817 00:45:13,560 --> 00:45:17,160 Speaker 1: how that was the transition. And immediately I said to 818 00:45:17,160 --> 00:45:21,080 Speaker 1: myself that story needs to be told for for future 819 00:45:21,120 --> 00:45:24,840 Speaker 1: generations so that someone can say, I do I is 820 00:45:24,880 --> 00:45:26,880 Speaker 1: that a franchise? How do I do that? And that 821 00:45:26,960 --> 00:45:29,719 Speaker 1: you can hear from him in his story. There are 822 00:45:30,320 --> 00:45:34,560 Speaker 1: untold numbers of people who have transitioned. It's awful for everyone. 823 00:45:34,800 --> 00:45:37,680 Speaker 1: Jason tom Brady's experienced it, right, He he had three 824 00:45:37,719 --> 00:45:41,920 Speaker 1: weeks of it, like who, No, it's a it's a 825 00:45:43,239 --> 00:45:47,160 Speaker 1: it's it's a brutal experience. But it needs to be 826 00:45:47,200 --> 00:45:49,600 Speaker 1: thought about. It needs to be prepared for and the 827 00:45:49,600 --> 00:45:52,560 Speaker 1: best that you can. And then while you're playing the 828 00:45:52,600 --> 00:45:57,000 Speaker 1: financial literacy, while you're essentially financially illiterate but yet making 829 00:45:57,000 --> 00:45:59,600 Speaker 1: lots of money, we need to support so that it's 830 00:46:00,440 --> 00:46:03,200 Speaker 1: it's not wasted. It can't be wasted. And this is on. 831 00:46:03,560 --> 00:46:05,399 Speaker 1: I've seen Goldman Sacks trying to do something. I see 832 00:46:05,400 --> 00:46:07,640 Speaker 1: Steph Curry doing it with Goal. I see people out 833 00:46:07,640 --> 00:46:10,520 Speaker 1: there and Andrea Goodala is doing some cool stuff. Everybody's 834 00:46:10,560 --> 00:46:12,759 Speaker 1: thinking about it, and we need to figure out a 835 00:46:13,200 --> 00:46:15,879 Speaker 1: you know, a kind of consolidated way to bring this 836 00:46:16,320 --> 00:46:20,200 Speaker 1: forward for for athletes, especially with Nils now these kids 837 00:46:20,200 --> 00:46:23,040 Speaker 1: in high school are now making half a million dollars. 838 00:46:23,920 --> 00:46:28,319 Speaker 1: I mean, who great, but this should be foundational to 839 00:46:28,360 --> 00:46:30,719 Speaker 1: their future. How do we figure out for them to 840 00:46:30,760 --> 00:46:35,480 Speaker 1: have to empower them to to own that? Good luck 841 00:46:35,480 --> 00:46:38,440 Speaker 1: telling an eighteen year old to like get Folcus financial 842 00:46:38,520 --> 00:46:46,239 Speaker 1: Literacy savings. You're playing your bonds and so as you 843 00:46:47,560 --> 00:46:52,240 Speaker 1: think back to, you know, sort of choosing private equity, 844 00:46:52,400 --> 00:46:54,240 Speaker 1: I just want to go back to that for a second, 845 00:46:54,480 --> 00:47:00,440 Speaker 1: only because you've now done this longer, longer than then 846 00:47:00,480 --> 00:47:02,640 Speaker 1: you play the game. You're you're quick to point that out. 847 00:47:03,400 --> 00:47:06,120 Speaker 1: Is private equity what you thought it would be? I mean, 848 00:47:06,680 --> 00:47:10,520 Speaker 1: it's dare I say, very financially rewarding? It is a 849 00:47:11,400 --> 00:47:14,359 Speaker 1: you know, is it? Is it what what you thought? 850 00:47:16,200 --> 00:47:22,400 Speaker 1: In important ways? Yes, in that if playing playing in 851 00:47:22,440 --> 00:47:25,880 Speaker 1: the NFL and trying to be good or great, it 852 00:47:25,960 --> 00:47:32,080 Speaker 1: takes everything you just pour yourself into it. You can't 853 00:47:32,080 --> 00:47:34,839 Speaker 1: replicate it. You can try, and you can waste your 854 00:47:34,880 --> 00:47:38,080 Speaker 1: time and you can actually create more problems for yourself 855 00:47:38,080 --> 00:47:40,960 Speaker 1: and trying to replicate what you had in the NFL. 856 00:47:42,280 --> 00:47:47,280 Speaker 1: But the challenges for me and private equity are seem 857 00:47:47,760 --> 00:47:51,440 Speaker 1: similar of what it takes and what it the challenges 858 00:47:52,680 --> 00:47:58,640 Speaker 1: and facing those challenges is energizing and and um, so 859 00:47:58,880 --> 00:48:03,120 Speaker 1: in that way personally, just the job and the business 860 00:48:03,640 --> 00:48:08,600 Speaker 1: and what successes and how rare it is is similar. 861 00:48:08,719 --> 00:48:12,759 Speaker 1: It feels similar. And I think that's that relationship is 862 00:48:12,920 --> 00:48:17,279 Speaker 1: valuable to me because I find the same kind of 863 00:48:17,320 --> 00:48:22,480 Speaker 1: satisfaction in doing the job well and not well, you know, 864 00:48:22,719 --> 00:48:27,080 Speaker 1: like if failings in successes, like just like my previous life, right, 865 00:48:27,719 --> 00:48:35,520 Speaker 1: and so that part, yes, Um, whenever you talk about money, 866 00:48:36,840 --> 00:48:39,280 Speaker 1: it can devolve quickly as far as trying to show 867 00:48:39,320 --> 00:48:46,000 Speaker 1: that you know import um. And I think that seeing 868 00:48:46,120 --> 00:48:51,880 Speaker 1: and empowering the Brian Adams of the world, I find 869 00:48:51,880 --> 00:48:56,560 Speaker 1: that that's worthy. Like that's private equity. You know, that's 870 00:48:56,560 --> 00:49:00,480 Speaker 1: a situation where private is super cool, super valuable, super abundant, 871 00:49:00,719 --> 00:49:04,759 Speaker 1: Like we created and helped this thing that now it's 872 00:49:04,800 --> 00:49:10,000 Speaker 1: going to employed people you know, I don't know, how 873 00:49:10,000 --> 00:49:11,640 Speaker 1: do you look at it and then being run by 874 00:49:11,640 --> 00:49:15,400 Speaker 1: people that have a spirit of you know, paying it 875 00:49:15,440 --> 00:49:18,200 Speaker 1: forward and you know that's the power. And I told Brian, 876 00:49:19,680 --> 00:49:22,840 Speaker 1: you know, my why of private equity is kind of 877 00:49:22,840 --> 00:49:25,960 Speaker 1: embodied in him and Brandy Jacobs and men member of 878 00:49:26,040 --> 00:49:30,520 Speaker 1: the Men and Women Kate Bull Seth had helped. That's 879 00:49:30,560 --> 00:49:34,080 Speaker 1: my why, right, because to empower like I can't change 880 00:49:34,080 --> 00:49:37,120 Speaker 1: the world, but I think those they can, and so 881 00:49:37,200 --> 00:49:40,439 Speaker 1: in that way, empowering them to do that while making 882 00:49:40,520 --> 00:49:43,840 Speaker 1: return for like it's like it's a multifaceted endeavor. But 883 00:49:43,920 --> 00:49:47,520 Speaker 1: while doing that, I you can change the and I 884 00:49:47,600 --> 00:49:49,840 Speaker 1: want and I would back you. I would. There's a 885 00:49:49,880 --> 00:49:51,880 Speaker 1: lot of people that are in powerful positions today that 886 00:49:51,920 --> 00:49:54,680 Speaker 1: I would not follow that. I would wish that they 887 00:49:54,680 --> 00:49:58,160 Speaker 1: were off the stage. But there are people that in 888 00:49:58,200 --> 00:50:01,000 Speaker 1: private equity you can back that. I hope that they 889 00:50:01,040 --> 00:50:04,120 Speaker 1: go big. I would follow you anywhere. And I think 890 00:50:04,120 --> 00:50:08,080 Speaker 1: that there's something you know, did it? Did it? Has 891 00:50:08,120 --> 00:50:11,560 Speaker 1: it fulfilled everything? No, there's fla feelings and foibles of 892 00:50:11,560 --> 00:50:13,799 Speaker 1: private equity, and it has a black eye for a 893 00:50:13,840 --> 00:50:18,440 Speaker 1: particular purpose. But I think we're missing the potential of 894 00:50:18,480 --> 00:50:21,600 Speaker 1: it too. So if you think about what's next, I mean, 895 00:50:22,440 --> 00:50:24,760 Speaker 1: I watch you, I've watched you over the past few days. 896 00:50:25,440 --> 00:50:28,640 Speaker 1: You are on the go like what's next, what's next? 897 00:50:28,680 --> 00:50:32,319 Speaker 1: What's next? So I'm gonna pointedly ask you that what's next. 898 00:50:32,360 --> 00:50:34,959 Speaker 1: You built this firm, you talked about wanting to get back, 899 00:50:35,040 --> 00:50:38,600 Speaker 1: but I know because I've read it and heard it. 900 00:50:38,960 --> 00:50:42,319 Speaker 1: People talked about running for office. I know people talk 901 00:50:42,400 --> 00:50:45,120 Speaker 1: to you in this day and age about owning a 902 00:50:45,160 --> 00:50:49,800 Speaker 1: sports team. You you've you're you're more embracing the world 903 00:50:49,800 --> 00:50:52,040 Speaker 1: of sports now. So how do you think about those 904 00:50:52,080 --> 00:50:55,680 Speaker 1: types of future opportunities. Well, it's through the lens of 905 00:50:55,719 --> 00:50:59,480 Speaker 1: what Barbill you know, put up with. So you know 906 00:51:00,040 --> 00:51:07,200 Speaker 1: that's number one. I think, Um, look, this is my 907 00:51:07,320 --> 00:51:10,160 Speaker 1: future here, this is my you know, this is my career, 908 00:51:10,239 --> 00:51:13,840 Speaker 1: this is what I want to do. Um people have 909 00:51:14,600 --> 00:51:16,839 Speaker 1: you know, younger guys in the firm are probably can't 910 00:51:16,840 --> 00:51:20,719 Speaker 1: help it to say. Well, so once you know, and 911 00:51:20,760 --> 00:51:23,520 Speaker 1: I told him as we tried to make this transition 912 00:51:23,560 --> 00:51:25,879 Speaker 1: to a distributed partnership, one of the questions that does 913 00:51:25,960 --> 00:51:27,640 Speaker 1: not is not going to be answered, is what I'm 914 00:51:27,640 --> 00:51:30,520 Speaker 1: gonna do because right now I have more energy than 915 00:51:30,520 --> 00:51:33,920 Speaker 1: I've ever had about doing it. So if you wanted 916 00:51:34,040 --> 00:51:39,359 Speaker 1: like a succession speech or conversation, it's not happening. So 917 00:51:39,400 --> 00:51:42,080 Speaker 1: that's what's next is that's not happening. Like I don't 918 00:51:42,080 --> 00:51:45,520 Speaker 1: know what's next, but it's not. Um, how to transition 919 00:51:45,560 --> 00:51:51,320 Speaker 1: into something else? Like um I am? I am about 920 00:51:51,400 --> 00:51:55,160 Speaker 1: what we talked about about figuring out ways to empower players. 921 00:51:55,800 --> 00:51:58,600 Speaker 1: It goes to mental health. That goes to all these 922 00:51:58,680 --> 00:52:02,000 Speaker 1: kinds of ideas that I have. I you know, for 923 00:52:02,000 --> 00:52:05,799 Speaker 1: for twenty years, I've gotten every safety, any idea of 924 00:52:05,840 --> 00:52:09,359 Speaker 1: making the football safer. I've seen the the helmet, I've 925 00:52:09,360 --> 00:52:12,200 Speaker 1: seen the mouthguard, I've seen the tracking, I've seen the data. 926 00:52:12,200 --> 00:52:15,920 Speaker 1: I've seen um the eye. You know, there's an eye tracking, 927 00:52:15,960 --> 00:52:18,800 Speaker 1: this phenomenal technology where you can put up goggles on 928 00:52:18,840 --> 00:52:21,520 Speaker 1: they'll track your eye or your pupil and tell you 929 00:52:21,560 --> 00:52:24,960 Speaker 1: whether you had sleep deprivation, whether you're you had a 930 00:52:24,960 --> 00:52:27,239 Speaker 1: head injury, whether your neck is hurt, whatever it is. 931 00:52:27,320 --> 00:52:30,120 Speaker 1: It's amazing and doing thirty sixty seconds trying to get 932 00:52:30,160 --> 00:52:32,560 Speaker 1: the NFL then adopt to this because it needs to 933 00:52:32,560 --> 00:52:34,640 Speaker 1: be on the sideline. It needs to in many ways 934 00:52:34,640 --> 00:52:37,839 Speaker 1: replace the neurosurgeon who is subjective, like we need an 935 00:52:37,880 --> 00:52:40,600 Speaker 1: objective test on the sideline. So it's like those kinds 936 00:52:40,640 --> 00:52:43,920 Speaker 1: of things like how can I what we just described 937 00:52:43,960 --> 00:52:45,680 Speaker 1: in all these ideas I had, It was like, you know, 938 00:52:45,719 --> 00:52:47,720 Speaker 1: I don't remember the old movie Night Shift with Henry 939 00:52:47,719 --> 00:52:51,399 Speaker 1: Winkler and uh, you know who was it? It was uh, 940 00:52:51,400 --> 00:52:54,560 Speaker 1: and you said he had had a tape recorder. You know, 941 00:52:54,600 --> 00:52:56,520 Speaker 1: it's like, he's the idea I got, you know, like 942 00:52:56,840 --> 00:52:59,600 Speaker 1: I know, well, we're gonna feed mayonnaise to tuna fish. 943 00:52:59,640 --> 00:53:01,759 Speaker 1: That's what do you know. It's like, you know, I 944 00:53:01,760 --> 00:53:05,080 Speaker 1: always laughed about that. But there are things that I 945 00:53:05,080 --> 00:53:07,440 Speaker 1: I've got in my mind that we need to get done. 946 00:53:07,680 --> 00:53:10,160 Speaker 1: And so maybe that's next. And if there was a 947 00:53:10,719 --> 00:53:17,600 Speaker 1: in the future really functioning repository of of wealth of 948 00:53:17,680 --> 00:53:22,000 Speaker 1: stories that can help younger players be more empowered with 949 00:53:22,040 --> 00:53:25,040 Speaker 1: their lives, that would be super cool. So maybe that's next. 950 00:53:25,400 --> 00:53:27,200 Speaker 1: I do want to push you just a little bit 951 00:53:27,280 --> 00:53:31,759 Speaker 1: on the ownership question, though, because we have seen this turnover, 952 00:53:32,800 --> 00:53:35,480 Speaker 1: and you know you talked with the CFOs about this 953 00:53:35,560 --> 00:53:40,600 Speaker 1: notion of seeing what ownership could be generations ahead of 954 00:53:40,600 --> 00:53:43,359 Speaker 1: where we are now. In terms of that partnership between 955 00:53:43,400 --> 00:53:47,279 Speaker 1: owners and players. You think a lot about partnership in 956 00:53:47,600 --> 00:53:50,200 Speaker 1: many ways. I have to think in the back of 957 00:53:50,239 --> 00:53:55,200 Speaker 1: your mind, you think, could I really marry these worlds? Look, 958 00:53:55,280 --> 00:53:59,160 Speaker 1: every player, I remember when um, at the end of 959 00:53:59,200 --> 00:54:02,600 Speaker 1: my days, uh, I need to Bartle had to step back, 960 00:54:02,680 --> 00:54:06,040 Speaker 1: and there was this time when you know, there wasn't 961 00:54:06,680 --> 00:54:09,759 Speaker 1: you know, someone in the office up upstairs. And I 962 00:54:10,000 --> 00:54:12,759 Speaker 1: remember Tim McDonald was kind of the defensive captain. The 963 00:54:12,760 --> 00:54:15,080 Speaker 1: two of us in our minds kind of ran the 964 00:54:15,080 --> 00:54:16,959 Speaker 1: team right, and we used to go up and sit 965 00:54:17,680 --> 00:54:20,239 Speaker 1: in the owner's kind of offices because no one's there, 966 00:54:20,239 --> 00:54:21,960 Speaker 1: and we like put our feet up and have lunch 967 00:54:22,000 --> 00:54:23,560 Speaker 1: and like act like we you know, we know what 968 00:54:23,600 --> 00:54:28,600 Speaker 1: we're doing. There's always a dream of players to have 969 00:54:28,840 --> 00:54:32,680 Speaker 1: a hand in managing that business. And I think that 970 00:54:32,840 --> 00:54:38,600 Speaker 1: guys like Aaron Rodgers, who have now agitated for you know, 971 00:54:39,480 --> 00:54:42,560 Speaker 1: I want to be in the room word happens is healthy. 972 00:54:43,040 --> 00:54:46,080 Speaker 1: I think it's actually profitable for the team because players know, 973 00:54:47,280 --> 00:54:48,960 Speaker 1: they know other they know how to scout, they know 974 00:54:49,000 --> 00:54:50,480 Speaker 1: how to tell you whether someone can play, and they 975 00:54:50,480 --> 00:54:53,600 Speaker 1: can actually help you make that partnership. So I'm in 976 00:54:53,680 --> 00:54:57,840 Speaker 1: favor of that. The idea that there's thirty two you know, 977 00:54:59,440 --> 00:55:03,920 Speaker 1: American royalty that own NFL teams, there's gonna be the 978 00:55:04,000 --> 00:55:07,319 Speaker 1: values are gotten so astronomical, that the trades are going 979 00:55:07,360 --> 00:55:13,040 Speaker 1: to be so rare, and they're gonna be so crazy, 980 00:55:13,360 --> 00:55:15,759 Speaker 1: you know that. You know, I had I had a 981 00:55:15,800 --> 00:55:19,400 Speaker 1: crack at it. A good friend of mine. Kevin Compton 982 00:55:19,440 --> 00:55:21,840 Speaker 1: and I with Brent Jones made a take a crack 983 00:55:21,840 --> 00:55:23,759 Speaker 1: out of twenty years ago and it didn't happen. But 984 00:55:23,960 --> 00:55:27,440 Speaker 1: those days I think are maybe gone now. Ken Peyton 985 00:55:27,440 --> 00:55:30,719 Speaker 1: Manning put together you know, when someone puts together an 986 00:55:30,760 --> 00:55:33,799 Speaker 1: equity check of you know, a billion dollars and heat 987 00:55:33,800 --> 00:55:36,360 Speaker 1: throws in twenty or forty or something, And yeah, I 988 00:55:36,400 --> 00:55:39,440 Speaker 1: think there's a way to do that. But um and 989 00:55:39,600 --> 00:55:41,640 Speaker 1: be a part of it, maybe even run it, you know, 990 00:55:41,719 --> 00:55:48,040 Speaker 1: like John Elway is famously done. Um Uh, I think 991 00:55:48,040 --> 00:55:52,759 Speaker 1: that's possible, But I don't. I think the world of 992 00:55:52,800 --> 00:55:56,360 Speaker 1: the NFL has gotten too big for for players to 993 00:55:56,400 --> 00:55:59,880 Speaker 1: actually own football teams. It does have to be fascinating, 994 00:56:00,080 --> 00:56:03,799 Speaker 1: you on from a broader canvas perspective to see how 995 00:56:03,880 --> 00:56:07,279 Speaker 1: much sports and professional sports and even amateur sports have 996 00:56:07,360 --> 00:56:10,640 Speaker 1: really come to help define the culture. It always has 997 00:56:10,719 --> 00:56:13,440 Speaker 1: to some extent. Even that you said it, you know, 998 00:56:13,480 --> 00:56:18,560 Speaker 1: and said the last the hundred most watched TV shows, 999 00:56:18,600 --> 00:56:22,879 Speaker 1: seventy five of them were the NFL. When you talk 1000 00:56:22,960 --> 00:56:32,360 Speaker 1: about cultural like media entertainment culture dominated by the NFL, 1001 00:56:32,760 --> 00:56:35,239 Speaker 1: dominated in a way that doesn't look like there's any 1002 00:56:35,280 --> 00:56:38,520 Speaker 1: stopping it. The idea that the NFL is ingrained in 1003 00:56:38,120 --> 00:56:41,720 Speaker 1: in the middle of American culture is it's not ingrained 1004 00:56:41,840 --> 00:56:44,600 Speaker 1: and dominating it. And so the quarterbacks, who are now 1005 00:56:44,960 --> 00:56:48,480 Speaker 1: more important than ever, are now recognizing that they have 1006 00:56:48,640 --> 00:56:52,560 Speaker 1: this space and place and time and and and and 1007 00:56:52,640 --> 00:56:56,439 Speaker 1: some are really taking advantage of it. You know, Tom 1008 00:56:56,480 --> 00:57:00,040 Speaker 1: Brady will be one of the great transitions in in 1009 00:57:00,040 --> 00:57:02,920 Speaker 1: in sports. As he goes on and does whatever he 1010 00:57:03,000 --> 00:57:05,160 Speaker 1: plans to do, he'll use all of that Whenever that 1011 00:57:05,200 --> 00:57:08,399 Speaker 1: happened Russell Wilson, you can see that Russell Wilson will 1012 00:57:08,440 --> 00:57:10,440 Speaker 1: be someone who will be able to transition and will 1013 00:57:10,480 --> 00:57:13,799 Speaker 1: be a media mogul of some kind. Right you can 1014 00:57:14,040 --> 00:57:17,760 Speaker 1: you can see the platforms that weren't there twenty years 1015 00:57:17,800 --> 00:57:20,160 Speaker 1: ago that are happening today for the players that are 1016 00:57:20,160 --> 00:57:29,840 Speaker 1: paying attention. Yeah, well, thanks for listening to this special 1017 00:57:29,960 --> 00:57:33,240 Speaker 1: edition of Bloomberg Business of Sports and my conversation with 1018 00:57:33,280 --> 00:57:37,520 Speaker 1: Steve Young. Check out the entire documentary The Athlete Empire 1019 00:57:37,800 --> 00:57:41,360 Speaker 1: Steve Young episode on Bloomberg dot Com or via YouTube, 1020 00:57:41,640 --> 00:57:44,320 Speaker 1: and don't miss the premier of Athlete Empire. Well put 1021 00:57:44,360 --> 00:57:47,800 Speaker 1: that out late last year. It features Alex Rodriguez, a 1022 00:57:47,960 --> 00:57:51,479 Speaker 1: rod and coming up next week in Dominican Sue. He's 1023 00:57:51,520 --> 00:57:55,600 Speaker 1: the fear defensive tackle and Warren Buffett protege who's building 1024 00:57:55,640 --> 00:57:59,720 Speaker 1: real estate and hospitality empire from his base in Portland, Oregon. 1025 00:58:00,160 --> 00:58:02,040 Speaker 1: I'm Jason Kelly. See you next time.